Suppose we had a table in a room. We invite a spectator in to see it. We then ask them to leave and we break the table up into a pile of wood splinters.
We then invite the spectator back, with another who did not know what was in the room.
We ask where did it go?
The two spectators will give different answers obviously not based upon what they see but upon what they know.
The original spectator will probably point at the pile of wood and say that this is the table, and that you have broken it up.
To this spectator you can say this is all true, but you might ask them to use their eyes and observe that there is no longer a table in the room. The table did not leave room. So the table has vanished.
But the new spectator will ask you what you mean by it? All they can see is a pile of wood. To this spectator you might give them some information by telling them there was a table in the room before, and they will work out the same as the first spectator.
What is to be closely observed here is how important what we know is. The "table" that we think is so solid and permanent is actually something created by our minds. So strong is this belief in the table, that even after it is broken up its ghost continues to inhabit the pile of wood. When spectator one is asked where the table is they point at the wood, not just indicating that the wood "was" the table, but believing in some way that the spirit of the table still inhabits the wood. This way they are not so surprised that the table has ceased to exist.
But obviously the table has ceased to exist because the second spectator does not see a table. They also do not have any knowledge of what the wood was so they do not invent a belief in a table. They see what is there: a pile of wood.
This is how important our minds are in creating the world. The imbue what we see with a narrative of what is and what is not. And this narrative is very powerful, so that it continues to add subtitles even after things have changed.
In Buddhism the cause of suffering is seen as the mind not accepting reality. Sadness is not suffering, emotions are not suffering. Suffering is an existential state of longing for what is not, or rejecting of what is. When we see the broken table, we do not see the pile of wood but rather a table that is broken. If we particularly liked the table then the pile of wood will carry a strong ghost of the table, and we will continue to see the table long into the future. But at no point here does the table really exist, it is all to do with our minds. Our minds are truly powerful!
And the real surprise when we realise how strong our minds are is to see that even when there is a table in room, it is not really there. Spectator 1s mind that gives a ghost to the pile of wood, also gives a ghost to the wood before it was broken up! In deep meditation it is possible to separate the experience of the table in our sense (the rupa) from the ghost of the table in our minds (the nama). When we have our minds under control with this understanding we can rid our life of all the hauntings that cause suffering.
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