Exclamatory Propriety

Er...I thought you were posting about a spam subject you'd gotten. My GF gets these all the time, she just got one with the subject of "honeybee dossier." It still baffles me who buys from emails like this.

Anyway, exclaim away as far as I'm concerned. You're a much better person than I to watch what you say in such a manner, I guess everybody's version of what constitutes profanity is different.

Yes, thank you for refraining Renee.

It gets tiresome to constantly see the name of the God that you love and worship being used this way.

And you're right, it's not about being PC but rather being respectful.

As an example, I trekked to Mt. Everest base camp a few years ago. (hence my avatar) Our guide on the trek was a Buddhist.

It took about two weeks to walk from our starting point to base camp. All along the trail there were prayer Stupas, which are like little temples, and fences made of broken stone tablets. On the tablets was written "Om mani padme hum". As you know, "Om mani padme hum" is a mantra that is said to contain the totality of the teachings of the Buddha.

The custom in Tibetan Buddhism is to always walk on the left side of a Stupa or a stone tablet fence. I can tell you that at high altitude this is not always so easy, base camp is at 17,500ft. Oftentimes, the Stupas and fences would be located up higher than the trail. It was often just easier to walk on the right side.

Now, I don't believe in the teachings of Buddhism, but I respect Buddhists and their beliefs. As soon as I was aware of the custom of walking on the left side of the structures, I made a point of doing so. Didn't miss a single one. A few times I passed one on the right and, when I realized that I missed it, I turned around and went back and then passed on the left side.

I did this out of respect for our guide and his beliefs. I didn't do it for any superstitious reasons.

On this trip, I was traveling with an old friend who was getting deeper into Buddhism. He was the one who invited me on the trip. He also was ignoring the custom of walking on the left side of the structures. When I asked him about it, he basically said, "who cares".

About a week into our trip, I talked to our guide about this whole thing. He was very hurt that my friend, and others in our group, were not abiding by the custom. He was also used to it, since most westerners do not abide by it.

He was pleased that I did, and then he asked me about my religion! We had a wonderful day talking about Christianity and Tibetan Buddhism. I learned a lot from him that day.

I am also proud to say that I was the only one in our group to make it to the foot of the Khumbu ice fall, the farthest you can trek before needing a climbing permit to be on the mountain itself.

Anyway, I think it's a good thing to respect each other's Gods, religions, and spiritual practices. Thanks again!



Edited by dontracy 2005-09-30 10:12 AM






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Don, that's cool dude to show respect like that...

Eric

Not offended, but not a Christian either. Here in Quebec in the French population, all the worst curses are religious, things like "tabernacle" and "host" are more offensive to the French ear than "fcuk" and "shit". You can utter a string of curses just using the implements of a Catholic church service.

I gather that there are lots of self-identified Christians here, and if you are wearing your religion on your sleeve like that, I would assume that an exclamation of "Jeeezus Christ", would naturally cause some sort of discomfort/offense.

OTOH, some things that people say offend me too, but I defend their right to say it.

"Do unto others as you'd have them do to you."

--

Very poignant note Don.  I'm going to save that one. 

-C

I tried the Golden Rule but it didn't work for me. I wouldn't be offended if someone exclaimed "Awakened Buddha!" So, what does not offend me will not necessarily not offend others.

Hence, the query.

Too literal.  Do you want others to offend you?  If no, then you shouldn't offend them.  Offending through ignorance is one thing.  Offending through thoughtless disregard is another.  Meaning, if you're aware of it, and do it anyway, don't be surprised at the karmic retribution. 

-C

I'm not observant myself, but try to be respectful of other's beliefs. I'm trying to picture myself stubbing my toe and hollering "Awakened Buddha!" or "Allahu Akbar!". Kind of funny.

I'm a Christian, but it really doesn't bug me. Maybe it should, I dunno. I'd rather spend my time being worried about "bigger" issues. And IMO, if you spend too much time structuring your discourse as to not offend anyone, you'll soon find that you forgot what you meant to say in the first place. And that's no good for good communicaiton.

Very cool story, Don. A flower upon your head for showing such respect.

Wisdom from a geezer. Could not agree with you more. It is not the words that offend but the meat of the message.

"Jeeezzuz Christ, I friggin hate you!" vs. "Jeeeezzzuz Christ, that is a big burrito!", In my holy roller days, I'd only get offended at the first message.

Huh???

Wow Chucky, uninformed readers want to know more...

haha, I thought you knew, I was good God-fearing soul of the Baptist variety up until the age of around 14.

Ahh...

So when did you discover Ayn Rand?

Sorry to hijack Renee

She was a recent discovery. ~3 years? Normally I don't like to read anything that is not tech related, but I found I couldn't stop. It was all consuming. Very wierd. I think I'm OCD that way.

One guarantee anyone can make is that no matter what you say someone will be offended. The only people who say things which do not offend are politicians who do not actually say anything.

It is possible to make a case that it is a question of respect, but respect is frequently a one way street of people expecting others to respect their beliefs but having ill veiled contempt for the beliefs or way of life of others. That someone might take offense at the use of a name as an expletive says more about their moral character than it does the moral character of the person issuing the utterance. We too often believe in words more than we do in actions - the measure of someone is not in their words and never will be.

No sweat. The issue's been settled. I am enjoying the organic course this topic has taken, like a normal conversation.

I agree with this. It's good Karma to ask. Thanks.