Use Buddhist Approaches to Support Us in Daily Living.

 We will talk about how to use Buddhist methods to support us in our daily lives. When we talk about the methods of Buddhism or Buddhism, the Sanskrit word is "Dharma". If we look up the true meaning of the word "Dharma," it means "what holds us." Dharma means something that preserves or prevents suffering and problems.

Four Noble Truths

The first thing the Buddha taught was "Four Noble Truths." This means that there are four truths that any one who has high realization and can understand the reality will understand that these things are true. The four truths are:

• The real problems that we all face.
• The real cause of them.
• What would happen if these issues really ceased, so we do not get them?
• The way we know, act and so on, to end all our problems.

Our True Issues

Buddhists talk a lot about problems and how to deal with them. In fact, all the teachings of the Buddha are meant to help us overcome difficulties in life. The approach is very reasonable and practical. The method assumes that any problem we encounter comes from the causes. Therefore, we must examine our inner being very honestly and deeply, to see what the difficulties we are facing. For many of us it is not an easy process. In fact, judging the difficult areas of our lives is a painful affair. Many people deny that. They are not willing to admit that they have problems - for example, in an unhealthy relationship - yet they experience pain. However,

The Real Causes of Our Problems

Then, we need to examine the causes of our problems. Problems do not exist in themselves, no origin. It has to be due to, and of course there are many levels of factors involved in causing an unsound mindset. For example, when there are personality conflicts in a relationship, there may be more complex economic factors such as lack of money, etc., problems with children, Other items. There may be all kinds of situations contributing to the problem, but the Buddha said that we must go deeper, deeper and deeper, to find the deepest cause of the problem. we; And that is a mistake about reality.

We have unhappiness, pain, and of course it comes from some kind of cause. For example, we can act in a very disturbing way - with so many anger. No one is happy when angry, is not it? So, we need to realize that here the mind of hatred is causing unhappiness for us and we have to eliminate the mind of the yard, one way or another.

The issue that we do not feel happy about can also be a constant worry. Anxiety is a very uncomfortable mood. No one is happy to worry about, right? Maharishi, a great Indian Buddhist teacher, said that if you are in a difficult situation and you can do something to change it, why worry? Just change it. Anxiety will not be helpful at all. And if you can not do anything to change, why worry? That would not be helpful. Due to ignorance of the uselessness of anxiety, we worry again. The bottom line is that there is no benefit at all.

Then we also have problems at another level, that is the problem of discontent. Of course, we go through happy times, but unfortunately they do not last forever, and we always want to be happier. We never have satisfaction. We are not satisfied if we just eat the food we like once, is not it? I want to eat it again and again. And if we eat too much for a while, the joy we have at first becomes a stomachache. So I'm a bit confused about this kind of happiness. Instead of just enjoying it and realizing that it will not last, and will never satisfy itself, we cling to it; And when we lose that happiness, we feel very sad.

It is similar to being with a close friend or loved one, and then leaving them. Of course they will leave us at some point, so we need to enjoy the time being with them. There is a beautiful image that we sometimes use. When a great person that I love very much enters my life, it's like a wild bird flying in my window. When the wild bird enters its window, we can enjoy its presence, but after a while it will, of course, fly away, because it is free. And if we behave so lightly, the bird will probably return. But if we catch the bird and put it in a cage, the bird will be very miserable, maybe even die. Similarly, these people enter our lives like this beautiful wild bird, And it's best to enjoy the time they spend with you. When they leave for any reason, for how long - then that is going to happen. If we are calm and calm about it and do not demand that - "Never leave me. I can not live without you, "something like that - then they can come back. Otherwise, our pulling and demanding will only drive them away.

When we mistake for the nature of happiness and pleasure in life, of course, we will have problems. We can not even enjoy the happy times we have, because we are worried and afraid that we will lose them. We are like a dog with a bowl of food - the dog is eating but also looking around and growling to make sure no one comes to take it. Sometimes, we are like that, right, instead of just enjoying what we have and accepting that when it ends it will end. But of course this is not so simple - maybe it does not seem simple - but it requires training, getting used to another perspective to see things in life.

The Truth of Our Problems

The Buddha said that we can end our problems forever, and the way to do that is to eliminate the causes. That is a very reasonable method, very reasonable. If we remove the fuel, there will be no fire. And the Buddha said that they can eliminate these problems in a way that they will never return.

We are not only satisfied with temporary relief from these problems, right? It's like going to sleep - while sleeping, you have no problem with a difficult relationship. So that is not the solution, because when you wake up the problem is still there. It's like having a vacation somewhere, but then you have to go back home, and when you get home, the problems are still there. Therefore, a vacation is not the best, most sustainable and deepest solution.

The Buddha did not say that just accepting his problems and living with them, because that is not a very good solution, is not it? Because then, we will feel quite helpless - we can not do anything, so we give up and do not even try. It is very important to try to overcome problems. Even if there is not much progress, at least, we also feel that we have worked hard.

Methods to Stop Our Problems

However, if we really want to achieve the genuine cessation of these issues, a true end, the Buddha taught the fourth truth, that we must follow certain methods and have some correct understanding, to eliminate the deepest cause, which is the ignorance of oneself. But having good understanding is not enough, if we can not always remember that, so we need to develop strength. But in order for concentration to be able to remember and focus on that understanding, we need to keep the precepts. So, the general Buddhist methods we use to prevent our problems are to follow the path of righteousness, concentration and understanding (sometimes called "wisdom" ).

In addition, one of the biggest causes of these problems is their selfishness. Much of our selfishness stems from the ignorance of reality, because anyway, it seems we think we are the only one who exists in this world. Even if we acknowledge that others exist, it is clear that we are the most important person in the universe, the center of our universe. Because of this misconception, we think, "I always have to be like that. I always have to get what I want, "and if we do not like it, we will be sad.

But that is a very misleading view of reality, because in general there is nothing special about me. We are all the same, in the sense that everyone wants to be happy, no one wants to suffer; Everyone wants to get what they want and nobody expects what they want. Anyway, we still have to live together, because we live together. Therefore, we need to increase compassion and compassion, attention to others and altruism in ways to overcome or prevent problems. Like I want others to help me, they also want me to help them.

Deal with Brain

Of course, not everyone is holy or bodhisattva, that is true. Everyone is ignorant at one level or another. Because of ignorance, we act under the influence of affliction. For example, if I think I'm the center of the universe and I'm the most important person, the emotion that comes with it is insecurity, right? When ignorance, you feel insecure and think, "I should be the most important person, but people do not treat me like that." So there is insecurity there.

What ways can we use when in insecurity - ways to try to make ourselves feel more secure? One of the ways is: "If I could have all the things around me, then I would feel safe. If I have enough money, enough interest or love, then I will be happy too. "But as I have seen, the nature of this kind of happiness is that we never have enough, Now is satisfied and always want more.

Think about this. It makes sense. Do we really want the person we love to say only "I love you" once or not? If they only say it once, and that is enough - they never have to repeat it with us anymore? I never feel comfortable with that. I always want to hear it again, again and again, is not it? And I never reached the point where I would say, "Okay, you do not have to tell me that. You know. "So when it comes to greed, it's not just physical greed and money. We are also greedy for love, and most of us especially desire the attention of others. We see that in young children. Then it is a mechanism: if we can have everything around us, it will make us feel secure.

The next mechanism is anger and hatred: "I will be relieved if I can stay away from what I feel is threatening me." But we never feel safe; we always feel threatened; Always watch out for someone doing something they do not like - then we get angry and drive them away. Sometimes, this can lead to self-defeating. I'm thinking of an example of a relationship where I feel that the other person does not care enough for me, not spending enough time with me, and I shout with them. We are angry and yell, "You should care more about me! You should spend more time for me! "And so on ... What is the consequence of that? Often they stay away from me. Or they give us a big favor and stay with us for a while, but you can feel they are not comfortable with that. How can we think that anger with someone will make them love us more? It is absurd, is not it? We use many of these mechanisms, in the hope that it will make us feel better, but it just does things worse.

Another mechanism we use is the erection of walls. It is based on innocence, thinking that if we do not deal with the problem then anyway, it will not exist or it will disappear on its own. "I do not want to hear that anymore" - this kind of attitude, and you put up the wall. But, of course, that innocent state does not work. The problem will not disappear just because we ignore it or reject it.

So, based on these afflictions, the situation is that we have acted in all the negative ways. We shout. Even, one can hit someone. If you feel that, "It's a pity for me, I do not have anything," then you can go steal thinking that anyhow, it will help you, or I'm thinking of a for example, when I lived in India for many years. India is a land of insects - a lot, so many insects of all kinds that you can imagine. And you can not kill them; You have no way to do it. The only solution is to learn how to live with them. If you do not like the many insects that live in your room, you sleep in a mosquito net - you have a mosquito net around you and you are in a safe space. It is a peaceful solution, Instead of stepping into the hunt for all the mosquitoes in your room, you will stay awake all night as there will always be mosquitoes to kill. Under the door always have a crevice, or windows do not close - so your room will always have more mosquitoes. But the impulses of that negative behavior are urged: "I have to eradicate them!"

There are many different types of negative behaviors. Lying, speechless, adultery, rape - all these are negative. And when we act in a negative way, basically, this will create suffering - not just for others, but for ourselves. If you think about it, Buddhism speaks very strongly about not killing, right? Now, the point is that if you get into the habit of killing any creature you do not like - like mosquitoes, for instance - then that would be your first automatic reaction, right? And not just about killing. If there is something we do not like, we will grasp it in a very violent way - either verbally, physically or emotionally - instead of learning to deal with it in a calm mood.

Of course, sometimes you may have to kill. For example, there may be insects eating plants; There may be insects carrying epidemic diseases, etc. ... Buddhism is not a way of life as a fanatic. But you should not be naive about killing. Try to do it without anger and hatred in mind - "I hate mosquitoes that cause this malaria!" And you should not be naive about the negative consequences that will follow. Take a simple example: If we use pesticides to irrigate all our vegetables and fruits - yet we eat it, and it can cause illness. There are negative consequences counterproductive. The key here, back to our original point of departure, is our methods of precepts, concentration, and wisdom, complemented by loving kindness and compassion.

Keep Ethics

How will we take these preventive measures to avoid problems in life? The first level, the first thing we do, is to apply moral preservation, to avoid acting in a negative way. To act negatively is to be influenced by defilements such as anger, greed, attachment, jealousy, innocence, arrogance and so on. That means when you feel like you want to act In a negative way, I will decide very clearly, "No, I do not want to behave like that."

When I feel like shouting at you for a mistake you made, I know that screaming will only make the situation worse. I may have to correct you or resolve any mistakes you made, but yelling will only make that worse, right? Especially cursing and cursing you - of course that will not help the situation. Therefore, the moral preservation is to recognize as soon as possible, even before we act in a negative way, that we are going to be motivated to act in a negative way. There is an impulse to act like that and we will distinguish: "This will not be helpful," and I will restrain myself from acting on my impulse.

We are not here to say that you keep your anger in your heart, and then it erodes you, and you keep suppressing it until you explode. That's not the method. If we can not cope with it and it grows in the heart - yet, do not pour it on another person. Being punched against the wall only makes you hurt, so it's stupid. Then you will release it in another way, right?

Participant:  Punch a pillow.

Alex:  Knocking on the pillow or cleaning your whole floor - the kind of "mother's mind" method used to deal with anger and frustration, and actually doing hard work, running the streets , or intense exercise in the gym will help you dissipate the energy of that frustrating anger.

Right Mindfulness and Determination

If we are becoming more familiar with this behavior, and refrain from acting negatively when we feel we want to act in that way, what we are using here is called is his " shes-rab ". We distinguish between what is beneficial and what is harmful, and on that basis, we can calm and not keep anger in our hearts. Then the main thing that we are nurturing here is what is often translated as "mindfulness" ( dran-pa) "It means" to remember ". It's like sticking to the spirit of discipline - what I want to do, what kind of person I want to be in life, how I want to act in my life - it's about keeping it and do not forget them. That is mindfulness. It means "actively memorizing."

So, what we try to do is become more aware. The word "buddha" actually means "one who is completely awake." I try to be aware of what emotions I am feeling, of certain urgent impulses that arise in my mind. We make ourselves act like this or that, and we try not to become slaves to these things, but when we realize that with knowledge, we can choose how we act. How does it work? If my mood is bad, it can change; I can do something to change it.

Sometimes, the solution to a bad mood is quite simple. One of the simplest methods is to "put the kid upset to bed." I feel like a baby who has been awake for too long and cried a lot "all day" and so on. Often when unhappy, we are like that So lie down, take a nap, go to sleep. When we wake up, it's usually better.

Or if you are in disagreement with someone, and the situation is so intense - then you know that in this situation, the other person is not really listening to you, and you do not really listen. they. It's better to end the discussion - "Come back to this issue after we both calm down" - and walk, or do something similar to calm down.

These are very simple methods. In fact, Buddhism teaches deeper methods of action, but this is the beginning. We need to start by applying methods that we can really apply. But the principle is important, and the principle is to judge what is the cause of the problem, and do something to overcome them. Do not just play the victim of the problem. In other words, control what is happening in your life.

Now, if we can develop mindfulness to preserve our understanding of what our actions are and what good deeds harm us. If we can keep in mind what is going on and remember the way we want to act, then adjust, if we do not act that way. If we can do that with how we are acting in the body, verbally, we have developed the power to be able to do it with our minds, with our own thinking.

So, when we begin to have thoughts of anxiety, or thoughts, such as: "It's a pity for me. No one loves me, "etc ... and so forth, such thoughts, then I would say," Well! I do not want to continue to linger in misery, anxiety and so on. This will only make me sad, "and I turn my attention back to something more positive. There are more positive things that one can do with one's body and mind, instead of just sitting there and worrying. There are more positive things that we can think about, rather than thinking how things could be, as if we were worried. You see, because what we are trying to develop here is concentration, so that we can bring our attention back, as it begins to wander.

For example, when we are talking to someone and our mind starts wandering - it does not necessarily mean anxiety, which may be about: "When will they stop talking?" Or "I will eat What can it be for a dinner? "It can be a thought of anything - and we stop paying attention to the opposite person, or we are commenting in our hearts:" What they say is silly, "Let's get our attention back and just focus on listening to them.

This is a very practical application of concentration, but it requires discipline; And we develop that discipline first in terms of our physical and verbal behavior. As you develop this skill, the skill of bringing your attention back and correcting any deviation, you can apply it in all situations. It is really very helpful. For example, you begin to have awareness of how you keep your body. If your shoulders bend and need attention, and your neck grows up and so forth - if you are mindful and aware of it, just lower your shoulders and let them down. This is just a matter of attention, remembering and doing something related to that attention. Or when you start becoming too excited and it's totally inappropriate in this situation, And you start to talk louder and more aggressive toward others, you will realize that and just change it. You just calm down, like lowering your shoulders, but you do it in terms of energy and emotion.

This is the whole secret of how to apply the means of the Fa in life. Just keep in mind and have enough discipline to implement, apply them. And you do it not because you want to be good or want to be your guru, or something like that. You do it because you want to prevent problems - the hardships - because you know that if you did not do anything, you would only make yourself miserable, and it was not fun, was not it? Then we need to discipline ourselves in the mental sphere, in terms of concentration - even in dealing with our emotions. Of course, dealing with emotions is more subtle, much more difficult. But as I said, if you become too excited, you can calm down.

Understand Right

Once you have developed the power tool, at least to some extent, what you really want is to be able to keep your focus on the correct understanding of what is going on. We have all sorts of ignorance of reality - how we live, how others live, how the world exists - and because of that ignorance, we have all sorts of ideas about things are not true, right? I can imagine that "I'm not finished. I am a loser. "Or I can imagine:" I am the best thing in the world. "I can imagine that:" It's a pity for me. No one loves me. "But if we really analyze everyone in our lives, that means my mother never loved me, my dog ​​never loved me - no one ever loved me. love me.

Then we are projecting these illusions and believing them to be true; that is scary. We believe that we can be late, or not in an appointment, and that does not matter: "You have no feeling," right? And then I miss the attention of others. But everyone has feelings, just as I have feelings. Nobody wants to be ignored. No one would be interested if they had an appointment and the other did not call or announce a delay. No one likes it. So what we need to do is to use our concentration to cut off delusions, and to stop projecting all that nonsense, such as thinking that our lack of concern does not hurt. Other people, because that is really the deepest cause of our problems: "I am the center of the universe. I always have to. I am the most important person. "This is obviously a projection of illusion. No one is the most important. But on the basis of the belief that our illusions are true, we become selfish. Therefore, if we want to overcome self-centeredness, we need to break that illusion and stop projecting it. Though it feels like I'm the center of the universe and I'm the only one who survives (because when I close my eyes, this voice echoes in my head, and I do not see anyone else, so it seems to me. is the only one alive), we must remember that this is an illusion and try not to believe it: "It is not. It just seems like that. " But on the basis of the belief that our illusions are true, we become selfish. Therefore, if we want to overcome self-centeredness, we need to break that illusion and stop projecting it. Though it feels like I'm the center of the universe and I'm the only one who survives (because when I close my eyes, this voice echoes in my head, and I do not see anyone else, so it seems to me. is the only one alive), we must remember that this is an illusion and try not to believe it: "It is not. It just seems like that. " But on the basis of the belief that our illusions are true, we become selfish. Therefore, if we want to overcome self-centeredness, we need to break that illusion and stop projecting it. Though it feels like I'm the center of the universe and I'm the only one who survives (because when I close my eyes, this voice echoes in my head, and I do not see anyone else, so it seems to me. is the only one alive), we must remember that this is an illusion and try not to believe it: "It is not. It just seems like that. " and I do not see anyone else, so it seems I'm the only one alive), we have to remember that this is an illusion and try not to believe it: "It's not like that. It just seems like that. " and I do not see anyone else, so it seems I'm the only one alive), we have to remember that this is an illusion and try not to believe it: "It's not like that. It just seems like that. "

As the Buddha has said, keeping that knowledge in the mind at all times is the true path to attaining the fate of our problems. If we always have that correct understanding, we will not have any ignorance. And if there is no ignorance, we will not have hatred of hatred; Without attachment, greed, etc. And without any defilement, we will not act negatively. If we do not act in a negative way, we will not cause all sorts of problems for ourselves and others. That is the basic Buddhist method of dealing with the difficulties in life.

If we want to have happier relationships, we need to realize that:

• I am a human. You are a human. We all have the same emotions, etc.
• Everyone has strengths. Everyone has weaknesses. I have them, and you too.
• There is no Prince or Princess seduced on the white code.

Do you have that image in your stories? We always go to find the perfect partner, a man riding on a white horse, but it's a fairy tale. It does not exist, but we are thinking about it. By believing in this fairy tale, I think that this person will be a prince or a princess, and when they are not like that, we get angry at them. Sometimes, I even scolded them. And then we think about the next person we meet and think that they have the potential to be their mate, that he or she is the prince or the princess. But we never find a prince or a princess, because there are no such people.

So if we want to have healthy relationships then we need to accept the reality. As I said, the fact is that everyone has strengths, weaknesses, and anyway, we need to learn to live together, and no one is at the center of the universe. Then you will see common teachings in any religion or humanistic philosophy, that is kindness, caring, loving, etc., become patient, generous, forgiving. All religions and all humanistic philosophies teach the same things, and Buddhism is the same.

The same principles apply in our working relationships. If you are nice to someone who works with you in the office (or nice to your employees, if you hire someone else to work), the whole job will run smoother. If you are working in a shop and you are nice, happy with the customer, the atmosphere is much more pleasant, is not it? And if a person is honest in his dealings - not cheating on others and so on - then the same is true, things will get better. That does not mean that we are not trying to make a profit and make a living, but the bottom line is not greed for profit.

And when others cheat on us - because not everyone will behave in the manner mentioned above - what do you expect? But from the Buddhist point of view, we will not say that these are bad people; I will only say that they are ignorant. They are ignorant. They do not understand that acting in this way will only cause more and more problems for them: no one will love them. Therefore, they are objects of compassion rather than objects of hatred. If we consider them to be the object of compassion and patience with them, we will not suffer when they are deceived, and then, we try to be more careful with the next, so as not to be deceived. Again. But what do we expect from human beings? A lot of people cheat like that. So that's the reality. To think that all people are true is a vision. Not everyone is honest! If everyone is honest then it's good, but not everyone is. So, at least we can try to be honest people.

Can Non-Buddhists Use These Methods?

Now, do we have to follow the strict Buddhist spiritual path of meditation, etiquette, and so forth, to apply these methods? Not necessarily. We do not have to pursue a strict, standard spiritual path to apply all these. The Dalai Lama has always talked about secular ethics and human values ​​such as being kind, mindful, innocent, illusory, and so forth. These are general guidelines that anyone can follow.

And when talking about meditation, we talk about a way to get ourselves familiar with this way of thinking, by sitting down and trying to think like that, and when our mind wanders, then bring it back. You can do that while sitting in meditation and focusing on a Buddha or your breathing, but you can do it while reading, cooking, doing anything. When you're cooking, just focus on cooking, and when mind has crazy thoughts, just bring it back to cooking. This is not necessarily a formal Buddhist meditation. There are many, many ways in which we can make ourselves more familiar with ways of thinking, acting more favorably, and so forth, without having to engage in any formal ritual or Buddhist environment.

Well, here's how we apply the dharma - preventive measures - to help us avoid problems. Do you have any questions?

Ask and answer

Awareness of what is happening inside and outside

Q:  To avoid problems, do we always have to focus on the mind?

Alex: To avoid problems, do we always have to focus on the mind? In a sense, this is true. But that's not the whole picture. For example, we can focus on screaming and punching someone, but that's not the whole picture. We also need awareness in the sense that we need to be aware of what is going on inside - our thoughts, feelings, etc. - and, at the same time, aware and alert to what is going on. Go around yourself, with others. When someone comes home - a member of our family, a loved one, or anyone else - you find that they are probably very tired, very tired. You have to be aware of that. It's not the beginning of a big discussion with them about what's important, because they're tired. So you will always want to be alert, Focus on what is going on around you. You need to know the circumstances of others, not just your circumstances.

So we do not go to an extremist, only aware of ourselves and not aware of others; or fall into another extreme, only paying attention to others and not paying attention to yourself. There is also an extreme need to be avoided. Many people have the syndrome of being unable to say "no," and so they always do things for others, their families or anyone else, and then they are completely exhausted and exhausted. collapse or become angry. It is important to pay attention to your feelings and to take care of your own needs. When we need a break, rest. When we need to say, "No, I'm sorry; I can not do this. It's too much for me. I do not have the ability, "say" no. "Ideally, if possible, give them some other solutions, when we say" no ".

In short, be alert to everything that is going on, outside and inside, and apply the right understanding, loving kindness and compassion.

Deal with anger

Q:  You talked about sweeping the house as a way to deal with anger and other negative emotions, but you pointed out that Buddhism has more profound methods. Could you give at least one suggestion, where can I find these methods?

Alex:  The question is, have I been talking about some very short-sighted, temporary ways to deal with the mind - as if you have a lot of pent-up emotions, heavy manual labor Useful, like cleaning up the whole floor for instance - and I have suggested that there are deeper methods, so can I suggest some of these ways to deal with the mind?

If we go a little deeper, one level to deal with hatred is to develop patience, when we are angry with one. Now, how do we develop patience? There are many methods, but for example a method called "target patience": "If I do not set a goal, no one hits it." For example, I ask you to do something. for me and you do not right. My tendency is to get angry at you. Or you did not do anything. So who is the fault? It was my fault, because I was too lazy to do it myself and I asked you to do it. Then what do I expect? When you ask someone to do something, what do you expect? For example, you ask a 2 year old to bring you a cup of hot tea and it pours tea. Of course it will make tea.

So, I realized that in fact, it was his own lazyness that caused the problem. You do not need to be angry with others. And I know that when I ask you to do something for me, it's because I'm too lazy to do it myself - one is too lazy, or does not have time, for any reason. But the bottom line is that if I ask someone else to do it, then I should not expect them to do it perfectly - or the way I would do it, which ultimately could not be my way. I also made a mistake. If I make myself and make mistakes, then there is no reason why I get angry with myself. "I'm not perfect - nobody's perfect - so of course I'm going to make mistakes." So you just have to accept reality. "I am a human being; Man can do wrong: I made a mistake. "And if I can correct it, then I will correct it. I'm not angry with myself. Anger with yourself is useless. If so, then I just correct. If I can not correct it then just leave it like this and try not to repeat the mistake in the future.

A much deeper level to deal with mind-centeredness is to understand the reality of oneself. At the moment, I'm talking about a very simple level, but even at that simple level, it's still useful. "I'm not the center of the universe. Why should things always be at my disposal? Why? Is there something special that always works out for you, rather than for others? "With such thoughts, you begin to destroy this solid view of" me "as the most important thing. in the universe. "I'm strong". Then of course you can destroy more, more and more. When you have this "me" view, this is a solid thing here and I have to always be happy, of course you will get angry when things do not work out for you, right?

Buddhism says a lot about how we live and how people live. We exist, but we do not exist in these impossible ways that we think we are, such as a tiny "me" sitting in my head talking, and that is the author. the voice in my head. There seems to be a tiny "me" inside talking, complaining: "What should I do now? Oh, I'll do it, "and then your body moves like a machine. But it is an illusion. You can not find any "me" inside, right? Anyway, I do exist - I talk; I do things. So we have to get rid of our belief in these ideas, as it seems to fit the reality. It seems so. This voice is speaking,

So Buddhism offers so much in the whole field that we call "psychology."

Body Care

Q:  I have two questions. The first is: Can you talk a little bit about how to take care of your body? He mentioned that we need to relax the body, but maybe we need to do something more. And the second question is: What is the source of all this imagery? For example, this person is talking inside our heads - why does that appear?

Alex:  Of course, there are many disciplines that we can apply to physical health. For example, the Buddhist medicine you find in the Tibetan tradition is very much related to the balance of energy in the body. In general, your diet and behavior greatly affect our energy and our health - behaving like when you go out in the cold without you being warm enough, you will get sick. We are talking about that kind of behavior. Or overwork - this kind of behavior will make you sick.

We also strive to maintain a sense of the state of our body. The more calm you become, the higher your consciousness is, not only your mental state but also your energy status. When you notice your energy is very tense, for example - you can feel it with a very fast pulse and so on - there are very basic things that you can do, even just the thing. Adjust your diet. For example, we can stop drinking coffee and dark tea, and can use heavier foods to lower energy, like fatty foods - cheese or anything. And keep warm; Do not wind or where there is wind. Stay away from the high-power machines, hissing like this: "Bzzzzrrrrr". These things will disturb the energy more. Stay in a quiet environment. There should be a level of practice like that.

The Tibetan tradition itself does not emphasize physical exercises, or physical exercises the way you do with martial arts in Chinese or Japanese Buddhist traditions. Of course, many different types of martial arts, such as tai chi, qigong, like that, can be very helpful. They are also methods of developing concentration, through awareness of your movements. The exercises that the Tibetans practice are more subtle, involving the operation of energy systems in a different way, not the method of martial arts. It has a slightly different, yoga-like approach. So, that's how you take care of your body.

The Origin of the Voice in Our Head

As for the origin of the voice in our head, it is related to the nature of the mind and is somewhat complicated. In Buddhism, when talking about mind, we are not talking about something. We are talking about mental activity, and that mental activity is related to thought, to knowledge, to emotions. It is extremely vast. What is happening in that activity is the arising of a certain mental hologram. For example, when we see something, light touches the retina causing electrical impulses and chemical reactions in neurons, resulting in a three-dimensional image that arises. To reflect what appears in our mind. But that's really a three-dimensional picture. It comes from all these chemicals and electrical impulses.

However, holograms are not just about sight. These images may also be sound, like words. We do not hear a single sentence at the same time - you hear every bit of it, every single moment - but there is a three-dimensional image of the verbal statement and you understand its meaning. Similarly, there are three-dimensional images in the form of emotions, thoughts, and also images in the form of speech - that is the voice. These things only arise. There is some perception involved in that. So, that is the meaning of seeing, or thinking, or feeling. It is like that. And that mental activity is progressing without an "ego" away from it that tracks or controls it and causes it to happen. It just happened. Then part of the three-dimensional mind is the thoughts of "me" - "That voice is me." Who is thinking? I'm thinking. Not that you are thinking - that I'm thinking. But that is only part of the whole process of these three-dimensional photographs.

What is the origin of this voice in our minds? It is just one of the characteristics of mental activity. It is not necessarily the mode of operation of the whole mental activity. The voice does not come out all the time, and I doubt the earthworm is thinking through the voice. Of course earthworms also have brains, consciousness, seeing things and doing things.

Actually, when we think about it, it starts to become very interesting. A three-dimensional picture of the sound of a voice is a form of transmission of information, is not it? It is a form of concept that expresses or communicates an idea in the form of mental sounds of words. The interesting question is: Someone is deaf and mute, and there is absolutely no concept of sound - so do they have a voice in their heads, or do they think in sign language? That is a very interesting question. I never find the answer to that.

So whether it is a voice, sign language, or whatever - or the way the worm thinks - is the hallucination that has a separate "me" behind it. talking, sitting at the control panel, and information appearing on the screen of the eyes, they have a microphone and they are talking, and then they press the button to move the hand and foot. This is an illusion. But it is an illusion of the "me" sitting at the console, which is the object of thought, "Oh, what will people think of me?" And "What should I do?" what we are worried about, this "me" at the console.

When we realize that this "ego" is like an illusion, there is nothing to worry about. Let's just say, we keep acting. Of course it was me: I was talking, I was acting. And if people do not like it, they just do not like it. So what? The Buddha did not satisfy everyone. Not everyone likes the Buddha, so what do I expect for me? We only use understanding, loving kindness and compassion, then we act. It is so. Do not worry: "What will they think of me?" Practicing is not as simple as talking about it.

Check Yourself When Others Are Angry

Q:  When people are angry with us, how do we control ourselves?

:  The basic thing is we see them as a child. When the two-year-old gets angry with me, when I say, "It's time to sleep," and it says, "I hate you. Mother is so hateful, and then fussy, are you angry? Yes, some people will get angry; But that's just a two year old, what do you expect? You will try to make the toddler calm down. Be as gentle as the way you treat a two year old. Think about: How do you deal with a two year old child? Often when a two-year-old is doing too much battle, if you hold it up, hug and cuddle it, it will calm down, right? Screaming it just makes it cry more. Then adults are similar - they are big kids.END=NAM MO SHAKYAMUNI BUDDHA.( 3 TIMES ).VIETNAMESE TRANSLATE ENGLISH BY=THICH CHAN TANH.THE MIND OF ENLIGHTENMENT.VIETNAMESE BUDDHIST NUN=GOLDEN LOTUS MONASTERY=AUSTRALIA,SYDNEY.30/10/2017.