The Search For Enlightenment

Having successfully navigated the doctors appointment yesterday, with the simple prognosis of a chest infection, I was looking around to see how Buddhism concerns itself with illness and healing of that illness. Those nice people at the SGI had this to say …

Buddhism teaches that illness is one of the four sufferings which cannot be completely avoided in life, whether directly or through the experiences of close family or friends.

Buddhism takes a holistic approach to the treatment of sickness, stressing both the importance of finding the best and most appropriate medical treatment and care, and also that using our Buddhist practice will enable us to summon the energy and courage needed to fight our illness.

Often facing illness can lead us to deepen our understanding and appreciation of the profound principles of Buddhism, and we find that it is possible to create something valuable out of the experience.

As Nichiren wrote:

“Life is the most precious of all treasures. Even one extra day of life is worth more than ten million ryo of gold.”

So the healing process can itself be a good case of turning poison into medicine, and the combination of chanting and modern medicine seems to be doing the trick.

Namaste ~ Anupadin