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[–] Reddiggoat ago 

I think there is a major difference in trying to change ones self for the better and trying to emulate changes you've perceived others to make. I also think there is a big difference in bettering ones self and trying to reach a plateau or marker of bestness (or enlightenment). Maybe buddhism doesn't sell their version, but many other religions make a ton of profit off this idea.

I also believe negative emotions can be very beneficial to helping build life the way you want it. Kind of like a "without evil there can be no good" kind of thing, "bad" emotions will contrast the "good" and you're able to make personal decisions of likes and dislikes of the actions of others around you. It keeps you from being taken advantage of and helps you to succeed. In real life, people without these "bad" emotions are called sociopaths.

Will meditation and self-betterment lead to one being a sociopath? I doubt it, but ultimately that's what will happen if you actually end up eliminating all negative emotions.

TL/DR - I think "enlightenment" is a sham, but I don't think moving that directions for your own personal reasons is bad.

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[–] middle_path [S] 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago 

I see where you are coming from. I'm very anti-religion myself, but I think each one contains a kernel of truth.

Negative emotions, I don't think, are ever beneficial. Anxiety can be replaced with foresight, depression replaced with insight, and stress replaced with awareness. I understand the concept, but fear and anxiety are useless. Anything they prevent can be replaced by simply imagining the worst outcome and being prepared for it. If you worry, you only add more suffering.

I think that's the idea of enlightenment. It's not an abandonment of emotions, just moving beyond them.

For what it's worth, I think you're throwing the baby out with the bathwater on a few subjects.

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[–] Reddiggoat 0 points 1 point (+1|-0) ago  (edited ago)

I hear you on the religions - life-centric ideas don't get billions of followers for thousands of years without having something to them.

As for emotions, I'll have to agree to disagree. I don't think you could have foresight without the fear/anxiety the ideas would evoke. Ideally, yes, but you can't rationally prepare for everything in life. I like your idea of moving beyond emotions rather than discarding them but I still find it very helpful to stay attuned to all of them. (A crude example: with a bit of practice, you can trigger your own fight-or-flight response for a variety of uses. For me, I need to access some stress/fear emotion to be able to do that.)