Buddha, was born around 2500 years ago, at kapilwastu, which is now in Nepal. All his teachings were based on compassion. During his seven years of meditation, he found that he is doing nothing but just torturing his body. While swimming across the Niranjana river, he was so tired that he had to hold the root of a tree which was by the river. That was the time when he gave a second thought on his body and felt that, on the name of meditation he is merely torturing himself. He gave up mediation, then and there and sat under a tree. That was the night when he found the truth and got enlightened. That was the night when the first time he came to know “compassion”.
Buddha’s teaching is based on compassion
After getting enlightened he spoked on four “Arya Satya” or the four truths.
1) Everybody is in misery,
2) There is a cause for the misery,
3) One can remove the cause,
4) The method to remove the cause is through meditation.
When we look around the world, no matter how rich the person is, no matter how powerful the person is, we find that everyone is in misery. Someone can be in misery because of anything. It might be any reason, to make a person sad. Everyone is lacking something. That is why when we go to the temple we have only grievances and we only demand from god.
Lackingness is the root cause of sorrow
What happens when we lack something? Whenever we lack something, the first thing we do is demand. The moment we get the thing, which we have demanded, the value of that thing goes down and we start lacking another thing and the demand again arises. It is like a wheel; lack- demand- valueless- lack- demand. So that demand is the main cause of the misery, which Buddha said in his second Arya Satya.
He says that we can remove the cause of the misery. He is not saying, that we can remove the misery, he is saying that we can remove the cause. The cause is the root of the sorrows, so he is talking for the root, not for the branches or the fruits.
Meditation – only way to remove the cause of sorrow
Meditation means the technique. Apply the technique and get rid of the cause of the sorrow.
So, in the present world, when there is hate rate every was, Buddha’s teaching of compassion is most needed. His teaching is the only way to bring peace and harmony in the present world. In this world, where people are fighting for a piece of land, for money, for their girl/boyfriends. In this world, where there is all over hate, jealousy, competition, etc. we find the teachings of Buddha very important to live in joy. This is the only way to keep smiling and dance in ecstasy.
