Yesterday afternoon we visited Sarnoth, or Deer Park as it is known to some, the place where the Buddha gave his first sermon, called “Turning the Wheel of Law”. In that sacred spot he talked about 3 things:Following the middle path (moderation in all things)
the 4 noble truths
1. life is suffering
2. there are reasons for the suffering
3. freedom from suffering is possible
4. follow the 8-fold path to liberate yourself from suffering
The 8 fold path
1. Right speech
2. Right action
3. Right means of livelihood
4. Right effort
5. Right meditation
6. Right minded
7. Right resolution
8. Right point of view
The first 3 involve physical control, the next 3 mental balance, and the last 2 intellectual development. I have to say that even typing these wonderful sentiments make me feel like a huge failure as a human being, so I wonder why Buddhists appear so happy all the time instead of hugely depressed. Seriously, there was a great calm about the place, with monks meditating on the grassy lawn, and lovely green gardens and trees lining the walks. BTW, all the Buddhists in the reading group, PLEASE respond with any corrections or additions to my very basic retelling of the sermon; BJ and S, I expect you to be my editors on all things Buddhist. We also visit
ed the oldest MODERN Buddhist temple in India (made in 1931) about 1 K from Sarnoth. It is the oldest one because Muslim invaders destroyed all the temples with each of their invasions, as well as the British. Not so nice… We saw a famous 3rd century sculpture of Buddha at the Sarnoth Museum which emanated a peaceful yet powerful calm. It was a peaceful afternoon and I wished my friend B.J. could have walked with me and enhanced my enjoyment of the experience. All these religions seem to co-exist fairly peacefully, although there was a bombing of the sacred Golden Temple by Muslim extremists, and the occasional conflict which scarcity of resources helps foment around the world. This park is the summer home of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and he made an excellent choice in digs. Inside the modern temple were beautiful paintings of the life of Siddartha/Buddha, and I will post photos of most of them today *(if electricity is having a good day in Varanasi). I leave you with the wishes from the sign I sa
w when leaving the temple:
Guru Connie, A very succinct summary of things Buddhist! However, because the tradition is so rich & deep, and misunderstanding so easy, let me suggest some elucidations. "Suffering" is the normal translation for the Pali/Sanskrit "duhkha", but it's broader than our normal sense of suffering. We could say frustration, sorrow, and generally unsatifactoriness. It should not lead the reader to think that Buddha was a proto-Schopenhauer pessimist. (Schopenhauer misread Buddhist texts--the importance of sound translations!)
ReplyDeleteNext, instead of saying a "reason" for suffering, I think the better translation & understanding is "cause". Buddha was very empirical and concerned with cause and effect (think karma). Also, the same truth describes the cause: craving (as in "thirst"), grasping, attachment--unwholesome desires. Buddha does not suggest any divine plan or requirement for suffering, and as stated in the next of the Four Noble Truths, he thinks that there is a path out.
Just looking @ all of your photos and posts, anyone can see what a rich spritual culture Inda represents, going back thousands of years, and how such a rich cultural heritage could give rise to so many traditions and careful considerations of workings of our world. Well told, teacher!