Chan Observations 1

“Some people practice one Dharma method today, another Dharma method tomorrow, and the day after, yet another. The essential point of the example is that we shouldn’t switch whenever we see something new, and shouldn’t constantly change our mind. This is constancy or steadiness, and is also called firm determination. Many people think that they are in the worst situation, that their job is not as good as someone else’s.  They think their food is not as tasty as someone else’s. This is quite common, but it is not a good attitude. We should realize that what we have now is the best. What we have now in our hand and are using currently is really the best, and represents the best fortune and best blessings.”

Venerable Sheng Yen, from Zen and Inner Peace Volume II, p.70

I shared this passage with our Sunday morning meditation group today. One participant had been sharing that she found herself grateful to be in the group, as well as to be able to take time out from her family matters to be with the group. It seemed fitting that I would read from this passage, because it also talks indirectly about gratitude.

I relate to this quote in several ways. Group practice is almost a kind of shared discipline, but it’s not rigorously hard. People come together to support each other, but mainly through their practice. It seems to be about being loyal to one’s method and having great faith that the mind’s natural wisdom will surface.

I always think that there isn’t anything particularly special about one meditation method. The point is that it surfaces an awareness of the mind that is not trammeled by desires. Too many desires can lead to too many wandering thoughts. Constancy leads to a more committed sense of being, especially if it’s for a particular cause. But most importantly, the constancy of meditation method allows the mind to become more calm and stable over time. This is already a kind of advantage and benefit. Having too many desires can sometimes lead to despair.  I believe this could be a model for how to behave in daily life.

We know from reading the Four Noble Truths that there is the despair of having too many unfulfilled wishes, but there is also the despair of not enough time to enjoy what one desires. Too many fulfilled wishes can also be a form of suffering. So Shifu advocates a mindset that is not so focused on comparing what I have with someone else. This constant comparison over space and time can make life so impossible and demanding. I once read a quote that said something to the effect that modern life is about acquiring what we can’t afford, in order to gain what we hardly have time to enjoy. There is a craziness about this that needs to be understood deeply. Why do we need to do so much?

This afternoon, I went to an art exhibition that one of my friends was hosting. My friend’s friends had arrived, and all of them were chatting excitedly about art works, graphic designs and other rather technical aspects of the art industry. I was quickly identified as the ‘would be’ artist in the group, which meant that I had an interest in art itself but not too much technical knowledge. I started to think of myself as the black sheep, and wondered what the compassionate thing would be for me to do at that moment. I tried to weakly comment here and there, but was mostly a listener. But it was okay. I didn’t exert myself so much, but I let things unfold naturally.

One of the things that most attracts me to Shifu’s philosophy is that he is not trying to be Utopian or system building, to my understanding. There is no desire expressed here for people to necessarily be ‘everything to everyone’, and Shifu seems to advocate a focused commitment on projects that are achievable, based on one’s causes, conditions and level of practice. I admire this approach, because, in a sense, it reminds practitioners that doing too much in too many areas may easily disperse the mind’s energies. Mindful practice seems to operate on a similar principle of localized, practical ways of doing that are based on one’s vows and aspirations.  Practitioners are not trying to save the world, but they are trying to use practice to know themselves and discover the mind and its functioning. Shifu also reminds me of Schumacher’s Small is Beautiful, because it seems to have a similar function of getting people to think locally about the kinds of relationships that would make the most impact and benefit.