Welcome to another episode of the Secular Buddhism Podcast. This is episode number 174. I am your host Noah Rasheda

And today I'm going to share some thoughts about becoming whatever you already are

As always keep in mind you don't need to use what you learn from Buddhism to be a Buddhist

You can use what you learn to be a better whatever you already are

So the expression be whatever you already are

has somewhat become a slogan or

tagline of our online community and I really like this expression

Because first of all I mentioned this in every podcast right the idea that you don't need to use these things to become a Buddhist or to be a Buddhist

You can use it to be whatever you already are and I think when I express it this way be whatever you already are

It feels like it's an invitation

It's an active process the invitation is to embrace yourself as you already are and it has hints of the

Buddhist teachings of emptiness, aimlessness and formlessness

So I want to go into this just a little bit because I think it's a powerful

teaching and a powerful mindset to have

In our day-to-day life this can be a mindset and it helps us to feel more liberated

But liberated from what?

Unsatisfactoryness you know that feeling that arises when we want things to be other than how they are

That is the classic formula or recipe for what the Buddhist perspective of suffering is

Suffering anguish unsatisfactoryness. It's that thing that arises when we want things to be other than how they are

And I think it's important to explore this in the context of how we see ourselves

How often do we experience the thought I wish I was other than how I am?

I think we're bombarded with messaging from the very moment we're born

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