Dharma Talk
I call myself a Buddhist. I'm not a great buddhist. I'm not as mindful as I should be and I often let things affect me more than they should. I hardly ever meditate and I always tell myself I will start meditating more. However, I do believe in the Buddha's message which is more than I can say with most religions. I'm not sure it's really proper to call myself a member of any particular religion, but if I were to subscribe to one religion it would be Buddhism.....or maybe New Age since it's a mixture of a whole bunch of teachings including Buddhism.

I am a Buddha. We all are. The teachings of modern Buddhism state that we all have Buddha-nature and the seeds of Buddha-hood are already there. We just need to water and nurture our Buddha. At times, I hit upon a mindful moment where it's there. I am filled with love and compassion and I am completely...there. It's rare... but it happens.

A while back there was an "inspirational speaker" at my work and he made a point of saying how the Buddha said that "Life is suffering." I don't remember what else he said but I know that he did not finish what the Buddha said. He brought up the first jewel of Buddhism without explaining that the Buddha went on to explain that there was a way out.....a way to end suffering. I remember being really offended. He had said that he had learned that the Buddha said "Life is Suffering" because it was quoted in the introduction to some inspirational book he had. This guy kept saying things like how he woke up each morning and "thanked God to be alive", so I understood that he was probably a Christian and had never bothered to read up on Buddhism. Still it bothered me that he was protraying Buddhism as such a pessimistic and depressing teaching when nothing was further from the truth.

I think the reason that Siddhartha started his first teaching after reaching Buddha-hood with "Life is Suffering" is that in order to understand the later teachings and to be able to transcend suffering one must first totally understand suffering...what it feels like when it arises and what caused it in the first place. By being completely mindful of the suffering around us, we can see its source and it will naturally lead into his second teaching (or jewel), which will naturally lead us to the third teaching and so on. But first we must recognize suffering in all its forms.

Like other great spiritual teachers, the Buddha has shown the way to end suffering, not only for ourselves but for our fellow man. He has shown us the door.

If only it were just a door.... The door is just the first step on a journey. I think that's true no matter which spiritual path a person chooses. There is no instant-Nirvana.