why it is essential to drop all the desire to become enlighted?

Question

Buddha says that desire is the root cause of all misery ,why? if we can achive all the desire the how it become a misery...

Answer 1

Desire is a part of us, one of our many Skandhas...a mental Skandha. As such it is fleeting, impermanent and insatiable. We should therefore avoid all attachment to it and to all of the others. The operative word is Attachment.

This does not mean we are to cease desiring. On the contrary, there are some desires which should be highly praised. Our desire to be compassionate, our desire for Peace and Love for all Beings, our desire for all Beings to be happy to name a few.

The Lord Buddha's message is often mistaken as meaning a cessation of all desire, yet his message is clear to those who will listen and understand. We must cease our clinging to self serving desires, that is those selfish things which do not help others and which only serve our Skandhas, such things as the desire to force our ideas onto others, the desire to become angry or derisive of others when we disagree with them, desires to do with sexual misconduct and lustful desires and many others, these desires only serve our ego and cause pain and suffering to others because they only trigger more desire for the same self serving things.

Clinging to our self serving Skandhas and the self serving desires which they engender is the cause of suffering, not desire itself. Cease these self serving clinging desires and happiness will follow. Encourage selfless and altruistic desires and again happiness will follow.

Peace from a Buddhist...

Answer 2

There is no end to desires. Whether a desire has been satisfied or not depends on the mental stage. A new desire springs when the existing one is 'satisfied'. There is no saturation point for desires and hence a constant need leading to restlessness, frustration and sadness. If one can discipline the mind and body to overcome desires, a calmness prevails into happiness in the detached mind. Other than lowly metabolic needs, the body is free of earthly desires and the mind attains a stage of enlightenment revealing the meaning of existence leading to 'Nirvana'.

Answer 3

A few reasons (not that I embrace this, btw): for one thing, there is always more to want, no matter what you have. Secondly, disappointment stems from unfulfilled expectations - and in some cases the easiest factor to control there is the expectation, and not the outcome. If you aren't attached to particular outcomes, there is nothing to fear or feel anxious over.

But my opinion on this is a balance. Desire and drive are excellent qualities that can improve life for many, perhaps more so in current society than was possible in Buddha's time (leave us not forget the context of his culture, place and time). But it's important also to be able to cope when things don't go as you wish. It does not serve us to jump off bridges if we dont get THAT job or THIS person doesn't return our love.

Answer 4

Desire does not end...once you achieve a desire, there is a new one to replace it. So you suffer in always wanting more...because you never will feel complete this way. Furthermore, you will suffer in worry and fear of loss of what you have achieved. When what you achieved does go away (and everything does - there is nothing permanent), then you suffer in the actual loss of what you achieved.

Grasping/clinging (this includes desire) and repeling are the two major causes of suffering. You need to overcome those tendancies to become enlightened.

Enlightenments means you feel complete now...and have no want for anything (desirelessness).

~ Eric Putkonen

Answer 5

One need not drop all desire to find enlightenment. But if one wants to break away from this world and reach the Higher worlds. One must overcome the desires that keep bringing them back.

Answer 6

Because desire fulfills temporary happiness. If you acquire a car, you are not fully happy, as you need food in yourbelly, as well as a home.

Desire is a way of saying that you want more. When you find happiness in meditation, you cease to want [happiness in meditation is something pure]. also, desire puts the ego down longer, so you can follow the tenets of species-wide, and person in-front of you compassion.

Answer 7

maybe you misunderstand what budha is teaching.
Being enlightened is a cause of Misery because of the knowledge gained. For those that have a greater understanding comes a greater weight of responsibility. And those that work Righteousness do so against the Evil-god of this world, for the evil will war against the righteous, and misery will always follow.

Answer 8

To establish a stable mind together with soul helps to concentrate in balance (yoga)with selfless state to be enlightened with divine.. Desires r the branches & branches of the mind which leads it to the road of unsatiesfaction & unstability.And unbalanced mind & soul can never be enlighted.

ADAM EAT THE APPLE OF DESIRES--AND BECOME UNBALANCED--AND WE R HERE.

Budda gives us the message that ultimate of the life should be enlighten not the desires---means time is GOD not money & dont waste it.

Answer 9

Who said Buddha was the final answer? Why listen to the truths of others when Source Energy is all truth and that is already within you.

You want answers? All it takes is to stay quiet long enough to hear them. Nothing like hearing it from the horses mouth so to speak.

Answer 10

That is impossible. To give up all desires to be enlightened means that you desire to be enlightened.

Perhaps if you gave up all desires regardless then you could be enlightened. But that would in essence just mean stop thinking all together. There is an easier way to do that.. Die.