..續本文上一頁gence, an easy life, all the blessings, all the good things. It”s good merit, good parami and all that. But when I look at my own life, incredible challenges have come to me that have shaken me, that really upset me, and disappointed me to the point where I have contemplated suicide - ”I just want to get this over with. I don”t want to spend more and more years in this realm. I can”t take it.” But awakening to that I realised, that I”m quite willing to take what life presents and learn from it. That”s the challenge to see that this is an opportunity that we have as human beings, as conscious beings. If you put it in the context of knowing the world as the world, we can take anything. We have incredible abilities to learn from even the most unfair, miserable, painful and nasty conditions. These are not the obstructions to enlightenment; it”s whether we awaken or not.
Now the teachings of the Lord Buddha are teachings pointing to this. They”re to awaken you rather than to condition you. We”re not trying to grasp them as doctrinal positions to take, but expedient means to use to develop awakened awareness, mindfulness and intuition, to not fear sensitivity, to really open to it. Be fully sensitive rather than trying to protect yourself endlessly from possible pain or misfortune.
Knowing the world as the world is not a resignation in a negative way - ”Oh, you know how the world is!” - as if it were bad, that there”s something wrong with it. That”s not knowing the world as the world. Rather it”s studying and taking an interest, examining experience, and being willing to look at and feel the negative side. It”s not just seeking pleasurable experiences, but seeing even your most disappointing ones, your worst failures as opportunities to learn, as a chance to awaken; as devadutas or ”messengers” that tap us on the shoulder and say, ”Wake up!” That”s why in Buddhism getting old, sickness, disabilities and loss are not seen as things to fear and despise, but as devaluates or ”heavenly messengers”. This word devaduta is a Pali word; duta means a messenger of some sort, deva is ”angelic” or ”heavenly”; so heavenly messengers sent to warn us. A Christian asked me once if we had angels in Buddhism. ”We have angels in Christianity; all kinds of white and beautiful beings that play harps; they”re very radiant, light beings.” I replied, ”Well, Buddhist angels are not that way. They”re old age, sickness and death!” The fourth devaduta is the samana, the human being who has spiritual realisations.
> Old people you can see as devaluates. Like me: I”ll be sixty-seven in a few days. Not only a devaduta on the level of a samara, but an old man too. As I get sick and senile, I”ll be even more of a devaduta; and when I”m dead, I”ll be four all in one! For reflecting in this way, to see how to use life, the malleability of our human mind is endless.
> We can be so set and conditioned by dualistic thinking. For example, I was brought up in a very dualistic way of looking at everything. Things were absolutely right or wrong, good or evil. These were very fixed ways of looking at everything. I had this very limited use of my mind because it tended to move between these two extremes.
> Are we going to become inflated egotistical monsters if we admit that we love good things
Why did I become a Bhikkhu
I could give you reasons like ”I”ve got to shape up and get my act together. I can”t do it any other way.” I can look it in terms of weakness and inability, that I need the support from external conditions because I can”t do it by myself. Or I can look at it in terms of being attracted to what is good, virtuous and beautiful. Both have their points to make; it”s not that I”m so good, that I just gravitate to everything that”s light and beautiful, I”ve …
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