Life is suffering
That is the first of the Four Noble Truths.
When my father was about to undergo bypass surgery I was facing a six hour train trip to New Jersey. I knew I would need something to pass the time. Friends and colleagues suggested all sorts of mindless novels. While I was willing to read anything to occupy my mind on this trip my friend Grace suggested I take The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying by Sogyal Rinpoche and How to Practice by the Dalai Lama. This was not my first introduction to the Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Previously I had read Awakening the Buddha Within by Surya Das and was already an avid fan of Tricycle and Shambala Sun. By the time I was heading down to be with my family for this event I was well past the idea that this first Noble Truth was some self indulgent expression of unhappiness. (I am sad because my life is hard) For really the first time in my life I was not just facing but facing down this reality in a very real and painful way.
I have been thinking a lot about this and the other 3 Noble Truths lately, in my work, in my life in really everything. Not merely because I am teaching a unit on Buddhism in my 11th grade World Religions course. (This, is by the way one of my favorite lesson units to teach because I can talk about Buddhism with almost as much confidence as I can about the Bible. ) I have also been thinking about the Noble Truths because Ash Wednesday is next week and I really need to get about the business of repairing my spiritual life. Not out of fear of going to hell or anything like that, just that I miss it, I miss that connection with something bigger than myself. In the past this has worked the formula is simple; the dharma repairs the dogma.
The dharma is about starting small also. One does not start to follow it, throw on saffron robes, and hop a plane to Nepal. So I try to apply this to “simpler” areas of my life. I do try to apply walking the eightfold path to my interactions with my family, my work, my relationships and especially my passions. After three years as a student of the Russian language I have solemnly come to the conclusion that the best path for language study is the dharma.
Life is suffering.
The cause of suffering is attachment.
The cessation of suffering is possible.
Cessation of suffering comes with following the eightfold path.
I want to write about this over the next few posts as I am inspired because it is certainly too large a job for one blog post but I hope it might give you some insight for yourself in some part of your life. Let me leave you with a few thoughts.
Language study suffering is caused by attachment.
The attachment is connected to our desire to speak, write, and communicate correctly.
It is also connected to our desire to stay attached to previous notions of success and failure as well as previous notions of how to learn.
Detachment is possible. . .
