While compassion and wisdom are often referred to as the pillars of Buddhist practice, they are not unique to Buddhism. What distinguishes Buddhism from other religions and philosophies are the following tenets, which are known as ‘the Four Seals of Buddhism’: all compounded phenomena are impermanent; all emotions are painful; all phenomena are empty of inherent existence; and nirvana is peace.
All compounded phenomena are impermanent:
Everything that has a beginning also has a period of abiding, followed by an end. For certain phenomena this is obvious. Everyone knows that a flower will not last more than a season, and that our bodies and those of our friends and relatives will age and decay. Through scientific research, we also know that even seemingly eternal entities like universes have a beginning, a period of existence and finally, a stage of dissolution. It is important to know this because if we do not acknowledge the transience of phenomena, we will suffer. We will cling to things we enjoy, and feel pain when they disintegrate or are taken from us. Some people find this observation pessimistic, but it is not necessarily so. If the universe was not characterized by change, we would be permanently trapped in a particular situation. Sickness could never be cured. Wars would not end. Even the new house we hope to buy would not materialize. The Buddha did not invent change and impermanence. They are the facts of life. The Buddha merely observed that all compounded phenomena are inherently subject to change, and taught this truth to the world so that we would not suffer when confronted with loss.
All emotions are painful:
When people hear this teaching, they generally think of negative emotions: colleagues who are prone to fits of anger or who are easily brought to tears come to mind. However, the Buddha did not specify negative emotions as the source of pain; rather, he identified all emotions as being painful. How can this be so? How could kindness or love, for example, be associated with pain? It is because we view things with a dualistic mind, clinging to them as if they truly existed.
When there is a sense of ‘I’ and ‘other’, even kind acts are inevitably imbued with a certain degree of selfishness. We may offer someone a kind word or a helping hand without the thought of gross reward, but we inevitably hope for some form of payback, even if it is only a sense of personal gratification or the establishment of a friendship. This kind of expectation is what causes the emotion to be painful. How often have we heard someone express his or her deep love for another person? Yet, when that person does not reciprocate but instead starts a relationship with someone else, how quickly that love turns to jealousy and anger. What happened to the love? If we love someone, then surely we should be pleased that they have found happiness. The problem is that the so-called love was tainted. It was based on dualistic mind, which by its nature sees the external world as something either to gain advantage or to fear.
Furthermore, in a dream we may run this way and that in order to avoid trouble and seek enjoyment, but in reality nothing happens. The fear and joy we experience are an illusion. Likewise, because phenomena do not inherently exist, they cannot be the source of true happiness. While we are still embroiled in ignorance, our attempts to find true and meaningful happiness are futile. That is why cultivating wisdom and countering ignorance, rather than teaching ways to be a successful businessman or a great disco dancer characterize the path of the Buddha. It is not that the Buddha was against making money or enjoying oneself; rather, it was that he recognized that these activities are not the source of ultimate happiness. If they were, he would have embraced them and encouraged us to engage in them. However, they are like a mirage of an oasis. They may bring temporary joy and hope, but finally they lead to disappointment.
All phenomena are empty of inherent existence:
Nothing exists independently. Take a sheet of paper, for example. If we traced it back in time, we would first discover that it was made from wood, water and heat. Continuing our journey back, we would find that the wood came from a tree that had absorbed nutrition from the soil, oxygen from the air and heat from the sun. The sheet of paper is therefore not an inherently existing object but the result of a temporary combination of many factors. This is true not only of paper, but also of a pen, a car or in fact any phenomenon that has identifiable characteristics.
In order to avoid becoming attached to the illusion of an independent self and phenomena, it is vital that practitioners understand this point. However, we should be careful not to fall into the other extreme — nihilism. The mahasiddha Saraha said on this point: “To consider the world as real is a brutish attitude. To consider it as empty is even more savage’.(131)
Lacking an understanding of emptiness, we react to the world in a misguided way. We cling to things we enjoy and reject those we fear, and it is just these kinds of discriminatory reactions that create karma and perpetuate the illusion of samsara. However, as Saraha pointed out, taking the opposite view that nothing exists is an even graver error. People who are attached to this view deny the existence of karma and feel they can do whatever they please. This is a fast track to suffering.
Insight into emptiness frees us from the two extreme views of believing that things either inherently exist or that they do not exist at all. With this view, we realize that all things occur in mutual dependence, and that as part of this system, we have a responsible role to play.
Nirvana is peace:
How does one achieve peace? It is not a place where we are spared irritations like traffic jams or where our favourite brand of coffee is available for free. It is the natural state of mind that exists when the extreme views that we have discussed in the previous seals have been discarded. These views are like thick, black clouds that obscure the sun's rays. However, once they dissolve, the luminosity of the sunlight is revealed. It is not, therefore, a contradiction to say that nirvana is realization of the true state of self and phenomena. Recall the man we discussed in the second chapter, ‘The Motivation’, who was afraid when he thought he saw a snake in front of him, but relaxed once he realized it was only a piece of rope. His peace of mind was not achieved by gaining something that did not previously exist, but as a result of the removal of a mistaken view. Attainment of nirvana is the same.
related post: Supplement：The Benefits of Saving the Lives of Other Beings: A Teaching by Kyabje Chatral Rinpoche
Source Of Information:
《Releasing Life: An Ancient Buddhist practice in the Modern World》, by Shenphen Zangpo (Stephen Powell), distributed by: Persatuan Penganut Agama Buddha Amitabha Malaysia, 90 & 92, Jalan Pahang, Gombak, 53000 Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.)
*** The information provided above does not contain personal opinion of this blog.
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