Antonio Páez on Nostr: 2/n But the official learned that the Buddhists were building bridges for entirely ...
2/n
But the official learned that the Buddhists were building bridges for entirely the wrong reasons. They were acting on the belief that they would gain personal karmic merit in another existence by contributing to the building of such a bridge. A seemingly public-spirited action that was totally intelligible in terms of a long-established Chinese tradition of public benefaction was being driven by a private need for salvation.
But the official learned that the Buddhists were building bridges for entirely the wrong reasons. They were acting on the belief that they would gain personal karmic merit in another existence by contributing to the building of such a bridge. A seemingly public-spirited action that was totally intelligible in terms of a long-established Chinese tradition of public benefaction was being driven by a private need for salvation.