DALAI LATMA & MIKE AUSTIN
Mike Austin: Going back to what we were discussing before; existence, and the evolution of the universe. Western science has shown that life on this planet developed from simple forms to highly sophisticated ones. Can you equate this linear evolution with the Buddhist view of cyclic existence in which beings migrate in an essentially circular pattern through the same basic life forms? Dalai Latma: According to the scriptures I mentioned earlier, we also believe in both a highly developed state which slowly degenerates and a primitive one which evolves. Otherwise, I don’t know. It’s difficult to say. We have to investigate this further. I feel that different things could exist together. What science has found the present nature of evolution to be could be true, and at the same time, another type of evolution could also exist. It’s difficult to say. Mike Austin: Is there a specific date, a fixed point or period set down in the scriptures, when cyclic nói rằng sự sống luôn tiến hóa lên những hình thức đời sống cao hơn và không bao giờ trở lại những dạng đơn giản ban đầu. Nói cách khác, thuyết luân hồi giải thích sự sống trong pháp giới như một vòng tròn, trong khi thuyết tiến hóa cho rằng đó là một đường thẳng một chiều, theo hướng đi lên.
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