Monday, January 19, 2009
Perspective
As Obama takes office, remember this wisdom from the Buddha:
Buddha said: "I consider the positions of kings and rulers as that of dust motes. I observe treasures of gold and gems as so many bricks and pebbles. I look upon the finest silken robes as tattered rags. I see myriad worlds of the universe as small seeds of fruit, and the greatest lake in India as a drop of oil on my foot. I perceive the teachings of the world to be the illusion of magicians. I discern the highest conception of emancipation as a golden brocade in a dream, and view the holy path of the illuminated ones as flowers appearing in one's eyes. I see meditation as a pillar of a mountain, Nirvana as a nightmare of daytime. I look upon the judgment of right and wrong as the serpentine dance of a dragon, and the rise and fall of beliefs as but traces left by the four seasons."
Are the wise rescuing fools (Wall Street and auto companies), or are fools rescuing fools? Unfortunately, the answer may not be apparent until some time in the future. If the best minds in Washington can't do better than they have been doing, we are likely in big trouble on one level of thought. If we look at it from the Buddha's perspective, it's almost like watching a dream or ants fighting.
Buddha said: "I consider the positions of kings and rulers as that of dust motes. I observe treasures of gold and gems as so many bricks and pebbles. I look upon the finest silken robes as tattered rags. I see myriad worlds of the universe as small seeds of fruit, and the greatest lake in India as a drop of oil on my foot. I perceive the teachings of the world to be the illusion of magicians. I discern the highest conception of emancipation as a golden brocade in a dream, and view the holy path of the illuminated ones as flowers appearing in one's eyes. I see meditation as a pillar of a mountain, Nirvana as a nightmare of daytime. I look upon the judgment of right and wrong as the serpentine dance of a dragon, and the rise and fall of beliefs as but traces left by the four seasons."
Are the wise rescuing fools (Wall Street and auto companies), or are fools rescuing fools? Unfortunately, the answer may not be apparent until some time in the future. If the best minds in Washington can't do better than they have been doing, we are likely in big trouble on one level of thought. If we look at it from the Buddha's perspective, it's almost like watching a dream or ants fighting.
Labels: perspectives
Sunday, November 09, 2008
Root of All Psychological Suffering
The root of all psychological suffering is the "little i" or the "little me". What have I done wrong? Why did he or she say nasty things about me? I or me is referred to as the egoic self. If there is no egoic self, there is no psychological suffering. There will always be a self in the sense of a physical body with a brain capable of interacting with the world, but the ego's time has come and gone, barring a collapse of civilization. My cats have identities or selves. Each has her own personality, with its needs and wants, but they aren't attached to those wants for very long. Both cats live in the moment. Same for dogs, but cats have independent wills for the most part. So, there are two ways to eliminate psychological suffering - get rid of the self, or live entirely in the present. Both are actually complementary and synergistic. Both time and self are psychological concepts to an extent. They are also both linked. The mind distracts you by trapping you either in the past or the future.
Time is a manmade construct in the sense that we separate it into past, present and future. In reality, there is only the present. The past is gone, only a memory. The past is an incomplete memory at that. The future is only a possibility. I'm not saying not to use time practically or plan for future engagements, but to not dwell on past events or future possibilities that may never come to pass.
In a practical sense, all of this means that when the world ends, it is not "The World". A world ending event means that each individual's psychological worldview is destroyed by actual events. Each person cannot delude him or herself further about how he or she thinks the world works. In some cases, a group of individuals may have a collective experience as their worldview ends. We see this all the time when a community is destroyed by a disaster, when a government such as the former U.S.S.R. falls, or when the entire banking system collapses due to debt and greed. The ultimate end of the individual psychological world comes at the death of each individual. What happens next I have no idea and it is immaterial to speculate on post death Consciousness anyway because death is a loss of consciousness in this world. The point I am making is that the key to Life and Happiness is to let go of the egoic self - to "die before you die". We aren't taught how to do this, but we experience moments of selflessness all the time. Whether we recognize them as such is the issue, and the goal here is to be selfless as much as is practically possible. With some people the process is spontaneous, but it can be learned through meditation and yoga breathing - paying attention to one's breathing.
This world is Eden. A place of Life in a solar system devoid of Life. At some point, humans developed minds and became separated from "Eden" - the natural world. Instead of living in harmony with Nature, we seek to tame it, often with disastrous consequences. The planet will heal itself if we give it a chance. However, if we keep doing what we are doing, all Humanity will accomplish is more suffering for itself - more pain, hunger, death, and destruction until we stabilize the human population to something the planet can tolerate. The alternative is to let Nature cull our numbers. The problem with that is that Nature is indiscriminate in its choices.
What my perspective means is that the Christian Rapture is a delusion. The saints won't be taken to Heaven, leaving the sinners here on Earth. This planet at this time and place is Heaven Manifest. Heaven is NOW! Heaven is sharing what you have with others, human or otherwise. Hell is humans behaving badly to one another and other beings. If one wishes to open the Gates of Paradise, lay down your anger, hurts, resentments, and weapons, and treat one another with kindness. If one wishes to open the Gates of Hell, just keep doing what you are doing.
So, is my perspective flawed?
Time is a manmade construct in the sense that we separate it into past, present and future. In reality, there is only the present. The past is gone, only a memory. The past is an incomplete memory at that. The future is only a possibility. I'm not saying not to use time practically or plan for future engagements, but to not dwell on past events or future possibilities that may never come to pass.
In a practical sense, all of this means that when the world ends, it is not "The World". A world ending event means that each individual's psychological worldview is destroyed by actual events. Each person cannot delude him or herself further about how he or she thinks the world works. In some cases, a group of individuals may have a collective experience as their worldview ends. We see this all the time when a community is destroyed by a disaster, when a government such as the former U.S.S.R. falls, or when the entire banking system collapses due to debt and greed. The ultimate end of the individual psychological world comes at the death of each individual. What happens next I have no idea and it is immaterial to speculate on post death Consciousness anyway because death is a loss of consciousness in this world. The point I am making is that the key to Life and Happiness is to let go of the egoic self - to "die before you die". We aren't taught how to do this, but we experience moments of selflessness all the time. Whether we recognize them as such is the issue, and the goal here is to be selfless as much as is practically possible. With some people the process is spontaneous, but it can be learned through meditation and yoga breathing - paying attention to one's breathing.
This world is Eden. A place of Life in a solar system devoid of Life. At some point, humans developed minds and became separated from "Eden" - the natural world. Instead of living in harmony with Nature, we seek to tame it, often with disastrous consequences. The planet will heal itself if we give it a chance. However, if we keep doing what we are doing, all Humanity will accomplish is more suffering for itself - more pain, hunger, death, and destruction until we stabilize the human population to something the planet can tolerate. The alternative is to let Nature cull our numbers. The problem with that is that Nature is indiscriminate in its choices.
What my perspective means is that the Christian Rapture is a delusion. The saints won't be taken to Heaven, leaving the sinners here on Earth. This planet at this time and place is Heaven Manifest. Heaven is NOW! Heaven is sharing what you have with others, human or otherwise. Hell is humans behaving badly to one another and other beings. If one wishes to open the Gates of Paradise, lay down your anger, hurts, resentments, and weapons, and treat one another with kindness. If one wishes to open the Gates of Hell, just keep doing what you are doing.
So, is my perspective flawed?
Labels: perspectives
