This video deeply explores desire — the fundamental driving force by which we live our lives, and clearly explains the meaning of desire in Buddhism and how it differs from ordinary craving. In particular, it offers an easy-to-understand breakdown of the various kinds of desire: not only the biological desires of the survival instinct and the instinct to preserve the species, but also the uniquely human desire to pursue something better, and even the desire we cannot stop pursuing despite knowing it harms us. Through this, it clarifies the context in which the Buddhist teaching "let go of desire" should be understood, and points toward the right direction for practice.

1. The Driving Force of Life: Misunderstandings About Desire 🤔

By what force do we live? Ven. Pomnyun begins his talk by explaining that the fundamental driving force by which a person lives is precisely desire. 🗣️: "What is the driving force by which a person lives? By what force does a person live? This desire — usually we also call it 'craving' — this desire to do something is the basic driving force of life. We can put it that way."

Without such desire, we lose our will to live and become listless. But in Buddhism, we are commonly taught to "let go of craving!", which leaves many people confused. They wonder whether letting go of craving turns you into a meaningless being who wants to do nothing — whether becoming a numb being, like a block of wood, is what the life of a sage (道人) is supposed to be. 🤔

People understand that desire is the cause of suffering, but being told to let go of all desire still makes them wonder by what force they are then supposed to live. 🗣️: "Desire, or craving, becomes the cause of suffering. That much I understand, but if you tell me to just throw it all away, then by what force am I supposed to live?" Such a question is not easily resolved and keeps circling in the mind, and it can become a factor that hinders the depth of one's practice. Outwardly people pretend to agree, but if the doubt in their heart remains unresolved, they eventually feel that the Buddha's teaching doesn't match reality and fall into confusion. 😥 That is why, the Venerable laments, both those newly encountering Buddhism and those who have practiced for a long time often end up circling in the same spot with little difference between them.

2. Basic Biological Desires: Survival and Preservation of the Species 🧬

Ven. Pomnyun explains that desire — the driving force of the life we live — can be broadly divided into two basic biological desires.

2.1. The Instinct of Self-Preservation (Survival Instinct) 🌿

The first is the survival instinct, that is, the instinct of self-preservation. This is the desire to stay alive, the instinct to maintain oneself. The reason we feel pain and hold a grudge when someone tries to harm us is precisely because of this survival instinct.

For this self-preservation, metabolism must occur in our bodies. Metabolism involves two processes.

1. Catabolism: the process of breaking down the energy contained within substances and using it. A representative example is obtaining energy through the food we eat. The source of all energy is solar energy: plants gather and store solar energy, and we ingest those plants (or the animals that ate the plants) to obtain energy.
2. Anabolism: the process of using energy to produce the substances (proteins, amino acids, etc.) needed to build up our bodies.

In conclusion, the survival instinct requires basic biological functions such as eating food (appetite), breathing, drinking water, and sleeping in order for our bodies to be maintained. Without these desires, we could not exist.

2.2. The Instinct to Preserve the Species 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

But self-preservation alone is not enough. An individual cannot be maintained forever and eventually meets death. So an instinct arises to create something like oneself before dying. This is precisely the instinct to preserve the species.

Biologically, preservation of the species is achieved through "replication." There is the method of dividing cells and replicating identical DNA, as in an amoeba, but humans have a reproductive instinct that creates new life through the fertilization of sperm and egg. 🥚➡️🐣

In other words, appetite and the desire for sleep for self-preservation, and the reproductive instinct for preservation of the species, are the basic desires built into our very existence. Without these desires, we could not even have come to exist in this world. 🌟

3. Desires Unique to Humans ✨

Yet humans possess special desires that go beyond mere survival and preservation of the species.

3.1. The Desire to Pursue "Something Better" 😋

Beyond eating to relieve hunger, there is the desire to "eat something more delicious!" Beyond wearing clothes to avoid cold and heat, we think "I'll wear nicer clothes!", and beyond simply sleeping, there is the desire to "sleep in a better bed!" 😴

In particular, in the case of the reproductive instinct, animals mate only during their breeding season to reproduce their species, and once that is done the desire disappears; but humans, going beyond reproduction of the species, have a sexual desire aimed at enjoying pleasure. 🗣️: "Not the reproductive instinct of mating only when fertilization will occur in order to reproduce the species, but rather 'I'll have sex in order to enjoy pleasure.' This sort of thing has nothing to do with the survival instinct."

Moreover, the desire to rise to a higher position and to gain popularity can be called uniquely human desires that have no direct relation to survival or preservation of the species. 👑

3.2. The Desire We Cannot Stop Despite Knowing Its Harm 🚫

Even more astonishing is that humans also have desires they cannot quit even while knowing they are harmful to themselves. 😮

• Smoking cigarettes, which are harmful to the body 🚬
• Taking drugs, which threaten one's life 💊
• Overeating even when obesity has already damaged one's health 🍔

Such behaviors are hard to find in other animals. Doing things disadvantageous to one's own survival can be called a desire unique to humans. 🗣️: "There are also these desires — doing things harmful to oneself, even doing things that are disadvantageous to one's survival..."

4. The Importance of a Correct Understanding of Desire 🙏

Ven. Pomnyun emphasizes that clearly distinguishing among these various desires is extremely important. The confusion arises precisely because all of these are jumbled together under the single name of desire (or craving).

Some desires we must satisfy in order to exist; some desires we must moderate; and some desires we need to let go of. But if we lump all desires together without this distinction, the teaching "let go of desire!" gives rise to the misunderstanding "Does that mean don't even eat and don't even sleep?" 😵

In conclusion, we need the wisdom to accurately understand the types of desire and respond appropriately to the situation. Only then can we correctly receive the Buddha's teaching and advance into deep practice without confusion. Following this, Ven. Pomnyun is expected to explain in more detail in the next video how these desires should be handled. 🌟

Closing

Through this talk, Ven. Pomnyun helps us realize that desire is not simply something to be discarded, but the fundamental driving force of our lives and a complex element that exists in many forms. From the basic desires of survival and preservation of the species, to the uniquely human desires of pursuing something better and even acting despite knowing the harm, he emphasizes that clearly understanding their types is the very beginning of right practice. In the next talk, it seems we will gain wisdom on how to govern and regulate these desires. 🧘‍♀️