The 10 States of Life: # 6
As I continue to dig deeper into Buddhism and the ten stages of life I uncover some logical life lessons, like the ten states of life. The sixth state of life is called "Rapture". Rapture is defined by overwhelming joy. It is a state of euphoria that is likened to heaven or a heaven like state. It is connected the pleasure center of our life and can be the kind of joy one experiences from sex or from getting something we want like a material possession. The thing about rapture is that it is short lived and in the Buddhist belief once we get what we want we revert back to hell which is the first stage of life. We apparently tend to go back to hell, animality or anger for some inexplicable reason. I believe it is because we are more accustomed to being in hell and in anger so when we experience overwhelming joy we don't know how to keep it or maintain it so to speak. We live in a society where we get satisfaction and once we get it we don't know what else to do to keep it. We live in a world where we get what we want and then we don't know where to go after that.
What I recall from my own experience with rapture is that physical intimacy took the place of true joy or it was a release because there was some other aspect of the relationship that was hell and filled with anger. Once finished with the act of intimacy all the anger came flooding back and often times it happened soon after because there was no additional love involved. It was an act and that was all there was to it. In addition the person who I was with most of the time simply behaved as though I was the source of pleasure and it was up to me to make him happy while he simply sat back. It was as though intimacy was something he did not want to be associated with because of some shame he learned about it. Once the act was over so was every other kind of intimacy. In fact it felt as though nothing had actually happened because he was detached emotionally and then I would become detached in order to make it even. It was a lose lose situation.
As we grow in life I think that if we were to take this state of living literally we might learn that our search for pleasure is temporary and it has not fiber to it. It is just a superficial search for joy and that is why it cannot be kept up. It can't endure because it is not real or at the very least it is not combined with love, compassion or some other real form of connection. We are so detached from our feelings that we can only be happy for a little while. But here's the thing. I think that we could be in a state of rapture that is long lasting when and if we attach ourselves to the fact that we are connected and that this has to go beyond the surface. Americans are especially guilty of attaching and then detaching very quickly from one moment to the next.
I know I have fought with this idea of joy or of overwhelming joy which we are calling "rapture". I have because I sought temporary relief from my pain: anger or hell. These are two of the three evils according to Buddhism and I have to say, I understand it better now. How I went from pleasure one moment to hell the next and even how that happens at times now. It does not happen as often and I don't stay in hell because I choose not to. I make a decision to talk myself back to my joy or sweet spot. I and I alone can do that. I cannot blame my past on my lack of rapture. I cannot blame another person because now I am alone and learning to love me. Now if I am happy it is my doing and if I am not it is also my doing. No pain, no person and no experience can take my joy from me without my permission. My interpretation of rapture is that I am in a place of ultimate happiness. In order to be happy I must take responsibility for Elliott and become a happy person by creating, helping and caring about being happy. Now that I am not tied to another person I was unhappy with it is easier for me. Now it is a life long journey.
What I recall from my own experience with rapture is that physical intimacy took the place of true joy or it was a release because there was some other aspect of the relationship that was hell and filled with anger. Once finished with the act of intimacy all the anger came flooding back and often times it happened soon after because there was no additional love involved. It was an act and that was all there was to it. In addition the person who I was with most of the time simply behaved as though I was the source of pleasure and it was up to me to make him happy while he simply sat back. It was as though intimacy was something he did not want to be associated with because of some shame he learned about it. Once the act was over so was every other kind of intimacy. In fact it felt as though nothing had actually happened because he was detached emotionally and then I would become detached in order to make it even. It was a lose lose situation.
As we grow in life I think that if we were to take this state of living literally we might learn that our search for pleasure is temporary and it has not fiber to it. It is just a superficial search for joy and that is why it cannot be kept up. It can't endure because it is not real or at the very least it is not combined with love, compassion or some other real form of connection. We are so detached from our feelings that we can only be happy for a little while. But here's the thing. I think that we could be in a state of rapture that is long lasting when and if we attach ourselves to the fact that we are connected and that this has to go beyond the surface. Americans are especially guilty of attaching and then detaching very quickly from one moment to the next.
I know I have fought with this idea of joy or of overwhelming joy which we are calling "rapture". I have because I sought temporary relief from my pain: anger or hell. These are two of the three evils according to Buddhism and I have to say, I understand it better now. How I went from pleasure one moment to hell the next and even how that happens at times now. It does not happen as often and I don't stay in hell because I choose not to. I make a decision to talk myself back to my joy or sweet spot. I and I alone can do that. I cannot blame my past on my lack of rapture. I cannot blame another person because now I am alone and learning to love me. Now if I am happy it is my doing and if I am not it is also my doing. No pain, no person and no experience can take my joy from me without my permission. My interpretation of rapture is that I am in a place of ultimate happiness. In order to be happy I must take responsibility for Elliott and become a happy person by creating, helping and caring about being happy. Now that I am not tied to another person I was unhappy with it is easier for me. Now it is a life long journey.
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