[net.religion] Buddhist teachings

isbell@marvin.DEC (Chris Isbell ) (04/13/84)

[]
This is going to be rather a long submission...

>From: decwrl!decvax!harpo!ulysses!gamma!pyuxww!pyuxa!wetcw
>
>For Buddhist information, proceed to your nearest airport and ...:-)..

I did, and ended up spending two weeks in two Buddhist monasteries in 
Thailand. One of them was in Bangkok (Wat Chollaphathan Rungsari), and 
the other was in the North East (Wat Nanachat). 

>From: Daryel Akerlind
             
>In reading this notesfile, I have been struck by the fact that
>whenever there is talk of suffering, it is of physical suffering.
> Certainly the physical suffering in the world is appalling, and
>it has an "objectively observable" quality to it (you can see the
>gaping wound - though you can still only imagine the pain) which
>makes it easy to refer to, but mental suffering may also be
>agonizing, and is something most of us are acquainted with. 
>
>I am thinking of the inner pains  we experience in our lives,
>from the small embarrassments to the betrayals of trust, from the
>minor disappointments to the major bereavements and crushings of
>hope, from the annoying frustrations to the bitterness of a life
>derailed, from the mild depressions to the periods of anguished
>despair at the futility of our efforts, the finitude of
>existence, the aching, unanswered longings buried in our hearts. 
>
>What moves me about this suffering is that much of it stems from
>human qualities that I prize.  Our readiness to love and hold
>dear, our capacity to dream and to be inspired, these things open
>us to loss and disappointment. Our capacity for empathy and
>compassion, our need for warmth and affection, these things
>subject us to pain.  But I despise the attempt to shield oneself
>from these pains by shutting down one's feelings; I value the
>attempt to hold oneself open and sensitive. 
>...

This is the question that Buddhism sets out to answer. The last part of
the following text is a condensed version of the first sermon of the
Buddha (the Dhammachkkappavattana suta). There is very little hope of
explaining Buddhism in one short article. I will be submitting a follow
up expanding on the bare bones. (This quote is from a book called Buddhism
in a nutshell. The text in square brackets is mine.) 

------------------------------------------------------------------------
The foundations of Buddhism are the four Noble Truths [note the word is
Noble not Ultimate] - namely, Suffering (the raison d'etre of Buddhism), 
its cause, ie. Craving, its end, ie. Nibbana [Nirvana, Enlightenment] 
(the Summum Bonum of Buddhism) and the Middle Way.

What is the Noble Truth of Suffering?

"Birth is suffering, old age is suffering, disease [dis-ease] is 
suffering, to be united with the unpleasant is suffering, to be 
separated from the pleasant is suffering, in brief the five Aggregates 
of Attachment [Buddhists love lists] are suffering."

What is the Noble Truth of the Cause of Suffering?

"It is the craving which leads from rebirth [not reincarnation] to 
rebirth accompanied by lust of passion, which delights now here now 
there; it is the craving for sensual pleasures (Kamatanha), for 
existence (Bhavatatanha)(1) and for annihilation (Vibhavatahanha)(2)."

What is the Noble Truth of the Annihilation of Suffering?

"It is the remainderless, total annihilation of this very craving, the 
forsaking of it, the breaking loose, fleeing, deliverance from it."

What is the Noble Truth of the Path loading to the Annihilation of 
Suffering?

"It is the Noble Eightfold Path which consists of right understanding, 
right thoughts, right speech, right action, right livelihood, right 
endeavour, right mindfulness and right concentration." [Other 
translations use the word skilful in place of right in the above 
list.]

(1)	Craving associated with "Eternalism".
(2)	Craving associated with "Nihilism"
------------------------------------------------------------------------

			Chris Isbell.
		(...decvax!decwrl!rhea!marvin!isbell)