The first is family and environment.
I have read a sentence in the book Breaking Up before, and I like it very much. It's like a house for four people. If you have to clean it yourself, it's hard to clean it up. While living in the world, there are at least three factors that affect your life: society, family and self. So don't be too depressed, you are only responsible for one third.
In fact, the reason for a person's success is inseparable from the times and family. On Siddhartha's road to success, congenital conditions actually have a great influence.
Those who know the story of the Buddha should know that Siddhartha was regarded as an extraordinary person when he was born. Before he was born, there was a prophet's fable: "This child was born with either the greatest monarch or the greatest mentor." After birth, a Brahmin monk asserted, "He will be the greatest teacher."
Of course, the story may be fictional, but what if it is true? American scholars did an experiment, went to a school and randomly announced that some children were geniuses with super-high IQ. A few years later, I followed these children, and as a result, their grades far exceeded those of other children. The reason is that those unfounded judgments make children confident, and teachers really feel that they have high IQ, and they unconsciously give preferential treatment to these children in teaching energy.
I think the fable of Siddhartha's birth may have been known all over the country at that time. Everyone expects him to be an enlightened mentor, and there will be some words and actions that he didn't realize would affect Siddhartha. Thus, Siddhartha really began to care about the meaning of life and think about philosophical issues. Then he really became an enlightened person.
This reflects the role of psychological suggestion. Thich nhat hanh's other book, Practice with Heavy Life, also involves psychological suggestion all the time. For example, when I gargle in the morning, I say to myself: I want to gargle. I hope you don't swear today, but talk more sweet words.
Siddhartha is the son of King Sudden Rice, a prince who enjoys all the splendor. At that time, the production level of Indian society was low, and the enjoyment of the upper class was nothing more than the touch of color, sound and fragrance. It is not as exciting as extreme sports such as yacht skiing. It can be said that the stimulation of modern society is endless. As far as the color, sound, taste and touch of Indian society at that time were concerned, it was easy to get bored. What good food do you want to eat? Can I eat sweets like Haagen-Dazs? Can you hear Mozart? At that time, there was little turnover of personnel, and there were no supermodel beauties. So the sensory experience that a member of the royal family can enjoy is limited. Once you are tired, you will go to the road of psychological sublimation.
It is also worth mentioning that Siddhartha's wife yaodharā. There must be a great woman behind a successful man. Yaodharā is very considerate of Siddhartha. That night, Siddhartha was ready to give up his status as a prince and leave to practice. Yao Odhar ā prepares dry food for Siddhartha in the dark with painful feelings, and so on. Then lie in bed and pretend to sleep, and let Siddhartha leave. Because she thinks Siddhartha will be a great mentor (you can see the influence of prophecy on people around Siddhartha). I don't think Siddhartha can get out of this step if he wants to live and die together like some ladies.
Followed by royal dignity.
Although I hate to admit it, this world is a world of looking at faces. In the process of Siddhartha's enlightenment, thich nhat hanh mentioned Siddhartha's handsomeness intentionally or unintentionally. Yes, Siddhartha is a handsome man. He is a handsome prince who wears jewelry instead of jewelry. Moreover, the life of the royal family endowed him with noble manners. This aristocratic demeanor is rare and needs decades of subtle influence. In Europe, a nobleman needs to spend a lot of time learning formal manners. This aristocratic manner distinguishes him from ordinary ascetic monks.
If people had different views on him during the prince's period, it was because of prophecy. On the way to the ascetic monk, everyone paid special respect to him, and I can only understand him as handsome and noble. Even a king offered to share the land with him. He can talk and laugh with Brahmins, because Brahmins are the top caste and most people despise them. It shows that the Brahman regarded him as one of his own as soon as he saw his behavior.
Even after the Buddha realized this, it was mentioned in the book that everyone could feel the kindness and peace emanating from him as soon as they saw him. I don't know how to tell you this feeling. I once saw a monk like this when I went to the temple to burn incense. But I only saw it once.
The training of Buddha is not only the training of mind, but also the training of body. Of course, the two may be integrated. This book is different from the Buddhist book I read before. Mahayana Buddhism often says that the body is similar to dung. However, the Buddha in this book emphasizes that the body is a boat crossing the sea of suffering. At the beginning, the spread of Buddhism was also the peace and dignity that people saw from monks. It is said that Wang Yangming is also different after he became a saint, so this is a necessary factor for idols.
However, not all monks can reach the realm of Buddhism, and aristocratic etiquette is so studious. The Buddha originally asked his disciples to shave others. Disciple said that this was no good, and I didn't know how to do it. Buddha said you just have to do what I usually do. Disciple says this is no good, because you have enough dignity, so you can make people sincere. So I did a series of tonsure rituals, and later more and more rituals became Mahayana Buddhism.
At first, the etiquette taught by the Buddha was only how to wear robes and hold bowls. Be a decent person.
Finally, I want to talk about primitive Buddhism.
Thich nhat hanh is Vietnamese, so he should learn Hinayana Buddhism. Those who don't talk about the rules of Mahayana Buddhism only want to cross by themselves. But it fits the logic in my head. Mahayana Buddhism has 3,000 scriptures, most of which are attached by later generations. According to the story in the book, a highly qualified person can preach in three months according to the Buddha's method. If Mahayana Buddhism has 3,000 scriptures, it will take 30 years to read them all. At the beginning, there were so many bodhisattvas and 500 arhats in Buddhism, but there was no large-scale practice. After that, the monks never became bodhisattvas, which shows that Mahayana Buddhism is wrong. It's not that difficult to cultivate Buddha, and the standard of becoming a Buddha is not that tight. As Zen says, you can't understand the original intention of Buddhism when you enter the text.
I think the Buddha's original idea was to bring meditation into life and pay attention to normality. In fact, it's very simple. You should eat and sleep. However, this is extremely difficult. "Most people are very picky when eating, very picky. When you see something delicious, you can't help being greedy; Get angry when you see something that is not delicious, and don't eat it. I don't sleep when I should sleep, but I think about it. I care about it and think about it. " Although eating and sleeping are so simple, how many people can eat and sleep comfortably? Some people don't know the taste of food, and some people sleep uneasily. In this way, how to do other things in life well?
Whether it is the four noble truths or the eight right paths, people feel the taste of ordinary life. Although life is simple, as long as you give it a sense of meaning and concentration (mindfulness), it will be different. Not only eating is a practice, but sleeping is also a practice. Breathing (meditation) and walking (meditation) are all practices. He got the Buddha's food and stripped the Buddha's clothes from the dead. But this does not hinder the taste of rice and the warmth of clothes. The Buddha in this book doesn't give up desire like Mahayana Buddhism. But not enslaved by desire, feel the beauty of life. In fact, we are often in a state of numbness. When you are disheartened, you can't even enjoy the scenery when you travel. As the so-called Zen master said, "eyes can't see, ears can't hear."
Let me give you an example of eating. Take blueberries for example. If I eat it myself, I will put it in my mouth. Actually, you can do your homework before eating. You can take this blueberry and imagine that this blueberry is a growing scene. Purple fruit bathes in sunshine during the day and absorbs dew at night. Roots, branches and leaves are constantly transporting nutrients. Thanks to the hard care of farmers, how many people paid for this fruit to come to you? Imagine the taste of this fruit when you put it in your mouth. When you bite the fruit, the juice is in your mouth. Produce, sour and sweet taste, the satisfaction of chewing the throat. Then, you can really eat this blueberry and feel its taste. Although it sounds a bit melodramatic, it can be understood as a grateful heart. Christians should pray before meals and regard food as a gift from God. The Japanese will say "yidadakimasi, I have started" before meals, which is also a respect for food. Although the daily diet in Britain and Japan is terrible, mood can be the best seasoning. In our country, Taoism should chew a bite of rice 36 times and concentrate on eating. Religion is interrelated in this respect.
Being normal means living in the present. Of course, you should also add your own constant thinking and feelings. This is also a kind of mindfulness. Interpersonal communication used in life is understanding. Understanding is love and freedom. There are many practices in the west that are similar to those of the Buddha at the beginning. Just like the last paragraph about eating blueberries, I told it from the book Ultimate Health by memory.