Swami ZazvatAnanda

Buddhism, Nihilism and Hedonism

Buddhism, Nihilism and Hedonism by Swami ZazvatAnanda

There are three very different views to life, and yet they are all very similar in their main principle. We shall explore these three views and their basic principles in hope to uncover a key to personal development and understanding life.

This lesson is in no way meant to be a full exploration of these three lines of thought, however their study of can be very enlightening.

Buddhism

Buddha said life is suffering. He also said that there is no one individualized god as Western religions preach. In a very simple summation, the historical buddha, Siddartha Gautama said that there is no point to anything in human worldly life, all is illusion in that everything is temporary.

The only thing of value a person could do is to retreat from the activities of a material life which enmesh one in the world and thus separate one from realizing their true existence. Our true existence is effectively non-existent and our life should be devoted to realizing that all we are is a collection of thoughts held together by desire.

When we achieve full realization of this, we dissolve into nothingness. With that achieved, we end the cycle of birth and death and rebirth, and no longer return to human form.

Not much point to anything in life in that case, if the whole point is to get out and not come back.Buddhism, as Siddartha Gautama taught, should not be confused with the many derivative religions such as Tibetan Buddhism which is a mixture of Buddhism and the Bon religion. The Buddha did not follow or preach a religion or any sort, it took humans some time to work that out. Rather he taught about independent cultivation without form or dogma.

Perhaps the most striking point about Buddha is that he never spoke of sin. There is no such concept of sin in Buddhism, rather when a person failed in their task Buddha referred to that as ‘missing the mark’. As in archery, either you hit the centre of the target, or you have missed the mark, likewise, a person may miss the mark in maintaining a balanced life or in remaining detached and becoming angry and negative.

Nihilism

Nihilism, from the word nil or zero, is the rejection of all religious and moral principles, often in the belief that life is meaningless. This is a philosophy of extreme skepticism maintaining that nothing in the world has a real existence. Basically, there is no value or point to anything in this world.

There is no heaven and hell, no afterlife, no rebirth. Your life is a one time event. The attitude towards life is very similar to Hedonism.

Hedonism

Hedonism focuses on pleasure in this life with no thought about anything beyond. You are born, live and die, and that is the end of it, so have as much fun as you can while you are here. I have met a few hedonists, although they would not admit to being such. They have a few basic principles to live by.

1. What I do effects me and only me, so I can do what I want.

2. I am here to have fun and nothing greater or more than that, and;

3. When I die, that is it, there is nothing more.

There is similarly no heaven or hell, no afterlife, no rebirth. You only live once, so make the best of it.

Three very distinct views to life, yet all have common beliefs, that there is no point to life, and no greater meaning or purpose other than to live in the way you choose since there is nothing more than this life and when it is over, it is over. Buddha is slightly different only in a delay of the common end. He said it may take a few times coming back, but eventually, it will be over and done.

Summary

Buddhism: Nothing here matters, but harm no one and don’t get involved with material possessions and attachments because you will leave them in the end.

Nihilism: Nothing at all matters, there is no point to life.

Hedonism: Nothing matters, so have a good time, use what you can and move on.

All three say to focus entirely on yourself and nothing other than that. Of course, you may find as I do that being useful to others, or, is a great joy but still a selfish act because it gives me pleasure, but a selfish act that fits perfectly to these and other spiritual principles.

The pointlessness of these views can be depressing but I have found them to be liberating, bringing me joy and freedom rather than depression and negativity.

Fear and negativity is generated within your own mind based on how you perceive a thing. If you know the obstacles on a course, then you know what to watch for and are prepared. If you ignore the obstacles or the advice of someone who has been on that path before you, then you will go in blind and make many errors, potentially becoming depressed or at least discouraged. If that happens, then you lose the spark of life and see no point, just passing time until you die.

I am not saying that any of these three are 100% correct, rather I am suggesting that there is great wisdom in all three if taken objectively.

I recommend an objective view of all things. That means you do not see a thing as negative or depressing nor as encouraging. Everything is what it is and we should each take what we can to benefit from it, objectively without putting good or bad labels on it. That is the mark of a free person, one who has balance in their heart and soul.

It is the imposed imaginary obligation to do something significant for the world that creates great pressure on people. With the reality that very few are capable of living up to the dreams and ideals of making a change in the world, this unrealistic pressure can be very depressing. If you are depressed, then aside from a miserable life, you will certainly not achieve enlightenment.

If you live under a created sense of obligation or some form of duty or special God given task, it is inevitable that you will be in some way infected with low self-worth, subconscious feelings of inadequacy, or a ghost of negative thoughts hiding in wait. Basically, you can never be free if you feel obliged under a debt that can never be repaid since you probably will never know what it is.

This view of existence void of a grand mystical purpose, regardless of which way you choose to live it, will relieve you of that illusionary and often impossible aspiration or obligation. With the weight of that obligation removed you will be free to live and increase the possibility of becoming enlightened. With enlightenment comes the end of the cycle of rebirth that Buddha speaks of and then all three paths are saying the same thing, you live, then die, and that is it for this world.

The weight of the obligation can cause depression as well so this view could be for some at least a cure for depression or apathy. Apathy to life comes when you think there is a reason or purpose that you cannot find, so you give up and become apathetic.

If you think there is no purpose, and you find that to be true, then you can live in a pursuit of what you want to do rather than spending your life trying to find what you ‘must’ do. When you are doing what you want, you may find a great joy and interest in life leaving apathy and depression to dissolve.

I will leave you with some ancient references to ponder.

The original source about King David is in the Talmud, tractate Pesachim, page 117a; that when depressed, he would sing and play on his harp to raise his spirits, and then the holy presence / inspiration (”Shekhina,” which is FEMALE in Hebrew) would come back to him (in the kabbalah, the shekhina is the “spouse” of the mystic).

Then the Talmud states a general rule about the “spirit of prophecy” (or ruach ha-kodesh: general term for “holy spirit,” expanded consciousness, which by the way comes and goes, it is not permanent like some views of Nirvana or Satori); It says:

“ruach ha kodesh does not come in a mood of depression, anger, lightheadedness, frivolity, etc., but only in a state of “bliss” (”Simcha” — bliss is a better translation in this context than the usual “happiness”).”

Finally, the Talmud refers to the verse in the Bible, in the second book of Kings, chap. 3, verse 15: where the prophet Elisha is angry, but is asked for a prophecy, and so he orders someone to play music to soothe his nerves, and then the prophecy comes.

About Swami ZazvatAnanda

Swami ZazbatAnanda is an enlightened spiritualist dedicated to helping other achieve life success and spiritual freedom. To learn more visit his site at www.guruzaz.com.

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