Comfort Zones

I was on the subway train when I passed by a certain station. From the "windscreen window" opposite my seat, I saw a man at a window in an apartment of a block of flats. The window was grilled and he had one hand on it, clasping. He was leaning forward half-hesitantly while looking out. He looked fearful while hopeful at the same time. I felt sorry for him, a total stranger. There was a wave of compassion arising in me. He was unkempt and bearded. Early thirties maybe. It was too far and I could not see his eyes. But his posture was that of desperation and depression.

Maybe he is jobless. Maybe his family left him. Maybe he had lost his confidence in himself and society. Maybe all this happened while he was feeling middle-age blues.

We all have our comfort zones. Maybe he was forced to leave his comfort zone, his former refuge of happiness, as a victim of karmic circumstances.

Maybe he just broods around all day in despair and pessimism. That is suffering, yet that might be his next best comfort zone (in a deluded sense), being afraid to face the world again.

Are we better off than him? We have our comfort zones too. Sometimes they aren't obvious at all. It could be a friend that you keep confiding in in times of trouble, being afraid that you can't stand alone. It can be the unchallenging job that offers no chance for personal growth you had been holding for years. Sometimes we shouldn't get too comfortable, or we end up imprisoning ourselves within self-made walls

When the Buddha was asked what He taught, He once answered, "I teach suffering and the end of suffering." That was a way of putting the Four Noble Truths. The Buddha taught about the recognition of suffering, which is the only problem with our lives, and how to end it.

There are two types of suffering. One type is suffering that leads to more suffering and the other is that which leads to the end of it. I hope the man will be brave. I hope we will be brave. Brave to step out of our own comfort zones to face the challenges and necessary hardships of life that lead to Enlightenment. That is the only way to grow truly. The Buddha stepped out of His ultimate comfort zone-the luxurious life of the palace to wander in search of the Truth. He was brave, and He succeeded.

(The Daily Enlightenment)