My teacher Tsoknyi Rinpoche is about to publish something on that, on what he calls essence love. It has no object, as it were—it's just this sort of inner glow, of health or what in medieval Europe was called virtu(e). Like in, “What are the healing properties of this plant, its healing juice?” Nietzsche uses the term virtue in a similar way. Nietzsche is probably the only Western philosopher who really gets that Buddhism is profoundly physical.
It's a big, big problem of modernity. We fuck up education of the first vital stage of being human. Take it away Friedrich:
Almost in the cradle are we presented with heavy words and values: this dowry calls itself “Good” and “Evil.” For its sake we are forgiven for being alive.
And we suffer little children to come to us, to prevent them in good time from loving themselves...
I personally prefer to 'love my neighbour as my neighbour' whether i love myself or not. Although if I do happen to be at peace with myself it is a bonus, although not all the time otherwise how the hell are gonna learn? Today i love myself, tomorrow I may be a bit of a dickhead...
ReplyDeleteIt's like the Golden Rule, sorry I'm not you please don't treat me as you would it's an insult to my autonomy. I believe Karl Popper of all people was with me on that.
The difference between sympathy, when you put yourSELF in someone else's shoes, and empathy when you try to hear what it is for that person to be themself.
Haven't read enough Nietzsche to know what he's say about that but reckon he's kinda like it. What about Rinpoche?