For the past several months, as a newcomer, I have attempted to research and study Buddhism to the nth degree. I was going around in circles getting more and more confused each day. It was time to make a start somewhere. I decided to go to the teachings by Buddha of the FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS. What a beautiful, simple, difficult, clear, confusing beginning.

I began by studying the First Noble Truth and have come to understand that Selfishness, Greed, Anger, Ignorance and Arrogance were habits accumulated and acted on by me over years thus, causing my own suffering. While studying The First Insight ‘There is Suffering’ it was also made clear that it is not personal suffering that the Buddha is referring to but simply to acknowledge that there IS suffering without making it personal. Of course, figuratively speaking, I had been lamenting I am suffering. How can I get out of suffering. I want it to stop.

Now it has become a bit clearer that the First Insight is telling us that to simply acknowledge that there is suffering in this world.

Hopefully, this is a suitable place to make that first step into understanding (and maybe being able to practise) the teachings of Buddha without the guidance of a teacher. There has been no success in finding a teacher to date but I will not give up on my search. Any advice from the Venerable Masters would be appreciated.

Namo Amituofo

From the Pali Cannon:

“Now this, bhikkhus, is the noble truth of dukkha:  birth is dukkha, aging is dukkha, illness is dukkha, death is dukkha, sorrow, lamentation, pain, sadness, and dispair are dukkha; association with the unloved is dukkha, separation from the loved is dukkha; not to get what one wants is dukkha, getting what one doesn’t want is dukkha; in brief, clinging to the five aggregates as if they constitute a self is dukkha.”

I think this is important to consider, that it does not matter whether suffering is personal or not but that it exists despite us wanting it to or not.  Dukkha or suffering is a part of life and nothing more.

Buddhism Forum Members;

In studying the Four Noble Truths further, I feel a little progress has been made and would like to share it here as I do not yet have a teacher as a guide.  During my studies I , hopefully, have come to understand ;

The Buddha diagnosed the root problem of life, thus; suffering is inherent in everything within our existence. Hence, the First Truth.

He did not just leave it there. He went on and explained that suffering is caused by our own greed which comes from our own ignorance and that there is a way to end this suffering. Hence, the Second Truth.

The Buddha did not intend for us to feel life was futile or depressing. He wished us to awaken and replace our state of ignorance with one of understanding. To neither drown in or ignore suffering, but to try and rid ourselves of our unsatisfactory existence and end this suffering. Hence, the Third Truth.

The Fourth Truth , practise is the way to end suffering, I will leave for later as my aim is to have a better understanding of the first three truths. As there is no shortage of Buddhism material on the internet, any recommended and relevent readings would be most welcome.

Amituofo

[quote http://www.thebigview.com/buddhism/fourtruths.html ]

The Four Noble Truths

1. Life means suffering.

2. The origin of suffering is attachment.

3. The cessation of suffering is attainable.

4. The path to the cessation of suffering.

I have something for you to read.

This is conversation mostly just LFJ and myself had on shaolinwolf.

My first thought was to find something for regarding the 4 nobel truths and nirvana and parinirvana, so in searching for that, i found this which I personally think holds alot of insight into all 4 .

[quote http://www.shaolinwolf.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=15;t=000320;p=3 ]

the main difference is quality of mind. animals are in a less fortunate realm of existence where their minds are dull. they cant know the dharma, and therefore cannot live a life in line with such precepts.

so they intentionally kill not knowing the negative result. thats why they are considered a lower or less fortunate realm.

human beings on the other hand are able to know the dharma and develop wisdom and act in accordance with the precepts for the right reasons, understanding the law of karma.

therefore, human beings never have an excuse to kill. we can choose not to and survive just as well. this clarity of mind makes the human realm the most fortunate as we are able to know dharma.

unlike beings in lower realms, with dull minds experiencing mainly suffering. while beings in higher realms experience too much pleasure to even think about dharma. they are too preoccupied. while humans have a balance off both ends.

[QUOTE http://www.helium.com/items/521724-buddhism-introduction-to-the-nirvana ]

Considering the page title of “buddhism- introcution to the nirvana”, myself being ch’an mahayana, this one’s rather interesting really..

Exxxcellent narrative on this one!

The term ‘Nirvana’ is mainly associated with Buddhism and refers to ‘a higher state of being’. ‘Nirvana’ literally translated means the extinction of desire, which ‘is the sinful grasping state of mind and heart which makes man desire this illusory world. When he extinguishes the fire of desire, he attains peace or Nirvana.’ (1).

In order to achieve ‘Nirvana’, we must first escape ‘Samsara’, which is the cycle of birth and rebirth. In other words, you are reborn until you no longer have bad Karma and have been rewarded for your past and present actions. ‘Nirvana’ can be achieved in this lifetime, but if it is achieved in the afterlife it is generally referred to as ‘Parinirvana’ or ‘The final Nirvana’.

The first person to achieve ‘Nirvana’, and then ‘Parinirvana’, was thought to be Siddhartha Gautama, or Buddha. In despair of a world of suffering, he sat under a tree, now known as the Bodhi Tree, and meditated for forty five day. He then became ‘enlightened’ with an intense understanding of his present life and past lives, and this world and other worlds. In this way, he had achieved ‘Nirvana’.

Gautama began to teach his thoughts and ideas in the form of the four ‘ Noble Truths’ and ‘Noble Eightfold Path’:

FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS
(1) Life is suffering
(2) This suffering is caused by overcoming ignorance and attachment to earthly
things.
(3) You can only end this suffering by overcoming ignorance and attachment to
earthly things.
(4) You can overcome ignorance and attachment by following the NOBLE EIGHTFOLD PATH.

The ‘Noble Eightfold Path’ gives a list of eight ideals which will guide each person to a greater understanding of this world and other worlds:
(1) Right Views
(2) Right Intention
(3) Right Speech
(4) Right Action
(5) Right Livelihood
(6) Right effort
(7) Right contemplation
(8) Right mindedness

In following this path, the Buddha described a way to end suffering. It is thought to be a way to free each person from attachments and delusions, so that we gain an understanding of truth about all things. The four truths and the ‘Noble Eightfold Path’ are the fundamental teachings of Buddhism in order for us to reach the state of ‘Nirvana’.

The Buddha was known to achieve Parinirvana at the age of eighty, when he left behind his physical body. Buddhists believe this to be the highest possible state achievable, but of course know little about it.
.
(1) Rev. Keryu Tsusi, http://www.ekoji.org.
(2) http://www.urbandharma.org
(3)www.thebigview.com
(4) Wilkipipedia.org
(5) http://www.science.howstuffworks.com

Hope some of these help,

Amitabah.

Blooming tianshi lotus.

Blooming Lotus,

Thank you for your recommendations. As I am a virtual newcomer, struggling to get a handle on how to approach entry into Buddhism, much of the content on Shaolinwolf website is a bit too deep for me at this stage. For now, I need to keep it simple. However, your opening reference to the bigview.com will certainly be of benefit. Who knows, maybe someday in the future I will be able to converse with Forum members such as yourself on a higher level. So for now much time and thought (meditation?) will be spent studying The Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path.

Again, many thanks for your recommendations.

Amituofo

The more ppl who can talk with us and interperate back to whatever level, particularly those we personally might not have such access to.. the more it helps our personal selves to acheive our tenet of spreading dharma.

we appreciate your study eightfold path studies.

amitabah.

Blooming tianshi lotus.

newcomer1,

all the dharma is contained within the four noble truths. all you may find in buddhist scripture is just expansion on that. especially the fourth- the eightfold path. just work on understanding the four noble truths.

no need to get too “deep”. simplicity is the art.

may your practice go well,
peace!

LFJ, your reply is most appreciated because, as always, you are “spot on” when it comes to giving advice.

For some reason over the past month or so access to the Shaolin Temple Community website was not possible- “Site Currently Offline” message kept coming up??. Only when I responded to an email message I received today from one of the forum members was I able to logon.

You are so correct when you say “keep it simple”. I was trying to read and absorb EVERYTHING out there and making little progress. A little understanding in the teachings of The Four Noble Truths is being accomplished by me now with concentration on the steps in the Eight-Fold Path and studying on how to apply them to daily living. At this time my focus is on the 8th step - Right Meditation- as this is something that has become important in trying to settle my thinking down. I have aquired a teacher to lead me on this journey into practising meditation and look forward to absorbing more of the beautiful Buddhist philosphy in the future.

Amituofo

wonderful, newcomer-

as i’ve noticed, there are no separate “steps” to the eightfold path. its eightfold, which means it has eight aspects, not steps to be learned in order. advancing to one step you leave the last. its not like that. at first, you learn them individually, but later through actualization they all work together as a single path, as life, perhaps “right living”.

at first, “right view” is an understanding. once you learn the path, you come back to the first step again and it becomes “right view”, not merely an understanding of the concept. then all the other aspects fall into place through that right view.

it is very simple actually, not always easy though!

amituofo!

Amituofo LFJ,
How true. Often during a day the first step , ‘right view’, has to be foremost as I can be very impulsive at times (don’t look before I leap in other words) which can cause others discomfort; other times it is the third step, ‘ right speech’, also, I often tend to be a bit hasty with words. However, by absorbing and practising the teachings of Buddha via the Eightfold Path, much will hopefully be accomplished.