It is one of hope, based on a realistic
assessemment of our life situation. All we need to know now is what
course of meditation we have to take to put an end to the disease and so
achieve the Nibbana (Nivana) peace. The Buddha laid down the rules of self-healing
and called it - the Fourth Noble Truths of the Path.
The first step on the Noble Path is
Right Understanding (Samma Ditthi). This means that to have understood the
first two Nobel Truths of Suffering and the Cause of the Suffering (Dukkha).
The Buddha did not want blind adherence to his words. He wanted people to
investigate and see whether there were any inconsistencies or
contradictions in his teachings.
Just as Right Understanding determines
the intentions we have, so Right Intention determines our actions and behavior.
This is the teaching of Kamma. It is simply the law of cause and effect we
so readily accept in science It you put various substances together and do
this and that in a certain way, you have an atomic explosion. There is a
reason or cause for everything that happens. So it is in the moral sphere
of good and evil. Everything I do affects not only the world out there,
but also the world of my mind within. When I do something I set up a chain
of events that finally comes back to me since I am not a being in
isolation, but a being in relationship with everyone else. Just as a
pebble dropped in a pool causes ripples to the farthest bank.
As do our
actions affect the world. Just as the ripples then return to the source,
so the result of our actions come back to us. If we do good, good will
come back to us. If you do harm, harm will come to us. There is no concept
of punishment in Buddhism, only consequences of our actions; repetition of
the same actions produces a habit; a collection of habits is our personality; and this personality will produce its own destiny.
Morality
in Buddhism then is understanding what will bring good. What we do,
therefore, we can be wholesome or unwholesome, skilful or unskillful. We do
indeed reap as we sow.
Right Speech (Samma Vaca).
This means not only not to lie, but also not to backbite, use coarse
language or indulge in useless gossip.
Right Action (Samma Kammanta).
Right Livehood (Samma Ajiva). To work in
a non harming way, this may seem difficult in Western society at first
glance but it is not just about the work one does, it is how we work.
The Solution - the End of Ignorance -
Wisdom
The Four Noble Truths, The Eightfold
Noble Path, Kamma (Karma) and Moral Causation and the Three Characteristics of
Nature -
Transitoriness (Anicca),
Unsatisfactoriness (Dukkha)
Insubstantiality (Anatta).
The First Noble Truth of Suffering
The Three Characteristics of existence;
Life is:-
Ever changing
Unsatisfactory
Insubstantial
The Second Noble Truth of the Cause of
Suffering
Desire and attachment; Craving of :-
Sense objects
Becomings
Annihilation.
The Third Noble Truth of the End of
Suffering
Nibanna; (Nivana)
There is a state beyond body and mind, a
Peace beyond peace.
The Fourth Noble Truth of the Path
Leading to the End of Suffering.
