Meaning in Life
Sunday 01 Sep 2013
What does it mean to be alive? Where do I find truth? What is enlightenment?
These are three very good questions for anyone to contemplate. I would like to explore them from a Buddhist perspective. So to start we need a definition of what Buddhism is so we can get an idea of what a Buddhist perspective might be. "Buddhism is a path of practice and development, leading to insight and realisation of the true nature of reality". The Buddhist path of practice and development has three aspects, morality, meditation and wisdom. All three aspects need to be developed in order for each part, in turn, to mature to the maximum. Morality keeps the mind settled and blameless, so one can minimise turbulence and think well of one self and others. Meditation allows the mind to deepen, concentrate and resolve, it employs mindfulness to keep the view steady. Wisdom is a result as clarity appears in the stillness generated, giving a view right to the beginning and end of all conditions of mind.
When the above three aspects do mature, a practitioner can start to glimpse what the true nature of reality is. The practice naturally encourages us to let go of the conditions of mind and this allows wisdom to grow as we start to see and understand what this process really means. Then, as the practice becomes deeper we see that the mind too, is in fact a condition. Wisdom can then develop and allow the practice to go further, to let go of the mind itself. When ones awareness can exist in this state there is no movement, so birth and death of conditions finish. In the Buddha's terms, this is the end of Dukka, the end of suffering and dis-ease. If ones physical body were to die in this state there would be no more births. One would be said to be in Nibbana. Total purity and unadulterated peace! This is the goal of a Buddhist Practitioner. A being may be skilled and practiced enough and be able to exist in this state without the body actually dying. These practitioners are said to be Arahat. They live well in a virtual enlightenment just waiting for their final death or one could say the finish of thier conditioning.
Of course these worldly descriptions are fine to contemplate and speculate about, but the actual reality of the practice can be difficult. The different Buddhist traditions have various ways to encourage the mind to turn back on itself. To become aware of its situation! To be self-aware is a very human thing. To our knowledge it would appear that animals have limited self-awareness. Some of the higher primates may have it and there is some speculation about Dolphins, but by and large the human ability to practice self-awareness, does mark us out, as being just right to realise enlightenment. Having said this very few of us are able to take full advantage of the situation. Most people are either forced by their circumstances, or indeed are just content to live life day to day in a more instinctual way without going too deep into life's meaning. For most the biggest concern is with the next meal, clothing and shelter or just staying well. This is not to say that the potential for enlightenment is not there, it is, but it is hard for those of us not on the top of Maslow's triangle to take the time and be able to develop the inclination to realise.
The Buddhist Theravada tradition is what I know best, and its approach is very spare. Practitioners generally use a either a wisdom or a concentration based approach. Notwithstanding the method, both of these qualities are definitely required in large measure to be successful, however one can ease into realisation with wisdom being predominate. On the other hand the practice may develop more "all of a sudden" if the conditions are in place for concentration that leads to Jhana practice. A practice of dropping directly into the mind stream! Both of these ways will work to take us to a realisation of mind. To understand beyond a doubt just what the mind is and how it contains the stream of conditions and consciousness that makes us who we are. When we can practice to be with this "mind stream" and start to see our life from this perspective we are orientating towards what the Buddha called Right View.
As the mind stream becomes more conscious we start to understand and become more aware of the Sub-conscious or Un-conscious mind. One starts to see how normal life is lived in a dissociated way. It is as if we are hypnotised; believing what we are conditioned to believe. The human mind is a very impressionable entity. We can be taught to believe in any old thing. The unconscious mind will grasp onto those beliefs even if we can consciously use our intellect think differently. We are beings that have intellect and emotion, head and heart. This is an often misunderstood balance that makes the human condition and the Universe what it is. The subconscious mind will not let go until both of these separated energetic forms can come together in unity. Living with a fully conscious view of the mind stream is what unites the conscious and the unconscious and takes us in a direction to complete sanity and enlightenment.
Other Buddhist traditions use additional tools to help the mind look back on to itself. The Zen tradition has its famous "Koans". "What is the sound of one hand clapping", "What was my face before I was born?" Contemplating questions like these, which are given to oneself in a practice setting, does help us to "let go" and "just be" as the stillness starts permeate and bring clarity around the question. The answer in fact becomes the question.
The Mahayana tradition of practice can be seen to focus more on the interconnectedness of all beings as an important part of the way it teaches. It brings a rich tradition of the Bodhisattva into presence. A practice of service and forbearance! A Bodhisattva is the personification of a perfect being, forgoing their final enlightenment for the sake of all beings. This practice is different to the sparseness of the Theravada in that it allows a richer mix into the practice. (This is not to say it cannot or is not used in the Theravadin tradition.) A lot of western psychology has its genesis from the Mahayanan tradition, where it has copied much of its form. C.B.T. and Mindfulness training for example! This type of practice can help people become grounded. It allows them to feel what's really happening in their bodies. In this way their energy can be balanced and aligned with their conscious thinking to better facilitate letting go process.
In highlighting this aspect of balancing to let go I am reminded of the poet Keats, and the use of his term "Negative Capability". Keats criticized other poets for lacking objectivity and universality in their view of the human condition and the natural world. He accused them of looking for a silver bullet type answer to the big questions of life. He could have been a natural Mahayana practitioner. In fact this is another aspect of Mahayana practice that has been picked up by Western Psychology. In the Mahayana it is called "Tonglin" and is a practice of being with your shadow side. It predates but does equate with what I think Keats was talking about. Negative capability as I understand it refers to the human ability to forbear and be with trouble and pain. In the bigger picture this would mean our ability to be with all that the Universe can manifest as an interconnected participant.
Coming back to the question of "Meaning in life", the Buddhist tradition is over now over 2600 years old and in many ways it is just hitting its straps. Many --- perhaps billions of beings have walked its path, realised its meaning and the Universe has reaped the wonderful results of their enlightenment. This universal pattern is becoming stronger so it benefits all beings still searching. It is a tradition that points clearly to the reality of our true nature. It is practical in that anyone who walks on its pathways can have faith that they are heading towards truth and in fact will discover that deep within this present moment unconditional peace awaits all beings that have an eye to see and let go.
