Tell me in what way are Buddhists more enightened by not desiring things in life?

Question

If this was the case why don't they dwell naked in the deepest darkest jungles of Africa, then we will see them desire the saftey-ness of a home or car!

Answer 1

We all live in this world, Buddhists, Christians, Hindus, Muslims, everyone...
the point of Buddhist thought on attachment & desire is like not having any gods or false idols... people become attached to things, people, ideas... and get very very upset when things dont go their way. when things change, if something breaks... not that we cant live in a house, or have clothes, just that we shouldn't get so attached to "things" that we cry if we lose them, if they get broken or dirty, if our friends move away, if the dog dies (mine just did... I'm still sad)...

It doesn't make a Buddhist more or less enlightened than anyone else... it just helps us in our daily life to adapt to daily life, to stress, to suffering, to pain. And life is full of those things. we all go thru it.
the "enlightened " part is when someone can go thru life without upset & be kind & bless others even in the midst of ones own problems... hard for most of us to do... but an aspiration for us to aim for.

Answer 2

It's not wanting "things in life" that's the issue. The problem is that a person wants reality to be the way s/he wants it to be, not the way it is. Duhkha comes from a sanskrit word that refers to a wheel out of kilter. Duhkha, the First Noble Truth is usually translated as "suffering" but it's not actually just suffering. What it means is that our personal "wheel is out of kilter" from reality. To really shorten the idea, suffering is the clash or conflict a person has between what s/he perceives as reality and what is actually reality.

The Second Noble Truth, what you're referring to, states that desire is the cause of suffering. It's not desire as in "I want a glass of water." It's actually not "desire" as we usually use the word. It, instead, answers the question as to how people get into Duhkha in the first place. People don't have a different perception of reality because they're born that way. People do it because they desire the reality in their perceptions. How many times have you seen people say, "If only I had {insert desired thing here}, I would be happy?" It's not the desiring of the thing that's causing the lack of enlightenment. It's the thinking that human happiness hinges on something outside of oneself. Another example. "I need a car!" It's easy to tell a teenager that he or she doesn't need one, he or she only wants one. Try to tell that to an adult, though. Try telling the average American living within any major city with decent public transit available that they don't "need" a car, they only "want" one. They won't believe you. In their preception of reality, they need to have a car.

Nirvana means the cessation of Duhkha. An awakened (or enlightened) person isn't someone who no longer wants stuff. An awakened person is someone who no longer desires (nor expects) reality to change to suit him or her. That may mean that the person realizes that stuff isn't as necessary as s/he used to think it was so no longer has it. It may mean that the person keeps stuff around because s/he likes it.

Answer 3

Buddhists are not 'enlightened' simply by virtue of being Buddhists, nor are they 'enlightened' simply by not desiring things.

The question of desire (or aversion) has more to do with the realization that all things are impermanent and constantly undergoing transformation. The attachment to anything will ultimately cause a degree of suffering because eventually the object of that attachment will no longer exist.

It isnt that we practice 'suppression of desire' so much as we practice 'awareness of the potential suffering that can be caused by desire".

May all beings be happy, loved and well.

Answer 4

Our bodies are programmed to be attracted to certain things and be repelled by certain things. This programming is to keep us alive and breeding. A person with a developed consciousness realizes that these certain things are not conscioiusly chosen, and a Buddhist chooses his or her own certain things instead of what the chemical robot wants. It's our bodies and our egos that desire...it's the rest of us that becomes enlightened and free when we stop being slaves to desire.

Answer 5

to WANT to get rid of desires, is, actually a DESIRE itself.

so will buddhists get out of the cycle?

answer is : no, buddhism is a trap.

ABOUT BUDDHISM:

i was an ex-buddhist.
you need to know,

even Prince GAUTAMA (buddha) himself said that buddhism might be FLAWED.(have wrong teachings)

he said that his teachings might be wrong. he told us to use our brains to think, whether he was right or wrong.

Prince Gautama NEVER instituted a religion. he never said whether there is God, or whether there isn't, leaving buddhists quite confused today. some buddhists worship buddha as god among many gods, some buddhists do not worship God at all.

Prince Gautama in fact told people he is NOT the way, but he shows the way. He told people not to follow him too.

after PRINCE Gautama died, his disciples dispersed and no one wrote about him. not until FIVE HUNDRED YEARS LATER. by then, a lot of things have been added, and there already alot of discrepancies.

if you look at mainstream buddhism, you will know that buddha left the buddhists really confused. some buddhists have different forms of buddha, some worship one buddha. some believe there is the fat one, some the fierce one, some the thousand hand one, some the female buddha or goddess of mercy. some believe in gods, while othere do not . some believe in reincarnation but some do not. some buddhists believe in heaven and hell soem do not. some believe in evil spirits and demons, some do not. some strive for nothingness, some believe in prosperity. some burn joss and incense, some do not. some believe in statues, some do not.

so think again, like what Prince Gautama said. not everything in Buddhism might be correct. in other words, buddhism is flawed!

Answer 6

All mankind of average intelligence desire good things in life except those who are morons and idiot persons who desire nothing but taking chance to live like a fish or bird.
jtm

Answer 7

Everything is enlightenment, some know this, others do not. All "things" are in a constant state of change, where does one find safety in that? I should say there is a Buddha that can not be killed this is your own true self.

Answer 8

If you approach the question with less hostility and just regular common sense, you will know the answer for yourself.

Don't complicate something so simple.

Answer 9

whats the point of asking the question with a dumb comment like that ? you're not even serious about the question so i'm not wasting my time with an explanation

Answer 10

The Burma Government May Move to Abolish Christianity With Buddhist Support ?

Government officials have shut down churches in this capital city and have disallowed the construction of new church buildings. The number of bibles allowed for import is limited and in-country printing of bibles and Christian literature is restricted.


"Some Buddhist monks came and started shouting, 'don't worship God here – he has nothing to do with us,'” David said. “They said we were trying to establish Christianity in the village and they did not want it. The monks and others threw stones at us. They hit us like a hard rain. Some of us were hit in the cheek, the neck and the forehead."

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/cwn/012607Burma.aspx


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Report: Burma Plans to Wipe Out Christianity

A leaked secret document claims to reveal plans by the Burmese military regime to wipe out Christianity in the southeast Asian country.

Inside the memo were detailed instructions on how to force Christians out of the country, according to Telegraph.

Instructions included imprisoning any person caught evangelizing, capitalizing on the fact that Christianity is a non-violent religion.

“The Christian religion is very gentle,” read the letter, according to Telegraph, “Identify and utilize its weakness.”

Burma, also known as Myanmar, has a Christian population of about four percent, according to the CIA World Factbook. Persecution against Christians have come in the form of church burnings, forced conversion to the state religion of Buddhism, and banning children of Christians from school.



http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070123/25368_Burma_Orders_Christians_to_be_Obliterated.htm


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Christian children forced to become Buddhist monks.

CHILDREN from Christian families in Burma, between the ages of five and ten, have been lured from their homes and placed in Buddhist monasteries. Once taken in, their heads have been shaved and they have been trained as novice monks, never to see their parents again.


http://www.canadianchristianity.com/cgi-bin/na.cgi?international/0404burmese

http://www.ekklesia.co.uk/content/news_syndication/article_040331csw.shtml

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/christian.children.forced.to.become.novice.buddist.monks/594.htm


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Buddhist Extremists Attack Christian-Run Children’s Home in Sri Lanka


A 200-man mob, accompanied by extremist Buddhist monks, has attacked a children’s home, which was being run by the Dutch Reformed Church in central Sri Lanka at the beginning of August.

Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), a human rights organisation which specialises in religious freedom, has reported that the mob fiercely attacked the home, following which, they climbed to the roof and planted a Buddhist flag on the roof.

Tina Lambert, Advocacy Director of Christian Solidarity Worldwide (CSW), said: "We are extremely concerned about the continuing violence against Christians in Sri Lanka. This latest incident, in which child care workers have been threatened, is unacceptable and we urge the Sri Lankan authorities to bring the perpetrators of such violence to justice."

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/buddhist.extremists.attack.christian.run.childrens.home.in.sri.lanka/7261.htm


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Hindu and Buddhists united to opose Christian evangelism

Hindu and Buddhist priests from across Asia are uniting to oppose Christian proselytism. The 1,000 delegates to a three-day conference in Lumbini, Nepal, discussed Pope John Paul II's recent call to evangelize Asia. Evangelism constitutes "a war against Hindus and Buddhists" and is a "spiritual crime," they said.


Hindus attacking Christian churches and
Reports of Christian persecution in Nepal continue


http://www.wtcf.org/www.viamission.org/news/nations/nepal.htm

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Buddhist Cambodia Limits Christian Activities :

Cambodia's government issued a directive preventing Christians from promoting their religion in public places, or using money or other means to persuade people to convert, officials said Tuesday.

Cambodian Buddhists generally tolerate other religions, but last year about 300 Buddhist villagers DESTROYED a partially built Christian church near Phnom Penh.

Also last year, a group of Christian worshippers was caught distributing sweets to young people in the countryside while trying to convert them, Sun Kim Hun said. Such activities are illegal.

http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=3387739

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