One question that is frequently asked about Buddhism is whether it is a religion or a philosophy, and different experts give different answers. According to Indian philosopher Mysore Hiriyanni (Basic Features of Indian Philosophy), Buddhism “started as a religion and was soon forced to become a philosophy as it had to defend itself against the metaphysical schools of Hindu and Jain thought.” On the other hand, Heinrich Zimmer (Philosophies of India) argues that Buddhism is a philosophical doctrine “intended only for a few fortunate individuals,” which paradoxically “became a mass faith and shaped civilization for centuries” as it spread to the Far East.
In any case, it is widely known that Buddhism has a distinctly philosophical element because it follows a logical way of thinking that can be tested through rational thought processes and does not depend on any kind of belief.
Overview of Buddhist philosophy
The essence of Buddhist philosophy is contained in the “Four Noble Truths”:
1) Life is suffering. It is considered important to accept that suffering exists in order to be able to be liberated from it.
The cause of suffering is blind craving, i.e. desire for things that are inherently perishable and impermanent. This craving arises from false ideas we have about things. It is the mind that is responsible for such craving and it is through the mind that we can liberate ourselves from it, as the first verses of the Dhammapada say:
What we are today arises from our thoughts of yesterday, our thoughts of today shape our tomorrow: life is the creation of our mind.
If a person speaks and acts with a impure mind, suffering follows them like the wheels of a cart follow the animal pulling it.
What we are today arises from our thoughts of yesterday, our thoughts of today shape our tomorrow: life is the creation of our mind. If a person speaks and acts with a pure mind, joy follows them like their own shadow.
These simple statements not only demonstrate the power of the mind. They also encompass the ancient, pre-Buddhist doctrine of karma, the law of cause and effect. A pure mind brings happiness and a impure mind brings suffering.
Joy leads to purity, while impurity leads to sadness. It all depends on the mind, and we are the creators of our own destiny.
In Buddhism, it is said that all types of happiness, ordinary and sublime, are achieved through understanding and transforming our own mind. What a profound thought! Our happiness is completely in our hands.
How can this transformation of the mind be achieved?
The answer lies in the third and fourth noble truths:
3) Cessation of suffering. This truth states that liberation from suffering is possible by eliminating the craving that causes it.
4) The Noble Eightfold Path that leads to the cessation of suffering.
The Noble Eightfold Path consists of the following eight steps:
(1) Right understanding of the nature of things, especially the Four Noble Truths.
(2) Right intention, avoiding thoughts of attachment, hatred, and harmful intentions.
(3) Right speech, refraining from verbal misconduct such as lying, hateful speech, harsh speech, and meaningless speech.
(4) Right action. , suzdržavanje od fizičkih zlodjela poput ubijanja, krađe i neprikladnog seksualnog ponašanja;
(5) pravedan način života, izbjegavanje bavljenja zanimanjima koja direktno ili indirektno nanose štetu drugima, poput prodaje robova, oružja, životinja za klanje, droga ili otrova;
(6) pravilan trud, napuštanje negativnih stanja uma koja su se već pojavila, sprečavanje negativnih stanja koja bi se mogla pojaviti i održavanje pozitivnih stanja koja su se već pojavila;
(7) pravilan budanost, svjesnost tijela, osjećaja, misli i pojavnosti u ovom postojanju;
(8) pravilna koncentracija, usredotočenost.
Iz ovoga se vidi da Osmerostruk put predlaže put napretka kroz samopurifikaciju koja će kulminirati prosvjetljenjem.
Svi ovi koraci su važni, ali budući da je ovo članak o moći uma, fokusirat ću se na prvi korak na Osmerostrukom putu i posljednja dva. If the cause of suffering was identified as blind craving, which is associated with ignorance. The reason why we want things that will not bring us happiness is because we mistakenly think they will. We do not have a correct understanding of the nature of things.
Indeed, it is true that our perception and understanding of things bring us happiness or sadness. Let’s take an example from Indian tradition. What is water? For the gods, it is the elixir of immortality; for humans, it is just water; for those in hell, it is a repulsive substance they cannot swallow, even if they are dying of thirst. Reality, therefore, depends on our perceptions, and each of us is at the center of our own world of thoughts, feelings, memories, and dreams, and from that center, we perceive the world in different ways. For one person, life full of risks and adventurous is wonderful, for another person, it is terrifyingly stressful and causes anxiety, while for an adventurer, a life of safety and security in a family home would be like a prison.
In the end, in order to see reality as it is, we must move away from our egocentric viewpoint. I am able to see life from the perspective of very different beings.
That is why freedom from oneself or ego is an important part of Buddhist philosophy of mind. According to Hiriyanni, it is not that Buddha didn’t believe in the reality of essential self, but in the reality of personal self. The impersonal and universal Self exists in every human being (atman) and Buddhism encourages identification with that being, rather than with the illusory self.
In Buddhism, the mind is compared to an ocean, in which all mental activities are like waves. When the activities subside, the ocean becomes calm and transparent, and we see everything clearly. This would be the state of moksha (liberation) or nirvana, which is not the annihilation of oneself, but the annihilation or cessation of ego in the ordinary sense of the term. As Zimmer says, “Buddha is far from dissolution into non-being: it is not he who has disappeared, but the illusion of life”.
How can we reach that state of inner calmness and clarity? It is not an easy task.
Right mindfulness and right concentration.
In the Tibetan tradition of Buddhism, according to Lamrim, mindfulness is the key to realizing the nature of the mind. It is about being fully present and aware in each moment, without judgement or attachment. It involves bringing attention to the present moment and observing the mind and its thoughts and emotions without getting caught up in them. This can be done through various practices, such as meditation and contemplation.
There are three phases in that process:
1) Listening to and reading explanations about the mind and the nature of things;
2) Reflecting and carefully analyzing this information;
3) Transforming the mind through meditation.
To add another element to our understanding of this question, the same source states that in the Tibetan tradition there are two types of meditation:
1) Stabilizing meditation: continuous practice of focusing on an internal object, which can be a visualized image, concept, or one’s own breath. The purpose of this is to develop concentration. 1) Action that is necessary to achieve the internal stability needed to “see” reality.
2) Analytical meditation: observing our mind and actions as objectively as possible, analyzing the advantages of virtues and disadvantages of flaws, deepening the understanding of ourselves and the world, while at the same time correcting what needs to be corrected in our mind and life, so that we become a living expression of Dharma.
The subtle state of consciousness that is enlightenment, or approaching enlightenment, develops over a long time, through many lifetimes, as the Eastern tradition teaches. All spiritual practices, regardless of the tradition they belong to, have helped the development of this higher intuition called buddhi in India – from which the title “Buddha” comes. Buddhi is a transmitter of consciousness that is higher, truer, and clearer than the mind (manas). But in order to reach buddhi, we must master the mind using our reasoning and developing the power of concentration and imagination.