If life is 'suffering,' what's the point?

If 'life is suffering,' what’s the point of living? The Buddha's life-changing answer

What is vipassana?

(Buddha's Wisdom) April 30, 2025: 🔍 THE BUDDHA'S SHOCKING ANSWER TO LIFE'S BIGGEST QUESTION: Why do anything at all if life is filled with pain, loss, separation, and disappointment (dukkha)?

The Buddha said, “Life is suffering [disappointing, unsatisfactory],” — but he didn’t stop there. That was just laying out the problem we face. Living (existing) includes unbearable pain and horrifying misery.

Why was the Buddha always smiling?

["Life is what happens when you're making plans."]

• Ikigai (生き甲斐, literally "a reason for being") is a Japanese concept that refers to what an individual defines to be the meaning of his or her life. More

Beneath that harsh (and potentially enlightening) truth lies one of the most liberating insights in all of human history.

TIMESTAMPS

• 00:00 LIFE'S MOST DISTURBING QUESTION
• 01:25 THE HAPPINESS TRAP
• 04:03 THE IMPOSSIBLE GAME
• 06:43 THE BUDDHA'S SECRET WEAPON
• 09:34 THE MEANING MISTAKE
• 12:32 LIVING WITHOUT A POINT
• 15:02 THE ULTIMATE PLOT TWIST

This video unpacks a forgotten teaching that turns suffering into meaning as it reveals the radical Buddhist answer to life’s most haunting question.

DISCOVER:

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind (Shunryu Suzuki)

• The happiness trap that keeps most people stuck in a cycle of dissatisfaction
• How the Buddha's First Noble (Ennobling = Enlightening) Truth is profoundly misunderstood in Western culture
• The revolutionary approach to meaning that flips conventional wisdom upside down
• Why the very search for purpose might be preventing us from finding it
• Three practical Buddhist practices we can start today to transform our experience

SOURCES

• Dhammapada, Translations of Sayings of the Buddha Teachings by Thich Nhat Hanh [Tick Not Hawn] and the Dalai Lama, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind by Shunryu Suzuki.
• Additional reflections are based on Vipassana ("Insight Meditation") retreats and Buddhist psychology (Abhidhamma)
• [There are FOUR enlightening truths, not one: There's suffering; there's a reason for it; there and END to suffering; and there's a reason why it ends! Ah, so there's hope and happiness!]

If this perspective resonates, hit subscribe to continue exploring the Buddha's wisdom with Buddha's Wisdom. New videos every week diving deeply into ancient insights that can transform modern life. Support the channel: buymeacoffee.com/buddhaswisdom #buddhism, #meditation, #meaningoflife, #buddhawisdom, #suffering, #purpose, #dukkha, #firstnobletruth, #mindfulness, #enlightenment, #spirituality, #impermanence

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• Matt, Buddha's Wisdom, April 30, 2025; Dhr. Seven, Ananda (Dharma Buddhist Meditation), Pat Macpherson, Wisdom Quarterly

End of World: Revelation, Mr. Beast is Devil

(Mr. Beast) What are the world's most viewed TikToks garnering billions of views?

Atheists DESTROY the hypocrisy of the Ten Commandments #2

Is Mr. Beast the Devil? Jimmy Donaldson's darkest SECRET exposed

(MorgueOfficial) Who is "Mr. Beast"? Recent rumors of rigged games and hiring predators are recent dimensions of his character coming to light, and that’s just scratching the surface. What if there's something more Satanic beneath the surface? (What is Gnosticism?)

Book of Revelation: drugged-induced visions

New Testament Bible, p. 46

The Book of Revelation or Book of the Apocalypse is the final book of the New Testament (and therefore the final book of the Christian Bible, although the older Ethiopian Christian Bible has 22 more books that Western Christianity lost or banned). Written in Koine Greek, its title is derived from the first word of the text: apokalypsis, meaning "unveiling" or "revelation." The Book of Revelation is the only apocalyptic book in the New Testament canon [a]. It occupies a central place in Christian eschatology. More: Book of Revelation

MorgueOfficial's new books: amzn.to/47d4PgN. Listen to audiobook: amzn.to/3BPabTM. Follow Podcast on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/3qYG2pk... Get access to members' videos by supporting at: morgueofficial. More ways to support: merch at morgueofficial.com. Follow Morgue: ⇀ Facebook: morgueofficial ⇀ Instagram: morgueofficial ⇀ Twitter: morgueofficial. #mrbeast #jimmydonaldson #mrbeastchallenge #youtuber #greed #influencer

• MorgueOfficial, Nov. 23, 2024 and April 26, 2025; Jupitar Star; Eds., Wisdom Quarterly

LA County (SEIU Union) workers on strike

Meet the DOGE layoff victims that Elon Musk deemed wasteful | Desi Lydic | The Daily Show

(KTLA 5 News, Los Angeles, 4/29/25) Over 55,000 L.A. County workers go on strike

Over 55,000 L.A. County workers go on strike

(KTLA 5) April 29, 2025: It's not just federal workers being booted into unemployment. Los Angeles COUNTY employees aren't making enough to keep up with inflation (or Trumpflation as one might call it). So they are on strike, as LA pays $4 billion in child rape and sexual abuse settlement costs from abusing so many children in its care Tens of thousands of workers employed by Los Angeles County continued striking Tuesday, consequently disrupting some public services. The members of labor union SEIU 721 walked off their jobs after 7:00 pm Monday in an effort to negotiate for a new and fairer contract with the county. KTLA's Rachel Menitoff reports on April 29, 2025. Details: ktla.com/news/local-news/abou...

Meditation 'n magic in the Himalayas

Ancient Buddhist monks found alive in remote Himalayas: Experts fear what they’re guarding

In Lhasa, Tibet, 1924

(Voyager) April 28, 2025: In the remote, icy Himalayan peaks, ancient monks have been reportedly found alive, sitting in deep meditation and untouched by time. These mysterious figures, seemingly defying death, have sparked awe and fear among experts. What secrets are they guarding, and why are they hidden in isolation? Whispers of divine rituals and ancient relics have surfaced, leaving the world to wonder if these monks hold knowledge that could reshape humanity—or destroy it. What lies beyond the veil of their silence? #Voyager Subscribe ➡ @voyagerspace 

Magic and Mystery in Tibet

Alexandra David-Neel, 1886

Western author Alexandra David-Neel has garnered 4.5 out of 5 stars with 160 ratings (and reviews). This is the Number 1 best seller in Tibet travel guides.

For centuries Tibet has been known as the last home of mystery [excluding the even more mysterious Bhutan, Sikkim, and to some extent Nepal], the hidden, sealed land, where ancient mysteries still survive that have perished in the rest of the Orient (Asia).

Many people have written about Tibet and its secret lore, but few have actually penetrated it to learn its ancient wisdom. Among those few was Madame Alexandra David-Neel, a French Orientalist.

A practicing Western Buddhist, a profound historian of religion, and linguist, she actually lived in Tibet for more than 14 years.

• She had the great honor of being received by the 14th Dalai Lama;
• she studied philosophical Buddhism and Tibetan Tantra at Tibet's great centers;
• she meditated in lonely caves and on wind-swept winter mountains with yogi hermits; and
• she witnessed forbidden corpse-magic in the forests.
• Her experiences are unique.

The Secret Oral Teachings in Tibetan Buddhist Sects

Magic and Mystery in Tibet tells the story of her experiences on the Rooftop of the World, among lamas and magicians.

It is neither a travel book nor an autobiography but a study of psychic discovery, a description of the occult and mystical theories and psychic training practices of Tibet.

She tells of great sages and sorcerers that she met, of the system of monastic education, the great teachers and their disciples, Tibetan folklore about their spiritual athletes, reincarnation (rebirth) and memory from previous lives.

She also discusses elaborate magical rites to obtain the siddhis (supernormal powers), the horrible necromantic magic of the pre-Buddhist Bonpa shamas (Bon shamans), mental visualization exercises to create disembodied thought forms (tulpas), visions, strange phenomena derived from physical yoga postures, control of the body-heat mechanism (tumo), breathing exercises; sending “messages on the wind,” and much similar material.

An unusual aspect of Madame David-Neel’s book is that she herself experienced many of the phenomena she describes, yet she describes them with precision and in a matter-of-fact manner, permitting the reader to draw his own conclusions about validity, interpretation in terms of psychology, and value.

Particularly interesting for the modern experiencer are her detailed instructions for tumo (the yoga of heat control) and the creation of thought projections. More

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Author becomes an adept in Tibet, 1933

At the age of 18, Alexandra David-Néel had already visited England, Switzerland, and Spain on her own, and she was studying in Madame Blavatsky's Theosophical Society.

"She joined various secret societies – she would reach the thirtieth degree in the mixed Scottish Rite of Freemasonry – while [both] feminist and anarchist groups greeted her with enthusiasm...

"Throughout her childhood and adolescence, she was associated with the French geographer and anarchist Elisée Reclus (1820–1905). This led her to become interested in the anarchistic ideas of the time and in feminism, that inspired her to publish Pour la vie (For Life) in 1898.

"In 1899, she composed an anarchist treatise with a preface by Reclus. Publishers did not dare to publish the book, though her friend Jean Haustont printed copies himself and it was eventually translated into five languages."

In 1891, she visited India for the first time and met her spiritual preceptor, Swami Bhaskarananda Saraswati of Varanasi [7].

She was 21 years old when she converted to Buddhism in 1889, according to Raymond Brodeur, which she noted in her diary published under the title La Lampe de sagesse (The Lamp of Wisdom) in 1896. More

• Introduction by A. D'Arsonval, June 1, 1971
• See all formats and editions
• Voyager, April 28, 2025; Alexandra David-Neel, Magic and Mystery in Tibet (amazon.com); Amber Larson and Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Budding Lotus in the West: Feminists

Budding Lotus in the West: Buddhism from an Immigrant's Feminist Perspective

Author Nhi Yến Đỗ Trần has 5.0 out of 5 stars with 15 ratings. "[This is a] fiery debut... [Tran's] perceptive textual criticism and willingness to call out bias are refreshing. [This book] is a valuable contribution to the literature on Buddhism." —Publishers Weekly

​"A refreshingly frank, critical, yet ultimately loving analysis of Buddhism, challenging interpretations shaped by patriarchal views.

"This well-researched page-turner references early Buddhist texts to explore today's hot-button issues, such as abortion, gun rights, LGBTQIA+ identity, and gender equality. [Tran] weaves deeply personal experiences throughout with notable vulnerability and humor, making this book equally compelling as a memoir." — Lion's Roar

Budding Lotus in the West (p.1)

Born into a family legacy of Buddhist spirituality in Việt Nam, Nhi Yến Đỗ Trần immigrated to the US at age 10.

Budding Lotus in the West follows her journey and unveils the complexities of Buddhist teachings woven into American fabric. With raw authenticity, Trần combines personal narratives, scholarly insights, and critical analysis to share her experiences with Buddhism and provide a fundamental understanding of key Buddhist concepts and traditions.

Examining the interplay between ancient wisdom and contemporary challenges, she invites spiritual seekers and curious minds to relate these principles to their own lived realities.

Budding Lotus in the West (p.1)

For example, what would the Buddha say about abortion, gun, and LGBT rights, prejudice, discrimination, and gender equality?

How can Buddhist practitioners more skillfully navigate romance in their sangha (spiritual community)? Whether one is a longtime Buddhist practitioner or just beginning to explore the practice, Budding Lotus in the West offers wisdom, inspiration, and a path toward an evolving, authentic, and inclusive spirituality in the modern world. More

Wake Up Seattle 🌸 | On Friday May 2, 2025, Cherry Blossom Sangha hosts Brother Chan Phap Nguyen (“Brother Aspiration”) to lead us in meditation | Instagram

.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR.

Seattle 🌸 Cherry Blossom Sangha

Nhi Yến Đỗ Trần (kneetran.com) immigrated with her family from Vietnam to the US at age 10 through the Humanitarian Operation Program [Express].

Now residing in Seattle, she cofounded the Cherry Blossom Sangha, a mindfulness community dedicated to fostering inner serenity, mutual understanding, and universal compassion.

AmeEx

Her diverse exploration of Buddhism, from Theravāda and Mahāyāna traditions to secular applications, has been enriched by Buddhist pilgrimages to India and Nepal and a residential internship at a Zen monastery.

Her book, Budding Lotus in the West, reflects these experiences, focusing on gender equality and social change. She is also a devoted patron of Tu Viện Giác Hải, a monastery in Khánh Hòa founded by her great-uncle, Venerable Thích Viên Giác.

Where's the Cherry Blossom Sangha? Map

She holds a master’s degree in public administration from Seattle University and enjoys exploring culinary delights from around the globe, always with a side of sriracha or chili pepper hot sauce. She is represented by literary agent Leticia Gomez (Savvy Literary Agency).

• Budding Lotus in the West: Buddhism from an Immigrant's Feminist Perspective | Goodreads
• Cherry Blossom Sangha: Northwest Dharma Association
• Cherry Blossom Sangha - Wake Up International
• Cherry Blossom Sangha | Seattle WA | Facebook
• Wake Up Seattle 🌸 | Third Mindfulness Training: True Love
• Miss World Vietnam 2023
• Nhi Yến Đỗ Trần (amazon.com, Oct. 1, 2024); Bio (goodreads.com); CC Liu, Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

American tries world's most intense DMT

Asking festivalgoers what their most terrifying drug experience is | Adam educates on safety

The most INTENSE psychedelic on earth...and he takes it at music fests | Connor full interview

The most intense psychedelic on earth...and Connor takes it at music festivals

(Psyched Substance) This video has been created for safety and harm reduction. We want to both show what the reality of modern music festivals is like and sprinkle as much safety advice throughout the conversations as we can. It is also nice to showcase the beautiful individuals who attend to make these festivals happen. Remember, set and setting are the most important considerations before experimenting, exploring, and journeying as a cybernaut.

Actors on acid? LSD an Apocalypse Now

Get hooded blanket: psychedsubstance.shop. Support on Patreon: goo.gl/EufkcZ. Get a testing kit: tinyurl.com/GetTestKit. Follow Instagram: adamispsyched. Follow on Twitter: psychedsubstan.

• Psyched Substance, April 16, 2025; Pat Macpherson, Xochitl, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Going inside the Great Pyramid of Giza

Inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, April 2025

(Brien Foerster) Premiered April 29, 2025. Check out some upcoming events hiddenincatours.com/tours/#major. Why does Wisdom Quarterly care so much about world heritage sites like ancient Egyptian archeological digs? Are they Buddhist?

Interestingly, Buddhism and ancient Egypt meet in the Grand Canyon, in the state of Arizona, USA. It seems obvious that in the past the world was in communication and likely under one world religion or an amalgam of Buddhist, Hindu (Vedic), shamanic (animist), and the gods of the Middle East (Near East and Asia Minor, forming the remnants of what came to be the great Abrahamic faiths).

Dr. Fry finds Atlantis under her feet: Doggerland - How a tsunami devastated Britain’s Atlantis

Prehistoric North Sea "Atlantis" was hit by 5-meter-tall tsunami (BBC News)

The fact that extraterrestrials (devas, angels, light beings, spirits, shapeshifters, extra-dimensionals) have been interacting with humans goes without saying. Develop the meditative absorptions and see and interact with them for yourself. This truth is there to be confirmed.

Regardless, every important place on and in the planet is the human plane (manussa loka), so it is of interest to us. We are citizens of the world, not one limited part of it. If Brien Foerster or David Wilcock (divinecosmos.com) want to organize an expedition or adventure travel to Egypt, we're in. In the meantime, many people have gone and filmed the experience, which is so much more than the Giza Plateau.

• VIDEO: Remote viewers find ETs in secret bases
• VIDEO: More ancient megalithic wonders in Cusco, Peru, that the Inca found 1,000 years ago
• Brien Foerster (Hidden Inca Tours - Visit Paracas, Nazca, Cusco, Machu Picchu, Peru, Tiwanaku, Puma Punku, Bolivia with Brien Foerster)

KOAN: Will Schrodinger kill the cat?

What's the physics behind the Schrodinger's Cat thought experiment (zmescience.com)

KOAN: Nansen Kills the Cat

Roshi Philip Kapleau | Zen Bow | Winter 2018, Vol. XL, No. 4, rzc.org

Shōkei (Andreas Praefcke/Wiki)

Here is a vintage koan ("public case") commentary by the Rochester Zen Center’s founder, the late American Roshi Philip Kapleau. Mumonkan, Number 14. [It presages countless college discussions about Schrodinger's cat below.]

The Case

Once the monks of the Western and Eastern Halls were arguing about a cat. Nansen, holding up the cat, said: “You monks! If you can say a word of Zen, I will spare the cat. Otherwise, I will kill it!”

No one could answer, so Nansen cut the cat in two. That evening, when Joshu returned, Nansen told him of the incident. Joshu thereupon took off his sandal, put it on his head, and walked off.

Nansen said, “If you had been there, the cat would have been saved!”

The Commentary

Just say, what is the real meaning of Joshu’s putting his sandal on his head? If you can give a turning word on this point, you will see that Nansen’s action was not in vain. But if not, beware!

The Verse

Had Joshu only been there,

he would have taken charge.

He would have snatched away the sword,

and Nansen would have begged for his life.

Roshi Kapleau: The two protagonists of this koan, Nansen (748-835) and Joshu, are two of the great masters in Zen. Nansen (Chinese Nanchuan) was the teacher of Joshu (Chinese Zhaozhou). Nansen in turn was a disciple of the great Baso (Chinese Mazu). More: rzc.org

Experiment: Schrödinger Kills a Cat?

In quantum mechanics, Schrödinger's cat is a thought experiment (just as koans are like more shocking than historical reporting) concerning quantum superposition.

The experiment shows it's not true.

In this thought experiment, a hypothetical cat (and not the precious companion of Wisdom Quarterly's companion fish, Captain Shiny Sides, no relation to Hecklefish Moriarty of The Why Files) in a closed box may be considered to be simultaneously both alive and dead until it is observed, as a result of its fate being linked to a random subatomic event that may or may not occur. The thought experiment, viewed this way, is described as a paradox.

It is not alive but not quite dead?

It was devised by physicist Dr. Erwin Schrödinger in 1935 [1] in a discussion with Albert Einstein [2] to illustrate what Schrödinger saw as the problems (inconsistencies and contradictions) of the Copenhagen interpretation of quantum mechanics.

In Schrödinger's original formulation, a cat, a flask of poison, and a radioactive source are placed in a sealed box.

If an internal radiation monitor, such as a Geiger counter, detects radioactivity (a single atom decaying), the flask is shattered, releasing the poison, which kills the cat.

But if no decaying atom triggers the monitor, the cat remains alive.

The Copenhagen interpretation implies that the cat is therefore simultaneously both alive and dead.

Yet, when one finally looks in the box, one sees that the cat is either alive or dead, not both alive and dead.

This poses the question of when exactly quantum superposition ends and reality resolves into one possibility or the other. More

Most people don't get Schrodinger's Cat (including you?)

(Looking Glass Universe) Nov. 7, 2024: A 4-week live course will run from Jan. 6-31. More info here: looking-glass-universe.teacha... This is the third video of a series on quantum mechanics. The rest of the playlist is here: Quantum mechanics course

• Looking Glass Universe, Nov. 7, 2024; Roshi Kapleau, Rochester Zen Center (rzc.org); Brian Cox via Explainify; Amber Larson, Dhr. Seven, CC Liu, Sheldon S. (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

First 100 days of Trump: polls DOWN

Are our poles down? - I hope so, but our polls better be up. - I hear ya, Big Guy, I hear ya.

Jimmy Kimmel on Trump’s first 100 days in office and he travels back to 2007 to try to stop him

Don Trump hits 100 days and Canada celebrates by electing the Anti-Trump | The Daily Show

Jon on Trump's first 100 days: Destroying America's reputation, economy, and leverage | The Daily Show

Elon Musk prays for the best as he worries. MAGA cap: "Trump was right about everything"

.

I want you back, Penny. - Me, too, Don-John.

(The Daily Show) April 28, 2025: What is a F.U.P.A. (or as the Urban Dictionary has it, a fupa)? Jon Stewart takes a look at Trump’s first 100 days back in office at the center of The Swamp: from plummeting approval ratings to unfulfilled promises on immigration, health, and the economy, to destroying his reputation (and that of the United States) as a shrewd negotiator with China and Ukraine and Russia and Greenland and Canada and Panama... #DailyShow #JonStewart #100Days #Trump

• Americans sour on Trump's handling of the economy, Reuters/Ipsos poll finds | Reuters
• Latest U.S. opinion polls on President Trump and other recent failures | Ipsos

Diddy cases involves Israel and Bibi

Whitney Webb stuns Katie Halper: Diddy case involves Israel and Bibi

• Etsy.com (funny Trump-Musk sticker); Jon Stewart, The Daily Show, April 28, 2025; Ashley Wells, Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly