Why does desire never seem to end—and why does it so often lead to suffering, even when we get exactly what we want?
That question sits at the heart of Episode 29 of Vibe with Venerables, where Venerable Dr. Juewei of the Nan Tien Institute explores desire, dissatisfaction, and why the mind is never quite satisfied. This episode centers on the Second Realization from the Sutra of the Eight Realizations of Great Beings, which teaches that craving gives rise to endless suffering and keeps us trapped in cycles of becoming.
Drawing on an 11th-century insight from Chinese poet Su DongPo—“Human desires are infinite, while things that can satisfy desires are limited”—along with psychology and even a playful reframing of René Descartes’ “I think, therefore I am,” Venerable Juewei offers a striking perspective: “I desire, therefore I become.”
Through this lens, she explores how craving shapes identity, fuels attachment, and keeps us looping through saṃsāra—a cycle of wanting, grasping, and quiet dissatisfaction that feels all too familiar in modern life.
This episode also revisits thought-provoking questions from Episode 28, including where consciousness arises and whether AI can truly be conscious (or just very good at sounding like it), citing two research studies:
Dehumanizing the human, humanizing the machine: organic consciousness as a hallmark of the persistence of the human against the backdrop of artificial intelligence, Sergio Torres-Martínez
AI, Consciousness, and the Evolutionary Frontier: A Buddhist Reflection on Science and Human Futures, Peter D. Hershock
If desire keeps you chasing, defining, and never quite arriving, this episode explains why—and what Buddhism offers instead.
References
Sūtra of the Eight Realizations of Great Beings
A Prayer for the People Who Transcribe Sutras and Hear the Dharma
Donation
This series is freely offered by Buddhism.net. If you’d like, you may make a donation directly to Venerable Juewei at the Nan Tien Institute.
We thank you for dāna, the practice of cultivating generosity.
