Unquenchable craving

Qusetion : (Unedited)

The Four Noble Truths state that desire is the origin of suffering and so if you don't desire you won't suffer. Could the aim of reaching Nirvana be considered a desire and to that extent couldn't wanting to becoming a Buddhist be considered a desire?

Hi S...,

Thanks for asking me.

Your question is a play on semantics.  The "desire" the Buddha was referring to was about sensual desires.  Sensual desires refer to desires of the 5 senses.  These sensual desires are unquenchable.  It is the very nature of physical senses.  Take for example, hunger.  Once the hunger is satisfied with intake of food; the process of depletion starts, and after some time one feels hungry again.  Another aspect of sense desire is the stronger feeling of craving.  One's craving to satisfy one's desire is itself a catalyst to crave for more.  When this craving goes unchecked, one becomes crazy!  So the option is opened to anyone who follows the Buddha's teachings:  to continue feeding these desires with more craving, or to come to one's senses to reduce this crazy cycle of on-going "madness".

As for aiming to reach Nibbana (Nirvana), it is a very different concept.  Here we are talking about one's commitment to reduce one's greed, hatred and delusion until complete eradication.  This is not a life-long process, but countless life-processes.  "Desire" is not an appropriate word to describe this journey towards Nibbana.  “Aspiration” will be a more appropriate word. Of course anyone can still argue until the cows come home that it is still "desire".  So it is up to you to analyze and come to your own conclusion as to which is more reasonable. See, this is the beauty of Buddhism.

What do Buddhists seek?

Question : (Unedited)

Hi-

My question is very basic but i find myself still slightly puzzled over it. Is Buddhism concentrated completely on achieving enlightenment?

Hi N..,

Thank you for asking me.

First we need to define what "enlightenment" means in Buddhism.  It means being "awaken" from the ignorance of existence.  It is a state whereby all negative traits are eradicated.  All Buddhists strive to achieve such a state, although it is quite impossible to achieve in one life-time.  

The other way of looking at "enlightenment" is its ultimate result, that is Nibbana. When we talk about enlightenment, we will definitely have to refer to the accompanying result, i.e. Nibbana (or Nirvana in Sanskrit). Nibbana means extinction of desires, and complete eradication of the 3 roots of defilements of greed, hatred, and delusion. Without any trace of these defilements, there will no longer be any clinging to future rebirth. Without birth, one will not be subject to the dictates of this unsatisfactory existence. One is no longer subject to conditions. One's existence is free from conditioning.  

Smile from justinchoo :-)

What would you like from Santa?

Question (Unedited)

Hi im in a philosophy class and im learning about bhuddism, and i have a few things that im confused about.

Im somewhat confused on the subject of ridding oneself of all desires.  I understand the pain desire can bring, and the necessity of getting rid of that in order to obtain nirvana, however, its seems that the striving for enlightenment and the perfection of the self is a form of desire.  Can you help me clarify?

If one was able to fulfill every desire that they had, and therefore recieved no suffereing from unquenched desires, would that man be happier, as happy, or less happy then a man who had no desires, and therefore also no suffering from unquenched desires?

A little while ago i was asked posed the following question:  If you were given the oppurtunity to have your brain removed and put into a vat, and through chemical and electrical stimulation, you could have your every wish and fantasy come true, and it would be as real to you as life is today, and you were guarenteed this for the rest of your natural life, would you do it?  I couldnt find a simple answer to this question.  Every rational fiber of my being tells me to say yes, and this seems like the logical answer to this question, however, i think if this situation were actually presented to me, i wouldnt do it.  But i cant think of one reason why.  How would you answer this question, and why?

Thank you very much for giving me your time.

 

My comment :

Hi Ph.......,

Thanks for asking me.

Your first question is a play on semantics.  The "desire" the Buddha was referring to was about sensual desires.  Sensual desires refer to desires of the 5 senses.  These sensual desires are unquenchable.  It is the very nature of physical senses.  Take for example, hunger.  Once the hunger is satisfied with intake of food; the process of depletion starts, and after some time one feels hungry again.  Another aspect of sense desire is the stronger feeling of craving.  One's craving to satisfy one's desire is itself a catalyst to crave for more.  When this craving goes unchecked, one becomes crazy!  So the option is opened to anyone who follows the Buddha's teachings:  to continue feeding these desires with more craving, or to come to one's senses to reduce this crazy cycle of on-going "madness".

As for striving for enlightenment, it is a very different concept.  Here we are talking about one's commitment to reduce one's greed, hatred and delusion until complete eradication.  This is not a life-long process, but countless life-processes.  "Desire" is not an appropriate word to describe this journey towards enlightenment.  Of course anyone can still argue until the cows come home that it is still "desire".  So it is up to you to decide.  No big deal if you still insist that it is "desire".   The important thing is that I have given you my opinion.  See, this is the beauty of Buddhism.

<< If one was able to fulfill every desire that they had, and therefore recieved no sufering from unquenched desires,...........>>

The "If" already answered your question.  "Desire" is unquenchable!  It's just like asking "If you can live forever".  We call this foolish renderings.

As for your last question, ask your questioner what he would like from Santa Clause this Christmas!  

Have fun!

Never-ending question.

Question : (Unedited)

because aung s moe* said there are no buddha sensible to enjoy nibanna at death nibanna is only attained in this very present life , nibanna is said nothing is eternalise nor is annihilated because no self is present, i think your nirvana is some sort of eternal existence being merged with your buddha nature, by the way, is buddha nature present in theravada

(*Blogger's comment: Aung s Moe was one of the panel 0f volunteers answering Buddhist questions)

Hi J,

First, Nibbana is not a place where you go and enjoy. Actually the meaning of Nibbana is "no craving". When a person is completely rid of greed, hatred and delusion, there is nothing for him to "enjoy". As I have reiterated, you have to change your mindset and adopt a new paradigm in your perception of the universe and existence based on the Buddha's revelation. If we insist on maintaining our stereotyped and limited layman's knowledge of the world and our existence, we will never understand the concept of Nibbana. By the way, the Buddha warned that ordinary mortals like us would never fully understood Nibbana.

As I said Nibbana is unconditioned, meaning, it is nothing like this present state which is subject to impermanence, unsatisfatoriness and insubstantiality. A fully enlightened person will be in a state of Nibbanic bliss here and now, not having to wait for the end of life.

Your comment " I think your nirvana is some sort of eternal existence being merged with your buddha nature, by the way, is buddha nature present in theravada?"

My comment: It is not "my Nirvana", but my understanding of the Buddha's explanation of it. What is Buddha nature? If it means the potential of becoming a Buddha, then it is there in everyone of us. It's just like a seed waiting to sprout given the right conducive conditions.

Neither the same nor different.

Question (unedited):
what is nirvana really , what happens to the buddha after death is he annihilated or is it a form of eternal existence

what reborn of us if we have no soul


Hi J,

Thank you for asking me.

Unless a person has attained enlightenment, nirvana can only be a conjecture.

However, we can postulate what nirvana is not. Nirvana is not birth and death. It is not suffering. It is not temporary. It is not changing. It is not of this world. It is beyond our human intelligence to know exactly what it is. If it can be understood easily by mere mortals, then the Buddha did not have to spend countless life-time to attain it. Buddhism will be of little value if it is so simple. That is why it takes only the Buddha to discover the real truths.

To understand rebirth, we must first understand the Buddhist concept of mind and matter, which constitute this life. The body we can see and feel. The other aspect which is very important is "mind"; the essence of this mind is "consciousness". The body without this consciousness will be a dead body. It is this consciousness that gives life to the physical body.

The law of kamma operates throughout our existence. This consciousness is the storehouse of all our kammic actions....good and bad. When this body expires, it is this storehouse of consciousness that passes on and takes rebirth in another existence. However this storehouse of consciousness is not static but changes from moment to moment depending on our kammic energy. It is in a state of flux.

Imagine the electric current flowing through a wire. When a bulb is attached it lights up. After a period the bulb will become weak and will be blown out. When we replace it with another new bulb the light will be on again. These bulbs are like our bodies. The electrical current is like our consciousness. Although the new bulb is a different one, there is this continuation of the electrical current. They are neither exactly the same nor completely different, there is a continuity of personality or character.

The Buddha described this process in Pali as "Na ca so, na ca anno" ("ca" pronounce as "cha"; "anno"= pronounce as "un-your"), which means "neither the same nor different"! This is what the Buddha referred to as "no permanent soul".

Enlightenment, Bodhisatta, Meditation.

(FreeStockPhotos.com)
(Picture above not related to this post)
(Just for viewing pleasure)

Question:(unedited)

I'm fifteen, and have a more than slightly curious mind. I'll try to make my questions as breif as possible, so here we go.

1) We both know that Buddha realized the Truth of how the world can save itself from ignorance. Yet, he realized how we can do it, yet he may not have actually done it himself. He acheived Enlightenment, yet in a different way than we are supposed to do now. He did all the right stuff, became a great man and the like, yet did not acheive Enlightenment in the way he told us to, mainly by the Eightfold path. I guess I find it hard to articulate through writting it, so I'll try to be as blunt as possible, please forgive my ignorance: How did the Buddha acheive Enlightenment different than we did? It must be hard to understand, please try to understand that I only seek to end my own curiosity.

2) How does one become a Boddhisatva? I'm not even sure on spelling, but I do know that they help mankind a lot. I find myself at great peace when I help others, so much so that I want to dedicate my self to helping others. I'm not sure if that's selfish of me, since I may only be doing it because I like the feeling, but I find that people learn from my actions. Preaching the Dhamma through my actions, I guess is the only way to put it. I know that's what any Buddhist should do, yet I want to dedicate myself to it.

3) How does someone think when meditating? I know how I'm supposed to meditate, yet I fail to understand how answers come from nothingness. With my mind focused and cleared, I fail to see what to focus on, since it has just been cleared. I guess the real question is how can I find answers that lead to Enlightenment when I don't know the question?

I guess that's it. Sorry if I haven't been clear on a question, I find it hard to put the right words down when I type, so my meaning is somewhat lost in translation ,I guess. Answer at you leisure, just please answer soon.
Your partner in crime
D..........


My comment:

Hi D......,

Thank you for asking me.

At your age, you have read alot about Buddhism. Keep it up. I know it is very difficult to put questions in words, especially when one is not very clear on the subject. You have done very well. I shall try my best to share whatever knowledge I have with you.

1) The Buddha's realization of the truth was not the same as our understanding of the truth. We come to "understand" through the Buddha's teachings. To "realize" is very different from just "understand". That's why we still cannot gain enlightenment although we can fully understand the Buddha's teachings.
The Buddha discovered the truth not within a lifetime. It took the Buddha such a long time that we refer this time period as 4 Mahakappas and 100,000 aeons. In simple term, the period is unimaginably and incomprehensibly long. During that long period he had gone through the process of perfecting his life through innumerable rebirths. What we know of the historical Buddha was his last rebirth before he attained full enlightenment. Even during his last birth, he had to go through 6 excruciating years in his search and practice before he found the answer, by his own effort. We are different because we have not developed our mind to such extreme and powerful level. We need someone to teach us the method. The Buddha is called the fully enlightened one, the Samma Sambuddha. He was omniscient; understanding all that needs to be understood.

2)"Bodhisatva" is Sanskrit. "Bodhisatta" is in Pali. In Mahayana interpretation, a Boddhisatva is a person who has attained enlightenment but chooses to still exist in this "world" to help others realize the truth. In Theravada interpretation, a Boddhisatta is an enlightened being destined to Buddhahood, a future Buddha. The historical Buddha before his enlightenment, was addressed as a Bodhisatta.

Helping others is a very noble act. I do not consider helping others as selfish.

3)Buddhist meditation is to calm the mind. An uncontrolled mind is like a fluttering fish out of water. In order to "control" this mind we have to constantly focus on one object. By focusing as such, the mind is relaxed but alert. When one has achieved this state of mind, one can proceed further to train the mind to note or contemplate on the true nature of things. In this way, we gain "insight" into the realities of this world and this life.

Any halo on his head?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/krish4u/426497125/

Question:(unedited)
Hello, How would one know that they were in the presence of a enlightened /awakened person? Is there an energy or feeling one senses around this person and if so,can you sense this from the person's photo as well?


My comment:

Thank you for asking me.

Unless the person has actually encountered an enlightened person, I don't think he can provide you with an honest answer. As for me I have not the good fortune to have met an "enlightened person". I am not sure whether you can find an enlightened person in this day and age; although many would want us to believe so. I can always cook up something to answer your question with fantastic exaggerations and fantasies, but I would like to give you an honest answer. I really don't know.

As for your second question, I would think that if one is fortunate enough to have met such an enlightened person, one would definitely be overwhelmed by his powerful aura and energy. As for the photo, I don't think so. This brings us to a true incident ( which may be many of such stories). There was this monk whom many thought to be enlightened. They claimed that when his photo was taken they could see halo around his head. Incidentally, I also did take his pictures but there was no halo. Of course I did not succumb to this claim. By the way this monk was quite a handsome young man and a bit charismatic too. He is now disrobed for disgraceful conduct. The moral of the story is that one must know the Buddha's teachings in the proper perspective, and not succumb to theatrical fantasies.

The message of the Buddha is to seek truth, reduce our defilements, and live in peace with oneself and the world.

Elusive Enlightenment : A Follow-Up

http://www.flickr.com/photos/14886702@N05/2073812640/

Question: (unedited)
Thank you for your answer. You were right, i am still confused. What Buddha said is most plausible ( i cannot say that it is true because i sincerely don't know), but there are still some problems: is there a point to this dream that i am creating for myself, or , am i just doing it for fun ?
; since enlightenement is like waking up from a dream (or so i hear), could enlightenement be just another level of awareness ( could an enlightened person wake up from the dream of enlightenement)? Also, if the mind has supreme power, why is there any pain in the world (there could be only pleasure, and thus, no need for enlightenement )? There is also another important issue : i think (though i am not sure) that living beings (and even objects) are just manifestations of the same mind that cannot recognize itself, not actual individuals from 31 buddha lands that can reincarnate according to their karma ( i find this reincarnation "thing" childish ).Is reincarnation misunderstood ?
Hope to hear from you soon,
P.S: I cannot consider myself anything but simple since i am so utterly confused and unaware.


My comments:
Hi again,

Before plunging into troubled waters trying to make you more confused, please allow me to comment on the recommended manner of learning the Buddha's teachings. Please remember that the Buddha's teachings are very profound and at most time strike deep into our inadequate ability to understand them. This is because we have never been brought up to think and analyze these esoteric concepts discovered by the Buddha. In order to understand them it would take a period of time through deep thinking, conscious analyzes, and a change of mind-set. In modern parlance, we need a new paradigm in our thinking, setting aside our stereotype mentality, polluted with prejudices and childish ideosyncrasies. So please be patient with yourself and let the Buddha's teachings slowly gel in your mind which is now ready to receive the truth. Let time be our teacher.

Now your comment: "since enlightenement is like waking up from a dream (or so i hear), could enlightenement be just another level of awareness ( could an enlightened person wake up from the dream of enlightenement)?
My comment: Enlightenment means awakened. Enlightenment is no longer a dream. If one is awakened, how can one be awakened again?


Your question: "Also, if the mind has supreme power, why is there any pain in the world (there could be only pleasure, and thus, no need for enlightenement )?"
My comment: The Buddha reminded us that when our bodies are sick, do not let our minds be sick too. The pain in this world is physical pain. Pleasure in this world cannot last forever.


Your final "confusion": "There is also another important issue : i think (though i am not sure) that living beings (and even objects) are just manifestations of the same mind that cannot recognize itself, not actual individuals from 31 buddha lands that can reincarnate according to their karma ( i find this reincarnation "thing" childish ).
My comment: Your "31 Buddha lands" is actually the 31 planes of existence. There is nothing to do with the Buddha. In fact the Buddha being fully enlightened, is no longer stuck in these 31 planes of existence.

Your final question: "( i find this reincarnation "thing" childish ).Is reincarnation misunderstood ?

My comments: The Buddha revealed the true nature of this life, which comprises not only this body but a very important concept of mind and consciousness. Buddhists emphasize on the latter aspects. It is this consciousness that is keeping us "alive and conscious". Pervading this life-form is the mind. We can term this as "mind-consciousness". This mind-consciousness is in a state of flux, always moving on without our worldly knowledge. It took the powerful mind of the Buddha to discover this process of mind activities. The Buddha discovered the universal law of cause and effect (Law of Kamma), which governs ALL living beings, irrespect of race, time, and space (location). The universal law states irrefutably that any volitional action will definitely produce a corresponding reaction. This is the law of physics. This is also the law of life!

Whatever we did in this life and in our past lives, the cumulative effects will gradually and surely produce corresponding results in this life or future lives. When this body is gone, the mind-consciousness will take on another life-form befitting the cumulative effects that one had generated, such that the next life-form will exist in an environment commensurate with that type of accumulated effects, such that the appropriate results will actualize themselves onto that new life-form. If the results are to be a happy one, then the mind-consciousness will seek to be reborn in a conducive place where it will enjoy its fruits. On the other hand, if the results are to be a miserable one then it will seek rebirth in a miserable environment. This explains the inequalities of all life-forms in this world.

"Reincarnation" is a different concept from "rebirth". You can say that if you believe in reincarnation, you will believe in rebirth, because rebirth simply means another birth following death. The Buddha revealed the process of rebirth of mind-consciousness. There is no permanent entity or what you may call "soul" in the Buddha's explanation of rebirth.

The Tibetans believe that an exact permanent entity transmigrate into a new life-form when a person dies. This is reincarnation. This is not the Buddha's concept of "rebirth".


Happy thinking with lots of patience, and the truth will be revealed. Sunshine!

Elusive enlightenment

Mahabodhi Temple in Bodhgaya,

at the place where Buddha attained

enlightenment 2,500 years ago. It is 52 meters high.

(http://www.flickr.com/photos/kurtq/573520465/)

Question: (unedited)
Hello, I have somewhat of a broad knowledge of enlightenment, but I have found that there are so many different paths of purification that can be followed to attain enlightenment, that I a little confused as what the best past is. I know that enlightenment is not really "a path" because it is here and now, however it seems that certain things can be done to increase the likelihood that someone can be enlightened. So, what I would like is your suggestion or suggestions on what the best path to follow is, and preferably a book or online source that outlines the path. I have found vipassana meditation to be very useful. I have also read that the tantric path is for people who want to achieve enlightenment "quickly." What would you suggest I do/read? thank you!

My comment:
Thank you for asking me. I am using "Buddhist Dictionary" by Nyanatiloka as reference. I find this book to be a very handy and "quick-reference" guide. Ven. Nyanatiloka was a very learned German monk.

First, let us go to the basic. The Buddha's language for enlightenment is "Bodhi", meaning "Awakenment, Supreme Knowledge". "Through Bodhi one awakens from the slumber or stupor (inflicted upon the mind) by the defilements; and comprehends the Four Noble Truths."

"As components of the state of Enlightenment and contributory factors to its achievement, are mentioned in the texts:

the 37 things pertaining to enlightenment, namely:

the 4 foundations of mindfulness

the 4 right efforts

the 4 roads to power

the 5 spiritual faculties

the 5 mental powers

the 7 factors of enlightenment

the 8 fold path."

As you can see, the above is a very scholarstic and dry explanation of "enlightenment". It makes an average person very confused. I certainly am confused. How does one know that one has attained all the 37 "requisites of enlightenment"?

The other way of looking at "enlightenment" is its ultimate result, that is Nibbana. When we talk about enlightenment, we will definitely have to refer to the accompanying result, i.e. Nibbana (or Nirvana in Sanskrit). Nibbana means extinction of desires, and complete eradication of the 3 roots of defilements of greed, hatred, and delusion. Without any trace of these defilements, there will no longer be any clinging to future rebirth. Without birth, one will not be subject to the dictates of this unsatisfactory existence. One is no longer subject to conditions. One's existence is free from conditioning.

My interpretation will be that if one is enlightened, one will have completely eradicated the 3 roots of defilements. One will be completely free of greed, hatred and delusion.

Another aspect of looking at enlightenment is through the progresive achievement of the 4 stages of sainthood. When a person attained the 4th stage he would have become an arahat, the holy one who had eradicated all the "10 fetters".

As you can see from the above explanation, "enlightenment" is a very tall order. It took the Buddha countless lives through countless aeons to attain full enlightenment. It is very difficult to achieve this in this life-time.

Vipassana meditation is the method towards purifying the mind to comprehend the true nature of this existence. It is the path towards our long journey to liberation. You can find a lot of literature in the eBook Library of the website www.buddhanet.net.

I hope my comments help in your search for liberation. If you need more comments, please come back.

Smile from justinchoo :-)