Whose Problem?

Whose problem is bigger? For instance, is your toothache worse than mine? Each of us experiences any problem differently. The thing is that if we know we have a problem, we have to find the way to solve it by ourselves. We must accept that it is our responsibility to deal with our own problem. We should not just expect to apply someone else’s solution to our own life, yet we should bear in mind that, "Every problem has a solution". This was proved when the Buddha became enlightened. Through this discovery of the Buddha, we are encouraged to fight with our own problems.

The Buddha said, "You are your own refuge". This indicates that we are our own saviour, so we must take responsibility for our life. We must be confident that we can solve all the problems arising in our life. Learn to know what the problem is and then we can find its cause and solution. There is a story which provides a good example of this. Here is the story:

There was once a teacher who taught his students about a basic law. He asked his students, "If the branch of a tree of our neighbour comes across our fence, can we cut it off?" They answered, "Yes sir, we can". The teacher said, "No, we cannot!" And before the teacher had a chance to explain himself, they asked, "Why?" The teacher said, "Because the tree does not belong to us, it belongs to our neighbour, so let him cut it off. If he does not do it, our job is only to remind him to do it."

In the story, the branch of the tree belongs to the neighbour who owns the tree. Therefore the law says, "The owner has to cut it off." In the same way with problems, it must be solved where it arises and by whom it belongs to. In practical life, of course, we cannot leave it entirely to others. There is a lot of supportive equipment we need, such as teachers, teachings and methods which can help us solve the problems. First of all we have to know what the problem is and whom it belongs to. The next step is then to go on to find its cause and solve it.

This all sounds very easy and straightforward, but it is always better to take time to learn to know what the problem is, to whom it belongs, what causes it, and then find the way or method to solve it. O.K! Take your time to do just that!