Dharma is neither esoteric or a mystical revelation

"Applying the Buddha's Teaching In Daily Life", Part 2: Dharma is neither esoteric nor is it meant to be a mystical revelation of the world after death.

Many a time, Buddhists are accused of being passive by outsiders. But little do they realise the 2 wondrous aspects of Buddhism:

1) the cultivation of meditation that lays the groundwork for skilful action in the world and
2) the way we live as shown by the Buddha's emphasis on qualities like non-harming/ loving-kindness, giving / generosity, empathy / compassion , rejoice / equanimity and mindfulness / wisdom, in line with the basic 5 ethical precepts of no killing, no stealing, no sexual misconduct, no lying and no intoxicants.

Our teacher, the Buddha was intensely practical and very clear about the truth that certain things are beyond our control:

1) The fact that we can grow older, getting sick, going to die
2) The fact that everything keeps changing and will eventually degenerate / disintegrate
3) The seasons, the movement of the planetary system, among others

In addition to the above, there are many problems that happen to us that nobody wants them too: economic difficulties, family difficulties, workplace difficulties, difficulties in our relationships with others. So everybody has problems, nobody is free of them. For whatever happiness we gain, very quickly its novelty will fade. When it happens, we start running after another goal again like a racing hamster on a roller coaster after a mirage; it is back to square one. That's just part of life, isn't it? And the fact about that is that these problems just go on and on and on in an endless cyclic pattern (coined as samsara), unless we quit the game and become an Arhat.

But to the Buddha, he saw that these problems come from causes, and things don't happen just because of one cause, but from a multitude of causes and conditions that affect what happens, and so the world ended up as an 'inherently' dissatisfied planet of crazy complexity. And although we could blame our problems on society, or world economics, or our upbringing system, very often these are things which are very difficult to change, especially if it's talking about what has already happened in the past. What's done cannot be undone.

The Buddha saw how much suffering we create combating these facts, resisting and circumventing aging, illness, death and loss. So no matter how much healthy food I eat, I will die. All the vitamins / supplements cannot keep me from getting cancer, diabetes, heart disease, osteoporosis or catching cold sometimes. All skin creams cannot stop my aging :).

The Buddha realised that clear understanding and acceptance was the key to letting go of that suffering. So what is it that we can change? It is our attitude about our life, about what’s happening to us, that we can change.

The Buddha’s teaching says that the deepest cause of our problems is our confusion, our delusion, our unawareness about the reality of life and what can be done about it. Indeed, the most valuable gift is the Buddha teaching that allows us to have more control over our own mind than we have ever had.

The Dharma is thus pragmatic, it’s neither esoteric nor is it meant to be a mystical revelation of the world after death. There is no need to wait for after death to cash in the returns; the dividends are all yours in this very life.

Though we may be powerless

We are far from helpless

Smile

yick kh :)