Within the next fifty-five days you will receive thirty-eleven hundred pounds of chains.

[kiya]

A lot of theology today.

oneironaut showed me a link to something around here that provoked me into a dot_cattiness snark.

Then I commented in a discussion where a bunch of people were responding to an awfully earnest but not especially ept evangeliser: I often find myself feeling like proselytisers are berating me about how I need to work with their terrific European history tutor, and aren't willing to listen when I point out to them that my major is physics, I don't need European history to graduate, and would rather work with someone who can explain differential equations to me.

(I've long been of the opinion that a religion that makes a practical benefit to me in being a better person with a better life and making a positive impact on people around me and a better world is a better religion for me than other options; I do rather suspect that the proselytiser in question wouldn't accept pragmatic evaluations over But My Book Says, though, more's the pity.)

Then I came across someone arguing that suggesting that a belief that there's no intrinsic purpose to existence is both less than ideally moral and equivalent to a belief that existence is purposeless. To which I replied "Purpose is a creation of the mind; existence is a property of reality." And it occurs to me that it strikes me that a belief that meaningfulness is derived from outside is shirking a responsibility to create meaning.

Plant you seeds.

I now have six lilypads. There were five when I planted it, but I took one off; it had gone yellow. So that's two new ones. And I can see two shoots down near the growth point.

Plant you seeds.

Comments

[keeps.livejournal.com]

My book says the only path to redemption is through becoming one with Krishna, and all who think they worship other gods are actually worshiping Him in a different (wrong) way.

But then, he also says the soul can't be damaged or destroyed, which I soundly disagree with.

[kiya]

Isn't there also something in there about how it doesn't matter if people get it wrong, because eventually they'll come around in the recycling bin enough to get it right?

[keeps.livejournal.com]

Well, if they get it bad enough wrong, they drop down into the animal kingdom, and from there it's hard to work your way back up. Unless you're used for a sacrifice.

I do like that way of thinking - that animal sacrifices and holy wars are good because everyone benefits from them. The animals get a quick level-up to humanity, and everyone who dies on both sides of the holy war get quick levels-up to low transcendence. It's so much cleaner than assuming animals don't matter, or the opposing side always goes to hell, regardless of which side you're on.

[sashajwolf.livejournal.com]

"Purpose is a creation of the mind; existence is a property of reality." And it occurs to me that it strikes me that a belief that meaningfulness is derived from outside is shirking a responsibility to create meaning.

I like that.

[kiya]

I was very . . . something with it. It says something that I think is important, at least, and does a fair job of it.