Everything passes
In a Buddhist temple, a great master taught, he was already very old, but incredibly white, he had many followers, the monks of the temple, and also the people from the neighboring town, respected him, as a counselor and as a gifted scholar.
In the great hall of the temple he lectured, organized meetings, provided social gatherings, gave advice, and there he taught his students the philosophy of Buddha, also meditation and prayer.
He was particularly fond of a local student, who was intelligent, interested and hard-working, hardly missing any of his seminars. And he took special care of her, he encouraged the young girl.
One evening, after the meditation exercises, she said to her master: "My meditation was terrible, my thoughts were everywhere but here. Today my eyes kept falling shut, every bone ached from sitting, I was unfocused, distracted, not in my mind at all. My ego was constantly running away with me, whispering incoherent things in my ear, questions arose in me, self-reflection did not want to occur."
The master replied succinctly, "Student, this will pass."
In the following time her exercises were as before, she said nothing to her master, came again almost every day, she pleased the old teacher with joy.
A few months later, the master and the pupil got into conversation again. She told him, "Master, today my meditation was wonderful, inspiring, I was fully concentrated, sitting was effortless, I was not distracted, my ego was silent during the exercises, breathing was easy, did not burden me at all, I think I have made great progress."
The master just looked at her casually, he answered again succinctly, "Student, this will pass".
THE ACTUAL CHARACTERISTIC OF THIS WORLD IS ITS TRANSITORINESS
- FRANZ KAFKA - GERMAN-LANGUAGE WRITER - 1883 TO 1924
HAPPINESS BELONGS TO THOSE WHO ARE SELF-SUFFICIENT. FOR ALL EXTERNAL SOURCES OF HAPPINESS AND PLEASURE ARE BY THEIR NATURE HIGHLY UNCERTAIN, UNFORTUNATE, TRANSIENT AND SUBJECT TO CHANCE.
- ARTHUR SCHOPENHAUER - GERMAN PHILOSOPHER - 1788 TO 1860
The lot of mankind is not easy. Already on the day we fall in love, for example, we know that we will EVER have to say goodbye to this person again, we know that the child that has just been born will EVER die, that everything, simply everything, will be lost, will pass, will be extinguished. Even our planet will pass away one day, and with it the utopia we call "our world" today.
Everything passes, we must accept this unchangeable truth.
If it were not for the teachings of Buddha, my human lot would weigh heavily on me, sometimes even almost crushing me, the fact that everything passes EVERYWHERE would be very difficult for me to come to terms with without Buddhist philosophy, would unbearably and threateningly overshadow my life.
From the philosophy of the teacher of all teachers I first drew the strength, and today the certainty that this does not have to occupy me, because not everything is as it appears at first sight.
Buddha has shown us a way out, he has paved the path to "enlightenment" for us. Like all paths, this alley is not always easy to negotiate, but in the end we have "awakening", the "gateless gate" through which we pass, but which cannot be grasped with our hands.
If you, esteemed reader, have read this text up to here (to the end), then you are in any case interested in Buddha's teaching, perhaps you even want to follow his path? Take up the undertaking courageously, because even a great journey begins only with a small step.