Buddhism: In under 5 minutes

Here is how to understand Buddhism

In less than 5 minutes

Using nothing but your own breath.

Lets start with something simple

Breathe in

Breathe out

Notice the cycle of the breath

Breathe in

Breathe out

Now as you breathe in, think

Breathe in - life

Breathe out - death

Notice the cycle of life and death

Breathe in - life

Breathe out - death

Each breath is different

It is not the same breath

over and over

Short, long, shallow, deep

But each is still part

Of the cycle of breathing
In Buddhism

There is no eternal soul
You don't come back

As the same person.

This time when you breath in, hold your breath

Breathe in - life

And hold

Hold onto life

Don't let go

Cling to it

Grasp at it

Can you feel the suffering?

Life is suffering.

The first Noble Truth - Life is suffering

And why are you suffering?

Because you are grasping at life!

Neither life nor death is forever

There is a cycle

Trying to hold on to one

Or avoid the other

Leads to suffering.

The second Noble Truth - The cause of suffering

Breathe out

Phew!  Blow out that breath.

What a relief!

Letting go is a relief.

Blow out in Sanskrit is "Nirvana"

That sense of relief

When you no longer grasp

The suffering is over.

The third Noble Truth - The cessation of suffering

This time try something else

Breathe in - self

Breathe out - the universe

Breathe into yourself and out to the universe

Breathe in - self

Breathe out - the universe

This time, breathe in, but don't breathe out

Breathe in - self

Now breathe in a bit more

Breathe in - self

Now breathe in even more

Breathe in - self

You can't breathe in any more?

You need to breathe out

Breathe out now

You can't have just breathing in

Or just breathing out

You need both

Breathing is both in and out

It is one.

In the same way

You can't have just self

Or just universe

You need both

Reality is both self and universe

It is one.

That is one-ness

Try some more breathing

Breathe in - joy

Breathe out - sorrow

Breathe in - pain

Breathe out - relief

Breathe in - indulgence

Breathe out - denial

Breathe in - to be

Breathe out - not to be

Each of these require the other

Each are two aspects of the one

You can't have one

And eliminate the other

You must accept both

That is the way

The fourth noble truth - The middle way

Now you understand Buddhism !!

Author's Note

I don't think its really a poem. Maybe free verse? Maybe just structured english? I'm not sure what it is. I just found it beneficial to write it down when it 'came to me', and writing things with some structure or as poetry helps me internalise it. For something to be deep enough within me to come out as actual poetry is a good sign that I 'got it' :D. Anyway, I hope you may find it instructive (rather than entertaining) and perhaps understand buddhism a little differently or better (not that I'm in any way an authority, its just my view).

Reviews

[Aethereal]

You did a good job of expressing the essence of traditional Buddhism. Scientist are aware of the same Oneness phenomenon that Buddhist are aware of. An observer always interferes with what’s observed, and this places a limit on what degree we may observe something in isolation of ourselves. We are what we observe. All knowledge is introspective knowledge. We are everything, and all of our parts work together in a synergic way whereby they communicate instantaneously with each other. We’re both particle and wave, anywhere, and everywhere simultaneously.. We’re simultaneously every possible permutation (Parallel Universes) . It’s a Twilight Zone reality, and it’s us. Extinction and Creation are in balance. Without Extinction Evolution would cease, and no order would form out of chaos. Without chaos, Evolution’s dice would never be thrown, and thus no order would form. If you randomly shake a large number of surfaces with holes mixed randomly with a large number of pegs that fit these holes , then surfaces with pegs through them must evolve within this random chaos, also extinction events would occur where less adaptive structures surrender their building blocks to more adaptive structures. We are the process. Our useful energy does all the shaking as it flows from our source to our sink. We're sparkling stardust, and more.

[Shaquana Adams]

This is an interesting poem. The title caught my eye as well. The flow really matched the topic in my opinion. Great poem!

-QuanaWana

[Blood Ink Diary]

Certainly relished the poem - reflective and engaging right through to the last line! The composition felt very much as a meditation practice I often do, Vipasana'. Thank you for sharing such a beauty ! Cheers

[Rogie-Dodge]

Thank you Shaheen, I've been listening to recordings of teachers (I find hearing it sinks in better than reading, as one cannot skim over bit as one can when one reads), in particular to much of Alan Watts (though not a buddhist monk, his knowledge of it and the way he can explain it clearly and with humour is engaging), also Thich Naht Hahn and Songyal Rinposhe, Ekart Tolle etc, and then meditating and internalising that .. and once I've done that, I write some verse to externalise it and deepens the understanding. And better, I get feedback on what I've written .. if what I write has a positive effect on the readers, then it must be saying something right.

[Blood Ink Diary]

You know this is interesting because I am taking an online course at Coursera at it is Buddhism and Modern Psychology - it is only for knowledge that I am enrolled. Though my admiration for Buddhism is much deeper. So lovely to come across you and I shall spend time reading your world in next few days !
Like yourself, I, too, listen to various recordings and find some part of me igniting with spark with the knowledge parted from various authentic teachers.
Keep in touch ! Cheers

[Baby Ricochet]

Buddhism. The only world religion I have any respect for. I've never heard the Dali Lama say "God hates homosexuals" I've never even heard him say anything catty about the Chinese.

[Rogie-Dodge]

That is what brought me to it, along with meditation as part of coping with depression.

And yes, I've never heard a single hateful comment from the buddha or the dalai lama or in any of the teaching. There is nothing about non-believers being evil and killed or burning in hell. Instead you read things like "Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible."

And what I notice is that the great buddhist teachers, like the Dalai Lama, are always so deeply joyous and positive !! If being so happy in life, and so kind and accepting, is what buddhism can bring, then for me it is well worth investigating and learning what it says.

[Rehan Roy]

Buddha preached 'Golden Mean', say in Sanskrit-Madhyam Pratipaad-avoiding excesses in any aspect. A Vedic Philosophy-Life force controls the Universe. By controlling breath, you can control life force. .Breathing exercises-inhalation, exhalation and holding had been taken from Hinduism-Patanjali Yogsutra, as per the researches by eminent historians.There is an underlying depth of description in this poem. Thank you for sharing this.

[Rogie-Dodge]

Yes indeed .. there is much to breathing an meditation. Not just its calming qualities. There's also the lesson that breathing is both something you do, and something that happens .. you can actively control it, but then it also happens without any thought. The different levels of consciousness at work. But also symbolic of the oneness of the universe and self. And that our idea of self as a little man sitting inside the head of a bag skin isn't how things are. The focus on breathing also helps us see out thoughts and feelings as just things that 'happen' in our minds, and when we are aware of them we know that they aren't us. Just as you can't see the inside of your own eye, or touch the end of your finger with the end of the same finger, the true self must be something the true self isn't aware of .. so those things we ARE aware of cannot be us. As the saying goes .. If someone claims that he knows Brahman then he does not know it.

[Rehan Roy]

Breathing exercises have various health benefits. Now, they have been scientifically proved too. However, according to Patanjali Yog Sutra, breathing exercises(pranayam) are practised as an step towards the path of Nirvana/Nirvikalp Samadhi/Self-enlightment. There are further stages of practices,, propounded by Yog Sutra. With regular practice, step by step, one's level of consciousness transcends to a higher state, ultimately to Nirvana. In Hinduism, Self is not the one, that resides only in this physical body.Besides, it pervades over the whole universe. You have rightly said-If someone claims that he knows Brahman(True Self/Supreme Self or simply Self )then he does not know it because in the state of Nirvana, the observer/knower and the object are not different entities i,e they are the same. There is no observer/knower to say,'See, I have seen my self or known the nature of my self'and there is no object to be known.He himself is the Supreme self.

[Rehan Roy]

Correct-There is no object to be known or seen.

[melissa]

Amazing poem keep up the great work and keep sending me more to read i love reading them

[Rogie-Dodge]

Breathe in pleasure, Breath out pain
Breathe in pleasure, and hold it hold it hold it
Breathe out pain. Thats a BIG pain.
Notice your breath now, only short shallow gasps
If you hold on then the next time the pleasure is more shallow and not as long lasting.

[Sami Khalil]

Thank you for sharing this creative way of explaining this religion or may I say philosophy. Bravo...........

[Rogie-Dodge]

Thank you ... it worked well for me, so I thought I'd share my discovery

[Rogie-Dodge]

See me own review here for more lessons from the breath :D

[Sami Khalil]

Yep. You are welcome. Take care...:)................

[Vidya Bacchus]

Taking a very deep breath here RD lol.This is very calming for some reason.Very interesting write you have penned here :)

[Rogie-Dodge]

Thanks !!

There are other lessons one can learn from this

[Vidya Bacchus]

Indeed you are surely right :)

[Rogie-Dodge]

See me own review here for more lessons from the breath :D

[Vidya Bacchus]

In hindudism that is the belief too.You do not come back as the person you were.Your actions in this life dictates the next :)

[Rogie-Dodge]

Yes .. there is much in common between the two. Buddhism has less cultural elements and not the same notions of gods etc. But there is much the same there. Both are instructive.

As I understand in hinduism (I've not studied it as much) these is just one self (Shiva?) that is playing a drama where each of us is a part it plays all at the same time .. but like a good actor we take on the role, but so well that we have the illusion that we are really individual entities.
There also the idea that we are a gods dream. If one could have any dream one would get bored with everything being perfect, we'd want some adventure, some excitement, some danger .. but we'd know we are dreaming so it wouldn't be as exciting, so the ultimate dream would be to dream and not know that you are dreaming. And that is what the universe is.
I may well have misunderstood and oversimplified, but they're my impressions of some of hindu teachings. I know there is a lot more to it :D :P

[Vidya Bacchus]

You have done very well in understanding our religion RD.Yes we have different gods .but they are essentially just the one Shiva in different forms serving a specific purpose.

[Rogie-Dodge]

In buddhism one can be born again in one of six realms, depending on your karma and whether you achieved enlightenment in life or in certain phases of death. Its not so much that the karma forces a particular realm but what your karma is draws you into one.
I don't really buy into those aspects of buddhism .. a realm of hungry ghosts just sounds a bit to silly to me. Perhaps they are allegorical or teaching devices (like koans, or like desiring not to desire).
But, as buddha himself said, "Believe nothing. no matter where you read it, no matter who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense"

[Rogie-Dodge]

That you are of the hindu faith/culture, and appreciate what I wrote (even tho on buddhism), is very flattering and encouraging. It means a great deal to me.

I think hinduism is a bit 'large' for me to grasp in a reasonable time, I don't think its a religion (plus culture and law etc etc) that one could just jump into easily and adopt, but more one you would need to grow into. I'm interested in it, and will continue to at least skim its surface, but I think it would take a long time to understand its many aspects. Even buddhism is difficult enough with the various traditions and the four this, eight that, twelve of these etc etc. :D :D

[Vidya Bacchus]

I myself don't believe in the hungry ghosts either.I believe they just say it for effect lol.I do however believe in Karma.I do believe that you will have to pay the piper.The way you live your life should be such that whatever your belief you end up in the best possible realm.Just my thoughts.Thank you RD for sharing your knowledge and thoughts with me .It was deeply appreciated :)

[Rogie-Dodge]

"The Hungry Ghosts" ... it would make a great title for a movie :D :P

[Vidya Bacchus]

Haha I hear you.Yes there are many ,many points to grasp in Hinduism it is not something that you just jump into ,Everything has a meaning.My family as far back as I can tell were Hindus.I am not as deep down in it as I probably should be but I don't argue religion and politics lol

[Vidya Bacchus]

You are right.I would watch a movie called "The Hungry Ghosts" lol