Q. Don’t you think that clinging to ancient beliefs that are no longer supported by evidence imprisons the mind?

Q. Don’t you think that clinging to ancient beliefs that are no longer supported by evidence imprisons the mind?

A. Copernican theory, I think, can be a good example that answers your question. Although few people supported Copernicus’s idea when he first suggested that the Earth and the other planets all travel in circles around the sun, it turned out to be true in the end. It is highly wrong and perilous to think that an idea, or a belief is incorrect and futile because it is not supported by the majority and that it is right and valuable because it is supported by numerous people. Regardless of whether it is supported by many people or not, the truth is true, and a lie is false. Even if no one supports it, the truth is still the truth. No matter how many people believe it, an untruth cannot become the truth.

Buddha’s teaching is that we should realise that everything is empty and not cling to anything. According to his teaching, clinging to even a small thing, whether ancient or modern, is imprisoning the mind. So, you should know clinging to the idea that clinging to ancient beliefs which are no longer supported by evidence imprisons the mind, can imprison your mind as well.

©Boo Ahm

All writing ©Boo Ahm. All images ©Simon Hathaway

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