Wisdom and Knowledge Series, post #4. Buddhism, post #2 (4.2.1):
My answer to a Yahoo! Answers question:
The question:
What is the best way to start a new life?
I am beginning, at the age of 33, to realize the err in my ways of life
(i.e., making poor ethical choices and living without regard to
self-discipline). My question is this: What is the best way for a
person to "begin anew"? I've been drawn to the teachings of Buddhism
and have considered joining a monastery. Have I lost my mind? I'm so
spiritually tired that I'm afraid I'm doomed. I've also been introduced
to the recovery community's philosophy of living "one day at a time,"
but it seems insufficient for creating a substantial rearrangement of
one's personal perception of what life is and how to live to achieve
happiness and fulfillment. I've also considered moving to another city,
including the city my grandparents lived in for many years during my
childhood. Can anyone offer any other ideas or suggestions based on
personal experience for a person to "change their way of life," and
"attain enlightenment," if you will?
My answer:
In Bhikkhu Bodhi's book "The Noble Eightfold Path", he says something like:
"For real security lies on the side of truth, not {something like desired dreams or hopes; I can't remember the exact words after the word 'not', but I believe it to be something like what I just wrote (something like desired dreams...)}"
Taking that as your basis, you start to look for truth.
But because you probably don't have the book ("The Noble Eightfold Path" by Bhikkhu Bodhi), then you can start with this as a basis maybe, because this is what I MAYBE believed when I was searching for an answer those times that were before I saw that part in the book of Bhikkhu Bodhi's: you start with the "belief-to-be-used-as-a-basis" that everything connects with the truth: from the level of common life to the highest levels of enlightenment, which are Arhatship, and then even higher, to the highest level, which is Buddhahood (the Buddha of our history is an example of Buddhahood). (But if you have the book, then you can find the part in the book.)
What would be truth? For me, I am near-sighted, and when I don't wear my glasses, things are of course "fuzzy" looking. and my mental makeup makes it "confusing" when I look for the truth. I look around my room and search for something I can really label without "confusion" to what it is. Sometimes in my search it MAYBE could have been a body part -- leg, arm. I then make a statement (in my mind, not verbally I guess) labelling what it is. For example: "arm?". There is a question mark denoting I am not totally sure it is an arm?
And more so:
I am in (your city)... in (your country)...on this planet...revolving around the sun...part of the solar system...part of the milky way galaxy...part of the Local Group...part of the Virgo Supercluster (that's if you believe it to be the truth, or even heard of them -- maybe you never looked at astronomy and heard our galaxy is part of the Local Group of galaxies).
Then you may be aware of any bodily stress and/or inner mental stressful feeling(s) (and/or thought(s)?), because that is the experience of truth, as well? That's if you do experience any of that. Maybe you would experience something different, like happiness, when you do this exercise? Who knows. This is the first time I've communicated this deep, hopefully to other living-breathing flesh-and-blood humans (it just happens to be they/them reading on the internet) about my way of searching for truth.
Then you can ask yourself any question, but you must give the true answer to it. Give a true answer to the question -- if the question can even be given a true answer -- or else don't even give an answer at all. Why, as the second option, you do not need to give an answer at all? Because if you don't give a reply, how could you communicate any untruth? What does this mean? You are expected not to lie, so you don't have to give any answer at all (as the second option you have).
Also here is a interesting idea with questioning:
Have you heard of the question 'What do I want?' ? Well, why don't you ask this (deeper, if you can call it that) question: Do I want anything?
Or instead of 'Who am I?', ask 'Am I anyone?'
Instead of 'What am I?', ask 'Am I anything?'
Instead of 'What do I need?', you can ask 'Do I need anything?'
Then like I said already above, with any question, you either can answer it -- but it has to be a truthful answer (if you can give whatever certain question it is, even a truthful answer), or your second option is not to answer at all, not to communicate a reply to your question -- this second option would be in perfect harmony with truth, because you did not transgress the truth, because your argument for doing so could be that you could not possibly lie if you did not communicate any reply (to your own question). BUT YOU CAN ALWAYS THINK OF A REPLY, THINK OF THE QUESTION, THINKING OF WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO REPLY WITH -- TRUE OR NOT. BUT WHEN IT COMES TO SETTING FORTH A REPLY, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DETERMINE/COMMUNICATE ANY REPLY AT ALL (THIS WOULD BE YOUR SECOND OPTION AS I SAID). This questioning and seeking for a reply is all done in your mind, it is not done verbally -- though you can try verbally also, and see how that works out...
That's all I will say for my search for truth.
And then there is Theravada Buddhism: Make your life. You are free to choose. But even if you practice the below Majjhima Nikaya 61, you may make mistakes that might hurt your health (like I did; where then I had to heal back) -- because the Majjhima Nikaya 61 is just pointing out how life works: people make mistakes sometimes. Hopefully you can foresee any danger, and not do it, though (which Majjhima Nikaya 61 also says is reality):
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.061.than.html
"For real security lies on the side of truth, not {something like desired dreams or hopes; I can't remember the exact words after the word 'not', but I believe it to be something like what I just wrote (something like desired dreams...)}"
Taking that as your basis, you start to look for truth.
But because you probably don't have the book ("The Noble Eightfold Path" by Bhikkhu Bodhi), then you can start with this as a basis maybe, because this is what I MAYBE believed when I was searching for an answer those times that were before I saw that part in the book of Bhikkhu Bodhi's: you start with the "belief-to-be-used-as-a-basis" that everything connects with the truth: from the level of common life to the highest levels of enlightenment, which are Arhatship, and then even higher, to the highest level, which is Buddhahood (the Buddha of our history is an example of Buddhahood). (But if you have the book, then you can find the part in the book.)
What would be truth? For me, I am near-sighted, and when I don't wear my glasses, things are of course "fuzzy" looking. and my mental makeup makes it "confusing" when I look for the truth. I look around my room and search for something I can really label without "confusion" to what it is. Sometimes in my search it MAYBE could have been a body part -- leg, arm. I then make a statement (in my mind, not verbally I guess) labelling what it is. For example: "arm?". There is a question mark denoting I am not totally sure it is an arm?
And more so:
I am in (your city)... in (your country)...on this planet...revolving around the sun...part of the solar system...part of the milky way galaxy...part of the Local Group...part of the Virgo Supercluster (that's if you believe it to be the truth, or even heard of them -- maybe you never looked at astronomy and heard our galaxy is part of the Local Group of galaxies).
Then you may be aware of any bodily stress and/or inner mental stressful feeling(s) (and/or thought(s)?), because that is the experience of truth, as well? That's if you do experience any of that. Maybe you would experience something different, like happiness, when you do this exercise? Who knows. This is the first time I've communicated this deep, hopefully to other living-breathing flesh-and-blood humans (it just happens to be they/them reading on the internet) about my way of searching for truth.
Then you can ask yourself any question, but you must give the true answer to it. Give a true answer to the question -- if the question can even be given a true answer -- or else don't even give an answer at all. Why, as the second option, you do not need to give an answer at all? Because if you don't give a reply, how could you communicate any untruth? What does this mean? You are expected not to lie, so you don't have to give any answer at all (as the second option you have).
Also here is a interesting idea with questioning:
Have you heard of the question 'What do I want?' ? Well, why don't you ask this (deeper, if you can call it that) question: Do I want anything?
Or instead of 'Who am I?', ask 'Am I anyone?'
Instead of 'What am I?', ask 'Am I anything?'
Instead of 'What do I need?', you can ask 'Do I need anything?'
Then like I said already above, with any question, you either can answer it -- but it has to be a truthful answer (if you can give whatever certain question it is, even a truthful answer), or your second option is not to answer at all, not to communicate a reply to your question -- this second option would be in perfect harmony with truth, because you did not transgress the truth, because your argument for doing so could be that you could not possibly lie if you did not communicate any reply (to your own question). BUT YOU CAN ALWAYS THINK OF A REPLY, THINK OF THE QUESTION, THINKING OF WHAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO REPLY WITH -- TRUE OR NOT. BUT WHEN IT COMES TO SETTING FORTH A REPLY, YOU DO NOT HAVE TO DETERMINE/COMMUNICATE ANY REPLY AT ALL (THIS WOULD BE YOUR SECOND OPTION AS I SAID). This questioning and seeking for a reply is all done in your mind, it is not done verbally -- though you can try verbally also, and see how that works out...
That's all I will say for my search for truth.
And then there is Theravada Buddhism: Make your life. You are free to choose. But even if you practice the below Majjhima Nikaya 61, you may make mistakes that might hurt your health (like I did; where then I had to heal back) -- because the Majjhima Nikaya 61 is just pointing out how life works: people make mistakes sometimes. Hopefully you can foresee any danger, and not do it, though (which Majjhima Nikaya 61 also says is reality):
http://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/mn/mn.061.than.html
Source(s):
myself, Theravada buddhism
The book "The Noble Eightfold Path" I quoted from is on the internet:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/waytoend.html
The place where I quoted this from:
"For real security lies on the side of truth, not"
is in:
Chapter III: Right Intention (Samma Sankappa), under 'The Intention of Renunciation', being the last sentence in the fifth paragraph.
The whole, correct sentence is:
For real security always lies on the side of truth, not on the side of comfort.