Hacker News Reader

Comment by ganzuul | Hacker News Reader

I did use the qualifier 'almost'... and I don't see you actually disagreeing with what I meant.

There was something called Eckhart Seminar Training or something which took people through decades of training in the more cumbersome system in a week. Similarly, a lot of cultural impedance has been removed in the teachings of Western sages.

Teachings need to be updated and modernized as we progress as society.

View on HN

> Teachings need to be updated and modernized as we progress as society.

I don't think there's any way to do that without understanding them, but to understand them fully you basically have to become a Buddha...so it is not clear how to do this without removing essential parts of the teachings, as are often done when surgically transposing bits of eastern philosophy into the west

What Westerners need to be taught is different from the needs of other cultures. Seekers here are seldom lacking in their discernment, but very lacking in their empathy.

I haven't experienced that the teachings need to change personally, but yes the emphasis needs to. Unfortunately westerners are being fed teachings that are more like "this meditation will make you experience a sober LSD trip" and "this one will cure your depression" and "this will give you insight into the nature of reality", because that's what westerners want. But what they actually need is teachings on compassion, loving kindness, etc, which they are in no way interested in. Ultimately you cannot have one without the other. There are no eastern spiritual paths that don't integrate both insight and compassion.

AFAIK the ads don't really correspond to the content. Regardless if you are looking for weight loss, business success, or liberation, you come into contact with the same teachings because it does all of the above. It brings people in with concepts they are familiar with.

Yeah I think you have to misrepresent to get people in, but personally I don't like that. I would rather we don't lie about it and Buddhism (for example) dies than we misrepresent it.

Reply on news.ycombinator.com