Philosophy of Silence – Page 6 – Investigations into the world beyond language

Thich Nhat Hanh on Suffering

December 9th, 2022

Taking time to engage with suffering and the suffering of others has a surprising amount to give back in the form of joy, love, and friendship.

In No Mud, No Lotus: The Art of Transforming Suffering ,Thich Nhat Hanh makes two key points:

1. To engage skillfully with suffering one must admit to suffering.

Some say that suffering is only an illusion or that to live wisely we have to “transcend” both suffering and joy. I say the opposite. The way to suffer well and be happy is to stay in touch with what is actually going on; in doing so, you will gain liberating insights into the true nature of suffering and of joy.

2. To further engage skillfully with suffering one must risk suffering.

Some people think that in order to be happy they must avoid all suffering… This isn’t correct. If you can recognize and accept your pain without running away from it, you will discover that although pain is there, joy can also be there at the same time.

How have you been doing? In what ways are you suffering? In what ways are you willing to risk suffering in the future?
In the contemplative tradition of construction

December 8th, 2022

it’s wise to build an environment that supports one’s spiritual goals. Knowing the distracted nature of humankind, the best Eastern architects have devised a way to snap a person immediately back into the present moment.

I present… The Mindfulness Step:

Camouflage is the mark of a good mindfulness step. The goal here is to blend in enough to surprise even the most mindful individuals caught off guard for one second. Here is a more apparent picture:

Next time you stub your toe, tumble down a step, hit your head on a short door frame, or bump into a surprising architectural feature, as you lie on the ground in pain, be thankful for the reminder to live in the present moment. If you fall down a mindfulness step, you are partaking in an act that spiritually awakened architects wove into your fate many years ago. We stand – and fall – on the shoulders of giants.
He did mescaline so you don’t have to

December 7th, 2022

From A High Yogic Experience Achieved With Mescaline. Mescaline is a hallucinogenic substance found within Peyote cacti with purported effects similar to LSD and psilocybin.

Suddenly there dawned full awareness of three great truths which I had long accepted intellectually but never, until that moment, experienced as being fully self evident.

and

1. There was awareness of undifferentiated unity, embracing the perfect identity of subject and object, of singleness and plurality, of the One and the Many. Thus I foundmyself (if indeed the words “I” and “myself” have any meaning in such a context) at once the audience, the actors and the play! Logically the One can give birth to the Many and the Many can merge into the One or be fundamentally but not apparently identical with it; they cannot be in all respects one and many simultaneously. But now logic was transcended. I beheld (and myself was) a whirling mass of brilliant colors and forms which, being several colors and several forms, were different from one another-and yet altogether the same at the very moment of being different! I doubt if the statement can be made to seem meaningful at the ordinary level of consciousness. No wonder the mystics of all faiths teach that understanding comes only when logic and intellect are transcended! In any case, this truth, even if at an ordinary level of consciousness it cannot be understood, can, in a higher state of consciousness, be directly experienced as self evident. Logic also boggles at trying to explain how I could at once perceive and yet be those colors and those forms, how the seer, the seeing and the seen, the feeler, the feeling, and the felt could all be one; but, to me, all this was so clearly self-evident as to suggest the words “childishly simple!”

2. Simultaneously, there was awareness of unutterable bliss, coupled with the conviction that this was the only real and eternal state of being, all others (including our entire experience in the day-to-day world) being no more than passing dreams. This bliss, I am convinced, awaits all beings when the last vestiges of their selfhood have been destroyed- or, as in this case, temporarily discarded. It was so intense as to make it seem likely that body and mind would be burnt up in a flash. (Yet, though the state of bliss continued for what I later knew to be three or four hours, I emerged from it unscathed.)

3. At the same time came awareness of all that is implied by the Buddhist doctrine of “dharmas,” namely, that all things, whether objects of mental or of sensory perception, are alike devoid of own-being, mere transitory combinations of an infinite number of impulses. This was fully apparent as are the individual bricks to someone staring at an unplastered wall. I actually experienced their momentary rising of each impulse and the thrill of culmination with which it immediately ceased to be.

Buddhist scholar John Blofeld in the Psychedelic Review, 1966. Full article here.
More

December 6th, 2022

A skin bag full of minerals water and flesh
I venture out to fetch
My dinner from the store
Hoping that in life I could be something more

Winding hiding wisdom I don’t know
I shouldn’t go
Down this hedonic road
Mind pacing passion racing bracing load

Audience of one I sit alone
Consuming flesh and bone
Warm rising falling core
Hoping that in life I could be something more

Conversational nature of possibility
What range is me
What is true
Madmen might know more than you

Evolved mind devolved to this
Potential have I pissed
Away attention in the mental War
Hoping that in life I could be something more

Serendipitous forces set life courses
Ride wild horses inner sources
Of meaning and joy
Abound this day this moment this is me

A skin bag full of minerals water and flesh
I venture out to fetch
My dinner from the store
Hoping that in life I could be something more
Cloud Gazing Nature of Reality

November 30th, 2022

Cloud gazing may take the form of enjoying the sky’s beauty, looking for patterns in the clouds, or closing your eyes as shades pass over your darkened field of vision. As a cloud gazer, it would be wholly nonsensical to try to change the sky or to judge a cloud as inherently good or bad. They simply exist and pass in a fleeting moment.

Thoughts and emotions pass over the sky of consciousness like clouds. If you look for the “you” that allegedly thinks these thoughts or conjures these emotions, you’ll find yourself grasping at thin air – these simply are automatic functions. It would be nonsensical to judge these thoughts as a good or bad reflection on oneself.

You, your consciousness, and your thoughts simply exist and pass in a fleeting moment. Just like a cloud gazer can choose to enjoy the sky’s beauty, look for patterns in the clouds, or close their eyes, how you engage with your existence is yours to choose.
“Pinch is Chance, Chance is Pinch”

November 25th, 2022

~ Sumiyo Makino/ Japanese saying
Ambition

November 23rd, 2022

Written and read by David Whyte

I’ve heard that listening speaks to your intuition and reading speaks more to your rational mind.
Spirituality from Three Perspectives

November 16th, 2022
1. Historical:

(From Waking Up, by Sam Harris)

“Our world is dangerously riven by religious doctrines that all educated people should condemn, and yet there is more to understanding the human condition than science and secular culture generally admit.”

*I don’t share the same disdain for religion as Sam Harris, but the second half of that statement really resonates with me*

2. Working Definition:

(Also from Waking Up)

“The feeling that we call ‘I’ is an illusion. There is no discrete self or ego living like a Minotaur in the labyrinth of the brain. And the feeling that there is—the sense of being perched somewhere behind your eyes, looking out at a world that is separate from yourself—can be altered or entirely extinguished. Although such experiences of ‘self transcendence’ are generally thought about in religious terms, there is nothing, in principle, irrational about them. From both a scientific and a philosophical point of view, they represent a clearer understanding of the way things are. Deepening that understanding, and repeatedly cutting through the illusion of the self, is what is meant by ‘spirituality’ in the context of this book.”

3. In Practice:

(From Simulation YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/xPK3-r7N8eY)
1. Go to a public place
2. Sit in it
3. Listen and look around
4. Look through all points of view simultaneously by “slowly blurring the line between where people end and others begin”
Whereas people watching is simply seeing or judging the people around you, the goal of Spiritual People Watching is to feel unconditional love for the non-self we have within and around us.

Why does spirituality matter?

To paraphrase Waking Up: your mind is all you have. Even a slight change in the mind’s perception of the world can have a profound effect on your wellbeing. How we love or envy one another, how we perceive success or failure, set goals or give up, and live or fail to live in the present can all be changed by our mind’s understanding of it’s non-self.
One of Two: Podcasts that Changed My Life in College

November 15th, 2022
A professor and mentor of mine says: “Beam! Let your light shine.” The Simulation Podcast #737 is about letting your light shine. As a senior in college, this podcast revealed that I was too fearful, complacent, and ignorant to admit I was going down the wrong path in life. I didn’t love what I was doing anymore.

Maybe you are already letting your light shine, in which case THANK YOU. I aspire to be the type of person who brings out the best life has to offer, and you are an example of how that is possible. If you are like me, though, then maybe this article can help you accept that you have room to grow.

Here are some notes picked/paraphrased from the podcast:
1. You may find yourself on your deathbed asking “When I was 20/30/40… why didn’t I pursue that idea /go to that place/ learn that new skill? Why did I never untangle my web of desires and find my true calling?” One answer is fear- fear of failure, risk taking, uncertainty, and revealing your deepest, true self/passion to the world. Dedicating yourself to a transcendent calling can eliminate these regrets.
2. Without knowing your true calling, you are at risk of someone else deciding what you should do (algorithms, social norms, bosses, etc).
3. “Slime mold” your way to discovering true passions by putting out different paths simultaneously before you pick the best path. Don’t be afraid to reevaluate at any point in life.
4. What would you do if there was no social pressure to pick a high status or high paying career?
5. For the vast majority of people, there isn’t a Eureka moment discovering their true calling, rather a slow realization/ growth of a skill/passion over time. Or, thing A can deliver you to thing B in unexpected ways.
6. Aim for divine and transcendent goals that are accomplished slowly over years and steer clear of instant gratification
7. Metaphysics: study of the nature of reality
8. Two people in a car can have a conversation about metaphysics and build on each other’s ideas by listening and letting the conversation flow ~ I want more of that in my life, but it’s hard to progress from small talk.
9. Know thyself (and your connectedness to the rest of mankind)
10. Ask “why” questions to dig deeper into your desires and values. Why do you want x? Because of y. Why do you feel y? Because z happened. Is there another way to interpret z? This can help dispel shallow desires that are obstacles to your true calling and also helps hone in on your true calling.
I went on to graduate with a degree in biology, and I worked for a year and a half in the field. The lessons from this podcast were in the back of my mind, and they led me to find the courage to try a new path.

What is that path? I don’t completely know. Yet, I feel freedom now to pursue the broadest goal I can imagine: living a skillful life and being a good person, whatever that means!

A lawyer turned ultra-athlete, Rich Roll once resigned from his law firm in LA; he wasn’t enjoying it anymore. His mentor and boss simply said, “This work is too hard to do if you’re not having fun anymore.” His book Finding Ultra is the story of how he went from student-athlete to lawyer to alcoholic to ultra-athlete, and this story gave me inspiration to put fuel on my own fiery, physically challenging, apparently pointless (at least non-paying) passion of rock climbing. Maybe I can be the biologist turned real estate investor turned rock climber who inspires you. Or maybe I’ll change paths again.

Why would anyone write a 900 page magnum opus, or buy a 100th rental property after the first 99 are more than paying for their bills, or labor over applying for grant money to fund their research. I suspect that plenty of these individuals love what they do, so these actions make sense even if they mean sacrificing short term pleasures. However, if what you’re doing is quenching the passion in your life, then please reconsider how you spend your time.

It’s never too late to find your inner slime mold and seek a transcendent calling, even if it’s as simple as trying to live more skillfully, rock climbing for the first time, or writing a personal blog 🙂

What if you can’t? What if dropping what you’re doing means no financial sense? Requires an educational investment you can’t afford? Means sacrificing not just your personal wellbeing, but the support you provide for dependents? The stakes are too high. You only have one life. Be creative and find a way. There was a time I wanted to become a therapist, but couldn’t afford the master’s degree. It turns out, there are cheaper ways to help people than becoming a therapist! Remember those that love you also want you to be happy. However, my tendency is to make brash decisions based on passion and disregard to financial sense, even if it means placing unfair sacrifices on those that depend on me. To fight this impulse, I recommend being creative again. Instead of selling all my rental properties and moving to an expensive city where I’d have to live a poor life and work two jobs just to get by, I looked closer to home for a rock climbing community, meditation center, and fostered what I could in my current life without throwing away the hard work I did to build a financially secure future for myself and my family.

It’s not easy, but one can avoid self sabotaging behavior in the pursuit of their transcendent calling. In fact, I would be wary of thinking the only way to pursue a passion is to shun your current life. Instead, it’s sometimes beneficial to gracefully work with what you’ve got. Maybe the fear of pursuing your true passion is what’s actually getting in the way- not your current living arrangements, job, money, spouse, or dependents.

The same goes for world or people-sabotaging behavior. If your passion appears to be one that’s harmful to other people or the environment, then maybe come up with a creative way to change the effects of said passion or look for a new calling.

Lastly, don’t be calculating. I was once a person who thought I could calculate the effects I have on the world pursuing a career as a scientist, earning to give, or starting a non-profit. These are all good things to do, but I believe that doing something that makes you beam with passion is the most likely to make a positive difference in the world and is likely the right thing for you regardless of its utilitarian value.

Don’t be afraid to let your light shine for all those who need to see it. We’d love to see what you’ve got. It’s as simple as this: find and do what you love.

Watch full podcast at: https://youtu.be/RP9dXnE83U0

P.s. I love the guy just passed out in the background haha.
Do you have Ketchup on your Costume?

November 14th, 2022
Imagine you’re the background character in a movie:

A soldier in Braveheart about to charge into battle with a metal bucket for a helmet

One of the fools following Forrest Gump on his run across America

The female dancing frivolously in a party, bar, or god forbid, High School Musical scene

I like to imagine myself as a patron eating lunch in the background, only to get cut from the scene altogether after spilling ketchup on my nicest shirt. That’d be enough to ruin most people’s afternoon- to no effect on the protagonist’s unfurling story.

But putting myself in this perspective does two things to open my mind:
1. The most important thing going on at a given time or place probably isn’t myself.
2. I can write my own story in life; a protagonist’s fate is sealed by the script.
A background soldier who’s also a pacifist? Hide behind the strong guy in front of you!

A guy following Forrest Gump? Get a nice run in, go back to your desk job, and spend time with family/ friends next weekend.

The person dancing frivolously in the background? Revel in your lack of seriousness, good sense, or any worthwhile purpose. Background characters have the freedom to be frivolous whereas most protagonists don’t.

Even a graduation, wedding, or swearing into office is about the people who supported you on that journey. Do you see yourself as a protagonist or background character? How other people see you is definitely the latter, and maybe that’s a good thing.