Moderation

In his commentary on the Surangama Sutra, Master Sheng Yen remarks "With the exception of a few practitioners, people need an emotional life to survive. But we should use our reason to regulate our emotion. Thus, we get consolation from our emotions, yet we do not let our emotions burn us like a consuming flame" (p.44). I was intrigued while reading this passage, because I began to wonder how it is even possible to achieve such a balance in life. Master Sheng Yen uses  the following analogy to explain what he means by moderation:

  I recently read a poem about rain. The poem suggested that  rain conducts a symphony on the roof; throws a party on top of umbrellas; embroiders the streets with beautiful patterns. Rain gives life to all lives; it is life within life. The poem resulted from the poet's feelings. Ordinary people will think of rain as rain; it will be an inconvenience to them. The poet, however, uses his imagination to enliven the rain. 

Master Sheng Yen goes on to compare contemplation of the rain with how a person feels love for the beloved. It is not just an act of pure desire but also a kind of ideal that comes from mindfulness of all the rain's qualities. Master Sheng Yen seems to attribute this contemplation of the rain to a combination of emotions and reason. While emotions give a person the understanding of beauty, it's reason that allows those emotions to be articulated in creative and artistic ways. Raw emotion or desire perhaps doesn't have this same quality to it, because it is somewhat crude and overwhelms. But with artful appreciation, many things are possible, and it extends from one thing into other areas of life as well. I am most impressed by the notion that rain starts to become more spiritual as the poet articulates its features. It is as though this poet went beyond the purely sensory notion of rain and its experience is closer to the wisdom that is the universe itself. Rather than simply articulating the rain as a 'thing', this poet managed to find ways to richly contextualize the rain as part of a greater symphony, and breathes life into the metaphor of rain.
   Which is more important, emotion or reason? I think both are equally important, but reason tends to be equated with something cold and impersonal, almost scientific. I am almost tempted to replace the word 'reason' with wisdom, to refer to the way things can be seen in ways that illuminate the universe and its interconnection. But without emotion, reason can lose its moorings and start to lose sight of what is most important to humans, or what is most meaningful. The two need to inform each other rather than seem divorced.

Sheng Yen, Until We Reach Buddhahood: :Lectures on the Surangama Sutra Volume 1. Elmhurst NY: Dharma Drum Pub.