by Thích Nhất Hạnh (1997)
1. Entering the Heart of the Buddha
"Suffering is the means the Buddha used to liberate himself, and it is also the means by which we can become free." (20)Of course, there's much more to the chapters than what I'm pulling out, but I try to mark the poignant quotes that convey the wider idea. And chapter 1 starts with this core idea that suffering is important to our living and growth, but that it should not hold us back, and we should learn to let it go and find peace as well. It was a good start to the main messages of the book."The Buddha called suffering a Holy Truth, because our suffering has the capacity of showing us the path to liberation. Embrace your suffering, and let it reveal to you the way to peace." (23)
2. The First Dharma Talk
Here we have background information on Siddhartha Gautama and the basics of his first Dharma talk. I note this here for later reference:
→ By becoming an enlightened person, the Buddha "had put into motion the wheel of the Dharma, the Way of Understanding and Love. (26)
→ Discourse (sutra in Sanskrit) in this context = a teaching given by the Buddha or one of his enlightened disciples. (26)
The Buddha's Discourse on Turning the Wheel of the Dharma has 3 characteristics: (27)
1. The Middle Way. Austerity is not the proper path (poor health leaves no energy to realize the path), neither is indulgence in sense pleasures (eating too much, sloth, etc.)
2. The Four Noble Truths. - to be explained later
3. Engagement in the World. The teachings were "to help us relate to ourselves and the world as thoroughly as possible." This leads to the Noble Eightfold Path.
This sutra teaches us to recognize suffering and transform it into "mindfulness, compassion, peace, and liberation."
3. The Four Noble Truths
The Buddha continued his teachings from his awakening (samyak sambodhi) to his Great Passing Away (mahaparinirvana). The Four Noble Truths are a major part of this:
1. Suffering (dukkha): we all have suffering. We have to recognize and acknowledge its presence.→ "Right" = samma (Pali) / samyak (Sanskrit). Ways to practice that are of benefit, the "Right" way to practice.2. Creation / Arising of Suffering (samudaya): we then need to look into how the suffering came to be.
3. Cessation of Creating Suffering (nirodha): we then refrain from doing the things that make us suffer. Healing is possible.
4. Noble Eightfold Path (marga): the path that helps us refrain from causing our suffering, or the Eightfold Path - Right View, Right Thinking, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Diligence, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration.
→ "Right and wrong are neither moral judgments nor arbitrary standards imposed from outside. Through our own awareness, we discover what is beneficial ('right') and what is unbeneficial ('wrong')." (33)