Stories about history
3 Buddhist wisdom stories about history from Buddhist teachers, each linked to the original talk.
- The Cavendish warrenStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: As a young Cambridge student he enters the Cavendish Laboratory warren — alleys, rooms, history including J.J. Thomson discovering the electron.
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Caendish laboratory, and it was just an amazing experience going in this this old laboratory where so much stuff had happened. It was a warren of alleys and little rooms where someone in one of those rooms was inventing the time machine and no one knew what they were doing. These old professors no one had seen someone was inventing a laser or and had all this incredible history behind it. JJ Thompson had discovered the electron
- The emperor jailed the pope over reincarnationStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: Early-church framing: a pope who held reincarnation is ordered by the emperor to ban it; refusal leads to a year in jail — after which the pope no longer believes in reincarnation.
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Pope V Julius I think his name was and the Pope was really into reincarnation but they Emperor was not and the Emperor told the Pope look ban reincarnation make it anathema and the Pope refused so actually the religious authority at that time was very much into reincarnation and so you know what did the Pope do in those days he put the Pope and then what did the Emperor do the emperor put the Pope in jail for one year and after one year in jail the Pope said I don't believe in re
- The governor who ended witchcraft accusationsStory · Ajahn Brahm
In brief: A woman accused of witchcraft faces burning; a smart colonial governor (Pennsylvania framing as recalled) handles the fear so well that witchcraft panic ends in that state while…
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this lady was accused of being a witch and remember this was you know that time that meant being burn at the steak and you know terrible stuff and so he just asked her well let let's get down to the hub of these things you know are you a witch he saides I am do you fly around on broomsticks he saides I do' she's admitting guilt and so this William pen said well I can't say anything wrong with that cas's dismissed you know as long you don't crash into Steeples and stuff you can fly around on the broomstick as much as you like and that was it she was dismissed and there was no more problem with witchcraft