Reader Submission: Problems with your Thai partner? Buddha says suffering is caused by craving
When I read the posts of the last few months about the problems with the Thai partner / ex-partner / Thai in-laws, etc., I think there are few Thai people who comply with the text below. Is that right?
Gautama Buddha says that suffering is mainly caused by craving. This craving is called Tanha in Buddhism and comes in three forms:
- the craving for sensory experiences;
- the yearning to continue our lives;
- the yearning for the cessation of our life.
And by freeing ourselves from yearning, we free ourselves from suffering. This release from suffering leads to Nirvana. This is a state of absolute and eternal peace. This means the definitive termination of the circle of rebirths, the Samsara, and thus of suffering. This state would be accessible to all living beings.
To achieve this, there is the Eightfold Path, which leads to liberation from suffering. The eightfold path includes the following:
- having the right insights – according to the four truths;
- having the right intentions – no possessiveness, anger or cruelty;
- using the right words – no lies, foul language, gossip or slander;
- doing the right thing – no enjoyment at the expense of others, no violence against people or animals and no stealing;
- adopting the right way of life - an honest and beneficial profession;
- the right effort - the effort to promote the wholesome;
- focusing the right attention – living and being alert to the here and now;
- having the right concentration – on the here and now, or on a beneficial object.
Submitted by Koen chiang
“Striving” for non-suffering is again a form of “suffering”…when the “I-illusion” is seen through, there is just life…sometimes there is suffering…but no one is suffering…this insight is called “liberation” 🙂
Nobody born…Nobody die… just a tourist in Thaaaailaaaaand :-))
I agree with The Enlightened One. Unfortunately, people usually know less well what they are better off with than Buddha. Also the preacher of the Christian denomination warns man against vanity and chasing after wind. I do not know what The Prophet teaches us, but in practice that also leads to little good. Satisfying as many needs as possible is what most people strive for, but usually I don't see them getting happier. Buddha saw that well. Moreover, all that striving makes it more difficult to ever stop, which will inevitably happen anyway. I should know because I too spend most of my day doing what Lord Buddha warns us about. Since I do not believe in reincarnation, nor in an afterlife, the misery is limited to my one-time existence. Fortunately, Buddha also teaches us that if we do those things that are not good for us, then we should at least enjoy them as much as possible. That's a comforting thought that I'll just go with it.
I estimate about the same percentage as Dutch people who strictly observe the 10 commandments 😉
“Having the Right Understandings-According to the Four Truths”
Which four truths?
In Sanskrit these are the 4 VEDAS.
Do you mean these 4 truths?
The first truth: There is suffering
The second truth: Suffering has a cause
The third truth: The cause of suffering can be removed
The Fourth Truth: Following the Eightfold Path ends suffering
These are many more truths than four. Too much for me anyway, and… indeed, never met a Thai who observes them. Many Thai ladies who observe the opposite, hah!