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I work in advertising, and in most of the larger companies we had standards on the content of ads. One of those, was that an ad could not be designed to look like it is not an ad, or be otherwise deceptive. There is a banner ad that appears on this site, which is designed to look like it is a...

Naturalists (those without supernatural beliefs) who nonetheless wish to pursue spiritual (literally: 'essential') practices aimed at greater wisdom, equanimity, and happiness in life, can consider their approach to knowledge and claims to be a part of their spirituality - even an important...

Hello everyone :) Having been a member of this board for a few years now, I think Spiritual Naturalism is something we could discuss here, and also news in which some of the members here may be interested. Apologies to those who aren't... The Spiritual Naturalist Society is a new non-profit...

I just read a most stimulating thought of Musonius Rufus (Roman Stoic philosopher) saying that "the gods know everything so they have no need of reasoning". This is a remarkable incredible point supporting a naturalism-compatible impersonal God. It is about the contradiction between being (1) an...

Hello friends :) I have recently completed a very basic introductory essay on Taoism for readers in my organization. I would very much appreciate any feedback from those here, who are likely more knowledgeable that I on Taoism :) The essay is here: Taoism 101 | The Spiritual Naturalist Society...

Hi everyone, I was wondering if we had any naturalist Taoists here who might be interested in writing a general essay for our educational archives on naturalistic Taoism. Just to be clear, by 'naturalist' I mean 'without supernatural views'. If you need any further information, please see our...

This is from my blog, but I thought I would share it here as well... ========================= An Alternative to Black Friday By DT Strain In my last article, I posted a letter my wife and I sent to our family and friends, telling them we'd like to stop giving and receiving store-bought...

I am in the process of forming a non-profit organization called the Spiritual Naturalist Society, and I was wondering: among the readers here, are there any who might consider their beliefs or practices to be compatible with Spiritual Naturalism? For background information, I've provided a...

I think I understand how the lessons of no-self, mindfulness, and meditation can lead to a relief of our own suffering, and also make us more compassionate because we then have room to be more in tune with the suffering of others. However, once we become more perceptive to the suffering of...

I have read something recently that seemed to suggest that the concept of Nirvana is found in Mahayana Buddhism, but not a part of Theravada Buddhism - is this true or have I got the wrong impression? Secondly, it does seem that Liberation is a concept in Theravada Buddhism. If so, then what is...

Suppose there was a religion that is agnostic with regards to God and an afterlife, and even with respect to whether or not Jesus was a literal historical person. But they call themselves Christians because they follow many of the ethical and lifestyle teachings of Jesus. This, to me, seems...

Hello :) Could I please ask, 1) What is YOUR opinion of Mahmoud Muhammad Taha, and 2) What is your estimation of the OVERALL opinion of Mahmoud Muhammad Taha among the Muslim population? I do not know very much about this person, other than basic information, and I have only recently heard...

Hello :) I have not heard of Ijma before today, but was wondering what you all thought of this article from Wikipedia - especially the notion that this makes Democracy compatible with Islam. Is this what many Muslims believe? Your comments are appreciated... (thanks)...

I'm very ignorant of many things about Islam, but can someone tell me if they know anything about the Mu'tazili philosophy. I have some basic ideas, having read the article at Wikipedia, but I was wondering... 1) Is it was completely extinct? 2) Are there any current efforts to revive it as...

I have just finished an essay by this title and thought I'd post it here for those who may be interested. We could have a discussion on it in this thread if folks like. http://dtstrainphilosophy.blogspot.com/2006/05/naturalistic-approach-to-buddhist.html Thanks :) Daniel

Does anyone know if there is some online summary of the history of where/when the books of the bible came from, as best as scholars can currently tell? I'm looking for a VERY generalized and simplified overview, perhaps just a few pages in length at most. Thanks!

I've read this recently, from a person on an email list I'm on... "the oringinal Buddhists did believe that it was necessary to be a monk to become enlightened. Not only this but the Theravada school still holds the idea that if you are not a monk you do not even have Buddha nature!" Is...

Hello friends, My wife and I have recently visited a Buddhist temple for the first time. I have described our experience on my blog, for those who might care to read. Many thanks :) http://dtstrainphilosophyblog.blogspot.com/2006/01/visit-to-buddhist-temple.html

Greetings everyone, I've been reading a textbook I have on the history of religion, as well as a number of Buddhist websites, this site, and Wikipedia articles, trying to understand the historic relationships between the various Buddhist schools. I made a chart and posted it on my blog. My...

I have done some searches and fortunately I live in a large city. There seem to be many Buddhist temples and organizations in my area. But they all are of various types and I'm confused as to which will suit me. I am a Naturalist and have no supernatural beliefs, so it is the teachings of...