There is no such thing as Buddhism.
Any “ism” is clinging to ideas.
Hence, we could render the Buddha’s Four Noble Truths as:
1.
2.
3.
4.
And his Eightfold Path as:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
However, there are teachings credited to the Buddha.
These are provisional teachings, not ultimate truths. They take us to the place where teachings are transcended.
Buddhism is a story that changes your relationship to all other stories.
Therapy is about changing my story for the better.
Buddhism is about seeing through my story — rendering it transparent, taking it more flexibly.
Psychotherapy yields insights that apply to me. Spiritual practice yields insights that apply to everybody.
The path starts with skepticism.
In the Sutra of Dense Array, Buddha says:
…just as a goldsmith would test his gold by burning, cutting, and rubbing it, so you must examine my words and accept them, but not merely out of reverence for me.
I grew up Lutheran. Did my minister ever ask me to set aside reverence and examine everything he said?
No. He would have been fired.
This post is everything I’ve been able to verify about Buddhism through personal testing.
There’s not a lot here. But it points to something liberating.
First Noble Truth: Suffering exists.
There is a saying: Each of us has shed more tears over countless lifetimes than there is water in all the oceans.
Whenever I feel pissed off at someone, I try to remember: They’re probably suffering.
The First Noble Truth is sometimes expressed as: Shit happens.
That’s not quite it.
It’s more like: Stuff happens and then we react.
I see the world through the lens of my requirements. When people and events violate my requirements, I call them shit.
But this reaction comes from the mind that distinguishes between shit and non-shit. If I release this distinction, then suddenly there’s less shit.
I try to notice my requirements, my expectations — and then let them go.
Like they say in Alcoholics Anonymous: Wear the world as a loose garment.
The Buddha used the word dukkha, which is often rendered in English as suffering.
That’s a poor translation.
Sometimes teachers talk about stress or dissatisfaction instead. That’s closer but not quite it, either. Dukkha can also involve pleasure, if you get attached to it.
Dukkha is more like a deep-seated and pervasive discontent. It’s the sneaking suspicion that something mysterious and big is missing from my life, that I am lacking in some fundamental way.
My reflexive response is to fill this gap by seeking, by looking outside myself. I try to change my circumstances. I distract myself with chemicals, entertainment, and perpetual busyness.
But circumstances and contentment are not directly correlated. I can be miserable in the midst of pristine circumstances.
The source of discontentment is my heart-mind — the way I see the world.
I want to discover the heart-mind that is free of suffering in any circumstance.
The Second Noble Truth reminds us that suffering has a source: It arises when I cling — that is, when I push and pull on experience.
Pleasure feels good. I try to pull it closer and make it last.
Discomfort doesn’t feel good. I try to push it away.
Sometimes this actually works. But not all the time, and not permanently.
Dukkha is not always “out there.” Often it is something that I am actively doing: It’s all that pushing and pulling.
The Third Noble Truth is that suffering can end.
Want to stop suffering? Then notice when you’re pushing and pulling, and be willing to stop.
There is a path to releasing clinging — the Eightfold Path, the subject of the Fourth Noble Truth.
This path includes three sets of practices:
Sila — the harmony of relationships; practicing ethical behavior; non-harming, kindness, generosity
Samhadi — tasting tranquility; practicing meditation; quieting the mind, letting it remain alert and open to anything
Panna — insight that deepens into wisdom; practicing with an intention to wake up
In short, the path is about purifying behavior, attention, and understanding.
In addition to the Four Noble Truths, there is another lens on Buddhism — the three signs of existence.
One is anicca. This word refers to change, to impermanence. People, circumstances, events, and moods come and go constantly. Whatever arises, passes.
Anything that comes and goes cannot satisfy me permanently. That’s dukkha again, the second sign.
In addition, anything that comes and goes is not me. My personal identity is based on “possessing” thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that remain stable, that persist over time in all circumstances.
But there’s a problem: On close examination, none of those can be found. That’s anatta, or no-self — the third sign.
So how do I apply these ideas? I remember that there’s a world of difference between:
I am angry and
Ah, there’s anger again.
The first statement is identifying with a passing mind state. The second is noticing a passing mind state.
The first statement is taking anger personally. The second statement is taking anger impersonally.
Thoughts and feelings are truly impersonal. They are natural events like sunshine, snow, and rain. They arise and pass away beyond my control.
Seeing things impersonally helps me to remain impartial — less reactive, more kind.
Anything that I can stand back and observe is not me. It is just something being known.
Be the knowing.
I hear people describe meditation as getting centered. It’s more like getting un-centered.
Years ago, during a long meditation retreat, I experienced this. The borders of my body disappeared. There was experience with no center — no separate me localized in space.
Waves of feeling followed — fear, then curiosity, then peace.
There was no fear of death. And there was no question of wanting anything. I was everything.
There’s no center to an ocean or the sky. Likewise, boundless expanse is my true nature.
Seeing myself as the center of the universe and separate from everything else takes a lot of work. What a relief to drop that effort!
Enlightenment means being able to see the world from no center.
This is ultimately not a big deal, by the way.
Enlightenment is the booby prize. It’s nice, but it won’t solve your problems or make you a nice person.
I don’t practice in order to get enlightened. I practice to notice toxic mind states before they turn into toxic behaviors.
It’s hard to tell when someone is enlightened. “Enlightened” people can still be jerks.
It’s easier to tell when someone is being kind.
Buddhism is practicing kindness.
Even simpler: Forget Buddhism.
Simply notice what happens in body and mind when suffering arises.
Also notice what happens when suffering passes.
Then act accordingly.
That’s it.