The Middle Way

 

The Middle Way

"The Middle Way should not be confused with passivity or a kind of middle-of-the-road compromise. To tread the Middle Way rather implies ongoing effort. In the broadest sense, the Middle Way refers to the correct view of life that the Buddha teaches, and to the actions or attitudes that will create happiness for oneself and others."

The Middle Way is a Buddhist term with rich connotations. Most simply, it implies a balanced approach to life (equanimity) and the regulation of one's impulses and behavior, close to Aristotle's idea of the "golden mean" whereby "every virtue is a mean between two extremes, each of which is a vice."
While the word middle denotes balance, however, the Middle Way should not be confused with passivity or a kind of middle-of-the-road compromise. To tread the Middle Way rather implies ongoing effort.
In the broadest sense, the Middle Way refers to the correct view of life that the Buddha teaches, and to the actions or attitudes that will create happiness for oneself and others. Thus, Buddhism itself is sometimes referred to as "the Middle Way," indicating a transcendence and reconciliation of the extremes of opposing views.
All these ideas are exemplified by Siddartha's own life, as conveyed to us by legend. Born a prince, Siddartha (also known as Shaktimuni) enjoyed every physical comfort and pleasure. However, dissatisfied with the pursuit of fleeting pleasures, he set out in search of a deeper, more enduring truth. He entered a period of extreme ascetic practice, depriving himself of food and sleep, bringing himself to the verge of physical collapse. Sensing the futility of this path, however, he began meditating with the profound determination to realize the truth of human existence, which had eluded him as much in a life of asceticism as in a life of luxury. It was then that Shakyamuni awakened to the true nature of life--its eternity, its deep wellspring of unbounded vitality and wisdom.

Edward See: Edward wrote: "he realized the Middle Way on observing a musical instrument I presume the Sitar being played. If pressed too hard, the sound goes awry, if not there's no sound, and when pressed just right, the music comes forth. Asceticism is pressing too hard, cursory devotion is not, so he found the way is to alleviate the sufferings of other people in this way it neutralizes one's karma and increases one's merit. Gautama overcame his nemesis Maja which literally is the programmed beliefs and false little ego (the Illusion). This we all have to address by the simple means of Self Examination (Man Know Thyself). The ancients already knew this and taught them in mystery schools like Pythagoras and the Ahura Mazda. Exemplars came from these schools and became mankind's Great Teaches but many were preceived Pagan by Christianity because its Path is different from the Ancient ones." (never heard this about the Sitar, but like the allegory)