[Advaita-l] Analysis of attributes and their locus

[Br. Pranipata Chaitanya]

> 
>There is a book by Shree Arun Shourie that has in the title – suffering refutes religion with a question that if there is an infinite compassionate God then how can there be suffering?  Infinite compassion and God are oxymoron, says Mr. Shourie. If He exists, either He is sadistic since he is indifferent to suffering or powerless since he is incapable of removing the suffering; either way God thus defined is less desired.


> 
> You will tell Mr. Shourie his son Aditya with cerebral palsy and his wife with Parkinson's disease is attribute of mind? There is no suffering for him or  son or wife?


A story cut & pasted for its relevance here.

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A man went to a barbershop to have his hair cut and his beard 
trimmed. As the barber began to work, theybegan to have a good 
conversation. They talked about so many things and various subjects.
 
When they eventually touched on the subject of GOD, the barber said: "I don't belive that GOD exists."
 
"Why do you say that?" asked the customer.
 
"Well, you just have to go out in the street to realise that GOD doesn't exist. Tell me, if GOD exists, would there be so many sick people? would there be abandoned children?
 
If GOD existed, there would be neither suffering nor pain. I can't imagine a loving GOD who would allow all of these things."
 
The customer thought for a moment, but didn't respond because he didn't want to start an arguemant.
 
The barber finished his job and the customer left the shop.
 
Just after he left the barbershop, he saw a man in the street with 
long, stringy, dirty hair and an untrimmed beard. He looked and unkempt.
The customer turned back and entered the barbershop again and he said to
 the barber:
 
"You know what? Barbers do not exist."
 
"How can you say that?" asked the surprised barber.
 
"I am here, and I am a barber. And I just worked on you!"
 
"No!" the customer exclaimed. "Barbers
don't exist because if they did, there would be no people with dirty long hair and untrimmed beards, like that man outside."
 
"Ah, barbers DO exist! What happens is, people do not come to me.
 
"Exactly!- affirmed the customer. "That's the point! GOD, too exist! What happens, is, people don't go to him and do not look for him. That's why there is so much pain and suffering in the world.