A series of blog posts reflecting on spiritual practise in everyday life. Inspired by phrases from Dogen's Instructions For The Tenzo.
Put Your Awakened Mind To Work
The Chanyuan Qinggui also says, 'Put your awakened mind to work'
A spirit of deep seated nihilism like an incurable infection is raging through the Western psyche. It sits silently, like an Aids virus within the body politic, of our society, economics, politics and culture, ready at any moment to drain them of resistance, to have the life purged from them. Contemporary art is not exempt from this. In its heart lies a profound cynicism that gorges upon its own pretences and delusions. Paradoxically, what stands for the avante-garde these days, acts according to very predictable, even safe conventions; it must be provocative, be socially, morally or politically challenging, it must flout or break taboos, be hostile, aggressive, anarchic, gratuitous and cruel towards its subject matter, to decry what is beautiful as fake. Art has always had a crucial role in defining and representing the nature of humanity and civilisation to itself, but its rarely been quite as lifeless, ephemeral or slight, as visually and intellectually opaque, as now. Art is showing us a Western civilisation that has entered a darkened room from which no light is allowed to escape.
There is little kindness to this art, it points towards human suffering, but sees in it only a talismanic form of aesthetic truth, neutered and stripped of tangible feeling or empathy. Whilst it might bring an artist fame, it wont necessarily bring that artist, nor the people who view their art, towards a wiser and more compassionate outlook. Its objects and objectives are slaves to nihilistic derision. If modern art is holding up a mirror, its showing us the twisted mind, the corrupted soul of our modern self obsessed world. Its difficult to see in any of this the work of an awakened mind, it appears to 'lack the spirit' of the Bodhisattva.
I am no Bodhisattva, and do not consciously know of any in my life. I have not by any stretch of the imagination had a 'vision of things as they really are'. I've been lucky enough to have discovered Buddhism, studied its teachings and can, at least, imaginatively conceive of its ultimate aim. My eyes have been a tiny bit opened up by all of this, but I do not fully comprehend. I continue instinctively to re-invigorate the desire to clean myself up and look through a mud smeared windscreen for clarity of vision.
Achieving Insight rarely happens instantaneously in the moment as portrayed in Zen history. Insight is dependent and predicated upon a daily seeing through aspects of ones thoughts, behaviour and life events. Noticing the minutia of ordinary life and interpreting what is seen through a closely focused Buddhist lens. It is all right before our very eyes, though we mostly miss it because we suffer from a form of spiritual glaucoma. Part of our perception is obscured by delusive ideas about ourselves and the world we live and work within. Though our insightfulness is out of focus we are always in the process of sharpening it, of 'awakening to awakening'. Whatever the state of awakening my mind has currently reached, I put that 'awakening mind' to work in my day to day existence, within whatever I do, including my artistic creative process..
Whether creating art or creating a meal both involve a similar process for the individuals involved. All the general human neuroses, paranoia's, mental habits, emotional mood swings and fluctuations of feeling are present whilst making a meal or a piece of art. Whatever we do in life is a creative act, humanity is forever conjuring something out of nothing. I was once a Kitchen Porter, which in my experience could feel like one long physically demanding drudge if you let it. Constantly cleaning crockery, cutlery, pots and pans of the residue, of the half finished remains of someones delectable coq au van. Its a restorative act of creativity, returning crockery and cutlery to a sterilised pristine finish. Serving the cook, the meal and the next customer who eats off that plate. Its similar to priming a canvas, preparing a surface to serve something beautiful upon.
There will most likely be feelings of worthlessness or meaninglessness present there too. But these are present wherever we hope for purposeful fulfilment but our feelings tell us we are trapped in barren conditions. A fertile seed plonked in apparently infertile ground for growth. Yet I can feel a similar feeling of utter pointlessness even with the artistic process and its outcome. Moving from happy elation to thunderous frustration in the click of a moment. Still and concentrated one minute, slipping into tense nervousness. Inspired and on a creative roll then wallowing in despondency, feelings of stagnation or a generalised sense of dull stuckness. Confidence and self doubt swap places in an instant. Which all indicates that its not just about the nature of the job but what we want or do not get from it. The search for meaning in a seemingly meaningless and indifferent world is the essence of the human predicament.
Though we are all searching for fulfilment through whatever we are doing, we can sometimes find its is intermittent or absent altogether. Our sense for what fulfilment is and where it can be found is often misplaced. Its as though we are gazing up into a bright blue sky looking for a lost contact lens that's slipped somewhere underneath the sofa. But when we yearn for self- fulfilment what are we talking about? A clue lies in the hyphenation of self with fulfilment.
Its not that we can't find fulfilment through the things we do, we can, but its a fleeting impermanent one. One hundred percent job satisfaction is not really possible. Even a dream ideal job will have its moments of boredom where unsatisfactory feelings will raise their ugly head. Looking for long lasting fulfilment through worldly things is an endeavour with a predictable inconsistent outcome. The Buddha spoke of eight Worldly Winds that can easily sweep our happy contented fulfilment off course if we let them. These come formulated as four pairings of opposites - Praise & Blame - Fame & Infamy - Loss & Gain - Pleasure & Pain. Whenever one or two of these become present in whatever job we are doing, then 'I want' or 'I don't want' whats happening will start to foul the sweet air.
It is the self that 'does or does not want'. The self is the thing that seeks fulfilment, but what is the nature of that self and can it ever be truly satisfied? Once you start examining the self, you wonder where exactly does it abide and find you're dealing with a very slippery customer indeed. One of the things that becomes quickly apparent is that our sense of self requires constant reaffirmation. Its like an animal constantly hungry for attention, to be fed, stroked and pampered. If our self desires fulfilment its because it has this sense of a lack, of a void inside that needs filling full, an existential emptiness. The self fears it doesn't possess a stable permanent existence and creates events and new exciting things to distract us from this rather discomforting fact. Our sense of self is more a verb than a noun. If self-fulfilment can't be found in this job, well lets change jobs. change partner, change house, change your location, change your entire life. Self-fulfilment is always over the next horizon.
Though the search for self-fulfilment is perfectly understandable given the existential imperative, it remains a bit of a dream we are unwilling to wake up from. Trying to dodge the effects of the Worldly Winds as we progress into the future is a never ending task, one bound to fail at some point. So the first things to put your 'awakening mind' to work on is - what is your self seeking fulfilment from and how realistic is that? How much are the Worldly Winds still directing your daily actions? You put your 'awakening mind' to work on the parts of your experience you are still not fully aware of. The things you are still sound asleep to,
Put Your Awakened Mind To Work
The Chanyuan Qinggui also says, 'Put your awakened mind to work'
A spirit of deep seated nihilism like an incurable infection is raging through the Western psyche. It sits silently, like an Aids virus within the body politic, of our society, economics, politics and culture, ready at any moment to drain them of resistance, to have the life purged from them. Contemporary art is not exempt from this. In its heart lies a profound cynicism that gorges upon its own pretences and delusions. Paradoxically, what stands for the avante-garde these days, acts according to very predictable, even safe conventions; it must be provocative, be socially, morally or politically challenging, it must flout or break taboos, be hostile, aggressive, anarchic, gratuitous and cruel towards its subject matter, to decry what is beautiful as fake. Art has always had a crucial role in defining and representing the nature of humanity and civilisation to itself, but its rarely been quite as lifeless, ephemeral or slight, as visually and intellectually opaque, as now. Art is showing us a Western civilisation that has entered a darkened room from which no light is allowed to escape.
There is little kindness to this art, it points towards human suffering, but sees in it only a talismanic form of aesthetic truth, neutered and stripped of tangible feeling or empathy. Whilst it might bring an artist fame, it wont necessarily bring that artist, nor the people who view their art, towards a wiser and more compassionate outlook. Its objects and objectives are slaves to nihilistic derision. If modern art is holding up a mirror, its showing us the twisted mind, the corrupted soul of our modern self obsessed world. Its difficult to see in any of this the work of an awakened mind, it appears to 'lack the spirit' of the Bodhisattva.
I am no Bodhisattva, and do not consciously know of any in my life. I have not by any stretch of the imagination had a 'vision of things as they really are'. I've been lucky enough to have discovered Buddhism, studied its teachings and can, at least, imaginatively conceive of its ultimate aim. My eyes have been a tiny bit opened up by all of this, but I do not fully comprehend. I continue instinctively to re-invigorate the desire to clean myself up and look through a mud smeared windscreen for clarity of vision.
Achieving Insight rarely happens instantaneously in the moment as portrayed in Zen history. Insight is dependent and predicated upon a daily seeing through aspects of ones thoughts, behaviour and life events. Noticing the minutia of ordinary life and interpreting what is seen through a closely focused Buddhist lens. It is all right before our very eyes, though we mostly miss it because we suffer from a form of spiritual glaucoma. Part of our perception is obscured by delusive ideas about ourselves and the world we live and work within. Though our insightfulness is out of focus we are always in the process of sharpening it, of 'awakening to awakening'. Whatever the state of awakening my mind has currently reached, I put that 'awakening mind' to work in my day to day existence, within whatever I do, including my artistic creative process..
Whether creating art or creating a meal both involve a similar process for the individuals involved. All the general human neuroses, paranoia's, mental habits, emotional mood swings and fluctuations of feeling are present whilst making a meal or a piece of art. Whatever we do in life is a creative act, humanity is forever conjuring something out of nothing. I was once a Kitchen Porter, which in my experience could feel like one long physically demanding drudge if you let it. Constantly cleaning crockery, cutlery, pots and pans of the residue, of the half finished remains of someones delectable coq au van. Its a restorative act of creativity, returning crockery and cutlery to a sterilised pristine finish. Serving the cook, the meal and the next customer who eats off that plate. Its similar to priming a canvas, preparing a surface to serve something beautiful upon.
There will most likely be feelings of worthlessness or meaninglessness present there too. But these are present wherever we hope for purposeful fulfilment but our feelings tell us we are trapped in barren conditions. A fertile seed plonked in apparently infertile ground for growth. Yet I can feel a similar feeling of utter pointlessness even with the artistic process and its outcome. Moving from happy elation to thunderous frustration in the click of a moment. Still and concentrated one minute, slipping into tense nervousness. Inspired and on a creative roll then wallowing in despondency, feelings of stagnation or a generalised sense of dull stuckness. Confidence and self doubt swap places in an instant. Which all indicates that its not just about the nature of the job but what we want or do not get from it. The search for meaning in a seemingly meaningless and indifferent world is the essence of the human predicament.
Though we are all searching for fulfilment through whatever we are doing, we can sometimes find its is intermittent or absent altogether. Our sense for what fulfilment is and where it can be found is often misplaced. Its as though we are gazing up into a bright blue sky looking for a lost contact lens that's slipped somewhere underneath the sofa. But when we yearn for self- fulfilment what are we talking about? A clue lies in the hyphenation of self with fulfilment.
Its not that we can't find fulfilment through the things we do, we can, but its a fleeting impermanent one. One hundred percent job satisfaction is not really possible. Even a dream ideal job will have its moments of boredom where unsatisfactory feelings will raise their ugly head. Looking for long lasting fulfilment through worldly things is an endeavour with a predictable inconsistent outcome. The Buddha spoke of eight Worldly Winds that can easily sweep our happy contented fulfilment off course if we let them. These come formulated as four pairings of opposites - Praise & Blame - Fame & Infamy - Loss & Gain - Pleasure & Pain. Whenever one or two of these become present in whatever job we are doing, then 'I want' or 'I don't want' whats happening will start to foul the sweet air.
It is the self that 'does or does not want'. The self is the thing that seeks fulfilment, but what is the nature of that self and can it ever be truly satisfied? Once you start examining the self, you wonder where exactly does it abide and find you're dealing with a very slippery customer indeed. One of the things that becomes quickly apparent is that our sense of self requires constant reaffirmation. Its like an animal constantly hungry for attention, to be fed, stroked and pampered. If our self desires fulfilment its because it has this sense of a lack, of a void inside that needs filling full, an existential emptiness. The self fears it doesn't possess a stable permanent existence and creates events and new exciting things to distract us from this rather discomforting fact. Our sense of self is more a verb than a noun. If self-fulfilment can't be found in this job, well lets change jobs. change partner, change house, change your location, change your entire life. Self-fulfilment is always over the next horizon.
Though the search for self-fulfilment is perfectly understandable given the existential imperative, it remains a bit of a dream we are unwilling to wake up from. Trying to dodge the effects of the Worldly Winds as we progress into the future is a never ending task, one bound to fail at some point. So the first things to put your 'awakening mind' to work on is - what is your self seeking fulfilment from and how realistic is that? How much are the Worldly Winds still directing your daily actions? You put your 'awakening mind' to work on the parts of your experience you are still not fully aware of. The things you are still sound asleep to,
