Is life only meant for enjoyment?

[air]

Isn’t life meant to just have fun? Isn’t life meant to enjoy?

The world thinks this way, but why did a prince, who lived several centuries ago, think differently? Siddhartha Gautama, a rich prince in ancient India, had all the riches, all the pleasures that the world could offer him. Why did he give it all up? Why didn’t he think that life was just meant to be enjoyed? What inspired him to seek the truth? He found the true meaning of life - that life couldn’t escape suffering, that this gift of life given to us is checkered with pain and misery; we cannot escape it. Think about it. - we all have to face death. We grow, we get diseased, we decay and we die. We all face misery in life and while there may be pleasures, joy and happiness, eventually, we are going to face unhappiness and be miserable. Therefore, if we just close our eyes, have fun and enjoy life, we may escape the minor miseries of life only to be hit by that big misery finally. But, if we start living and realizing the truth of who we are, what we are and why we are here; if we come face to face with the truth, then we will not have to face that ultimate suffering. By realizing the truth and living a life of liberation by achieving Nirvana, we would attain the highest state of bliss and happiness, ‘ananda’, and move to Nirvana, Liberation.

Therefore, we have a choice. To escape life by just having fun, or realizing the truth of life and reaching that state of ultimate bliss, which is what Buddha chose. What would you choose??

AiR

[sparklekaz]

Hi Air,

Reading your post, I am brought to mind of one of my favourite books called 'A Road Less Traveled' by the author M Scott Peck. Particularly when he talks about how human beings will go to great lengths to avoid emotional pain. That they will do anything to avoid thinking about, or dealing with the unpleasant or the painful, in their lives. And so creating the illusion that everything if fine, even when its not. Which ultimately only makes a situation worse, or that we make ourselves physically and mentally unwell, by supressing the truth. He goes on to say that "Life is difficult. This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult – once we truly understand and accept it – then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.”

I found this book to be very insightful, and helpful in addressing my own issues. But, I do think that there is the opposite end of the scale. When I was young, one of the things that sticks out in my mind, is how my Mother would often say, that she was afraid to be happy, or enjoy her good fortune, because she was worried that it would not last. That it would be taken away from her. I remember as a young child, I didn't really take this attitude of hers, or philosophy on life too much to heart. But as a teenager, I would sometimes catch myself thinking the same thing. Now as a mature women, I can't help but feel sad, about how instead of enjoying her happiness and sense of peace, she was constantly worrying about how transitionary it was, she would have been happier.

I would often think how depressing it was to think like that. Sometimes it would even make me feel angry. She was not only robbing herself of peace of mind, she was robbing me of mine. Because we believe adults know best, that she knew something I did not, and had to be right. She had a difficult life in general, and yes, I can understand her fear, but at the same time, I just wished she would not worry so much about what tomorrow would bring. And to be honest, looking back, I often wonder if she also sabotaged herself, and created more problems to worry about, and acted in a way that made life even more difficult. I don't think she even considered the fact, that she could have passed on this belief to me or my sisters. With my own children, I made a conscious decision to always be positive. Not to put their heads in the sand and ignore the negative life. But to always look for a solution - or the silver lining in any situation.

I do think we grow and mature through our problems and how we deal with them. I think that life is as much about joy as it is about dealing with the reality of life, in all its forms. That just as some people will do anything to avoid facing their problems, there are many who are afraid to love, trust and enjoy the beauty of this moment. Fear of loss, fear of living, all come wrapped up in the same distorted view of life. So I try to see life as it is, good and bad. To not runaway from problems and pain, but to also value the joy, and to enjoy life when I get the opportunity.

Another very thought provoking post air..thank you so much for sharing.

Love and light
Kaz