Can the Dhamma remove a lay person’s addiction? I believe it can, but I also believe that it needs appropriate socio-cultural supports from other agents. I firmly believe that as well as offering the Dhamma we should advise people who suffer from any addiction to seek appropriate psychological and medical help.
(I am aware of situations where relief was only temporary, and these were very sad.)
In some situations it will be sufficient, but in others additional inputs can help, and there are specific things that may need to be addressed.
Individual success stories, wonderful as they are, aren’t proof of it working for everyone.
That’s true as I have come to experience it. After the initial emptying, there comes the time for addressing the shadow side of being, and that’s a process where one must consider all kinds of helpful means, and with the mind established in buddha-dhamma-sangha one may get a clear understanding of the suitability of all means, and only choose those that leads one further in the right direction.
“An incident occurred with the cook, Mrs. Daya, who had had a miserable life. Her husband was an alcoholic and was totally crazy. She went to see Bhante to pay her respects, but said nothing. She wept with emotion. Bhante gently said to her ‘anun te kala de thaman to pala de’ (What you do unto others, comes back to you), ‘tell your husband to come and see me.’ A few days later, she brought her husband and the children to see Bhante. After giving a short blessing, he dismissed the rest of the family, but asked the husband to remain. Bhante spoke in English to him about the dangers of alcohol, the virtues of protecting the family and the implications for future lives. This man was dumbfounded by this discussion and highly moved. He came to his senses and gave up his drinking. This change was considered to be a miracle by the family. Further, he became helpful, calmed down, and resumed a normal family life.”
This appears to be a true story related by a disciple of Venerable Nanawimala. Here is the link to the site.
It is not clear what advice the Venerable gave the addict but it shows that Dhamma and association with such minded people can have a profound effect on addiction.
With Metta
SN 12.61 :
“Monks, an uninstructed run-of-the-mill person might grow disenchanted with this body composed of the four great elements, might grow dispassionate toward it, might gain release from it. Why is that? Because the growth & decline, the taking up & putting down of this body composed of the four great elements are apparent. Thus the uninstructed run-of-the-mill person might grow disenchanted, might grow dispassionate, might gain release there…”
It is possible to be free from sense addiction, if you see the body in all its asubha glory, often enough. Even if you don’t quite have Right view yet.
Exactly, the ‘Nature of Things’ cannot magically heal you from your own bad choices, but without some degree of knowledge about ‘the unwholesomeness of your addictive situation’ (the Nature of things), it would be impossible to give up your addiction.
Then there are the Dry Drunks, those who no longer drink or imbibe in their drug of choice but still have the mind and behaviors of an addict. Instead of changing merely the outside, the dhamma can change one from the inside out, addressing the roots of defilements.
Yes, and the “mantra” of A A is one I find not helpful, and that is : My name is … And I am an alcoholic …
I would like to visit them, introduce my self and say it is not so before I say so. And when I have said it then the struggle begins. That’s why knowing the Dhamma is so powerful, the power of truth.
I think one can say “… and I’m an addict” while at the same time understanding that “addict” is an useful label for recognizing as state of affairs, one which is conditioned and that is subject to impermanence. This can be a first step to recognize to oneself that there is a problem, and not necessarily that “my essence is addiction”.
I think the reality is more “Hi, my name is…and I’m blinded by ignorance, tainted by asavas which create samsara and I identify with the reciprocal conditioning of namarupa-vinnana…”
Addiction and recovery is a field with researched bodies of knowledge and informed expertise. Understanding what works and doesn’t work in recovery from addiction requires humility and a lack of judgement from us all.
Unless we are informed and experienced with issues of addiction and recovery, we should be careful about offering uninformed opinions and views that may do more harm than good. Especially, I would advise against the common spiritual bypassing pitfall of over-stating an idealised, transcendent viewpoint whilst devaluing the mundane or lived personal experience of individuals.
People here who are worried about addiction and risky behaviours might be interested in Refuge Recovery, a Buddhist approach to recovering from addiction. They have abundant information, resources and avenues to connect with other people looking for support.
From their website:
Refuge Recovery is a recovery society grounded in the belief that Buddhist principles and practices create a strong foundation for a path to freedom from addiction. The Refuge Recovery program is an approach to recovery that understands: All individuals have the power and potential to free themselves from the suffering that is caused by addiction.
No one can recover for you. We take refuge in the fact that we have the power to do so. No one can recover for you. You have to do the work yourself. Addiction is not your fault. Addicts have just developed a strategy for living that no longer works. We have become caught up in a habitual cycle that leaves us in a state of suffering and confusion.
(Note that whilst I recommend the Refuge Recovery organisation, I am also aware of the issues and allegations surrounding the Refuge Recovery founder, Noel Levine. Generally I believe this organisation is doing good work and has helped a lot of people.)
You are 100% correct and are offering good advice. To be clear, I’ve personally had a long battle with addictions, putting major effort into recovery since 2004. If one might find any of my comments to be flippant, know that I consider this subject to be serious business. Over time I’ve found that some traditional methods that helped me in the beginning ran into diminishing returns. Addiction hides in the darkest corners of my life and mind and I’ve found that only the Buddha understood its causes and conditions completely and offers the best treatment. The Dhamma has proved to me to be the one thread that, if woven into one’s recovery program, leads to lasting recovery.
Let’s share the blame, and I totally see where your at. The reason for my directness is caused by a lifelong struggle with more than one addiction, and also having siblings that is still struggling, but I’m afraid to say is lost. Not dead, but lost.
All my experience with hellish states of mind is that one cannot give the least slack to an addict subself, it is a matter of life and death.
To say to oneself: This time I really try …, Is giving up to Mara. Mara loves the word “trying”. And yes, one might lean on friends, but also desert them when the going gets too tough, or else we join in a deadly embrace.
3 months into sober state I was invited by a good friend to come to an AA meeting, and he explained the procedure, because he being a member for 25 years. He told me it was a very friendly community, and that they watched eachoter’s backs. But when he told me that the urge itself had never left him, every single day was a struggle, and 1 drink would put him back in Hell. I felt alarmed and intuition made me still and contemplating this later I decided not to join them, and keep on alone and trust intuition and practice. I don’t say that my way is better, but I know that the urge is gone for good.
