[MD] Ham thinks the MOQ is a form of phenomenalism

[MarshaV]

At 02:38 AM 9/13/2006, Ham wrote:

Skip, skip, skip to my lou.


>Now if death is such an important part of life that friends and relatives
>are expected to attend two ceremonies to commemorate one beloved person's
>passing, I would say that it is a phenomenon worthy of philosophical
>exploration.  Only a fool thinks he will live forever.  If philosophy is to
>have any meaning for man, the natural events of birth, life, and death must
>be accounted for in its ontology.  You and Mark concern yourselves with
>biological and societal evolution; yet these processes were going on long
>before you were born and will not be affected by your demise.
>
>On the other hand, only two or three generations ago, you didn't exist, and
>in less time than that you will again cease to exist.  What do we make of
>that?  It's understandable that people would prefer not to dwell on it.  But
>can you honestly say that the termination of life is any less important or
>significant to you than the formation of the earth's land masses, the
>genealogy of the duck-billed platypus, or the history of Western
>Civilization?   Sure you can say that the individual self, the proprietary
>"ego", the infamous "I", amounts to nothing in relation to the infinite
>universe.  But I'll wager that if you could be convinced that some "part" of
>you
>transcends this finite existence, the life you live today would take on far
>more value.  This is what I think a personal philosophy should aim for.

Hi Ham,

Here's an interesting quote by Leonardo  da Vinci:

"While I thought I was learning how to live, I have been learning how to die."


And here's what RMP wrote:

"When early Western investigators first read the Buddhist texts they 
too interpreted nirvana as some kind of suicide. There's a famous 
poem that goes:

While living,
Be a dead man.
Be completely dead,
And then do as you please.
And all will be well.

It sounds like something from a Hollywood horror-film but it's about 
nirvana. The Metaphysics of Quality translates it:

While sustaining biological and social patterns
Kill all intellectual patterns.
Kill them completely
And then follow Dynamic Quality
And morality will be served."
                               (Lila, Chapter 32)


  Marsha