Taking Control Of Our Lives AS THE SEXUAL BEHAVIOR of politicians surges to the forefront of public debate, two contrasting undercurrents of American thinking rise into view. One side tells us to suppress desires because they are nothing but trouble—the suppression or even denial of desire should be celebrated as a sign of virtue. Meanwhile, the other tells us that human desire is natural (and good!); that we should trust our feelings and desires, and do whatever they move us to do, so long as we do not infringe on the rights of others. Experience, however, tells us that neither the suppression of nor abandonment to desires leads to satisfaction in life. Then how do we live with the reality of our abundant desires and still become happy and fulfilled?
Buddhism helps shed light on this issue , this Buddhist concept tells us that our desires and suffering—all that torments our mind— can be the source of wisdom and happiness. On the surface, however, this concept is contradictory. Our desires often cause delusion and suffering, which are the exact opposite of wisdom and happiness. In this sense, defining desires as an obstacle to enlightenment, rather than as enlightenment, seems more reasonable. So the logical extension of this line of thought will be that we have to eliminate our desires in order to attain enlightenment. In other words, as long as we have a body and mind, we will continue to suffer from our desires. So we must reduce ourselves to nothing, "Among those who wish to become Buddhas through attempting to eradicate earthly desires and shunning the lower nine worlds, there is not one ordinary per-son who actually attained enlightenment.
This is because Buddhahood cannot exist apart from the lower nine వరల్డ్ the Daishonin defines "earthly desires" as "the obstacles to one’s practice which arise from greed, anger, stupidity arrogance and doubt have a negative influence upon our lives, causing delusion and suffering. The Daishonin teaches that since such earthly desires are ever-present, we must develop wisdom and inner strength so that they do not influence us negatively, and so that we may transform these functions into a driving force for our spiritual growth. The Daishonin stresses the importance of inner strength to control our "earthly desires" as he encourages us to "keep the three paths of earthly desires, karma and suffering in check" Desires give rise to actions, but when those desires are steeped in delusion, those actions create negative karma, which in turn leads to suffering, which gives rise to more desire, and so on. .
When we make a determination that our desires and hardships are yet another opportunity to strengthen our faith and our life, they no longer function as earthly desires that torment us. Through our prayer we can sublimate our base desires into noble and creative causes. Through the Buddhist practice, an egoist whose only concern in life is to gain material wealth can change into a person of magnanimity who gladly uses wealth for the sake of others’ peace and happiness. Sexual desires can be destructive. Shakespeare writes about them as: perjured, murderous, bloody, full of blame, /Savage, extreme, rude cruel, not to trust (Sonnet 129). Passion, however, if imbued with wisdom, can become an impetus for our affectionate expression of humanity then earthly desires are enlightenment and the sufferings of birth and death are nirvana"We cannot avoid our passions. But whether, when they arise, we act wisely and compassionately, or foolishly and selfishly, may determine happiness or suffering in life. The spirit to use whatever desires arise as fuel or "firewood" to empower our prayer and thus to bring forth wisdom, is the key to making the principle that "earthly desires are enlightenment" a reality. If we leave the "firewood of earthly desires" alone, they will simply remain a source of suffering. Only when we ignite the firewood with the spark of faith , can we bring forth a bright flame of wisdom and happiness from within. Through the concept that "earthly desires are enlightenment" the Daishonin teaches us how to create the greatest possible value from our natural desires and suffering, while neither denying them nor abandoning ourselves to them. This Buddhist principle thus offers us a new approach to the problem of human desire—one that is neither self-denying nor hedonistic. Viewed from the standpoint of delusion—desire does not "equal" enlightenment. But viewed from the standpoint of enlightenment itself, earthly desires are indeed enlightenment. This is because a Buddha experiences desires while maintaining full control of them, always bringing forth their enlightened quality to the fullest benefit of self and others. . (Adopted from Buddhist concepts )
