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The Continuation of Suffering and Happiness
Proposition 25 affirms the interbeing of suffering and happiness: ill-being and well-being are both organic, inseparable, and give rise to each other. Understanding the nature of ill-being (dis-ease in body and mind) is the first noble truth; practicing meditation to look deeply into the roots of suffering in order to transform it. The cessation of suffering (the third noble truth) is both the ending of ill-being and the arising of well-being. Maintaining awareness of suffering helps to preserve happiness:
- If we have never known hunger, we cannot truly appreciate a bowl of rice;
- If we have never experienced loneliness, we cannot feel the value of friendship;
- For example, Liu Chen and Nguyen Trieu left Mount Tiantai because they forgot to remember their present happiness.
Afflictions are also interbeing with enlightenment: defilements become the very material for awakening, just as compost is transformed to nourish flowers. We do not run away from the garbage, but learn how to transform it into flowers. Building a sangha (fraternity) based on brotherhood (maitri – loving kindness) is the source of great loving-kindness and compassion, helping each member to:
- Nurture happiness without relying on external circumstances;
- Go deeply into the practice of transforming violence and hatred (for example, anger, creating true peace);
- Contribute to collective awakening through concrete proposals such as a global no-car day or a center for nonviolent training for teachers.
