Peace in Joy and Suffering: Do Not Struggle, Embrace the Pain

Venerable Thich Chan Quang shares how to face suffering according to the Dharma. He teaches us not to struggle or cling, but to accept and embrace pain to find true peace.

On the fifth day of the Lunar New Year, people say that visiting a temple brings more luck than usual days. However, Venerable Thich Chan Quang begins his teaching with a small story about cause and effect (karmic law). He says, "We dedicate our sacred, warm, and joyful moments to making offerings to the Buddha, so our lives receive blessings from merit in the form of abundant joy." Conversely, those who seek pleasure through gambling or drinking will eventually lose all joy. Today, however, the teacher does not only speak of happiness but also teaches us how to find peace amidst suffering.

### Joy and Suffering According to Cause and Effect

We often think happiness comes from luck, but it actually arises from cause and effect (karmic law). During the Tet holiday, when we visit temples, bow to the Buddha, and pay respects to monks and nuns, we open our hearts to the Three Jewels. When these joys are offered to the Buddha, the blessings from merit increase manifold. In contrast, those who pull out cards to gamble or drink excessively to find fun will never experience true joy in their future lives.

By dedicating our sacred warmth and happiness to making offerings to the Buddha, we ensure that our lives are filled with great joy. Those who seek pleasure in trivial, useless, or harmful ways during this time may find themselves devoid of happiness later on. Therefore, each day of the New Year is not just an occasion for fun, but a chance to sow good seeds. This truth can be seen immediately in the appearance of each person.

### Appearance Does Not Lie

The teacher recounts that one can predict a person's life by looking at their face. Those who frequently have cheerful expressions will enjoy many lucky circumstances in the future. On the other hand, those with faces full of sorrow often encounter disasters. Specifically, the eyes are where "the entire history of one's life is recorded." No cosmetic surgery can alter the gaze.

The look in one's eyes can never be fixed. It is precisely the eyes that record the whole course of one's life. Both the past and the future reside within that gaze. Thus, do not pray merely for beauty; instead, pray for morality and karma. When you practice cultivation and create merit, your appearance naturally changes. This is the law of cause and effect (karmic law), which cannot be forced.

### Two Precious Teachings of Buddhism

People often come to Buddhism hoping for peace and freedom. But true freedom is not escaping adversity. The teacher clarifies, "Buddhism teaches us two things. First, we strive to create merit. Second, we remain free and at ease regardless of life's circumstances." Once we understand the Dharma, we must still repay karmic debts from previous lives. Yet, we have methods to transform them.

We practice repentance, bow to the Buddha, and create merit to reduce old karma. We cultivate mindfulness and meditative concentration to maintain peace when karmic results arrive. The teacher tells a story of a man driven to desperation by overwhelming debt. After seeking help everywhere without success, he knelt before the Buddha in total despair. In a dream, a deity guided him to find a rare blue diamond worth six billion dong, allowing him to pay off his debts. However, the teacher emphasizes that such cases are rare. They occur because that person had cultivated over many lifetimes, and prayers are answered only when all worldly means are exhausted.

Buddhism does not teach that mere prayer can erase past karma. That is impossible. Prayer becomes effective only when we are truly helpless and have previously accumulated vast merit. Therefore, Buddhist practitioners should proactively create merit every day rather than waiting until they are cornered to beg for help.

### Do Not Struggle, Accept Instead

When facing difficulties, we usually try to struggle and find a way out. But the teacher warns that this very struggle makes us suffer more than the original hardship. The more we struggle, the deeper we get entangled in debt and anxiety.

It is this struggling that causes more suffering than the pain itself. So today, the teacher advises: Do not struggle. Sit in silence, face the suffering, accept it, and embrace it.

The teacher recalls a female practitioner who came to him crying because her husband had left her for another woman. She asked how to win him back. The teacher simply said, "Do not cling." With just three words, she awakened. She let go and felt light. By accepting the loss, she found happiness again.

We assume losing him is suffering, but surprisingly, accepting the loss reveals our own happiness. Let him and that burden go to the other woman to carry. Similarly, when hungry, instead of rushing to borrow money, the teacher suggests sitting quietly and enduring the hunger. If hunger is due to karma, accepting it allows the karma to pass quickly. Escaping only prolongs the karmic consequence.

### Three Ways to Face Suffering

When insulted, ordinary people react in three ways. The teacher teaches that only the third method is correct.

First, getting angry and trying to insult back. This is what the Buddha criticizes. Second, pretending to be deaf, treating insults like passing wind. This is avoidance and remains ineffective. Third, listening to every word, receiving every word, and embracing them into your heart.

As disciples of the Buddha, we must reach this third level in handling suffering. We must not avoid, pretend to be naive, deaf, or foolish. Instead, we must know clearly, receive clearly, accept clearly, and embrace the pain into our hearts, soothing it gently. This is the strength of a true disciple of the Buddha.

The teacher reminds us of the story of the Buddha in Kosambi city, where crowds surrounded and insulted Him. He did not get angry nor flee. He held His bowl silently, listening to every word. This was the manifestation of true peace.

### Conclusion: Practice Daily

Peace is not something we beg from an external source. It is the result of practicing cause and effect (karmic law), of acceptance, and of embracing pain. Today, try this: when suffering arrives, do not rush to escape. Sit still, accept it, and hold the pain as if holding a child. When we voluntarily accept, we will see that peace is not far away; it resides right within our own mind/heart.