Blissful awareness of reality is a state described by Hindu teachings in the phrase sat-chit-ananda (reality-awareness-bliss.) Add the first noble truth of Buddhism – the concept of dukkha, meaning suffering, dissatisfaction (or a "fundamental unsatisfactoriness of all conditioned existence" in terms used by Stim at the outset of this project) and unhappiness –and satchitananda may seem to be a distant, perhaps unattainable notion. People are generally familiar with the aha-moment, or a situation of grokking to use Heinlein’s term, and the idea of epiphany: in each of those moments one feels an uplifting glimpse of truth. Are those moments exceptions in mundane life where dukkha is – as Buddha described – a continual factor? Buddha’s teachings embrace the idea that dukkha is true. How can suffering, dissatisfaction and unhappiness lead to a blissful awareness of reality?
Blissful awareness of reality is a state described by Hindu teachings in the phrase sat-chit-ananda (reality-awareness-bliss.) Add the first noble truth of Buddhism – the concept of dukkha, meaning suffering, dissatisfaction (or a "fundamental unsatisfactoriness of all conditioned existence" in terms used by Stim at the outset of this project) and unhappiness –and satchitananda may seem to be a distant, perhaps unattainable notion. People are generally familiar with the aha-moment, or a situation of grokking to use Heinlein’s term, and the idea of epiphany: in each of those moments one feels an uplifting glimpse of truth. Are those moments exceptions in mundane life where dukkha is – as Buddha described – a continual factor? Buddha’s teachings embrace the idea that dukkha is true. How can suffering, dissatisfaction and unhappiness lead to a blissful awareness of reality?
