A friend sent me this
Eightfold Path of Righteousness -or- Noble Eightfold Path 八正道(八條崇高的道路).
Ethical discipline includes
(1) perfect speech 正語which is true, kind and appropriate speech,
(2) perfect action 正業 which are actions which do not harm others,
(3) perfect livelihood 正命 which is obtaining our sustenance by non-harmful and honest means. Meditative Stabilization includes
(4) perfect effort 正精進 which is effort to counteract the disturbing attitudes and negative emotions by mediating on the path,
(5) perfect mindfulness 正念 which is counteracting laxity and excitement in our meditation and
(6) perfect concentration 正定 where the mind can remain fixed one-pointedly on virtuous objects. Wisdom includes
(7) perfect understanding 正見 that allows us to realize emptiness, and
(8) perfect thought 正思which is the mind that can explain the path clearly to others and is motivated by the wish for them to be free from suffering.
People nowadays are all looking for happiness in life. Would the above give you some insights?
Wow, Lancy, you are getting wisER, i have to say.
ReplyDeleteThis noble eightfold path your friend sent you is also called the 'MIDDLE' path because it avoids two extremes: one extreme being the search of happiness through the pleasures of the senses, which is 'low, common and unprofitable' and alas, the way of the ordinary people (like me!)
And the other extreme is the search of happiness through self-mortification in different forms of torturing self either physically or mentally (I guess lot of people are doing this mentally to SELF!!)
Well, this PATH IS THE SOLUTION.
Before this ultimate step of following the path, one has to KNOW THAT ONE CAN STOP THE UNHAPPINESS VIA FOLLOWING THE PATH.
And before the knowing, it is the UNDERSTANDING of WHY WE ARE SO UNHAPPY....thus we should find out the root cause of the unhappiness.
And before finding out the root cause comes understanding and accepting life does bring us unhappiness because you can’t hold on to your happiness FOREVER. WHATEVER YOU LOVE WILL GO...one day.
Alas, this is life - full of unhappiness, but fortunately this is a way out, right?
My Q to you, wise lancy - altogether how many steps are there to make you a real happy person?
Thanks for your sharing, dear.
ReplyDeleteHow many steps? Guess there is only one- Hold the belief that life is not perfect and count our blessing everyday- then we can be a real happy person!
How's that?
Yes, one is all and all is one.
ReplyDelete欲望蜘蛛 馬家輝 Mingpao March 16, 2010
ReplyDelete最快樂的人
周末在灣仔忽然想起素，見軒尼詩道官立小學旁邊開了一間素食新店，推門一看，是快餐店格局，但窗明几淨，客人都在低頭享受盤中美食，全無一般快餐店的嘈雜吵鬧。
站到櫃台前，看看餐單，選擇亦多，收銀女士一望即知我是生客，禮貌地介紹，是的，我們是素食快餐店，要先購票，然後取菜，我們是少糖少鹽少油，請放心食用。
那就好。伸手掏錢買飛，但三心兩意的我突想懷舊（是否受《歲月神偷》影響？），於是微笑點頭說聲不好意思，轉身離店，過馬路改為光顧夏巴油站對面那間素食老店。
那店在原址開設了四十多年，招牌名號則更老，有百多年了，我小時候去過好多次了，從十歲八歲開始去，由父母親領著一家人，好像是初一十五的「食齋日」，點了一桌的齋雞齋鴨齋叉燒，口味雖淡，形相卻佳，可是我記得當時有著年輕人特有的傲慢不屑，心底暗暗嘲諷「齋口唔齋心，真虛偽」。此時此刻自己當然亦是「齋口唔齋心」了，可是已經全無不屑，或許我已跟自己「講和」了，一切都是過程，口也好心也罷，隨緣便是，吃在當下，沒啥高低俗雅。
所以這夜在懷舊裡吃得開開心心。只是稍嫌素菜加得太多糖太多鹽，師傅落手太重了，不太符合我的口感期待，聽聞目前最火的素菜館是「貴德宮」和「心齋」，下回應該試試。懷舊只宜淺啖，愛吃理應貪新。
吃飽了，下樓離店時在樓梯旁的牆上看見宣傳海報，原來詠給‧明就仁波切將於四月一日來港弘法，地點在灣仔伊館，可在城市電腦網訂位。讀過他寫的《世界上最快樂的人》，是前年五月與梁文道到馬來西亞演講，在酒店房間抽煙聊天，他推介的。明就仁波切今年才卅五歲，十二歲陞座，十三歲閉關三年三個月，廿三歲領受了具足比丘戒。他在書裡，說因道果，談念析緣，循循善導讀者安頓自心尋得靈靜，如你不喜文字，亦可上YouTube搜尋，有他跟台灣前政治人物陳履安的對話，幽默活潑，近乎「佛法棟篤笑」，但啟發當然深刻得多。
讀完《世》書，我想的是：取法乎上，即使做不成世界上最快樂的人，至少不會淪為世界上最憂鬱的人。我知足，這便夠了。
[馬家輝 http://www.makafai.blogspot.com]
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It seems that the issue of 'happiness' is hot...城中才子如馬家輝,陶傑 and 梁文道 are writing about it. And the answer to the Q seems to be not from outside but from within.
路上風光不在路邊在心間
So what does that mean? Does it mean that people now are not that happy and so they go on their quest of happiness? Or there are more happy individuals in society who are willing to share their insights to make the people around happier?
ReplyDeleteMaybe it shows Buddhism as a philosophy (OR PSYCHOLOGY) may be a way out.
ReplyDelete《世界上最快樂的人》- I have read it. It draws theories of neuroscience, mindfulness and happiness psychology together. A happy read.