No self? Buddhism makes no sense until...

(ECHOES OF LOST KNOWLEDGE) Ego is not ready for this video: ego death | Zen Wisdom

(Tao Temple) Buddhism makes no sense until you understand this

Even Zen can see it's not self.

Two things are true. 1. There is no self. In other words, all things are marked by the characteristic of being impersonal ("empty"). 2. Whatever arises arises dependent on causes and conditions, which is known as Dependent Origination.

Only by comprehending both will someone avoid confusion and an apparent paradox. Of course, there are two "truths," the conventional everyday truth (honesty) and the ultimate truth (reality). That there is, ultimately speaking, no ongoing persisting surviving transmigrating self is of the latter variety.

How could that possibly be true if all that we have is ourselves and our experiences, our conscious awareness and this body?

It is completely counterintuitive, but it can be known-and-seen directly, which results in enlightenment (awakening) if penetrated as it really is. Before that, it can be comprehended intellectually.

German Theravada Buddhist scholar-monk Venerable Nyanatiloka (born Anton Walther Florus Gueth) in his Buddhist Dictionary: Manual of Buddhist Terms and Doctrines:

• This is a very advanced teaching for dedicated meditators and monastics, not easily understood by them until they develop direct insight into the Truth. Therefore, how is any ordinary, uninstructed person ever to figure it out? They will not. But anyone can receive intellectual instruction to understand it without being liberated by the Truth. For liberation, practice of direct-seeing and insight (vipassana) into the true nature of existence is necessary:
• Not-self (anatta) is the central doctrine in Buddhism, without understanding which a real knowledge of Buddhism is altogether impossible.

There has to be a self, there just has to be!

Buddhist Dictionary (Ven. Nyanatiloka)

"NOT SELF" (anattā) means "non-ego," "egolessness, "impersonal," "empty." It is the third of the Three Universal Characteristics of Existence (ti-lakkhana).

This uniquely Buddhist anattā doctrine teaches that there is neither within the body or mind -- the bodily or mental phenomena of existence -- nor outside of them can there be found anything that in the ultimate sense could be regarded as a "self" (a real self-existing ego-entity, soul, or any other abiding substance.

This is the pivotal central doctrine of Buddhism, that which without comprehending, no real understanding of Buddhism (i.e., the historical Buddha's Dharma) is possible.

This strange doctrine is the only really specific Buddhist teaching, with which the entire structure of the Buddha Dharma stands or falls.

All other Buddhist doctrines might, more or less, be found in other philosophical systems or religions, but the anattā-doctrine (that ultimately ALL things are impersonal) has been clearly and unreservedly taught only by a buddha, which is why the Buddha was known in his day as the Anattā-vādi or "Teacher that all is Impersonal."

Whoever has not yet penetrated the impersonal nature of all existence, who does not comprehend that in reality there exists only this continually self-consuming process of arising and passing bodily and mental phenomena (called the Five Aggregates CLUNG to as self), and that there is no separate soul, self, or ego-entity within or without this impersonal process, such a person will not be able to understand Buddhism, that is, the teaching of the Four Ennobling Truths (sacca) the fourth of which is the Ennobling Eightfold Path, in the correct light.

One will necessarily assume (wrongly think)

• that it is one's self, soul (atta, atman), ego, or personality that chooses and performs skillful and unskillful karma (intentional actions),
• that experiences suffering, neutral feelings, and happiness as a result (phala, vipaka, the fruition and resultants of previous actions),
• that will be reborn according to that karma (those former deeds),
• that will enter or fail to enter nirvana (nibbāna, the quenching and cooling of the threefold fire of greed, hatred/fear, and delusion),
• that walks or fails to walk the Eightfold Path to awakening.

So it is said in The Path of Purification (Vis.M. XVI)

"Mere suffering exists, no 'sufferer' is to be found;

Deeds are, but no 'doer' of deeds is really there;

Nirvana is, but not any 'person' who 'enters' it;

The Path is but no 'traveler' on it is to be seen."

"Whoever is unclear with regard to conditionally arisen phenomena and fails to comprehend that ALL actions are conditioned through ignorance and so on [through the 12 causal links of Dependent Origination], that person [necessarily assumes] thinks that it is one's soul, self, ego, or personality that understands or fails to understand, that acts or causes to act, that comes to existence at rebirth and passes out of existence at death...that has sense-impressions, feels, desires, becomes attached, continues, and at rebirth reappears or enters a new existence" (Vis.M. XVII. 117).

• [The Three Universal Characteristics of Existence are that all things are radically impermanent, unable to fulfill (ultimately unsatisfactory, disappointing, liable to suffering), and impersonal.]

While in the case of the first two characteristics, it is stated that all "formations" (sabbe sankhārā) are impermanent and subject to suffering, the corresponding text for the third characteristic states that "all things are not-self" (sabbe dhammā anattā, MN 35, Dhp. 279).

This is for emphasizing that the wrong view of assuming, believing, holding that it is an abiding self or substance is neither applicable to any "formation" or conditioned phenomenon, nor to nirvana (the "unconditioned element" (asankhatā dhātu)

The "Discourse on the Characteristic of Not-Self" (Anattā-Lakkhana Sutta) was the second discourse delivered by the historical Buddha after his great awakening, enlightenment (maha-bodhi) to his first five disciples, who after hearing it attained to the same awakening (arhatship).

The contemplation of not-self (anattā-anupassanā) leads to the freedom of the "emptiness liberation" (suññatā-vimokkha).

Here the faculty of wisdom (pañña-indriya) is predominant, and one who attains the path of stream-entry this way is called a "Dharma-devotee" (dhammānusāri).

At the next two stages of enlightenment, one becomes a "vision-attainer" (ditthippatta or "right view reacher"), and at the ultimate stage of "full awakening" (arhatship), one is called "liberated by wisdom" (paññā-vimutti). More

• Tao Temple (video); Ven. Nyanatiloka (Buddhist Dictionary) edited and clarified by Dhr. Seven and Amber Larson, Wisdom Quarterly, summer 2026

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How to keep cool without alcohol: Ü Relax

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I want to feel less inhibited without all my hangups, at least on the weekends, and I need help.

Alcohol is liquid ignorance.

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We all get stressed... The knots in the stomach, the tight pain in the chest, the thoughts racing through the mind—that’s stress.

It happens to all of us, but instead of letting it bring us down, we’re kindly kicking stress and anxiousness out the door. We believe we deserve to feel good and smile, no matter what life throws at us. More

Why can Paddy McGee drink and drink like his dad?

But why not drink alcohol? What's the big deal? Everyone's doing it! (Everyone isn't)

Those sound like Yoda's words stating the Buddha's sentiments. Maybe they both said it?

.

The Buddha spoke of human virtue in terms of Five Precepts. It is the kind of karma that leads to (re)birth on the human plane. There are many more human worlds not of this familiar one. Just to be human, in the past and in the future, it is because one kept this minimum of conduct, behavior, action. The Five Precepts are restraints, refraining from:

1. killing
2. stealing
3. sexual misconduct
4. false speech (bearing false witness)
5. intoxicants (that occasion heedlessness).

Whoever goes to a shrink ought
to have his head examined.

What are the worst of these? The answer would seem to be the first, killing. Actually, that is not the worst. The Buddha spoke of No. 4 as being worse than that -- insofar as it was observed that someone who lies, deceives, misleads might do any of the others since such a person has no shame about lying about it (as to evade consequences).

We maintain, while those two things may be true, there is one worse, and that is No. 5, using dope (getting wasted, sauced, trashed, inebriated, intoxicated). Why? Of all the things we would not do, what wouldn't we do when stoned -- when out of our mind, out of our reason, out of sorts, out of our heads? They all become possible.

So the (otherwise) good person suddenly, when drunk, lies, cheats (sleeps with another person's partner), steals, and even kills in a fit of anger or, more likely, in a reckless disregard for consequences, such as driving under the influence, or operating a gun or heavy machinery or a horse and carriage or a laser or blacking out and becoming possessed and doing who knows what?

In fact, in the Sigalovada Sutra, the Buddha spells out the misery that accompanies one who gets drunk. Of course, this would apply to any intoxicant (meth, weed, pharmaceuticals, fairy dust, venom, soma, yerba deliria or delirium-inducing-herb like Jimson weed, whatever). But it's usually alcohol, whether beer or spirits. What heedlessness, shamelessness, recklessness, negligence, carelessness might it occasion?

Whatever one would scrupulously not do (sober) becomes a wide-open possibility when s-faced, stoned, wasted, out of one's gourd. One is straight but drunk or stoned suddenly one is open to anything. One is a preserver of life and would risk one's own life to save another, but drunk or stoned does such stupid things that someone gets killed. Do the courts hold one responsible for killing-while-drunk? Yes. Judges look down on it and sentence one to many years in prison.

We may not feel responsible because what we did, we did when we were not in our right mind. But think about it -- as you're telling the other prisoners that you don't belong in prison with them -- what were we when we got drunk or stoned? We did that sober.

And in doing that, we take all the responsibility of what we end up doing inebriated. Fair/not fair? What does it really matter what the court says, what the judge says, what the jury says, what the society says, or what we say? What matter is what karma says. We will hold ourselves to account for all we do under the influence of

• greed (passion, liking)
• hatred (aversion, disliking)
• delusion (foolishness, ignorance, stupidity, wrong views)

We're sticking to toxic soft drinks full of sugar,
aspartame, carbonation, saltpeter, and caffeine.

That being the case, why would we make it worse? Why would we drink, fall into the habit of drinking (by repeatedly choosing to or allowing someone else to choose that we drink), think nothing of drinking (until something very bad happens)?

Maybe we'll say it's because we needed to relax. Well, if that were true, if that were the case, why not use Ü Relax or some similar mood-enhancing but not intoxicating-to-the-point-of-heedlessness substance?

Above all, the Buddha said, let us be lamps/islands (dipa) unto ourselves and work out our salvations/liberations with diligence (mindfulness). There is no time to waste. We might say, above all, to pull a cultural reference from the 1980s (rap song), "Check yourself before you wreck yourself." Or maybe it would be better to say, "Know thyself" and, as Howard Stern's father always used to say to him, "Don't be stupid, you dummy" (which means, "Don't be a wiseass, Dumbass.")

• CalmingCo.com; Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Dhr. Seven, Moon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly Public Service Campaign and COMMENTARY

Hells? Messengers of the Gods (AN 3.36)

SUTRA: Messengers of the Gods

“There are, meditators, these three ‘messengers’ of the gods (devas). What are the three?

“Firstly, someone does unskillful things by way of body, speech, and mind. When that person’s body breaks up, after death, one is reborn in a place of loss, an unfortunate place, the underworld, even in hell(s).

The King of the Dead Yama is kind and just

“Then the wardens of hell take one by the arms and present one to the King of the Dead Yama, saying: ‘Your Majesty, this person did not pay due respect to mother and father, wandering ascetics and temple priests (Brahmins), nor honor the elders in the family. May Your Majesty judge this person!’

“Then King Yama questions, presses, and grills that person about the first messenger of the gods: ‘Sir, did you not see the first messenger of the gods who appeared among human beings?’

“The person answers, ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

A typical old person, balding and falling apart

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, did you not see among human beings an elderly woman or man — 80, 90, or 100 years old — bent double, crooked, leaning on a staff, trembling to walk, ailing, past one’s prime, with teeth broken, hair grey, scanty or bald, skin wrinkled, and limbs blotchy?’

“The person answers, ‘I did see that, sir.’

I love you, Baby. Stay healthy, and wear a coat.

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, did it not occur to you — being sensible and mature — “I, too, am liable to grow old. I am not exempt from old age. I should better do good by way of body, speech, and mind”?’

“The person answers, ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, because you were negligent, you didn’t do what is skillful by way of body, speech, or mind. Indeed, they’ll definitely torment you to fit your negligence. That unskillful deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister.

This is Death turning samsara.

• [NOTE: What deeds (karma) are skillful, wholesome, and profitable, and what intentional actions are unskillful, unwholesome, and unprofitable? Why? By natural course of results, some deeds produce pleasant, wished for, welcome results, whereas by the same natural course of results, not anyone's punishment or education, some deeds produce unpleasant, unwished for, unwelcome results. This is a natural fixity of the universe and not a meting out of rewards and punishments, as it is often presented for the sake of simplicity, clarity, and believability by many of the world's spiritual teachings. If something produces a bad result and that is not clear because it does not happen immediately or even necessarily in this life, the Buddha has pointed it out so that people and devas may guard against it if they heed the Buddha's enlightened advice. If an plant, for example, were poisonous such that anyone who ate of it, it would bring about their illness, they would not eat of it. However, if another plant seemed to produce no such result, and was inviting and experienced as pleasant, but later produced illness, people would eat of it, eat a lot of it, blissfully unaware of the danger, and one who knows might warn them. Who would listen? People would argue against such a person, laugh at such a person, stick in the mud, killjoy, goody two-shoes, judge, critic, buttinsky, and neither listen nor cause others to listen but instead urging them to eat and enjoy and not worry, having for themselves tested the plant and found it to be pleasant and without harm. Then, later, when the harm set in, long after its consumption, people would become confused: "Some say it's fine, some that it's dangerous, I don't know who to believe or what to do? I like it, so I'll do it. I don't see any harm in it, and until I do, I'll do what I want." People have that choice. In this discourse, the Buddha warns against actions that seem harmless to one who does them even though they harm others as one would not wish to be harmed. And they see no danger in this so long as the result does not ripen and come to fruition. Are Buddhist hells real? There is no need for faith or belief. One may develop meditative absorption and look for them under the ground in a designated area, and one will see for oneself. Unless one sees, how likely is anyone to believe? This traditional method of investigation is taught in detail by Pa Auk Sayadaw and his accomplished students able to enter the jhanas at will. A similar instruction is also given to perceive vimasnas or heavenly mansions above the tree tops. However it may sound to us, it is not a matter of belief or skepticism; it is a matter of looking for oneself so that one needs no teacher or teaching to tell one what is real and what is merely metaphorical. We hope it's a metaphor, a simile, or hyperbole. That is a comforting thought. But we have known people who have known-and-seen for themselves, revealing that it is completely possible to know for sure while one is yet alive and do something about it. Consider the case of the Dickensian Ebenezer S.]

“It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by the deities (devas), nor by wandering ascetics and temple priests. That unskillful deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the results.’

“Then King Yama grills that person about the second messenger of the gods: ‘Sir, did you not see the second messenger of the gods who appeared among human beings?’

“The person answers, ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

A typical sickly hag, festering

Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, did you not see among human beings a woman or man, sick, suffering, gravely ill, collapsing in one’s own urine or feces, being picked up by some and put down by others?’

“The person answers, ‘I did see that, sir.’

“Then King Yama answers, ‘Sir, did it not occur to you — being sensible and mature — “I, too, am liable to become sick. I’m not exempt from sickness. I’d better do what is skillful by way of body, speech, and mind”?’

“The person answers, ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, because you were negligent, you didn’t do what is skillful by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely torment you to fit your negligence. That unskillful deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister.

“It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by the deities, nor by wandering ascetics and temple priests. That unskillful deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the results.’

“Then King Yama grills that person about the third messenger of the gods: ‘Sir, did you not see the third messenger of the gods who appeared among human beings?’

“The person answers, ‘I saw nothing, sir.’

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, did you not see among human beings a woman or man, dead for one, two, or three days, bloated, livid, and festering?’

“The person answers, ‘I did see that, sir.’

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, did it not occur to you — being sensible and mature — “I, too, am liable to die. I’m not exempt from death. I’d better do what is skillful by way of body, speech, and mind”?’

“The person answers, ‘I couldn’t, sir. I was negligent.’

“Then King Yama asks, ‘Sir, because you were negligent, you didn’t do what is skillful by way of body, speech, and mind. Well, they’ll definitely torment you to fit your negligence. That unskillful deed wasn’t done by your mother, father, brother, or sister.

“It wasn’t done by friends and colleagues, by relatives and kin, by the deities, or by wandering ascetics and temple priests. That unskillful deed was done by you alone, and you alone will experience the results.’

“Then, after grilling that person about the third messenger of the gods, King Yama falls silent. Then the wardens of hell torment one with the five-fold crucifixion.

“They drive red-hot stakes through the hands and feet, and another in the middle of the chest. And there that person suffers painful, sharp, severe, acute feelings — but that person does not die until that unskillful deed is eliminated.

“Then the wardens of hell throw that person down and hack that person with axes. …

What torments await in purgatory?

“They hang that person upside down and hack that person with hatchets. …

“They harness that person to a chariot and drive that person back and forth across burning ground, blazing and glowing. …

“They make that person climb up and down a huge mountain of burning coals, blazing and glowing. …

“Then the wardens of hell turn that person upside down and throw that person in a red-hot copper pot, burning, blazing, and glowing. There one is seared in boiling scum and one is swept up and down and round and round. And there that person suffers painful, sharp, severe, acute feelings — but that person doesn’t die until that unskillful deed is eliminated.

“Then the wardens of hell toss that person into the Great Hell (Avici, the "Waveless").

“Now, about that Great Hell:

‘Four are its corners, four its doors,

Squarely divided in equal parts.

Surrounded by an iron wall,

of iron is its roof.

The ground, too, is made of iron,

it burns with fierce fire.

The heat constantly radiates

a hundred leagues around.’

“Once upon a time, the King of the Dead Yama thought, ‘Those who do such unskillful deeds in the world receive these many different torments. Oh, I hope I might be reborn as a human being and that a Realized One — a Perfected One, a fully Awakened One, a Buddha — arises in the world! Oh, that I may pay homage to that Buddha! Then the Buddha can teach me Dhamma so that I may understand the timeless Teaching.’

“Now, I do not say this because I have heard it from some other wandering ascetic or Brahmin. I only say it because I have known, seen, and realized it for myself.

Those people who are negligent,

when warned by the gods’ (devas’) messengers:

a long time they sorrow,

when they go to that wretched place.

But those skillful and peaceful people,

when warned by the gods’ messengers,

never neglect

the Teaching of the noble ones.

Seeing the peril in grasping,

the origin of birth and death,

the unattached are freed

with the ending of rebirth and death.

Happy, they’ve come to a safe place,

extinguished [all suffering] in this very life.

They’ve gone beyond all threats and perils

and risen above all suffering whatsoever.”

• Bhikkhu Sujato (trans.), SuttaCentral.net,  Devadūta Sutta (AN 3.36), Tikanipāta, Paṭhamapaṇṇāsaka, Devadūtavagga,—"Numbered Discourses" 3.36, 4. "Messengers of the Gods [Devas]" edited by Dhr. Seven; submitted by Eli W., Wisdom Quarterly

RICH: Celebrities who are rich and unhappy

Hey, Margot, I'm married to a Latina, Barbie.

I can't wait to be rich and famous. It will solve all of my problems because I'll have money to burn, be loved by everybody, get the best out of life, have power and influence, be able to give and donate to my favorite causes.

It's going to be great and then I won't have low self-esteem or care what anyone thinks about me, what they say about me, what they write about me, the rumors they, oh cr*p, why don't they just shut up? You don't know me! You just know my persona, not the real person.

Well, at I'll have the money and more of it coming...as long as stay relevant and keep the projects and offers coming. Oh goodness, how am I going to do that? There will always be a younger better more beautiful competitor nipping at my heels. That's it! I'll nip and tuck, and no one will ever know it. I'll stay young looking forever.

Oh my gosh, what if the makeup can no longer cover my cracks and wrinkles? Man, I was so much better off being anonymous, able to go anywhere without being hounded or bothered.

And all these taxes and leeches trying to take away my stacks of cash with their appeals and hair brain ideas for me to invest in. Sometimes I think I would have been better off without this burden. Wait! What am I saying?

The Law of Attraction rules say I have to always be in alignment, believe in myself, give gratitude as I already have what I want... Just listen to these winners whine and complain about how hard it is to be rich. Try being poor! It's going to be great when I get there.

Celebrities on being rich but not happy and giving advice

Marco Sander: The Untold Truth About Happiness | (documentary)

(Marco Sander) Celebrities open up about their depression and anxiety, stress and sadness despite of being rich and famous. Celebrities such as Margot Robbie, Cardi B, Billie Eilish, Dwayne the Rock Johnson, Cara Delevingne, Harry Styles, Charli D´amelio, Ed Sheeran, and Brad Pitt open up about not being happy, secure, or at peace. #celebrities #fame #rich #unhappy

Celebrities

0:00 Cardi B 0:06 Dwayne Johnson 0:18 Cara Delevingne 0:32 Machine Gun Kelly 0:45 Harry Styles 0:55 Josh Radnor 1:09 Charli D´amelio 1:23 Demi Lovato 1:33 Justin Bieber 1:45 Billie Eilish

1:59 Elizabeth Olsen 2:10 Felicity Feline 2:24 Katy Perry 2:38 Ed Sheeran 2:51 Zendaya 3:03 Brad Pitt 3:16 Keanu Reeves 3:26 Sam Smith 3:40 Michael Phelps 3:53 Nicki Minaj 4:02 Kristen Bell 4:13 Dua Lipa 4:26 Pink

4:40 T-Pain 4:51 Jake Paul 5:05 Doja Cat 5:19 Kendall Jenner 5:30 Essena O´Neill 5:40 Iggy Azalea 5:51 Jesse Eisenberg 5:59 Kim Kardashian 6:11 Machine Gun Kelly 6:24 Justin Bieber 6:37 Addison Rae 6:51 Kristen Bell

7:02 Khalid 7:11 Mac Miller 7:24 Alexi Panos 7:38 Grant Cardone 7:50 John Cena 8:04 Gary Vaynerchuk 8:14 Eric Clapton 8:29 Robin Williams 8:40 J. Cole 8:50 Jesy Nelson 9:03 Drake 9:17 Madison Beer 9:30 Dave Chappelle 9:44 Russell Brand

9:58 Billie Eilish 10:11 Tom Shadyac 10:24 Kendall Jenner 10:30 Chris Rock 10:43 Beyonce 10:57 Logic 11:10 Colin Farrell 11:19 Dawn Richard 11:29 Dan Bilzerian 11:42 Andy Rooney 11:56 Steve Harvey 12:06 Sophie Turner 12:16 Gwyneth Paltrow

12:28 Margot Robbie 12:41 Kristen Stewart 12:47 Scarlett Johansson 12:58 PewDiePie 13:07 James Arthur 13:21 Elizabeth Olsen 13:35 Jay-Z 13:45 Jennifer Garner 13:59 Adam Sandler 14:12 Kyle Kingsbury 14:22 The Beatles 14:32 Kristen Bell

14:42 Kendrick Lamar 14:53 Madison Beer 15:02 Madonna 15:12 Selena Gomez 15:19 Steve Harvey 15:31 Tony Robbins 15:43 Tupac Shakur 15:54 Tyson Fury 16:05 Ethan Hawke 16:16 Whitney Houston 16:29 Lottery Winner 16:41 Taylor Swift 16:49 Alanis Morissette

16:58 Angelina Jolie 17:09 Anne Hathaway 17:19 Emma Stone 17:34 Kristen Bell 17:47 Ariana Grande 18:01 Tony Hale 18:11 ? 18:23 Ben Affleck 18:34 Bo Burnham

18:48 Brooke Shields 18:57 Prince Harry 19:08 Shane Dawson 19:20 ? 19:33 ? 19:47 Halsey 20:00 Chris Evans 20:22 Colin Farrell

20:32 Dalai Lama 20:45 Dax Shepard 20:58 Barack Obama 21:06 ? 21:20 JK Rowling 21:33 Mike Tyson 21:45 Reese Witherspoon 21:55 Lady Gaga 22:09 Jennifer Lawrence 22:20 John Mulaney

22:29 Lady Gaga 22:39 Jon Hamm 22:52 Justin Bieber 23:05 Kanye West 23:18 Keke Palmer 23:31 Kendall Jenner 24:45 Pete Davidson 23:59 Leonardo Di Caprio 24:13 Louis CK 24:25 Maria Sharapova

24:38 Michael Jackson 24:50 Daniel Craig 25:02 Stranger 25:15 Robbie Williams 25:22 Sarah Silverman 25:38 Shawn Mendes 25:45 ? 25:59 Steven Rogers 26:10 Taraji P. Henson 26:23 Brad Pitt 26:33 Katharine Brooks 26:41 William Shatner 26:53 XXXTENTACTION 27:06 Advice

• Schedule a free call to see how working together looks ► calendly.com/marcosander/cons...
• Website ► marcosander.com Marco Sander on YouTube
• VIDEO: Celebrities on being rich but depressed
• Marco Sander, 11/15/21; Ashley Wells, Seth Auberon, CC Liu (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly UPDATED Sept. 4, 2025

18 acts aren't "sins" in Bible...or are they?

Jane Andrews, Critical Financial (via MSN.com, 2/6/24); author A. J. Jacobs; Seth Auberon, Sheldon S., Shauna Schwartz, Dhr. Seven, Ashley Wells (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

18 misunderstood acts the Bible says aren’t actually sins

Christians tend to assume that the Bible condemns a wide array of behaviors, but the reality is surprising.

• One Jewish guy (A. J.) wanted to follow ALL of the Bible's Commandments, so he read it carefully and found more than 800 commands. He followed them all for a year: The Year of Living Biblically: One Man's Humble Quest to Follow the Bible as Literally as Possible

I wanna know what it commands

Here, Critical Financial zooms in on 18 so-called “sins” that may not be as bad as we once thought. It's not clear what the point of this article is, maybe to just gather up more followers for the largest religion in the world (Catholicism/Christianity).

But making it easier is not the way to please most people who want to be better since so much of what we believe is cultural and temporal. (Many Catholic men are mad at "fake" Pope John Paul II for weakening the faith and watering everything down, like an anti-pope, while other Catholics celebrate him for opening up the Old Church and modernizing it).

We only get one chance a year to air our doubts.

Shouldn't the Bible be personal, literal, and timeless? Apparently not, not by a long shot. Let's look at a few examples and decide whether there's an impersonal (universal) law at play or just the Jew's tribal God's view at play.

1. Questioning Faith: Having doubts and asking questions are not signs of rebellion or weakness but can actually strengthen faith. Characters in the Bible like Thomas and Job (Joe'b) [as well as Adam and Eve] questioned God, which illustrates that doubt [and the pursuit of knowledge] is a human experience.

I want to wear pants like a man, morality police!

2. Dressing "Alternatively": Dressing in an eccentric or even way-out style is unconventional, but looking a little odd isn’t a sin the Bible ever mentions. [It does however mention dressing in drag, crossdressing, wearing the other gender's clothes in public (Deuteronomy 22:5 A woman must not wear men's clothing, and a man must not wear women's clothing, for whoever does these things is detestable to the LORD your God. (biblehub.com) -- a possible biblical death penalty offense. Oh yeah, the Bible commands us to kill lots of people, enemies, family members, children, sinners...]

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  My trans daughterson is going to love this one.

  Deuteronomy 22 on how you can dress: This verse prohibits cross-dressing (Hebrew lo yibash). Scholars, historical authorities, and leaders hold different opinions on correctly interpreting and implementing this commandment (Deut. 22:5). Some argue the act of cross-dressing is an abomination. Others maintain cross-dressing is only a manifestation of a different bad intention, such as deception, idolatry, or [gay sex work] [12].

I'm punk so, I dress how I want. F-you!

Go right ahead if you like looking like a [gay] Goth, wearing platform shoes as high as stilts [like the Glam bands of the 70s], or a hippie kaftan down to your toes [like a heathen, just don't do that Punk or Emo stuff or full body tattoos (Leviticus 19:28 You must not...put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD (biblehub.com), and spikes, and crazy hair, or revealing clothes that might tempt the weaker sex to rape you, or anything like that.

Bikini sluts of the 4th century Roman Empire

It's hypocrisy to act like the Bible is cool with people dressing alternatively. As A. J. Jacobs found out, the Book is very specific on how males and females are to dress. So veil that hair and face like the religion you laugh at for believing their sacred book].

Who wrote this MSN article? Critical Financial

 

We only charge as much interest as market bears

3. Charging Interest ("Usury"): While excessive interest rates are warned against by the Bible, the act of charging a "reasonable" amount of interest isn’t universally condemned by everyone. So that makes it okay, right? (Deuteronomy 23:19 Do not charge your brother interest on money, food, or any other type of loan (biblehub.com).

Everyone's doing it. I did it better, like Madoff.

I mean, bankers and tax collectors gotta eat. And now that it's "standard practice," who are we to question the financial system in which we participate? That's Caesar's business, right, Jesus?

Same with drinking alcohol or spirits, right? Moderation. Just get a little drunk, which the Buddha warned against, but Jesus and the Apostles probably partied on wine every night or when plotting against the imperial Romans who overran their society....

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