Edited by Richie Cuthbertson, Friday, 21 Jul 2023, 17:22
Dependent on conditions.
Human existence is fragile.
Liable to end.
When certain conditions cease,
So does human existence.
Interdependence is complex.
More than just linear cause and effect.
It spans many levels.
Comes from all directions.
More like a vast incalculable
web of cause and effect.
Interconnected streams
of flowing events
through time and space.
It is why there is change.
Why things are unstable.
Impermanent.
Why nothing lasts.
Why it is empty.
Not-self.
All conditioned phenomena
eventually fades and dies.
A human life is brief.
Unique and brief.
Like a bubble in a stream.
A flash in the pan.
The flicker of a firefly.
It can be taken away at any moment.
To understand this can help counteract the mental disposition towards conceit.
One realises that one is not a separate self in this universe, this world. That one is nothing special really.
We depend on the elements we are made up of, and on other beings for our survival. A causal chain of events that happen in time and space outside our control.
Eveything is interconnected,
interdependent phenomena.
Thankfully, one doesn't have to know everything about the vast intricacies of dependent orignation to free the mind.
One focuses on one aspect, the dependent origination of suffering.
The question that matters then is: How do I feel?
Am I suffering or not?
What is the cause of this suffering?
And what conditions can I change to bring an end to it?
Birth as a human can be rare apparently.
And humans do have something special.
They have the capacity for wise reflection.
The capacity to practise discernment.
To guide the flow of psychic streams.
That lead to the right view of things.
A human being can become a Buddha.
Enlightened.
The potential is there like a seed. A seed that can sprout and grow under the right conditions.
When guided by right view,
and right resolve:
the ability to set an intention
and act on that intention.
One can work on removing the conditions that cause suffering and unhappiness in the mind.
As one keeps practising. Perseveres, and does not give up. Trains the mind ardently. Is heedful. Avoids unwise attention to the fault; and unwise attention to the beautiful. Keeps abandoning that which leads to suffering. Keeps cultivating and sustaining that which leads to the end of suffering.
As one becomes more aware of the body, feelings, states of mind, and dhammas.
As one learns how to calm and centre the mind, bring it together into composure, into wholeness. How to balance and unify the numerous energies of the mind into a state of equanimity and clarity. Wisdom naturally arises.
One becomes less ignorant of the mental dispositions that lead to suffering. More conscious of the unconscious. More lucid. Awake.
Not caught up so easily in the self-centred dream.
Less attached to the conceit 'I am'.
Less absorbed in greed, hate and delusion.
Less affected by the changing worldly winds.
Less attached to conditioned phenomena.
Knowing it for what it is. Dissatisfying.
Emptiness.
The darkness of delusion disperses.
Ignorance becomes understanding.
Discernment develops.
Resolve gets stronger.
And we begin to behave in ways that don't lead to suffering.
Which weakens the conditions that give rise to it.
Till eventually there is cessation of suffering.
And when greed, hate, and delusion no longer take root in the mind. There is lasting peace, freedom and happiness. An unlimited bliss.
The noble eightfold path has done its work.
The space left behind is known as the deathless, the unconditioned, the supreme happiness.
Something lasting.
Something secure that doesn't fade away or die. Something that can't be taken away once it has been realised.
It is an element beyond the changing conditions of dependent origination and the worldly dharmas.
Nibanna is something that is always here, everywhere, it always has been, and always will be. It is the safe shore. The refuge from dukkha (suffering).
The practise of the noble eightfold path: right view (understanding), right intention (resolve), right speech, right action, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness, right samhadi. Purifies the mind of greed, hate, and delusion. And leads to the lasting peace and happiness of nibanna.
The safe shore
How do I feel?
A seed that can sprout and grow under the right conditions.
Keeps abandoning that which leads to suffering.
Keeps cultivating and sustaining that which leads to the end of suffering.
How to balance and unify the numerous energies of the mind into a state of equanimity and clarity.
Wisdom naturally arises.
More conscious of the unconscious. More lucid. Awake.
Dissatisfying.
Something that can't be taken away once it has been realised.