Buddha did not reach a state of enlightenment. The starvation he was going through lowered his blood sugar levels so much that his entire body began to feel numb, at which point he couldn't even feel his own nerves. This was his "state of detachment." This was his supposed "peace." Hungry and alone.
Or perhaps that is indeed the way?
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Indeed. Being that hungry I guess you can have little more to do than be "peaceful." Though I suspect some well-fed Buddhists may be getting pretty angry right about now...
Well, judging by the rather portly physique of every single buddha statue out there, I would hazard a guess that his blood-sugar was pretty well-off. I propose that the "nirvana" was a diabetic coma. Seriously.
i completely disagree with buddhism as a philosophy. there is no honor associated in denying yourself the integrity of a desire, of a fury, of a delight, of a temptation.
it's funny that buddha's nirvana is a sham of sugar level.
Experience tells us otherwise, I would argue. Our relationships with others bring meaning into our lives that can't be found in solitude.
This is William Peter Blatty explaining his book, _The Ninth Configuration_:
"If we are reducible to matter without spirit, to soulless atomic structures, then we ought to be always rushing blindly and irresistibly to serve our own selfish ends. Yet how is it that there is love in this world — love as a God might love — and that a man will give his life for another?"
I don't mean to sound like a Pollyanna here, but the Way is Love. Relationships. Friendships. Caring. Self-giving, self-sacrifice.
We live our lives as if this were true anyway. We do develop friendships and allow ourselves to love. But we fail to center life around love and thus we spend our whole lives searching for the ever-elusive Something Else, when the answer is right under our noses the whole time. We humans have a hard time, it seems, seeing the forest through the trees.
Maybe I'm wrong, maybe you disagree (Buddha apparently did), but I thought I'd throw it out there.
true enlightenment comes when one can overcome physical lust and desire... and the enlightened one knows that he is never alone... but you'll never know unless you try. i suggest you give it a shot... perhaps not starvation, but giving up something you love for a time indeed does bring peace, after the suffering. we must overcome our minds to attain peace.
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