A SABEDORIA DE BUDA - leitura do DHAMMAPADA - 3/5 - Lúcia Helena Galvão

Hello, once again, welcome to my house. We will give a follow-up to the Dhammapada, today talking about chapter 11, old age, Jaravaga. This chapter will deal with exactly how nature gave us the sign that things are transient, aging the bodies. This, contrary to what we sometimes think, would not be an evil of nature, but a mercy, so that we realize, in the midst of everything that happens, what remains. So the tonic of this chapter will deal with that. Verse 147 Observe this body, sometimes sick, suffering, full of good wishes, never permanent, always changing. Be attentive

to the vehicle you have, and see how it changes, regardless of what you are inside, which does not change so much, nor so fast. Realize that it is a cycle, it is not yours, it is a servant of the laws of nature. There would be laws too, there are laws, for the transformation of our mind, of our psyche, but we stop and are much slower in this inner plane. But the transience of things gives us the opportunity of contrast, and realize that between what happens and what remains, we are what remains. Remember this old theory

of the impact, of the contrast. Between two different things, in the impact, the consciousness is born. Between two colors, between sound and silence, in the impact between two realities, the consciousness is born. Our consciousness should position itself before the changes of the bodies, and realize who it is. It is what remains. Verse 151 The pompous royal cars wear out and are destroyed by use, as well as our body by age. But the teachings of the wise endure, passing from one to the other, and never extinguish. I don't need to comment much on this, the teachings

of the wise are here. We are talking about something that is 2,600 years old. If we consider that Buddha already received this knowledge from someone who came before, and maybe they are much older. They are probably much older. So these teachings win over time. As long as there is on Earth a man who needs to know what is the meaning of his existence, where he has to get with all this, who is he? These teachings will be here. That is, they are permanent. While all our material vehicles and all the desires they incite are all

passengers, they are all unreal. They are the shadows of Plato's cave. Verse 152 This is curious and even a little morbid, a little funny. The man who does not seek to learn, gets old like a ox, gains weight, but not wisdom. That's about it. Bodies evolve in their desires, in their appetites, while within us, our consciousness remains very thin, very poor, with very few fruits harvested along the way. If you imagine that, just as the body feeds itself from what is proper to the body, and the soul, in the sense of soul, of consciousness, from

what animates us, feeds itself from what is proper to the soul, it must be tremendously thin, because very little food we worry about giving, throughout our days, to our soul. So it must be squalid within a body that is evolving. Because the focus of our attention is on the body. So we get old gaining weight, but not wisdom. And this is sad, because if you imagine, life has a double vector, a descendant and another ascendant. The descendant is the physical body. The more we live, the more we lose energy, the more we lose sensory perceptions,

the more we lose memory, so it goes down. Now we have the possibility of building another vector, the ascendant, which is the vector of wisdom. The more time passes, the more we can be wise, more attentive, more understanding, more compassionate, more perceptive in relation to the symbolism of life. At a certain moment, this has a point of inflection, in such a way that the body decays, but you don't go along. So we see those stories of wise men with very advanced age, but with a capacity for life response, with a presence, with a superior energy

of all his young disciples. These are not just old tales, it is a human possibility. Now, when we take this vector out of wisdom, life becomes a descending ramp. The more time passes, the worse we get. That is, life would be almost a tragedy with a tremendously delicate culmination, which is to face death with the infantility of a child who has just begun to live, with the immaturity of a child who has not learned anything. So pay attention, because all these things speak about the drama of transitory life, when we identify with what is transitory.

Once again I remind you of a passage that I like a lot, from a writer, who I always say is much more than just a writer, he is also a philosopher, Machado de Assis. In the posthumous memories of Brás Cubas, the nature of Pandora takes him by the collar, raises him and shows that procession of men being swept away and destroyed by time. And look into his eyes, so that he contemplates the mystery. What is beyond all this? What remains? So, in all places, the same idea echoes. Learn about what happens, about what remains. And

choose who you are. Having these two possibilities, choose who you really are. Realize who you really are. 153-154 In vain I sought the architect of the house, the house of life and death. What misery! To be born and to be reborn without end. Now I know you, architect, the desires. And you will no longer build the house. The beams, the passions are broken. And the good food, that is, ignorance is destroyed. My mind is free, for I have reached the extinction of desires, the immortal Nirvana. I have already told you about that moment in Egypt,

which is the weight of the heart of the dead. Where the heart is placed on the scale of Maat, the goddess of justice, and on the other side a feather is placed. When a heart weighs less than Maat's feather, it goes to the mind. When it weighs more, it returns to the world. What can be inside a heart so that it weighs less than a feather? Obviously, those who love material things, those who love sensory experiences, all this weighs. It goes to the world where it can be lived, the world that offers it this possibility.

Now, who loves justice, truth, fraternity, good, it goes to the world where these things reign. It is a matter of justice to take each one to where his heart points. So much so that in Egypt there is a negative confession, where the man asks his heart, and does not put it against him in the court that will be heavy. That is, our heart, that it may point to essential, spiritual things. If we have desires for material things, we will return to it. That's exactly what he's putting here. Who is the architect of the house that

makes my heart return to the world? My desires, my uncontrolled passions, the need for experiences that only this world can give. We do not return to the world because an art is evil, we return to the world because our heart asks to return. That which is attached, that which we love, in fact, we will always be walking in that direction. Ask every now and then, make a list of the things you love the most. And see if in any position, goodness, justice, fraternity, appear. If all we love is material, we will go in that direction.

This is very interesting too. A good list, do it just for you. And realize what are the directions to which your heart points. Continuing, chapter 12, the Ego, Atavaga, 159. If someone becomes perfect, equal to the advice given, then, well controlled, in fact, he can direct the other. Self-control is really difficult. This is very similar to Confucius, people. Very similar. I have the habit of making these comparisons so that you realize that knowledge, wisdom, is like a tree on top of a mountain. Everyone who has climbed to a certain height, sees the same thing, a

tree. Those who have not climbed much, look up and see nothing, or just see a piece of a leaf. But here we are talking about several traditions in the world. Here a Confucius, here Egypt, here Incas, here Plato, men who climbed to a certain height, who looked up and saw a single thing. So when you make this comparison, which is very typical of our course in philosophy, comparative study, we realize that it is very difficult for there to be a conspiracy between Confucius, Dama Pada, the Buddha and pre-Columbians to deceive us. There must be a

truth of nature that we can recover when we compare. This is very interesting. So Confucius will speak clearly about this. You can't command when you don't know how to obey. Man cannot control the other when he does not control himself. He becomes a tyrant. The biggest battle is to control oneself. If he does that, he has the ability. He knows how to deal with all the elements of escape. He knows how to tame the resistances. That is, he has a perfect strategy to lead anyone who is put under his command. He who does not master

himself, when he does, becomes a tyrant. This is a unipresent element. It is the greatest part of the traditions I know. 163 It is easy to do what is harmful and wrong for us. It is difficult, in fact, to do what is right and beneficial. Logically, the ascending path of work is the new that we need to build. What is easy, we already have. The new is hard, it requires us to ascend. Going up always gives us a lot more work. That is, what is difficult for us means the new construction. That step forward that

I can live, that will characterize my life as something useful. If I take a step up, this life is no longer in vain. Now, going up is always easier. There is a law of gravity also in the psychological, moral and spiritual plan of man. Going up always requires more effort. Everything is very comfortable. It is likely that we are going down. 165 The states of purity or impurity are created by man himself. Nothing can be done for an individual to purify the other. Once again, Buddha himself says that we should look at the star he

points to, and not at the Buddha's finger. No human being can purify us. He can show us the way. No one can walk for us, no one evolves with a mouth. So this purity, this detachment from transitory things, and the attachment to what is proper to the human being, to what really belongs to us, to what cannot be taken from us, at a certain moment, it sprouts within us. Someone can encourage us, can show us the way. But whoever promises to give us spirituality, is probably lying. There is no possibility of being given. The construction

of the human being is an individual achievement. There are those who point the way. This makes it much easier for us. As our parents, our teachers, all those who walked by our side, pointed the way. But no one was able to walk for us. This is not possible. And to desire it is a fantasy. Chapter 13 The world, the crazy vacancy 167, 168 Do not follow the path of evil. Do not cultivate indolence. Do not run after wrong ideas. Get up, observe. He who follows a straight life, is happy in this world and in the

next. Rest in the arms of Dharma, of the law of the universe. According to the Indian tradition, the Dharma is the arm of God extended over the cosmos. Dharma is the point where we can have more peace, more serenity, because we walk together with nature. We follow the line of less friction. We follow the line that leads us all together, the universe, back to unity. In the same way that nature, each being of nature knows what his Dharma is. Because it is guarded by nature to walk by him. We consciously have to find ours. This

is the characteristic that makes us particular as human beings. We have to find, through our free will, having many possibilities, being able to choose, not to do, to find our Dharma and walk on it. Walk straight, on the right path, on the path of the Middle. So he talks about indolence, and this is a very interesting thing. The worst of indolences is not that physics that prevents us from leaving bed in the morning. This is already a slow reflection of the great indolence, which is that of not wanting to build yourself. Not being curious to

know who you are and what you came for. Not being curious to find your mission in the world, your inner name. This is the great indolence, which makes us prefer to be able to be on the wheel, and guiding our vehicles in the direction we consciously choose, being in the back seat, blindfolded, being guided, we do not know for whom or in which direction. Because it is more comfortable. What is comfortable? For whom is it comfortable? For sure not for our soul. So laziness and indolence are the mother of many other vices, because it opens

the door for them to penetrate. 170 If you contemplate the world like a bubble of foam, if you have it only as a mirage, it will not reach you the king of death. Interesting, right? When we know what is temporary and what is permanent, we are not affected by the loss of the temporary, because we never had it. We never thought it was ours. So when it goes away, it does not surprise us. Remember that sentence that says, nothing that is really yours can be taken from you. This vehicle will be taken from us, and

many other things. Now, what we really are, our essence, these eyes that aim at the world and accumulate experience through it, this, nothing or no one can take from us. That is, we stand before the lord of death and recite before him, as Bardotodol says, our inner name. Bardotodol says, recite your inner name before the lord of death, and he will open the passage for you. The book of Bethany of the dead. So it is interesting that the more we identify with what we really are, the less we fear the loss of the temporary. We

know that all things also have an essence, and that we will never separate our heart from the heart of things. But the appearance, as well as our own appearance, it is natural that it goes away. It does not exist, in fact, it is a transitory shadow. It creates a security. It says that nothing that is deep can die. We do not lose anything that is deep. I remind you, because it is difficult for me to give a lecture without talking about Carl J. de Brant. And in this case it will not be different. I really

like a passage from the letters of Carl J. de Brant and Mary Haskell, in which he says, Look, Mary, I am a very fearful man. There are two things that no one will ever be able to convince me of. First, that I do not have an immortal soul. Second, that my soul may be separated from yours. If we have this posture, we do not fear losing anything. I know it's a distant dream, none of us has it yet. But when will it be possible for us to have it? To know that nothing or no one

can separate our essence, our immortal soul, from the soul of those we love. And therefore not to fear, let time take the transitory. Just as he brought it, it does not belong to us. We have to have a contact of consciousness with something that remains. That is the firm ground on which we put our feet. And we do not fear earthquakes. 172 The one who, having freed himself from negligence, becomes vigilant, shines in this world like the moon emerging from the clouds. That is, he does not get involved in fantasies and loses focus. It's like

imagining a child to whom you ask to go to the kitchen and bring a glass. And he, in the middle of the way, gets involved with a thousand toys, and in an hour he gets without the glass. We are that child who enters the world and forgets what we came to seek in the world. And when we return to our father, we arrive without the glass. We arrive without that message, without that consciousness that we went to seek. Because we get involved with all the shadows we find along the way. So the focus, the consciousness,

the present attention, which is practiced in the little things, we are gradually conquering, we are more and more present, of body and soul, in our life at every moment. Remember the example of that Zen master, who said he was very wise. One day they went to ask, Master, where did you get so much wisdom from? He said, simple, when I'm peeling an orange, my consciousness is all there. On the knife, on the peel and on the orange, and only, and nothing else. That's where I get so much wisdom from. That is, vigilance, attention, focus, protects

us from turning on fantasies and letting ourselves be dragged by them. As the Roman philosopher Epictetus would say, protect your mind and it will protect you. Continuing, 176. That whose words are lies, which transgresses a single article of doctrine and despises the superior plans of existence, there is no other evil that he may commit. The doctrine as being the great law of the universe, Dharma. He who disrespects the truth, disrespects Dharma, deep down he is, in various ways, disrespecting reality, the truth, the being. What other worse thing could he do? Remember another passage from the

Dhammapada itself, when he said that no external enemy can do us more harm than our own mind. When we do not appreciate, do not love the truth, whether it is manifested in a word, whether it is manifested in the law that rules the universe, it means that we already have the great loss, we no longer have much to lose, we lose the essential. When he speaks to the prophet of the rooms, he says, Why do you lock the door of your house so much? What is inside that you fear so much that it is stolen?

Do you have the precious virtue? Do you have the golden goodness? What do you have inside of value? If you have nothing, why do you worry so much? We have to worry about that. If they steal our love for the truth, leave the door open, there is not much more to take. 178 The fruit of the first step on the path of Nirvana is more valuable than dominating the earth, reaching the sky or reigning over the universes. Notice that this is interesting, we talked about it at the beginning, because it is a striking feature of

Buddhism. It is not about finding a better place in future experiences, it is not about decorating your cave better, it is about leaving the cave. Nirvana is leaving the world of illusions, and not making your cage a little more pleasant and comfortable, and having better conditions for your future prison. It is leaving the prison and conquering the key. I find this very interesting, because this first step in the direction of Nirvana already makes something of it be with us here. This is more valuable than anything the illusory world could give us. Because if we are

in relation to Nirvana, we have already lived it in some way. Nirvana is crossing, going to another margin, leaving the illusory and going to the real. Remember that example that I often give, which is from our founder, Jorge Angel Livraga, where he talks about a person locked inside a house with all the doors and windows closed. She does not like the sun, she does not relate to the sun. If one day she changes her mind and opens doors and windows, her distance from the sun has not changed anything, but it already illuminates where she is.

Simply because she has put herself in contact with it. The idea of ​​Nirvana is like this sun. I want it above anything else. Just the fact of having opened the windows for it, it already illuminates me at that moment. This is the first step. Chapter 14 The Buddha, Buddha Vaga, verse 180. The one who has freed himself from desire and greed, to whom nothing else can seduce, how to disturb him? By what means to surprise him? To him who does not leave footprints. How will you manipulate a person who does not want anything else but

to coincide with yourself, to fulfill your human role? Realize that when we act, according to the world of illusions, we act out of fear and desire all the time, the one who has what you fear, or what you want in your hand, even loves you, does whatever he wants from you. He does what you want, to coincide with what nature expects from a human being. To occupy his role in the universe. There is no way to manipulate that. When we just want to coincide with ourselves, to occupy our space, to sacralize our life. The satisfaction,

the reward is all inside. There is no way to manipulate. Therefore, we put ourselves above and beyond any possibility of loss or loss. We have something that nothing or no one can take from us. This was the Platonic idea of ​​the man of gold. The gold he was looking for was not external gold, but internal gold. That nothing or no one can take from us. And that makes the man really rich. And in peace. Because when we have something that cannot be taken, we have peace, we have serenity. Which is the true human happiness. 182

It is difficult to be born as a human being. It is difficult to live this mortal life. It is rare to have the opportunity to hear the true law of Dharma. It is rare to be born as a Buddha. Realize that life is really dramatic. It is difficult to be human. A common human being like us, is born as a very innocent, very pure child, does not understand the meaning of life very well. He begins to mature, he sees all that call for sensations, the hormones, the search for instincts. Then we are led, in the

best hypothesis, by someone who leads us in a good direction. After this phase, we begin to mature. When we reach the apex, to understand something, then comes death. When we reach the best point, life ends right away. And we live the world in a way that no other being around us lives. The little dog that sleeps outside, will die as much as I do, but is not aware of it. He does not ask himself where he came from, where he is going, what is the mystery that follows death. This is not a drama for him.

He dies serenely, as if death did not exist. We are aware of this. We have the reflexive consciousness, that if we do not know how to give answers to it, it makes our life a hell. So the human condition has something dramatic. Now see that in the same way that the human condition has this, he says, but luckily, something very rare happened. Someone found the key. Some people found the key. If you go through a person like this, as it is happening now, do not miss this opportunity. The Buddhas are very rare. The wise are

very rare. If you pass by one of them, do not stop taking the key. And learn to use it. Because if you are in a cage and suffer, and someone gives you the key and you do not use it, you start to deserve the cage. You start to have the demerit of having to stay in prison longer. Maybe you want it. So, at the same time that we have the drama of prison, we have the possibility of the key. Every time you meet a wise man, you found the key. Learn to use it. Honor this

opportunity that life gave you. 183 Abstain from evil, do good and purify the mind. This is the teaching of all the Buddhas. It is not an exclusive tradition. Of all those who have reached the level of enlightenment, or Buddhi. Of all those who have the key, who opened the door and crossed it. They all love to signal the way. They love to lend this key. Very few want to receive it. And they all say the same thing. Abstain from evil, do good and purify the mind. Be careful with the mind, which is where all the

dramas of life are born. All the deviations. Abstain from everything that is bad and seek the good. Then you will say, but this is so relative. How many times have I heard that? What is good? What is good for you is not for me. Look, be careful. If you have a pot of poison here, you can't say it's relative. I don't think it's poison, it will kill you anyway. We have a human evolutionary line. Which leads beings to become more human. Values, virtues and wisdom. Whether you want it or not. This path will make you

a better human being. You can choose to follow it or not. But that this is necessarily the way, there is no way. We have a path. Human life consists of a journey of ignorance towards wisdom. If you don't want to go now, if you decided to go back, if you decided not to walk, this is a freedom you have. But if you want to become human, this is the way. There is no such set of options. There is a necessary path for us to get to what we want to be, which are human beings. The

only being who can say everything is relative is the one who is absolute, which is God. For us, who are relative beings, what is on the same level of relativity as us is absolute for us. It will be relative the day we overcome it. The full possession of the human condition is absolute for us. To approach it is good, to move away is bad. Believe it or not. This idea of ​​relativity, poorly applied, is a solvent of human discernment, of human lucidity. Be careful with that. It is very misunderstood. 186 Not even a rain of

gold coins could quench the thirst for desires, for they are insatiable and cause pain. Behold what the wise man sees. A rain of gold coins would not quench the appetite for desires. Imagine you have a monster inside your house, a terrible animal, and you want to eliminate it. You will not imagine that you will eliminate it by giving so much food until it is so tasty that it explodes. This is stupid. It will get stronger and stronger. It will soon break the bars of the cell where you put it. It will soon devour you. Don't

think you will destroy the animal by feeding it. You will do the opposite, you will mingulate its food. So that it becomes more fragile and more likely to be dominated by you. So don't think we're going to dominate our most rude desires by giving it everything it asks for, but giving it an austerity regime where we can impose the human on the animal. It is not about eliminating the animal's appetites, but about domesticating this little animal so that we command it, let us be like the centaur, where the human dominates the animal, and not the

minotaur, where the animal dominates the human. We know what these two animals did in mythology. Centaur was the master of great heroes, the wise, the human dominated the animal. And the minotaur was a destroyer, a beast, a destroyer and devourer of men. Greek mythology explains very well what is the fate of the one who does not command his animal self. 187 How can a wise man find joy even in heavenly pleasures? When desires go away, joy comes. Notice how interesting this is. Because every time we see in history a man who achieves what we can

call the pleasures of the soul, the fulfilled duty, the well-done fraternity, the legitimate generosity, the realized goodness, he has the possibility of these pleasures, and he has the possibility of the more rude pleasures down here. Why does he always prefer the superior? He is not ignorant, he is a wise man. If he prefers the superior, it is because they must be much better, they must have a much better taste, they must be much more pleasant. So we will only experience if we believe that these pleasures exist. And in fact they exist, and whoever proves them

does not exchange for any other. And those who prove them are not ignorant, they are wise. Therefore they must make the right choices. Imagine that being human is also a pleasurable thing. Perhaps the best experience you can have. You do not abdicate from animal pleasures, but whoever has it does not exchange for anything else. While those who have only animal pleasures, only have this. Therefore, there is no exchange, there is no way to evaluate. 193 Rare are those who have the vision of truth. A Buddha is not born anywhere, and where he is born, those

around him prosper happily. Victory over death. That is, a Buddha, an enlightened being who reached the Buddha and enlightenment, is a being who has the vision of truth, as much as a human being can have. And all those who are with him, not physically together, because being physically together will be like a spoon with soup, who does not taste the soup, but who are together to understand, to try to see the world the same way he sees it. Sometimes you realize that we can be in this moment, perhaps a little closer to a wise man,

than someone who was physically by his side in the historical world he lived in. If we try, as far as we can, to see the world as he saw it, we are close to him. And it is a great privilege to be close to a wise man. I open a small parenthesis to tell you an Indian story, from a book called Ocean of the River of Tales, which tells the story of a wise man named Narada. This wise man, on one occasion, the Indians have a very large number of gods, and there are beings who

are intermediaries between God and humans, who are the great wise men, such as Narada. He was human, he was a Rishi, very wise, so he went and came back to the heaven of the gods and to the land of men. On one occasion, he comes across Vishnu, the great god, Vishnu Narayana, and Vishnu comes to him and says, Narada, tell me how it was for you to be in the company of my wise followers, who exist on earth, because there is nothing better than being by the side of a good man. Narada has some doubts,

there are so many good things on earth, is there nothing better than being by the side of a good man? And without him pronouncing it, Vishnu realizes that he had this doubt. Then he says, you did not understand well, I will put an experience for you. You go down to earth, you see that tree in the center of that forest? At that moment a bird has just been born, it has just broken the shell of its egg. Go there and ask that little bird, why there is no greater privilege than being in the company of

the good. Narada automatically goes down there to attend to the will of God. When he arrives, the little bird is still coming out of the shell, stretching its wings, very tender. He comes to the bird and says, it's a good bird, tell me why the greatest privilege is to be in the company of the good. And the little bird suddenly opens his eyes, looks at him and falls dead. He gets very scared with that. What did I do wrong? He returns to Vishnu. Vishnu says, I did not work this time, but let's try again. Do

you see that farm where a very devout man lives? His cow has just given birth to a calf. It has just been born. Go there and ask that calf, why is it a privilege to be in the company of the good? And when Narada arrives, the farmer says, oh, my good sage, what a good omen! Come here so you can meet my new calf. When he arrives, the calf is still balancing on its legs, it had just been born. He asks, oh, my beautiful animal, tell me why it is a privilege, the greatest privilege is

to be in the presence of the good. And he says that the little animal opened his eyes, looked at him and fell dead. Narada gets scared with that. Is it a joke of Vishnu? What does he want to show me with that? Back to the presence of God. Then Vishnu says to him, I know it's not working, but insist a little longer, you'll understand. Do you see that kingdom? He already got scared. In that kingdom there is a king who has just had his firstborn. His wife gave birth to a little baby. I want you

to go there and ask this baby. He already gets scared. But anyway, Vishnu is telling him to go. When he arrives, the king recognizes him and says, oh, my good sage, what a wonder! Come and give your blessings to my prince who has just been born. Narada, very suspicious, enters the room where the baby is, asks the ladies to leave, and comes to the baby and asks. I came lovingly to ask you why the greatest privilege is to be in the company of the good. He says the baby opens his bright eyes and says to

him, Narada, you ask me that? I am a living proof of what you are saying. I had just come into the world in the form of a little bird. I was still stretching my wings when I opened my eyes and saw you, the purest of men. My soul was pushed up and I was reborn as a beaver. My luck was greater than I expected, because being born as a beaver, I barely balanced on my legs. When I open my eyes, I see you again. I was pushed by my soul and I was born here as

a baby. That is, your living proof that the greatest privilege in the world is to be in the company of the good. Understand, we are not going to enter into a controversy about the death of animals or anything like that. This is a myth, a little story, that shows how our soul suffers an impulse upwards when we are accompanied by what elevates us, what is good. Even if it is not a physical person, but a wise man who has lived for two thousand years, who we realize can be close to us, if we understand his

message, if we inherit his message. Putting ourselves before the good, bringing our consciousness, always the presence of the good, makes it suffer an impulse upwards, be invited to elevate. That is, no one can walk for us, but if we are willing to walk, a good guide helps tremendously. If our disposition is to go up, a good guide can show us how very effective the path is. So it is interesting to realize this. We need to bring our consciousness to the presence of the good. One of the goals of taking some of these beautiful books in

the history of humanity, is exactly this. Constantly, as many times as we can, bring our consciousness to the presence of the good. So that it creates affinity, creates bonds, and suffers an impulse upwards. Chapter 15 Happiness, Sukhavaga, verse 200. We are truly happy, that we want nothing to possess. In serenity we shine again as divine beings. Obviously, here he is speaking as a wise man, as someone who has already arrived. But we realize that evolution is like a set of steps, it is a ladder. Evolution is like a set of steps, it is a ladder.

The one who climbed one step, in a way, has the same pleasure as the one who climbed the whole ladder. Reduced to its level of possibility, but it has. An achievement, a control over our weaknesses, a step that we take towards the light, already invades us with tremendous happiness. You must know, for example, what is the pleasure of the duty fulfilled. When so many difficulties are put in the way, you overcome them and do what your conscience commanded. What you considered fair, noble, good. How do you go to bed at night? The sleep of the

righteous, that feeling of a sadistic fatigue, of having fulfilled your mission. Today was a day worthy of a human being. Whoever sees the trail of today will say, a human being has passed through here. This is already a state of grace, a state of peace. Fantastic! As the book The Light of the Way said, when we reach the flower that sprouts after the storm, we will have other storms in the future, but the peace and beauty of this flower we will never lose. We will keep it in our hearts. Every time we fight well and

we are victorious, even if it is a small battle, a little of this peace goes with us through all the steps. That is, the wise man who climbed the whole ladder, and the humble human being who climbed only the first step, in a way, enjoy a very similar happiness. 201 Victory generates hatred, for the defeated falls into misfortune. Only the one who is serene before victories and defeats is happy. For those who watched our series of comments on Tao Te Ching, Lao Tse has something that I find disconcerting. When he says that it is envy,

when you are envied by someone, in a way, envy is a bit of your responsibility. By the way you hold victory. In a way, your victory weighs, it is humiliating for those who were defeated, even if no word is said, no discourtesy is practiced, but your posture before victory hurts others. Because there are those who are victorious, who are not envied by anyone, for the way they live victory, for the sobriety and serenity they have before it. So we should desire, first of all, to be light, that nothing we conquer is a burden for those

who have not yet conquered, but a reference. And secondly, we should never desire victory at the expense of the defeat of others. Which is, more or less, what we talked about a little while ago, the drama of our current moment. Success always depends on someone's failure. We know how to win over, we know how to win together. And with this kind of mentality, fraternity is unfeasible. And fraternity is a necessary step towards unity. Because unity is God himself. 203 The greatest disease is the hunger for passions, but the greatest of the sorrows are the evils

caused by the disharmony of the elements of life that constitute the existence of beings. The greatest disease is to be addicted to what makes you bad, what holds you to the ground, in such a way that when you try to raise your consciousness to something nobler, to be in the presence of good, you can't. It generates a level of prison, of addiction, and what is more subtle, you no longer have the stimulus to contemplate it. It's like you imagine a banal experience of a person who is used to talking to places. And when you try

to pull her to talk about something nobler, that is uncomfortable for her, it is heavy, she feels bad. Or someone who is used to a very poor quality song, and you call him to hear something more harmonious, and he feels bad. Passions generate an addiction that takes away from man the possibility of raising his head in front of the mud where he is. Because he starts to reject the good. Therefore, it is the greatest disease, the insatiable hunger for passions. And the greatest of the sorrows is not being able to harmonize what exists within us.

What does it mean? We will not be able to harmonize anything outside. We will leave the world as disharmonious as we find it. We are not able to know how to deal with our physical body without it being an obstacle. To deal with our emotions without them being so unstable that they suck up all our energy. To deal with our mind without it being so dispersed that it does not let us learn the mystery of life. If we can harmonize what lives inside us, we are in potential harmonizers of the world we live in. Remember

what I always repeat, that phrase that seems a little enigmatic. The more inside, the more outside. Once again, I reiterate to you, I'm not talking about things I've achieved, I'm a philosopher. I'm talking about things that for me it is tremendously important to put my consciousness before them. And learn to love them, so that one day I can dare to get there. But I am, like everyone else, fighting to achieve this. Like everyone else, falling, coming back and standing up. A philosopher is not the one who has overcome difficulties, but the one who has an

unyielding spirit of perfection. And he will never give up. He is not the one who does not fall, he is the one who falls and rises a thousand times, as many as are necessary. A philosopher is not perfect, he has the spirit of perfection. And that makes him never stop. 208 When you find a resolute and awake man, enlightened, judicious, of great discernment, patient and virtuous, follow him as the moon follows the path of the stars. Finding such a man, as we have already said, is a huge privilege, but even if it is through a

book, a work, a tradition, we can make him present in our life. Maybe you, when you fall in love with the teaching of a wise man, feel him as close to you as a human being who is by your side, can not be. Sometimes we live inside the same house, but at the same time very far from the people who also live in it. The proximity is not physical, merely. So that we can recognize the good and follow it wherever it points us. Chapter 16 Transitory Pleasure, Pia Vaga, Verse 211 Avoid attachment, whatever it is,

for there is no suffering for those who, with serenity, do not cling or have aversion. Be careful, because when we talk, this is one of the most conflicting verses. When you say, I will not cling to a friend, I will not cling to a dear entity, it does not mean that. You will love a friend, you will love a dear entity. Attachment is not positive. Attachment is a need, it is a kind of need to have the other one attached to you. A witness of your personal experience. This is selfish with the other. Who loves,

pushes the loved one towards his star, his good. Who truly loves, frees. This attachment, this need to be with the other, makes the inevitable separation terribly painful. More for a feeling of possession than for true love. Because who really loves, in some way, knows that he will never be separated from what he loves. So, attachment is not the same as love. Those who truly love, do not cling, do not hold, do not need the other to work to reaffirm their affective needs. Who truly loves, I know it's a big deal, but who has his truth.

Who truly loves, frees. But something will always be permanently united. 212 and 216 From selfish affection, attachment, sensuality, the desires of the senses and greed, sadness and fear are born. Notice that this love is exactly those things that you will necessarily lose. That generates sadness and fear. When we cling to something, it's like putting an ice cube in your hand and saying, look, this is the most important thing in your life. Take care of it. An ice is ice, it will melt. As it follows its inevitable destiny, you will suffer tremendously. The things that come

to our life, we feel like this, are mine. And when the vehicles follow their course, we do not know how to learn what in the other will always be with us. So, from selfish affection, from the attachment, from sensuality, from desires, from the senses and greed, sadness and fear are born. Sadness is the foretelling of loss. And fear is to think that at any moment they will take from me what I want. The one who is attached lives in constant fear, in constant insecurity and, consequently, in a constant state of suffering. And finally, in verse

218, those who, with determination, keep their minds firm, who are free from sensual pleasures, and go against the current of passions in earthly life, are at the border of the ineffable Nirvana. That is, the one who detaches himself from the transient, dominates his mind, does not abandon his path, is at the doors of Nirvana. Nirvana is not a physical place. Nirvana is a state of consciousness, it can be right here. When we are prepared for it, it will be here, in front of us. It is not a time or a specific space. Nirvana is the

dwelling of the consciousnesses that detached themselves from illusions. And as soon as you detach yourself enough, you can already experience some degree of Nirvana. This peace of those who know that there is nothing true that can be taken from them. Well, today we are here, then. In our next lecture, we will continue with a few more chapters. Do not forget, I hope you are reading the book, that you can make good reflections. Do not let yourself be restricted, this is not a Buddhist religion. These are philosophical principles that apply to any human being who seeks

wisdom. Think, reflect a little about it. Thank you.