Beyond Inter-eating
November 26, 2008
In Pali the word for enjoying something is the same as the word for eating it. When you’re enjoying a mind state, you’re feeding on the mind state. If you enjoy a relationship, you’re feeding on the relationship. And as the Buddha points out over and over again, to be in a position where you have to feed is to be in a position where you have to suffer. And not only are you suffering, but the people or whatever it is you’re feeding on suffers as well. We’ve got to keep this point in mind: that as long as the mind needs to feed, it’s causing suffering. And the greatest act of kindness both to yourself and other people is to put it in a position where it doesn’t need to feed.