Every day, do find some time
to stop and think:Is it OK – to live on like this?
If so,
keep on going
but never stop questioning.If not -
find the courage,
and seek out the Way!Considering,
the world that is now on fire.I pray that you find
the path that you seek,
andlive a life,
worth living.
… Buddhism.
Is it a religion? is it a way of life? is it a spiritual point of reference, a life-philosophy? is it a mystic cult?
To me, to be a Buddhist is to walk the Noble Path. Simply because those who walked on this path will end up living a noble life.
Mind you, a noble life does not necessarily means a life that is free from discomfort – nor does it guarantee excessive and abundant wealth. It is simply a live that is filled with courage, strength, compassion, appreciation, fulfilment, contentment, happiness, and many, many , many other positive values that can not be listed here in full, simply because there are so many.
How wonderful it is to live like that. If everyone walks this path, then SURELY the world will be a much better place?
Indeed it will be. But sadly for us, it is very difficult to find this path, let alone to walk it. Despite all of the treasures of life that can be found along the path – one could be lead to it, offered to walk it, and still not have the desire to go through it .
So really, what compels an individual to walk this path?
Hm…
The Noble Path is really no different from the path one follows when studying a form of art. It could be the art of painting, the art of war, the performing art, the art of combat, the art of team building, and so on. Any path where deliberate practice is required for continuous improvement is similar in concept to the noble path. But it is not the noble path.
So what is it? In my opinion, the Noble Path is the path of enlightenment – the deliberate study to be better at the art of living. Through it you can unlock potentials that will be useful in any other path you walk on. This is because the Noble Path is a quest for universal truth and wisdom. Universal truth and wisdom applies to everything. Otherwise, they won’t be universal.
Pretty cool, isn’t it? So coming back to the Noble Path question – how does one walks this path exactly?
Well, Buddhism is one obvious way. But I don’t think it is the only way.
Walking the noble path is perhaps similar to climbing up a mountain to see the sunrise from the very summit of that mountain. And from there many other ways that leads to the summit can be clearly seen – the big picture can be perceived as clear as day, not to mention the warm and fuzzy feeling attained, what a bonus indeed.
There are many routes to reach the summit: Some are hard, some are easy. Some goes through the bushes and the natural landscape, some goes through well-traversed road, some focuses on speed, some offers flexibility but less speed, and so on.
From this multitude of ways, which one is right for you? The answer lies in your own heart. Whatever it is that you feel is right for you, is right for you. This is because we are all different. Some of us like adventure. Some of us like learning. Some of us like to switch between the two depending on the mood, and so on. You must find what is right for you.
To enforce what you think is right upon others is to be ignorant. I like spicy, you may not like spicy food. We all love good food and we go about to find it in our own way, at our own pace. So take it easy.
However, one does not climb a mountain unless one cultivates the spirit of adventure and the desire to climb the mountain in the first place. So despite all of this awesome talk, we still haven’t solved the most important question: coming back to the Noble Path question – what compels an individual to walk this path and reap the awesome reward of .. well, an awesome life?
Actually, I think it all depends on the individual. A lot of people seek the Noble Path after they have encountered many, many sufferings. I know a lot of Buddhist in their 40s or 50s, even 60s who have only discovered this path. That is because, when they were young, they live in a state of mind that discourage them from seeking this path (it’s “uncool”). Only when they have opened their heart and mind, did they welcome this idea of traversing the path. And then they try it. And then they got hooked 
Some are born into this path. I, for one, was born into a Buddhist family – and yet learning about the path, talking about the path is different from walking it. uttering the lyrics from a song and following the melody is not the same as singing the song.
I do not truly walk this path until a few years back – Similar to my fellow Buddhist friends, I only start to walk this path when my heart and mind is open to it – when I welcome the idea of trying this out.
But a theme can be seen here - basically it comes down to this thing called the ‘Seeking Spirit’: The spirit of a human being who longs to transcend their suffering. To be more than they are, to be a part of something much, much greater than themselves.
This spirit is universal, it is within us all. When you have heard the calling, it is impossible to ignore it. And you will seek, and continue to search for this path, until you have found it.
Whether that be from the study of literature, poetry, zen meditation, music; whether that be from living in isolation, or in interaction with the social community; whether that be caused from curiosity, or fear of failure, pursuit of success, or in search of a cure – you will only find the path when your heart searches for it.
Do you have the seeking heart?