[MD] Thoughts on Nihilism

[david buchanan]

Matt said:

If life is suffering, and nirvana is the "extinguishing" of suffering, I think the relationship (in some cases, self-established by adherents) between Buddhism and nihilism should be fairly plain.

dmb says:
I'm sure there are forms that could be called nihilistic but I think that's a misunderstanding. As it happens, I just heard the story again the other day. The Buddha in the classic legend began life as a prince with easy access to all sensual pleasures but then become such an extreme ascetic that he nearly died of hunger. This sort of frames the main point of his message, which is that desire is the cause of all suffering and that the true path is in the middle between hedonism and asceticism. 
This same principle can be applied to more philosophical matters, where the middle way is neither absolutism nor nihilism. 
There is no necessary connection between nihilism and buddhism. It's really a pretty practical way to help people suffer less. 
According to the documentary I just saw, the word that's translated into "suffering" isn't really as harsh as it sounds. It's not that desire is the cause of all agony and misery and grief. It's more like anxiety, discontent or a lack a satisfaction. There is sickness, starvation, murder and war too of course but it's mainly about getting some piece of mind in this life, in this world. He turned his back on that whole ascetic thing, you know? And that's when he started teaching.


 		 	   		  
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