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| "Three things cannot be long hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth." ~ Buddha ~ |
The sun and the moon can sometimes be hidden temporarily by cloud cover or eclipse but for all intents and purposes they cannot really be hidden. But what if a person had been placed in an indoor prison and spent the remainder of their life without ever viewing the outdoors or the sky? Would the moon not be long hidden? In contrast, the truth is all too often hidden whether it be by chance or design.
"For now we see through a glass, darkly."
I am all for peace and love and being good to your neighbor but I have to disagree with you Buddha. I like your little statues, but comparing the transparency and availability of truth to that of the sun and moon? Every day untold truths are hidden or lost forever.
Who killed Kennedy? What happened to that Lindbergh baby? What was all that stuff going on at Roswell in 1947? How did Marilyn die? Is God real? How were the pyramids built? How did life begin? How did the Earth, even the Universe come into existence? Do ghosts really exist? Why are there so many different kinds of pickles on the store shelf? I could continue with things that we do not, or can not possibly, know the truth about.
Look in your own personal life; there is much truth that is hidden there as well.
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| Truth is a Treasure |
Books have been written about the questions I listed above. For a very long time mankind (and womankind) have wrestled with questions like these and searched for the truth. Of course there were, and still are, plenty of those who did the opposite and dedicated their lives to hiding the truth, or at least those parts of it they found inconvenient.
There you go! Some people would write about nearly anything and others may even read some of it who knows. Well, you never know what I might decide to write about here. Hey, most of the time I have very little idea myself what I will write about until after I sit down to it. But the good thing is that I am not writing to please anyone and so it doesn't really matter.
So for those who did actually read this, what do you think? Is the truth easy to find and impossible to hide for long? Sometimes the truth is so obvious that it can be seen by all, sometimes the truth takes a bit of digging and thought, other times the truth takes knowing the "right" person, yet other times the truth is unknowable.
David Slone, Copyright 2011
Thank you for your comments about truth, with which I totally agree!! This quote from Buddha (as it has been recorded) is simply not true from my perspective either. I'm not sure if I would so vehemently disagree with the quote if it were modified to read " "Three things cannot be forever hidden: the sun, the moon, and the truth." This sounds a bit more plausible, but is less powerful. Who hangs around for ever, after all? Since Buddha's teachings were passed down by oral tradition, maybe a few words got changed. At any rate, you deserve credit for questioning rather than just parroting! Even Buddha said, never believe anything - even if I have said it - if it does not prove true for you!
ReplyDeleteGood argument but "the truth" is a word Buddhists often use to explain enlightenment. To say it stands for the concealment of facts about something such as the death of Kennedy is a bit of a misinterpretation. Of course, it doesn't help that the quote has been simplified! Here it is in it's original text:
ReplyDelete"Monks, there are these three things which are practiced in secret, not openly. What are they?
The ways of womenfolk are secret, not open. Brahmins practice their chants in secret, not openly. Those of perverse views [that's philosophically rather than sexually perverse views, I assume] hold their views secretly, not openly. These are the three things…
Monks, there are these three things which shine forth for all to see, which are not hidden. Which three?
The disc of the moon shines for all to see; it is not hidden. The disc of the sun does likewise. The Dhamma-Discipline [dhamma-vinaya] of a Tathagata [Buddha] shines for all to see; it is not hidden. These are the three things."
nothing like context to clarify things! ty!
DeletePerhaps you missed the idea that this is a HUMOR article. Some of you people are taking it a bit too serious :)
DeleteI just think you should let people think what they want to think about this qoute but good point
DeleteI guess when you turned the question perspective around, what the truth might mean is the truth about one self, not the truth about what happen out there. And if you ask yourself the truth about you, would you hide the answer if you don't wan't anyone to know? Because soon it cannot be long hidden either they find out or you just can't live in a lie anymore. Correct me if I'm wrong.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to add and complete the sentences, if one cannot simply understand how the moon and the sun works, then one just can't simply understand the simple truth.
ReplyDeleteHello Red Blood and thank you for your comments. Please keep in mind that this was written from a viewpoint of humor and satire.
ReplyDeleteTruth is a reality however
ReplyDeleteDavid Slone, thats the author who has the audacity to question Buddha's enlightenment(the truth). Nice argument but you wastes my yime reading your mundane views. but thankful for April Moon who shared the perspective of monks.
ReplyDeleteHello Anonymous Yes I have the audacity to question things. Thanks for reading and taking the time to comment. Peace
ReplyDeleteEverything will be unhidden at death. Judeo christian and other mythologies think or believe there is a beginning and end, there is not. Even someone who is hidden or has things hidden from them will know all when they return to spirit of the universe, only to have all hidden again at birth as whomever or whatever.
ReplyDeleteThe truth is available for those who seek it.
ReplyDeleteDoes God exist? That's a cloud covering what you believe since you've already made your choice.
Who killed F. Kennedy? Someone knows, or maybe what we've always heard is the truth.
My point is, truth is not in black in white. But it isnt hidden we just doubt it.
The truth, i have no money..
ReplyDeleteWhat do I think David Slone? There are no scientific truths, only hypothesis and theory. So you cannot possibly be basing your editorial on scientific truths as they do not exist and is not relevant in Buddha's quote; he is a spiritualist. Factually, the sun rises and sets as does the moon. This is a truth. Spiritually, He was, and is, the ultimate expression of Truth. "I am the way, the Light and the Truth and the Life." "God is Truth". So as the sun and moon come out, so will the truth. He is as constant and as dependable, and undeniable. These are in accord with fact and reality (a definition of Truth).
ReplyDeleteYou gave it a shot but hit way off the target as you were far away from the context and truism of the quote. Buddha wasn't generalizing or hypothesizing as you are and finding a way out of the truth through excuses. He was factually stating, the sun, moo