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Led By Mind

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1st Essay Question: PHIL 10010: Search for Meaning
Written by oisin hourican – 17413934 stage 1
The opening line of the famous Buddhist teaching of Dhammapada has most often been translated in English as: “Experiences are preceded by mind, led by mind, and produced by mind.” Discuss how this quote reveals some of the key features of the Buddhist conception of mind.
I will discuss this quote and the implication it has for the Buddhist concept of mind, I will attempt to avoid Buddhist Metaphysics, karma and rebirth, Buddhist ethics, definitions of enlightenment and what the eightfold path entails. However, I may reference these throughout the essay.
Experiences are preceded by mind. Our minds change the reality we see based on our conscious and subconscious thoughts, as well as previous experience, in this way …show more content…

Meditation helps to create a skilled mind. Through meditation we try to develop mindfulness. While trying to create mindfulness we can start to understand the mind. We strive to gain a clarity, or zen moment. This is often done through mindfulness of breath. We need to tell our brain to focus on something, usually our breath, this is because the mind is constantly thinking, by concentrating solely on our breath we push our other thoughts away. This shows another way in which Buddhists understand the mind, it is proactive. Meditation helps to focus on living according to the eightfold path, and concentrating on consciously reacting to situations using skilled thoughts, by doing this we can integrate the mind and the self. The mind and the self are intertwined in Buddhism, as the mind is not constant changing regularly, the self is not constant either. To have a skilled mind we must accept our many conflicting desires and conflicting selves. Our Selves are determined by many different factors, such as our family, friends and education. These factors also contribute to the experiences are preceded by mind earlier in the

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