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If you desire for the world to be better, will this cause suffering?
I have read some Buddhist books, and a few authors have said things along the lines of how 'wishing for reality to be something that one it is causes suffering.'
but then how could movements like civil rights, womens liberation, etc. ever have succeeded if they were not fed up with the present state of things?
but then how could movements like civil rights, womens liberation, etc. ever have succeeded if they were not fed up with the present state of things?
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very peacefully, if you can see goals for what they are.
The problem is when you get so attached to them that it causes anxiety and fear.
like if you want to do anything, so you try and figure out how you will do so, but eventually if a problem show up and you end up being unable to achieve your goal, you say "oh well, i'll do something else then."
Many people try to think like that. It is like rending your humanity.
Wishing that causes suffering (for example, an addiction) is what Buddhism tries to extinguish. Wishing that doesn't cause suffering (for exemple, wanting to go to the kitchen in order to make a cup of coffee) is not a problem.
Also, I don't think you need to be 'fed up' in order to try to change things. You can act before you feel the whip, if you know what I mean.
Perhaps, the key is what a person does next after the thought of wishing for things to be different arises. If we are fed up with the way things are going, and then transform that energy into positive action, then this is moving forward. However, if we are fed up and still do nothing, then that could lead to problems. A person could feel helpless, victimized, depressed, etc.
What do you think?
Only if you're excessively attached to the outcome. Something is better than nothing, but it may never meet with our expectations, so we have to live with that. But in Buddhism, this is what metta and the bodhisattva motivation are all about.
If we are well aware of the fact that despite our best effort the world might not become a better place, it might even get worse, then we are not setting ourselves up for anxiety, frustration, anger, depression and so on.
Kind of pessimistic, right?
Not exactly. We can still put our best effort into making the world a better place, or whatever other wholesome aspirations we might have, and then let chips fall where they may.
Some things are totally beyond our control. We can't even keep our body fit and healthy in the long run. Eventually, no matter how well intentioned we are, no matter how many hours are spent at the gym and no matter how many dollars are spent on healthy food and the best quality medical care - this body is going to die. And that is the nature of the body, something so close to us, how much more so is this the nature of the world.
This is not being pessimistic, this is being realistic.
We can (and should) still be good people, we can still help one another, to whatever capacity we are able and willing - but - we shouldn't expect the rest of the world to do the same. This leads to happiness, not suffering.
With Metta,
Guy
Anger, frustration, disappointment (which Greg House pretty aptly describes as "anger for wimps") are basically all the result of rejecting a current situation in the hopes of making it not-so. However, this isn't really a good step toward change. One must accept facts and rules and limitations before they can be worked away.
For example, I refuse to accept that LGBT people should be second-class citizens in my country. However, I cannot deny that they are. In fact, if I were to deny that they are, what use would I be to them? If I rejected the reality of the situation, what use would I be? I would be putting my own comfort and desire to pretend I'm living in a happy fantasy-land above the needs of LGBT people who need me aware, alert, and working.
Desiring for the world to be better can be just fine, as any goal is fine. Just don't lose touch with how it is, and you'll have an easier time avoiding the anger and disappointment that come from rejecting reality. Know that things are as they are, and then go tear down the system if you don't like what you see. =P
Civil rights, womens liberation from the perspective of this 110 years old Teresa Hsu Chih
The "unskillful" part is important because people often misinterpret the Buddha to be suggesting that all desire is unwise; this leads to an impression of Buddhism as a passive, nihilistic philosophy in which things like ambition, drive, courage and engagement are tossed out the window. This is a tragic misinterpretation that causes people to accuse the Buddha of throwing out the baby with the bathwater; yet, the man was obviously much smarter than that. There is even such a thing as skillful desire in Buddhism -- chandha (desire for action).
Wanting the world to be better suggests to me that you wish for beings to be free from suffering. This is not tanha. It's a wholesome desire. In fact, it's the definition of compassion (in Pali, karuna). The wish for ourselves and others to be free from suffering is a motivator towards taking up the cultivation of moral/ethical conduct and spiritual practice itself. The wish for ourselves and others to be happy is lovingkindness/friendliness (metta). Again, this is a wholesome state. In fact, these are two of the brahmaviharas (divine abodes).
Wishing is not the same thing. You could be enlightened and have wishes but your wishes are light as a feather and made of dreams and you are aware of that fact rather than make them heavy and solid.
When you make your wishes heavy and solid you can suffer when you don't get your way however noble your way is.
No, I don't think so. We can desire all we want for others but they still might not get it, and then we will continue to suffer. We can desire the best for others but we must realize that we don't know what's best. For me, metta must be cultivated within before I can effectively turn it outward anyways.
Some people, dissatisfied with how things are, change the world. Civil rights, women's lib ... good efforts, good results. But, of course, blacks and females still suffer, just as whites and males do.
Some people, dissatisfied with how things are, change themselves*. They achieve liberation ... good efforts, good results. Then they help others achieve liberation. And all they help no longer suffer.
*So I have been told (not having achieved liberation myself)