BellaOnline Forums Religion and Spirituality Buddhism We cannot find happiness.....

Well, if you believe in a God that is....!

Unconditional love can only be engineered and given, It cannot be assumed or expected in return.
I have a neighbour who loves her son desperately - one would say unconditionally - but he has declined to contact her for several years.... There was some offence taken at a previous action on her part, and he has not seen fit to 'forgive' her....

Your last point is mine, exactly.

Where is this solid map of the Eightfold Path? What are the eight guidelines? If this has had to be translated, how do you know for certain nothing was lost or changed in translation? I'm not being a smart [censored], I'm sincerely curious.

Let me locate a text for you, and i'll paste for you. I this ok?

This link is useful...

BellaOnline ALERT: Raw URLs are not allowed in these forums for security reasons. Please use UBB code. If you don't know how to do UBB code just post here for help - we will help out!

I said "their god"-small g, not capitalized. By this I mean to each their own-Wankantonka, Zeus, Satan, etc. I was in no way referring to the christian God. I do not believe! Your neighbor does love her son unconditionally. She has not stopped loving him because of his behavior or treatment of her, right? If my last point is your point, then are you agreeing there is no such thing as unconditional love between a man and a woman?

I will read later. I have to get ready for a meeting in a couple hours. I am very interested.

Initially, all lessons and talks given by the buddha were memorised and passed on verbally. This is much the same way many different religious teachings were taught.
If you look at translations of the pali texts, they are extremely repetitive. This was to make them easier to memorise.
About 100 years after his death, these texts were committed to the page.
Translations are meticulous, and whilst I understand your question regarding authenticity, verification, reliability, etc., the basic message of the Four Noble truths and the Eighfold path is so fundamental, so pivotal and so central to Buddhist essence, there is no argument against them that I have found, either with regard to content or interpretation.
There is much that is discussed in Buddhism regarding the teachings, and many discussions in the Uk hinge on the semantics of the original Pali texts...
But as you have said, Buddhism is all about using your logic and mind to get to the bottom of things....

I know about these difficulties. But I still want a relationship.

Mettamaid.

In Hinduism also we know that all will ultimately lead to misery. But most of us do these things. That is the law.

Even nuns have no peace of mind. Unless they truly experience Nirvana. after attaining that , they will not come to Bella!

I don't think that there is necessarily never a situation where a couple can love unconditionally, but i would say it's a very difficult achievement....
At one point. a human will always be subject to the conditioning of their emotions... there will always be a desire to have emotional needs met, and elation/fulfilment/confirmation if they are, and frustration/sadness/rejection if they are not....
For unconditional love to exist (let me speak of a Buddhist relationship, if I may) both partners should understand the concepts of the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. They should further study and understand, and work through other teachings, such as the five precepts, and perhaps deeper teachings of the self and non-self...these become more complex, and require more thought and study.... but they are wonderful topics for discussion.....!!

The strange thing is that perhaps, as Buddhists advance further along the path, it may be that they love each other so intensely and unconditionally, that the relationship develops into one of blissful companionship, and the usual essence of what is perceived as being the basis of being a couple, becomes redundant....!!