“Earthly desires” here indicates not simply cravings but all desires, impulses and delusions that arise in the absence of wisdom and thus lead to suffering. The negative cycle in which we exacerbate or perpetuate our suffering is defined in Buddhism as the “three paths of earthly desires, karma and suffering.” They are known as “paths” because one leads to the other.

Compassion expands and deepens our motivation by making us aware of the suffering of others, including those involved with us in a challenging situation. Wisdom enables us to choose the kinds of responses and courses of action that will lead to positive change, while courage gives us the ability to confront situations and persevere until we create a breakthrough. This unleashes innate qualities of courage, wisdom and compassion, enabling us to steer the situation toward a more positive outcome. When we are rooted in a sense of the expansiveness of our lives, we can face our circumstances squarely with confidence and an embracing spirit. Ultimately, all such tendencies can be traced to a lack of belief in the dignity and potential of our lives and the lives of all others. These distort our ability to clearly perceive our reality, causing us to respond to our environment and circumstances in ways that compromise our own happiness and lead us to become entrenched in negative patterns of behavior. From a Buddhist perspective, it is the negative tendencies within our lives, such as egotism, greed and cowardice, which are the root of the problem.

What does buddhist say about gambling