버트란드 럿셀의 불교비판

Bertrand Russell's praise and critique of Buddhism — 버트란드 럿셀의 불교비판.불교는 진실을 추구하지 않고 감정에 호소한다. 증거 없는 주관적인 가정에 기초한 교리를 믿으라고 설득한다. 또, 불교는 우주가 무엇인가에 대한 질문은 무시하고, 인간이란 무엇인가에 대한 질문에 집중한다. 내가 공부한 불교의  내용과 결론에 따르면 불교는 생명과 그 현상  자체를 부정하고 우주의 존재를 부정한다. 불교는 생명이란 모두 없어져야 하는 대상이고 귀신들의 우주가 이상적 세상이라고 주장한다. “Among present-day religions Buddhism is best. The doctrines of Buddhism are profound, they are almost reasonable ...  but Buddhism does not really pursue the truth; it appeals to sentiment and, ultimately, tries to persuade people to believe in doctrines which are based on subjective assumptions not objective evidence.“ Full citation — “Among present-day religions Buddhism is best. The doctrines of Buddhism are profound, they are almost reasonable, and historically they have been the least harmful and the least cruel. But I cannot say that Buddhism is positively good, nor would I wish to have it spread all over the world and believed by everyone. This is because Buddhism only focuses on the question of what Man is, not on what the universe is like. Buddhism does not really pursue the truth; it appeals to sentiment and, ultimately, tries to persuade people to believe in doctrines which are based on subjective assumptions not objective evidence. However, subjective opinions can produce false beliefs. I think that no matter what the religion, nor how ambiguously its faith is expressed, the same problem arises because of the substitution of subjective sentiment for objective evidence. Sentiment might be taken as the dominant force in our daily lives. But as for belief in facts, the farther we distance ourselves from sentiment the better. Never substitute sentiment for facts. It is absolutely harmful to do so.“ — Bertrand Russell, Russell on Religion: Selections from the Writings of Bertrand Russell (1999), Part II. Religion and Philosophy, 6. The Essence and Effect of Religion (1921), p. 74 The lecture Essence and Effect of Religion (1921) was a highly popular lecture delivered by Bertrand Russell while he was visiting Professor of Philosophy at Peking University in the early 1920's. Russell's courses on mathematical logic enthralled Chinese students and listeners, including a young Mao Tse Tung, who attended some of Russell's lectures (there is no evidence the two ever spoke nor is it known if Russell was aware of Mao being present years later). ━━Image left: Statue of Siddhartha Gautam Buddha, 2nd–3rd century BCE. 東京国立近代美術館｜The National Museum of Modern Art, Tokyo, permanent display (Asian Gallery). The statue is perhaps the most well known example of the Buddha in the Greco-Buddhist tradition. The statue is an artistic manifestation of the Greco-Buddhism culture, following Alexander the Great's invasion and subsequent establishment of the Graeco-Indian Kingdoms, also known historically as the Yavana Kingdoms (Yavanarajya). The Hellenistic-era Greek Yavana Kingdom covered large parts of modern-day Afghanistan, Pakistan and northwestern India, lasted for centuries and perhaps had a total population of one million. The Graeco-Indian Kingdoms and Buddhist Gandhāra were highly influential as an early gateway through which Buddhism spread to Central Asia, China, Korea, Japan and beyond. Today, the ancient kingdom's rich culture, history, religion and philosophy are virtually unknown in the Western popular consciousness. Image right: The Gandhāran Buddhist texts. Oldest Buddhist manuscripts discovered, dating from about the 1st century BCE to 3rd century CE. US Library of Congress.