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Truth/Choice
1 - Is there such a thing as an absolute truth in Buddhism?
2 - What does "Pain Is Inevitable. Suffering is Optional." mean? What part of existence is optional? What is the subject and object of the option?
3 -If fully awakening is in any way analogous to lucid dreaming then how can any subject of experience ever know anything?
4 - Anyone watched the movie Inception and would have any suggestions for the main character to really wake up? What about a totem? What should be one's totem in real life?
2 - What does "Pain Is Inevitable. Suffering is Optional." mean? What part of existence is optional? What is the subject and object of the option?
3 -If fully awakening is in any way analogous to lucid dreaming then how can any subject of experience ever know anything?
4 - Anyone watched the movie Inception and would have any suggestions for the main character to really wake up? What about a totem? What should be one's totem in real life?
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Comments
For #2, Pain is a sensation and we're all going to experience it, it's not optional. Whether we "suffer" from the pain depends upon our perspective on the situation... does it discomfort us, or do we just let it be (not attach to it whatsoever)? Enlightened minds just let it be, it's just a sensation and not discomforting. That's why suffering is optional... the pain can either be a mere sensation or a discomfort, but it will come regardless (just like old age).
Well sorry for that. At least my mind isn't as fast today as yesterday...it's still one pretty fast. I guess the answer is to trust there's something greater than you no matter what your perspective...it's just frustrating all of it seems a bit too convenient.
@#1 Well if there is supposedly a state beyond dukkha couldn't it be said that that state is permanent? They do say they escape the wheel altogether, not just go to another level. Do those absolute truths not apply to pure consciousness?
2. everything changes. so does our minds and even people, etc. thus we get sick and we age and eventually die. suffering is caused by our minds. if we no longer cling to ignorant views then we can just everything as impersonal processes. so there is pain because i am sick, but there is only suffering. there is no me or my or i in suffering, unless i attach to such suffering. so that release is nirvana. thus nirvana and samsara are two sides of the same coin.
3. there is no true subject and there is no true object. it is the mind that divides by projection. for instance when we sleep, there is no subject or object. but when we dream there is the subject or appearance of subject. both the subject/object exist dependently on each other. when there is suffering, there is suffering. the mind itself discerns. the mind can know and when the mind is clear from obstruction it sees clearly. thus it can say the sky is blue!
4. the totem is the qualities we admire and respect when we bow to the buddha. the image of the buddha is itself our totem. he is sit posed in a lotus position in meditation. the qualities of wisdom and compassion. also this stands as our inspiration and freedom. these are all symbols that point to what the buddha taught.
hope this helps.
Well I was going to say that #2 is based on a false premise, as I do not believe 'lucid dreaming' is a fair analogy of full awakening (aka Enlightenment). And the 'subject' in this case is not a solid thing. We, the subject, ultimately have no more reality than the dream we are dreaming (to be metaphorical).
#4 is also based on faulty reasoning, with respect, since the movie 'Inception' is just a story. It's not true. The truth is that when we are Awakened, we know it. That's part of the deal.
But the OP very clearly illustrates the difficulty of using words, parables and metaphors to speak about the indescribable. There is a huge danger of mistaking the finger pointing at the moon, for the moon. And that is what I suspect has happened here.
Perhaps the OP is not at that point in his journey where such ideas make sense?
I'm well aware how seemingly contradictory my way of communicating using words is. It merely reflects the way my mind perceives. But at the level of creation things seeming paradoxes are proving to have a usage. I've truly been wanting to help people an just not knowing how to add value to people's lives as a career (or whatever you call it, vocation whatever) but I didn't know how. Now I'm beginning to know.
I understand the predicament behind giving someone else spiritual advice so metta to you all
For the time being I cannot reconcile myself with the notion of "no me/self, no suffering" and so I interpret the meaning of this phrase as: we all experience pain due to all kinds of circumstances, sometimes beyond our control, but whether we suffer as a consequence depends on how skillfully we handle the situation. I would not suggest to deny the existence of self and instead use what you have learned from previous experience as a guide for reducing/eliminating unfortunate/unwanted consequences.
The rest of your questions are way over my head LOL.