Observe duḥkha

Does the first noble truth mean "there is suffering: and we need the path to eradicate it?” Or “does suffering have a dual nature (such as without suffering there is no joy)” ?

The "suffering" in Buddhism can actually be viewed from three aspects. It is not necessarily negative and pessimistic. 

For a long time, the translation of "dukkha" into "suffering" is limited and very easy to cause misunderstanding. 

In fact, when the Buddha told us "dukkha", he just conveyed the FACT, the TRUTH, and that is just a Natural Situation in the phenomenal world.

The three kinds of 'dukkha' are:

1. duḥkha-duḥkha

This is what we called Ordinary duḥkha, Concrete duḥkha or Physical duḥkha; it is a direct suffering that one experiences in sickness, exhaustion, hunger, torture, etc., apparently related to all sorts of unpleasant experiences. 

2. vipariṇāma-duḥkhatā

We called it duḥkha of decay, the duḥkha that people experience when they lose things that they are attached to / delighted to, e.g. the loss of the state of joy, happy holidays are coming to an end etc., evidently related to all sorts of pleasant experiences. 

3. saṃskāra-duḥkha 

We called it the duḥkha caused by change or the duḥkha produced by impermanence, e.g. whether we want to accept it or not, and no matter pleasant or unpleasant experience, TIME is constantly passing by every second, we are constantly in the process of CHANGE without the slightest pause.

The above three duḥkhas are all normal things in life, aren't they? That's why I said that “when the Buddha spoke of duḥkha, is just presented the Facts and the Truth to us.”

Now, is “ERADICATE” a suitable word here? 

My opinion is, we should ERADICATE the unwholesome roots, such as greed, hatred, jealousy, arrogance etc., because they are the fundamental cause of our suffering.

For duḥkha (no matter which duḥkha), what we need to do is OBSERVE (the fact, the truth, the nature of the phenomenon) and learn to ACCEPT it.

the Contemplation on Compassion

The current news is affecting our minds and our ability to find peace. How can we find peace with the current events disturbing our minds?

Our mind may be extremely disturbed by the influence of the recent wars or shooting incidents, and it is difficult to calm down; however, as long as we try to deeply explore this "uneasy mind", we will find that it is mixed with sympathy, anger, worry, sadness, etc.

In the midst of all these complex emotional thoughts, try to focus on the emotions that are more helpful to our practice, such as: sympathy, empathy, etc.  Make good use of those emotions to strengthen our practice of “the Contemplation on Compassion” (Karuna Bhavana).

The focus of the practice of "Compassion" is to eliminate the suffering of all sentient beings, and hope that all sentient beings will be free from physical pain and inner fear.  We keep blessing in our heart: “I hope that the residents living in the war can live a stable life as soon as possible; I hope that those who have lost their loved ones because of the shooting incident can pack up their minds as soon as possible, and face their life and future with strength and wisdom.”

Therefore, every time we encounter distressing and disturbing news, let’s think of "Karuna Bhavana". At that very moment, we wish all sentient beings to stay away from suffering, and on the other hand, we calm our mind and let it calm down gradually.

Meditation during near death

When you have a death or near death experience during a meditation session...how should we deal with this? Should we transform these fear based experiences into a learning experience?

In fact, people who still do not forget to meditate before dying are people with excellent psychological qualities (wholesome mind) such as right mindfulness, right concentration, and right understanding.

In order to eliminate or transform the "fear of death", Mahayana Buddhism often use "Buddhānusmṛti". By remembering the Buddha’s Name and his virtues, they can increase their confidence and mindfulness, thereby dispelling fear and anxiety.

Theravada Buddhism also has the practice of "Buddhānusmṛti (reciting the Buddha)", but "Ānāpānasati (mindfulness of breathing)" is always the first choice.  Let our mind rest in the present moment of every breath, so as to eliminate the fear in our mind.

In fact, among the many spiritual practice methods of Buddhism, there is another method called "Maraṇasati".

Maraṇasati (mindfulness of death, death awareness) is a Buddhist meditation practice of remembering (frequently keeping in mind) that death can strike at anytime (AN 6.20), and we should practice assiduously and with urgency in every moment.

However, whether this method is suitable for everyone to practice, it varies from person to person.  For some, who can definitely gain wisdom and confidence in facing life through the visualization of death. But there are also some people who are very afraid of death in the very first place OR always have a pessimistic and negative attitude towards life, and if they visualize various phenomena related to death, it may cause either bad or harmful effects for their practice. That’s why this method is mentioned in Buddhist scriptures, but it is not widely used, or even known to some Buddhist practitioners.

Further reading:

Maraṇasati Is for All of Us by Margaret Meloni

Death Awareness by Larry Rosenberg

The joy of Giving

 Q&A (2022/01/23):

Verse 125 in The Way to Buddhahood:

Lower people give for the sake of themselves. 

Middle people give for their own liberation. 

Those who give all for the benefit of others 

Are called great people. 

1. Is it better not to give if you do not have the proper attitude? How will it affect the giver's Karma? Merit?

~> My personal opinion for your reference is that although the mentality is not quite right, it is still encourage to practice Giving.  Giving is a good deed after all, if the state of mind is not very good, there will still be a tiny amount of merit.  

~> As for the bad karma, they usually manifested from the defilement mind.  Therefore, if we want to avoid bad results, we should gradually subdue your afflictions, rather than give up generosity altogether.

Verse 126 in The Way to Buddhahood:

The giving of wealth, dharma, and fearlessness 

Is difficult but should be sympathetic and sincere. 

The joy that comes from hearing of the need to give 

Is superior to the happiness of Nirvāṇa.

2a. What are the qualities of the 3rd Dyhana mentioned in VS 126 

2b. Can you explain supreme happiness? or is it unexplainable at our level?

~> When it comes to "joy", there are the material and sensory "joy" that come from the Sensual (desire) Realm, and the “joy” that comes from meditation in the Form Realm.  In terms of the nature of "joy", the joy of material things is definitely not as good as the joy of meditation.

~> Likewise, the joy of the first jhāna is naturally inferior to the joy of the second jhāna; the joy of the second jhāna is naturally not as good as the joy of the third jhāna. 

~> When a person attain the fourth jhāna, there is only right mindfulness, equanimity, and right concentration in the fourth jhāna, without the slightest sign of joy. That's why the third jhāna is called superior worldly happiness — the highest experience of joy in the world.

~> The “Supreme happiness” mentioned here is the joy that arises from the heart of a bodhisattva practitioner when he learns that he has the opportunity to give. It's like some inner feelings are really indescribable.

Lessening International Dispute begin with oneself

Q&A (2022/01/09):

Verse 124 in The Way to Buddhahood:

For the benefit of all sentient beings,

The body, all usable things,

And all good dharmas of the three periods,

Should not be saved but should be given away.

Q: What would the Buddha do to fix this problem mentioned in VS 124 : Creating wealth and material goods for the sake of accumulating and gaining (economic) possessions of things and creating suffering in the world and also creating international disputes? How can this be lessened?

~> The Blessed One was originally a prince who could inherit the throne, but he chose to let go of his right to inherit the throne and to let go of all the glory and wealth of a comfortable life. He himself plays an example to achieve the greatest deed of dedication.

~> Most of the social disputes caused by the accumulating and gaining wealth, the Blessed One educates us with His actions, and more importantly, in His teachings on Generosity (Giving), inspires us to see the causes of those social problems and solve problems by establishing correct concepts (right views).

~> When it comes to the Right Views of Giving, this book is divided into two different stages of study. The concept of giving in Chapter 3 is aimed at beginners or those who are just preparing to learn Buddhism.  As for the more in-depth contents of giving in Chapter 5, it is a true self-sacrifice mind-building. In other words, Chapter 3 teaches us to Give and to share, while Chapter 5 elevates us away from self-centered thinking and focus on benefiting all beings.

~> However, the deep-rooted problems in society cannot be solved in a few words.  But don't be disheartened, as long as we uphold: if there is one more person (start with us) in the world who does good deeds physically and mentally, the problems will naturally be reduced relatively.