Enlightened depression

I would like to share part of a writing by Nichiren Shōnin called Matsuno-dono Gohenji, which is in volume seven of the “Writings of Nichiren Shōnin”. Please read and contemplate this quote:

“It is preached in the Nirvāṇa Sūtra, “The life of a human being is not at a standstill. It changes more rapidly than a swift stream in the mountain. Though we exist today, we do not know whether or not we will exist tomorrow.” The Māyā Sūtra states, “Human life is like a candāla who drives a flock of sheep to the slaughterhouse. Likewise human life approaches death step by step.” Finally, the Lotus Sūtra preaches, “The triple world is unsafe, like a burning house. it is full of suffering and dreadful indeed.” These are scriptural statements made by our compassionate father, the Greatly Awakened and World Honoured One, in order to teach ordinary people in the Latter Age of Degeneration about the impermanence of human life and to awaken us, his naive children.

However, we unenlightened ones are not awakened and do not aspire for enlightenment even for a moment. Instead we spend time needlessly trying to find nicer clothing to adorn our bodies, which will be naked within a night after being discarded in the field when we die. Or, we try to save a fortune to support our bodies, which will disappear completely in a few days after death when it becomes water and drains away, dust mixed with the soil, or smoke rising to the sky. These imprudent activities of the human world remain the same throughout the ages.”

(WNS-7, p.68-69)

What do you think about Nichiren Shōnin’s words? I believe everyone can understand the first paragraph on some level. Even though we may sometimes forget to think about it, we have the general understanding that human life is something special, that our time is limited, and therefore we should use it carefully. However the last paragraph, which is about renunciation, is more difficult to really understand and live by. Who understands renunciation?

The Buddha often promoted and recommended renunciation. When we think of what renunciation means, the image of a monk or nun who has given up all of their possessions might come to mind. But actually, the Buddha spoke of the benefits of renunciation for everyone, lay people as well as monastics. If so, what does it mean for us? Is it to give up our basic instincts as human beings? To deny or sacrifice pleasurable things in order to achieve a greater happiness?

No. Put simply, renunciation is depression!

Of course, when you hear this you might think, “What? Depression is not a good thing! Nobody wants to be depressed!” But I am not talking about the regular depression which we associate with that word. No one wants that, no one needs that…but the depression of renunciation, we need.

Let me explain: If you have a mind of renunciation, it means you are depressed because of the nature of saṃsāra, not your individual problems. 

If you have true renunciation, you’re not only sick of your own problems, but you’re sick of the whole of saṃsāra, the cyclic nature of life.

If you had a mind of true renunciation, even if someone said they’d give you £126 million of tax-free winnings from a Euromillions rollover tomorrow, but you could only use if for ordinary saṃsāric things, you wouldn’t want…at all. You wouldn’t accept it. 

Take for example the life of the Buddha. He left his palace, his royal life…but was that because of some personal problems he had? Or was he sick and tired of the whole nature of saṃsāra? In fact, he was born as a prince; he was the future king. He had several castles, a harem of women, he had everything. He didn’t have any problems with his life personally. He was thinking of everyone, every living being.

People such as popstars can be depressed, even though they have everything. But their depression, unlike the depression of renunciation, comes fundamentally from self-focus. Of course, there are many reasons people become depressed, but underlying them all is self-focus. If you are depressed you are not thinking of all sentient beings, or thinking of others equally to yourself. Your problems and unhappiness feel enormous, suffocating. They drain you of all energy, and consume your life. Everything appears meaningless, and it is therefore impossible to get fulfilment, to find meaning, to find happiness. At its most extreme, what is the unfortunate consequence or final result of this type of depression? Suicide. Because you feel your life is meaningless, you want to die. This is very sad, and it is difficult for people to recover from such extreme depression by themselves. We should help them shift the focus from self to other. That is the best way we can help.

The depression of renunciation is similar to regular depression because nothing in this cycle of existence, saṃsāra, makes you happy. But it is not a narrow depression based on yourself.

Even though you see the pleasures of saṃsāra as meaningless, at the same time, you see there is something meaningful. You have hope. You see that this human life of yours is very precious, and that there is something incredibly meaningful to be done with it. Therefore, you don’t wish to die. 

The two are similar because both see saṃsāra as meaningless, but the actions and motivations of each are completely different, and they are based on different understandings. Therefore, the consequences or results of each are different. You can have a very spiritually rich, happy and meaningful life with the depression of renunciation. 

The renunciation which the Buddha taught is quite radical, because it calls into question the values of mainstream society. Imagine one of your relatives suddenly inherited a lot of money, but they didn’t really seem to care, they didn’t really want it. How would you and other family members and those around them react? Some people might be frustrated, or offended…or even angry - “How dare they? They have such good fortune and they don’t even want the money!?” This is because it is opposite to how we usually think. A person with a high level of renunciation, such as 90% renunciation, could give up their business, position, etc. in an instant. They could just disappear and be fine with it! 

Of course, it is very rare for someone to think like that. But having even 10% renunciation is reasonable, and very helpful for practice of Buddhism. What does 10-15% renunciation look like? Imagine you go to sleep tonight and then tomorrow you woke up with 10% renunciation…how would your perspective be different?

For instance, you wouldn’t care as much as you did before about your appearance, or about what kind of car you have, or about the size or beauty of your house. 

Why is this so helpful and important for practising Buddhism? It is not that everything we wish for is bad, or guarantees us suffering. Not at all. There are many things to be enjoyed in our daily life. But there is no thing, no item of clothing, no amount of money, no car, no house… that guarantees us happiness.

That is the point. When we have renunciation we stop investing so heavily in saṃsāric pleasures, believing them to be able to deliver ultimate happiness. In other words, we renounce our attachments. When we do this, even to a small degree, we experience some freedom. Freedom to appreciate things for what they are, as we realise they are conditional and won’t last. 

We should change our priorities, focusing on unconditional happiness and fulfilment. Enjoy life but don’t emphasise saṃsāric happiness so much. That way we can have a healthy depression. 

Please think what is your priority? Try to develop your renunciation to 10%. How? Chant Odaimoku to experience a deeper peace and contentment, and you can enjoy life more, by shifting your focus away from chasing fragile happiness.

This is spiritual development towards enlightenment. It is like children growing up and eventually becoming adults - when they are young they derive their joy from toys, but as they get older their joy starts to come from invisible things, such as art, music, or spiritual pleasure. Please think about it.