Buddhism

I'm currently on a sort of voyage to learn more about other religions and thus understand other viewpoints better. This whole adventure has been full so far of coincidences. For example, when I was researching the difference of Buddhism and Hinduism, I just so happen to blurt out loud my inquiries about religions and their common grounds, while there was another person crazy enough who wanted to learn as well. His name is Andreas, and so far his lack of religion and deep cultural background along with my open-mindedness has helped us navigate through Buddhism.

This adventure started with the very important decision of which day to go on our excursion- and since we both had free afternoons on Thursday, it had to take place that day. And then since it would be unfair to decide amongst us which religion to digest first, we flipped a coin. And Buddhism took it home. So on the scheduled Thursday we traveled to the only Buddhist Temple in Las Vegas. Hoping to see monumental architecture, all we found was a vast collection of items compiled to form the temple. No one was around, we walked around and called out for someone to help us, but no response came back. Then we saw there was a door mat with 3 pairs of shoes, this must be the entrance we thought, and so we knocked. Two monks came to the door and showed us to another door in which we could enter. Inside we found a sweet old lady who was visiting the temple herself, and it just so happened that she was the only one who spoke Thai and English- flipping that coin was monumental to the success of this trip.

Within our discussion with one of the monks, through her translation, we learned so much that afternoon. The types of concepts we were introduced to were complex and yet easy to assimilate and thus we could dig deeper to understand the beliefs of the Buddhists. We were told that we are all born blind- we cannot see or make out what objects truly are, but as we gain wisdom, our sight will improve and we will begin to see forms more clearly and then color. To the Buddhists, the first step of committing into Buddhism is to acknowledge and accept that you are blind. From there on, you learn about the beliefs of reincarnation and the never ending cycle of rebirth, called Samsara. The only way to break out of this cycle is to reach Enlightenment and thus reach Nirvana. The only way known to the Buddhists is the Buddha's Eightfold Path- which is a set of principles which help you refrain from things which prevent Enlightenment. What creates pain is the sense of disappointment- which comes about reading a situation wrongly or expecting something which was never there in the first place. And so to not experience pain, we must refrain from having expectations and giving others false hope. The only way to understand Buddhism, is to meditate and only you can find the answers you seek. And finally, one day you can ask yourself the Ultimate Truth- which was worded as: Can you have 4 legs? Can a dog be a lion?

After reflecting deeply upon what we learned, I have analyzed very meticulously myself and what I know true about life, science, and philosophy. I have started to apply the Buddhist thinking towards how I react to situations and thus have found that pain is truly constituted of disappointment. Whether we believed someone loved us, or would never leave, we cannot decide for others what to do or change the course of nature. Regarding the matter of finding the answers you seek through meditation, I wonder do you only find the answers yourself because no one can learn without experiencing themselves or because the answer is different for all of us? And as for the Ultimate Truth, is it perhaps as easy as answering yes- we are all in essence composed of the same energy. Think back to the lion king- the circle of life- When we die, our bodies then transform themselves into carbon and minerals, which enrich the soil. Thus feeding into the plants and vegetation, which the animals eat. Energy cannot be created or destroyed. When we die, where does our energy go then? Reflect upon the way you go about your day, the decisions you make, what makes you happy, sad, take a different viewpoint as food for thought. Life is too short to be ignorant and narrow-minded. Try something new, explore the world, and find yourself in it.