Dr. Tony Toneatto has been a Buddhist for 30 years
All the religions in the world have commonalities, concentrating on things like why are here, and how we came here and what happens to us when we die, but Buddhism follows a unique path taking a radical look at the self.
“Without realizing the true self we can never find authentic happiness but only relative and transient satisfaction,” said Dr. Tony Toneatto, Presdient of Nalanda College of Buddhist Studies and Director of Buddhism Psychology and Mental Health Program of the University of Toronto. He was delivering a lecture at the Toronto Maha Vihara last week on the subject of ‘Buddhism and Inner Self’.
“There are many varieties of Buddhism like Theravada, Mahayana and Vjirayana but they share an understanding of the most important teachings of the Buddha. Buddhism has some characteristics that make it unique among the world religions,” he said.
Buddha’s teachings summarized in the four Noble Truth tell us that emotional suffering and unhappiness is the result of not understanding who or what we are, at the same time confusing our ordinary self with our true self.
The four-path consists of the truth of suffering (Dukkha), the truth of the origin of suffering (Samudāya), the truth of the cessation of suffering (Nirodha) and the truth of the path to the cessation of suffering (Magga).
Dr. Toneatto said he embraced Buddhism about 30 years ago and follows Tibetan Buddhism. He said he attends a Vjirayana temple in Toronto regularly adding that this place of worship follows a different set of religious rituals and observances but the doctrine is similar to other branches of Buddhism.
“In Buddhism it is meditation that helps us realize the true nature of self which cannot be experienced through logic, words and dogma. When meditation is practiced within the four Nobel Truths, the eight-fold path to wisdom arises,” he stressed.
The steps of the eight-fold path are Right Understanding, Right Thought, Right Speech, Right Action, Right Livelihood, Right Effort, Right Mindfulness and Right Concentration. These are a set of guidelines for Buddhists to live by. That should lead to the end of suffering.
When we understand our true self, we can also become a Buddha, the term means awakened mind or aware mind.
“Buddha’s analysis of self is one of the most powerful and liberating teachings of the religion. But it is highly misunderstood even by Buddhists,” he added. “Understanding the self is liberation, and misunderstanding the self is samsara (cyclicality of all life, matter and existence). Buddha says the idea of the existence of personal self is imaginary and a false belief. Such beliefs produce selfish desire, craving and attachment. Belief in an inherent self is the source to much of human suffering from personal everyday suffering to even wars between nations since we do anything to defend ourselves.”
We certainly do have an experience of self in the ordinary sense of the word Skanda. Five aspects of Skanda are body, form, consciousness, mental activity, sensation/feeling, habit and conditioned tendencies. Buddha said that the components of the self, the five Skandas, dissolve at death, leaving nothing behind.
Buddha said the understanding of non-self is the most important Buddhist wisdom. “Buddha’s view of nature of self as process was very radical. He said ordinary self is a process, a construction and lacking essence. Everything in the universe is empty and transient and conditioned and that includes SELF.”
But this does not mean that there is no self or that one must get rid of the self or get rid of the ego. The problem is the belief that this ordinary self has essence, real and eternal. As long as Skandhas are interconnected the self exists. When Skandhas dissolve at death, self disappears. Self is a process, not a substance, essence or a thing.
Dr. Toneatto stressed that through meditation the self becomes more and more transparent, less solid and less biased. Realizing emptiness allows one to evolve and grow and express one’s true nature.
Viharadhipathi of Toronto Maha Vihara Ven. Ahangama Rathanasiri Thero, Ven. Dikwelle Upatissa Thero, Ven. Lunugamvehera Revatha Thero and Ven. Tri Ratana Thero were present at the lecture which was organized by Nalanda College of Buddhist Studies in Toronto. (newstrails.com)
