Welcome to the Buddhist Boot Camp Podcast. Our intention is to awaken, enlighten, enrich, and inspire a simple and uncomplicated life. Discover the benefits of mindful living with your host, Timber Hawkeye.

Most of the Buddha's teachings make logical sense to me, but not everything resonated with me right away, and that's okay. After all, I was raised Jewish, but I never believed Moses actually parted the Red Sea.

And while I admire Jesus leading by example, I highly doubt he had blonde hair blue eyes or the ability to turn water into wine.

Believing is not an all or nothing situation just like you don't have to love

everything on the menu at your favorite restaurant and it's possible to dislike a few songs by your favorite musician.

So when I first heard the Buddhist perspective that desire is the root of our suffering. I wasn't ready to blindly

accept it just because the Buddha taught it. I had questions. I mean I didn't seek

Buddhism and then changed my way of life to match the teachings.

I was already living a very different life

than everyone around me when someone jokingly

called me a Buddhist monk.

And when I looked up what that entailed, I realized,

well, what do you know?

I practically am. Only then did I start studying

Buddhism, which yes ultimately led to being a Buddhist monk after a few years, but not with that

my questioning certain tenets like whether desire is truly the root of suffering.

I mean wasn't the Buddha driven by a strong desire for deeper understanding?

Isn't desire to alleviate suffering the very motivation behind our practice?

Doesn't desire propel us toward Enlightenment?

The answer, as it turns out, is both yes and no.

If our desire for world peace, for example, motivates us to

always choose the most peaceful course of action, then we can live a peaceful life with a strong

...