Is Unending Happiness Possible?

Papaji

Abha Bhandari

Lord Buddha’s Eight fold Path

Prince Siddhartha, son of King Suddhodana of the Sakya clan was born to Queen Maha Maya in a forest. Ironically, this jungle was the hallowed birthplace of one who was to be the Prince of Spirituality and who was destined to show the world the way to happiness and release from the forest of their inner turmoil! King Suddhodana was in a quandary. He had been warned that if the prince saw someone old, someone sick, a dead person or a monk, he would relinquish his royal accouterments and become a renunciate.

In an endeavour to save him from such a destiny, King Suddhodana endeavoured to keep his beloved son protected from the realities of the world. But how long could he keep Siddhartha from his destiny? The prince was a compassionate being and kind to everyone. He was gentle with his horse and other animals. Because he was a prince his life was very easy, and he could have chosen to ignore the problems of others. But he felt sympathy for others. He knew that all creatures, including people, animals and all other living beings, like to be happy and don’t like suffering and pain.

He was also extremely perceptive. He liked to watch what was happening and think about different things. One afternoon his father took him to the annual Ploughing Festival. The king started the ceremony by driving the first pair of beautifully decorated bullocks. Siddhartha sat down under a rose-apple tree and watched everyone. He noticed that while people were happily enjoying themselves, the bullocks had to work terribly hard and plough the field. They did not look happy at all. Then Siddhartha noticed various other creatures around him. He saw a lizard eating ants. But soon a snake came, caught the lizard, and ate it. Then, suddenly a bird came down from the sky, picked up the snake and so it was eaten also. Siddhartha realised that all these creatures might think that they were happy for a while, but that they ended up suffering.

The king did not want his son to philosophize too much, because he remembered that the wise men had predicted that his son might one day want to leave the palace and become a monk. In order to distract him, the king built Siddhartha a beautiful palace with a lovely garden to play in. But this did not stop the prince from thinking about the suffering and unhappiness that he noticed around him.

Siddhartha grew up to be a handsome young man of great strength. He was now of an age to get married. To stop Siddhartha from thinking of leaving home, King Suddhodana arranged for him to be married to his own beautiful cousin, Princess Yasodhara. To stop the prince from thinking about unhappiness or leaving home, King Suddhodana built a pleasure palace for Siddhartha and Yasodhara. Dancers and singers were asked to entertain them, and only healthy and young people were allowed into the palace and the palace garden. The king did not want Siddhartha to know that everybody gets sick, grows old and will die. But in spite of the king’s efforts, the prince was not happy. He wanted to know what life was like for people who lived outside the palace walls.

Finally, the king allowed Siddhartha to go on short visits to the nearby towns. He went with his attendant, Channa. On his first visit Siddhartha saw a white haired, wrinkled man dressed in rags. Such a sight surprised him, as he had never seen anyone old before. Channa explained to him that this man was old and that everyone will be old one day. Siddhartha felt frightened by that and asked Channa to take him back home. At night, he could not sleep and he kept on thinking about old age.

Although Siddhartha felt frightened by the vision of getting old, he wanted to see more of the world outside. On his next visit, he saw a man lying on the ground and moaning. Out of compassion, he rushed over to the man. Channa warned him that the man was sick and that everyone, even noble people like Siddhartha or the king could get sick.

On the third visit, Siddhartha and Channa saw four men carrying another man on a stretcher. Channa told Siddhartha that the man was dead and was going to be cremated. He also said that no one can escape death, and told the prince that everyone will die one day. When they returned to the palace, Siddhartha kept on thinking about what he had seen. Finally, he made a strong decision to find a way out of the suffering of old age, sickness and death.

Some time later, while the prince was riding in the garden, he saw a man in a yellow robe. He noticed that the man looked very peaceful and happy. Channa explained to him that the man was a monk. The monk had left his family and given up his desire for pleasures to search for freedom from worldly suffering. The prince felt inspired by the sight of the monk and began to want to leave home to search for freedom in the same way.

From the day when he decided that he wanted to leave the palace the prince lost all interest in his royal palace and its enchantments. He also put aside his love for his wife and newborn son, and decided to leave the palace in the thick of night in order to learn how to free himself and others from sickness, ageing and death, and in order to understand life and what caused suffering.

He first studied under the wise tutelage of some learned men of wisdom, but soon realized that he could discover the route to freedom from suffering and to happiness only through his own endeavour. He then attempted to find an answer through severe asceticism. This resulted only in an emaciated body which could no longer endeavour! Discovering his mistake, he then resolved to meditate uninterruptedly till he found an answer to his quest.

At first many distracting images appeared in his mind. But finally his mind became very calm, like a pond of still water. In the calm of deep meditation, Siddhartha concentrated on the essence of life. He meditated on his own existence.

First, Siddhartha remembered his previous lives.He then saw how beings are reborn according to the law of cause and effect, or karma. He clearly cognized the fact that good deeds lead from suffering to peace. Then he saw that the origin of suffering is attachment, the fruition of ego… the very thought ‘I’ is more important than anybody else. Having recognized his true Self as distinct from his ego self, the young aspirant of the Spirit became completely silent… free from all thinking that could cause suffering. This freedom was nirvana. Thus, the young Siddhartha became Buddha, the Supreme Enlightened One.

In his first teaching given to five monks at Sarnath, Buddha described the path to eternal happiness.

He preached:

Life means suffering.

The origin of suffering is attachment.

The cessation of suffering is possible.

There is an eightfold path that an aspirant can take to end suffering and abide in perpetual bliss and peace.

Life means suffering

Pain, sickness, injury, tiredness, old age, and eventually death are inevitable facets of life. Sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment, and depression are the natural outcome of life’s travails. Although there are different degrees of suffering and there are also positive experiences in life which ensue from a value based living and which bring us happiness, life in its totality is imperfect and incomplete, because our world is subject to impermanence. We are never able to keep permanently what we strive for, and just as happy moments pass by, we ourselves and our loved ones will pass away one day, too.

The cause of suffering is attachment

The origin of suffering is attachment to transient things and the ignorance thereof. Transient things do not only include only physical objects that surround us, but also the body, ideas, the mind, the intellect,and indeed all objects of our perception. Ignorance is the lack of understanding of how our mind is attached to impermanent things. The reasons for suffering are desire, passion, the pursuit of wealth and prestige, striving for fame and popularity, or in short: craving and clinging. Because the objects of our attachment are transient, their loss is inevitable, thus suffering will necessarily follow. Objects of attachment also include the ego..the individualistic idea of ‘self’ which is a delusion, because this ‘self’ is impermanent. What we give utmost importance to is this ‘self’ which is just an imagined entity, whereas we are merely an infinitesimal part of the ceaseless flux of the universe.

The Srimadbhagavad Gita also describes the state of one who revels in attachment with sense objects:

“Thinking of sense objects, one becomes attached to them; attachment leads to desire and desire leads to anger; anger leads to delusion, delusion leads to loss of memory; consequently the intellect is destroyed and with the loss of intellect, the individual himself is ruined.”

Yet, Lord Krishna is quick to clarify:

“The self controlled one, free from attachment and aversion and with mind under control, attains the prasaad of such detachment even whilst partaking of sense objects. Upon obtaining that prasaad, such a one becomes devoid of all sorrow.”

The cessation of suffering is possible

The cessation of suffering can be attained through nirodha. Nirodha means the reversal of sensual craving and conceptual attachment. Thus, suffering can be ended by attaining dispassion. Nirodha extinguishes all forms of clinging and attachment. This means that suffering can be overcome simply by removing the cause of suffering. Attaining and perfecting dispassion is a process that ultimately results in the state of Nirvana. Nirvana is liberation. It connotes freedom from all worries, troubles, complexes, fabrications and ideas. Nirvana is comprehensible only to those who have experienced its beauteous peace… a peace which remains untouched by the travails of destiny.

The Patanjal Yog Sutras also define Nirvana or Yoga as Chit Vritti Nirodha. They stipulate that erasal of the knots of attachment and desire created in the mind will inevitably lead to Supreme Union with the Divine and consequentially to peace and perpetual bliss.

The path to the cessation of suffering.

Buddha assured us that there is a path to the end of suffering – the gradual path of self-improvement, which is described in greater detail as the ‘Middle Path.’ It is the middle way between the two extremes of excessive self-indulgence and excessive self-mortification; and it leads to the end of the cycle of rebirth. It is the path of value based living.. of giving to others what we would like to receive from them…it is the path of distinguishing between the real and the unreal and then living only in the real. The path to the end of suffering can extend over many lifetimes, since the cognition of the Real and the ability to live in it could take long spans of practice. Throughout this practice, the aspirant is still subject to karmic conditioning. Craving, ignorance, delusions, and its effects disappear gradually, as progress is made on the path. This is the path of spiritual endeavour or Sadhana.

Buddha defined this path as eightfold:

Right Perception

Right Intention

Right Speech

Right Action

Right Livelihood

Right Effort

Right Mindfulness

Right Concentration

The Noble Eightfold Path describes the way to end suffering. It is a practical guideline to ethical and mental development with the goal of freeing the individual from attachments and delusions, finally leading to understanding the truth about existence and all beings. The eight aspects of the path are not to be understood as a sequence of single steps, instead they are highly interdependent principles that have to be seen in relationship with each other.

1. Right perception

Right perception simply means to see and to understand things as they really are. As such, right perception is the ability to grasp the impermanent and imperfect nature of worldly objects and ideas, and to understand the law of karma and karmic conditioning. Right perception is not necessarily an intellectual capacity, just as wisdom is not just a matter of intelligence. Instead, right view is attained, sustained, and enhanced through all capacities of mind. It begins with the intuitive insight that until one has a complete understanding of the true nature of the Cosmos, one will necessarily be subject to suffering. Since our view of the world forms our thoughts and our actions, right view yields right thoughts and right actions.

The Patanjal Yog Sutras stipulate that the only correct perception is that which is derived from tenets of the scriptures. It is this perception only which can be depended upon to be the lighthouse of our existence on this planet.

2. Right Intention

While right perception refers to the cognitive aspect of wisdom, right intention refers to the volitional aspect, i.e. the mental energy that controls our actions. Right intention can be described best as commitment to ethical and mental self-improvement. Buddha distinguishes three types of right intentions: 1. the intention of renunciation, which means resistance to the pull of desire, 2. the intention of good will, meaning resistance to feelings of anger and aversion, and 3. the intention of harmlessness, meaning not to think or act cruelly, violently, or aggressively, and to develop compassion.

3. Right Speech

Right speech is the first principle of ethical conduct in the eightfold path. Ethical conduct is viewed as a guideline to moral discipline, which supports the other principles of the path. This aspect is not self-sufficient, however, essential, because mental purification can only be achieved through the cultivation of ethical conduct. Words can break or save lives, make enemies or friends, start war or create peace. Buddha explained right speech as follows: 1. to abstain from false speech, especially not to tell deliberate lies and not to speak deceitfully, 2. to abstain from slanderous speech and not to use words maliciously against others, 3. to abstain from harsh words that offend or hurt others, and 4. to abstain from idle chatter that lacks purpose or depth.

4. Right Action

Right action, refers to deeds that involve bodily actions. Unwholesome actions lead to unsound states of mind, while wholesome actions lead to sound states of mind. Again, the principle is explained in terms of abstinence: To abstain from harming all beings, to abstain from taking life, to abstain from stealing, robbery, fraud, deceitfulness, and dishonesty, to abstain from ethical misdemeanour. Positively formulated, right action means to act kindly and compassionately, to be honest, to respect the belongings of others, and to maintain all relationships without causing emotional harm to others.

The Srimadbhagavadgita on the other hand, defines actions as those which stem from mental conviction and justification. It is such thought that gives rise to the fruits of deeds, constituting ones future destiny. A pure mind will necessarily lead to pure action which in turn will render the spiritual aspirant free from the nurturing of future karmic seeds.

5. Right Livelihood

Right livelihood stipulates that one must earn one’s living in a righteous way and that wealth should be gained legally and peacefully. Any occupation that violates the rights of or compromises the wellbeing of any other living being is prohibited. Any occupation that harms other living beings is therefore not to be practiced.

6. Right Effort

Right effort can be seen as an important prerequisite for the spiritual path. Without effort, which is in itself an act of will, nothing can be achieved, whereas misguided effort distracts the mind from its task, and confusion will be the consequence. Mental energy is the force behind right effort; it can occur in either wholesome or unwholesome states. The same type of energy that fuels desire, envy, aggression, and violence can on the other side fuel self-discipline, honesty, benevolence, and kindness. Thus Right effort is detailed to prevent unwholesome or unhealthy living at all levels, and to nurture and maintain perfection and wholesome living.

According to Hindu philosophy, the law of karma connotes that all events that are encountered in the life of a human being are in accordance with the latencies of his or her previous births. In effect, there is no aspect of a human beings life which is not aspected by this predestiny. Some ask the question.. “then of what consequence is effort?” little realizing that it is individual effort which is imperative for destiny to be enforced! Therefore it is necessary for the individual to persevere in right effort and improve the seeds of his future existence in this cosmos. When such effort or endeavour is conditioned by detachment, the path to moksha becomes shorter and the goal more visible.

7. Right Mindfulness

Right mindfulness is the controlled and perfected faculty of cognition. It is the mental ability to see things as they are, with clear consciousness. Usually, the cognitive process begins with an impression induced by perception, or by a thought. The mind then posits concepts, joins concepts into constructs, and weaves those constructs into complex interpretative schemes. All this happens only half consciously, and as a result our vision of reality is obscured. Right mindfulness is anchored in clear perception and Truth. The Yoga Sutras of Patanjal also go with great depth into the recesses of thoughts and mental cognition, exhibiting the falliability of human perception, cognition and their resultant impressions. It is therefore recommended that chit vritti nirodha is essential; that erroneous concepts, convictions and impressions of the mind must be annihilated if a spiritual aspirant is to proceed towards moksha.Right mindfulness is the path towards the annihilation of erroneous impressions, convictions and cognitions.

8. Right Concentration

The eighth principle of the path, right concentration, is described as one-pointedness of mind, meaning a state where all mental faculties are unified and directed to one particular object, in this reference, to the Truth. When the mind concentrates on the Truth, on Reality, to the exclusion of all else, when only Truth remains the focus of the being’s existence, when all else fades into insignificance, then the Spirit or the Self is revealed unto Such a One, and Nirvana is achieved.

“Then can happiness be attained only by the Realized Soul?” When we asked this question of Param Pujya Ma, Her answer was explicit. “As one sets out towards a sandalwood forest with a one pointed focus, one approaches it speedily… the nearer one comes, the more the fragrance of the sandalwood invades ones senses…and when one walks through that forest, that fragrance permeates us… so much so, that it becomes a part of us. So also it is with happiness. When one sets foot on the spiritual path with one pointed focus, one begins to experience that joy of the spirit. This joy attains a permanency as one enters the realm of the Spirit or Self or Atma… it becomes a happiness which inheres us eternally. … unshaken by circumstance or destiny. Travails that pertain to the abode of destiny can only bring sorrow to the one shackled by attachment to the individual self. The unassailable joy of one who roams the realms of the Spirit is unimaginable!”

Our questions were answered!

Copyright © 2025, Arpana Trust
Site   designed  , developed   &   maintained   by   www.mindmyweb.com .
image01