Fulfillment
"Bhante," I was fascinated with his answers, "how is a Buddhist fulfilled, or saved, or realized — whichever term you prefer to use?" "You attain the goal by following the eight factors, the eight limbs. Buddhism, one may say, is a ‘do-it-yourself’ religion. The Buddha said: ‘You yourselves should put forth the necessary effort and work out your deliverance.’ The Buddha points out the way. It’s something like this: a man walking the road is suddenly confronted with a parting of the road and is unsure what to do. He looks around and sees a signboard and fingerpost and these give him directions. It’s left to the pedestrian — to you — to keep walking. So Buddha says, ‘I am like the signpost. I am a pointer and I show you the right path.’ "It’s left to the individual to follow the path," he explained. "This path is the Noble Eightfold Path. "Or, again, when you get sick you go to the physician. The physician will diagnose and find out the cause of your illness. Then he will give a prescription. It is left to you to see that the prescription is taken correctly." |
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