is lack of action considered an action?

Question

At least within the context of a human being refusing to take an action.

Answer 1

As the great rock philosopher Geddy Lee put it, "If you choose not to decide, you still have made a choice."

Answer 2

If every non-action is also an action, the term is completely vacuous.

When is it that non-actions are actually actions in disguise?
And when are non-actions simply non-actions?

When one refuses to make a choice-- this is a choice about choosing, a kind of action in decision-making.

When someone is in a coma, they are not choosing anything. Could we say there is activity here, in sleep and death? I should hope not.

But it stands that one who ignores a set of demands, who refuses the choices, that he may be in just the same state as the comatose, if misunderstanding the issue at hand.

You could spell it out to him in symbolic logic and show how he is utterly wrong if he chooses neglect, but if internally he has no desire to give meaning to the presentation, how is that activity?

I don't believe the ignorant are responsible in the same way as a person who understands what is at stake.

Answer 3

It is my opinion that lack of action is considered an action. Anything you do or don't do is an action. You are consciously or unconsciously choosing to do nothing. It is still a choice. You make choices about everything whether you realize it or not.

Answer 4

When we are given an opportunity to act according to our own conscience and if at that moment we give away our power of judgement to someone and instead expect someone else to do the job for us, then that is in empowerment.

So taking responsibility of all our actions and inaction is the right approach to life, no matter what we are liable to undergo the consequences of our choices, no matter what our excuse might be.

However when surrender to the divine every action or inaction no longer remains ours, it is only our self identification that makes an action ours or someone else's.

Answer 5

It all depends on my intention. If through inaction my intention is to bring about a certain change then it is a form of action. But if through inaction my intention is only to avoid the responsiblity of action then obviously there is no action.

Answer 6

Action can only take on 3 forms:

The action is negative,
The action is nuetral,
The action is positive,

Therefore the lack of action is nuetral, which is a form of action...

Answer 7

Action can often be interpreted as doing something and yet the effort to not do something is inf act doing according to that effort! This kind of circular realization is common in Buddhist literature!

Answer 8

If you mean by refusing to do something that is against your beliefs, then yes. You are taking action to defend your beliefs. If in contrast you mean by refusing to do something because you don't want to then no, you are not taking action, you're being lazy.

Answer 9

I opine that any activity involves two subactions. The mind , first, acts and it commands the physical body to follow up with a physical action.

Lack of action could imply that the mind has commanded the body NOT to act.But the mind has acted .

Answer 10

Of course! Ignoring or looking the other way is its own action, and a sad one at that.

Answer 11

Since someone can be said to be "doing nothing" then we must suppose that nothing CAN be done, and is therefore an action.