Buddhism and Suffering, More or Less…
I find it mildly humorous how western Buddhists, many of them famous, constantly try to redefine the Sanskrit term ‘dukkha’ as something less than full-fledge ‘suffering’, as if the Buddha would bother creating a new philosophy or religion just to say “Sometimes there is a spot of bother,” haha. No, he pretty much articulated that the four prime instances of suffering are none other than birth, old age, sickness, and death, in no certain order, but generally agreed upon by all sects and schools of Buddhism.
All of which would generate nothing much more than a tired ‘duh’, if it weren’t for the birth inclusion, which might raise some eyebrows from Western Christian-like disciples, for whom birth is truly a miracle. And I might agree with that, but maybe for a slightly different reason. Because, I don’t merely believe that birth is a miracle, but that all life is indeed a miracle, especially intelligent (!?) life, and to which I would add any and all ‘stuff’, too, except that the only clue that stuff indeed exists is by the perceptions of those self-same humans, i.e. intelligent life, and their invention of language with which to define it.
From there the ruminations on suffering diversify according to the source, including causes such as change as articulated by the Buddha himself (to which I sometimes disagree, to allow for good changes), and others such as “suffering due to separation from loved ones, suffering from being with those we hate, the suffering of not getting what we desire, and lastly, the suffering which arises from the five components which constitute our bodies and minds.”
Those last are articulated by the Singapore Nichiren disciples that I confess to knowing little about, and whose conclusions are questionable to me, such as the equation of Enlightenment with Nirvana, and whose inclusion of hellish realms with ‘Hinayana’ seems just incorrect. Yes, I have an MA in Buddhist Studies. But the equation of the ancient Sanskrit word ‘dukkha’ with suffering is certain with the Thai, Lao, and Khmer languages, and in Hindi and Nepalese it’s ‘dukkhee’ or ‘dukkhad’ and means something more like ‘sad’ or ‘unhappy’, so still definitely more than simple dissatisfaction. Birth notwithstanding, old age, sickness, and death, with no recourse, certainly qualify as suffering, so we must deal with that. That is our mission, the cessation of suffering, or at least a healthy reduction.
streaming consciousness... 
Reply