Hunger or Greed
In the Buddhist experience there are ten stages of life. One of those stages is hunger. Hunger as I have interpreted it is a yearning we all have. We are hungry to experience new things or we could be hungry to destroy others. Every stage of life has a positive and a negative side to it. When we become hungry for something like money or more possessions we can become greedy. Hunger, which is normal becomes abnormal because we yearn for more than we need and for things that don't really matter in the end, in search of joy. We think that the more we have the better we will feel and the happier we will be but that is a false thought. We don't gain more joy by owning more things or by living in greed, often times not sharing what we have more of or donating our money to a cause. Greed blinds us and now hunger becomes something that is not good for us.
On the other hand we may hunger to learn more or to experience new things or see different cultures by traveling. We may be hungry to help others and do our part in the world. We can be hungry to be a better parent, a more loving spouse or friend. These types of hunger are ones that are positive and these yearnings are normal and good. In Buddhism Hunger can manifest as us wanting more and more or learning more and more or serving more and more. It is obvious that when we hunger for love we may do anything for it when we are obsessed with the thought of being alone and not know how to love ourselves. We are hungry either to be loved or to learn to love ourselves. One is unhealthy and the other is healthy.
I am hungry today and each day for something. I know that I can get a little too hungry for things that are material believing that they will make me happy. I have found temporary relief in buying a t-shirt, a pair of pants or a journal to write in. If the purchase is motivated by owning more and to satisfy that need then I end up resenting myself for doing it. When I buy a gift for someone else I get more joy from that then I had in the past. I would rather buy something for someone else or contribute my money to a cause. I feel that my thirst is better served when I give of my time, money or effort towards someone in need or some good cause.
When we hunger we are experiencing a normal emotion or thought. The difference is in what we do with that hunger and what it is. In Buddhism hunger is normal and a stage of life. In order to hunger for things that are in our highest good we have to think about what we want and why. Is it something we really need or is it something we are wanting to collect like trophies. We must be aware of what we yearn for and why. How we think about hunger and what we do about it makes a difference in our lives.
When we are listening to our inner Buddha we share what we have and we give to others rather than accumulate things for ourselves. In our society we find accumulation of riches and material things as a sign of success and even believe we will be happier once we have a big house, an expensive car or a beautiful spouse. We collect things and people as though they were badges of honor and meant we are important yet it is the furthest thing from the truth. We are simply caught up in things and many times we experience a lot of stress in order to keep what we have collected or obtained. Many of the jobs that pay very high salaries are contracted from year to year and those who have those types of jobs worry about what will happen from year to year. Hungry to keep our job we do things we don't really want to do but the hunger for the money wins out.
I would like to do something special with my life. I no longer care if I make a six digit income like before. I no longer worry about money because somehow since I retired I have not had many money issues. The less I focus on accumulating stuff the less stress I feel. The less I am focused on material things the better I feel. My interest is more in traveling and learning new things, seeing others in their living domain. I am going to India for three or four weeks because I want to experience that culture and get to know what it is that brings such spiritual practices there. It is a world I don't know and that I am hungry to know.
I want to become hungry to experience things, learn things and be in my joy. I want less things and more freedom to experience my creative side and so I am collecting women's apparel that I think is beautiful and made well. I want to photograph the people and areas in India as well as the rituals. I want to be hungry for giving love and becoming a better person. What are you hungering for?
On the other hand we may hunger to learn more or to experience new things or see different cultures by traveling. We may be hungry to help others and do our part in the world. We can be hungry to be a better parent, a more loving spouse or friend. These types of hunger are ones that are positive and these yearnings are normal and good. In Buddhism Hunger can manifest as us wanting more and more or learning more and more or serving more and more. It is obvious that when we hunger for love we may do anything for it when we are obsessed with the thought of being alone and not know how to love ourselves. We are hungry either to be loved or to learn to love ourselves. One is unhealthy and the other is healthy.
I am hungry today and each day for something. I know that I can get a little too hungry for things that are material believing that they will make me happy. I have found temporary relief in buying a t-shirt, a pair of pants or a journal to write in. If the purchase is motivated by owning more and to satisfy that need then I end up resenting myself for doing it. When I buy a gift for someone else I get more joy from that then I had in the past. I would rather buy something for someone else or contribute my money to a cause. I feel that my thirst is better served when I give of my time, money or effort towards someone in need or some good cause.
When we hunger we are experiencing a normal emotion or thought. The difference is in what we do with that hunger and what it is. In Buddhism hunger is normal and a stage of life. In order to hunger for things that are in our highest good we have to think about what we want and why. Is it something we really need or is it something we are wanting to collect like trophies. We must be aware of what we yearn for and why. How we think about hunger and what we do about it makes a difference in our lives.
When we are listening to our inner Buddha we share what we have and we give to others rather than accumulate things for ourselves. In our society we find accumulation of riches and material things as a sign of success and even believe we will be happier once we have a big house, an expensive car or a beautiful spouse. We collect things and people as though they were badges of honor and meant we are important yet it is the furthest thing from the truth. We are simply caught up in things and many times we experience a lot of stress in order to keep what we have collected or obtained. Many of the jobs that pay very high salaries are contracted from year to year and those who have those types of jobs worry about what will happen from year to year. Hungry to keep our job we do things we don't really want to do but the hunger for the money wins out.
I would like to do something special with my life. I no longer care if I make a six digit income like before. I no longer worry about money because somehow since I retired I have not had many money issues. The less I focus on accumulating stuff the less stress I feel. The less I am focused on material things the better I feel. My interest is more in traveling and learning new things, seeing others in their living domain. I am going to India for three or four weeks because I want to experience that culture and get to know what it is that brings such spiritual practices there. It is a world I don't know and that I am hungry to know.
I want to become hungry to experience things, learn things and be in my joy. I want less things and more freedom to experience my creative side and so I am collecting women's apparel that I think is beautiful and made well. I want to photograph the people and areas in India as well as the rituals. I want to be hungry for giving love and becoming a better person. What are you hungering for?
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