Essence of freedom and peace

George G Clark 04 January 2009

 

… Buddhism … is ultimately about letting go of all forms and concepts and becoming free. - John Snelling, Elements of Buddhism

This morning I had a slightly blue feeling. It was mind made. But there are options. And there is freedom to choose the option that is active. The trick is to 'accentuate the positive' and to 'eliminate the negative'.

The formula is as follows:

·         Continue existing good thought trains

·         Promote new good thought trains

·         Discontinue existing bad thought trains

·         Do not promote new bad thought trains

 

The Five Hindrances

·         Craving ·         Aversion ·         Restlessness and anxiety ·         Sloth and torpor ·         Doubt

This of course begs the question of good v bad. In essence it is good if it brings deep peace and ease and it is bad if it brings deep anxiety and dis-ease. There are the five hindrances that tend to lock people into bad states (see box).

The main 'practice' involves being mindful of what is going on.  Rather than responding automatically to your causes and conditions you can inhabit the space between stimulus and response and evoke a more considered reaction: a reaction that is based on a more insightful view of the context in its totality.

And with practice (ie sitting in meditation and being aware of what the mind gets up to) it becomes easier to avoid being totally caught up by automatic causes and conditions. And that is the essence of freedom (liberation) and thus of peace.