A middle-aged man visits Buddha with his 22-year-old son, who is always tired, irritable, and showing signs of premature aging. The man is worried and doesn't understand the cause of his son's condition. Buddha explains that the son is suffering from stress, which is caused by a disconnect between the body and mind.
Buddha identifies eight main causes of stress:
1. Ambition: When a person is overly focused on achieving goals, their mind is in the future, and their body is in the present, creating a distance that leads to stress.
2. Jealousy and hatred: These emotions can rot the mind and body, causing stress.
3. Expectations: Having expectations from others or oneself can create stress, as it leads to disappointment and frustration.
4. Disinterested work: Doing work that one is not interested in can create tension in the mind.
5. Physical pain: Chronic illness or pain can cause stress and sorrow.
6. Lack of planning: Not thinking through plans can lead to stress and failure.
7. Overthinking: Continuous thinking can be a disease, and practicing pranayama can help overcome it.
Buddha advises the man to teach his son to focus on one thing at a time, with complete concentration, to reduce stress. He suggests that if the son's attention is diverted, he should gently bring it back to the task at hand. By doing so, the son can reduce the distance between his body and mind, eliminating the main cause of stress.
Here are the key facts extracted from the text:
1. A man visited Buddha with his 22-23 year old son, who always felt tired and had no energy.
2. The son's father had taken him to doctors, who advised him to reduce stress.
3. The father did not understand what stress was or how to remove it from his son's mind.
4. Buddha examined the son and told the father that no one wants to take stress, but stress makes people sick.
5. Buddha explained that stress arises when there is a distance between the body and the mind.
6. When a person is doing something and their mind is elsewhere, it creates a distance between the body and the mind.
7. This distance is called stress, and it can make a person feel tired and unwell.
8. Buddha identified eight main causes of stress.
9. The first cause of stress is being overly ambitious and constantly striving for more.
10. When a person is ambitious, their mind is always focused on the future, and their body is left behind in the present.
11. This distance between the body and the mind creates tension and stress.
12. The second cause of stress is jealousy, which can rot a person's mind and body.
13. Expecting too much from others or oneself can also create stress.
14. Doing uninteresting work can also lead to stress, as the mind is not engaged and wanders elsewhere.
15. Physical pain can be a cause of stress, especially if a person is constantly thinking about their illness.
16. Not thinking through plans and actions can lead to stress and failure.
17. Thinking too much and constantly can also be a disease that leads to stress.
18. Buddha advised the father to teach his son to focus on one thing at a time and do it with complete concentration.
19. This can help reduce stress and keep the body and mind in sync.