Expert: Judy - 5/27/2011

Question
hi, can you please tell me what is your personal view on embryonic stem cell research and when does a being gain consiousness ? and lastly what is the difference between theravada and mahayana and would this change the outcome. thank you :)

Answer
Personally, I don’t think Embryonic Stem Cells research is necessary, for there is Peripheral and umbilical cord stem cells research available which result in profound and promising medical helps, without health destruction or pain from human life.

There are eight consciousnesses:  the first 5 being sensate, the sixth being of ideation, the seventh being through apprehension, gathering the hindrances and the karmic formations, and the eighth being the basis of the other seven.  The seven prior consciousnesses are based and founded upon the eighth.  It is the aggregate which administers and yields rebirth.  Reborn is an evolving consciousness whose quality has been conditioned by karma.  Therefore, there is no ending or beginning, for everything is cyclical.

There are a lot of differences between Theravada and Mahayana.  You can find the comparison of two based on the emphasis of ritual, goal, school, sutra, way of practice, outfit, and etc. online pretty easily, for these “factual” comparisons.  On the other hand, to me, they are the same, and one cannot exist without the other.  They are hand in hand.  It is NOT about whoever practices either sect benefits more or better, but it is about their interwoven quality of being the basic and the support for each other.

I heard that sometimes people would say that Mahayana is a better practice because, we need to have a high goal to be selfish-less, while Theravada is for the practitioners who only care about themselves, as long as they get enlightened.  LOL…. What a distortion!  If one cannot take care of him/herself first, what would he/she have the energy to take care all others?  It is nice to think big, yet without a solid foundation, I wouldn’t step up.  Theravada emphasizes on mindfulness, which is like self-discovery, and is so important to solve the world problems.  For understanding yourself is understanding others.  Each one of us may have different problems, but all of which result from the same causes, namely, ego, greed, anger, and ignorance.   Ideally to me, one goes from Theravada to Mahayana practices.  Without either, we can lose some essential aspects.