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Main Index
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| | | Book Name: The Dhammapada - The Way of the Buddha, Vol 3 | Previous Next | |
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MAN, FOLLOWING THE WAY,
CROSSES OVER, BEYOND THE REACH OF DEATH.
HE LEAVES THE DARK WAY
FOR THE WAY OF THE LIGHT.
HE LEAVES HIS HOME, SEEKING
HAPPINESS ON THE HARD ROAD.
FREE FROM DESIRE,
FREE FROM POSSESSIONS,
FREE FROM THE DARK PLACES OF THE HEART,
FREE FROM ATTACHMENT AND APPETITE,
FOLLOWING THE SEVEN LIGHTS OF AWAKENING,
AND REJOICING GREATLY IN HIS FREEDOM,
IN THIS WORLD THE WISE MAN
BECOMES HIMSELF A LIGHT,
PURE, SHINING, FREE.
Man lives in misery -- not because he is destined to live in misery but because he does not understand his own nature, potential, possibilities of growth. This nonunderstanding of oneself creates hell. To understand oneself is to be naturally blissful, because bliss is not something that comes from the outside, it is your consciousness resting in its own nature.
Remember this statement: your consciousness resting in itself is what bliss is all about.
And to be relaxed in one's own being is to be wise. The English word 'wise' does not connote the same depth, profundity and significance as the word 'buddha'. Wherever you come across the word 'wise man', remember it is a translation for 'buddha'. 'Buddha' has a totally different meaning in the East. It is not just wise, it is far more than that. Wisdom is greater than knowledge, buddhahood is the ultimate. Buddhahood means awakening. Knowledge means objective knowledge -- knowing that which is outside you. It can never be more than information, because you cannot see things from their insides, you can only watch them from the outside; you will remain an outsider. Science is that kind of knowledge. The very word 'science' means knowledge -- knowledge from the outside. That which you are knowing is an object, you are separate from it. Knowing the other is knowledge.
You can go round and round, you can watch it in every possible way. You can weigh and calculate, and dissect and analyze, and you can come to logical conclusions, which will be useful, utilitarian. They will make you more efficient, but they will not make you wise. Wisdom is subjective knowledge; not
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