Noble Strategy

82 Pages·6.3 MB·English

by  Thanissaro Bhikkhu

NOBLt(cid:13)
STRATEGY(cid:13)
CONTENTS(cid:13)
Introduction / i(cid:13)
Affirmintgh eT ruthos ft heH eartI 3(cid:13)
Karma I 9(cid:13)
The Road to Nirvana(cid:13)
Is Pavewd ithS killfuIln tention/s 13(cid:13)
TheH ealinPg oweorf t heP recep/t s2 2(cid:13)
RighSt peecIh 2 8(cid:13)
TradinCg andfyo r Gold/ 30(cid:13)
A GuidedM editation I 37(cid:13)
TheP atho fC oncentration(cid:13)
&-M indfulnesI s4 3(cid:13)
OneT ooAl monMg anyI 55(cid:13)
WhatI s Emptiness/ ?6 7(cid:13)
No-seolfr N ot-self/? 7 1(cid:13)
TheI magoef N irvana/ 75(cid:13)
INTRODUCTION(cid:13)
X(cid:13)
Views*(cid:13)
The essayisn this book presenvt iewso n basice le-
mentsi n the Buddhistp ath-the attitudes,c oncepts,(cid:13)
andp racticetsh at leadt o total freedomfo r the mind.I f(cid:13)
the viewsa rer ight, they themselvefso rm a part of the(cid:13)
path.T hus, in learningh ow to makeb estu seo f these(cid:13)
essaysit,s importantt o understanhdo w viewsf unction(cid:13)
in bringinga boutf reedom.(cid:13)
Any corrects tatemenat boutt he path is a part of(cid:13)
right view. And yet the goalo f the path-total free-
dom-includes freedom from attachment to all views.(cid:13)
This meansth at right viewsd on'ts tanda t the endo f the(cid:13)
path.I n otherw ords,w e don'tp racticeth e path simply(cid:13)
to arrivea t right view.A nd yet we can'tf ollowt he path(cid:13)
without makingu seo f right views.S o right viewsa re(cid:13)
tools-strategies-to a highere nd.T hey areu niquei n(cid:13)
that their approachto realityl eadsu ltimatelyt o their(cid:13)
ownt ranscendencTeh.e ya rem eantto sparkt he sort of(cid:13)
inquiryt hat takesth e mindb eyondth em.T heir efficacy(cid:13)
is what provest heir truth. Their integrity in action,(cid:13)
combined with the worthiness of their outcome, is what(cid:13)
makesth em-as strategies-noble.(cid:13)
Sot hee ssaycso llectehde rea rei ntendeda sa idst o this(cid:13)
programo f nobles trategyT. herei s muchm oret o this(cid:13)
programth anc anb ec ontaineidn this-or any other-(cid:13)
INTRODUCTION(cid:13)
book.A fter all,r ightv iewi s onlyp arto f thep ath.B utm y(cid:13)
hopei s that thesee ssaywsi ll helpg ety ous tartedo n the(cid:13)
right patht o freedoma,n dt hat thep ointst heyr aisew ill(cid:13)
proveu sefual longth ew ay.(cid:13)
Thee ssaycso llectehde rew erew ritteno vert hec ourse(cid:13)
of the last four yearsS. omeo f themh avea ppearedin, (cid:13)
earlieri ncarnationsi,n TricycleT: he BuddhisRt eviewa nd(cid:13)
InsighIt . wouldl ike to thankt he manyp eoplew hoh ave(cid:13)
offereds uggestionfosr their improvemenitn, particular(cid:13)
JaneY udelmanM, aryT albot,C larkS trandR, uth Stiles,(cid:13)
LarryR osenbeJrogh, nM urphyK, arenK ing,B ok-LimK im,(cid:13)
Gil FronsdaDl,a vidC oleJ, ohnB ullitt,a ndS tepheAni chele.(cid:13)
Mayt heya ll havea sharien theh appineasts w hichth isb ook(cid:13)
is aimed.(cid:13)
Thanissaro Ehikkhu(cid:13)
(GeoffreDye Graff)(cid:13)
Metta ForestM onastery(cid:13)
ValleyC enter,C A 92082-1409(cid:13)
August,1 999(cid:13)
INTRODUCTION(cid:13)
AFFIRMING(cid:13)
THE TRUTHS OF THE HEART:(cid:13)
/(cid:13)
TheB uddhisTte achings(cid:13)
onS amveg&a-P asada(cid:13)
We rarelyt hink of Buddhisma s an emotionarle li-
gion.E arlyB uddhismin particularis oftend epicteda s(cid:13)
centeredm orei n the upperl eft quadranto f the head(cid:13)
thani n theh eart.B ut if youl ook closelya t the tradition,(cid:13)
you'llf ind thatf rom thev eryb eginningit hasb eenfu eled(cid:13)
by a deeplyfe lt emotionacl ore.(cid:13)
Think backf or a momento n the storyo f the young(cid:13)
PrinceS iddharthaa nd his first encounterws ith aging,(cid:13)
illness,d eatha, nda wanderingfo restc ontemplativIet'.s (cid:13)
oneo f the mosta ccessibcleh aptersin the Buddhistt ra-
dition, largelyb ecausoef the direct,t rue-to-the-heart(cid:13)
qualityo f they oungp rince'esm otionsH. e sawa gingi,l l-
nessa, ndd eatha sa n absolutete rror,a ndp inneda ll his(cid:13)
hopeso n thec ontemplativfeo restl ife ash is onlye scape.(cid:13)
As Asvaghosat,h e great Buddhist poet, depicts the(cid:13)
story,t hey oungp rinceh adn o lacko f friendsa ndf amily(cid:13)
membertso try to talk him out of thosep erceptionsa,n d(cid:13)
Asvaghoswaa sw isee noughto showt heir life-affirming(cid:13)
advicein a verya ppealinglig ht.S till, the princer ealized(cid:13)
that if he weret o givei n to their adviceh, e would be(cid:13)
betrayingh is heart. Only by remainingt rue to his(cid:13)
SAMVEGA(cid:13)
honeset motionsw ash ea blet o embarko n thep atht hat(cid:13)
led awayf rom the ordinaryv alueso f his societya nd(cid:13)
towarda n Awakeningin to what lay beyondth e limita-
tions of life and death.(cid:13)
This is hardlya life-affirmings toryi n the ordinary(cid:13)
senseo f the term, but it doesa ffirm somethingm ore(cid:13)
important than living: the truth of the heart wheni t(cid:13)
aspiretso a happinesasb soluteplyu re.T he powero f this(cid:13)
aspiratiodne pendosn t wo emotionsc,a lledin Palis amvega(cid:13)
andp asadVa.e ryf ewo f ush aveh eardo f them,b ut they're(cid:13)
the emotions most basic to the Buddhist tradition. Not(cid:13)
only did theyi nspiret he youngp rincei n his questf or(cid:13)
Awakeningb, ut evena fter he becameth e Buddhah e(cid:13)
advisehdi s followertso cultivateth emo n a dailyb asisI.n (cid:13)
fact,t he wayh e handledth esee motionsis so distinctive(cid:13)
thati t mayb eo neo f them ostim portanct ontributionhsi s(cid:13)
teachinghsa veto offert o ourc ulturet oday.(cid:13)
Samvegwaa sw hat the youngP rinceS iddharthafe lt(cid:13)
on his first exposureto aging,il lness,a ndd eath.I t's a(cid:13)
hardw ordt o translateb ecausite coverss ucha complex(cid:13)
range-at leastt hreec lusterso f feelingsa t once:t he(cid:13)
oppressivsee nseo f shock,d ismaya, nd alienationth at(cid:13)
comesw ith realizingth e futility andm eaninglessnoefs(cid:13) s
life asi t's normallyli ved;a chasteninsge nseo f our own(cid:13)
complicityc, omplacencayn, d foolishnesisn havingle t(cid:13)
ourselvelisv es o blindly;a nda na nxiouss ensoef urgency(cid:13)
in tryingt o find a wayo ut of them eaninglecsysc leT. his(cid:13)
is a clustero f feelingsth at we'vea ll experienceadt one(cid:13)
timeo r anotherin thep rocesosf growingu p,b ut I don't(cid:13)
knowo f a singleE nglishte rm that adequateclyo veras ll(cid:13)
4 SAMVEGA(cid:13)
three.S ucha term wouldb e usefutl o havea, ndm aybe(cid:13)
that's reasone noughf or simply adopting the word(cid:13)
samvcginato ourl anguage.(cid:13)
But moret han/providinga usefult erm, Buddhism(cid:13)
alsoo ffersa n effectivest rategyfo r dealingw ith the feel-
ings behind it-feelings that modern culture finds(cid:13)
threateninga ndh andlesv eryp oorlyO. urs,o f coursei,s (cid:13)
not the only culturet hreatenebdy feelingso f samvega.(cid:13)
In theS iddharthast oryt,h ef athersr eactionto they oung(cid:13)
princesd iscoversyt andsfo r thew aym ostc ulturestr y to(cid:13)
dealw ith thesefe elingsH: e tried to convinceth e prince(cid:13)
that his standardfso r happineswse reim possiblhy igh,a t(cid:13)
the sameti me trying to distracth im with relationships(cid:13)
and everys ensuapl leasureim aginableN. ot only did he(cid:13)
arrangea n idealm arriagefo r thep rinceb, ut hea lsob uilt(cid:13)
him a palacefo r everys easono f the year,b oughth im(cid:13)
only theb estc lothesa ndt oiletriess, ponsoread c onstant(cid:13)
roundo f entertainmentasn, dk eptt he servantws ellp aid(cid:13)
so that they couldp ut at leasta semblancoef joy into(cid:13)
theirj ob of satisfyingth e princese veryw him.T o put it(cid:13)
simplyt,h ef ather'ss trategyw ast o gett hep rincet o lower(cid:13)
his aimsa ndt o find satisfactioinn a happinestsh at was(cid:13)
lesst hana bsolutea ndf ar from pure.I f they oungp rince(cid:13)
werea livet oday,t he fatherw ould haveo ther tools for(cid:13)
dealingw ith the prince'sd issatisfaction-includinpgs y-
chotherapya nd religiousc ounseling-but the basic(cid:13)
strategyw ouldb e the samet:o distractt he princea nd(cid:13)
dull his sensitivitys o that he could settled own and(cid:13)
becomae well-adjustepdr,o ductivem embeor f society.(cid:13)
PASADA(cid:13)
Fortunatelyt he prince wast oo eagle-eyeadn d lion-(cid:13)
hearted to submit to such a strategy. And, again(cid:13)
fortunatelyh e wasb orni nto a societyth at offeredh im(cid:13)
the opportunityt o find a solutiont o the problemo f(cid:13)
samvegthaa td idj usticet o thet ruthso f his heart.(cid:13)
The first stepi n that solutioni s symbolizedin the(cid:13)
Siddharthas toryb y the prince'sre actiont o the fourth(cid:13)
personh e sawo n his travelso utsideo f the palacet:h e(cid:13)
wanderingfo restc ontemplativCe.o mparedto what he(cid:13)
calledt hec onfiningd, ustyp atho f theh ouseholdelri'fse ,(cid:13)
the princes awt he freedomo f the contemplativelifse as(cid:13)
the opena ir. Such a path of freedom,h e felt, would(cid:13)
allowh im the opportunityto find thea nswertso his life-(cid:13)
and-deathq uestionsa, nd to live a life in line with his(cid:13)
highesitd eals",a sp urea sa polisheds hell."(cid:13)
The emotionh e felt at this point is termedp asada.(cid:13)
Like samvegpaa,s adcao versa complexs eto f feelingsIt.' s(cid:13)
usuallyt ranslateda s "claritya nd serenec onfidence"-(cid:13)
mental statest hat keeps amvegafr om turning into(cid:13)
despairIn. thep rince'sc aseh, eg aineda clears enseo f his(cid:13)
predicament,t ogetherw ith confidenceth at he had(cid:13)
foundt hew ayo ut.(cid:13)
As the earlyB uddhistt eachingsfr eelya dmit, the(cid:13)
predicamenist t hat the cycleo f birth, aginga, ndd eathis (cid:13)
meaninglesTsh.e yd on'tt ry to denyt his facta nds o don't(cid:13)
asku st o bed ishonewsti th ourselveosr to closeo ure yesto (cid:13)
realityA. s onet eachehra sp ut it, theB uddhisrte cognition(cid:13)
of the realityo f suffering-soi mportantth at sufferingis (cid:13)
honoreda st hef irst nobletr uth-is a gift. It confirmso ur(cid:13)
SAMVEGA(cid:13)
mosts ensitivaen dd irecte xperiencoef thingsa, n expert(cid:13)
enceth atm anyo thert raditionstr y to deny.(cid:13)
From there,t he earlyt eachingsa sk us to become(cid:13)
even more sensitive^u ntil we see that the true causeo f(cid:13)
sufferingi s not outt here-in societyo r someo utside(cid:13)
being-but in herei,n the cravingp resentin eachi ndi-
vidualm ind.T heyt henc onfirmt hat therei s an endt o(cid:13)
suffering,a releasefr om the cycle.A nd they showt he(cid:13)
way to that releaseth, roughd evelopingn obleq ualities(cid:13)
alreadyla tenti n the mind to the point wheret hey cast(cid:13)
cravinga sidea nd openo nto DeathlessnesTsh. us the(cid:13)
predicamenht asa practicasl olution,a solutionw ithin(cid:13)
the powerso f everyh umanb eing.(cid:13)
Its alsoa solutiono pent o criticalt esting-an indica-
tion of the Buddha'osw n confidencien his handlingo f(cid:13)
the problemo f samvegaT.h is is oneo f the aspectso f(cid:13)
authenticB uddhismt hat mosta ttractsp eoplew ho are(cid:13)
tired beingt old that theys houldt ry to denyt he insights(cid:13)
that inspiredth eirs enseo f samvegina thef irst place.(cid:13)
In fact,B uddhismis not only confidentt hat it can(cid:13)
handlef eelingso f samvegbau t it's oneo f the few reli-
gionst hat activelyc ultivatesth emi n a thorough-going(cid:13)
way. Its solution to the problems of life demandss o(cid:13)
much dedicatede ffort that only strongs amvegaw ill(cid:13)
keept hep racticingB uddhistf roms lippingb acki nto his(cid:13)
or her old ways.H encet he recommendatiotnh at all(cid:13)
mena ndw omenl,a y or ordaineds,h ouldr eflecdt ailyo n(cid:13)
the factso f aging,i llness,s eparationa, nd death-to(cid:13)
developfe elingos f samvega-ando n the powero f one's(cid:13)
owna ctionst,o takes amvegoan es tepf urther,t o pasada.(cid:13)
PASADA(cid:13)
For peoplew hoses enseo f samvegisa so strongt hat(cid:13)
theyw antt o abandona nys ociatl iest hat interferew ith(cid:13)
thep atht o thee ndo f sufferingB, uddhismo ffersb otha (cid:13)
long-provenb ody of wisdomt o draw on, as well as a(cid:13)
safetyn et: the monastics anghaa, n institution that(cid:13)
enabletsh emt o leavela ys ocietyw ithouth avingto waste(cid:13)
time worryinga boutb asics urvivalF. or thosew ho cant(cid:13)
leaveth eirs ociatli es,B uddhismo ffersa wayt o livei n the(cid:13)
worldw ithoutb eingo vercombey thew orld,f ollowinga (cid:13)
life of generositvyi,r tue,a ndm editationto strengthetnh e(cid:13)
nobleq ualitieso f the mind that will leadt o the end of(cid:13)
sufferingT. he closes, ymbioticr elationshipm aintained(cid:13)
betweenth eset wo brancheos f the Buddhistp arisao, r(cid:13)
followingg, uaranteethsa t the monasticdso n'tt urn into(cid:13)
misfitsa ndm isanthropesa,n dt hat the laity don't lose(cid:13)
touchw ith thev aluetsh atw ill keepth eirp racticea live.(cid:13)
So the Buddhist attitude toward life cultivates(cid:13)
samvega-as trongs enseo f the meaninglessneosf sth e(cid:13)
cycleo f birth, aging,a nd death-and developsit into(cid:13)
pasadaa: confidentp ath to the DeathlessT. hat path(cid:13)
includesn ot only time-provegnu idancbeu t alsoa social(cid:13)
institutiont hat nurturesa ndk eepsit aliveT. hesea rea ll(cid:13)
thingst hat we ando ur societyd esperatenlye edI.n our(cid:13)
currente ffortsa t mainstreaminthge Buddha'tse achings(cid:13)
into our modern life, we should remember that one(cid:13)
sourceo f Buddhismsst rengthis its ability to keepo ne(cid:13)
foot out of the mainstream, and that the traditional(cid:13)
metaphorf or the practicei s that it crosseso vert he(cid:13)
stream to the further shore.(cid:13)
SAMVEGA(cid:13)