Love and the Four Noble Truths

The Four Noble Truths are concepts derived from Buddhist philosophy - simploe yet profound principles to live by. Once we truly understand these principles, we can truly live in the moment, each moment. We can more readily accept whatever life is offering us, find the joy wherever we can, forgive more easily, and let go more often.

You do not have to be a practicing Buddhist, but for me, these concepts have a real calming effect, helping me to step back from my life and observe it without emotion and without concern. Please let me know how these simple statements affect you.

1st Noble Truth - Life means suffering. Suffering is an integral part of the human experience. Everything changes; nothing lasts; nothing remains the same over time. Even if we find love and joy, pleasure and peace, it will eventually end. People we love will disappoint us. Our bodies will change and sometimes hurt. We will have a wide range of experiences and emotions, many of them unpleasant, such as anger, sadness, shame, humiliation, and betrayal. The seasons change, daylight turns to darkness, In fact, the only thing we can truly count on is change.

2nd Noble Truth – The origin of suffering is attachment. Suffering often results from our belief that we must have things a certain way. When people, places and things are not the way we expect them to be, we experience physical or emotional pain – and – we experience suffering.

3rd Noble Truth – The way to end suffering is to remove the cause, attachment. Letting go, detaching from sensual craving, clinging and neediness leads to the realization that there is hope. When we let go of our attachments, we begin to understand that the way we thought things have to be is not necessarily correct. The goal is Nirvana, freedom from all expectati0ns, unpleasant thoughts, worries, conce
s and troubles.

4th Noble Truth – There is a path to follow toward ending suffering, The Noble Eightfold Matrix. It is the middle road between two extremes: hedonism (total focus on sensual pleasure and self-aggrandizement in the moment) vs. asceticism (excessive self-denial and avoidance of pleasure). Cravings, ignorance and attachment can only be removed gradually, according to Buddhist philosophy, this can only occur over many lifetimes. Within one lifetime, Nirvana is only an elusive, unattainable goal.

* What if YOU KNEW that suffering is just an expected part of life?

* What if you really understood how ALL of your personal suffering is caused by your belief that current circumstances should not be the way they are?

* What if you decided to let go of your cravings, desires and expectations, having dreams and goals as preferences, with no attachment to the outcome of any of your efforts?

* Can you imagine how your life, your business and your relationships could be? Would it be very different from the way it is now?

Please share your thoughts, ideas and responses. Do you believe these four noble truths are valuable for you in your life?