Class Summaries 10 APR 06

	Class Summary: MON 10 APR 2006
HOME	KSU - English 2110/09, 40 & 42 - Mr. Hagin - Revised: 11 April 2006	WLRC

Today's Topics:

Today we reviewed some scriptural passages from the three Eastern philosophies in order to identify their unique qualities and contributions to the literature. Since I am asking you to identify these Eastern voices on Quiz 9, we needed to review The Tao Te Ching, The Analects, and The Dhammapada.

TAOISM

Taoists believe in following the rules of Nature, referred to as "the Tao," or "the Way." Nature, after all, tells us everything that we need to know about life. The season of autumn tells us that all things in Nature decay and pass on. This may be a harsh reality, but we learn this over and over by watching these cycles in action. Taoists want to "go with the flow," referred to as the concept of wu wei, and they seek to perform only those actions that are necessary, especially ones that follow the lead of the Tao (this concept is called "P'u," the "uncarved block").

Passages from The Tao Te Ching

Commentary

"Even the finest teaching is not the Tao itself. Even the finest name is insufficient to define it" (1).
The Tao cannot be understood with words, much like the concept of love cannot be represented fairly by any one definition, poem, or song lyric.

"Great good is said to be like water, sustaining life with no conscious striving, flowing naturally, providing nourishment, found even in places in which a desiring man rejects" (8). Much like water, the Tao flows and conforms to its setting. Water fits into the little cracks and can help us to see the need to be flexible and adaptive.

"The Tao is abstract, and therefore has no form. It is neither bright in rising, nor dark in sinking. It cannot be grasped, and it makes no sound. Without form or image, without existence, the form of the formless is beyond defining, cannot be described, and is beyond our understanding. It cannot be called by any name. Standing before it, it has no beginning; even when followed, it has no end. In the now, it exists. To the present apply it, follow it well, and reach its beginning" (14). If you picture the yin/yang, you realize that one side cannot overtake the other, revealing a balance in duality. Every end is a beginning to something else. This helps us to avoid thinking in straight lines, instead reflecting on the cyclical nature of everything around us.

"The external world is fragile, and he who meddles with its natural way risks causing damage to himself. He who tries to grasp it, thereby loses it. It is natural for things to change -- sometimes being ahead, sometimes behind. [...] Sometimes one is strong, and sometimes weak, sometimes healthy, and sometimes sick, sometimes first, and at other times behind. The sage does not try to change the world by force, for he knows that force results in force. He avoids extremes and excesses, and does not become complacent" (29). To Eastern philosophers, change is the universal law of life. One must accept change and not be attached to the past. Eastern philosophers believe that the present moment, the "here and now," is the only moment with which we should be concerned.

"The motion of nature is cyclic and returning. Its way is to yield, for to yield is to become. All things are born of being; being is born of non-being" (40). Eastern thinkers use the words "being" and "becoming" to illustrate the changes in nature that fold into themselves, like one season preparing the world for the next.

"Only the soft overcomes the hard, by yielding, bringing it to peace. Even where there is no space, that which has no substance enters in. Through these things is shown the value of the natural way" (43). Since Taoism is a feminine ideal, taking the role of the more flexible option makes one stronger in the end because of adaptability. Think back to "The Oak and the Reed" poem that I read on the first day of class.

"Man is born gentle and supple. At death, his body is brittle and hard. Living plants are tender and filled with life-giving sap, but at their death they are withered and dry. The stiff, the hard, and the brittle are harbingers of death, but gentleness and yielding are the signs of that which lives" (76). Again, the affinity for that which is malleable and soft allows an individual to "go with the flow" and avoid pushing things too far. If you have no musical ability, don't try to be a music major. Follow what your natural talents allow you to pursue with enjoyment.

CAVEAT: Be careful on the quiz where I ask you to identify the Eastern voices in the poetry. Many students will use hackneyed (overused) phrases to describe Taoism, such as "one with Nature" or "getting back to Nature." If you use these generic explanations on a quiz or test, I will look at these expressions as being too general to describe anything that you have learned. After all, what does "one with Nature" really mean anyway? Instead, state that Taoists follow Nature or seek their cues from it.

Also, be sure to avoid jumping to conclusions: every time that a reference is made to Nature does not confirm the voice of Taoism. Jesus told the Parable of the Fig Tree, which is a reference to Nature, but Jesus was not Taoist (although many threads of Taoism have worked their way into the teachings too). Any author can use Nature metaphors, but that does not categorize their statements as necessarily Taoist. See HOW Nature is used by the poet. When Nature seems to parallel or assist the human experience, that's usually where we see Tao leading the way. Likewise, all three Chinese philosophies make reference to The Tao, since this concept summarizes the power and influence of Nature quite well.

CONFUCIANISM

Confucius lived during a time of great turmoil, political corruption, and war. Like Lao Tzu, Confucius was a pacifist, although both Taoists and Confucianists waged war many times. Confucius saw his world as out of step with the past regimes that had society under greater control. Confucius looked at his generation as one that had lost its way, being steeped in corruption, which could only be remedied by adhering to the rules and traditions of their ancestors. Confucianists defer authority to the state and to the other hierarchical structures in society, including the family, the military, etc. If everyone plays his/her role adequately, then the well-oiled machine of society can flourish and succeed in peace. Above all, the leaders of the state, communities, and families should be followed without question. Although Confucianists may occasionally refer to the Tao, they see the Tao as the precursor of man's law, which is the one to be followed, since it was inspired by the order of Nature.

Passages from The Analects

Commentary

7:1 Confucius said: "I am a transmitter, rather than an original thinker. I trust and enjoy the teachings of the ancients."

7:19 Confucius said: "I was not born with wisdom. I love the ancient teachings and have worked hard to attain to their level."
These passages come from the subsection "Confucius' Character." They reveal the Master's penchant for studying and attaining knowledge. Without study, one may repeat the mistakes of the past or be fooled by a slick salesman. Unlike Taoism, Confucianism prides itself on training the mind with discipline in order to attain higher levels of human achievement.

10:10 When eating, he did not converse. When in bed, he did not speak.

10:12 If his mat was not straight, he did not sit on it.
These passages come from the subsection "Confucius' Character" as well. Notice that, to Confucius, everything has its time and place. When eating and sleeping, one should not talk, as everything is most proper when utilized as intended.

2:13 Tzu Kung asked about the character of the Superior Man. Confucius said: "First he practices what he preaches, and then he follows it." This passage comes from the subsection "The Superior Man." This concept sets the goal of every person to achieve his or her potential, most likely through study. One should not only say the right words but also put them into consistent action. It's okay to be good one day, but can you be consistently good?

4:11 Confucius said: "The Superior Man cares about virtue; the inferior man cares about material things. The Superior Man seeks discipline; the inferior man seeks favors."

13:23 Confucius said: "The Superior Man is in harmony, but does not follow the crowd. The inferior man follows the crowd, but is not in harmony."
These passages also come from the subsection "The Superior Man." They point to the motivation of the scholar. Will you get a college degree to please others or to learn about the world? Many people attend college simply because their parents expect them to or because most of their friends do it. Are these adequate reasons if one wants to stand alone from the crowd?

2:15 Confucius said: "To study and not think is a waste; to think and not study is dangerous."

2:17 Confucius said: "Yu, shall I teach you about knowledge? What you know, you know; what you don't know, you don't know. This is knowledge."

15:15 Confucius said: "If a man doesn't continually question, 'What is it? What is it?' then I don't know what I can do for him."
These passages come from the subsection "Study and Knowledge." These get at the heart of what the Master means by proper study. As simple as it sounds, one who attains knowledge simply knows things and can separate facts from opinions. In Greece at the same time (5th century BCE), Socrates was reported to have said the following: "The only thing that I know is that I know nothing." Now this is knowledge!

6:15 Confucius said: "Who can go out without using the door? So why doesn't anybody follow the Tao?" This passage comes from the subsection "Tao." Notice that Confucianists (and Buddhists) believe in the Tao as the controlling force of Nature. If a door allows you to enter and exit a room, then why would you attempt to do so any other way? Use things as they are intended. Walk into the room through the door because that's its purpose. Hammer a nail into wood with a hammer, not a wrench.

3:17 Tzu Kung wanted to do away with the sacrifice of the sheep on the first of the month. Confucius said: "Tz'u, you love the sheep; but I love the ceremony." This passage comes from the subsection "Miscellaneous." Confucius was strict in his adherence to traditions and rituals that connect society through the ages. Attend to traditions and keep them alive. If you don't, you will lose essential wisdom that can be communicated through these experiences.

CAVEAT: It is possible that Confucius merely thought that his generation was out of step with the more organized past, much like many Americans do. Have you ever heard your grandparents refer to "the Good Ol' Days"? Well, when exactly were these days? Many Americans look at the period after World War II as the heyday of America, but didn't we have a society that subjugated women and minorities, fueled by lingering European traditions and the fearmongering of McCarthyism? Do you really want to live with Ward and June Cleaver? Maybe we are living in the Good Ol' Days right now? Who knows? Hindsight is 20/20.

When identifying Confucianist thinking, look for adherence to traditions and societal rituals that are valid and valuable. If a character in a poem is doing the wrong things or not adhering to the proper details of a tradition, then you may notice a critical tone from the author. Many Confucian poems are critical about people's behaviors, pointing out the things that are wrong. Sometimes, you may even detect some sarcasm in the author's tone as well.

BUDDHISM

Buddhists believe that the material world is full of traps, especially emotional attachments that steer us off our spiritual course by distracting us with temptations. Only by avoiding these connections can we liberate ourselves from the emotional highs and lows that society brings us. You will often see Buddhists critiquing their material connections and seeking distance from worldly things. Buddhists strive to achieve nirvana, a state of disaffection where we do not have petty attachments to things since they do not benefit the soul. Believing in reincarnation, Buddhists often seek to break the cycles of samsara, or the repeating cycle of birth, preservation, and destruction (death). Since all life ends in death (as well as begins at death), then death is the great evil that must be circumvented through meditation. If you can defeat death, then you will not be reborn, and you therefore will have no more anxieties or hang-ups about your life, your physical body, or the world that we occupy.

Passages from The Dhammapada

Commentary

25. "By sustained effort, earnestness, discipline, and self-control, let the wise man make for himself an island that no flood overwhelms."
Buddhists seek separation from the material world, and the only way to accomplish this is by extreme self-control to avoid the earth's temptations. One should strive to become an island in the middle of the chaos of temptation. Buddhists teach that we need to become detached from the material world, since the things around us will pass away. Relinquishing attachments is most important if you want to attain peace and relief from the suffering that it is causing us.

35. "The mind is hard to check. It is swift and wanders at will. To control it is good. A controlled mind is conducive to happiness." Rule #1 of Buddhism teaches us that all life is suffering, because the mind gets caught up in the traps of the earth, which fade away and die. The soul must be disciplined enough to rise above these traps to achieve spiritual happiness.

47. "The man who gathers flowers (of sensual pleasure), whose mind is distracted, death carries off as a great flood sweeps away a sleeping village." Obviously, the earthly world is a lot of fun, but these temptations will keep the soul from attaining happiness. Buddhists teach us to let things go from this world and concentrate on connecting to the universal energy that gives us life.

63. "The fool who knows that he is a fool is for that very reason a wise man; the fool who thinks that he is wise is called a fool indeed." Looks can be deceiving on this earth. In fact, to Hinduism and Buddhism, ALL sensory stimuli are deceptions and illusions. Never trust your eyes and ears. Seek that which dwells deeper in the spirit world -- that which does not have a face or a voice cannot fool you. Pretending that you know things that you really don't is one of the ways that we deceive ourselves.

83. "The good give up attachment for everything; the saintly prattle not with sensual craving; whether affected by happiness or by pain, the wise show neither elation nor depression." Many students will think that Buddhist poetry is depressing because they focus on the pain and suffering found in the material world. Realize that this is the starting point for improvement because you can't change something if you don't recognize first that something is wrong. Buddhists will try to avoid feeling depressed because this is a reaction to the material stimuli, which is where our suffering originates.

103. "Though one should conquer a thousand times a thousand men in battle, he who conquers his own self is the greatest of all conquerors." Buddhists strive to release their connections to the material world and to separate their soul (atman) from the grasp of the illusory world. Taking control of your own mind becomes one of the hardest accomplishments.

153. "Through many a birth in samsara wandered I, seeking, but not finding, the builder of this house. Sorrowful is it to be born again and again." The word samsara means "the cycle of life and death." To a Buddhist, the worst outcome is rebirth because this means that you will have to live another life reincarnated, meaning that you must start over and experience the world's pain and suffering once more.

201. "Victory breeds hatred. The defeated live in pain. Happily the peaceful live, giving up victory and defeat." If you have ever followed sports teams, you know all about suffering. How did you do in the NCAA basketball pool this year? Who cares. It means nothing in the end, and you became wrapped up in needless pain and suffering because of it. Sure, it was fun to follow, but it also caused you pain, money, and time away from disciplining the self.

223. "Conquer the angry man by love; conquer the ill-natured man by goodness; conquer the miser with generosity; conquer the liar with truth." Do you see the dualities here? This reminds me of the advice that Enki gave in Atrahasis, when he instructed the people to worship the god who was bringing down the diseases, thereby killing him with kindness. This is also a Buddhist ideal (as well as a Christian one).

290. "If by giving up a lesser happiness, one may behold a greater one. Let the wise man give up the lesser happiness in consideration of the greater happiness." The greater happiness is nirvana, the concept of the extinguished flame. If your life is a flame, then you are suffering and burning. Blow out the candle and you will be at peace. Buddhists will instruct us to stop living in this world when there is a more peaceful existence out there that does not separate the I from the Thou.

341. "A man's joys are always transient, and since men devote themselves to pleasure, seeking after happiness, they undergo birth and decay." This is another passage that warns us about the never-ending cycle of birth and death, samsara.

356. "Weeds are the bane of fields; lust is the bane of mankind. Hence, what is given to the lustless yields abundant fruit." Again, release your attachments to material things and you will be at peace. The soul transcends the material world, so one should focus on the spiritual, not the material.

CAVEAT: Many of the early poems listed in your coursepacket are about serious topics, and I don't want you to walk away with the impression that Buddhists like to complain or that they write depressing poetry. Like Taoists and Confucianists, Buddhists seek peace, love, and understanding. They are simply more aware of the impacts of the material world on an individual. Every "depressing" poem is not necessarily a work of Buddhism. We must also be careful to avoid confusing the concepts of love and passion (suffering/desire). Buddhism tells us that attachment to desire causes our suffering (the word "passion" means "suffering," by definition), but love transcends desire, since it is mutually shared and conceived by the couple. For example, a mother can worry about her daughter when she fails to return by her curfew, but is her worrying going to change anything? Buddhism would suggest relieving one's self from the pain and suffering of worry, giving the mom a clearer head. However, this does not deny her love for her children. Love doesn't make us riddled with anxiety -- fear does that to us.

Announcements:

The Chinese poetry in the coursepacket is a collection of Taoist, Confucianist, and Buddhist poems from the classical periods of Chinese history, covering a range of influences, authors, and literary movements. You will NOT be responsible for the contents of any single poem for the final exam, but you will be asked to identify the Eastern voices on both Quiz 9 and the final exam. For this reason, the section is considered to be "supplemental," rather than required, reading.

I will excuse the class with about 10 minutes remaining on Wednesday in order to allow you a chance to rethink some of your answers to Quiz 9. We will be covering the "Selected Chinese Poetry" section in class and attempting to identify Eastern voices inside them. What we learn from class on Wednesday may affect the way that you might answer some of the poetry identification questions on the second page of the quiz. If you are satisfied with your answers, you will get to go a few minutes early. Anyone else who wants to change an answer will have the opportunity to do so on Wednesday 12 April.

We will be reading The Ramayana next week (by R. K. Narayan), so be sure to pick up a copy of this text if you have not done so already. There is extensive assistance in the coursepacket to get you started in this story that we will cover during the next three class meetings. You can find this book just about anywhere.

Due Next Time:

Identifying Eastern Voices (477-478)

Selected Chinese Poetry (479-509)

Interpretations of Chinese Poetry (510-513)

Quiz 9

COLOR CODES:

-= Required -= Supplemental

Passages from The Tao Te Ching	Commentary
"Even the finest teaching is not the Tao itself. Even the finest name is insufficient to define it" (1).	The Tao cannot be understood with words, much like the concept of love cannot be represented fairly by any one definition, poem, or song lyric.
"Great good is said to be like water, sustaining life with no conscious striving, flowing naturally, providing nourishment, found even in places in which a desiring man rejects" (8).	Much like water, the Tao flows and conforms to its setting. Water fits into the little cracks and can help us to see the need to be flexible and adaptive.
"The Tao is abstract, and therefore has no form. It is neither bright in rising, nor dark in sinking. It cannot be grasped, and it makes no sound. Without form or image, without existence, the form of the formless is beyond defining, cannot be described, and is beyond our understanding. It cannot be called by any name. Standing before it, it has no beginning; even when followed, it has no end. In the now, it exists. To the present apply it, follow it well, and reach its beginning" (14).	If you picture the yin/yang, you realize that one side cannot overtake the other, revealing a balance in duality. Every end is a beginning to something else. This helps us to avoid thinking in straight lines, instead reflecting on the cyclical nature of everything around us.
"The external world is fragile, and he who meddles with its natural way risks causing damage to himself. He who tries to grasp it, thereby loses it. It is natural for things to change -- sometimes being ahead, sometimes behind. [...] Sometimes one is strong, and sometimes weak, sometimes healthy, and sometimes sick, sometimes first, and at other times behind. The sage does not try to change the world by force, for he knows that force results in force. He avoids extremes and excesses, and does not become complacent" (29).	To Eastern philosophers, change is the universal law of life. One must accept change and not be attached to the past. Eastern philosophers believe that the present moment, the "here and now," is the only moment with which we should be concerned.
"The motion of nature is cyclic and returning. Its way is to yield, for to yield is to become. All things are born of being; being is born of non-being" (40).	Eastern thinkers use the words "being" and "becoming" to illustrate the changes in nature that fold into themselves, like one season preparing the world for the next.
"Only the soft overcomes the hard, by yielding, bringing it to peace. Even where there is no space, that which has no substance enters in. Through these things is shown the value of the natural way" (43).	Since Taoism is a feminine ideal, taking the role of the more flexible option makes one stronger in the end because of adaptability. Think back to "The Oak and the Reed" poem that I read on the first day of class.
"Man is born gentle and supple. At death, his body is brittle and hard. Living plants are tender and filled with life-giving sap, but at their death they are withered and dry. The stiff, the hard, and the brittle are harbingers of death, but gentleness and yielding are the signs of that which lives" (76).	Again, the affinity for that which is malleable and soft allows an individual to "go with the flow" and avoid pushing things too far. If you have no musical ability, don't try to be a music major. Follow what your natural talents allow you to pursue with enjoyment.

Passages from The Analects	Commentary
7:1 Confucius said: "I am a transmitter, rather than an original thinker. I trust and enjoy the teachings of the ancients." 7:19 Confucius said: "I was not born with wisdom. I love the ancient teachings and have worked hard to attain to their level."	These passages come from the subsection "Confucius' Character." They reveal the Master's penchant for studying and attaining knowledge. Without study, one may repeat the mistakes of the past or be fooled by a slick salesman. Unlike Taoism, Confucianism prides itself on training the mind with discipline in order to attain higher levels of human achievement.
10:10 When eating, he did not converse. When in bed, he did not speak. 10:12 If his mat was not straight, he did not sit on it.	These passages come from the subsection "Confucius' Character" as well. Notice that, to Confucius, everything has its time and place. When eating and sleeping, one should not talk, as everything is most proper when utilized as intended.
2:13 Tzu Kung asked about the character of the Superior Man. Confucius said: "First he practices what he preaches, and then he follows it."	This passage comes from the subsection "The Superior Man." This concept sets the goal of every person to achieve his or her potential, most likely through study. One should not only say the right words but also put them into consistent action. It's okay to be good one day, but can you be consistently good?
4:11 Confucius said: "The Superior Man cares about virtue; the inferior man cares about material things. The Superior Man seeks discipline; the inferior man seeks favors." 13:23 Confucius said: "The Superior Man is in harmony, but does not follow the crowd. The inferior man follows the crowd, but is not in harmony."	These passages also come from the subsection "The Superior Man." They point to the motivation of the scholar. Will you get a college degree to please others or to learn about the world? Many people attend college simply because their parents expect them to or because most of their friends do it. Are these adequate reasons if one wants to stand alone from the crowd?
2:15 Confucius said: "To study and not think is a waste; to think and not study is dangerous." 2:17 Confucius said: "Yu, shall I teach you about knowledge? What you know, you know; what you don't know, you don't know. This is knowledge." 15:15 Confucius said: "If a man doesn't continually question, 'What is it? What is it?' then I don't know what I can do for him."	These passages come from the subsection "Study and Knowledge." These get at the heart of what the Master means by proper study. As simple as it sounds, one who attains knowledge simply knows things and can separate facts from opinions. In Greece at the same time (5th century BCE), Socrates was reported to have said the following: "The only thing that I know is that I know nothing." Now this is knowledge!
6:15 Confucius said: "Who can go out without using the door? So why doesn't anybody follow the Tao?"	This passage comes from the subsection "Tao." Notice that Confucianists (and Buddhists) believe in the Tao as the controlling force of Nature. If a door allows you to enter and exit a room, then why would you attempt to do so any other way? Use things as they are intended. Walk into the room through the door because that's its purpose. Hammer a nail into wood with a hammer, not a wrench.
3:17 Tzu Kung wanted to do away with the sacrifice of the sheep on the first of the month. Confucius said: "Tz'u, you love the sheep; but I love the ceremony."	This passage comes from the subsection "Miscellaneous." Confucius was strict in his adherence to traditions and rituals that connect society through the ages. Attend to traditions and keep them alive. If you don't, you will lose essential wisdom that can be communicated through these experiences.

Passages from The Dhammapada	Commentary
25. "By sustained effort, earnestness, discipline, and self-control, let the wise man make for himself an island that no flood overwhelms."	Buddhists seek separation from the material world, and the only way to accomplish this is by extreme self-control to avoid the earth's temptations. One should strive to become an island in the middle of the chaos of temptation. Buddhists teach that we need to become detached from the material world, since the things around us will pass away. Relinquishing attachments is most important if you want to attain peace and relief from the suffering that it is causing us.
35. "The mind is hard to check. It is swift and wanders at will. To control it is good. A controlled mind is conducive to happiness."	Rule #1 of Buddhism teaches us that all life is suffering, because the mind gets caught up in the traps of the earth, which fade away and die. The soul must be disciplined enough to rise above these traps to achieve spiritual happiness.
47. "The man who gathers flowers (of sensual pleasure), whose mind is distracted, death carries off as a great flood sweeps away a sleeping village."	Obviously, the earthly world is a lot of fun, but these temptations will keep the soul from attaining happiness. Buddhists teach us to let things go from this world and concentrate on connecting to the universal energy that gives us life.
63. "The fool who knows that he is a fool is for that very reason a wise man; the fool who thinks that he is wise is called a fool indeed."	Looks can be deceiving on this earth. In fact, to Hinduism and Buddhism, ALL sensory stimuli are deceptions and illusions. Never trust your eyes and ears. Seek that which dwells deeper in the spirit world -- that which does not have a face or a voice cannot fool you. Pretending that you know things that you really don't is one of the ways that we deceive ourselves.
83. "The good give up attachment for everything; the saintly prattle not with sensual craving; whether affected by happiness or by pain, the wise show neither elation nor depression."	Many students will think that Buddhist poetry is depressing because they focus on the pain and suffering found in the material world. Realize that this is the starting point for improvement because you can't change something if you don't recognize first that something is wrong. Buddhists will try to avoid feeling depressed because this is a reaction to the material stimuli, which is where our suffering originates.
103. "Though one should conquer a thousand times a thousand men in battle, he who conquers his own self is the greatest of all conquerors."	Buddhists strive to release their connections to the material world and to separate their soul (atman) from the grasp of the illusory world. Taking control of your own mind becomes one of the hardest accomplishments.
*153. "Through many a birth in samsara* wandered I, seeking, but not finding, the builder of this house. Sorrowful is it to be born again and again."**	The word samsara means "the cycle of life and death." To a Buddhist, the worst outcome is rebirth because this means that you will have to live another life reincarnated, meaning that you must start over and experience the world's pain and suffering once more.
201. "Victory breeds hatred. The defeated live in pain. Happily the peaceful live, giving up victory and defeat."	If you have ever followed sports teams, you know all about suffering. How did you do in the NCAA basketball pool this year? Who cares. It means nothing in the end, and you became wrapped up in needless pain and suffering because of it. Sure, it was fun to follow, but it also caused you pain, money, and time away from disciplining the self.
223. "Conquer the angry man by love; conquer the ill-natured man by goodness; conquer the miser with generosity; conquer the liar with truth."	Do you see the dualities here? This reminds me of the advice that Enki gave in Atrahasis, when he instructed the people to worship the god who was bringing down the diseases, thereby killing him with kindness. This is also a Buddhist ideal (as well as a Christian one).
290. "If by giving up a lesser happiness, one may behold a greater one. Let the wise man give up the lesser happiness in consideration of the greater happiness."	The greater happiness is nirvana, the concept of the extinguished flame. If your life is a flame, then you are suffering and burning. Blow out the candle and you will be at peace. Buddhists will instruct us to stop living in this world when there is a more peaceful existence out there that does not separate the I from the Thou.
341. "A man's joys are always transient, and since men devote themselves to pleasure, seeking after happiness, they undergo birth and decay."	This is another passage that warns us about the never-ending cycle of birth and death, samsara.
356. "Weeds are the bane of fields; lust is the bane of mankind. Hence, what is given to the lustless yields abundant fruit."	Again, release your attachments to material things and you will be at peace. The soul transcends the material world, so one should focus on the spiritual, not the material.