Geshe Ben becomes a master of thought work

Share your stories and poems with us here.
Post Reply
Nils
Posts: 17
Joined: Thu May 19, 2022 12:33 pm

Geshe Ben becomes a master of thought work

Post by Nils »

In his youth, Ben roamed Tibet as a mendicant monk. He was an extremely conscientious practitioner of Tibetan Buddhism. With great discipline, he paid constant attention to his thoughts and feelings. He strove to think and act like a Buddha. He consistently adhered to the Buddha's five precepts for thought work.

Buddha taught enlightened being. A follower of Buddha should live in inner peace, truth, love, unity consciousness and self-discipline. When thoughts arose that interfered with inner peace, love, discipline, truth or enlightenment, he should think about them, meditate on them, stop them and replace them with wholesome thoughts. He should direct his mind to wholesome objects such as the Buddha as a role model, the spiritual path (Dharma), or the spiritual community.

Unwholesome thoughts especially come from the three mind poisons of craving (attachment), hatred (rejection), and delusion (unwisdom). When a thought of worldly desire arises, we should think about it, meditate on it, stop it, and replace it with a wholesome thought. For example, we desire a beautiful woman or an attractive man, external wealth, fame or recognition. The first step is to recognize such unwholesome thoughts. To do this, we must be constantly mindful of our thoughts and feelings.

When we have recognized the unwholesome thought, then we can reflect on it. We can understand that the main happiness of life lies in ourselves and not in beautiful men or women. External wealth, fame and recognition do not make us truly happy either. We do not need many likes or followers on the Internet. It is enough to be happy within ourselves. It is enough to be enlightened. Then we can freely play with life. We can aim for many likes or not. It doesn't matter in the end. May my girlfriend Barbara realize this too. A little joke on the side.

When we truly understand the deeper meaning of life, then we can focus on an enlightened life, a life of unity consciousness, inner happiness and comprehensive love. We can stop all worldly thoughts. We can replace them with spiritual thoughts. We can meditate on being a Buddha or a deity (Tara, Chenrezig). This is how we attain enlightenment in the course of life. However, we must be consistent, as Ben was.

Once Ben and several monks were invited to a banquet by a rich merchant. Ben unfortunately sat at the very back of the table. In front, the most delicious dishes were dished up. The fear rose in Ben that he would not get any more of the delicious food. He stopped that thought, focused on the idea of frugality, and was satisfied with a small bite when it came his turn to eat. As his hand greedily reached for the delicious candy that was in the center of the table, he slapped his hand and shouted loudly, "Stop the thief!" The fellow monks turned around, startled. But then they laughed as they realized that Ben had again been very strict about his spiritual discipline.

The great self-discipline was paying off. Ben studied diligently at the monastic university and attained the title of Geshe (Doctor of Philosophy). He meditated for many years in a secluded cave and attained enlightenment. People heard about his spiritual realization and set out to visit and worship him. Geshe Ben cleaned his cave and dressed in his ceremonial robe. Then he realized what he was doing. In order to destroy his vain thoughts, he put on his ragged beggar's robe again and brought disorder back into his cave. People should get to know him as he really lived. He did not want to build up a false appearance, but to be authentic as he really was.

:anjali:
master of puppets
Posts: 1649
Joined: Thu Apr 16, 2020 9:52 pm

Re: Geshe Ben becomes a master of thought work

Post by master of puppets »

:namaste:
Jenjen
Posts: 1
Joined: Sat Sep 09, 2023 6:18 pm

Re: Geshe Ben becomes a master of thought work

Post by Jenjen »

I found this very helpful. Thank you.
Post Reply

Return to “Creative Writing”