Thoughts about suffering?

[Geoff-Allen]

Been contemplating things a little bit lately ...

If you ask me, suffering is a very mixed bag. A fortunate few are transformed by their suffering while many others become bitter & twisted or even violent.

I consider myself one of the fortunate few. I endured more than two decades of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia at its worst is an absolute crash course in suffering.

I was as angry & cynical as anyone could possibly be. Looking back on it, it is an absolute miracle I survived at all let alone transform into a far kinder & more compassionate human being than I would have ever dared to imagine possible.

I wish I could take "credit" for my conversion but it puzzles me greatly to this very day.

I am incredibly grateful but seriously mystified at the same time.

Does anyone else have any thoughts or experiences to share?

Enjoy your day!

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Ooops - misspelled the word thoughts in the title! Sorry about that!

 

[Unveiled Artist]

Been contemplating things a little bit lately ...

If you ask me, suffering is a very mixed bag. A fortunate few are transformed by their suffering while many others become bitter & twisted or even violent.

I consider myself one of the fortunate few. I endured more than two decades of schizophrenia. Schizophrenia at its worst is an absolute crash course in suffering.

I was as angry & cynical as anyone could possibly be. Looking back on it, it is an absolute miracle I survived at all let alone transform into a far kinder & more compassionate human being than I would have ever dared to imagine possible.

I wish I could take "credit" for my conversion but it puzzles me greatly to this very day.

I am incredibly grateful but seriously mystified at the same time.

Does anyone else have any thoughts or experiences to share?

Enjoy your day!

I have had Epilepsy/seizure disorder all my life and still do. I've had clinical depression before. I suffered grief which I can't tell which is worst one is long lasting and dull. The other is sharp but gradually calms down to less than a low roar. I've had two surgeries for seizures and fighting not to go back into depression. My father is dying and I'm holding on living by myself without family nearby...and so on and so forth.

Ever since I started practicing the Dhamma, I learned about analytical meditation. I can't do concentration meditation. Too short attention span. So I listen to different Dhamma talks and meditate on them. Some are about kamma, some death, and some about changing nature of life and everything we cannot control.

It helped me put my seizures in perspective. I had a seizure ten minutes ago and back to the computer. I know they come and they go. It's how I internalize it is the key. Clinical depression the same. The waves come and go. It's how you take care of yourself while you're getting treatment at the same time.

So seizures, mental health, death, and dealing with the aftermath of medical conditions are trying but I try to see suffering as a wheel of change and waves rather than something eternal. Something that comes, gets stronger, gradually dies, and then decays. We just train our minds to see suffering differently. Handle what we can't control.

Seizures by their nature religion aside you really don't know when you'll have one. So, I learn from my seizures if nothing else left.

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Ever since I started practicing the Dhamma, I learned about analytical meditation. I can't do concentration meditation. Too short attention span. So I listen to different Dhamma talks and meditate on them. Some are about kamma, some death, and some about changing nature of life and everything we cannot control.

Thanks for sharing!

I like to do short meditations as often as I can manage throughout the day - has helped me a lot.

Here's one of my favourites -

A Loving-Kindness Meditation to Boost Compassion

All the best!

 

[Sunstone]

Ooops - misspelled the word thoughts in the title! Sorry about that!

Fixed it.

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Fixed it.

Thanks for that! A bit sloppy of me not to check the spelling before posting

 

[Sunstone]

@Geoff-Allen I have a few thoughts about suffering. First, I think you can gain some insights from it, perhaps depending greatly on the specific nature, intensity, and duration of your suffering, but in my experience at least, those insights are not of the most profound nature - and suffering might not really be necessary for one to have them anyway.

For instance, you might learn a whole lot that is seemingly profound about pain, but the alleged profundity of such insights pale in comparison to even some relatively simple insights you could have been having about love -- a far and away "deeper" subject than pain.

So, I tend to discount the notion that suffering brings us profound insights about life - it might at times, for at least a few people, but I don't see it as a generally significant path to insight. Instead, I think the anger and cynicism you describe in the OP is more often what suffering "teaches" us than any positive insights into life.

Second, the greatest spiritual danger that I see to suffering is that it tends to turn us inward, upon ourselves, and thus strengthen our psychological self (ego), which can then become an impediment to satori, realization, enlightenment - whatever you want to call it. We can even define ourselves by it, cling to it, and thus block spiritual progress.

At the same time, it can quite obviously make it make it much more difficult to embrace life, live fully, etc. And, last, it can cause us to not only become self-centered to the extent that everything becomes about us -- it can be hard to take into consideration anyone else's needs and feelings when you yourself have a headache, let alone are afflicted with great suffering.

Last, I have the greatest admiration for anyone who, like you, experienced great suffering and yet somehow did not become resentful, bitter, cynical about life.

 

[SabahTheLoner]

I think a lot of people are flat out afraid to suffer. I’m not going to lie, it can be scary. I felt like several years of my life was nothing but suffering. (Emotionally at least). But, having been rejected, shamed and stagnant most of my teen years taught me how to be more accepting, independent and flexible. Even though it felt really bad, suffering brought up some of the better things about me to the surface, and I continue to grow through and to prevent suffering. We don’t really want to suffer but a little suffering is necessary to grow as individuals, because it teaches us lessons that can’t be read or said accurately. As my personal favorite Satanist said, you can’t feel love without being able to feel hate. You can’t be kind or compassionate if you don’t know what it’s like to suffer or hurt.

 

[Twilight Hue]

I don't tend to romanticize suffering , doing my best in avoiding any bells and whistles making suffering more or less than what it actually is.

Notice it when it rises, acknowledging it , and then just letting it pass on.

 

[Father]

Living. Life is Pain. some just have a better Pain Tolerance than others...

 

[Tonstad39]

As much as I hate to admit it, suffering is an ever apparent facet of human civilization. Suffering is necisary as the human mind always seeks conflict of some type so it doesn’t become redundant. Moksha an dukkha play out in various ways all throughout the world from dictators with personality cults to fear mongering news anchors. The dharma will of course dish out negative karma to those who cause suffering.

We can increase the standard of living all we want, but no matter where we are in the universe beit earth. Mars or somewhere else there will always be negative thoughts and emotions when one is living life so full that people become redundant.

 

[Geoff-Allen]

Last, I have the greatest admiration for anyone who, like you, experienced great suffering and yet somehow did not become resentful, bitter, cynical about life.

I was extremely bitter at one stage!

Nobody is more amazed than me - I thought I would NEVER change ... wish I knew why more people don't experience the transformation I have enjoyed.

Thanks for the support and you comments!

 

[Silverscale derg]

I refuse to grow up, i've spend many lives on earth and all of them asides from this one with a cursed body which is a bit icky have been about the same. You get hatched, you spend time with your parents, you relax, maybe a bit of basking, eating, more relaxing, everything is chill...enter adulthood, you have your own place, you have to protect yourself from humans if they know you're there...it wouldn't be too bad if being older didn't make you so grumpy but with a human form the whole job thing is boring and slow. Back to the point, suffering happens to everyone at least once, some take the cowardly way out, while others succeed.

 

[ajay0]

Here is a article by Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev on the mechanics of human suffering.

As per Sadhguru, the conflict between the existential reality and the mindmade psychological reality is the cause for suffering.

To a large extent, this psychological reality is created by our belief structures about the nature of reality, instilled by conditioning. The incessant thoughts and emotions these mental structures emanate is what prevents us from aligning with the existential reality , as they influence the experience we are having at the moment.

Even if we may be in a place of great scenic beauty or pleasantness, the thoughts and emotions stemming from these belief structures would prevent us from enjoying the experience or moment and benefiting from it.