My Stay at a Buddhist Monastery

Over the weekend, I stayed for a few nights at a Theravada Thai Forest monastery. I didn’t really know what to expect as I drove through the front entrance. I had been to this particular monastery before just for a few hours during the day as it is (luckily) only about half an hour from my home.

I crunched up the path leading to the entrance, backpack slung over one shoulder and sat down in the porch on one of the hard wooden benches and took off my shoes. There was a piece of scrap paper selo-taped to the main door which said “Dan – Room 11”. After finding the correct bedroom I entered to find someone apparently had already been living there for several weeks. Laundry, dirty and clean was strewn about the place, on his bed and mine. Personal possessions and toiletries were also displayed marvellously for me to see. Gingerly removing these items from my half of the room I unpacked the few things I had brought and headed down stairs. I could hear noises coming from what I presumed was the kitchen and headed in to find 3 other lay people bustling about cooking, washing up and putting buffet style dishes out on the main table. I explained to one of the ladies there that I had just arrived and she told me that at 11.30am, everyone goes to the Dhamma hall (pictured) to wait for monks to collect their food. 

Seeing the monks meditating was a sight to behold. Sitting as straight and as calmly as the statue of Buddha at the front of the hall they were a tableau of tranquillity.  After about half an hour in the hall I served myself my meal and went to sit outside to eat. The atmosphere of the place seemed to have this effect of automatically calming and encouraging mindfulness. It was as if my heart rate had been slowed just by setting foot on the grounds. The rest of the day passed and I spent it reading in the small library and walking around the beautiful grounds. For the majority of the time I was there the sun shone and the weather was stunning. At five o clock there was a cup of tea in the main house – no evening meal which to be honest, was quite nice. I didn’t miss my evening meal nor felt hungry when 6 o clock rolled round. Food at this place felt like what food was for – simply fuel to keep the body running, rather then a desirable thing you could get attached to. I met with a few other guests and introduced myself and talked a little but mainly just sat and listened to the other people talking. It’s funny, during moments of quiet when people’s conversations naturally drew to an end anywhere else would have felt like awkward silences. But at the monastery, every second of silence was  a moment of silent and private meditation and contemplation.

The day came to a close and at about nine pm I had a quick shower in the very nice bathroom facilities. I was thankful for this as I was slightly concerned about the horror stories I had heard about bathrooms at monasteries – cobras in the showers and scorpions in the toilets. Luckily as far as I’m aware there are no deadly serpents or insects in southern England, but I did always check. I then went back to my room and met Raphael, my Portuguese room-mate, who apologised for leaving the room in the way I had found it. Possibly the most laid back man I have ever met, he had been staying at the monastery for a couple of months and was looking to begin training to become a monk . He explained to me a little about what would be happening the next day.

At 4.30am the next morning the bell went in the corridor, and I got up and headed back to Dhamma hall for about an hour of chanting and meditation. I had’t quite sussed out the way to sit on the floor properly yet, so spent most of the time thinking what my life would be like if I lost both my legs and the use of my back, both of which were on fire with pain and discomfort. I was lucky to get the opportunity to really stretch out my legs and get the blood flowing again as morning chores was at 6.15am. No scrubbing toilets or waxing cars for me, just a little bit of hovering. Breakfast at 8am, then usually free time up until the meal at 11.30am, then afternoon tea at 5pm. Evening puja at 7.30pm. All the time in between was free and was usually filled with walking in the gorgeous grounds and 170 acres of forest (not all of it, mind) or maybe helping out around the monastery. On Sunday morning I spent a couple of hours doing Tai Chi at the side of a picturesque lake in the middle of the forest. On one evening there was a guided meditation, and on another, a Dharma talk given by the abbot. A work meeting on Sunday afternoon had me wading waist deep and bare foot into a small pond to clear weeds and reeds.

All in all, my whole stay was an excellent exercise in mindfulness and peace, and although a slight cliché, I really did feel as though the monastery was a genuine sanctuary which I could step out of the hustle and bustle, stresses, worries and problems of everyday life. Even helping with the washing up and chopping up spuds for the meal became a real treat and enjoyable thing to do. What struck me most, apart from the superb grounds and sense of calmness, was the approachability and attitude of the monks. I had expected them to be solemn, quite and almost brooding. Instead they were easy to talk to, down-to-earth and had a good sense of humour. They were always willing to speak and help you, extremely friendly and pretty much always smiling. The same goes for the nuns, or nun I should say, as I only saw one while I was there – they lived in a lovely cottage right by a river next to a waterfall in the forest about ten minutes walk from the main monastery.

I cannot recommend enough that everyone who reads this arranges to go and stay in a monastery at some point in the near future. From what I’ve seen and heard, it is generally free to stay, but of course some work is expected from you in return. The monastery I stayed at was called Cittaviveka in the UK, but there are many monasteries across the world which allow lay people to stay. You don’t have to do anything you don’t want to do, and the experience and atmosphere is something I know I will never forget for the rest of my life. In fact, as well as going back during the day, I am seriously thinking about going back to stay for another few nights before I go to Uni in the middle of September.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

I just wanted to add this little bit extra – would you mind taking the time to sign a petition to stop the demolition of the ‘Kid’s Cafe’ that is in the ‘Jungle’ refugee camp at Calais. It provides a safe place for unaccompanied child refugees to come and be registered, kept track of, get asylum advice, a meal and classes in English and French. It is facing demolition so this petition needs all the signatures it can to stop it being knocked down. Thank you.

https://www.change.org/p/save-the-kids-cafe-sauvons-le-caf%C3%A9-des-enfants?recruiter=47708306&utm_source=petitions_show_components_action_panel_wrapper&utm_medium=copylink

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

All pictures from http://www.cittaviveka.org

 

 

Buddhism When You Are Happy

There are literally hundreds of thousands, possibly millions of articles, posts and material available which provide guidance for practising Buddhism when you are in a bad place. Whether you are going through a divorce, the grieving process or even just a bit of depression, someone somewhere has written/said/done something that will give great advice for overcoming these issues. But what about when things are going well for you, and you’ve got no reason to be worried or angry or upset? It is easy to practice the Buddha’s teachings when you feel these painful emotions, but it’s not so easy when the good times roll.

I’m not for one minute saying this guidance and advice is invalid or not useful, it has helped me so many times when I have been experiencing negative emotions. I have an app on my phone which has a great number of sayings, from the Buddha himself but also from prominent Buddhist teachers which I look at when I am struggling with Buddhism or experiencing any negative emotions.

But recently  I finished sitting all my A levels, and now have about 12 weeks of doing whatever I want until I go to Uni in September. I thought ‘great, I’ll be able to spend more time every day meditating, I’ll be able to get involved in some volunteering schemes in my local area and on top of that, I’ll have every day free without the pressure of exams, coursework or college in general’. While I have begun to get involved in some volunteering, and do spend longer meditating each day, this new-found freedom has been a little strange.

Firstly, I would say this period right now is definitely one of the best times in my life. There’s no pressure on me, and I can do exactly what I please all day. However while I have been genuinely happier, it has been more difficult for me to practice mindfulness and compassion for some reason. I have no idea why, but in the 6 days since I finished my last exam I just haven’t felt as connected with Buddhism as I did when I was going to college etc and living this ‘normal’ everyday life. It was easy to free myself from negative feelings and thoughts by simply calling to mind some bit of Buddhist wisdom, but now due to external circumstances I have no negative feelings of thoughts it is more difficult to be connected with Buddhism.

The only solution I can think of is to remind myself that although right now I am experiencing only positive things, it will come to an end relatively soon. Although this sounds a bit depressing and you might be thinking ‘lighten up, come on it’s your holiday’. You can be sure that I will spend time enjoying my freedom, but I think it is only right to remember this truth as it is the realistic and best view of the world. And when I do inevitably experience some negative emotions in these 12 weeks, I must call to mind my beloved Buddhist wisdom, which had not been at the front of my mind when I was free from negative emotions because I was on holiday.

What I can do from here is to remember to always be mindful in my activities, and to follow the Eight-fold path as best I can, follow the Five precepts and above all, show compassion for others in everything I do.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

Picture credit – http://circusmash.co.uk/blog/a-celebration-of-circus-in-birmingham/

Suspension of Posts

Just a quick note to say there will be no posts until about July as my A level exams are coming up and revision has taken over!

Thank you, and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

Dealing With Stress and Anxiety

For the past few weeks I have been experiencing an extended period of anxiety and worry. The youth of today are very quick to assign labels to these troubled times such as ‘depression’, and are desperate to classify it as an anxiety disorder, and hurry to the pharmacist to neck as many anti-depressants as feasibly possible. But really, these periods of up and down, worry and stress, good times and bad are, in my view at least, a completely natural part of being a teenager.

Although this sounds dangerously close to a generic website to help young people who are feeling low, it is completely valid. I personally was never prone to wild mood swings – a good mood lasted a few days, then back to neutral, then maybe feeling slightly negative for a few days. These feelings were never particularly strong, and it was very easy to distract myself and make myself feel better. However, these last four weeks or so I had been stressing and worrying about every little thing – what my exact plan was going to be the following day, mapping and planning it out to the point of writing down on a post-it note’12.30 -have lunch’ as if I was afraid I might forget to feed myself (if you insist on putting a label on it you might term it a mild form of OCD). I would stress about the organisational side of going to university – how I was going to do grocery shopping, wash my clothes, even down to wanting to make a list of exactly what I would bring to university, a full five months before I’m due to leave.

I tried thinking of Buddhist ideas to calm me down and make me feel better – that all thoughts, feelings and emotions are temporary and that happiness comes from within, not without. However, ironically, this only temporarily got rid of the stress. It seemed anything I thought of or tried only led me back to that familiar feeling of worry.

But then just last week it started to get better. I read and re-read dharma books. The teachings of equanimity really answered my questions about Buddhism, and addressed the problems I was having with stress. I think the reason Buddhist principles were not helping me when I felt low is because I was questioning Buddhism – it just seemed like a collection of useful sayings and ideas, but there was no way to fully express and almost ’round them up’ into practical, day to day application. The idea of equanimity and mindfulness snapped me out of this negative mindset. I realised that if I maintained a mind of equanimity and mindfulness of both the external world and my internal world – my emotions and feelings, this fully covered all the major Buddhist teachings. If I was mindful of my emotions, I would always see when a negative mindset was approaching and become aware of it. I let it flow through my body, and rationalise with it. I could feel the negative emotion or feeling diminishing. I genuinely felt calm and content no matter what situation or feeling arose. Coupled with this, when being mindful you can always develop metta, or unconditional love for all beings as it is always at the very forefront of your mind. These two huge aspects of Buddhism were brought together into a remarkable revelation.

For the first time, I felt as if instead of living my life with Buddhism laid over the top occasionally making an appearance, it was as if I was living a life with Buddhism and Buddhist principles woven into it, ever present. This made me feel, what I can only describe as fully awake and a significant step on my path to enlightenment.

It is my hope that you can read this, and can find comfort and inspiration. That sounds quite arrogant, but my wish is to share my experience in the hope that it can bring happiness to a lot of people. To be mindful and maintain equanimity in daily life is a glorious feeling, and has enriched and enhanced my life almost immeasurably.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

Picture credit – https://sites.psu.edu/siowfa15/2015/10/13/can-stress-be-healthy/

Birthdays

On Sunday I celebrated my 18th birthday. I’m now officially, in the UK at least, an adult who is able to buy alcohol and vote, and am now legally responsible for my actions. We marked the occasion by going out for breakfast with my Aunt, Uncle and other Aunt, and in the evening went down to the local Indian for a lovely meal with just the three other members of my immediate family. This was remarkably different to what my mother wanted us to do do – she had originally envisioned some sort of super-party with every single member of my family in attendance, as well as all their friends and perhaps every person I’ve ever met in my 18 years on this planet. I insisted that I just wanted to keep things very simple and eventually I managed to bargain the arrangement I mentioned above.

My previous seventeen birthdays have all been major events on my calendar; I’d spend several weeks looking forward to it, or more specifically, looking forward to having money and attention lavished on me. Even into my mid-teens, the idea of having gifts and being the centre of everyone’s thoughts still was incredibly exciting to me. My 18th was my first birthday since I discovered Buddhism. It is safe to say it was quite  different experience to my other birthdays.

Firstly, the build up to my birthday was a much less emotional affair. I barely thought about it, only doing so when a friend or family member started talking about it, and even as late as the night before I simply forgot it was my birthday the following day. On the day I felt no different, whereas previously I had gone around feeling like some sort of Emperor. The gifts I received I received graciously and appreciated them for themselves whereas before if I did not get exactly what I wanted it would put a downer on the whole day. Before when I received money or gift vouchers, no amount was enough, but on my 18th again I appreciated and valued all the money I received. I was more appreciative of spending time and simply sharing a meal with my family than the gifts they gave, and felt a reduced feeling to indulge in sensuous pleasure – basically I didn’t want to stuff myself with cake as much as before.

It is difficult to say whether this new attitude towards my birthday was because of Buddhism, or simply because I’ve grown up. Maybe some natural maturity has (finally) kicked in and this is just part of becoming an adult. But I’m not satisfied by that answer, and have to say that my Buddhist beliefs certainly did have an influence on my attitude. I think reading about emptiness and mindfulness has had an affect on me subconsciously. I have felt less inclined to feel selfish and self-centred feelings, because of the doctrine of Attman, or the doctrine of no-self. I have felt the need to be mindful and to appreciate things in the moment, which is why I appreciated my family’s company rather than their gifts or the desire to stuff my face and drink heavily as some people like to do. This desire to drink or to eat or increase material wealth was hugely diminished this year, and this is down to my Buddhist beliefs, at least partly.

However, it is clear that these beliefs still need to be cultivated and developed, but it was so refreshing to have this experience of my birthday. Birthdays in the western tradition at least, are inherently self-centred affairs, and it my hope that everyone who reads this and indeed me myself will, in future work to turn birthdays from selfish events so focused on fulfilling personal desire into peaceful and selfless events.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

Picture credit – https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Birthday

Exams

Even to mention that fateful word is to send students throughout the land scuttling back to the recesses of their happy places. Most choose the path of denial – if I simply watch Netflix and eat Ben & Jerry’s, perhaps I won’t have to sit my exams.

Exam stress is a genuine issue for the vast majority of students; anything from slight nerves all the way to becoming hysterical, throwing up and being in general a little insane during the exam period. I have never been one of those hyper-worriers, but I would be lying if I said I don’t get nervous or that I’m really looking forward to my exams. The issue of exam stress, an umbrella term I’ll use to describe any nervousness or dislike towards exams, is one that hasn’t really been addressed when it comes to Buddhism.

Firstly and probably the most obviously, exam stress, in fact any stress is regarded in Buddhism as impermanent and subject to change. Why should this emotion affect the way you feel? It is not helpful in any way, and what’s more, the method to get rid of it is easy. The term ‘letting go’ is thrown around a lot in Buddhist talks and discussions, but what does it actually mean? It would be fantastic to just say ‘nope, I’m not being affected by this emotion and I’m going to get rid of it now’ but in reality this doesn’t seem possible. You can’t just make negative feelings go away simply by wishing they weren’t there. What must happen is you must almost turn and face your exam stress. Instead of trying to escape it or temporarily forget about it, you must look it in the eye and let the feeling run through you.

You may be feeling not so great when you let the feeling of stress run through you, but that’s ok. Now you must introduce reason. Feel the stress inside, don’t think about external things like ‘what are my parents going to say’ or ‘what if I don’t get the grades’ but really be present, focused solely on the stress. You will find that the thing you thought was so awful and overwhelming is actually relatively small. This feeling of stress and nervousness is in no way helpful to you,so why entertain it? Why make the situation worse and carrying on being preoccupied by it? At this point think ‘why am I feeling this stress?’ Is it because you haven’t revised enough? If this is the case, get revising. I know this might be easier said then done, but there are literally thousands of websites that help with revision tips. But, if you have revised enough, you might find that the reason you are feeling this stress is because of the pressure put on you. You might feel it’s your parents, college, university-offer grades, maybe even friends. But if you really examine closely, you will find that all this pressure you though other people were putting on you is actually just in your head. You imagine it, perceive it an think it to be 100% real.

What must be kept in mind is that things only exist as you perceive them. If you choose to perceive your exams in a really negative light, you are likely to feel negative, and the end results of your exams are likely to be negative. However, if you see the inherent emptiness of all things you will understand that your feelings towards exams are completely up to you, and that if you dwell in emptiness, you can see that if you revel in negative feelings, you will make the situation worse. But if you am positive and happy, and follow the Noble Eight-Fold Path, your negative feelings will go away. In the words of the Dalai Lama “choose to be optimistic, it feels better”.

So, exam stress then is completely made up and imaginary. To be stressed and feel bad is not skilful, so you mustn’t be overcome by it.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Picture credit – http://www.rooms4u.co.uk/coping-exam-stress-january/

The Loss of a Pet

Yesterday evening, I went over to my dad’s house to say hello on my way to work as I hadn’t seen him for a couple of days. When I opened the front door he was stood there waiting for me. He said “Dan I’m really sorry but Bernard has gone” and he took my shoulders in his hands. Bernard, the family’s guinea pig, had died peacefully of old age at about 6 1/2 years old in the afternoon of the same day. As both me and my mum, to whom he technically joint belongs to were travelling home from Plymouth that day dad decided to wait until we got home to tell us in person.

What must be understood is that Bernard was not like people think when you say “I’ve got a guinea pig”. He wasn’t a novelty, a thing on the side like people generally think about guinea pigs. We’d had him in the family for about 4 years, my mum has a 2X3 foot printout of him curled up in the under stairs cupboard, I’ve got two framed pictures of him on my wall in my bedroom at my dad’s house; me and my dad referred to each other as ‘Bernie’ and everyone in the family loved him as much as people love their dogs or cats. We imagined a life for him based on his personality traits, nicknaming him the ‘king of the guinea pigs’. We’d had and lost guinea pigs before him but he was always regarded as the special one, and is why we aren’t getting any more.

When my dad first told me, I didn’t really feel anything significant, unlike the way I reacted which I’d imagined  the moment when I found out he died. Although this might seem slightly morbid, he was getting very old and I’d begun to see the signs that surfaced before the deaths of our previous guinea pigs – he was getting a bit slower, taking less interest in his food, spending a lot of time hidden in the hay and when we had him out for a cuddle he would just be contented to sit there, hunkered down with his eyes half-closed. He lived a long and happy life and died as peacefully as a guinea pig can die – asleep and warm in the hay. I’d imagined myself crying, trying to deny it, feeling really down for several days if not weeks after like I had when the previous pigs passed away.

But I didn’t. I didn’t really feel anything. Slight annoyance that I wouldn’t be able to see him again but I didn’t feel this emotion any more violently than that moment when you finish a bag of crisps and are annoyed at the inconvenience that there are no more crisps to eat. It obviously wasn’t a moment of happiness, but I wouldn’t describe it as a moment of sadness either. As I was on my way to work, I didn’t really have time to dwell on the news, unlike my poor mum who spent the evening in floods of tears. Going to work, although it didn’t feel it at the time, was the best thing that I could have done at the time. It not only provided a distraction, but also gave me a chance to get out of the house that was filled with sorrow and into the firm, secure environment of my workplace. Going to work gave me a chance to reflect on Bernard’s death, but not to the extent that I would grow intensely sad. I approached it from a Buddhist perspective.

I told myself that my attachment to him caused my negative feelings, and, although a bit of a cliche, a warm rush sort of went through me and provided me with a great relief. I thought, dwelling in these negative feelings, withdrawing from the world or even going on a complete binge (as I had thought of doing) were not going to help me or Bernard in any way. Equally, if I go around moping and feeling sad I’m likely to bring everyone around me down, which would not be fair at all. I’m not trying to deny my feelings, just rationalise them and think of my Buddhist beliefs in relation to them. Just as external things cannot make me truly happy, neither can external things make me truly sad. All of existence is inherently empty, and my reaction in my mind to his death is completely down to me. These thoughts gave me extreme satisfaction and comfort, unlike anything I had experienced, and is why today I was able to have a fairly normal day, getting on with the things I needed and wanted to do without a trace of sadness. Bernard’s death still hangs over the house like a heavy mist, but that is only because of the behaviour of the other people in it. Even though he is not yet buried, I still feel like I’m over his death, like I just skipped the period of mourning that is to be expected in such circumstances. In fact, the only thing I’m slightly concerned about is appearing too cold and unfeeling to my beloved pet, that I’m getting over death so easily. I will have to explain to my family that the reason for this is because of my Buddhists beliefs, but even then they may not understand or fully grasp it. It is not that I don’t love him, it’s that I believe happiness and sadness comes from within, not without. I do love him, and I will miss him, but that is not the same as spending all day crying, doing nothing but absent mindedly watching TV and eating Ben & Jerry’s, as they expect me to do.

It is fair to say I had tried to maintain a loving and content mind when it came to everyday sufferings – like being a bit late, a bit tired, having an essay to write etc, but this was the first true test to my new found Buddhist beliefs. Was it all just a nice theory but when it came down to it in real life it was just a load of philosophical nonsense designed to make people feel better? Well, no, it isn’t. My beliefs truly gave me comfort and enabled me to not only avoid feelings of sadness, but gain feelings of happiness as I knew external things don’t contribute to my feelings, an extremely powerful concept.

Thank you very much for reading and my compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

Telling People About Buddhism

I thought I’d write this article because of something that happened to me the other day. This isn’t about ‘spreading the message’ or whatever, but rather about telling people about my Buddhist beliefs.

A few days ago, I was sat in the library at college, and was, rather than working, discussing with a couple of acquaintances whether we should go to the local Weatherspoons for lunch. I asked them what they might have, and they said steak and chips, ham, egg and chips or something of the sort. I said there wasn’t a great deal on the menu I could actually have. They asked why, wondering out loud if I had some sort of allergy or was on a diet. I explained, for what felt like the dozenth time that I didn’t eat meat. This revelation, like the eleven identical revelations before this one shocked them, and they immediately started asking a barrage of questions – why, for how long, is it all meat you don’t eat or do you still eat fish? Questions I’m sure you will have been asked hundreds of times in the past.

I patiently explained to them I was vegetarian because of my Buddhist beliefs. They were vaguely aware I was a Buddhist, and one friend in particular often refers to me as “one of those Buddhas.”

Here in lies the problem. When I explain I’m a Buddhist, they naturally have a lot of questions, especially as I go to a Catholic sixth form. I am more than happy to receive and answer these questions as best I can but, as we all know, Buddhism is a complex religion to explain, and especially as I am no teacher or expert, I find it difficult to explain and answer their questions without seeming as if I am deliberately making it sound more complex then it is, and trying to make myself look more intellectual.

This problem of explaining to people about Buddhism is present every time someone finds out I am a Buddhist. It is not that I don’t want or can’t be bothered to explain, it’s just that I find it extremely difficult to accurately describe key Buddhist ideas. I myself had to take several days and read articles and books to begin to get to grips with key Buddhist ideas.

One aspect I find particularly troublesome is explaining why I started investigating Buddhism in the first place. The honest truth is I genuinely felt compelled to research it for no explainable reason, I just had this desire to look into religion and Buddhism is what I found. But I find it challenging to say or explain this in a way that doesn’t make me sound completely pretentious of as if I’m trying to make myself look like some sort of mystic or that I have a special spirituality.

I have resorted to just keeping it very brief, telling the truth and hoping they ask me about a specific area or aspect of Buddhism, for example do you believe in re-birth or meditation.

Well, that just about sums up my feeling about this subject. If you have any ideas on how to talk to people about your Buddhist beliefs I’d love to hear them.

I am aware that this article is quite down beat, possibly a little pessimistic, but that’s not how I feel about it at all. It is slightly inconvenient not being able to explain Buddhism to people, but if I just say ‘I am a Buddhist’ nine times out of ten they just say ‘Oh right’ and move on.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Picture source – http://www.createfreedom.com.au/how-to-avoid-9-huge-mistakes-when-building-a-profitable-online-business/

Alcohol

The issue of drinking alcohol was an issue in Buddhism that, like vegetarianism, I found hard to handle. However, unlike the issue of vegetarianism, the Buddhist approach to the consuming of mind altering substances is clear cut. The fifth precept says all Buddhists should abstain from drink and mind clouding drugs.

“Furthermore, abandoning the use of intoxicants, the disciple of the noble ones abstains from taking intoxicants. In doing so, he gives freedom from danger, freedom from animosity, freedom from oppression to limitless numbers of beings.” AN 8.39, tr. Thanissaro Bhikkhu

Clearly, if you want to be a Buddhist and follow Buddhist teachings, then abstaining from alcohol is a given, something that you must do before you can move on to address more complex Buddhist teachings. Or is it?

Surely giving up all alcohol goes against the whole concept of the middle way? Yes, abstaining is meant to help you with following the other precepts and keeps your mind clear to realise the four noble truths, but plainly one or two drinks here and there can’t hurt can they?

Well, actually, although I’ve found it to be one of the more difficult aspects of Buddhism to follow, completely abstaining from alcohol has been extremely beneficial for me. Not only has it kept my mind clear but it also gives me a huge sense of achievement when I wake up the next morning not regretting the night before. I never was one for getting absolutely blind drunk and making awful moral decisions, but waking up feeling completely refreshed, not having eaten takeaway at 2 in the morning and ready for a productive day just feels really good in itself.

Secondly, I’m sure my liver has appreciated my not drinking, and my general health has improved, although admittedly I haven’t felt this but I’m sure inside my body is thanking me for not drinking.

Thirdly and perhaps, the best benefit I have felt is the commitment not to drink, and overcoming the urge to drink is the really physical way I have felt committed to my Buddhist beliefs. It is all very well saying ‘I believe in Buddhist principles’ but actually practising them, and applying them when the compulsion to drink comes over me is something else, and the buzz I get from this is easily more of a thrill than any ‘buzz’ alcohol could give me.

Hopefully with time, it will no longer be a conscious decision to turn away from the compulsion to drink. Like with not eating meat and avoiding foods like chocolate I don’t even have to consciously stop myself, because the urge is simply not there. I hope that this urge to drink will cease in time.

The way I overcome this urge is to simply step back and think, will getting drunk really bring me happiness? Or am I selfishly thinking of the short term benefits? I then consider the key Buddhists teachings i.e. emptiness, the Four Noble Truths etc. I cannot recommend enough doing this if you ever felt the urge to do anything which you might regret tomorrow.

Thank you for reading and may compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

Picture credit – http://www.talktofrank.com/drug/alcohol

Vegetarianism

When I was first getting into Buddhism, the issue of eating meat was a problem that I had some questions about. All the research I did on the matter offered no clear answer, with some sources saying no, you must not eat meat, others saying this only applied to monks, and some saying to do what you want.

Clearly, if one believes the Buddhist principle of rebirth, than it logically follows that Buddhists should not consume the flesh of another and should do their best to prevent the suffering of animals. But I’m not sure about this particular aspect of Buddhism.

So what’s to stop me eating meat? The Buddha said

“Monks, I allow you fish and meat that are quite pure in three respects: if they are not seen, heard or suspected to have been killed on purpose for a monk. But, you should not knowingly make use of meat killed on purpose for you.”

The first issue this presents is that it is clearly addressed to monks. But, surely laypeople should wish to follow the practices of monks. So, even if they do follow this rule, how can you, in the modern age of mass market food production and consumption, work out or apply morals to the question if the animal has been killed specifically for you. Of course, Buddha was speaking in around the fourth century B.C. and the way people ate was different. It is difficult to ascertain if the chicken you bought in Tesco was killed for your consumption as his teaching on this matter is hard to translate into today’s culture.

Of course this can be argued both ways. On one hand, the animal was reared and killed for the purpose of human consumption. On the other hand, it was not specifically killed for me personally to eat – in other words, the owner of the animal did not kill the animal with the intention of feeding Dan Egelstaff. So, if the animal is not subject to poor conditions during it’s life, and is killed in a humane manner, than surely the act of eating meat is not wrong.

However, this solution was also not satisfactory to me. Whichever way I tried to spin it, I could never morally justify eating meat. I decided to take the moral,religious  side out of becoming a vegetarian, and looked at the practical side. I was likely to eat less fatty and high calorific meats, which couldn’t be a bad thing. It would easier to go by a McDonalds if I din’t eat meat. And finally, I would, in some small way be contributing to the lessening of animal suffering.

It is rare I have some sort of ‘eureka’ moment when considering these issues, but in this case I did have a sort moment of realisation. Not eating meat was healthy for me, and it was my way of showing compassion towards animals. It was perfect. It meant I didn’t have to be scouring the back of food labels to look if it continued any sort of even the remotest hint of animal product, so long as I made a conscious decision to avoid eating the flesh or indeed any other part of an animal – any parts which meant the animal would have to be killed, which allows the consumption of milk and eggs etc. This option I felt would also be sustainable.

Throughout December I was red meat and pork free, and now in January, I have committed to being completely vegetarian. So far (11 days in) I’m really enjoying it. I have had no real desire to eat meat, and find all the vegetarian substitutions to be delicious. The only problem I’ve found is that shops only have a limited selection of sandwiches which have vegetarian fillings, which has meant I’m preparing a lot of meals at home. Not much of a problem however, I have always thought I should prepare my own food more!

Thank you for taking the time to read and for anyone looking to become vegetarian because of their Buddhist beliefs, or for any other reason, I strongly recommend you do it. I have even in this short space of time, noticed some health benefits and just feel more contended in general. Of course, sometimes circumstances don’t allow you to be vegetarian, but if you can, really make an effort to try and become vegetarian even for the day, or a week, to see how you like it. If not, try going red meat free for a short time, and see if you like it.

May compassion and wisdom guide you through suffering.

 

 

 

 

 

Picture credit – http://learnenglishteens.britishcouncil.org/uk-now/read-uk/vegetarian-uk