Reply To: Determinism

#50258
Christian
Participant

1) There is a doer or person, I – in Nibbana we can not say there is something but we can not say there is nothing, it’s like a third option that needs to be discovered and experienced. You can not read “there is no self” and act like you have no self, it will be counter-productive.
2) There is neither determinism nor free will, there are certain mechanics and limitations. Some give us the freedom to act, some determine limitations beyond the possibility of choice ie. cause, and effect. The problem is you do not see the full picture but make the judgment based on very little information on suttas without knowing the whole context, mechanics, and how things work.

The worst-case scenario is when people read stuff, take it, and make a wall for themselves based on it rather than use it for liberation pathfinder is a great example of making the wall for himself – hopefully more people can see through that, and do not repeat the mistake by walling themselves by assumptions without any real experience of jhanas, Nibbana or wisdom.

For example if you know someone drinks a lot of alcohol you can predict that he will become alcoholic or already is and you can predict related issue/outcome because of that condition. Prediction on the base of attachment is not really determinism and lack of free will, but result of it. At the end of the day it’s neither if you look very closely at it, that there is only cause and effect  that can be sometimes predicted but it’s not “determinism” which is hard to see-thru. Same if you see object that is spinning really fast, if you do not know physics of spinning you would say the object does not move or move backwards etc. It’s much complicated than you think it is when it comes to “free will” or “determinism. Assumptions are your “enemy” on the Path.

 As Buddha said in one sutta, if there will be “determinism” there would be no Nibbana. (I do not remember exact sutta though)