No-Nonsense Buddhism for Beginners: Clear Answers to Burning Questions About Core Buddhist Teachings

by Noah Rasheta

In our day-to-day lives, we’re continually making meaning and creating stories about everything that happens. A thought arises, we create a story about it, the story evokes an emotion, we create another story about that, and on and on until, before we know it, we’re hardly paying attention to our lived reality at all, trapped in a habitual reactivity to our own thoughts.

In fact, in one Buddhist scripture, the Buddha seems to be critical of god worship, telling a young man that it’s far more important to live ethically than it is to worship anything.

Should you find a wise critic to point out your faults, follow him as you would a guide to hidden treasure. THE BUDDHA, THE DHAMMAPADA

“the secret of Buddhism is to remove all ideas, all concepts, in order for the truth to have a chance to penetrate, to reveal itself.” The Buddha taught that we are essentially prisoners of our own minds, bound by our beliefs, perceptions, and ideas. We see an inaccurate version of reality—a version, not coincidentally, that causes us unnecessary suffering. We tend to go through life thinking that external circumstances are to blame for our suffering and our lack of contentment. The Buddha’s teachings help us alter that perspective and learn that the unnecessary suffering we experience has more to do with how we see things than with what we see.

To be enlightened is to be liberated from our habitual reactivity, freed from our perceptions and ideas in order to see reality as it is without wanting it to be different.

There we can find the source of all the good things we say, think, and do, and likewise discover that we ourselves—our own minds—are the source of any evil. This understanding gives us a greater sense of responsibility over our own thoughts, words, and actions.

Because external things, like money, fame, or power, can’t bring us lasting joy or contentment, we’re setting ourselves up to experience unnecessary suffering by chasing after them. Material things can be nice to have for a time, but the happiness and fulfillment we seek is not found in external sources.

The most dangerous manifestation of ignorance is the belief in a permanent self that exists independent of other people and the rest of the world.

We often believe the misguided notion that if we could just get the things we want—money, fame, power—they would somehow finally give us the happiness we seek and ensure we’d no longer experience suffering. Greed is not just about material things, though. We also tend to want to change other people to get more things, like attention or affection. We mistakenly think that once we change others, we’ll find lasting happiness.

It’s not that there’s anything inherently wrong with the feeling of desire; it’s that we can become blinded by it, especially when we don’t have a thorough understanding of the intent or causes behind why we feel what we feel. Simply following our desires without taking time to understand them can lead to destructive behavior and mental confusion, which is why greed is considered a poison.

a mental state, hatred affects the emotional well-being of the person doing the hating more than the person being hated.

“Where am I?” and “What am I doing?” These questions may seem simple, but it can be tricky to focus on them. It seems like no matter where we are or what we’re doing, we’re always thinking of somewhere or something else. Those two questions often help me think deeply about where I am, anchoring me to the present moment.

From a Buddhist perspective, these moments allow us to make contact, even if only briefly, with reality as it is, as opposed to the stories and chatter in our heads that we’re usually tuned into.

we have to peel away the clay—all the ideas, opinions, and beliefs that are preventing us from seeing how things really are.

If we didn’t hold the false belief, the suffering wouldn’t exist.

Ask yourself, “Which me is the real me?” This question helps me remember that there is no permanent me. There is only the momentary me that is continually changing and being changed by everything around me. The me of now is not the me of yesterday or five years ago or five years from now. This is what Buddhism teaches with regard to nonself.

When someone attacks a belief or opinion we hold, we can see that they’re attacking the idea, not us directly. When we’re nonattached to our ideas, they no longer own us—we own them.

This is emptiness. It’s the understanding that as life unfolds, it doesn’t mean anything. It is neither positive nor negative. All things simply are as they are.

Death represents the end of what is familiar, and we’re often uncomfortable with or scared of the unknown music that’s beyond the final note in the song of our own lives. But in reality, there’s no need to fear death, because while it may be the end of the song, it’s not the end of music.

So rather than focusing on life after death, we can instead choose to focus on life before death—the life we’re living now. Rather than speculating about what happens when we die, we can anchor ourselves in the present moment.

We can begin here and now to make life meaningful by understanding that meaning isn’t out there waiting to be found—it’s in you, waiting to be created.

When you begin to understand the nature of reality, that all things are interdependent and connected, you can start to see karma working all around you. For example, let’s say someone gets into an argument with her coworker. Later, she drives home and, still upset, aggressively tailgates another car. The person being tailgated is now also upset, and when he arrives home to find his kids have spilled something on the floor, he yells at them. You can see how one act affects another act; this is karma in action. At any given moment, we’re all acting upon the karma that has been set in motion by others. The central teaching of karma is that we can pause and break the cycle of reactivity. In that mindful pause, we have the freedom to choose a more skillful action to contribute to the never-ending web of causes and effects going on all around us.

Agnosticism, the stance that whether or not there’s a God is ultimately unknowable, can play an important role on the path of awakening. In Buddhism, not knowing is an ideal mental state, because that’s when we’re open to learning and experiencing. Many Buddhists are agnostic not only about God but also about many of life’s existential questions. This is what the Zen tradition calls a beginner’s, or open, mind.

We live life moment by moment, with uncertainty our only certainty because the present moment is all we’ll ever have. This includes happy moments, sad moments, moments when we feel anger or compassion. They’re all just moments, completely unique and precious. Buddhist concepts and teachings can help us stay anchored in the present, whether it’s a magical moment like the one I had with my daughter or an ordinary moment just sitting at a red light. They all can be moments of profound awareness when we see them the right way. Buddhist concepts and teachings offer the tools to find greater freedom, meaning, and peace in your day-to-day experience of being alive.

Once you know that suffering is an unavoidable part of the experience, you can embrace the fact that it will happen at some point, worry less about it, and be prepared to recover more quickly when it comes.

Right, or wise, understanding starts by simply recognizing that what we’re seeing might not actually be what it appears to be.

We must continually seek wisdom to help us learn to see the world as it really is.

The Four Noble Truths and the three marks of existence (suffering, impermanence, and nonself) help us have a wise understanding of the nature of reality. The wisdom of understanding is not about acquiring more knowledge. In fact, it’s the opposite: It’s about trying to unlearn the concepts and ideas that prevent us from seeing reality as it is.

If we want to reduce suffering, we need to be aware of the intentions we have regarding the things we say and do.

When we behave reactively, it is very difficult to be mindful of the intent behind our words and actions.

When you become aware of your intentions, you can decide if you need to create new intentions and perhaps let go of the old ones. This will cause you to speak and act more skillfully.

Right speech means communicating with others in a way that doesn’t cause harm.

Lying, gossiping, or insulting others is not right speech, but neither are compliments you don’t mean, promises you don’t intend to keep, or sucking up to someone you want to impress.

Consider the difference between constructive criticism and destructive criticism. The former may be hard to hear, but its goal is to help you become better at what you’re doing. The latter is intended only to cause pain. Right speech doesn’t always have to be pleasant, nor does it need to withhold ideas out of fear that someone might disagree, but it should be sincere and genuine.

In order to properly weigh the consequences of our actions, it’s helpful to examine whether our actions are motivated by greed, hatred, and delusion or by kindness, wisdom, and compassion. Intent plays a key role here.

If the killing is done without hatred, it can be interpreted as being in accordance with this precept.

It includes evaluating your own motivations and understanding how your actions will affect others. Abstaining from taking what is not given can also be a source of happiness or contentment. For example, we may feel a sense of joy in knowing that we have not harmed others by stealing from them. We can also feel a sense of joy in knowing that others trust us and our word. There is peace and joy in living a life of no remorse.

As with all the precepts, examining how an action will make you feel and how it will impact others is a good starting point for determining if an action is in alignment with this rule.

It means speaking honestly and communicating in a way that is beneficial to others. Incorrect speech is speech that is rooted in the three poisons of greed, hatred, and ignorance. Misleading others in your communication just to get what you want, speaking in a way that is intentionally hurtful to others, and gossiping are all forms of incorrect speech. Correct speech arises naturally when we’re speaking without greed, hatred, or delusion.

“intoxicants” can be anything that clouds the mind or alters perception.

This may include the media we consume or even “intoxicating” addictive habits, like gambling. This precept is meant to encourage practitioners to be cautious about the things that distract us from having a direct experience of life.

As with any action, it’s important to understand the intent behind one’s drinking. Some people drink as a form of escaping their reality rather than confronting it, understanding it, and accepting it. From the Buddhist perspective, that’s an unskillful approach to life that can cause unnecessary suffering to oneself and others. One of the main objectives of Buddhist practice is to gain greater insight into the nature of one’s own mind, and this task is nearly impossible when the mind is clouded. (It’s hard to do even when you’re totally sober!)

However, if you do decide that Buddhism is the right path for you, you can do what is called taking refuge in the tisaraṇa (the “three refuges,” also known as the “three jewels”): the Buddha, the dharma (“teachings”), and the sangha (“community”). Most forms of Buddhism do this with a formal ceremony at a Buddhist temple, but it can also be done on a personal level by simply reciting, “I take refuge in the Buddha. I take refuge in the dharma. I take refuge in the sangha.”

“I take refuge in the Buddha.” To seek shelter in the Buddha means to recognize that the Buddha was capable of attaining enlightenment, and, therefore, so are we. Taking refuge in the Buddha is an invitation to see ourselves in him and to strive to attain liberation from our own habitual reactivity and the poisons of greed, hatred, and ignorance in our own minds.

“I take refuge in the dharma.” To seek safety in Buddhist teachings is to recognize that they can give us a new perspective and a profound understanding of ourselves and the nature of reality. It goes beyond just trusting or accepting the teachings. It’s about trusting that our practice of the teachings will indeed create a more peaceful and harmonious way of living.

“I take refuge in the sangha.” To seek refuge in the Buddhist community is to recognize that, by practicing with others, we can find and offer support. The importance of practicing with others cannot be overestimated. A good friend helps us see the unskillful actions that we may not see in ourselves. Opening ourselves up to others and allowing them to support...

We don’t think, “This is a good cloud” or “That’s a bad cloud,” “That cloud isn’t puffy enough,” or “That cloud is too tall.” In these moments of observation, we just see the cloud for what it is. When we turn this process inward, we can start to experience the same unbiased, nonjudgmental attitude toward our own thoughts and feelings. Suddenly we’re not judging our anger as good or bad. We just notice that we’re experiencing an emotion and allow it to remain without resisting it or trying to fight it off. Before we know it, the emotion will dissipate or be replaced by another, just like the clouds in the sky.

When we meditate, we’re simply trying to observe what’s there—thoughts, emotions, everything. Trying to control our thoughts—or anything else—is actually one of the major contributors to suffering, because we experience suffering the moment we want things to be other than they are. We do this regularly with our own thoughts. I have a thought, I find it unpleasant, and I try to forcibly remove that thought from my mind. But the thought of removing the unpleasant thought only reinforces it.

So the goal of meditation isn’t to control our thoughts; it’s to observe them and become more familiar with the inner workings of our minds. Try it, and see what happens when you stop attempting to control your thoughts. Notice how thoughts, like all other things, are interdependent and impermanent. Thoughts arise, linger, and then dissipate or get replaced by other thoughts.

When your mind is focused on repeating a mantra or reciting a chant, you have less opportunity to be caught up in habitual thinking and reacting. A mantra is a short phrase or expression, usually in Pali or Sanskrit, that can be repeated over and over.