The Not So Great Gatsby

Life is Suffering.

July 03, 2020

Life is suffering, as Buddha says. That’s not pessimistic. Fundamental truth of nature We are finite. Lifespan is bounded. You are a certain height, weight, colour, intelligent, mentally ill, predisposition to cancer. These vulnerabilities are not flaw of nature. These are conditions for your existence. We are what we are. Inevitably life poses a question.

Right now, something absolutely horrible isn’t happening to you. There may not be something particularly horrible happening to you at the moment, but there is a high possibility that one of your family member is having a horrible phase. If not now, it is highly probable sure it will happen in the future. To know this frees you. Life can’t be conducted without suffering

How to conduct yourself in the face of suffering?

Stop unnecessary suffering The world is always desperately short of people who can clearly think and speak There is more suffering in the world than there should be and I can do something about that. When you are 80 you look back and see that there is less suffering in the world because of you and it was worth it

When you are playing a card game, you are dealt a hand of cards. Then what do you do? You play the best you can for the hand that you are dealt. That’s all you can do. And that strategy most times may not be a winning one. And that’s ok. Because people don’t always win. sometimes we loose and sometimes we loose painfully, sometimes painfully and unjustly. That’s not the point. The point is you don’t have a better strategy. It is better to take responsibility for the hand you have been dealt.