more from this thinker | more from this text
Full Idea
Nirvana means safety from the everlasting round of adventures of which the world of sense consists. The hindoo and the buddhist for this is essentially their attitude, are simply afraid, afraid of more experience, afraid of life.
Gist of Idea
Nirvana means safety from sense experience, and hindus and buddhists are just afraid of life
Source
William James (Pragmatism - eight lectures [1907], Lec 8)
Book Ref
James,William: 'Pragmatism - eight lectures' [Dover 1995], p.113
A Reaction
Wonderfully American! From what I have seen of eastern thought, including Taoism, I agree with James, in general. There is a rejection of knowledge and of human life which I find shocking. I suspect it is a defence mechanism for downtrodden people.
| 7600 | The Buddha believed the gods would eventually disappear, and Nirvana was much higher [Buddha, by Armstrong,K] |
| 7601 | Life is suffering, from which only compassion, gentleness, truth and sobriety can save us [Buddha] |
| 7900 | Speak the truth, yield not to anger, give what you can to him who asks [Anon (Dham)] |
| 7904 | The first stage of trance is calm amidst applied and discursive thinking [Ashvaghosha] |
| 7905 | The Buddha sought ultimate reality and the final goal of existence in his meditations [Ashvaghosha] |
| 7909 | The Eightfold Path concerns morality, wisdom, and tranquillity [Ashvaghosha] |
| 7607 | Nagarjuna and others pronounced the world of experience to be an illusion [Nagarjuna, by Armstrong,K] |
| 18990 | Nirvana means safety from sense experience, and hindus and buddhists are just afraid of life [James] |
| 7901 | 'Buddha' just means a person who is fully enlightened about life [Conze] |
| 21832 | Buddhists reject God and the self, and accept suffering as key, and liberation through wisdom [Flanagan] |
| 23058 | Buddhism has no divinity or souls, and the aim is to lose the illusion of a self [Gray] |
| 20766 | Four Noble Truths: life is suffering, caused by attachment, it is avoidable, there is a path [Aho] |