I spotted this movie reference on Monkey See, Monkey Do in a post on karma and thought it a good introduction to an upcoming post I plan on the same subject. Others might see the cause/effect of dependent origination, and the scientific minded will probably also see chaos theory. Broadband access is probably essential to see the movie. You probably will want to find your speaker controls before you visit the link. Then use the “Watch It” icon to start things rolling.

How does existence keep going according to Buddhism? The Buddha’s explanation of what was happening was explained in his teaching on Dependent Origination. The basic answer is that birth and death are part of a cycle similar to non-sentient process cycles that go on and on unless and until some link in the chain of events is broken. Think of the cycle of life and death as a circle of lights. Then answer, without being arbitrary, “Where does the circle begin? Where does it end?” The answer is “No beginning. No end. Just a circle.” It was this understanding of the circle of existence that preceded the Buddha’s enlightenment. “This arises because of that, shaped by these conditions.” Cause and effect — over and over again. That is the crux of Dependent Origination, though in the formal teaching, they are broken down into twelve steps or so.

The term Skandhas is often interpreted as “aggregates” or “heaps” but neither of those words are very helpful to Westerners. According to Red Pine, in his book, The Heart Sutra, the term skandha really refers to the trunk of a tree, or a pillar made of wood. In this context, the skandhas are aspects of experience that form the pillars of a “self” one believes in.

The skandhas then are points of view that are intimately connected to each other, and not in any way self subsistent or standalone aspects of reality. It is their interconnection that gives rise to the persistent notion of a self. The skandhas are:

• Form
• Sensation
• Perception
• Memory
• Consciousness

The Fourth Noble Truth is that the Eightfold Path is the means of removing this cause of suffering. In summary outline form, the Eightfold Path is:

Cultivation of Wisdom

• right view
• right thought

Moral Action

• right speech
• right action
• right livelihood

Meditation Practice

• right effort
• right mindfulness
• right contemplation

The Second Noble Truth is a statement that this suffering identified in the First Noble Truth has a cause, that it is not a necessarily inevitable condition. And that cause is NOT DESIRE, but the the attachment to desires: the desire for sensual pleasure, the desire to become – to be somebody, and the desire to get rid of things that we don’t like. The attachment makes the desire personal and is very much a part of the notion of a me, and of mine.

The Third Noble Truth is that the cause of suffering, this attachment to desire, can be overcome by rejecting, relinquishing, leaving and renouncing attachment to desire.

I’ve added a section called The Monastery to hold the writing I want to do for the next several weeks. It’s mostly oriented toward Buddhist teaching, as I understand it, with commentary on how I’ve experienced it so far. I’m not enlightened, so there are sometimes discrepancies between my experience and what I think I’ve been taught. But the views are honest layman views. Sometimes I see things clearly, and many times I can sort of see the outline of how things might work.

I’ve organized it around the Buddhist teaching, because I’ve come back to the fundamentals after of few years of thinking I understood them. These articles share my experience. For some enamored with meditation, they may seem like heavy stuff. My own personal experience is that the basics are exceptionally useful in focusing and understanding what I have experienced.