I'd like to share with my fellow practitioners of "happiness" the following paragraphs from THERAVADA BUDDHISM:
"In the Buddha’s view, both idealism and materialism, though theoretically opposed,converge both in their starting-point and in their goal, for “self is their beginning and satisfaction their end.” Between these two extremes, therefore, of materialistic self-indulgence and idealistic self-denial (not as a comprise, but, “avoiding both”), the Buddha formulated the Middle Way, “the way of knowledge and wisdom,” not in the wavering of speculation, or in the excitement of discussion, but “in tranquillity of mind and penetrative insight, leading to enlightenment and
deliverance, enlightenment with regard to the real nature of things and deliverance from suffering and its cause.”
For years, I have been trying to explain the idea of the "middle way" to English speakers. Often, my interpretation was not very convincing or interesting to them. The above paragraph struck me all of a sudden. The very reason why my interpretation could not interest them,in addition to my incompetence of course, is the the American society is so individualistic and competitive that people feel the "middle way" goes against their second nature, the socialized self-centered nature.
Having understood that, I have also come to realize more why Buddhism is something to be practiced rather than preached. Only those who start to look seriously at the crux of the "self" issue through adjusting their way of thinking and acting can gradually comprehend the "middle way."
