Zoroastrianism? Buddhism?

Alex David Groce · 03 Sep 1999, 11:57 · from urth-v0028.mbox · original

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From: Alex David Groce <Alex_Groce at gs246.sp.cs.cmu.edu>
Subject: Re: (urth) Zoroastrianism? Buddhism?
Date: Fri, 03 Sep 1999 11:57:32
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DhSunanda wrote:

>'How can a state be vigorous?' is a question asked of the Buddha (via an=20
>intermediary) by King Ajatasattu about the Vajjians. (Ajatasattu wants to =
use=20
>the answer to subvert the Vajjian State, and thus wage a winning war). The=20
>Buddha lists 48 conditions that under which a state might be expected to=20
>prosper and not decline.

>The four causes of disagreement are a direct translation, if slight=20
>rearrangement, of the traditional four speech precepts ('I undertake to=20
>abstain from false speech, harsh speech, useless speech, slanderous speech=
').=20
>Traditional Buddhist precepts (guidelines for ethical action) are divided=20
>into those for the body (physical actions), those for the speech=20
>(communication acts) and those for the mind (wrong views about reality).

So, then, is Wolfe parodying the Buddhist text, or the Ascian version
thereof?  After all, what Loyal-17 says most strongly suggests that the
problem is (A) the restrictions imposed on the Ascians are in fact enforcing
"real speech" to be translated through a medium that repeats lies (about
the wonderfulness of the Ascian way) and (B) it doesn't, in the end,=20
prevent much from being said (the anti-Orwell/Whorfian subtext).

"And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free." John 8:32
--
Alex David Groce (agroce+ at cs.cmu.edu)
Ph.D. Student, Carnegie Mellon University - Computer Science Department
8112 Wean Hall (412)-268-3066
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~agroce

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