1
00:00:00,424 --> 00:00:02,274
The "addictive personality" simply doesn't exist.

2
00:00:02,423 --> 00:00:04,594
The truth about your addiction goes deeper than you think.

3
00:00:05,104 --> 00:00:06,714
You must know someone like this:

4
00:00:07,064 --> 00:00:08,015
They've tried to quit smoking eight times.

5
00:00:08,423 --> 00:00:09,794
Each time they make a solemn vow,

6
00:00:09,823 --> 00:00:11,515
but they fail by the third day.

7
00:00:11,823 --> 00:00:13,195
Or maybe it's you:

8
00:00:13,343 --> 00:00:15,515
Knowing full well that doomscrolling is a waste of time,

9
00:00:15,544 --> 00:00:17,394
but your thumb just won't stop.

10
00:00:17,864 --> 00:00:19,675
Then someone labels you as having an

11
00:00:19,824 --> 00:00:21,035
"addictive personality."

12
00:00:21,463 --> 00:00:23,875
As if you were born with weak willpower,

13
00:00:23,984 --> 00:00:26,554
and addiction is a flaw written in your bones.

14
00:00:26,888 --> 00:00:27,689
But

15
00:00:27,783 --> 00:00:30,375
the evidence accumulated by neuroscience over the last 30 years

16
00:00:30,423 --> 00:00:32,875
tells us something surprising.

17
00:00:33,223 --> 00:00:34,515
The concept of

18
00:00:34,543 --> 00:00:35,174
an "addictive personality"

19
00:00:35,503 --> 00:00:37,594
is scientifically groundless.

20
00:00:37,984 --> 00:00:42,554
No set of fixed personality traits can predict if someone will become addicted.

21
00:00:42,984 --> 00:00:44,414
Impulsive people get addicted,

22
00:00:44,863 --> 00:00:46,554
but so do those with low impulsivity.

23
00:00:46,944 --> 00:00:48,255
Extroverts get addicted,

24
00:00:48,664 --> 00:00:50,115
and so do introverts.

25
00:00:50,503 --> 00:00:52,143
The so-called addictive personality

26
00:00:52,143 --> 00:00:55,075
is a popular myth that has persisted for decades.

27
00:00:55,423 --> 00:00:55,734
Hello,

28
00:00:55,984 --> 00:00:56,454
everyone,

29
00:00:56,743 --> 00:00:57,795
I'm Wang Lijie.

30
00:00:58,143 --> 00:00:59,335
So what is the truth?

31
00:00:59,944 --> 00:01:01,274
If it’s not a personality issue,

32
00:01:01,384 --> 00:01:03,935
why are some people more prone to addiction than others?

33
00:01:04,504 --> 00:01:07,114
Today, we'll break this down through two lenses:

34
00:01:07,463 --> 00:01:09,355
One is modern neuroscience,

35
00:01:09,384 --> 00:01:12,155
and the other is the Buddha's diagnosis from 2,500 years ago.

36
00:01:12,384 --> 00:01:13,055
You will find

37
00:01:13,304 --> 00:01:15,954
that these two lines converge at the deepest level.

38
00:01:16,304 --> 00:01:17,394
Let's start with the science.

39
00:01:17,584 --> 00:01:18,715
In 1993,

40
00:01:18,743 --> 00:01:21,974
Robinson and Berridge, two neuroscientists at the University of Michigan,

41
00:01:22,103 --> 00:01:25,515
published a paper that changed the entire field of addiction research.

42
00:01:25,784 --> 00:01:28,875
To date, this paper has been cited over 7,000 times.

43
00:01:28,983 --> 00:01:31,715
The theory it proposed is called Incentive Salience Theory.

44
00:01:31,903 --> 00:01:33,795
Its core idea can be summarized in one sentence,

45
00:01:33,944 --> 00:01:37,234
but it subverts most people's understanding of addiction.

46
00:01:37,384 --> 00:01:37,855
They said:

47
00:01:38,343 --> 00:01:39,515
The essence of addiction

48
00:01:39,584 --> 00:01:41,555
is not that you like something too much,

49
00:01:41,823 --> 00:01:43,674
but that you want it too much.

50
00:01:43,983 --> 00:01:45,275
"Liking" and "wanting"—

51
00:01:45,424 --> 00:01:48,355
these two terms are almost interchangeable in daily life.

52
00:01:48,623 --> 00:01:50,275
If you say, "I want a cup of coffee,"

53
00:01:50,343 --> 00:01:52,834
it basically means you like drinking coffee.

54
00:01:53,024 --> 00:01:54,194
But in the brain,

55
00:01:54,304 --> 00:01:58,715
liking and wanting are driven by two completely different neural systems.

56
00:01:58,968 --> 00:01:59,769
Liking

57
00:01:59,944 --> 00:02:02,515
is the exact moment you actually experience pleasure:

58
00:02:02,784 --> 00:02:04,094
the aroma of the coffee as it hits your tongue,

59
00:02:04,543 --> 00:02:06,034
the sweetness of the first bite of ice cream.

60
00:02:06,384 --> 00:02:09,134
This pleasure is generated by very small,

61
00:02:09,424 --> 00:02:11,675
fragile clusters of neurons in the brain.

62
00:02:11,864 --> 00:02:13,995
It mainly involves the endorphin system.

63
00:02:14,304 --> 00:02:16,634
Berridge calls them "hedonic hotspots."

64
00:02:16,903 --> 00:02:20,514
They are located in specific subregions of the nucleus accumbens and brainstem,

65
00:02:20,704 --> 00:02:22,955
totaling only a few cubic millimeters.

66
00:02:23,282 --> 00:02:24,063
Wanting

67
00:02:24,063 --> 00:02:28,034
is the force that attracts, drives, and pulls you toward something.

68
00:02:28,264 --> 00:02:30,582
This system is much larger than the pleasure system

69
00:02:30,584 --> 00:02:31,835
and far more robust.

70
00:02:31,943 --> 00:02:34,194
Its core driver is dopamine.

71
00:02:34,544 --> 00:02:37,194
I must correct a widespread misconception here:

72
00:02:37,503 --> 00:02:39,514
Dopamine is not the "pleasure molecule."

73
00:02:39,623 --> 00:02:41,634
Dopamine is the "desire molecule."

74
00:02:41,743 --> 00:02:42,895
It's not responsible for making you feel good;

75
00:02:43,343 --> 00:02:44,955
it's responsible for making you want.

76
00:02:45,223 --> 00:02:47,354
When your brain releases dopamine,

77
00:02:47,424 --> 00:02:49,182
what you experience is not satisfaction,

78
00:02:49,183 --> 00:02:51,474
but a drive toward a goal—

79
00:02:51,544 --> 00:02:55,314
a sense of urgency for something you haven't yet obtained.

80
00:02:55,943 --> 00:02:57,074
Under normal circumstances,

81
00:02:57,144 --> 00:02:59,555
"Wanting" and "liking" are normally linked.

82
00:02:59,984 --> 00:03:02,194
What you want typically makes you happy,

83
00:03:02,264 --> 00:03:04,715
and what makes you happy, you typically want.

84
00:03:05,343 --> 00:03:07,314
But the horror of addiction is that

85
00:03:07,424 --> 00:03:10,254
repeated exposure to addictive substances causes the "wanting" system

86
00:03:10,503 --> 00:03:13,155
to undergo a neural adaptation called "sensitization."

87
00:03:13,663 --> 00:03:15,955
The "wanting" circuit becomes increasingly sensitive

88
00:03:16,024 --> 00:03:17,594
and is triggered more and more easily.

89
00:03:18,063 --> 00:03:19,294
As for the "liking" circuit?

90
00:03:19,943 --> 00:03:20,294
It stays the same,

91
00:03:20,704 --> 00:03:21,914
or even shrinks.

92
00:03:22,503 --> 00:03:23,335
What does this mean?

93
00:03:24,183 --> 00:03:26,435
The brain of an addict works like this:

94
00:03:26,584 --> 00:03:28,194
They crave the substance desperately,

95
00:03:28,383 --> 00:03:30,715
but they don't actually feel much joy once they get it.

96
00:03:30,984 --> 00:03:33,935
Have you ever seen the face of a heavy smoker lighting up?

97
00:03:34,503 --> 00:03:36,754
There is rarely a look of satisfied enjoyment;

98
00:03:36,943 --> 00:03:40,194
it's more like a sense of relief from suppressing agitation.

99
00:03:40,463 --> 00:03:42,182
They aren't chasing pleasure;

100
00:03:42,183 --> 00:03:43,914
they are being chased by desire.

101
00:03:44,183 --> 00:03:46,840
In 2019, Nora Volkow, Director of the National

102
00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:50,034
Institute on Drug Abuse, noted in a review paper

103
00:03:50,223 --> 00:03:53,675
that drug-induced dopamine release in an addict's brain

104
00:03:53,704 --> 00:03:55,754
is actually significantly lower than in a healthy person.

105
00:03:55,829 --> 00:03:56,623
However,

106
00:03:56,623 --> 00:04:00,955
dopamine release triggered by "addiction cues" is far higher than normal.

107
00:04:01,704 --> 00:04:03,235
In plain English:

108
00:04:03,304 --> 00:04:05,235
The actual use isn't that pleasurable anymore,

109
00:04:05,304 --> 00:04:07,995
but the desire to use is stronger than ever.

110
00:04:08,144 --> 00:04:10,115
This is why addicts say,

111
00:04:10,223 --> 00:04:11,342
"I know it's bad for me,

112
00:04:11,343 --> 00:04:13,062
and I don't even really enjoy it,

113
00:04:13,063 --> 00:04:14,514
but I just can't stop."

114
00:04:14,704 --> 00:04:16,355
It's not a failure of willpower.

115
00:04:16,624 --> 00:04:20,995
It's that the "wanting" and "liking" systems have been torn apart.

116
00:04:21,184 --> 00:04:22,502
Even more unsettling,

117
00:04:22,504 --> 00:04:25,995
this sensitization is long-term, and potentially permanent.

118
00:04:26,504 --> 00:04:29,459
Robinson and Berridge published a 30th-anniversary

119
00:04:29,459 --> 00:04:31,915
review of this theory in 2024,

120
00:04:32,103 --> 00:04:33,634
confirming a key conclusion:

121
00:04:33,744 --> 00:04:34,935
Once sensitization occurs,

122
00:04:35,303 --> 00:04:36,754
even after years of abstinence,

123
00:04:36,824 --> 00:04:39,274
the "wanting" system remains highly sensitive.

124
00:04:39,463 --> 00:04:40,495
A visual cue,

125
00:04:40,704 --> 00:04:42,023
a specific setting,

126
00:04:42,024 --> 00:04:43,074
or a certain smell

127
00:04:43,103 --> 00:04:46,754
can reignite that urge in milliseconds.

128
00:04:47,064 --> 00:04:51,115
That's why a recovering addict can still relapse after ten years.

129
00:04:51,463 --> 00:04:54,675
And this mechanism doesn't just apply to drugs and alcohol.

130
00:04:54,863 --> 00:04:56,995
A 2022 study found

131
00:04:57,103 --> 00:05:00,235
the same dissociation between wanting and liking

132
00:05:00,264 --> 00:05:03,175
in gambling, binge eating, and gaming addiction,

133
00:05:03,463 --> 00:05:06,274
social media dependence, and even shopping addiction.

134
00:05:06,543 --> 00:05:08,382
You can't stop scrolling short videos

135
00:05:08,384 --> 00:05:10,954
not because every video is good,

136
00:05:11,024 --> 00:05:14,235
but because your "wanting" system is constantly ignited by the algorithm,

137
00:05:14,264 --> 00:05:16,435
while "liking" can't keep up.

138
00:05:16,463 --> 00:05:18,995
You are chasing a shadow you can never catch.

139
00:05:19,264 --> 00:05:21,615
Is anyone naturally more prone to sensitization?

140
00:05:21,988 --> 00:05:22,788
Yes.

141
00:05:23,064 --> 00:05:25,115
This involves the genetics of addiction.

142
00:05:25,463 --> 00:05:26,543
Scientists have found that

143
00:05:26,543 --> 00:05:31,355
roughly 40% to 60% of addiction susceptibility is due to genetic factors.

144
00:05:31,624 --> 00:05:36,435
One of the most studied variants is the dopamine D2 receptor gene.

145
00:05:36,824 --> 00:05:38,463
People carrying certain variants

146
00:05:38,463 --> 00:05:41,435
are born with fewer D2 receptors in their brains.

147
00:05:41,903 --> 00:05:43,334
What does having fewer D2 receptors mean?

148
00:05:43,704 --> 00:05:45,454
It means that normal rewards—

149
00:05:45,744 --> 00:05:46,795
a good meal,

150
00:05:46,824 --> 00:05:48,475
post-exercise euphoria,

151
00:05:48,504 --> 00:05:50,235
laughter among friends—

152
00:05:50,343 --> 00:05:53,502
the satisfaction these provide in your brain

153
00:05:53,504 --> 00:05:55,074
is naturally weaker than in others.

154
00:05:55,264 --> 00:05:57,754
Your reward baseline is born low.

155
00:05:58,144 --> 00:06:01,194
Scientist Kenneth Blum named this state

156
00:06:01,303 --> 00:06:03,595
Reward Deficiency Syndrome (RDS).

157
00:06:04,024 --> 00:06:04,375
Note:

158
00:06:04,663 --> 00:06:06,394
This isn't an "addictive personality."

159
00:06:06,663 --> 00:06:09,475
It is an innate biochemical difference.

160
00:06:09,744 --> 00:06:11,795
It doesn't determine if you will become addicted,

161
00:06:11,863 --> 00:06:15,795
But it makes you more susceptible when encountering potent stimuli.

162
00:06:16,463 --> 00:06:18,514
It's like being born with thinner skin;

163
00:06:18,584 --> 00:06:20,314
it doesn't mean you'll definitely get sunburned,

164
00:06:20,463 --> 00:06:23,035
but you are more vulnerable under a scorching sun.

165
00:06:23,423 --> 00:06:23,615
Alright.

166
00:06:23,944 --> 00:06:25,115
Let's pause the science for a moment.

167
00:06:25,144 --> 00:06:26,634
I want you to think back to our episode on the Agama Sutra.

168
00:06:26,744 --> 00:06:29,754
2,500 years ago, the Buddha diagnosed human suffering.

169
00:06:30,144 --> 00:06:33,954
What did he say was the fuel for suffering?

170
00:06:34,384 --> 00:06:35,894
It was craving.

171
00:06:36,384 --> 00:06:37,435
In Pali, it's called 'Tanha,'

172
00:06:37,944 --> 00:06:39,055
which literally means thirst.

173
00:06:39,423 --> 00:06:40,675
Not just a normal 'want,'

174
00:06:41,064 --> 00:06:42,214
but a burning thirst in the throat,

175
00:06:42,624 --> 00:06:44,343
the kind that won't stop until the goal is met.

176
00:06:44,343 --> 00:06:46,274
Don't you find this description

177
00:06:46,744 --> 00:06:48,423
strikingly similar to Berridge's definition of 'wanting'?

178
00:06:48,423 --> 00:06:50,314
Berridge said

179
00:06:50,423 --> 00:06:51,415
wanting is a driving force independent of pleasure.

180
00:06:51,983 --> 00:06:52,915
You can dislike something

181
00:06:52,983 --> 00:06:55,995
yet still want it desperately.

182
00:06:56,103 --> 00:06:57,754
The Buddha said

183
00:06:57,783 --> 00:06:59,714
the nature of craving is that it can never be satisfied.

184
00:07:00,024 --> 00:07:00,834
Because the essence of craving isn't directed at the object;

185
00:07:00,903 --> 00:07:03,875
it is directed at the thirst itself.

186
00:07:03,944 --> 00:07:07,023
You think you thirst for water,

187
00:07:07,024 --> 00:07:08,754
but after drinking, the thirst remains,

188
00:07:08,903 --> 00:07:10,502
because the thirst isn't in the water;

189
00:07:10,504 --> 00:07:12,795
it's in your system.

190
00:07:12,824 --> 00:07:14,214
The Buddha categorized craving into three types.

191
00:07:14,504 --> 00:07:16,274
Kama-tanha:

192
00:07:16,704 --> 00:07:18,714
The pursuit of sensory pleasure.

193
00:07:19,024 --> 00:07:19,415
This corresponds to substance and behavioral addictions.

194
00:07:20,024 --> 00:07:21,754
Bhava-tanha:

195
00:07:21,944 --> 00:07:24,754
The attachment to a state of being.

196
00:07:25,024 --> 00:07:25,454
'I must become a certain person;' 'My public image must not fail.'

197
00:07:25,824 --> 00:07:27,634
This corresponds to addiction to identity, status, or social validation.

198
00:07:27,744 --> 00:07:28,894
Vibhava-tanha:

199
00:07:29,184 --> 00:07:30,634
The craving for non-existence—

200
00:07:30,983 --> 00:07:35,115
the wish for everything to just disappear.

201
00:07:35,504 --> 00:07:36,014
This corresponds to avoidant addiction:

202
00:07:36,423 --> 00:07:37,875
using alcohol, drugs, or endless entertainment to numb oneself.

203
00:07:37,944 --> 00:07:39,435
These three types of craving

204
00:07:39,584 --> 00:07:41,502
cover the entire spectrum of modern addiction science.

205
00:07:41,504 --> 00:07:45,235
2,500 years ago, there were no MRIs,

206
00:07:45,744 --> 00:07:46,822
and 'dopamine' wasn't a word.

207
00:07:46,824 --> 00:07:50,035
Yet, through pure introspection,

208
00:07:50,423 --> 00:07:52,875
the Buddha accurately described this exact mechanism.

209
00:07:53,024 --> 00:07:54,475
An even more precise mapping is found in the Twelve Nidanas.

210
00:07:54,624 --> 00:07:56,675
The core chain of the Twelve Nidanas is:

211
00:07:56,704 --> 00:07:58,795
Ignorance, Volition, Consciousness, Name and Form, Six Senses, Contact,

212
00:07:59,184 --> 00:08:01,754
Feeling, Craving, Clinging, Becoming, Birth, and Old Age/Death.

213
00:08:01,903 --> 00:08:03,834
I won't elaborate on every link;

214
00:08:03,903 --> 00:08:08,175
I just want you to focus on the three most critical middle ones:

215
00:08:08,384 --> 00:08:12,435
Feeling, Craving, and Clinging.

216
00:08:12,624 --> 00:08:14,235
'Feeling' (Vedana)

217
00:08:14,303 --> 00:08:17,235
is sensation.

218
00:08:17,384 --> 00:08:18,915
You encounter a stimulus,

219
00:08:19,303 --> 00:08:19,495
producing a pleasant or unpleasant feeling.

220
00:08:19,863 --> 00:08:20,875
In neuroscience,

221
00:08:21,064 --> 00:08:22,702
this corresponds to the initial encoding of a reward signal,

222
00:08:22,704 --> 00:08:25,035
the first surge of dopamine.

223
00:08:25,264 --> 00:08:26,583
'Craving' (Tanha)

224
00:08:26,584 --> 00:08:29,514
is the thirst.

225
00:08:29,543 --> 00:08:31,435
After the feeling arises,

226
00:08:31,704 --> 00:08:31,894
your system automatically generates an impulse to 'want.'

227
00:08:32,303 --> 00:08:33,315
This is exactly the core of incentive sensitization—

228
00:08:33,624 --> 00:08:35,062
a cue-triggered 'wanting' response.

229
00:08:35,063 --> 00:08:38,154
'Clinging' (Upadana)

230
00:08:38,344 --> 00:08:40,434
is grasping.

231
00:08:40,543 --> 00:08:42,914
'Wanting' escalates into action.

232
00:08:43,303 --> 00:08:43,495
You begin to chase and grasp, refusing to let go.

233
00:08:43,943 --> 00:08:45,075
This corresponds to Koob's third stage of addiction:

234
00:08:45,303 --> 00:08:46,863
compulsive drug-seeking.

235
00:08:46,864 --> 00:08:49,914
Feeling, Craving, Clinging.

236
00:08:50,104 --> 00:08:53,595
Sensation, Thirst, Grasping.

237
00:08:53,783 --> 00:08:55,554
The Buddha's Chain of Causality and the modern three-stage model of addiction.

238
00:08:55,583 --> 00:08:57,715
[MISSING]

239
00:08:58,224 --> 00:09:00,754
[MISSING]

240
00:09:01,104 --> 00:09:05,034
[MISSING]

241
00:09:05,144 --> 00:09:07,394
Structurally, they are almost completely isomorphic.

242
00:09:07,744 --> 00:09:11,355
But the Buddha saw a deeper level than neuroscience.

243
00:09:11,663 --> 00:09:12,054
He said,

244
00:09:12,384 --> 00:09:14,595
the real breakpoint in this chain is not at 'feeling,'

245
00:09:14,823 --> 00:09:16,475
because you cannot exist without feelings,

246
00:09:16,783 --> 00:09:17,754
nor is it at 'clinging,'

247
00:09:17,943 --> 00:09:20,222
because by the time you reach clinging, it's already too late.

248
00:09:20,224 --> 00:09:21,794
The behavioral impulse has already been triggered.

249
00:09:22,183 --> 00:09:25,115
The real breakpoint is between 'feeling' and 'craving'—

250
00:09:25,543 --> 00:09:29,794
the gap after a feeling arises but before craving begins.

251
00:09:30,264 --> 00:09:31,335
How short is that gap?

252
00:09:32,024 --> 00:09:33,634
Perhaps only a few hundred milliseconds.

253
00:09:33,864 --> 00:09:34,914
But the Buddha said,

254
00:09:35,063 --> 00:09:37,995
if you can remain mindful in that gap,

255
00:09:38,104 --> 00:09:39,634
seeing the feeling arise

256
00:09:39,703 --> 00:09:41,855
without being led by it into craving,

257
00:09:42,423 --> 00:09:43,754
the chain is broken.

258
00:09:44,024 --> 00:09:47,434
The entire cycle of the Twelve Links stops at that point.

259
00:09:47,864 --> 00:09:50,914
This sounds like a purely philosophical claim,

260
00:09:51,344 --> 00:09:53,942
but neuroscience research from 2024

261
00:09:53,943 --> 00:09:55,154
is now validating it.

262
00:09:55,504 --> 00:09:58,634
A randomized controlled trial at Hangzhou Normal University found

263
00:09:58,943 --> 00:10:02,894
that eight weeks of mindfulness training reduced addiction severity

264
00:10:02,903 --> 00:10:06,154
among internet gaming addicts from 7.0 to 3.6.

265
00:10:06,543 --> 00:10:08,554
Even more important is the brain imaging data.

266
00:10:08,663 --> 00:10:11,414
Mindfulness training reduced activation in the bilateral lenticular nucleus,

267
00:10:11,783 --> 00:10:14,595
the insula, and the medial prefrontal cortex.

268
00:10:14,943 --> 00:10:18,475
These regions happen to be core nodes of the craving circuit.

269
00:10:18,783 --> 00:10:23,154
Meanwhile, functional connectivity between the mPFC and lenticular nucleus increased.

270
00:10:23,384 --> 00:10:28,315
This means the brain's top-down control over craving signals improved.

271
00:10:28,744 --> 00:10:30,355
Translating this into Buddhist terms:

272
00:10:30,464 --> 00:10:35,475
mindfulness inserts a wedge of awareness between feeling and craving.

273
00:10:36,224 --> 00:10:38,355
You still feel the stimulus,

274
00:10:38,384 --> 00:10:40,434
but you are no longer automatically carried away by it.

275
00:10:41,024 --> 00:10:44,200
Garland found even more striking results in a 2022 study

276
00:10:44,200 --> 00:10:47,514
on opioid abusers.

277
00:10:47,864 --> 00:10:52,274
Mindfulness meditation significantly enhanced frontal midline theta waves.

278
00:10:52,583 --> 00:10:57,794
This enhancement is linked to an experience called 'self-transcendence,'

279
00:10:58,024 --> 00:11:02,554
characterized by self-dissolution, non-dual awareness, and deep peace.

280
00:11:02,943 --> 00:11:04,075
Garland found that

281
00:11:04,104 --> 00:11:09,274
it is this self-transcendence that mediates the suppression of addictive behavior.

282
00:11:09,624 --> 00:11:13,394
This discovery reminds me of a vital concept in Buddhism:

283
00:11:13,663 --> 00:11:14,595
Manas-vijnana.

284
00:11:14,903 --> 00:11:17,434
It is the 'seventh consciousness' in Yogacara philosophy.

285
00:11:17,663 --> 00:11:21,235
Its sole job is to label every experience as 'mine.'

286
00:11:21,504 --> 00:11:22,375
You take a puff of a cigarette,

287
00:11:22,703 --> 00:11:24,595
and Manas says, 'I' am enjoying this.

288
00:11:24,703 --> 00:11:25,615
You quit for three days,

289
00:11:25,903 --> 00:11:27,754
and Manas says, 'I' am suffering.

290
00:11:27,864 --> 00:11:29,743
You see someone successfully quit,

291
00:11:29,744 --> 00:11:31,595
and Manas says, 'I' want to do that.

292
00:11:31,703 --> 00:11:32,054
Notice this:

293
00:11:32,344 --> 00:11:33,754
no matter how the content changes,

294
00:11:33,783 --> 00:11:36,674
the 'I' created by Manas is always present.

295
00:11:37,104 --> 00:11:38,663
Garland's research suggests

296
00:11:38,663 --> 00:11:41,462
that mindfulness breaks the addiction circuit

297
00:11:41,464 --> 00:11:43,835
not just by strengthening cognitive control,

298
00:11:43,903 --> 00:11:46,875
but by temporarily loosening the structure of the 'self' itself.

299
00:11:47,543 --> 00:11:51,394
When the Manas that constantly says 'I want' falls silent,

300
00:11:51,744 --> 00:11:54,034
the 'wanting' loses its subject.

301
00:11:54,384 --> 00:11:55,715
If there is no 'I' wanting,

302
00:11:55,783 --> 00:11:58,475
wanting itself becomes like a fire without fuel—

303
00:11:58,504 --> 00:11:59,634
it naturally goes out.

304
00:11:59,943 --> 00:12:01,075
We mentioned earlier

305
00:12:01,183 --> 00:12:04,835
that Berridge sees addiction as the separation of 'wanting' and 'liking.'

306
00:12:05,183 --> 00:12:07,235
The Buddha's diagnosis was even more extreme.

307
00:12:07,423 --> 00:12:07,774
He said

308
00:12:08,264 --> 00:12:10,914
the problem isn't just that wanting and liking have separated;

309
00:12:11,024 --> 00:12:15,394
it's that you should never have built satisfaction on the 'wanting' system at all,

310
00:12:15,744 --> 00:12:19,394
because wanting was never factory-designed to make you satisfied.

311
00:12:19,823 --> 00:12:22,554
It's a perpetual motion machine evolution installed in your brain

312
00:12:22,744 --> 00:12:24,702
to keep you forever chasing,

313
00:12:24,703 --> 00:12:26,075
forever moving.

314
00:12:26,264 --> 00:12:28,423
The primitive humans who stopped were eliminated;

315
00:12:28,423 --> 00:12:30,394
the genes that never stopped chasing survived.

316
00:12:30,984 --> 00:12:33,495
So, what is the predicament we face today?

317
00:12:34,024 --> 00:12:37,595
Evolution gave you a never-ending engine of desire,

318
00:12:37,783 --> 00:12:41,634
and modern civilization has hooked that engine up to infinite fuel:

319
00:12:41,864 --> 00:12:46,394
short videos, social media, delivery food, online gambling, instant messaging.

320
00:12:46,423 --> 00:12:49,835
Every product is precisely engineered to activate your 'wanting' system.

321
00:12:50,024 --> 00:12:52,115
You are not a weak-willed person.

322
00:12:52,224 --> 00:12:56,434
You are someone with a Stone Age brain facing Space Age temptations.

323
00:12:56,903 --> 00:12:57,455
So, what can be done?

324
00:12:58,024 --> 00:13:00,982
The solution from science and the solution from the Buddha

325
00:13:00,984 --> 00:13:03,115
are identical in their underlying logic.

326
00:13:03,543 --> 00:13:04,615
It is not about fighting desire;

327
00:13:04,984 --> 00:13:06,355
it is about seeing desire.

328
00:13:06,864 --> 00:13:09,715
Traditional addiction treatment emphasizes cognitive control,

329
00:13:09,823 --> 00:13:11,702
telling you to resist impulses

330
00:13:11,703 --> 00:13:13,634
and use willpower to suppress desire.

331
00:13:14,063 --> 00:13:15,595
But neuroscience has discovered

332
00:13:15,624 --> 00:13:17,394
that this method has limited effectiveness.

333
00:13:17,663 --> 00:13:20,475
Because cognitive control relies on the prefrontal cortex,

334
00:13:20,543 --> 00:13:23,315
while the addiction's "wanting" circuit is subcortical—

335
00:13:23,423 --> 00:13:25,434
it is faster and more powerful.

336
00:13:25,783 --> 00:13:28,554
Using the prefrontal cortex to suppress the dopamine system

337
00:13:28,583 --> 00:13:31,315
is like using a toothpick to stop a truck.

338
00:13:31,663 --> 00:13:33,674
The mindfulness strategy is completely different.

339
00:13:34,024 --> 00:13:35,835
It doesn't ask you to fight desire;

340
00:13:35,943 --> 00:13:38,315
it asks you to change your relationship with it.

341
00:13:38,663 --> 00:13:41,475
You no longer try to eliminate the impulse of "wanting."

342
00:13:41,663 --> 00:13:43,514
You simply watch it arise,

343
00:13:43,663 --> 00:13:44,495
watch it exist,

344
00:13:44,903 --> 00:13:46,075
and watch it fade away.

345
00:13:46,344 --> 00:13:47,054
If you don't feed it,

346
00:13:47,344 --> 00:13:48,554
it starves to death.

347
00:13:48,903 --> 00:13:52,434
In a 2019 paper, Judson Brewer proposed a brilliant point.

348
00:13:52,744 --> 00:13:57,794
He said mindfulness represents a more fundamental intervention than cognitive control.

349
00:13:58,183 --> 00:14:01,914
Cognitive control is a tug-of-war between the prefrontal cortex and subcortex,

350
00:14:02,264 --> 00:14:06,235
but mindfulness directly changes the value encoding of reward learning.

351
00:14:06,504 --> 00:14:09,754
When you observe craving with awareness,

352
00:14:10,024 --> 00:14:14,754
the orbitofrontal cortex re-evaluates the actual reward value of that craving.

353
00:14:14,943 --> 00:14:15,875
You will realize

354
00:14:15,903 --> 00:14:18,982
that this impulse of "wanting" does not bring you pleasure,

355
00:14:18,984 --> 00:14:20,355
but rather more unease.

356
00:14:20,744 --> 00:14:24,754
This discovery itself updates your brain's reward prediction model.

357
00:14:25,504 --> 00:14:27,274
Your brain starts to learn

358
00:14:27,303 --> 00:14:29,514
that chasing this impulse is not worth it.

359
00:14:30,063 --> 00:14:33,034
The Buddha called this process "Vipassana" or clear seeing.

360
00:14:33,423 --> 00:14:35,174
See that craving is just craving.

361
00:14:35,543 --> 00:14:36,423
It is not you.

362
00:14:36,423 --> 00:14:37,174
It does not belong to you.

363
00:14:37,504 --> 00:14:38,554
It does not represent you.

364
00:14:38,823 --> 00:14:40,634
When you stop identifying with it,

365
00:14:40,783 --> 00:14:42,835
it loses its power to drive you.

366
00:14:43,183 --> 00:14:47,355
This reminds me of a concept from our discussion on Bodhidharma and Emperor Wu:

367
00:14:47,543 --> 00:14:48,674
"Greed for Zen bliss."

368
00:14:49,224 --> 00:14:53,595
A practitioner upgrades from craving material goods to craving the bliss of meditation.

369
00:14:53,703 --> 00:14:55,143
The type of addiction changed,

370
00:14:55,144 --> 00:14:57,154
but the mechanism of addiction remains exactly the same.

371
00:14:57,504 --> 00:14:58,215
What does this show?

372
00:14:58,703 --> 00:15:01,914
It shows addiction isn't exclusive to certain substances or behaviors.

373
00:15:02,024 --> 00:15:04,634
It is a factory setting of the consciousness system itself.

374
00:15:05,144 --> 00:15:07,475
As long as there is an "I" seeking satisfaction,

375
00:15:07,583 --> 00:15:09,674
the seeds of addiction remain.

376
00:15:10,183 --> 00:15:10,815
Quit smoking,

377
00:15:11,144 --> 00:15:12,514
and you might become obsessed with fitness.

378
00:15:12,943 --> 00:15:13,774
Quit fitness,

379
00:15:14,144 --> 00:15:15,554
and you might become obsessed with spiritual practice.

380
00:15:15,903 --> 00:15:17,075
Quit practice,

381
00:15:17,104 --> 00:15:20,754
and you might become obsessed with the thought: "I have quit everything."

382
00:15:21,224 --> 00:15:23,934
So the ultimate answer isn't to find a

383
00:15:23,943 --> 00:15:26,095
"healthy addiction" to replace an "unhealthy" one.

384
00:15:26,663 --> 00:15:30,355
The ultimate answer is to see through the structure of addiction itself:

385
00:15:30,783 --> 00:15:33,315
The system that constantly generates "I want";

386
00:15:33,464 --> 00:15:37,154
The Manas-vijnana that constantly labels experiences as "mine";

387
00:15:37,423 --> 00:15:41,315
The illusion that satisfaction lies in the next acquisition.

388
00:15:41,783 --> 00:15:42,414
See through it—

389
00:15:42,744 --> 00:15:44,434
not to destroy desire,

390
00:15:44,464 --> 00:15:46,475
but to stop being held hostage by it.

391
00:15:47,024 --> 00:15:48,835
Berridge spent thirty years proving

392
00:15:48,864 --> 00:15:52,034
that you can frantically want something you don't even like.

393
00:15:52,423 --> 00:15:54,955
The Buddha said the same thing 2,500 years ago,

394
00:15:55,063 --> 00:15:56,514
just using different words.

395
00:15:56,708 --> 00:15:57,464
He said:

396
00:15:57,464 --> 00:16:00,154
The fire of craving is not lit by the outside world;

397
00:16:00,224 --> 00:16:02,315
it's your own ignorance adding the fuel.

398
00:16:02,744 --> 00:16:03,995
What needs extinguishing is not the fire,

399
00:16:04,464 --> 00:16:06,115
but the hand that adds the wood.

400
00:16:06,543 --> 00:16:09,014
What do you think is your biggest addiction right now?

401
00:16:09,464 --> 00:16:11,863
Does that addiction bring you genuine happiness,

402
00:16:11,864 --> 00:16:13,815
or is it just an unstoppable force of habit?

403
00:16:14,464 --> 00:16:16,914
Feel free to share your experience in the comments.

404
00:16:17,144 --> 00:16:17,735
I am Wang Lijie.

405
00:16:18,104 --> 00:16:18,817
See you next time.