September 28, 2005
Theology
Human Condition
The most fundamental human condition is pain. Buddha claims that the human conidtion is suffering, but suffering implies that you endure your pain for some ultimate purpose or reason. This is not true because our suffering is all in vain. There is no reason for our suffering, other than for us to experience pain. For example what possible purpose could there be for the pain experienced by a person by no fault of their own was severely burnt in a fire? There is no reasonalbe or logical answer to this question. People suffer for those that they love, which is the only type of suffering. They suffer by giving up their goals and desires to meet the goals and desires of the people they love. Who does the burn patient suffer for? Is their conidtion caused by their desire to make the ones they love happy? The only people that truly suffer are the ones who care for the burn patient, not to say that the burn patient does not feel pain but his pain is not for anyone he loves, his pain just exists. The people who care for the burn patient feel pain because they give their time and engergy to assist this person in any way possible. The doctors, nurses, family, and friends all suffer for the patient and experience suffering for him.
Thus, pain must be the essential part of the human condition which all must experience. There is no exception, all people feel pain. The basic human emotion is pain. If a man were all alone in the world he would not be happy because he would have no other person to be with and his pain would be attributed to his loneliness. Other emotions exist but are there only to cover the basic tendency towards pain. Why would we have a desire to be happy if our basic instinct was not pain? A person like Deon Sanders, most people would assumer he would be happy, he had money, fame, women, and athletic talent but he wasn't because his natural pain was so great that covering up his pain with temporary happiness only made the pain try to surpass his happiness. Happiness is a very temporary thing. There is no such condition as a person who is constantly happy no matter what happens, but there is the condition of depression which many people have which is a state of constant sadness or pain no matter what happens. Depression can also last for every long periods of time while happiness usually only lasts for a few moments. If you get an A+ on a theology test, you would be happy but your happiness would only last so long as it is signifigant. A person wouldn't remember that grade 10 years from receiving it most likely. While a person that experiences pain might remember that pain for the rest of his life. If a person has a family member die they might carry the burden of pain of their death until the day that they themselves die. All humans want to be happy without exception. They need something to cover their pain.
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