BECOMING REAL BUDDHAS

The person who has already experienced the cessation of suffering is
the Buddha. The Sanskrit word buddha is translated into Tibetan as
sanggye. Sang means "awake," and gye means "expansion," or
"blossoming." The word sang is related with awakening from the sleep
of pain; and within the pain, suffering, and unawareness, gye is like
a blossoming flower....What we are trying to do is to become sanggye.
We are trying to blossom. We're trying to be wakeful. That is
precisely what we are doing. Quite possibly we have a glimpse of
sanggye happening endlessly. Although we may think that we are
fooling ourselves -- and sometimes we are fooling ourselves --that
element of wakefulness takes place constantly. According to the third
noble truth, cessation is possible. On the path of the four noble
truths we are trying to become buddhas, real buddhas, real sanggyes.

From "Awakening and Blossoming," in THE TRUTH OF SUFFERING: and the
Path of Liberation. Order your copy at:

http://www.shambhala.com/html/catalog/items/isbn/978-1-59030-668-0.cfm