Saturday, April 6, 2019

99 PROBLEMS








ZEN STORY

A farmer comes up to the Buddha asking advise:
Buddha, I am miserable.   I don’t think my wife is faithful, and my children don’t respect me.   We haven’t had rain and my crop is failing.  My dog growls at me when I come home and I am getting old and my bones ache.   Please tell me Buddha what I can do to free myself of my troubles?’

The Buddha answered. ‘Nothing.

The farmer becomes indignant, ‘You are the Buddha, you are suppose to have such great answers.  What do you mean, Nothing?

The Buddha lays his hand on the farmers shoulder and says, ‘We all have 99 problems.   When you solve the one at the top, another takes its place at the bottom.   We will still have 99 problems.’






The Four Noble Truths:

1.   We all have problems
2.    If we obsess with our problems we will live in discontent.
3.    If we accept our problems and move on we can avoid discontent.
4.   The Eight Fold Path is a way to move toward a more wholesome attitude, past discontent.  


the Ol'Buzzard


 




2 comments:

  1. Buddha knows best. It's all common sense, really.

    ReplyDelete
  2. The Buddha had a way of laying it all out in a simple and meaningful way. Even I can understand it.

    ReplyDelete

COMMENT: Ben Franklin said, "I imagine a man must have a good deal of vanity who believes, and a good deal of boldness who affirms, that all doctrines he holds are true, and all he rejects are false."