457 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
457 lines
22 KiB
Plaintext
Moral Law
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World Scripture
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MORAL LAW
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Unlike the laws described by modern science, the immutable divine Law is
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inherently moral, and is the basis for human ethics. The Hindu concept of
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Dharma, for example, embraces at once the cosmological, ethical, social, and
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legal principles that provide the basis for belief in an ordered universe and
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an ordered, prosperous society. Religion, therefore, cannot easily accept the
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modern distinction between fact and value: there are ethical values in human
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life that are every bit as absolute as the fact that the earth revolves about
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the sun. The way to salvation lies in following the divine laws and revealed
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teachings--e.g., the Tao (Taoism), the Torah (Judaism), the Reading (Islam),
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the eternal Dharma (Hinduism and Sikhism), the Dhamma revealed by the Buddha,
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or the Word revealed in the Gospel (Christianity).
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The Law applies to all people, though not always equally. Most religions,
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including Buddhism, Islam, and Christianity, teach a single standard of law
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that applies to all people. In Hinduism, however, there are different dharmas
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for people of different social status (varna), stage of life (ashrama), and
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quality of inborn nature (guna), even though this differentiation should not
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obscure an underlying unity in the divine principle. Sometimes religions
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distinguish between the law for believers and the law for unbelievers, for the
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law of the community of believers is distinctive in that it is covenanted
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(contracted) with God. Regardless of this tendency to pluralism of laws, we
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can discern an underlying common ground for the moral law--often called natural
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law--which transcends religion or social circumstance. This common ground will
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be explored in the following sections on the Decalogue and the Golden Rule.
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This section begins with passages urging people to follow the divine law or
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holy teachings. These laws are liberating. They define the Way through which
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a person sanctifies his life, according to Judaism. They lay out the road to
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heaven, according to Hinduism and Sikhism, or to Nirvana, according to
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Buddhism. They are the keys to happiness and success in life, as depicted
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through the parables of the tree and the rock from the scriptures of
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Christianity and Islam.
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Law or Teaching is often an ambiguous concept, for there are laws that fetter
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as well as teachings that liberate. Christianity, for example, distinguishes
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the Mosaic Law which educates but confines from the liberating grace available
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through faith in Christ. Works of law cannot save or liberate, according to
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passages from the New Testament, the Upanishads, and the Buddhist scriptures.
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Laws and doctrines are of provisional value, a concession to human sin,
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according to a text from the Tao Te Ching. These religions look beyond the
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limitations of law to a higher relationship with the Absolute, what the
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Christian calls justification by faith, the Hindu experiences as union with
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Brahman, and the Buddhist experiences as Enlightenment. The concluding
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passages suggest this limitation of law and works done to fulfill the law.
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Liberation comes from living the holy Word.
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1. Sikhism. Adi Granth, Sri Raga, Ashtpadi 14.8, M.1, p. 62
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To him who orders his way aright,
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I will show the salvation of God!
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2. Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Psalm 50.23
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The God of old bids us all abide by His injunctions.
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Then shall we get whatever we want,
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Be it white or red.
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3. African Traditional Religion. Akan Prayer on Talking Drums
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Sri Raga: Cf. Japuji 1, p. 722.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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He who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no
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hearer that forgets but a doer that acts, he shall be blessed in his doing.
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4. Christianity. Bible, James 1.25
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And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you, but to fear the
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Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God
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with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments and
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the statutes of the Lord, which I command you this day for your good?
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5. Judaism. Bible, Deuteronomy 10.12-13
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God has revealed the fairest of statements, a Scripture consistent, [with
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promises of reward] paired [with threats of punishment], at which creeps the
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flesh of those who fear their Lord, so that their flesh and their hearts soften
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to God's reminder. Such is God's guidance, with which He guides whom He will.
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And him whom God sends astray, for him there is no guide.
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6. Islam. Qur'an 39.23
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The Holy One desired to make Israel worthy, so He gave them many laws and
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commandments.
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7. Judaism. Mishnah, Makkot 3.16
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Truth is victorious, never untruth.
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Truth is the way; truth is the goal of life,
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Reached by sages who are free from self-will.
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8. Hinduism. Mundaka Upanishad 3.1.6
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Truth is said to be the one unequalled means of purification of the soul. Truth
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is the ladder by which man ascends to heaven, as a ferry plies from one bank of
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a river to another.
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9. Hinduism. Narada Dharma Sutra 1.210
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Because perfect wisdom tames and transforms him, wrath and conceit he does not
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increase. Neither enmity nor ill-will take hold of him, nor is there even a
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tendency towards them. He will be mindful and friendly.... It is wonderful
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how this perfection of wisdom has been set up for the control and training of
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the Bodhisattvas.
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10. Buddhism. Perfection of Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lines 3.51-54
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James 1.25: Cf. John 8.23, p. 532. Deuteronomy 10.12-13: Cf. Joshua 1.1-9, p.
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1056. Makkot 3.16: For Jews, the Law is not a burden--as some interpret Paul
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in Galatians 3.10-14, p. 163--but a way of sanctification; cf. Abot 6.2, p.
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532; Tanhuma Shimeni 15b, p. 855.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Then do I proclaim what the Most Beneficent spoke to me,
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The Words to be heeded, which are best for mortals:
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Those who shall give hearing and reverence
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Shall attain unto Perfection and Immortality
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By the deeds of good spirit of the Lord of Wisdom!
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11. Zoroastrianism. Avesta, Yasna 45.5
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Sweet blows the breeze for him who lives by Law, rivers for him pour sweets.
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So [as we live by Law] may the plants be sweet to us!
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Pleasant be our nights, pleasant dawns, and pleasant the dust of the earth!
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Pleasant for us be Father Heaven!
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12. Hinduism. Rig Veda 1.90.6-7
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The law of the Lord is perfect,
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reviving the soul;
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The testimony of the Lord is sure,
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making wise the simple;
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The precepts of the Lord are right,
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rejoicing the heart;
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The commandment of the Lord is pure,
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enlightening the eyes;
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The fear of the Lord is clean,
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enduring for ever;
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The ordinances of the Lord are true,
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and righteous altogether.
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More to be desired are they than gold,
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even much fine gold;
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Sweeter also than honey
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and drippings of the honeycomb.
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13. Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Psalm 19.7-10
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Blessed is the man
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who walks not in the counsel of the wicked,
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nor stands in the way of the sinners,
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nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
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but his delight is in the law of the Lord,
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and on his law he meditates day and night.
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He is like a tree
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planted by streams of water,
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that yields its fruit in its season
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and its leaf does not wither.
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In all that he does, he prospers.
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14. Judaism and Christianity. Bible, Psalm 1.1-3
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Yasna 45.5: See Yasna 34.12, p. 771. Psalm 19.7-10: See Abot 3.6, p. 770.
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Psalm 1.1-3: See Joshua 1.1-9, p. 1056. This and the following passage from
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the Qur'an use the image of the Tree of Life to describe the person who lives
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in accordance with God's Word; cf. Revelation 22.1-5, pp. 1118f. Likewise, in
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John 15.4-11, p. 646 and Var Majh, M.1, pp. 645f. the Tree of Life symbolizes
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the founder and those who are united with him.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Have you not seen how God has struck a similitude?
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A good word is as a good tree--
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its roots are firm,
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and its branches are in heaven;
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it gives its produce every season
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by the leave of its Lord.
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So God strikes similitudes for men;
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haply they will remember.
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And the likeness of a corrupt word
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is as a corrupt tree--
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uprooted form the earth,
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having no establishment.
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God confirms those who believe with the firm word,
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in the present life and in the world to come;
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and God leads astray the evildoers;
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and God does what He will.
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15. Islam. Qur'an 14.24-27
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What Tao plants cannot be plucked,
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What Tao clasps cannot slip.
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By its virtue alone can one generation after another carry on the ancestral
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sacrifice.
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Apply it to yourself and by its power you will be freed from dross.
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Apply it to your household and your household shall thereby have abundance.
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Apply it to the village, and the village will be made secure.
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Apply it to the kingdom, and the kingdom shall thereby be made to flourish.
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Apply it to an empire, and the empire shall thereby be extended.
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16. Taoism. Tao Te Ching 54
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Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise
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man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods came,
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and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it
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had been founded on the rock. And every one who hears these words of mine and
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does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand;
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and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against
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that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it.
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17. Christianity. Bible, Matthew 7.24-27
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Whoever lives contemplating pleasant things, with senses unrestrained, in food
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immoderate, indolent, inactive, him verily Mara overthrows, as the wind blows
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down a weak tree.
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Whoever lives contemplating the impurities of the body, with senses restrained,
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in food moderate, full of faith, full of sustained energy, him Mara overthrows
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not, as the wind cannot shake a rocky mountain.
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18. Buddhism. Dhammapada 7-8
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Matthew 7.24-27: Cf. Dhammapada 25, p. 715. Dhammapada 7-8: Cf. Dhammapada
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337, pp. 927f.
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Why, is he better who founds his building upon the fear of God and His good
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pleasure, or he who founds his building upon the brink of a crumbling bank that
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will tumble with him into the fire of hell? And God does not guide the people
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of the evildoers.
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The buildings they have built will not cease to be a point of doubt within
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their hearts, until their hearts are cut to pieces; God is All-knowing,
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All-wise.
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19. Islam. Qur'an 9.109-10
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Easily known is the progressive one, easily known the one who declines. He who
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loves Dhamma progresses, he who hates it declines.
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20. Buddhism. Sutta Nipata 92
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The night passes; it is never to return again.
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The night passes in vain
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for one who acts not according to the law.
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21. Jainism. Uttaradhyayana Sutra 14.24
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Those who live in accordance with the divine laws without complaining, firmly
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established in faith, are released from karma. Those who violate these laws,
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criticizing and complaining, are utterly deluded, and are the cause of their
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own suffering.
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22. Hinduism. Bhagavad Gita 3.31-32
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Confucius remarked, "The life of the moral man is an exemplification of the
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universal moral order (chung yung). The life of the vulgar person, on the
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other hand, is a contradiction of the universal moral order.
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"The moral man's life is an exemplification of the universal order, because he
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is a moral person who unceasingly cultivates his true self or moral being. The
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vulgar person's life is a contradiction of the universal order, because he is a
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vulgar person who in his heart has no regard for, or fear of, the moral law."
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23. Confucianism. Doctrine of the Mean 2
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The blessed Buddhas, of virtues endless and limitless, are born of the Law of
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Righteousness; they dwell in the Law, are fashioned by the Law; they have the
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Law as their master, the Law as their light, the Law as their field of action,
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the Law as their refuge...
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The Law is equal, equal for all beings. For low or middle or high the Law
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cares nothing. So I must make my thought like the Law.
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The Law has no regard for the pleasant. Impartial is the Law. So I must make
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my thought like the Law....
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The Law does not seek refuge. The refuge of all the world is the Law. So I
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must make my thought like the Law.
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The Law has none who can resist it. Irresistible is the Law. So I must make
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my thought like the Law.
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The Law has no preferences. Without preference is the Law. So I must make my
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thought like the Law.
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The Law has no fear of the terrors of birth-and-death, nor is it lured by
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Nirvana. Ever without misgiving is the Law. So I must make my thought like
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the Law.
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24. Buddhism. Dharmasangiti Sutra
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Qur'an 9.109-10: Cf. Nahjul Balagha, Khutba 21, p. 1062. Sutta Nipata 92: Cf.
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Diamond Sutra 27, p. 533. Bhagavad Gita 3.31-32: Cf. Bhagavad Gita 5.24, p.
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533. Doctrine of the Mean 2: Cf. I Ching 50, p. 771; Book of Ritual 7.2.20, p.
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467.
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Now we know that whatever the law says it speaks to those who are under the
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law, so that every mouth may be stopped, and the whole world may be held
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accountable to God. For no human being will be justified in his sight by works
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of the law, since through the law comes knowledge of sin....
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What then shall we say? That the law is sin? By no means! Yet, if it had not
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been for the law, I should not have known sin. I should not have known what it
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is to covet if the law had not said, "You shall not covet." But sin, finding
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opportunity in the commandment, wrought in me all kinds of covetousness. Apart
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from the law sin lies dead. I was once alive apart from the law, but when the
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commandment came, sin revived and I died; the very commandment which promised
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life proved to be death to me. For sin, finding opportunity in the
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commandment, deceived me and by it killed me.
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25. Christianity. Bible, Romans 3.19-20, 7.7-11
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For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse, for it is written,
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"Cursed be every one who does not abide by all things written in the book of
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the law, and do them." Now it is evident that no man is justified before God
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by the law; for "He who through faith is righteous shall live"; but the law
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does not rest on faith, for "He who does them shall live by them." Christ
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redeemed us from the curse of the law....
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Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not; for if a law had
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been given which could make alive, then righteousness would indeed be by the
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law. But the scripture consigned all things to sin, that what was promised to
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faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.
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Now before faith came, we were confined under the law, kept under restraint
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until faith should be revealed. So that the law was our custodian until Christ
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came, that we might be justified by faith. But now that faith has come, we are
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no longer under a custodian; for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God,
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through faith.
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26. Christianity. Bible, Galatians 3.10-13, 21-26
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Dharmasangiti Sutra: This is one sutra in a large Mahayana collection of sutras
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called the Sikshasamuccaya. Romans 3.19-20: The traditional Christian
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evangelical purpose of the Old Testament (the Law) is to reveal the high
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standards of godly behavior, and thereby to show people how sinful they are, to
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elicit repentance, and thus to prepare them for the liberating word of the
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Gospel. But contrast Matthew 5.17-18, p. 662. Romans 7.7-11: This passage
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presents the psychological paradox that religious commandments often incite to
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sin. Furthermore the law, by making one conscious of moral obligations, may
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lead to an oppressive sense of guilt.
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- - - - - - - - - - -
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Finite and transient are the fruits of sacrificial rites. The deluded, who
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regard them as the highest good, remain subject to birth and death.... Attached
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to works, they know not God. Works lead them only to heaven, whence, to their
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sorrow, their rewards quickly exhausted, they are flung back to earth.
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Considering religion to be observance of rituals and performance of acts of
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charity, the deluded remain ignorant of the highest good. Having enjoyed in
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heaven the reward of their good works, they enter again into the world of
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mortals. But wise, self-controlled, and tranquil souls, who are contented in
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spirit, and who practice austerity and meditation in solitude and silence, are
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freed from all impurity, and attain by the path of liberation to the immortal,
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the truly existing, the changeless Self.
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27. Hinduism. Mundaka Upanishad 1.2.7-11
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People under delusion accumulate tainted merits but do not tread the Path.
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They are under the impression that to accumulate merits and to tread the Path
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are one and the same thing.
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Though their merits for alms-giving and offerings are infinite.
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They do not realize that the ultimate source of sin lies in the three poisons
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within their own mind.
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28. Buddhism. Sutra of Hui Neng 6
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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Galatians 3.10-13: The law becomes oppressive if interpreted in a
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perfectionistic manner, as though one could not feel justified unless he kept
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the law punctiliously to its smallest detail. The grace of God in Jesus Christ
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is a free unconditional gift; it is especially liberating to those who regard
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the law as a burden which they cannot carry and feel oppressed by guilt for
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violating it. This of course does not mean that in Christ one can be
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licentious; he should live in the Spirit of good works; cf. Galatians 5.19-23,
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p. 465; James 2.14-26, p. 1009. Galatians 3.21-26: The argument that
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'scripture consigned all things to sin' refers to the fundamental human
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condition of Original Sin--cf. Romans 3.9-12, p. 383--which persists regardless
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of one's efforts to follow the law. This sinful condition, the 'death' which
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resulted from Adam's fall, is only redeemed by faith in Christ, who conquered
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death; cf. 1 Corinthians 15.21-22, p. 547. Mundaka Upanishad 1.2.7-11: Good
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works, done to expiate evil karma produce merit according to the law of karma,
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cannot help a person escape the wheel of rebirth. Only through realizing
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Brahman is there true liberation. Sutra of Hui Neng 6: Good works done out of
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a desire to earn a place in heaven are tainted by selfishness; hence they still
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produce karma and cannot bring about liberation from bondage. See the previous
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note.
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- - - - - - - - - - - -
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On a certain occasion the Exalted One was staying at Uruvela, on the bank of
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the river Neranjara at the foot of the Bodhi-tree, having just won the highest
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wisdom. He was seated for seven days in one posture and experienced the bliss
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of release. Then the Exalted One, after the lapse of those seven days, during
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the first watch of the night, rousing himself from that concentration of mind,
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gave close attention to causal uprising in direct order, thus,
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This being, that becomes; by the arising of this, that arises,
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namely: Conditioned by ignorance, activities; conditioned by
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activities, consciousness; conditioned by consciousness, mind and
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body; conditioned by mind and body, the six sense-spheres;
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conditioned by the six sense-spheres, contact; conditioned by
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contact, feeling; conditioned by feeling, craving; conditioned by
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craving, grasping; conditioned by grasping, becoming; conditioned by
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becoming, birth; conditioned by birth, old age and death, grief,
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lamentation, suffering, sorrow and despair come into being. Thus is
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the arising of this mass of Ill.
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29. Buddhism. Udana 1.1
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Actions (karma) resulting from past deeds, productions of causes and
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conditions, are all unreal and empty, are not self, are not substantial.
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30. Buddhism. Garland Sutra 22
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The man of superior virtue is not conscious of his virtue,
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And in this way he really possesses virtue.
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The man of inferior virtue never loses sight of his virtue,
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And in this way he loses his virtue....
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Therefore, only when Tao is lost does the doctrine of virtue arise.
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When virtue is lost, only then does the doctrine of humanity arise.
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When humanity is lost, only then does the doctrine of righteousness arise.
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When righteousness is lost, only then arise rules of propriety.
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Now, propriety is a superficial expression of loyalty and faithfulness, and the
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beginning of disorder.
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31. Taoism. Tao Te Ching 38
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Udana 1.1: This is a typical statement of Dependent Origination (Skt.
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paticcasamuppada). It is a law which describes the situation of human bondage;
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cf. Surangama Sutra, p. 387. In that sense it is comparable to the statements
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by Paul that 'through the law comes knowledge of sin' (Romans 3.20 p. 163).
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Yet only by a proper knowledge of ill can ill be overcome, by reversing the
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chain of causation: 'If this is not, that does not come to be; from the
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stopping of this, that is stopped'--Majjhima Nikaya ii.32, p. 548; cf. Samyutta
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Nikaya xii.90, pp. 548f. Garland Sutra 22: Mahayana Buddhism teaches that from
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the vantage point of enlightenment, when all distinctions of subject and object
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have been transcended, the laws of cause and effect and dependent origination
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are themselves empty and unreal. Concern with such laws are only provisional
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teachings--see Mulamadhamaka Karika 24.8-12, pp. 1021f. Heart Sutra, pp. 589f.
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Tao Te Ching 38: Laws and doctrines are only needed for people who deviate from
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t he Tao, and they are poor substitutes for that ideal of oneness. Cf. Tao Te
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Ching 2, p. 797, 18-19, p. 294; Chuang Tzu 13, p. 220.
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