SUFFERING: IS IT AN ESSENTIAL OF BEING HUMAN

How do you respond to suffering? What do you do when you encounter suffering?

We actually try hard to run away or walk away from all kind of sufferings. We do hate to see the suffering of people. We naturally cry and feel sad because of sufferings. But we can never free totally ourselves from sufferings.

Buddha Gautama tried to solve the problem of human sufferings. He thought the doctrine of " the four noble truths", these are: the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the end of suffering, and the truth of the path to eliminate the sufferings. So Buddha tried to find ways to end the sufferings. Buddha saw that sufferings are here and offered ways to eliminate the sufferings by self discipline to reach Nirvana. On the other hand, Jesus of Nazareth, taught his disciples and followers to embrace the sufferings. Moreover, He himself showed the example of embracing the sufferings by carrying the cross and died on the cross.  For Jesus, that is the only way to victory of resurrection and everlasting life. 

Buddha and Jesus saw that human sufferings are essential part of being human but the difference is in the way of their dealing with it because the first emphasis on one self discipline to end the suffering in order to reach Nirvana and the later put more on embracing it. Buddha saw the suffering of humanity is the curse and the condition that should be avoided but Jesus saw as a blessing that should be embraced in order to have Resurrection.

 

If suffering is part of being human, why do we try to end the suffering? If we avoid suffering, can we still be living our life to the fullness? And if we embrace the suffering for the high value, can we live joyfully int this state?

In the olden past, suffering and pain are seen as  an Evil and Bad Spirit's creation, which is opposed to the God of Paradise, the ultimate of happiness. In the story of Job, a faithful servant of God, who were tempted by Satan and then lived in the state of suffering (See the Book of Job), we encountered the mystery of suffering caused by Satan. Moreover, the paradise, the place of ultimate happiness, was lost because of humanity's obeying the voice of Satan, instead of that of God (See the Book of Genesis 2 and 3). Therefore, Buddha, with his Eight-folds pats, these are: Right Understanding, Right Intention, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness, and Right Concentration, gives a prescription to end the suffering.

On the other side, the reality of human sufferings is seen as a part of being human and by it to be fully human. It means through suffering, human can understand fully who they are here on earth and the purpose of their being here. So, it is advisable that embracing suffering is a way of  growing up to be complete of human. furthermore, by suffering we are thought to seek and long for the real happiness and the ultimate happiness, which is in heaven. Jesus of Nazareth stands in this point. He did the will of God by embracing suffering but because of it God granted him the Resurrection, the Eternal Bliss and Happiness. Suffering is seen as a blessing. Jesus thought His disciples, saying, "Blessed are the poor, the meek, those who mourn, who hunger (See the Gospel of Matthew 5:2-12). The great reward in Heaven is the ultimate goal of suffering.

So these two opposite ways of dealing with suffering were united in the end because both are seeking their ultimate Paradise, Happiness, Nirvana and Heaven. 

Let us be aware of the real presence of suffering in our midst but should not make us lose our hope for reaching our ultimate Paradise and Happiness. Ways to end the suffering were given to us by Buddha but at the same time ways to embrace it and to live with suffering were showed by Jesus of Nazareth.  Hope these two ways will compliment each other and will give us some meanings of our human sufferings. We hope.