Real Buddhism is about awakening, that is, becoming "buddha". It is only for those who have a heaven soaring spirit. In this regard, it is a mystical path we are to tread, forgoing our love affair with the mundane-the big home, the SUV and two kids. Yes!-this is what Buddhism is really about. Read the Sutras. It's on every page.
Those who come to Buddhism expecting it to solve their emotional problems (again, this includes depression) are really, in a very subtle way, harming Buddhism. By their mere presence, they are tacitly insisting that a Lama or a Zen teacher is there to serve their needs-out of compassion of course! More to the point, such people see Buddhism as something akin to an outpatient clinic for the emotionally distraught. These same people have no interest in listening to a commentary on the "Avatamsaka Sutra" or the Lotus Sutra. I mean, how can hearing a commentary help them if they are depressed and never get a good night's sleep?
When I began to study Zen with my teacher, I came off of a season of bicycle racing. I was healthy and emotionally sound. I came to Zen because koans intrigued me to no end. The more I didn't understand them the more I wanted to. So one day, I am wearing black robes with a shaved head! The only thing that was going on in my mind at the time was thinking about Buddhism (70%) and girls (30%). I have to confess, the word depression never popped up in the temple. Those who visited our temple were interested in mystical side of Buddhism-they wanted satori. Well, those were the good old days.
Thinking more about those who see Buddhism as a cure-all for what psychologically ails a person, they need to wake up to the fact that their problems are pretty much related to the terrible lifestyle of our society. For one thing, all of us have inadequate levels of vitamin D3 which acts to inhibit deep sleep which is necessary if the human growth hormone (HGH) is to kick in and repair our bodies. We also need deep sleep so that our emotions can be untangled and defused; so that when we awaken we feel good and emotionally sound. No one can achieve this by sitting on a zafu in a temple, as it were, hiding from the sun or outdoor physical activity.
It is only when we are emotionally and physically sound that we should study Buddhism; when our emotional state is not a burden to us. A person has to be in a high degree of emotional and physical health to even read a complicated Sutra like the "Lankavatara". One has to live the life of a non-violent warrior, always well disciplined and healthy. Read More @ Source
