Personal Development for Smart People Forums - View Single Post - Do we, as human beings, all have the same amount of problems?

Parthon · 12-19-2007, 11:34 AM

It depends what you define as a problem.

I see a problem as the gap between what you want/desire and what reality is currently providing. Most people see this as a problem and something to complain about. It's not the way they want it to be and they'll tell you so. Given that a problem is just the difference between what you imagine, and what is in reality, that means problems themselves aren't real.

Problems only exist in people's minds. There are no real problems in reality. You can't point to a problem and say "That's a problem" in the same way you can for a tree. A problem can only be defined by the opposite of something else. Either something exists in reality that shouldn't, like pain, or something doesn't exist that should, like not having enough money. That's all.

Suffering from problems comes when this gap is viewed negatively and no action is taken to eliminate it. It allows people to complain and wallow in negativity. This is the sort of problems that everyone talks about really, and it's these kinds of problems that lessen your quality of life. It's not the situation you find yourself in, but the gap between the way it is and the way you think it should be.

This is the way I view problems, and it boils them down to a point of view, which anyone can change. Nobody has problems, they just see them depending on how they look. This causes some people to see far more problems than someone else. On top of that, you have the people in denial who see a problem, then pretend it's not there, while at the same time think about it all the time. There are others who just see problems not as a cause of suffering, but as the gap between reality and desire. They see the world for what it really is, can see the problem as the gap, and if they wish take action towards minimising the gap throught action in reality or working on changing their point of view. It's where the saying "In every problem there is an opportunity." comes from.

Simply: Problems are created by people, which is why some have heaps and others have few, and the suffering caused is simply from the viewpoint of the person who has the problem.

12-19-2007, 11:34 AM	#3 (permalink)
Parthon Moderator Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Perth, Australia Posts: 1,356	It depends what you define as a problem. I see a problem as the gap between what you want/desire and what reality is currently providing. Most people see this as a problem and something to complain about. It's not the way they want it to be and they'll tell you so. Given that a problem is just the difference between what you imagine, and what is in reality, that means problems themselves aren't real. Problems only exist in people's minds. There are no real problems in reality. You can't point to a problem and say "That's a problem" in the same way you can for a tree. A problem can only be defined by the opposite of something else. Either something exists in reality that shouldn't, like pain, or something doesn't exist that should, like not having enough money. That's all. Suffering from problems comes when this gap is viewed negatively and no action is taken to eliminate it. It allows people to complain and wallow in negativity. This is the sort of problems that everyone talks about really, and it's these kinds of problems that lessen your quality of life. It's not the situation you find yourself in, but the gap between the way it is and the way you think it should be. This is the way I view problems, and it boils them down to a point of view, which anyone can change. Nobody has problems, they just see them depending on how they look. This causes some people to see far more problems than someone else. On top of that, you have the people in denial who see a problem, then pretend it's not there, while at the same time think about it all the time. There are others who just see problems not as a cause of suffering, but as the gap between reality and desire. They see the world for what it really is, can see the problem as the gap, and if they wish take action towards minimising the gap throught action in reality or working on changing their point of view. It's where the saying "In every problem there is an opportunity." comes from. Simply: Problems are created by people, which is why some have heaps and others have few, and the suffering caused is simply from the viewpoint of the person who has the problem.