Why heaven sounds like hell
To those that believe in Christianity and the teachings of Islam and to a lesser degree Mahayana Buddhism they believe in a place after we shed this mortal coil that is without pain and only filled with joy and pleasure. A place without sadness or hunger. To me this heavenly place sounds like hell. From "The Beauty of Aqua":
We were about halfway up Sơn Trà Mountain when we stopped at a small Buddhist pagoda on a hill with a stunning view of the East Vietnamese Sea. The pagoda was old with its walls painted in the traditional yellow-orange scheme found in similar places and a dog quietly slept on the steps leading to the Buddha hall. We dismounted and sat on a large, cool stone bench out front. Thủy spoke.
“When I was young my mother brought me here and we were taught about a place called the ‘pure land.’ They said it was a place of happiness where there was no sadness or hunger but I did not understand.”
“Understand what?” I asked.
“How can there be happiness without some sadness in our lives? When I am hungry I am also sometimes sad but after I eat I am happy. A place without hunger is a place without food and that is a place without happiness.”
I thought about Matt sitting in a Buddhist pagoda in Thailand listening to monks trying to teach about happiness when all he needed to do was to sit next to Thủy and listen to that last sentence.
How can one appreciate happiness without some sadness? To me the concept of heaven just sounds like one, long heroin trip. One can't appreciate a great meal without having ever experienced hunger just like one can't appreciate happiness without some sadness in their lives.
Embrace your sadness as a part of life and remember like all things it will pass. As a young man in the USCG there were many times as part of a three man crew aboard a small 44 foot motorized lifeboat we were required to go to sea during fierce storms that made us question if we'd return but thanks to our training we always did. After being out all night in a particularly bad storm we returned to the safety of a placid Chatham Harbor early the next morning. I can remember that morning like it was yesterday not only because of how beautiful it was but because of what our small crew had suffered through the night before. All storms be it from nature or our internal thoughts pass and in the moments after those storms the world will never look more beautiful. Always try to remember those moments especially when you find yourself in another storm. And remember there is no happiness without some sadness.
We were about halfway up Sơn Trà Mountain when we stopped at a small Buddhist pagoda on a hill with a stunning view of the East Vietnamese Sea. The pagoda was old with its walls painted in the traditional yellow-orange scheme found in similar places and a dog quietly slept on the steps leading to the Buddha hall. We dismounted and sat on a large, cool stone bench out front. Thủy spoke.
“When I was young my mother brought me here and we were taught about a place called the ‘pure land.’ They said it was a place of happiness where there was no sadness or hunger but I did not understand.”
“Understand what?” I asked.
“How can there be happiness without some sadness in our lives? When I am hungry I am also sometimes sad but after I eat I am happy. A place without hunger is a place without food and that is a place without happiness.”
I thought about Matt sitting in a Buddhist pagoda in Thailand listening to monks trying to teach about happiness when all he needed to do was to sit next to Thủy and listen to that last sentence.
Embrace your sadness as a part of life and remember like all things it will pass. As a young man in the USCG there were many times as part of a three man crew aboard a small 44 foot motorized lifeboat we were required to go to sea during fierce storms that made us question if we'd return but thanks to our training we always did. After being out all night in a particularly bad storm we returned to the safety of a placid Chatham Harbor early the next morning. I can remember that morning like it was yesterday not only because of how beautiful it was but because of what our small crew had suffered through the night before. All storms be it from nature or our internal thoughts pass and in the moments after those storms the world will never look more beautiful. Always try to remember those moments especially when you find yourself in another storm. And remember there is no happiness without some sadness.
