With roots in Buddhist psychology, “near enemy” refers to a mental state that mimics a positive emotion but in truth undermines it. Unlike its opposite, which is easy to spot, the “near enemy” of a positive emotion flies under the radar and damages our structures from within.
According to Pali Tipitaka, Devadatta was the greatest enemy of Lord Buddha and was believed to split the Sangha by persuading about 500 Buddhist monks who admired and followed him. Devadatta was the son of Shakya King Suppabuddha and Queen Pamita and brother of Yasodhara (wife of Buddha ).
The Far Enemy, naturally enough, is Jealousy, competitiveness. As a matter of fact, when we feel jealous or competitive with another, the Buddha instructed us to cultivate Sympathetic Joy as the antidote.
Known as the three powerful enemies, they are defined as (1) arrogant laypeople, (2) arrogant monks, and (3) arrogant false sages.
The Lotus Sutra teaches that those who uphold its teachings will endure persecution, the greatest of which will be brought about by the “three powerful enemies,” described as: 1) arrogant lay people; 2) arrogant priests; and 3) arrogant false sages.
For hundreds of years disciples of Jesus have spoken of the “three enemies of the soul” – the world, the flesh, and the devil.
Five great enemies to peace inhabit with us: viz., avarice, ambition, envy, anger and pride. If those enemies were to be banished, we should infallibly enjoy perpetual peace.
(Skt.; Pāli, akusala-mūla). Collective name for the three roots of evil, being the three unwholesome mental states of greed (rāga), hatred (dveṣa), and delusion (moha). All negative states of consciousness are seen as ultimately grounded in one or more of these three.
The talker. The flatterer. The reckless companion. The Buddha summed it up in a verse saying, "The friend who is all talk, and the friend of empty of words, and the friend that is full of compliments, and the reckless friend.
Accordingly in the different Buddhist texts, advice has been given to get rid of all kinds of evils or sins. It has been said that greed (lobha), attraction (rāga), hatred (dosa), and delusion (moha) are the sources of all kinds of evil acts [2].
Buddhism considers war and conflict as evil and teaches how an individual could transcend the universal tendency to engage in conflicts, debates, disputes and wars.
In Buddhism, Dvesha (hate, aversion) is the opposite of raga (lust, desire). Along with Raga and Moha, Dvesha is one of the three character afflictions that, in part, cause Dukkha. It is also one of the "threefold fires" in Buddhist Pali canon that must be quenched.
These are the realms of the gods (deva), the demi-gods (asura), humans (manuṣa), animals (tiryak), hungry ghosts (preta) and hell denizens (naraka). Generally Buddhism tends to teach that these levels are real modes of existence although some forms of Buddhism, especially within Mahāyāna.
A near enemy is a subtle quality that we may miss or confuse as useful or helpful when, in fact, it can become an obstacle to practice that is hidden from us or in disguise. Far enemies are often very obvious because they seem to be the total opposite of the beneficial qualities we are intending to cultivate.
"In a bid to destroy Buddhism, the monastery built in China was demolished. Our people were poisoned. China did everything possible to harm Buddhism," he said this on the concluding day of his three-day teaching programme in Bodh Gaya.
Let's not be either the one who is the false friend or the one who goes along with a false friend because of our own attachment, because neither one of those situations actually benefits anybody. It doesn't mean you take the false friend and throw him out the window, and say forget you.
The Buddha has described good friend (Kalyana Mitta) is someone with the compassion and courage to, tell us even those we would prefer not to hear, which we must confront if we are to develop and grow in our lives, the bad friends (Pæpa Mitta) are those who encourage our weakness.
Kalyāṇa-mittatā (Pali; Skt.: -mitratā; CHN: 善知識) is a Buddhist concept of "admirable friendship" within Buddhist community life, applicable to both monastic and householder relationships.
Māra, a demon in Buddhism, represents the darker side of the human condition. The purpose of Māra is to represent the difficult elements a Buddhist practitioner will encounter when seeking Buddhist teachings, known as the dharma.
Three kinds of wrong view are unwholesome courses of action, akusala kamma patha, through the mind, and these are capable of causing an unhappy rebirth.
Buddhists try to cultivate good karma and avoid bad. However, the aim of Buddhism is to escape the cycle of rebirth altogether, not simply to acquire good karma and so to be born into a more pleasant state.
Love yourself, care for yourself, enrich yourself. Speak your greatest words and live from your greatest self within. You have the power to choose love and happiness and become your own true friend.
ENVY IS THE ENEMY OF HAPPINESS — Almanack of Naval Ravikant.