Saturday, June 23, 2007

A Little Diversion

I forgot my copy of the Dhammapada at home today, so I don’t know what the next chapter says. I know the title is “The Dark”, but that is all. Instead of making something up or talking about why we are afraid of the dark or some other eccentric twist of words, I’m going write about something a friend asked me about in an email.

His question has to do with judgment – we make judgments all the time, sometimes we are not aware that this may cause some suffering in ourselves and others. My friend asked, Is it possible, in theory, to live without making judgment and only practice discernment and staying present? He went on to say that through practicing Tai Chi, he is finding a stronger sense of inner peace.

Not only is it possible in theory, it is possible in practice, to live without making judgment. This is called enlightenment. It also goes by the name Samadhi, with different flavours such as Laja Samadhi, Savikalpa Samadhi, and Nirvilkalpa Samadhi. Enlightenment is very far away and very close to all of us. For most cases, it is best to accept that we are not enlightened. However, just because we do not live in a perpetual state of perfect awareness – Nirvilkalpa Samadhi, this does not mean that the principles are any less valuable.

In Arizona, there is something called desert dust. It’s a very fine sand dust and collects everywhere and, when swept away, returns very quickly. I have a friend who does not see any reason to sweep the desert dust from his porch “because it will just come back five minutes later”. I think this is the same mentality of someone who does not harness their thoughts – their judgments – because they know their mind will wander. Of course! The desert dust, the thoughts and judgments and desires of our minds, will certainly come back five minutes later. But doesn’t it feel good to have a clean porch, even if it is only for a little while?

Part of the purpose of meditation is to train the mind. Without training, the mind will wander endlessly and cause us much confusion and pain. In meditation – sitting meditation, yoga, prayer, whatever method we use – we are teaching our mind to experience joy, well being and peace. When I first started serious practices in meditation, I felt there was separateness between the times I would sit in mediation and the rest of my day. However, I quickly realized that the more diligent I was in my meditation, the more likely I would experience some similar shade of bliss in my daily activities.

I trained my mind so the desert dust would not come back so quickly. There are days when I step out onto the porch and there is a thick layer of the stuff. Some days, I just want to walk past and not acknowledge it’s there. When I deny the fact that my mind needs a good sweeping, I feel lousy. Things bother me. I feel irritable and out of control. On the days that I pick up the broom and at least try to sweep some of the stuff away, I feel better. When I am in a routine and I keep my porch clean, I feel in control and happier.

So, it’s not so much a matter of never making judgment, it’s more a matter of how clean is your porch.

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