You know, tradition (the Āyācana Sutta) has the Buddha being
very reluctant to teach his Dhamma because it too subtle, too refined, and to
difficult to “realize,” by which is meant to understand clearly.
The “problem” in the human condition is dukkhā. I’ve discussed dukkhā extensively
(expansively?) in previous posts, so suffice it to say dukkhā is a condition of
unsatisfactoriness of life. The “cause”
of the problem is duplex: avijjā, the
lack of insightful wisdom, interacting with taṇhā, the desire for, the
emotional attachment to, self-gratification.
We lack the vision, the understanding, the knowledge of Reality (as it
really it), and we are driven by wanting life to bring us pleasure, as we want
it, when we want it. But life and
reality don’t work that way all of the time, so we get upset, we get
discouraged, we get annoyed, we get vituperative, and sometimes we get violent,
trying to make reality and life conform to our picture of how it should
be. All of our responses to
dissatisfactoriness are subsumed under the rubric of dukkhā.
Since we are sentient beings, conscious, aware beings,
beings with the capacity for ratiocination, and beings with a conscience, we
can, and according to the Dhamma we therefore should, raise our consciousness,
apply our reason, take charge of the human condition and make it better. We need to fix the problem. We need to become “Homo sapiens” (wise
humans) rather than “Homo neuroticus” (crazy people). And over time we can become “Homo nobilis.”
Noble Humans.
The solution to dukkhā, the “fix” for the less-than-perfect
human condition is to be disciplined in the practice of the Noble Path.
If we examine this discipline closely, we find it is a
well-thought-out program of dealing with our emotional dysfunction in a
benevolent, compassionate, calmly rational way.
There is nothing in this teaching that calls on us to be devout, pious,
holy. This teaching calls on us to
practice sammā-diṭṭi,” that is
practicing right knowledge, right understanding, right perspective, right
view. That is knowledge, understanding,
perspective and view that is untainted by emotional bias and illogical
thinking.
We are admonished to practice sammā-saṇkappo, sammā-vācā and
sammā-kammanto as well. These are
respectively, Right Intention/Aspiration, Right Speech/Communication/Expression
and Right Action. You can read earlier
posts on these, and you can research the whole Noble Path on your own. The point here is that “sammā” as used here
includes the idea that to be “right” means to not engender dukkhā; “right” is
free of taṇhā and avijjā; “right” is unbiased, logically sound, and rationally
consistent with the objective world. “Right”
is reasonable.
That’s not being practiced very much in our society. We’re not being rational and reasonable about
far too many things. Politics, violence,
religion, relationships, economics, morals, communication – dare I say
Reality. We are so un-wise, un-informed,
un-insightful, so ensnared in avijjā, and we are so enmeshed in our own
beliefs, caught up in our own desires, so consumed by our “selves,” that we
can’t even see we’re being delusional, irrational – crazy.
And when somebody comes along and points this out, their
words, no matter how compassionately or benevolently presented are read through
delusion and bias. We have made icons
out of our delusions and biases, and when someone says something that triggers
those icons, we respond irrationally, and they are insulted, attacked,
vituperated mercilessly.
It makes it really tough to be rational in an irrational
world.
Just something to think about.
