210623 The Sentinel, Understanding

An important lesson for me

From the time I was a child until just recently I would wonder why so many bad things happened to just me. It was a real burden on my psyche. I would ask, why me? Since I have been reading the ancient teachings from the Far East that were written over 2,500 years ago, now I understand. The fact is that suffering is a part of everyone’s life. Suffering comes from the very human traits of greed, desire, ignorance, delusion, hatred, destructive urges, illness or death.

The vast majority of humans, 98% of the people I have ever known have a problem with attachments to things just as I did. We want those things we see that other people have, fancy cars, boats, big houses, computers, toys for grownups, new furniture. The list goes on and on. Those persons are always wanting more money in their paychecks so they can buy more things that they become attached to.

This picture curteosy of Alamay stock photos.

The problem is that our attachments lead to a greater hunger for more of everything in our lives. Once we free ourselves from those attachments we also free ourselves from suffering. Now for me, I can get past my desire for all the material things, but my problem is with the people I love. I cannot or will not free myself from being attached to them.

My great aunt Irma was a lesson for me, a lesson that took a long time, close to 70 years to figure out. She had suffered through 3 drunken husbands, 5 or 6 children and lost everything she had. The lesson was when she had nothing material left in the world; she was the happiest person I have ever met. Her attachments were eliminated and that took away her suffering. Irma didn’t have to go to the ancient teachings to overcome the suffering, but it was necessary for me to search it out.