Expert: Justin Choo - 7/15/2011

Question
QUESTION: Hi,

I am from India, was born in a hindu family, and currently am a science student and recognize myself as an atheist.

By "atheist", I don't necessarily mean just a lack of belief in the conept of god but rather in any ideology that is not empirical or scientific.

I have read "What the Buddha taught" by venerable Dr. W. Rahula.
This was my first and only exposition to buddhism.

I feel unsatisfied intellectually with some teachings of the Buddha as said to be in this book.

First of all, Dukkha.
I have understood Dukkha to mean not just suffering in the usual sense of the world but also impermenance, imperfection in the world.

Buddhism talks about this impermenance and insubstantiality of the world as a problem to be overcome by following the fourth noble truth, or magga, to attain nirvana.

But what if someone doesn't see them as a problem?

For example, I don't think impermenance in the world is a cause for worry. I think I'm pretty ok with the world being that way.
I may not always feel sad when things I was attached to are taken away from me. I may look at it in a rational way, as a thing which was inevitable and is a part of life, and be okay with it and not necessarily "suffer" in any sense.

I find the world with all its imperfections as revealed by science pretty intriguing and don't "suffer" in any way because of it.

Life is a mixture of all kinds of mental states, happy, sad, not so happy, not so sad, and all the variations in between.
I take it as fundamental a thing to the universe as the law of gravity and I am okay with it.

So I do not think there is any fundamental "unsatisfactoriness" about life and the cosmos as the buddha says.

So I don't even feel the need to embark on this quest to attain nirvana. And consequently I don't see any truth in what the Buddha tried to show me.

Now ofcourse one could say, that I'm intellectually not so capable of seeing it yet, but again that would be intellectual arrogance, the same kind we see in other religions.

Please tell me where I have wrong.

Thank you.

ANSWER: Hi Metalrose,

Thank you for sharing your thoughts.

There are two parts in your comments.  The first involves what the Buddha taught about this world.  The Buddha merely pointed out what the realities were in this world and in this existence.  The Buddha did not actually said that there was something wrong with this world.  As you have already acknowledged, there is this imperfection in this world.  I think most people know of this imperfection.  But most people do not have the skill to flow with this imperfection, and as a result they experience problems.  As for you, I agree that you have no problem with this world.  That is very wise.  That is what Buddhism is all about.  If you don't have problem with this worldly imperfection, then you are in agreement with the Buddha's teachings.  His teachings are about how to have peace within oneself in the midst of this imperfection.  

The second part is about "overcoming" this imperfection.  What the Buddha meant was that if one didn't like to experience this worldly imperfection, then one had to take steps not to exist in this world the next time.  Imperfection is more than what you described.  There are many horrible imperfections in life; like wars, cruelty, diseases, natural catastrophies, and life-threatening accidents, and of course, death, just to name a few.

Hope this helps.

Take care.

Justin Choo




---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------

QUESTION: Hi,

Thanks for the reply.
All that I understood from the book I mentioned, about cessation of dukkha is to stop desire and thirst for things. Not just things, but even for "being" and "becoming".

Is that the fundamental way in which one can attain nirvana or am I missing out loads of other important stuff.

Anyway, I guess there are also other ways to deal with the kind of imperfections you mentioned.

Instead of stopping the "thirst" and withdrawing ourselves away from the world, we can take help of reason and science to understand the workings of the world and simply "accept" these imperfections as a part of life and learn to not let these imperfections impact us greatly.

The mind can be trained to accomplish such a task by giving it a rational worldview.

We may be able to then achieve the goal of not letting these imperfections affect us so as to make us suffer in any way.
We may get used to feeling okay with disease and natural calamity, just the way we have accepted the fact that things fall on the earth because of gravity.

Why follow the specific path that the Buddha prescribes?

Thanks

Answer
Hi Metalrose,

As I said before, you are wise to be able to accept "things as they really are" as the Buddhists would say.  There is therefore no problem for you.  Please stay happy.  

Again as I wrote before, if you are not happy to exist in this world ever again, then the Buddha had prescribed the path for you to follow.  

<<"Why follow the specific path that the Buddha prescribes?">>
You don't have to follow the Buddha's path, if you don't wish to do so.  As long as you are a peaceful being and are happy in this world, the choice is yours.  It is an option for you, should you need any.

I hope this helps.

Take care.

Justin Choo