Awakening Something

Awakening Something

In an earlier post, I wrote that the Siddartha Gotama awoke to the arising and falling of things. Things come and things go, “this too shall pass.”

When this is, that is
This arising, that arises
When this is not, that is not
This ceasing, that ceases.

While this formula for what the Buddha awakened to seems simple enough, it’s implications for our lives are anything but simple. Enlightenment or awakening is both close to us and far away. It is close because the material for our awakening already lie within us: our day-to-day experiences, compulsions, habits, memories, attachments, intentions, attitudes, ways of thinking. We find this material all around us as every moment of awareness becomes a teachable moment. There is no shortage of teachers if we see one in every sunrise and sunset or every smile and hurtful cry.

But the path is also far away because the material for our awakening is difficult to discern. “What’s a sunrise but a sunrise? It just comes up every day and goes back down at the end of the day. So what?” If we adopt this attitude we lose the present moment beauty of a sunrise or the potential of another Spring day where the flowers bloom. But the sun sets and flowers wilt, so we can only recognize it and enjoy it while we can.

The process for our awakening can also be long and difficult. The material of our awakening can also be difficult to deal with. They are conditioned by events and people we may not remember or prefer not to remember. They may be disturbing, hurtful, traumatizing, and something we would rather avoid. But they always return to our lives somehow, either through a conversation, a dream, or triggered by an event, similar or not. Can we tolerate and be open to this? I have faith that we can if we accept this for what it was as well as see this in everyone else.

So awakening is both close at hand and far away. It’s closeness is encouraging because it is within our grasps. It is also chastening and humbling that we have not yet grasped it. But this is all strange in itself because there is nothing at all to grasp. How silly we are.

from http://pemadorje385.blogspot.com/