Contentment With The Conventional World 'As It Is'
Shoshin
No one in particularNowhere Special Veteran
"Contentment (santuṭṭhi) is the ability to be happy and fulfilled in one’s present state. The Buddha said: ‘Contentment is the highest wealth.’ (Dhp.204), meaning that when we are content we do not need to get anything, go anywhere or be anything to be happy because we already are, and thus, contentment is more valuable than any possession or accomplishment. The Buddha describes the monk’s contentment like this: ‘He is satisfied with a robe to cover his body and alms food to satisfy his stomach and having accepted no more than is sufficient he goes his way, just as a bird flies here and there taking with it no more than its wings.’(D.I,71). - See more at: http://www.buddhisma2z.com/content.php?id=83#sthash.tXPxQmPh.dpuf"
It would seem all that one needs to do in order to find contentment is to change the way one looks at things/situations...Most of us are aware that "Things are not quite what they seem!" yet we still choose to cling to our delusions ....
What is your take on 'contentment' ?
Is it what you(we all) strive for in the conventional world ?
Comments
Contentment is mostly just living in the present. When we aren't content, it is because we want something to be other than it is.
What if a person has "too much" though, as in way more than they need? Are they really content with what they already have? Can one be content in that way if they always have an excess? Are we more content the less we have?
Just questions I have been considering lately.
@Shoshin
If taken in isolation, by itself, potential spiritual dangers arise.
I get the reward presentation of contentment as the result of accepting what is
but
contentment without mindfulness can also just be a dog asleep in the sun.
Why invent a term like a precheka Buddha if practitioners do not need to be attentive to attachments developing towards states of contentment,
or is Buddhisms truth simply a case of lowered expectations?
Edit note.... I just realize that the term Precheka Buddha, often used in Zen monasteries as a warning to senior monks to not rest upon the contentment of their spiritual accomplishments, might just be a Mahayana thing.
Contentment, inner peace, equanimity, acceptance of things as they are, are my personal definitions for Nirvana.
"Unstriving" rather than "no striving."
Never having anything to do on this forum. That would be a start.
My guess is that "things as they are" is a nice encouragement, perhaps, but could often use the education provided by things as they are.
the catch is that we need to be content with non-contentment. non-contentment and contentment are dualistic.
You cannot trick dukkha. You have to really open and accept it. If you are only accepting dukkha to get to sukkha it won't work.
Don't we always want something?
We want peace, comfort, happiness, good health. Others might want status, material gain, excitement etc.
To be truly contented we must stop wanting anything and that paradoxically includes the wish to be contented. That means to truly abandon all hope (not the same as losing all hope) and surrender fully to what is.
Yes indeedy.
In the dervish tradition where everything is blamed on Allah, contentment or peace of heart comes from acceptance and contentment with Cods Willy (PBUH)
The Buddhist equivalent is not acquiescence or passive seething but just a facing or sitting with reality . . . and boy some people here are in dire placement [send prayers, hope and jokes]
From experience most of us know how 'mellow' we can become through meditation. Such a skilful way to squash a cushion . . .
Content with non-contentment?
I agree but doesn’t that sound….lame?
(I’m not sure it’s the right English word for what I mean. It’s like Louis van Gaal explaining how Manchester United was so dominant when they lost their game again.)
Maybe it’s more accurate saying that the way we relate to things is immediate.
Before we can even start giving names like “content” or “discontent”; before we can label here and now as something which has an opposite in not-here and not-now. Before we can even begin mentally scraping our throats and start adding words concepts and preferences; we can immediately relate.
I think this is a subject on which explanations detract from the message.
Now, that has a special ring to it.
I am quite content with things just as they are because they are subject to change... Just as they are.
Everybody seems to think impermanence is a bad quality... It's what makes it all work!
I don't think there's anything wrong with trying to affect change as long as we're not getting too attached to possible outcomes and we're using equal parts wisdom and compassion.
For me, contentment is not fighting. Fighting is a by-product of attachment. It doesn't mean you approve of a condition, but understanding that the world will not bend to your will, nor should you expect or want it to, so quit trying to make it so = contentment, or going with the flow like water, peace.
sometimes the world does bend to the will of groups of people, and if they didn't fight against the flow (in some sense anyhow) nothing would ever change. Slavery, voting rights, gay rights, minority rights...they were all achieved by people who decided the flow wasn't going the right way and chose to fight against it.
Yes karasti, fortunately sometimes it does, but will you get upset if things don't change fast enough for your liking?
I guess I don't equate "support' to "fighting". I can voice my concerns or views, but shouldn't be so attached as to force it on anyone, or be upset if they don't agree. The fact that others don't agree is all part of the experience that we are currently experiencing. It is what it is.
How peaceful could we be, attached to current human rights issues, if we were time traveled back to days when racial, gender or gay rights were even more abusive than they are today? Our view towards human rights support would really place us as a minority voice. That would be a real challenge to remain at peace.
There will always be people who are fighting for all kinds of causes. There also those who give up without a fight. Both are what they are. Don't expect the fighters to lay down arms or the their opposites to take up arms. Either way is fine.
Carl sagans pale blue dot.
If only everyone could stop trying to fix the world and let world clean up the mess we have caused.
I don't expect anything of anyone, or any particular outcome for any situation. But for those who have it in them to fight for the rights of others, good on them. Support is part of that. But it isn't the only thing. Fighting doesn't always have to be a negative concept. People fight against cancer or other diseases without accepting their diagnosis. Nothing wrong with that. Nothing wrong with accepting, either. We all make our choices accordingly.
There is a value in contentment, but there is also a value in working for change. I find that I easily get angry, depressed and demoralized as I learn about all the injustices in the world and it would be helpful for me to have my activism rooted in Buddhism because of its long term perspective on the world and human progress and its views on compassion and emptiness. I hope I will be able to work for a better world without getting too depressed about our current world. This great article by Joanne Macy and Sam Mows is a good example:
The Work That Reconnects maps a process that helps us build motivation, creativity, courage, and solidarity for the transition to a sustainable human culture. The sequence works as a spiral because it repeats itself. The spiral can take place over the course of a day, a project, or a lifetime. We come back to it again and again as a source of strength and fresh perspectives.
To be alive in this beautiful, self-organizing universe—to participate in the dance of life with senses to perceive it, lungs that breathe it, organs that draw nourishment from it—is a wonder beyond words. The spiral begins with gratitude because that quiets the frantic mind and grounds us, stimulating our empathy and confidence. It helps us to be more fully present and opens psychic space for acknowledging the pain we carry for our world. There are many practices that we can use to strengthen our sense of gratitude. Even the simple act of naming the things we love about being alive can help us as we move from gratitude to honoring our pain for the world.
This is a dark time, filled with suffering and uncertainty. Like living cells in a larger body, it is natural that we feel the trauma of our world. So don’t be afraid of the anguish you feel, or the anger or fear, because these responses arise from the depth of your caring and the truth of your interconnectedness with all beings. “To suffer with” is the literal meaning of compassion. For each person the process of honoring our pain involves acknowledging our despair for the world, validating it as a wholesome response to the present crisis, letting ourselves experience the pain, and acknowledging it with others, recognizing that we are not alone.
Out of this darkness a new world can arise. Even though we cannot see clearly how it’s going to turn out, we are still called to let the future into our imagination. We will never be able to build what we have not first cherished in our hearts. We can sense how intimately and inextricably we are related to all that is. We can taste our own power to change, and feel the texture of our living connections with past and future generations, and with our brother and sister species. For individuals this shift to seeing with new eyes arrives in different ways at different times. You can’t force it to happen, but it will come naturally as a result of doing the work of gratitude practices, honoring our pain, and experiencing our interconnectedness with the world.
We go forth into the actions that call each of us, according to our situation, gifts, and limitations. Many people don’t get involved in the healing of our world because there are so many different issues that seem to compete with each other. Shall I save the whales or help battered children? The truth is that all aspects of the current crisis reflect the same mistake: setting ourselves apart and using others for our gain. So to heal one aspect helps the others to heal as well. Just find what you love to work on and take joy in that. Never try to do it alone. Link up with others; you’ll spark each other’s ideas and sustain each other’s energy. We don’t wait for a blueprint or fail-proof scheme, for each step will be our teacher, bringing new perspectives and opportunities. Even when we don’t succeed in a given venture, we can be grateful for the chance we took and the lessons we learned. It is helpful to go forth by stating a particular action or path you intend to pursue to others, and receiving their blessings in return. This way you can carry the support of others in your intentions to heal our world.
FIVE VOWS
I vow to myself and to each of you:
To commit myself daily to the healing of our world and the welfare of all beings.
To live on earth more lightly and less violently in the food, products, and energy I consume.
To draw strength and guidance from the living earth, the ancestors, the future beings, and my brothers and sisters of all species.
To support others in their work for the world and to ask for help when I feel the need.
To pursue a daily spiritual practice that clarifies my mind, strengthens my heart, and supports me in observing these vows.
Click Buddhist Climate Action Organizations | Tricycle for a guide of Buddhist climate action groups.
image
Buddhist Climate Action Organizations | Tricycle
United States 1. Aloka Vihara Placerville, CA 95667 (530) 647-8262 info@sranaloka.org Ayya Santacitta, Ayya Anandabodhi Theravada Forest Traditi...
View on www.tricycle.com
Preview by Yahoo