Hidden burden in BUDDHISM

Hidden is not necessary appropriate word.   To the people who is aware of it, it is nothing new but

because of it is not convenient or sound nice, it has been stashed away or intentionally ignored, hence

it was rarely talked about, —– YET, it is the most crucial element and the steps of which

a Buddhist had to take once in their pathway.

—–

Go back to the Kisa Gotami story, —– What was her Contemplation ?

Was that just an acceptance of the life’s reality and the surrender to a force of the Dharma ?.

What was the meaning “Surrender” to the Dharma ? —– obviously, it is silly to stand against the Dharma,

therefore, it is no point to talk about the general condition of human existence, as man’s

existence is a minute from the beginning.

Superficially the teaching in the story of Kisa Gotami is an acceptance of the life’s undeniable reality= Dharma.

Yet hidden in the story, was her Self Denial —– not just accept the Dharma, but there was much more

personal, strong feeling of the failure, as a mother and a wife.

In fact, it was a rigid patriarchal society where a wife’s role and the duty was to bear a son.

A woman can assert her status only as the mother of the heir. Having her son’s death, she was

facing not only the grief of her loved child but a crisis to be branded as a woman of failure.

—– To accept the emotional trauma of both grief and the feeling of failure in fully minded

depth was, in deed her contemplation.

Discovering the harsh reality and found no possibility to find the seeds to revive her dead child,

psychologically she was stripped naked, left alone in the void of blank space —– she became

a clean blank sheet of paper, well prepared to listen the teaching of Buddha.

And Buddha knew she will reach to this state of mind when she come back. ( That’s why he sent

her out for a journey ) So that, when Buddha saw her come back without carrying heavily deluded

expectation and clean calmed face, he gave her kind consolation and the words of wisdom.

—-

Often forgotten or rather intentionally ignored fact of the Buddha’s life is that,

once Buddha was a renegade of the ascetic holy man’s lank.

In order to soften the blow, this story was changed to rather positive description of that

Buddha found the better way to reach the truth, other than torturing the body and the mind —– though,

the eyes of the society then and to the mind of himself,  he knew he was a renegade until

Buddha found his own answer —– real truth and the way to reach there.

In the man’s life, anything has happened was, in fact placed there to be happened.

Same apply to the Buddha’s life as well. —–  If he didn’t join the holy man’s lank and learned among them

and then abandon its practice, the Buddhism today is not exists.

In other words, the elements and the experiences Buddha gained while he spent a time among

the ascetics, and  above all, the contemplation he got when he became a renegade was a key

to reach the Buddhism.

When Buddha abandon and let such practice go, he was literally a broke. no margin to retain

any ego or arrogance left, and having the deep blank space in his mind —– the mind was

completely open. Buddha was ready to configure his understanding from the deep depth of

his subconsciousness. ——————->  (read again and have enough time to visualize those words)

And Buddha’s blank space in his mind,  completely open subconscious inspiration was

able to see the invisible rules of the Dharma which we call  Panya Paramita.

Here the Buddhism was born.

—–

It must be clear, it sound not very pretty though, a defeated completely lost mind, or utterly

desperate feeling of failure, —– utterly denied and hopeless ego, utterly powerless feeling

and so on, —– is the key to gain a blank space or completely open humble mind.

Which can be bracketed as a Self Denial.

May be not, not pretty, but sound rather dreadful   😀

But this is the key step to start to receive the teachings. —– hidden and yet another unfortunate

aspect of the Buddhism.

Yet, even The Great Teacher Buddha went through this, how can we avoid to take this step ?

Sound too much ? —– OK, I leave the analysis to the next post   🙂

___/\___

—

Wao ! — Jaw Dropping ?

When we encounter something  utterly new or strange, there are two distinctive reaction.

Wao, and  Jaw Dropping.—- You may think they are the same.  No they are not.

Wao is a part of the thinking process,  intellectual activity.  When it was somewhat new but still within

the anticipation,  such as a technological advancement,  we express Wao ! with some admiration.

In contrast,  when we encounter utterly unexpected and beyond the comprehension —– since, we

can’t find any related notion or idea,  we lose a word.

So,  only a reaction was to drop the jaw. —– ! ? ? ? —– as the jaw dropped, only a sound

came out of the mouth is, — Haaaaa.  🙂

This is the moment our mind / thinking  become completely blanc.

—-

Why I started to talk about this is, I met a person stubbornly

refuse to accept the mental state of Mushin ever existed.

His stance was,  as we have a self-conscious and the awareness of our state, which is independent

to our thinking therefore it is persistently there,  so that it exists even a moment when the one is

in the mental state of so-called Mushin.

So,  I asked him,  when he was damn struck,  completely taken aback in a Jaw dropping situation,  how long

it took him to came back his own sense ?  And at the very moment he was Dropping the Jaw, had he got

awareness  ” I’m dropping my jaw ” ?  —– m m m —– —– after long silence,  he seemed to have

convinced that  ” the complete blanc moment of self-conscious is exists “.—- You see ?  The Mushin is

not a fancy invention of the Zen Buddhists,  it is the one of a definite state of the human mind.

And it is inherently exists in the mind or brain function.  As the higher brain function is a later addition

in the evolution process,  there is a state without self-conscious —– it is the default state of the mind.

Most important key is even one’s MIND is in its blank state, all the physiological body function,

and the activities which is under the control of subconscious are fully functioning ——– in

other words, anything sublimated into the subconsciousness can act in its maximum potential

since it having no interference of the thoughts / hindrance. ——- This is the ZEN.

—-

Buddhism is a teaching which utilizing this state of the mind,  and the practice to gain the

control of the mind to get this mental state by will.

( Without waiting a Jaw Dropping moment to come  🙂  )

—-

Four-Leaf Clover

I know, everybody have a memory, once (or many times) looked for the four-leaf clover when we

saw the patch of ground covered by the clover.  Of cause I have, and in deed I found few of them in my life.

Yet, I don’t think it brought me any better luck —— and I’m not talking about the good luck here.

( Still, this post deserve to have a title of  Four-leave Clover —– you will find it  🙂  )

——

When you were looking for the clover, do you remember what you were thinking ?   Kind of play to the God ?

“Oh my Load, please give me a Four-Leaf Clover” —— I don’t think so.  😀

(May be you were thinking of your girl friend or boy friend —- to present the precious findings. How sweet ! )

When you are scanning the field with your eyes, I don’t think any thought was in the brain.

Eyes were just scanning and just concentrating for the task.  In fact any thought would be a distraction.

And, do you believe the concentrated effort, will power would help to find it ?   I don’t think so neither  😀

And if you lucky to find one, was it in the center of your eyes ?  —— it doesn’t necessary so.

Quite often we find the intended object somewhere periphery of our vision.

We read the small letters in the center of our eyes, other than the center, we can’t read and understand

what was written there.  So that,  when we need to find a file name in the list, we have to concentrate

and pick the pattern of the word in the file name.  It need to have a will to read.

In comparison  we can detect the pattern which we know already in the periphery of eye field.

But this vision were controlled by our subconscious,  not by our conscious  will.  When  noticed

it’s there,  we move eye-ball and capture it in the center of vision,  then confirm it,  Gotcha !

___

When I was in my Uni’ I was asked to join the research expedition to the remote corner of Japan or pacific

islands, to help the botanist.  ( As I was a member of Alpine Club, specialized in yet traced area or jungle

kind of terrain and doing botanical photography as well —– despite of I was a student of Sociology.  🙂  )

Strangely, in those occasions,  many times I was the first or only one to find out the specific plant, while

going through the field or jungle.  I have enough knowledge of botany but, professors knows a similar type

and so on far better,  and the information I had,  was only a line drawing of the plant from the botanical book,

encyclopedia etc otherwise 70-year-old dry specimen, of which the plant haven’t been seen 50 years,

kind of rare species.   Everybody was amazed  ” How you could see this.  You must got very good eyes ”

( Though, I’m heavily short eye-sighted )  “No no, I just noticed, it looked different ”  ” In 10m away ? ”

Of cause, the plant didn’t come on front of us.  I had to catch it in my peripheral view.

——- In deed,  our eyes or cognitive function of our brain is possessing remarkable ability.

Just learned  from 2″ size line drawing to distinguish real plant ( which is not necessary having flower to

stand out )  might be akin to a Policeman to apprehend a suspect, from a vague photo-fit.

It must have a very intuitive creative work to fill a gap.

—-

But before work out to reconstruct the image,  we need to catch it in the first place.

So,  how our eyes can catch the Four Leaf Clover in distance,  even by the peripheral vision.

In fact, the answer lies in this peripheral vision, and its subconscious process.

It’s all came down to the same paradox ” When you want to see, you can’t.  When you abandon  to

search, you start to see”.  And here, the same Blanc Space in the Mind is playing the role. (Refer the Post)

If you don’t know about the Zen, you might think this is contradictive though,  this is how our brain works.

Expose the perception in open-minded way,  which Zenist call  Mushin (Mind of no mind),  the brain can

receive far more information / visual signal,  and able to process them far more efficient way.

( Many years ago,  I met a man who is working as a railway station staff told me “How to find a railway pass

cheat” saying ” Standing and checking the passes one by one by reading the date on the pass is impossible.

So, we just standing watching the incoming passengers.  Then anyone caught eyes,  we look at his / her

pass and read the date.  We are reading the behavior and the mind of the passengers.  Standing and just

seeing the flow of the people, still we can distinguish who is cheating, far more accurate” —– Well said  :-))

——- This is why I wrote in the earliest post,  ” Just walking the street. Just looking forward without focusing

any point or taking any notice of street scene,  open and spread your vision from the side to side.

This is the Zen ” ( in easiest way —- called Walking  Zen   😀 —– The advantage in Walking Zen is, you

can observe your state of mind from your Peripheral Vision  (able to notice, both end of images are keep

moving while you walk) —– though, tricky part is, you only have to feel them without the conscious mind.

Still it is easier than to observe the state of mind of  Sitting / Meditating without Thinking —–

Thinking the state of Not Thinking is pretty hard to achieve —— Make your subconscious to observe

your conscious mind which supposed  to be not thinking = This is the nut-shell of  Zen training —- Training

because the aim is to achieve Let the subconscious to think and deal with the life —– Because of the

subconscious is thinking but you do not notice it = Hence you are not consciously Thinking.

—– Most important point to remember is, All the thinking process was actually done

subconsciously, then, conscious consideration such as tactical maneuver, social pretence  etc

intervene and mess-up the decision-making and push the life into unnecessary trouble.

Buddha’s suggestion was simple, Be straight and simple, don’t make a life complicated by

being messed up by unnecessary thought.  This is what the Buddhism all about.)

So, why not try your Zenist eyes by looking for the four-leaved Clover.  (Provided, if it’s there at all.  😀

Zen can not create something out of nothing.  Zen can only help you to see it )   Good luck !

___/\___

—-

Blank Space in the Mind / CREATIVITY / SPIRITUALITY

This is a speculation and in metaphor, since the mind even my own  is so elusive and impossible to see it

direct though, it seems in the edge of conscious and unconsciousness,  there is a Blank Space

where a seed of thought or image is first appearing.

The Space has no size, hence it can accommodate the notion of universe to the structure of sub-atomic

particle —– first in a vague form under dim light.

As this Space was surrounded by all library of knowledges and memories  include the subconscious

memory which is deep in the brain, therefore all sorts of connection can be made,  in order to make sense

of what is this seed meant,  in a fraction of second.

The direction of this connecting process can be logical but it is not necessary.

So that a  dream can be created in utterly illogical direction and  with completely  free connection.

In the same time this is the process where creativity works. Whether it is a flat image or a 3D

structure, or an idea  which would be then converted into a meaningful notion by the linguistic semantics.

In the case of image, some person can gradually clarify its vague image into more solid image,

some people has very clear spatial imagination and can do it in 3D structure, others may

only able to see vague 2D image.  The person who can see clear 3D image is also good to see

the object objectively. (And I noticed those people are also able to see the self objectively)

From those images, some of the people can convert it to a concrete drawings (with a skill to

coordinate with the hand) —- as an art or a design for the purpose.  It can also be an invention.

But those new connections are not the result of logical thinking and there is no formula,

or methodology, they are more like a result of chance.    It always comes unexpectedly  🙂

( Like a production of T-cell in our  White blood, the design or the combination of DNA pattern is random

—– no designated pattern against the targeted virus.  Just make a lot, some may match to the virus and

able to kill them, though the rest would be wasted and die.)

Our body is relying on random chance —– knowingly control the direction is done in much

higher region of the brain, with less creativity or fancy novelty. ( Logical but boring.  And

this is why  so-called Conceptual art is boring.   😀 )

—-

So, the field of creativity, new idea or art / design, even a dream are all born in this Blank Space.

It can be described even the limbo in our mind / brain.  Between conscious and unconsciousness.

Starting with very vague feeling, as if it is exist or not exist —— like what  Buddhist describes.

In this field, as the first seed has no defined direction,  chance / accidental connection could be

occurred,  and as the brain scanning all the file and  information, something very remote but possible

new connection can be made.——–> Eureka ! ! !

If it is something useful, we call it invention, if not —– can be an art. (—– Why not  😀  )

—-

To see the seed as it is,  in the clear eyes,  is what the Buddhists are working for.

Since it could be the sign from the Dharma or it could be the direct transmission.

Or it could be an ingenious new idea in physics. (Ask Einstein, how he did it.  😀  )

To see it as it is (before converting it to a known category / notion) need to have an  open mind,

and best to be done in Mushin without any idiosyncratic view imposed on it.

( Interesting aspect of this  Open Mind / Blank Space is, some people can put even clear easily

distinguishable object / idea  into this space, and able to make totally new connection free from any

crèche, idiosyncratic notion,——- it is THE creative brain, creative person. And strangely you might

think, the practice of Zen ( not just a twisted leg formality or patterned Koan ) is nothing but the way to

create this Blank Space in the brain and handle all the coming signal with totally open-minded

manner and purest perception)

And this  Blank Space is where we can communicate with our Spiritual World.

As a seed appeared to this Twilight Blank Space, it is not yet the form of legible word,

some people call this  Transcendental (if it was arrived to the unconscious region,

we couldn’t notice it,  and if it was a clear legible message or clear visible image, we don’t

call it Transcendental) in which we feel, something beyond of our understanding,

deep meaning must be there ——- this is what we call  Spirituality.

—————–

When we receive something very vague signal,  we feel it  Transcendental or  Spiritual.

Like a sound which doesn’t have a clear rhythm nor distinctive melody  but slowly moving rather high

tone (2~4kHz), especially if its got some echo ( think, such as  Mozart’s Requiem which was recorded

in a church acoustics, or some slow synthesizer musics), as it is not narrative or descriptive,

and as the echo gives a feeling of the space, we start to feel as if we were absorbed in the infinite

space and gazing into deep unknown world —— we describe the feeling “Spiritual”.

In this reason, sacred music use this effect —- most typically Mozart / Vatican’s  Miserere.

( This Allegri’s sacred music was smuggled out of Vatican, stashed in the memory of Mozart.  🙂  )

Even the Adagio of Albinoni or Samuel Barber makes our skin creep.

( There could be a neurological effects between the cyclic stimuli / such as sound vibration and

resonating nerve signal —– can be a  residue or left over of  far ancient sensory,  such as Pineal Grand

was suspected to have —– sensing Earth’s Magnetic Field, Cosmic Wave kind of fancy staff —- which

might explain even  Why harmonic sound is more comfortable to listen, or  tone of music affect our mood )

Those phenomena gave a clue —— undefinable signal, a seed of very vague feeling or idea / image is

coming to this Blank Space and making the mind to explore unknown field —– Dream, Creative Idea

—–> Art, Invention, New Theory.

In comparison, if the signal is clear and distinctive, it will be instantly linked to the specific data, category

or notion by the cognitive function of the brain, then it will be converted to the literal notion.

But to define the vague signal, whether it was internally conceived or externally received —- it first comes

to the Blank Space.  So, this Blank Space is functioning like the sorting room for the lost letters  😀

——————-

A scientist said, this function is in our Right Brain  though  I’m not sure as a person who got right brain

damaged still has some creativity,  free mind is functioning —– and I haven’t seen my brain cut open yet.

(Observation through latest brain scanner is telling, that the Nobel Prized Right Brain theory

seemed to be a myth ——- our brain is much more complicated)

—–