Dharma

[Doug Millison]

At 1:05 AM 9/19/97, Christine Karatnytsky wrote:
>Bringing the conversation back to M&D, I would like to ask/add:  Is it
>not true in Buddhism that enlightenment can be attained without Divine
>intervention?  That peace and fulfillment can be attained without the
>proxy of a priest or, especially, of Savior from a celestial realm?

My understanding of Buddhism, at least the version practiced and explained
by the Vietnamese monk, Thich Nhat Hanh (a Nobel peace price nominee, more
info at http://www.parallax.org) in his books and tapes, is that Buddah was
not a god but was instead a human being who achieved enlightenment and that
each person has the potential to become a buddah. No priests necessary, and
no "divine intervention" necessary either. He does encourage people to form
communities and to meditate together and to practice Buddhist principles in
their daily lives. His most recent book is "Living Buddha, Living Christ"
which compares the two traditions.

D O U G  M I L L I S O N ||||||||||| millison at online-journalist.com