Re: First Post Posted by Douglas on November 12, 1999 at 19:29:42:
In Reply to: First Post posted by Michael on November 11, 1999 at 11:38:12:
Welcome Michael:
Let me begin by saying that I echo the sentiments of my classmates Jeff and Suz, in regards to your domestic situation. What I am
about to say will be but an elaboration upon the comments that have been bantered about in this classroom, past and present.
I should like to begin with Suz’s observation (“Suz. “Re: First Post.” TTMT. 11/12/1999.) that: “. . . advice on such a touchy subject is
something left up to the Coach for sure . . . .”. Oftentimes, in my own postings, I have been known to broach subjects that were more
appropriate to the sphere of psychiatry than the sphere of mindfulness and the Coach has reminded me, in his usual gentle manner, that
this Classroom is not the proper forum for psychiatric consultation. This has happened repeatedly as I am given to follow whatever suits
my fancy at the moment rather than being in the moment. Returning to the subject at hand, in this instance I believe that the
confusion arises because although the practice of “paying attention intentionally" is not therapy, it is therapeutic.
Your reference to a “Zen Buddhist retreat” peaked my interest. Traditionally, novices are not permitted to attend Sesshin, so I am
presuming here, a relative maturity of meditative practice and if you were introduced to the practice of mindfulness in daily life so
much the better. In the temple that I attended, both the “teisho” and “dokusan” were a source of frustration. Whether this was
deliberate or a matter of language, the Roshi being Korean, I can not say. Baffled, I turned to the literature and one of my finds was
“Everyday Zen” by Charlotte Joko Beck.
Joko Beck is representative of the Sanbo Kyodan Zen lineage which is a departure from the traditions of both Soto and Rinzai Zen
although it synthesizes both approaches. It is more of a reform than an innovation; at the very least, it is a strategy to popularize Zen.
In short, it is accessible.
What I am specifically recalling here, is Joko Beck’s section on “Relationships” and, particularly, the essay entitled, “Relationships Don’t
Work”. As you have already demonstrated an affinity for this approach, the piece may interest you.
A paragraph or two ago, I remarked that: “I was given to follow whatever suits my fancy at the moment . . . .” Well, here I go again; the
subject of “dreams involving cliffs and abysses is too much of a temptation. Forgive me for I am about to wander into an alien territory
where I have no right to be — a case of “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread”.
Speaking of fools, I am going to take as my starting point the symbol of the Fool of the Tarot deck as conceived by Arthur Edward
Waite and drawn by Pamela Colman Smith. To begin with we might as well have a look at Waite’s own “Pictorial Key to the Tarot”. The
Fool’s card is unnumbered and designated Zero, and Waite says of it:
“With light step, as if the earth and its trammels had little power to restrain him, a young man in gorgeous vestments pauses at the brink
of a precipice among the great heights of the world, he surveys the blue distance before him — its expanse of sky rather than the
prospect below. His act of eager walking is still indicated, though he is stationary at the given moment; his dog is still bounding. The
edge which opens on the depth has no terror, it is as if angels were waiting to uphold him if it came about that he leaped from the
height. His countenance is full of intelligence and expectant dream. He has a rose in one hand and in the other a costly wand, from
which depends over his right shoulder a wallet curiously embroidered. He is prince of the other world on his travels through this one — all
amidst the morning glory, in the keen air. The sun, which shines behind him, knows whence he came, whither he is going. and how he will
return by another path after many days. He is the spirit in search of experience. Many symbols of the Instituted Mysteries are
summarized in this card, which reverses, under high warrants, all the confusions that have preceded it . . . . I will give these further
indications regarding the Fool, which is the most speaking of all symbols. He signifies the journey outward, the state of the first
emanation, the graces and passivity of the spirit. His wallet is inscribed with dim signs, to show that many subconscious memories are
stored up in the soul.”
Of the Fool’s attributes, the one that interests me the most is the wallet that hangs from the wand over his shoulder. As an aside, I
myself am a great collector of bags and rucksacks of all kinds. I don’t feel right unless I’m somewhat burdened. To my way of thinking
our Fool may flaunt himself on the brink as much as he likes but eventually he must discard the rose, must leave the flower of his youth
behind to wilt in the sunshine. while he takes his burden and climbs laboriously down into the abyss to get to work. His number, after all,
is Zero, a round nothingness which he must fill with the world of perception.
The wallet is a magic one, he himself doesn’t know what is in it but it is heavy with the past, present, and future of the universe; in it is
a jumble of unformed words and images, of colours and sounds and strangeness, continually arranging in new combinations wanting to be
worlds. His real journey begins when he opens the wallet and it swallows him up in its darkness where he must make his way through time
and chance, must keep himself empty and knowing nothing, so that, in that magic darkness, the universe can continually fill the Zero of
himself with itself. He must persist in his folly until, as William Blake said, he becomes wise. And that wisdom lies in knowing how and
when to know nothing and be open to everything.
I, personally, am not that wise and being such a fool may be a laudable aspiration.
Douglas
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