Jake Dartington: Talk - 4 Noble Truths - From Struggle to a Beautiful Life

It's good to see you all this evening. I'd like to start by really appreciating all of your efforts here on retreat. So you may be very conscious of this, I don't know, but we're kind of right in the middle of the retreat, around the halfway point of the retreat. And really appreciating what we've been doing together. I have the sense that this is a very helpful and significant, meaningful thing to do, and of course also not always smooth, to sit with our own heart and mind and body and all the different things that come and go. So you're really appreciating, actually it's a kind of courage, I think, the courage to do this, to be here and explore. So whether today or right now has felt kind of more smooth and more difficult, sometimes it's nice to really connect with that deeper sense of value. This is worthwhile. This is something good. I certainly feel that in my bones. I wanted to also go back to what I said on the very first evening, when I spoke a little bit about the what is a retreat and the why of a retreat. You may remember that I spoke about setting up the conditions in which the mind can begin to settle and calm. And then a settled mind is one that sees more clearly, understands more clearly. And that clarity of understanding can then be expressed in a wise, loving, compassionate way of living in the world. So there's a sort of kind of sequence there. We can bear in mind the kind of rationale of a retreat. And of course it's not really quite as simple as this, but roughly speaking you could say, right now in the middle of the retreat, there's just a bit of a shift of emphasis from the settling, calming, stilling, gathering to that clear seeing element. So we can really start to notice, start to learn very deeply different patterns in our minds. You can see things with more clarity. And that includes this whole question of suffering and the end of suffering that Gavin was speaking of yesterday, quoting the Buddha, to each suffering and the end of suffering. And yeah, it's a reminder of that wonderful image, a very helpful image. A bit of dukkha as the axol that doesn't quite fit. And contrasting that or putting that alongside the how smooth or rough a road is. If you remember that from last night's talk, I think it's really very powerful images. How much of life do we spend trying to smooth the road? Smooth the road in my understanding means trying to create particularly pleasurable, lovely conditions where everything is just so. But there's also that sense no matter how smooth the road is, if the axol is not quite fitting properly, then we're going to experience a lot of struggle and distress. And the retreat really is an opportunity to look deeply into that. And that's the origin of this kind of extra additional struggle and suffering we can experience in life. And how does that soften? So wisdom can really help us see this. So this can be a question actually that we live with our whole lives. What is a way of life? What is a way of relating to our own experience? A way of relating to others that releases suffering struggle, leads to freedom and well-being. Such a... Well, that question is worth a life-long exploration. And so the wisdom that we're exploring, and it's helpful to remind ourselves it doesn't mean being clever. It's helpful to bring this to mind. Wisdom and being clever are not the same thing. So wisdom is really something live. You know, embodied, experiential. So the deepest lessons that you'll learn on this retreat, again, it's from really seeing in your own experience. And then it becomes something lived. Wisdom necessarily shows in the way we live our lives. There's a real link there. Being clever doesn't necessarily do that. I say actually you could... I mean, certainly could. You could have a PhD in the history of swimming. You might not be as familiar. There's something totally different, right? But wisdom is, yeah, we're getting in the water. It's a kind of knowing how. Knowing how. Might even call it the art of living, actually. Art of flourishing as a human being. I think we can also say that wisdom is, therefore, intrinsically ethical. If you think of a wise person, that comes really together with it, a sense of a kind of ethical sensibility. This was reminding me of my time studying philosophy. We used to get interested in this kind of thing. So you could imagine such a thing as an evil genius. You know, we have that, we're in literature, in science fiction and things. But I don't think you can have an evil sage. That makes sense. Sage is a wise person. My philosophy teacher would have said that's like a triangle with four sides. It's impossible. So there's something about this wisdom that we're exploring that has a sense of ethics as part of it. Clear seeing, clear discernment and a care connected to it. So in continuing to explore one aspect of wisdom, I'd like to really echo much of what Gavin was saying yesterday. I'm going to use the framework of the four noble truths, or the four ennobling truths to help us do this. So some of you, this may be something completely new. For others, maybe something you've heard before. So again, you can use it as a kind of alive contemplation. A live contemplation. For me, this is the most skillful way to use dharma teachings actually. It isn't really something that you sort of hear once, take notes on, put away, remember. But again, it can be something that you can use, you can reflect on, you can digest, you can apply it to your life, you can come back to it again, months or years later, and see something else. It's something very, very useful to return to. So we can see these four truths, or four ennobling truths, as really things we can use as a tool for reflection. Use as a tool for reflection. So the first of these is the truth of dhuka, as we heard yesterday. So again, we might call that suffering, but again, really appreciating Gavin bringing all the nuance of that. And there's so many different words I've heard associated with dhuka over the years. Might be anguish, dis-ease, unsatisfactoriness, when it's applied to things, unreliability. So this is the kind of territory of dhuka. And it includes, or really helpful to see this, that the inevitable pains and struggles of life, on the one hand, and then also a kind of extra additional suffering and struggle, that comes from kind of patterns in the mind, what we might call reactive patterns. So I find this really helpful to kind of think of these two aspects of dhuka. The inevitable pains on the one hand, this kind of complication, building of additional suffering through patterns of the mind in another. So the inevitable pains, again as we heard yesterday, can include their pains of getting older, being prone to sickness, aware of our own mortality, mortality of others. The Buddha couldn't talk about this in a very general way, as getting what we don't want and not getting what we want. For me, there's such a brilliance in how universal that is. So I don't know the details of all of your lives, but I'm really pretty confident that sometimes you don't get what you want and you get what you don't want. So it's a very universal fact of human life and it follows from the fact that life is ultimately uncontrollable. If everything was perfectly in my control, then I could organise it so, yeah, I always get what I want, but it's not like that. So there's something challenging, we could say, built into the very fabric of being a human being. And it's very interesting to see how that lands, because it can sound something pessimistic. I don't know if these people are always going on about suffering. Actually, there's birthday parties and dancing and music, and my favourite programs. But actually, I think we can also feel, it's a real relief actually, it's a real relief to hear and to kind of reflect that there is something challenging, difficult about this life, being a being, being a human being. And for me, part of the relief of that comes from letting go of the idea that it's supposed to be smooth, or it is smooth for someone else. And of course, if you only ever see a snapshot of someone's life, it can appear like that, you know, the sort of edited highlights of the life, you know. Here's me on holiday, here's me getting an award, you know. Here's me with my book, you know. Edited highlights, the word is edited, right? All those other bits. So to know, to know that, yeah, it's not a personal flaw. You can say that, you can feel that outburst, not a personal flaw. Because if you think life is supposed to be smooth and easy and everything goes to plan all the time, and it doesn't, then it's easy to think, well, that must be me. What is it about me? That means it's not like that, it's supposed to be. Okay, so actually the Buddha is saying, something challenging built into the fabric of being a mortal being, a fallible being, in an uncontrollable, ultimately uncontrollable world. So then the question is then, how do we live with that? How do we respond to that with wisdom, with care, with compassion? And how can we also then begin to let go of an extra struggle and suffering that may be created around that? And all of these extra struggles and suffering. I mean, just to give you an example, you know, if we say, aging is an inevitable part of being a human, of course it is. But if we were to look back at what we might have done 10, 20 years ago, you know, for many of us, there might have been things we could have done 10, 20 years ago that we can't do so much now. So the question is then how much struggle, suffering does that create? You know, you can see, yeah, there's the challenge of maybe the body or capacity is changing, but then that would be a whole lot of extra struggle, wouldn't it? Why can't it be like it was when? If only I could go back. You can see these kind of thought patterns would create additional complication. And so I think Dukka can also include some really subtle kinds of struggle. And yeah, there are a few phrases that capture this. One is, you know, happiness always seems to be just around the corner. I don't know if you know that. Maybe you're at college or university. When I get my exams finished then it will be okay. Of course, there can be a relief there, but something else turns up, you know. I remember there are various points in my life. I thought, well, yeah, when that's done, and that's done, and that's done. We imagine an arrival. Imagine an arrival. And in our mind the arrival is, yeah, when everything's kind of complete and final, sorted. But we find that point arrives and, yeah, life carries on. By the way, the end of the retreat is a very interesting thing to contemplate in that. So it's very likely that many of us, well, at times on this retreat, have a sense of looking forward to the end. Don't need to feel bad about that. I think it's an almost universal tendency to think, oh yeah. It's interesting to think what that is. What do we think the end will bring? Sometimes in difficult meditation it becomes quite a big thing, and I might hold the end, and that would be great. And, you know, you might be on a train. That's all right, isn't it? Being on a train. You might get a seat, you might not. Somebody might give you a cup of tea, look out the window for a bit. I mean, it's great, but it's not like, wow! It's a wonderful thing to look forward to. And then, yeah, all kinds of life carries on, basically. But that feeling of looking into the future of, ah, that's the moment. That's the moment. So when we talk about these subtler layers of dukkha, suffering, struggle, we can then also contemplate the origin of these. And then the Buddhist teaching this is called craving on Tanhain, Pali. And somebody asked a question, actually, that was very helpful for me. I thought, well, that's... thank you, anyway. I can include that in my talk about the difference between craving and real needs, which is interesting. You know, needs for kind of food or exercise or sleep. So, you know, things that we genuinely need. And I think one of the clues is that craving has a kind of addictive quality to it. Something really quite... The unsatisfactoriness of it really stands out. And we find ourselves going in circles with craving. So, yeah, hopefully it's okay to share this example. Forgive me, I know it's a tough example for some or many. But if we think about a person who's addicted to alcohol, you might see that. You know, there's the craving, ah, I want a drink, I've got to have a drink, I've got to... The person has a drink. The relief is pretty momentary. Okay, so that's gone for a bit. But it's simply feeding the thing coming round again and again. And of course we can do that with alcohol, we can do that with all kinds of things. There's something kind of just unsatisfying about the whole process. But I think it is also helpful to say, yeah, of course we have needs as human beings. So, yeah, kind of hunger is not necessarily tanha in this sense. It's just the body needs that. Of course we need sleep, body needs to move, you know, exercise in some way, all of these things. They're all really helpful. But it's that kind of addictive quality to it. And that sort of, ah, getting spun around in a circle. And there are said to be three kinds of craving. And the first is called craving for sense pleasures. So to give you a classic example on a retreat, you know, you're in the meditation and you start to think about lunch. And then that becomes the kind of bigger thing. Oh, you know, what they're going to give us for lunch today. That bit I like, I wasn't so sure about that bit. Hopefully that's nice. And it can really build up and then you become really keen, let's say, you know, to hear the sound of the bell. Because the bell will signal, ah, lunch is coming. And that there's some kind of promise there. If only I could have that tasty food, then I would feel okay. The key thing here to understand is look what's happening in the moment when we buy into that. Alongside the, if I had the lunch, it would be wonderful, absolutely together and connected to it is, and this moment is not okay. That's what craving does. It's kind of two things. This is not okay because I need this, which is absent. That's the basic structure of it. Or it might be a daydream on retreat about being on holiday. I wish I hadn't come to Gaia House at South of France would have been nice. And then you're there and, oh, imagine that. French food. Sorry, I mean the craving thing. But you see how it goes. Maybe French food isn't your thing or whatever it is. But it could be that. Of course, could be in the whole realm of sensual desire, sexual desire. Wanting to hear your favorite music. So some kind of sense experience. The craving is there and an over investment in it. That's the thing. So this is not saying, you know, not kind of anti the senses, but it's looking about the over investment in it as if somehow it's going to deliver something, you know, fundamentally, perhaps even permanently satisfied. The second of these forms of craving is called craving to be craving to be. And one interpretation of that is kind of craving for continued existence. I also find it helpful to have a more psychological interpretation of that, which is sort of like craving for identity or craving for status. And maybe in many societies, but I certainly think this can be true in ours. That can be a big project, can't it? Can I create and sustain a kind of image of myself as being a success? There's a lot of energy goes into that. You know, what do I do to present to the world successful self? Even as I say that, you know, we can feel how how tiring that can be really. So, you know, I've never written a book or anything, but I've spoken to some people who have and they talk about how that can arise there. You know, I'm working on the book or the book's coming out, people are going to come to the book launch. Nice. And there's that moment of, yeah, you're a success. And then, you know, somebody reviews it and be particularly online these days, as we know, you know, reviews are usually mixed. But then there might even also quite quickly be the pressure, oh, God, I've got to write another again. How are you going to follow that up? What's next? You know, or someone else writes another one that turns out to be more popular or whatever it is. So it can feel endless. That's the thing. I don't know if you can get the feel of what I'm saying is just how tiring it can be. It can be kind of driven by craving, you know, running after sense pleasures or sort of trying to kind of create a sense of solidity around, yeah, here I am, I'm a person who's got it all together. And then the third type of craving is called the craving not to be, which is possibly the opposite of that. It's like just wanting to push everything away. One version of that might be those days, relate to these days sometimes, but you might just want to put your head under the covers. I don't know. You know, you're just tired, exhausted, you know, you've been running around trying to feel good by getting lots of sense pleasures or, you know, getting lots of recognition or success or something like that. Just want it all to go away for a bit. Kind of craving not to be. And just a return to the alcohol example for a moment, actually, I think, you know, you could certainly see when a person drinks really, you know, so much that it can really be about what's the phrase we use being out of it. You know, again, you could see that as a kind of craving not to be, you know, just not to be so conscious for a while. So we have these cravings that are really helpful to begin to see, you know, see in our own experience, understand, see how they move, watch them come, watch them go. This begins to create some freedom around them. So if you're noticing these in your practice this week, it's actually good news. You're learning. You're learning. We're all learning. So then the third of these truths is the truth of the end there, called the truth of the end of Dukka. Nibbana is the Pali word, and you perhaps all know the word nirvana, it's the equivalent in the Sanskrit language, the kind of sister language, but nirbana. So what does this mean? It means simply the end of greed, end of hatred, end of delusion, you know, and sometimes used words, cessations, cessation of craving, your will, cessation of confusion. And it's associated with a calling. So nibbana has this meaning of something calling down. And it's associated in Indian philosophies and spirituality with fires. You can imagine a fire very strong in symbolism. And greed, hatred and delusion are seen as kind of fires, fires that keep the Dukka kind of burning. And what happens when a fire goes out? It cools down. So nibbana is the calling down, cessation of the fire, calling down. Now a very helpful thing to bring to mind then is what happens when a fire has gone out? What's left? And again people debate and interpret this and some people have kind of heard the idea or got the idea that sort of nibbana means sort of extinction or cessation, you know, you just see it completely in terms of kind of absence, you know, there's the ending of something. But I think it's also actually helpful to see so much in the teachings that shows what's left is actually a heart and mind that cares, that's full of compassion, full of friendliness, loving kindness, joy. It doesn't leave a blank at all for various reasons. Some of the language talks in kind of uses negative terms, but you can see actually you could say what's left is very full, creative, responsive, bright. You can certainly see this in terms of the Buddha's own life story. So Buddha is said to have this process of awakening particularly under this tree, the Bodhi tree. And it doesn't stop then, you know, decades of teaching and forming a community and talking to people and sorting things