I don't believe in the world beyond

My copy of the Dhammapada is falling apart (don’t worry I still have other copies).  This book never ceases to amaze me.  I can see why it might not be popular with secular Buddhists.  Thinking about secular Buddhists, I wonder what they think of this passage from the Dhammapada (176), vitinnaparalokassa, “Who has rejected the world beyond” which is the opposite of this world?  Here is the whole verse:

For the person who has transgressed the One Dharma,
Who speaks falsehood,
Who has rejected the world beyond,
There is no evil that cannot be done.

The commentary to this particular verse goes as follows:

“Who has discarded this world beyond— such a person sees neither the bliss of [the world of] human beings, nor that of the worlds of the gods, nor finally that of Nibbâna.  These three kinds of blisses he sees not.”

This invites us to ask about about apâra, that is, what about the “not beyond”?  Well, we learn from the Niddesa that it applies to the kilesas (corruptions), the psychophysical body (khandhas), and our volitions (abhisankhâras) which is pretty much the secular life!  

So the question we must ask of our secular Buddhists is how can they dismiss the world beyond and still call themselves Buddhists?  The short answer is they can’t. 

 

Comments

[Markj]

No, what you mean is that Secular Buddhists can't reject an unprovable and unlikely proposition and have YOU call them Buddhists. Fortunately, Secular Buddhists don't really care what YOU call them. My main question, especially to those of you who claim to be Zen practitioners -- if a transcendental metaphysical zone of some kind is so crucial to the practice of Buddhism, how come Western Zen teachers almost NEVER mention the concept? The only time I ever hear traditionalists in the West talk about such things is when they're denigrating those who don't accept them. By the way, we know that several verses in the Dhammapada read just like verses in Vedantic literature, so don't assume that because it's there it's some literal transcription of what Gotama said.

[Glenn Wallis]

>>So the question we must ask of our secular Buddhists is how can they dismiss the world beyond and still call themselves Buddhists? The short answer is they can’t.<<

Wrong, my friend. It's easy: Fuck the Dhammapada.

[Bob Morris]

Secular Buddhism is like eating the skin of the orange and throwing the juicy center away.

[Kojizen]

Dana Nourie, for some the Dhammpada can be like a smorgasbord. Others don't see it that way.

[Brent]

The quote itself appears to be an aged version of the discredited belief that atheists and agnostics are less moral than theists.

This assertion can be found in many religious and philosophical traditions, and at heart is nothing more than spiritual bullying aimed at silencing dissenting beliefs.

As an admittedly ignorant layman, I must admit to disappointment at finding the same kind of "appeal to authority" argument one hears from the Christian right in a Zen context. It feels out of place and contrary to the spirit of bold questioning I've come to expect from Buddhism.