Tannishblog

As a neophyte Buddhist, I felt dumbfounded when I first heard the ideal that all people are inherently good. According to the Dharma, the innate, core attribute of humans is goodness. Furthermore, the teachings tell us that we lack nothing, that we have all we need already to find our path, to remain upon it and to reach it’s terminus. We are, on other works, perfect.

This thinking came as quite a shock. I contrast this to a view of Original Sin, wherein we’re deemed broken somehow, and we need to aspire to something despite our needing fixing. This leads to an absolution of personal responsibility: "I can’t help myself. God made me this way." It’s an easy out.

Perhaps because of an underlying belief in Godhead and all it’s accoutrements, I remember thinking on the perfection of others. At first take, it seemed far-fetched. Surely most people I knew weren’t behaving that way. They weren’t bad people exactly, but they didn’t view their lives as framed by the need to aid others as much as the compulsion to help themselves.

The Buddhist perfection is a refreshing alternate idea, but it comes with a catch. Because we’re inherently good and complete, we have a responsibility to utilize this understanding to help others. Because we’re whole, we have no excuse to act otherwise. To accept this responsibility is just a start, a baby step. The difficulty is in implementation.

Sometimes, though, we do the right thing automatically. I recall an early posting on citizen’s actions during the 9/11 horrors, wherein strangers aided others in a time of unthinkable distress.

 Impetus for correct actions need not be so vast. Wednesday, a few blocks from my home, the innate goodness in humanity surfaced. According to a Chicago Tribune story, a homeowner came to the rescue of his elder neighbor and saved him from a house fire.

(A) 52-year-old woman who lives in the home ran to a neighbor’s yelling that her house was on fire and that her 54-year-old husband was inside.

The neighbor ran to the one-story brick house, where thick smoke was pouring from all sides and flames were visible in the back, (Skokie Fire Chief Ralph) Czerwinski said.

The neighbor entered through the front door, crawled through heavy smoke into the living room, grabbed the unconscious man by the foot and pulled him outside, Czerwinski said.

Clearly, the hero had to work fast. Clearly, he was just a regular person who, when confronted with distress, did the right thing. As with the New Yorkers during the twin tower collapse, no thought was needed for the best of humanity to shine through. In both scenarios there was no time to think.

I note this as circumstantial evidence in support of Buddhist teachings of goodness. When we respond unthinkingly, automatically, we do the right thing. In a world as screwed up as ours, this is comforting. If we forget our conditioned "Me First" attitudes, underneath we are all decent people. No broken-ness, no flaws. If we awaken to this, we have no choice but to live expressing goodness, sharing in the perfection of humanity, and helping others in need. That’s reassuring.

December is the slow season at work. I sit and browse on the computer to fill my time some days. I get lots of time to ponder, or gaze at my navel, or whatever it is that we Buddhist-types do. As I write, I find myself alone in the office awaiting the mail carrier. The loudest sound is me chewing gum (disgusting habit, I know.) While searching my brain for a quote or an insight of Zen clarity, I see the small picture frame on the wall in front of my desk. Beside the wallet sized photos of my wife and daughter wedged in the corners, the frame holds a computer print out in green and yellow to remind me to recall a Buddhist concept called Metta, (as the Tibetans say) or Loving-kindness.

The Metta Sutra

This is what should be done
By one who is skilled in goodness,
And who knows the path of peace:
Let them be able and upright,
Straightforward and gentle in speech,
Humble and not conceited,
Contented and easily satisfied.
Unburdened with duties and frugal in their ways,
Peaceful and calm, and wise and skillful,
Not proud and demanding in nature.
Let them not do the slightest thing
That the wise would later reprove.
Wishing: In gladness and safety,
May all beings be at ease.
Whatever living beings there may be,
Whether they are weak of strong, omitting none,
The great of the mighty, medium, short or small,
The seen and the unseen,
Those living near of far away,
Those born and to-be born,
May all beings be at ease.

Let none deceive another,
Or despise any being in any state,
Let none, through anger or ill will
Wish harm upon another.
Even as a mother protects with her life
Her child, her only child,
So with a boundless heart
Should one cherish all living beings;
Radiating kindness over the entire world
Spreading upwards to the skies,
And downwards into the depths;
Outwards and unbounded,
Freed from hatred and ill will.
Whether standing or walking, seated of lying down,
Free from drowsiness,
One should sustain this recollection.
This is said to be the sublime abiding.
By not holding to fixed views,
The pure-hearted one, having clarity of vision,
Being freed from all sense desires,
Is not born again into this world.

Perhaps it's a bit early to convey; but in the waning weeks of a year of contention and animosity, as we look forward to traditional years-end festivities and the fresh start of a new calendar, should we find ourselves as I do now - with too much time to think - perhaps we could attend to our legacies as an individual and as a member of the dominant species on this singular planet, and ponder the meanings and consequences of our actions, inactions and indifferences. Ask ourselves, too, if we have shown living-kindness, not just our small circle of family, friends, and associates, but to society, to mankind, and to the planet.

Please re-read the Metta Sutra. Disregard the closing notion of rebirth if you don't accept it. Instead, open your mind to all the properties espoused, the dignity and the grace of the language. Note the universality of the message, be you Muslim, Christian, Buddhist or Jew, there's much here to emulate for us all. Not just during the holidays, but during everyday. That's what Buddhism brings to the world: the art of Being Human, and a method of peace.

Namaste.

What to write in this post-election Brave New World (just like the old world), when the weekend beckons to a pummeled mind like a red-headed Siren? The events of the last week have repeatedly brought to mind a sort-of parable from Steve Hagen's book, Buddhism: Plain and Simple. He illustrated the human condition in his opening chapter:

Imagine that you see people seated at a sumptuous banquet. Long tables piled high with delicacies are spread out before them. A dazzling and mouth-watering array of foods, perfectly prepared, is steaming and glistening and sizzling right in from of their eyes, easily within reach.

But the people seated at this feast are not eating. In fact, their plates are empty. They haven't helped themselves to so much as a crumb. They've been seated at this banquet for a long time now. And they're slowly and steadily starving to death.

They're starving not because they cannot partake of the wonderful feast, or because eating is forbidden, or difficult, or harmful. They're starving because they don't realize that food is what they need. They don't recognize the sharp, urgent pains in their stomachs as hunger.. They don't see that what they need to do, all they need to do, is enjoy the feast that's right in front of them.

Haven't you felt, at one time or another, to be missing something? Hasn't life sometimes left you unfulfilled? We all have. It's not that life is incomplete, but that we cannot discern it's perfection. Perhaps the problem is not with our lives or with how we live them, but with our unacknowledged expectations. We may have formed the common habit of expecting life to be more than it really is and, by extension, expecting more of ourselves than we can fulfil.

We are what we are. Buddhism is to accept that what we have, and what we are capable of, is all we need. We are inherently perfect. I've always thought this a novel concept, coming as I have from a Christian culture of Original Sin. We have all we need to become happy, to better our world, to create joy in the lives of those around us if only we see through our cultural baggage as the psychological bondage it truly is.

The feast is before us. If we listen to our stomachs and not to outside sources, we can be free to reach forward and eat. It takes a brave person to be the first to make the move at our banquet. Soon the others will follow suit. Bon appetit!

As I ponder our upcoming election: the theoretical possibility of crooked election machines; the reality of eleventh-hour smear campaigns; words mis-spoken and twisted beyond recognition, I try to recall a Buddhist adage that says "Will it matter in 100 years?" In theory, if the answer is "no," then one is supposed to surmise that it doesn’t matter now, either. The problem is, I feel that the current course America is treading will indeed matter in 100 years - for the worse. And that makes me quite edgy.

With that said, I offer another Dharma perspective to aid in keeping mental stability so necessary in dealing with a world society rapidly deteriorating. This, from The Path to Tranquility by the Dalai Lama.

Nothing is more important than guarding the mind. Let us constantly keep watch over the wild elephant of the mind, curbing it with mindfulness and vigilance. This is how one can avoid being influenced by external conditions. But even in retreat in a very secluded place, if the mind is not kept under control, it will wander all over the place. Even when completely alone, we can have an enormous amount of negative emotions.

Nothing is more important that the minds motions, because all experience emanates from the mind. Viewing this in light of our nation’s political discontent, I recall that all external phenomenon is illusory, will rise and fall like all things and so will soon pass. I’m also reminded not to fret over things of which I have no control, and to mind all those things that I can. What else can one do?

Please exercise you privilege to vote this Tuesday. Don’t take it for granted. It can be taken from us, because nothing really lasts.

I begin my day in meditation. Or at least that is my intention. Most days, my hour of practice is spent chasing my mind like a dog and his tail. This itself can be interesting when an effort is made to note all the places the minds wants to go that day.

This morning, while I follow my thoughts, I find my mind wants to bash Christianity. This is an issue with me, one I try to keep off this blog: such is not the way to enlightenment.

Nonetheless, my thoughts travel to the core of my issue - values and actions. I ponder the Ten Commandments and how our Christian nation has abandoned them. Let’s look at them. As familiar as we are to the texts, I will not list them here. Its fascinating to me that they are open to interpretation, succinctly worded as they are…

 I note, for a prominent example, that our president, who ran a campaign openly professing his allegiance to Jesus, has promoted policies which violate many of the highest laws to which a Christian is supposed to be beholden. I will dispense from enumerating the wrongful actions of our administration. My point is to note how little the commandments factor into the lives of modern Christians

I mention this only in contrast to a Buddhist teaching that an outsider might liken to the Judeo-Christian commandments. These are the Ten Precepts that children and novice Buddhists learn, known as the Dasa-sikkapada.

1. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from killing.
2. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from stealing.
3. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from sexual misconduct.
4. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from lying.
5. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from liquor that causes intoxication and heedlessness.
6. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from untimely eating.
7. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from dancing, singing, music, and visiting unseemly shows.
8. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from the use of garlands, perfumes, cosmetics, and embellishments.
9. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from the use of high and luxurious beds.
10. I undertake to abide by the precept to abstain from accepting gold and silver.

Note the similarities: killing, stealing, lying and sexual misconduct are covered. Intoxicants are prohibited. Cultural moors defined proper times for monks to eat, usually in mornings. Since Buddhism is not hampered by a concept of a divine being, there is room for more directives of behavior. I would categorize these latter precepts into the realm of frivolous entertainments. One focus on enlightenment is to eschew materialism in favor of spiritualistic pursuits, to refrain from distractions of flesh and reduce influence of the many permutations of ego, such as pride, lust, greed and power.

These last points, I find, are completely absent from Christian teachings. At least my layman’s understanding has not uncovered such wisdom. While they are also culturally bound, and next to impossible to participate while in Western civilization, we can at least maintain awareness of their negative influence and abstain as much as we can.

Taken in whole, I find the Dasa-sikkapada more useful as a guide to life, a path to wisdom. To me, life is already too complicated to bother with improvable arguments of God. Let us instead concern ourselves with what we can master, what we have the power to address in this life to bring about positive change in ourselves and those around us. Thus we can change the world.

…and on a Friday the thirteenth, too. Go figure…

On these posts I like to quote Westerners. While the sages of the East have much to teach us, I feel a phrase has more poignancy when uttered by someone from a different philosophical tradition. This shows us the universality of Dharma. It is a human pursuit, and so it is open to all people, regardless of upbringing. The Dharma does not contradict religious traditions, nor does it negate philosophical perspectives. It reinforces and often unites the two.

One precept of Zen is often confusingly termed, due in part to the vagaries of translations, "No Self." This is quite the foreign concept to most Western thought. Essentially, the sages are saying that to get rid of our sense of "self as a central viewpoint." (my term) We can then open our minds to the inter-connectivity of all things, which leads to the peace of mind and wisdom thought to be the end result of Dharma practice. To put it bluntly: We are not the center of the universe. Understanding this leads to happiness.

What is troubling us is the tendency to believe that the mind is like a little man within.
– Ludwig Wittgenstein

The true value of a human being can be found in the degree to which he has attained liberation from the self.
– Albert Einstein

The sages would have us ask: Who is this that is thinking? Much thinking goes into this question. If we examine our concept of self, break it down to its constituent parts, we begin to see that most of what we call "Me" is fabrication, a conceptual framework that has no substance. The is no single "thing" we can point at and say "that is me."

Search back into your won vision — think back to the mind that thinks, Who is it?
– Wu-men

If I am not my body nor its parts, and I am not my mind - what am I?

The past week’s Big Story is the newest Congressional mishap starring Mark Foley. This brings to mind two teachings that, if taught in wider circles of influence, would go far to alleviate these types of problems.

First, teaching on the dangers of attachment. While it is natural and necessary for the mind to become attracted to ideas, concepts or objects, it is harmful to cling to our attractions too tightly. In the case of Mr. Foley, as well as many instances in our own lives, the very act of longing for something caused his undoing. His inability to distance himself from the objects of his desires, even those objects were only theoretical, caused human suffering. While all current evidence suggests that no child was hurt by his interests, the potential for damage was high. Regardless, Mr. Foley’s behavior hurt himself, his friends and members of his family.

This leads to the Buddhist teaching of the "three poisons", which are essentially the judgments we make against all things: like it; hate it; indifference. The judgments themselves aren’t problematic, but our attachments to them are. If we like something too much, we suffer because of it. Common examples of too much attachment include various addictions people are subject to, like drugs and alcohol, gambling, greed and gluttony. All these expressions of liking things too much cause suffering of self and others.

Likewise, over-avoidance leads to problems as well. We see what hate can do to people everyday in expressions of anger, murder and warfare. All the myriad shades of negative emotions cause suffering. Even if the hatred is kept at bay, secreted in ones’ heart, health issues can occur so that, the very act of feeling hatred, although not openly acted out, can cause great suffering to the person harboring such feelings.

Even the decision to ignore or be indifferent to a person or idea can cause suffering. Although this is the hardest of the three to quantify, the very act of turning one’s back to an issue can have indirect negative ramifications. The current political strife in Darfur, while not obviously connected to any in the West, is affected by our collective indifference to the plight of this poor nation. The longer we ignore the horrors in Africa, the more innocent lives are lost and ruined. Likely, if we continue to do nothing, the perpetrators will become emboldened to advance such tactics elsewhere on the continent or in the world. Thus, indifference can be as dangerous as hatred itself.

As for Mr. Foley, he could benefit by understanding of the three poisons, and by a concerted effort to wrest control of his life from the choices he’s made. Making value judgments is a necessary part of functioning in our world, but letting those judgments control us is backward. Instead, we should understand how we feel, accept our decisions, and strive to keep an emotional distance from them - a buffer zone, if you will, from which we can keep our perspective and a clear understanding of the benefit or detriment of acting on our impulses. If Mark Foley has such a internal check in place, perhaps he and his family wouldn’t be hurting now.

I would share two quotes from The Little Zen Companion that dovetail nicely. Both intimate the importance of awareness - a key activity in all Buddhist traditions:

A monk asked master Haryo, "What is the way?" Haryo said, "An open-eyed man falling into a well."

Zen Koan      

[…]

If a man wishes to be sure of the road he treads on, he must close his eyes and walk in the dark.

St. John of the Cross     

None of us have the discipline of mindfulness to the point where we can recall every detail of our day. For most, much of our day is lost to the mundane business of our modern lives. In the Zen tradition, a state of sharp awareness comes from the clarity of mind found after a strong meditative practice, like the crisp scent of the air after an Autumn rain: all the contaminants are gone and the clarity is exquisite.

 Quick: what color are the clouds right now? If you have to go to the window to look, your practice of mindful awareness needs work.

(Below, an existential description of my state of mind - an attempt at poetic art. A failed meditation session is not always a failure, if one is aware of it. Whenever my mind travels back into my unpleasant  past, whenever I lose the present moment, equilibrium escapes me. Sometimes that is the lesson for the day.)

Darkened room slowly lightening.
Another gray dawn.
I stumble into a favorite chair,
clinging to a vapor of leftover dreams.
Night dreams turn to day dreams,
turning into memories:
Ancient angers, lost loves,
missed opportunities.

It’s the weather. Three days of rain,
flooding, hail, wind.
Autumn rushes back in force
losing no time.
I breathe, knowing I cannot focus.
Don’t fight, acknowledge,
this is today’s practice.
Tomorrow, the sun.

Tonight is Rosh Hashanah. This week also marks the beginning of the celebration of Ramadan. These things I remained ignorant of until recently.  Zen, of course, was unheard of. Having been a recipient of the typical white, Christian upbringing in the sixties and seventies, knowledge of other peoples and their cultures was ignored. I feel the loss.

There is much in life denied those who keep to their own set of ideals. Insular communities lose much in their solitude by not sharing in the joys of others, the wider expressions of humanity available through intimacy with other cultures. Sometimes, even individuals, focused on their aspirations or troubles miss the bounty of earthly life, as is depicted in this Zen parable:

A man walking across a field encountered a tiger. He fled, the tiger chasing him. coming to a cliff, he caught hold of a wild vine and swung himself over the edge. The tiger sniffed at him from above. Terrified, the man looked down to where, far below, another tiger had come, waiting to eat him. Two mice, one white and one black, began little by little to nibble away at the vine. The man was a luscious strawberry near him. Grasping the vine with one hand, he plucked the strawberry with the other. How sweet it tasted!

Zen reminds us of the necessity of tasting that strawberry in every moment, to savor life no matter what it brings. One way we can do this is to open our houses and our hearts to people of differing cultures, learning about differences and sharing similarities. As hatred and fear are bourn of ignorance, so love and acceptance are bourn of knowledge. Celebrate the holidays of others, maybe they’ll help you celebrate yours with you.