Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

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Astus
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Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Astus »

The basic method:

There is a problem because you crave (for something else). In order to stop craving realise that all experiences are unstable, unsatisfactory, and impersonal. That is, no matter what you crave for, it will not be a solution, thus craving is pointless.

The empty method:

No problem is a real problem. It only looks real because you don't recognise it as a mere concept. To see it as a mere concept, analyse the problem in order to define it, then you shall see that it cannot be established in any way.

The mind method:

The problem comes from imagining it to be something beyond what is experienced, an independent object. Since only what is experienced can be called a problem, the problem itself is nothing but a thought. Once there is nothing to think of, thinking of the problem itself ends.

The direct method:

The thought of problem occurs, then it disappears. No need to do anything. It had been gone even before it had arrived.

What other methods are there?
1 Myriad dharmas are only mind.
Mind is unobtainable.
What is there to seek?

2 If the Buddha-Nature is seen,
there will be no seeing of a nature in any thing.

3 Neither cultivation nor seated meditation —
this is the pure Chan of Tathagata.

4 With sudden enlightenment to Tathagata Chan,
the six paramitas and myriad means
are complete within that essence.


1 Huangbo, T2012Ap381c1 2 Nirvana Sutra, T374p521b3; tr. Yamamoto 3 Mazu, X1321p3b23; tr. J. Jia 4 Yongjia, T2014p395c14; tr. from "The Sword of Wisdom"
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Ayu
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Ayu »

Another quick measure is to remember that this problem is perceived.
Perception is never factual, because there are many informations missing. So, it is the Buddhist way not always to buy your own perception. Take it with a grain of salt.
Especially if the problem is taken personally, the possibility of misconception is very likely.
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by boda »

Astus wrote:What other methods are there?
1) Define the problem.

2) Brainstorming and lateral thinking.

3) Forming a hypotheses.

4) Testing.
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Astus »

boda wrote:1) Define the problem.
2) Brainstorming and lateral thinking.
3) Forming a hypotheses.
4) Testing.
Where is that found in Buddhism?
1 Myriad dharmas are only mind.
Mind is unobtainable.
What is there to seek?

2 If the Buddha-Nature is seen,
there will be no seeing of a nature in any thing.

3 Neither cultivation nor seated meditation —
this is the pure Chan of Tathagata.

4 With sudden enlightenment to Tathagata Chan,
the six paramitas and myriad means
are complete within that essence.


1 Huangbo, T2012Ap381c1 2 Nirvana Sutra, T374p521b3; tr. Yamamoto 3 Mazu, X1321p3b23; tr. J. Jia 4 Yongjia, T2014p395c14; tr. from "The Sword of Wisdom"
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Boomerang »

Praying to buddhas and bodhisattvas to alleviate your problems is a thing that the sutras talk about. The Lotus Sutra, the Medicine Buddha Sutra, the Ksitigarbha Sutras.
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Queequeg »

  • From the OED:
    Problem:

    1. A matter or situation regarded as unwelcome or harmful and needing to be dealt with and overcome:
    they have financial problems
    the problem of ageism in Hollywood

    1.1 A thing that is difficult to achieve or accomplish:
    motivation of staff can also be a problem
    1.2 [AS MODIFIER] Denoting or relating to people whose behavior causes difficulties to themselves and others:
    practitioners help families develop strategies for managing problem behavior in teens
    a problem family

    2 Physics & Mathematics - An inquiry starting from given conditions to investigate or demonstrate a fact, result, or law.
    2.1 Geometry A proposition in which something has to be constructed. Compare with theorem.
    2.2(In various games, especially chess) an arrangement of pieces in which the solver has to achieve a specified result.
Is there a Buddhist physics or mathematics?

I think you need to specify what you mean by "problem".
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Queequeg »

Realizing the emptiness of my hunger will not solve the problem of my starvation.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by boda »

Astus wrote:
boda wrote:1) Define the problem.
2) Brainstorming and lateral thinking.
3) Forming a hypotheses.
4) Testing.
Where is that found in Buddhism?
Anywhere there may be a problem of course.
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明安 Myoan
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by 明安 Myoan »

Queequeg wrote:Realizing the emptiness of my hunger will not solve the problem of my starvation.
No, but without seeing the emptiness of suffering, people are liable to sow further negative karma to ripen again in the future. And inaction before suffering, including one's own, can hardly be called compassion, can it?
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Queequeg »

Monlam Tharchin wrote:
Queequeg wrote:Realizing the emptiness of my hunger will not solve the problem of my starvation.
No, but without seeing the emptiness of suffering, people are liable to sow further negative karma to ripen again in the future. And inaction before suffering, including one's own, can hardly be called compassion, can it?
Image

Edit: I'm sorry I have no idea what point you're trying to make.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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明安 Myoan
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by 明安 Myoan »

I thought your point was that realizing the emptiness of hunger is useless since it does not feed you. So my response was to that idea. Apologies if I misinterpreted. :cheers:
Namu Amida Butsu
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Queequeg
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Queequeg »

Gotcha.

My point was to point out that the methods of solving problems described by Astus would not solve the problem of starving. It went along with my previous post about what Astus means by "problems". As I pointed out, problems can in mathematics, or physics, or engineering, or... etc.

I can guarantee that if I had handed in an essay describing the realization of emptiness on a calculus exam, I would have failed. Certainly, if I had concluded the emptiness of the exam and settled on non-action, that would have resulted in failure, too.

The larger point I was making, the 'Buddhist' problem solving described above has a discrete scope and if applied beyond that scope, it is absurd.

I would posit that Buddhist problem solving is action flowing from wisdom - inclusive but certainly not limited to the approaches described by Astus.

In other words, a life lived devoted to the cultivation of wisdom is the Buddhist method of problem solving. It will always depend on the particular problem, and will not always devolve to emptiness, non-attachment, etc.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Techno Yogi »

The Four Noble truths are formulated in the same way that an Indian physician would have formulated a diagnosis and treatment plan during the time of Shakyamuni Buddha:

The Truth of Suffering (disease/diagnosis)
The Truth of the Cause of Suffering (patho-physiology)
The Truth of the Cessation of Suffering (treatment principle)
The Truth of the Path to the End of Suffering (prescription/treatment plan)
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Astus
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Astus »

Queequeg wrote:I think you need to specify what you mean by "problem".
It is intentionally vague, the focus is on methods. So we can go with "A matter or situation regarded as unwelcome or harmful and needing to be dealt with and overcome".
Is there a Buddhist physics or mathematics?
Probably not, so there are no methods for those, and that's fine.
Realizing the emptiness of my hunger will not solve the problem of my starvation.
At what point does one need Buddhism to solve hunger?

Once a Vinaya Master came and asked: "In your practice of the Tao, do you still work hard?"
The Master answered: "Yes, I still work hard."
The Vinaya Master asked: "How hard?"
The Master retorted: "If I'm hungry, I eat. If I'm tired, I sleep. "
The Vinaya Master asked: "Do all other people work hard just as you do?"
The Master answered: "No, not in the same way."
The Vinaya Master asked: "Why not?"
The Master answered: "While they are eating, they are not really eating due to too much thinking. While they are sleeping, they are not really sleeping due to too much mental agitation. Therefore, they do not work in the same way I do."
The Vinaya Master, on hearing this, fell silent.

(The Tsung Ching Record)
The larger point I was making, the 'Buddhist' problem solving described above has a discrete scope and if applied beyond that scope, it is absurd.
That is very true, and the Buddha was quite clear on that as well: "Both formerly & now, it is only stress that I describe, and the cessation of stress." (SN 22.86, also the famous SN 56.31).

At the same time, even if we were to restrict it to duhkha, one of its definitions is "not getting what is wanted", and that befits the general idea of what any problem is. Still, the question is about possible methods offered. As for whether it is good for a particular problem is another question.
I would posit that Buddhist problem solving is action flowing from wisdom
What kind of wisdom? And again, the method could as well be called the path to wisdom, but that definition would likely take us to a different discussion.
1 Myriad dharmas are only mind.
Mind is unobtainable.
What is there to seek?

2 If the Buddha-Nature is seen,
there will be no seeing of a nature in any thing.

3 Neither cultivation nor seated meditation —
this is the pure Chan of Tathagata.

4 With sudden enlightenment to Tathagata Chan,
the six paramitas and myriad means
are complete within that essence.


1 Huangbo, T2012Ap381c1 2 Nirvana Sutra, T374p521b3; tr. Yamamoto 3 Mazu, X1321p3b23; tr. J. Jia 4 Yongjia, T2014p395c14; tr. from "The Sword of Wisdom"
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by SpinyNorman »

With the teachings on sunyata and dependent origination in mind, I think an understanding of conditionality and interconnectedness is often useful.

A modern expression of this approach would be something like Systems thinking: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_thinking
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Queequeg »

Astus wrote:
Queequeg wrote:I think you need to specify what you mean by "problem".
It is intentionally vague, the focus is on methods. So we can go with "A matter or situation regarded as unwelcome or harmful and needing to be dealt with and overcome".
Intentionally vague? Not so sure. The options you propose all address a specific problem - namely the common mistake we make about the substantiality of phenomena and noumena and the effects that flow from that. Seems your vagueness was inadvertent, but OK. Now that you've narrowed the scope...
Is there a Buddhist physics or mathematics?
Probably not, so there are no methods for those, and that's fine.
I find it unfortunate that so many Buddhists elect to circumscribe the scope of Buddhism to what amounts to a narcissistic existentialism. The tradition I follow embraces the full scope of human experience and interexperience - I don't think its exclusive in this embrace, but is idiosyncratic. This scope of course includes disciplines such as maths and sciences, as well as every other conventional truth and circumstance; of course it incidentally embraces Boda's suggestion of the scientific method as a means of problem solving. We can be theoretical physicists and Buddhists and have both hats be the same.

If you are starving, you lack a basic requisite to pursue Buddhadharma, so of course a material concern like feeding yourself is embraced in the scope of Buddhism, as is the need for shelter, leisure. It further goes without saying that the necessity of the Buddha's appearance in the world and the continuation of his teachings are necessary, too. All of these are problems that must be addressed, and if your interpretation of Buddhism does not address them, it is not a complete teaching.

The Mahayana teachings transcend the limited world of the sravaka or even pratyekabuddha. It embraces the full scope of human experience, not just life in a monastery.
The Mahayana Nirvana Sutra declares that all worldly truth is Buddha dharma. The Vimalkirti Sutra declares that there are not two worlds, pure and impure. Its a basic tenet of Mahayana that Nirvana and Samsara are coextensive. The options you propose all relate to addressing the problem flowing from the misperception of dharmas, but do not provide for what you do next. Zhiyi, who's authority is universally NOT accepted, but who nonetheless I think has a point here, would declare this an inferior teaching because it is biased in favor of emptiness, and does not provide for the reintegration in the conventional. No insight into the non-substantiality of phenomena is going to feed, clothe or shelter you. These are both prerequisites AND the point of all this in the first place - to live (ie. eat, sleep, enjoy life, etc.) without suffering. If its just the final unbinding you seek, that's not Mahayana. But even the Tripitaka embraces the conventional world - what is right livelihood if not addressing the right way to engage in the world?
I would posit that Buddhist problem solving is action flowing from wisdom
What kind of wisdom? And again, the method could as well be called the path to wisdom, but that definition would likely take us to a different discussion.
[/quote]

In what source is the realization of wisdom not the point of Buddhism? The problem is our nescience, wisdom in action (Buddhahood) is the solution.
There is no suffering to be severed. Ignorance and klesas are indivisible from bodhi. There is no cause of suffering to be abandoned. Since extremes and the false are the Middle and genuine, there is no path to be practiced. Samsara is nirvana. No severance achieved. No suffering nor its cause. No path, no end. There is no transcendent realm; there is only the one true aspect. There is nothing separate from the true aspect.
-Guanding, Perfect and Sudden Contemplation,
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Astus
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Astus »

Queequeg wrote:The tradition I follow embraces the full scope of human experience and interexperience - I don't think its exclusive in this embrace, but is idiosyncratic. This scope of course includes disciplines such as maths and sciences, as well as every other conventional truth and circumstance; of course it incidentally embraces Boda's suggestion of the scientific method as a means of problem solving. We can be theoretical physicists and Buddhists and have both hats be the same.
Buddhism can exist besides all sorts of other skills, that does not make shoemaking and calculus parts of the Buddhist tradition. What does such embracing mean then?
All of these are problems that must be addressed, and if your interpretation of Buddhism does not address them, it is not a complete teaching.
How many teachings do you know from the Buddha on agriculture, waste management and other common matters of society?
But even the Tripitaka embraces the conventional world - what is right livelihood if not addressing the right way to engage in the world?
The recommended livelihood is the celibate monastic life, even in Mahayana. I have not yet encountered a sutra or treatise advising people to enjoy the five desires (五欲) and be driven by the eight winds (八風).
1 Myriad dharmas are only mind.
Mind is unobtainable.
What is there to seek?

2 If the Buddha-Nature is seen,
there will be no seeing of a nature in any thing.

3 Neither cultivation nor seated meditation —
this is the pure Chan of Tathagata.

4 With sudden enlightenment to Tathagata Chan,
the six paramitas and myriad means
are complete within that essence.


1 Huangbo, T2012Ap381c1 2 Nirvana Sutra, T374p521b3; tr. Yamamoto 3 Mazu, X1321p3b23; tr. J. Jia 4 Yongjia, T2014p395c14; tr. from "The Sword of Wisdom"
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Matt J »

In his book The Power and the Pain, Andrew Holecek gives 4 basic models based on what he sees as the primary turnings in Buddhism: Abandon, Remedy, Transform, and Self-Liberate. He explains it all in the course of his book and provides easy examples.
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by SeeLion »

I think Right Concentration is a method, because the problem never arises in the first place.

Your post is very nice, but it seems to focus merely at the conceptual level and I think it can be expanded beyond that.
Last edited by SeeLion on Wed Jan 06, 2016 7:21 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Solving Problems the Buddhist Way

Post by Vasana »

I imagine problem solving to be something of a universal.

The 'Buddhist way' of solving a problems is still flexible and dependent upon the specific conditions and tendencies of the sentient beings experiencing any given problem after all. The Buddhist 'way' isn't an absolute in and of it's self. I would imagine the Buddhist way of solving problems is to realize that not all solutions are a one-size-fits-all deal.

Kirshnamurti once said , "If you put the question rightly, the answer is in the question" ...This naturally applies to the question of how to solve a problem.The solution is in the problem.If to have a problem is to suffer, the solution is found there too. Hence the 4 truths, various yanas and the 84,000 dharma doors.

There are 84,000 doors but i still often loose my keys.

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Last edited by Vasana on Wed Jan 06, 2016 7:26 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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