The Buddha indicates pain in life as The Eight Sufferings; the suffering of separating from the beloved ones is included. Since I was in kindergarten, I used to stand in front of the school gate, watching my parents leaving. I saw them looking back for times, and then disappeared in the crowds. As I grow older, I somehow understand that life is a continuous act of letting go, even though it hurts every time to say goodbye. And now I sit on my bed, stare hollowly at the cumbersome suitcases. Everything is settled. I can smell the tantalizing aroma filling the air: it is the smell of the most ordinary breakfast my mother used to make repeatedly when I was only in ninth grade, when I was busy preparing for the high school entrance examination.
There is a old time saying that “you will never know what true happiness feels like until you have felt pain”. In order to reach where you are going in life you have to go through hardship and pain to find your inner contentment. Often times,people who have too much in life always takes it for granted ,because all they have is pleasure and not knowing the feelings of pain and being without. Martha C. Nussbaum author of “who is the happy warrior” states that you have to go through pain to find the true meaning of happiness while Daniel M.Haybron author of “Happiness and Its Discontents” states that pain doesn 't bring happiness,happiness is just a thing you feel when you think you may have enough. To find happiness you have to go through the unbearable process of life.
Siddhartha learns that existence is suffering many times in the first and second chapters. On page 11 Siddhartha says, ¨… and all were not worth a passing glance, everything lied, stank of lies; they were all illusions of sense, happiness and beauty. All were doomed to decay. The world tasted bitter. Life was pain¨(11). While Siddhartha lives with the Samanas he realizes that by simply existing, life is pain. When you live and deceive yourself, rather than denying yourself you cannot be at peace and you will suffer. Another example to note is on page 3 where it says, “Siddhartha had begun to feel the seeds of discontent within him. He had begun to feel that the love of his father and mother, and also the love of his friend govinda, would not
Suffering arises early in the story and is a theme is a them that will preside over the entire text, valuable to the reader because of The Buddha’s first Noble Truth: human life is consists almost entirely of suffering. When the Buddha is just a baby, the relief from suffering he will provide is predicted. “Be steadfast, therefore, give up anxiety, be cheerful, for your clan will flourish without a doubt; The one born here as your son is the leader of those overcome by the suffering in the world” (B 1.33). The
I have felt the pain of the loss of a Sister; have felt the pain of the death of my Mother, and felt the death of my Father. I know how it feels. I experienced it. It is painful, looking at those old kind folks who bore you; who took care of you; went through all kinds of sacrifices and pains just to look after you for years and years, until one day the child stood on one’s own two feet, and then … there they are, the parents, helpless and lifeless in front of you.
Going through life means experiencing great happiness but also great loss. Every loss we face may hurt and cause us grief, but we must let life take its course and endure the pain, for we cannot know true happiness without knowing true sorrow. Kahlil Gibran’s “The Prophet” discusses the hardships that come with pain and loss and gives insight about how a person can overcome that pain. Even the pain might hurt a great deal right now, the wound will only heal if we allow ourselves to feel that pain. As famous poet Lao Tsu once said, “Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”
The first noble truth of Buddhism is, "Life is suffering." Life has been laced with pain, hurt,
“The greatest evil is physical pain.” Saint Augustine understood that experiencing pain is horrific, and most would agree. However, it is perhaps emotional pain, rather than physical, that causes the most damage. Whether physical or emotional, painful experiences are upsetting at best, and in severe cases, they can be life-changing. Pain is a feeling of distress that is often an underlying problem or symptom of an illness.
Suffering is an individual's basic affective experience of pain or distress, often as a result of one’s physical, emotional or spiritual circumstance (Stanford Encyclopaedia of Philosophy 2006). Suffering can be classified as physical; for example pain caused by a dislocated knee, emotional; for example one’s grief over the death of a loved one, or spiritual; which is described as the state of being separated from the blissful nature of your divine self (soul). To suffer physically or emotionally is often unavoidable; however it can be argued that spiritual liberation...
I was always fascinated in the Buddhist religion and this class assignment was a great opportunity for me to take advantage of my curiosity. I decided I would visit a Buddhist center. With the company of my mother, I went to the Diamond Way Buddhist Center in Miami. According to my interview with the Buddhist that instructed the meditation service, every Monday and Friday they have a meditation service for the 16th Karmapa meditation from 8:00pm to 8:30pm. This center is part of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism (Anonymous). Upon arriving, I realized that it was in someone’s home. Many Buddhist offer their homes for Buddhist centers and are unpaid for their services. However, they do accept donations. Before entering the house, we had to remove our shoes. When we entered I could smell the scent of incense burning. As presented in World-Faiths, removing your shoes before entering a Buddhist center or temple is a form of worship. Also, incense and candles are used to represent Buddha’s enlightenment (World-Faiths).
Furthermore, even the happiest and carefree of people will eventually experience some kind of suffering. The Buddha taught people to recognize that suffering is part of life and that it cannot be avoided. However, this suffering does not only come from the body—it also comes from within. Those who experience loneliness, depression, anxiety, or cannot satisfy their needs and wants are suffering. Despite the negative aspects of suffering, Siddhartha also spoke of happiness through friendships, family life, or health. Though, the downfall to this is that happiness is impermanent—or annica—and will not end all suffering. Buddhists believe that the way to end suffering is to first accept the fact that suffering is a fact of life. The next aspect to recognize is what causes such suffering?
Death, one other way that can hurt mentally is also a rough way to think about pain. My stepbrother’s father died recently. He was pretty upset and he was hurt, but he will get over the pain of losing a loved one. This pain is the one kind of pain that will always leave you hurt. You don’t know that you are going to get hurt by knowing a person till they are gone. The mental pain death can create could make you crazy. Losing someone you care about is the worst pain to suffer, but the depressing effects it can have will possibly come out for the
Without pain, how would we know joy? Without heartache, how would we know love? I never knew the answers to these questions. I have told the story of the day my best friend lost his cool and his life in one day. The thing about pain is, it demands to be felt.
The heart begins racing the moment the car pulls into the airport parking lot. The smell of jet fuel, automobile exhaust, and hot tarmac combine to assault the senses with images of exotic escapes and the kind of freedom that can only come from airports. I feel the thrum of the engines at takeoff and the vibration of the plane during the flight in my skin. I see people listening to MP3s and playing video games. I hear the couple behind me chatting about the weather in Florida and the possibility of rain. I recognize the smell of fading perfume that women are wearing. Chanel, Windsong and White Diamonds clash with the smell of popcorn and Quizno sandwiches.
There are ten existential rules I learned through sandwich making. I came across these rules during the time I spent in Community North Hospital. At 18, I’d tried everything to cure the crushing depression and crippling fatigue that had plagued me for two years. Self-harm, tempered emotions, and a mix of vodka with anti-depressants landed me in the hospital for a second time- except this time I stayed. I stayed for an entire week, actually. And every morning like clock work, we would wake up at eight, take our medications, and then fill out menus for the day. The food we were served had no salt or seasoning whatsoever, so everyone in the ward would always ask to make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Through this, I learned that there is power in the art of sandwich making- and that it surprisingly applies to real-life.
Pain. Pain is the suffering or discomfort caused by illness or injury. It includes but is not limited to physical suffering. The Infliction of Pain is something that most people don’t think of unless it has happened to them personally. People don’t think about the kinds of Pain or the different ways pain can be administered. There are two different ways that pain can be dealt there is Physical pain and Emotional or Mental pain. There are many sub categories to these main subjects of pain. What people don’t understand is that there is a major difference between Emotional and Physical pain because beleive it or not pain isn’t just pain.