NEW MOON - Like and Dislike

One who has ceased
from following like and dislike,
who is cooled,
who is not swayed
by worldly conditions
- I call a great being.

Dhammapada 418

It is not the sense objects that create problems for us, it is our being swayed by them. The Buddha and the great realized beings all lived in the same material world as we do, but remained undisturbed. The beautiful and the not-beautiful were experienced, but without giving rise to suffering. Because they knew the reality of the world, inner and outer, they stayed cool, unintimidated, free. They were free to experience preferences without moving, either for or against.