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**intisgunkas** · 03-22-2012, 03:25 PM

I'm not trying to be contradictory. I just want clarification.

I didn't know the goals of Buddhism was to understand the nature of reality. I thought this was left to speculation and has nothing to do with cessation of suffering and reaching enlightenment.

Actually, Buddhism already gave you the answers to the nature of reality (at least those most involved with human natures.) Unfortunately, knowing the answers on the intellectual level is not much of help. You have to prove to yourself (i.e. goes through the derivation of the answers yourself) that the answers provided by Buddha are true. If you can do that, you are said to have reached 'enlightenment' and no longer have to 'suffer.'

How do you derive the answers yourself? Well, Buddha already showed the way and there are numerous Buddhist texts/traditions that offered many other approaches, but the concepts are all really similar, only differ in details and emphasis.

What are the answers to the nature of reality according to Buddhism? They are simply: sunyata, paticcasamuppāda, anicca, and anatta. Others might want to add a few mores, but I think everything else can be derived from these 4 concepts. Actually, you can even derive anicca and anatta from sunyata and paticcasamuppāda, but it is easier to call them out separately.

03-22-2012, 03:25 PM	#15
intisgunkas Join Date Oct 2005 Posts 465 Senior Member	I'm not trying to be contradictory. I just want clarification. I didn't know the goals of Buddhism was to understand the nature of reality. I thought this was left to speculation and has nothing to do with cessation of suffering and reaching enlightenment. Actually, Buddhism already gave you the answers to the nature of reality (at least those most involved with human natures.) Unfortunately, knowing the answers on the intellectual level is not much of help. You have to prove to yourself (i.e. goes through the derivation of the answers yourself) that the answers provided by Buddha are true. If you can do that, you are said to have reached 'enlightenment' and no longer have to 'suffer.' How do you derive the answers yourself? Well, Buddha already showed the way and there are numerous Buddhist texts/traditions that offered many other approaches, but the concepts are all really similar, only differ in details and emphasis. What are the answers to the nature of reality according to Buddhism? They are simply: sunyata, paticcasamuppāda, anicca, and anatta. Others might want to add a few mores, but I think everything else can be derived from these 4 concepts. Actually, you can even derive anicca and anatta from sunyata and paticcasamuppāda, but it is easier to call them out separately.
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