Buddhism & The Notion of Suffering
After understanding the dark side within, I was curious about the Buddhist perspective on the causes of suffering. Suffering is defined as the inability to accept things as they are without grasping or turning away. It’s not the feeling of fear, or the desire for revenge; suffering is the attachment and aversion to those things. Matthew Bortolin teaches or explores Dharma in the Star Wars saga. Anakin and Luke are constantly compared and contrasted for their differences. However, there were several similarities between the two: both suffered on Tatooine, beginning their journey in the way of the force.
Three Types of Desire (that Causes Suffering)
Bortolin explains the three types of desire when grasped or rejected, cause suffering. The three types are:
- Desire for sense pleasure (things that are pleasant to experience)
- Desire for non-being (the wish for something to not be the way it is)
- Desire for becoming (the desire to have more or to be more)
Desire for Sense Pleasure
“Desire for sense pleasure creates suffering because its demands eternal fulfillment are continually frustrated by the impermanent,” changing world and things around us. We have a natural tendency to cling to things that bring us joy or make us happy, hoping they will never leave us. Shmi Skywalker may not want to see her child leave her to become a Jedi. But she understands and tells young Anakin “we cannot stop change anymore that we can stop the suns from setting.” All things are impermanent. We suffer when we don’t release them. Anakin believes that if he leaves Tatooine and trains as a Jedi, then he will be happy. While there is nothing wrong with wanting to become a Jedi, being attached to the idea can cause suffering if he’s unable to become a Jedi.
Desire for Non-Being
The desire for non-being is another way for aversion (the act of turning away). Aversion is frustration with life in the here and now; it is the desire to be rid of a dissatisfying situation explains Bortolin. In A New Hope, Luke can’t accept living on Tatooine, trapped into being a farmer as his friends are in the Academy. Luke longs for adventure. Once he finally trains to become a Jedi, Yoda must teach Luke in Empire Strikes Back to focus. Luke’s mind was never “on where he was, what he was doing” as he craves adventure and excitement. Yoda tells Luke “A Jedi craves not these things.” It is when a Jedi attaches to craving that he suffers. Luke must be mindful of his cravings so he can chose to act on them if he thinks they will benefit him rather than making him a slave to them instead.
Desire of Becoming (Anakin Loses Himself)
The desire of becoming or the almost blind quest to attain it. Anakin loses himself to his quest to “become the most powerful Jedi ever.” When we pursue ideas of becoming, we lose peace in the here and now. The Jedi arts of mindfulness, concentration, and meditation are intended to help get in touch with one’s self. We cannot become anything more that what we already are. Anakin’s road to becoming the most powerful Jedi (actually, Sith Lord) leads to frustration and unhappiness. The key is understanding, not becoming. “The more we understand ourselves the less we will suffer by clinging to the idea that we need to get rid of who we are and become just like a little green Jedi Master.”
Allowing Desire to Just “Be”
So desire appears to be the cause of suffering. Now what? If we feel desire knowing what we know now, we may push it away only for it to form desire for non-being. How does a Jedi or average person cope with desire then? Allow it to just be-”-like a cloud floating across the sky of our mind. By allowing desire to be means we accept it and can watch it, noticing it will eventually cease. “The practice of recognizing, accepting, and allowing desire to be is how we let go of desire.”
Letting Go
Yoda ultimately shows us how to let go in Return of the Jedi. He has seen the Republic in its glory with Jedi acting as stewards of peace, he has seen the Republic fall into chaos, and he has seen the Sith take over and the Jedi hunted down all but disappearing. Yoda knows his life is ending and the dark side still rules the galaxy. However, he doesn’t suffer from aversion, he doesn’t cling to his ideas or beliefs. Yoda lets go and accepts that dying is the way of things, “the way of the Force.”
The Dharma of Star Wars is an excellent read in understanding the spiritual side of the Jedi and the Jedi Arts. While we know that Anakin wanted to grow up to be a Jedi or that Luke couldn’t wait to get off Tatooine, Bortolin allows us to understand how these aspirations could cause suffering for our beloved Star Wars characters. What lessons are to learned by Luke’s wisdom? I thought he was just an annoying, whiny kid that happened to make a decent decision to help his father return to the good side of the Force. I maybe wrong.
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