Emptiness

No true origin of anything can be found.

~Thomas Cleary, in Entry Into the Inconceivable

Cause and Effect

To resolve the problem of dukkha*, we first must understand the teaching of cause and effect.

Throughout the universe, nothing changes haphazardly. Everything follows a common rule. That rule is cause and effect, often mistakenly referred to as karma. However, the word karma simply means action, physical, verbal, or mental. 

It is intention that forms our karma, our action.

The result of karma is referred to as vipaka.

Karma is the action and vipaka is the result, the fruit.

Buddhism teaches every action will cause an effect. And everything effect we experience now was caused by an earlier action.

The correlation between cause and effect is a universal law, not random happenstance.

The law of cause and effect requires neither giver, nor creator, but 'directs" quietly and impartially. 

If we wish to resolve the problem of dukkha and realize liberation, we must understand cause and effect.


*Dukkha
Stress, anxiety, discomfort, dissatisfaction, dis-ease, worry, unpleasantness, sorrow, distress, and suffering.

Our World

Our idea of the world is generated from conceptions based on perceptions based on sensations.

The Positive

Overcome the anger by non-anger; overcome the wicked by goodness; overcome the miser by generosity; overcome the liar by truth.

~The Buddha

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Concentration (Meditation) - The Third of the Three Mental Development Aspects of the Path

Proper Concentration or Meditation is the gradual process of training the Mind to focus on a single object, and to remain fixed upon that object without wavering. The object of concentration may be a material thing such as a flower or a stone or a quality such as Loving Kindness. Or the object may be, and this is the most common because it is always with use, our breath.

Even if one practices for as little as fifteen minutes a day, one will begin to notice changes. The faithful daily practice of Meditation helps one develop a calm and concentrated Mind.

The faithful daily practice of Meditation prepares one for the attainment of Wisdom and Compassion and Awakening.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Mindfulness - The Second of the Three Mental Development Aspects of the Path

Proper Mindfulness is an essential quality in everyone's daily life. It's a mental factor that enables us to remember, and to keep our awareness and attention on, what is beneficial in terms of thoughts, words, and deeds.

When we awake we can determine for this day to try not to harm other Living Beings or other things. We can determine to do our best, in even the smallest of ways, to benefit others.

The Mind must constantly be aware of what is happening for neither mishap nor misgivings to occur.

Proper Mindfulness is necessary if one is to progress towards Wisdom and Compassion and Awakening. The Mind must be protected against distraction. Greed and anger should be consciously avoided. Attention is given to the Mind because it is through the Mind that everything is comprehended, interpreted, and understood.

If lasting happiness is to be attained, the undisciplined Mind should be tamed.

To tame the Mind is to tame the World.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Effort (Skillful Means or Diligence) - The First of the Three Mental Development Aspects of the Path

Proper Effort is needed to develop one's Mind, because one is often distracted or tempted to take the easy way.

The Buddha taught attaining True Happiness and Awakening (Enlightenment) depends on one's own efforts. Effort is the root of all achievement. So, no matter how great the Buddha's achievement or how excellent his Teaching, one must put the Teaching into practice before one can expect to obtain results.

There are four types of Proper Effort that should be practiced.

These four are:

1 . . . The Effort to prevent the arising of unwholesome thoughts of greed, hatred, and ignorance.

2 . . . The Effort to rid oneself of the unwholesome thoughts that have arisen.

3 . . . The Effort to develop wholesome thoughts of generosity, loving kindness, and other positive qualities.

4 . . . The Effort to maintain the wholesome thoughts that have arisen, even though they may not be appreciated by others.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Livelihood - The Third of the Three Moral Conduct Aspects of the Path

Proper Livelihood means earning one's living in a way that is not harmful to others. In the choice of one's occupation, one should show respect for the life and welfare of All Living Beings.

There are five trades that the Buddha considered unworthy for making one's living. These trades should be avoided because they cause suffering and unhappiness to others and they create disunity in society.

The five trades the Buddha considered unworthy are the manufacture and/or sale of deadly weapons, the breading and raising of animals for slaughter (which includes the killing and butchering of animals), owning or selling human beings as slaves (this includes sexual slaves), the manufacture and/or sale of intoxicants, and the manufacture and/or sale of poisons (this includes insecticides and herbicides).

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Action - The Second of the Three Moral Conduct Aspects of the Path

The practice of Proper Action involves respect for the life of others, respect for the property of others, respect for the personal relationships of others, and respect for the sexual boundaries of others.

Proper Action helps to develop a character that is self-controlled and mindful of the rights of others.

Proper Action includes avoiding by word or action killing or causing to kill, harming or causing to harm, and sexual misconduct.

Proper Action is not simply avoiding, it is also doing something. This doing something includes acting and speaking in a manner that will benefit others.

Proper Action includes helping and rescuing others from danger.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Speech - The First of the Three Moral Conduct Aspects of the Path

We should make an effort to notice and comment upon others' good qualities and achievements instead of venting frustration or anger towards them. We can give one another moral support, consolation in times of grieve, and share the Dharma with them. Speech is a powerful tool. When used wisely, many will benefit.

Proper Speech includes the avoidance of lying, rumor, harsh language, and idle talk.

Proper Speech includes praise when appropriate, constructive and compassionate criticism, healing words, truthful words, and silence when necessary.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper Thought (Resolve) - The Second of the Two Wisdom Aspects of the Path

Proper Thought means to avoid Craving and Ill Will, and to cultivate thoughts of Renunciation (giving up Attachment), Loving Kindness, and Compassion. Craving should be avoided because it can never be fully satisfied, leading to unwholesome actions. Thoughts of Renunciation remove Craving, while thoughts of Loving Kindness and Compassion remove Ill Will.

Thoughts influence one's words and actions. If one speaks or acts out of Greed or Anger, then one will speak or act wrongly and suffer consequently. It's necessary to purify one's thoughts if one really wishes to improve one's conduct. Proper Thought is knowing how to use the knowledge that we have for the benefit of oneself and others, for the benefit of all species and all things.

The Noble Eightfold Path: Proper View (Understanding) - The First of the Two Wisdom Aspects of the Path

Proper View is the seeing of all things as they really are without the filters of opinion, belief, wish, want, or desire; everything as it is rather than as it appears to be.

An inquiring and analytical attitude is important in the practice of Proper View. The Buddha taught us not to rely on hearsay, tradition, or authority for Reality but to observe and judge the Truth in the light of our own unbiased and objective experience. The Buddha taught that just as a wise person does nor accept any metal that glitters as being gold on the advice of another, but to test its properties for themselves, even so, one should not accept what is heard or read without testing it by one's own experience.

Nonetheless, in seeking the Truth, one can do well to turn to the Teachings of the Buddha for guidance. This is the first step towards developing Proper View. One should listen to and study the Teachings of the Buddha and the explanations of qualified teachers. But listening to and reading about the Buddha's Teachings is not enough. One should also practice the Buddha's Teaching.

The Buddha said developing Proper View is similar to a blind person who has regained their sight and whose attitude towards things they used to like and dislike now changes because they can now see them accurately.

The Five Aggregates

What causes us to experience dukkha in an impermanent world is not impermanence itself, but the desire within each of us to attach to things that are not lasting. We harbor this desire, this craving, this thirst as long as we cling inappropriately to the ego-oriented notion of self. Such a limited, artificial perspective—distinguishing between self and other, instead of realizing the interpenetration of both—easily gives rise to the so-called three poisons, or defilements, of greed, anger, and ignorance. These poisons, in turn, feed desire: the urge to acquire, to overcome, and/or to win.

In distinct opposition to the belief in a personal self that at death passes from a life in one body to a life in another body or the belief that at death the self passes to an eternal reward or an eternal punishment, the Buddha taught the doctrine of no-self. Individuals, of course, live as a self in the world, and need to think in terms of a self to a certain degree for basic survival. Nevertheless, the self does not exist as a spiritual or metaphysical entity. Instead, it's simply the name given to a temporary combination (or “personality”) of impermanent aggregates (differing elements that combine to form a whole).

Buddhism posits five groups of aggregates (Skandhas in Sanskrit) that combine to form an individual.

These Five Aggregates or Skandhas are matter, sensation, perception, mental formation, and consciousness.

Matter: The eyes, the ears, the nose, the tongue, the body, and the mind. In Buddhism each of these is considered a sense organ. Thus, Buddhism teaches we have six senses not five, the sixth being the mind which defines what the other senses perceive.

Sensation: The raw data of sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and mental activity.

Perception: The recognition and naming of the sensations received by the sense organs.

Mental Formation: All mental acts that generate activities—for example, will, judgment, fear, dislike, love, pride, and so on. This aggregate or skandha can manifest the three poisons—greed, anger, and ignorance—or their medicinal counterparts—wisdom, compassion, and enlightenment. This aggregate's function links us to our karma, which explains the Buddha's words, “We are what we think.”

Consciousness: The awareness, registration, and ordering of the perceptions.

The understanding and examination of the Aggregates illustrates no entity called the “self” abides—or needs to abide. When we delude ourselves with the notion of a fixed self operating as its own agent we kindle self-oriented desires which in turn give rise to dukkha.

To understand the Aggregates is to under the words of Buddhaghosa, the great Theravada scholar of the fifth century C.E., “Suffering exists, but not the sufferer.”

The Four Noble Truths - The Foundation of the Buddha Dharma (This is Buddhism)

The First Noble Truth:

The Truth of Dukkha - Life is full of Dissatisfactions. We undergo many dissatisfactory experiences (dukkha) which should be identified. They include birth, aging, sickness, death, departure from who/what we like, being with who/what we dislike, failing to achieve what we want to achieve, and attaining what we don't what to attain.


The Second Noble Truth:

The Causes of Dissatisfactions - The unsatisfactory experiences (dukkha) have causes we should identify. These causes are the Three Poisons of Craving (Greed or Wanting or Desire), Aversion (Hatred or Not Wanting), and Ignorance (Lack of Wisdom or Delusion).


The Third Noble Truth:

There is Freedom from the Dissatisfactions (dukkha) in Life - There is a peaceful state where there is no dukkha. Nirvana or Awakening or Enlightenment is freedom from and the extinguishing of the Three Poisons.


The Four Noble Truth:

The Truth of the Path Leading to the End of Dukkha - There is a path that leads to Nirvana, to True Peace and True Happiness. This path is the Noble Eightfold Path

The Noble Eightfold Path

1 . . . Proper View

2 . . . Proper Thought (Resolve)

3 . . . Proper Speech

4 . . . Proper Action

5 . . . Proper Livelihood

6 . . . Proper Effort (Skillful Means)

7 . . . Proper Mindfulness

8 . . . Proper Concentration

Dependent Origination

All things appear and disappear
Because of causes and conditions.
Nothing ever exists entirely alone;
Everything is in relation to everything else.

~The Lankavatara Sutra

Dependent Origination

Dependent Origination is a foundational teaching of Buddhism. It was through the understanding of Dependent Origination that the Buddha attained Enlightenment.

The Buddha said, “Deep indeed is Dependent Origination. It is by not realizing this principle that all have become entangled like a ball of thread, unable to stop dukkha and rebirth.”

The basis of Dependent Origination is life and the world are built on sets of relationships, in which the arising and the ending of things depend on some other factors which condition them.

When this is, that is.

This arising, that arises.

When this is not, that is not.

This ceasing, that ceases.

“This” + Certain Causes + Certain Conditions = “That”

On this principle of interdependence and relativity rests the arising, continuing, and the stopping of existence.

The Law of Dependent Origination emphasizes all phenomena in the Universe are inter- or co-dependent. Phenomena do not arise independently of supportive conditions.

A phenomena arises because combinations of conditions are present to support its arising. Phenomena will cease when the conditions and components supporting its arising change and no longer sustain it.

The presence of these supportive conditions, in turn, depend on other factors for their arising, sustenance, disappearance, and possible re-arising. In this sense, all things are empty (have the characteristics of Emptiness) of an independent self-nature.

Dependent Origination explains how Rebirth occurs.

The law of Dependent Origination can be shown with an oil lamp. The flame in the oil lamp burns dependent on the air, the oil, heat, and the wick. When all these are present, the flame burns. If one of these elements is removed the flame with cease to burn.

The Moon on Waves

There is only one moon, but as it sets into the sea, each wave reflects it a little differently. It's the same way with us human beings and the truth. "The truth is only one," as Nishijima Roshi used to say. But each of us reflects that truth a bit differently.

~Brad Warner, in It Came From Beyond Zen

Buddhist Creation Story - For Children

The Simplicity of Buddhism

There is stress and anxiety in life.

There is a cause for this stress and anxiety.

There is freedom from this stress and anxiety.

There is a path of practice for the experience of this freedom.

Everything is Change

Everything falls under the law of change, like a dream, a phantom, a bubble, a shadow, like dew or a flash of lightening; you should contemplate everything like this.

~The Diamond Sutra