Bill Maher on buddhism

[MohammedT]

“Tiger said, ‘Buddhism teaches that a craving for things outside ourselves’) makes us unhappy, which confirms something I’ve long suspected about Eastern religions: they’re a crock, too…Craving for things outside ourselves is what makes life life — I don’t want to learn to not want, that’s what people in prison have to do. Buddhism teaches suffering is inevitable. The only thing that’s inevitable is that if you have fake boobs and hair extensions, Tiger Woods will try to fuck you.” - bill maher

“People are always debating, is Buddhism a religion or a philosophy: it’s a religion. You’re a religion if you do something as weird as when the Buddhist monks scrutinize two-year-olds to find the reincarnation of the dude who just died, and then choose one of the toddlers as the sacred Lama: ‘His poop is royal!’ Sorry, but thinking you can look at a babbling, barely-housebroken, uneducated being and say, ‘That’s our leader’ doesn’t make you enlightened. It makes you a Sarah Palin supporter.” - bil maher.


Adding “rational assertions” to religiously aimed literature is to miss the point. Philosophers of rationality, forget that religious ceremonies, rituals, and literature create the religious experience. They are cultural festivities incubating and perhaps immolating social politics. Identifying characteristics of “supernatural fathers” in essence only describes one mode of philosophy. Which is an occidental account of creation and salvation. The earliest paradigms of this mono-mythic cosmic affair were excavated in Persia. However, in the oriental belief one’s cultural mores are cultivated by social dynamics. They are not seeking self-salvation. Rather, he exists in harmony with the universe. A religious person is not seeking out the universe, he experiences it.. The subject sacrifices his identity to the conscious whole. Which is to say, the community. This is the real meaning of Marxism. Self-less thought. It’s irrelevant to mumble up characteristic flaws pertaining to oriental deities, because their image of cosmic gods differs vastly from occidental views and opinions. For instance, cosmic entities in the oriental belief are not authoritative. .. Sacrificing to the gods, has as much to do with superstition, as it does a culture of humans socializing food, while figuratively illuminating our relationship to the “circle of life”.

YouTube - Lion King - Circle of Life

YouTube - Lion King - Circle of Life

[Danny Day]

yeah I seen this dude saying this last friday....dude's ruthless against religions haha

[MohammedT]

You know i'm anti-religion, but there's clearly a difference he's missing. shit made me mad when i saw it live. These beliefs are more dynamic than' he's making them out. They're existential and stoic. Is autonomous - self governing not a radical rationalists approach?

[Danny Day]

i wasn't mad, as I watched it I thought about how it could offend some, but bill maher is out there to do his thing. He's dealing with topics none of these other shows really deal with so you need to give him some big credit. Plus, he's all about legalizing herb!

[MohammedT]

Originally Posted by Danny Day

i wasn't mad, as I watched it I thought about how it could offend some, but bill maher is out there to do his thing. He's dealing with topics none of these other shows really deal with so you need to give him some big credit. Plus, he's all about legalizing herb!

I love bill maher. Some times he talks out of his game. Plus i've noticed there's a militaristic atheism developing that's become more religious than they'd like to admit. I just don't believe in god and leave it at that. I don't need to fight a crusade.

[Danny Day]

word, I agree, pushing your belief on others is where it's wrong, and that includes atheism. I haven't seen the film he made about religions yet, but I plan on checkin it out soon

[SD34]

it's part of his act just like limbaugh

[LilZe]

I never thought i would see you convoluting bullshit like this. Bill hit the nail on the head with this one and you attack him because.....
wait im actually going to try and sift through this verbose oratory (did you see what i did there ) and get to the point of what you are trying to say;

Adding “rational assertions” to religiously aimed literature is to miss the point. Philosophers of rationality, forget that religious ceremonies, rituals, and literature create the religious experience.

Emm i really dont get what you are trying to say here.... When people look at religious claims and dispute them they forget that "ceremonies, rituals, and literature" which essentially make up religion or "create the religious experience"? How could anybody who looks to criticize religion overlook such a fundamental factor of what makes up religion?

They are cultural festivities incubating and perhaps immolating social politics.

Ok so if i am still following you, you feel that people who apply rationality to religious texts overlook that the texts contribution to the overall experience of religion and the subsequent religious festivals help in fostering new and getting rid of old aspects of how society is run?
What has this got to do with anything Bill said?

Identifying characteristics of “supernatural fathers” in essence only describes one mode of philosophy. Which is an occidental account of creation and salvation. The earliest paradigms of this mono-mythic cosmic affair were excavated in Persia.

You say applying a western view to eastern religions is bullshit? This is debatable but Bill does nothing of the sort, at least in the text you quoted.

However, in the oriental belief one’s cultural mores are cultivated by social dynamics. They are not seeking self-salvation. Rather, he exists in harmony with the universe. A religious person is not seeking out the universe, he experiences it.. The subject sacrifices his identity to the conscious whole. Which is to say, the community. This is the real meaning of Marxism. Self-less thought

Finally halfway through your response you get to the core of one argument. Self sacrifice is in the Buddhist context for the greater societal and universal good. I dont know enough to debate the motives of self sacrifice in relation to society but i think the universal aspect is fanciful bullshit.

It’s irrelevant to mumble up characteristic flaws pertaining to oriental deities, because their image of cosmic gods differs vastly from occidental views and opinions. For instance, cosmic entities in the oriental belief are not authoritative. ..

Fucking wow, you may have thought my first sentence was harsh but good god man, seriously? Seriously???? You buy this shit? You cant state flaws relating to eastern gods because they differ from the western ideal of what a deity is?and the example you give is the lack of autocratic gods in the eastern polytheistic set up? My criticism would be the lack of evidence for any eastern gods.....

Sacrificing to the gods, has as much to do with superstition, as it does a culture of humans socializing food, while figuratively illuminating our relationship to the “circle of life”.

This has nothing to do with anything bill said.

[mckronikz]

[Danny Day]

^ hahahaha fuckin wow!