Monday, September 24, 2012
why ahimsa
let's start here: ahimsa pressuposes the ability to strike.
gandhi seems to imply that once one makes ahimsa a ruling principle, the possibility of self-defense, or striking for the sake of justice becomes automatically justified. on the other hand, himsa is not only violence, it implies a sense of lack of identification with life (jiva), a lack of understanding. himsa is basically avidya or ignorance.
this takes care of some of the points made in class about what to do in cases when one is faced with arbitrary injustice (such as the question of ahimsa under totalitarianism or slavery, etc). ahimsa is not an amorphous anomic attitude of inaction towards injustice. FAR FROM IT. it's an active principle of understanding the economy of the strike. truth never himsa a cause that is just.
so we have: 1- everything is brahman, 2- if we're all brahman, my "other" = "me." 1 & 2 sort of imply 3- non-harming is more evolved than harming simply because it takes more of understanding and self-control. the easy distortion is to make "we're all brahman" look like a new-age fad while missing the subtlety of the lemma. am i ready to see other humans, non-human animals, non-animal life & non-living nature as i see myself?
let's not ignore that himsa can easily get inscribed in a vicious economy of injustice. this is the well-known ancient semitic eye-for-an-eye, and nemo me impune lacessit, etc. a satyagrahi is never vindictive. he believes not in destruction but in conversion. ahimsa (as gandhi demonstrated) has important political and social consequences. in war, for example, with the so called jus ad bellum norms, in penology, in sociology, etc. no wonder martin luther king made ahimsa a central tenet of his struggle for civil rights in america in the 1960's.
so, understanding is crucial.
let's entertain for a second the reincarnation metaphor of the jaina: within the cycle of rebirth, one's mother may be reborn as a stray dog. if, then, one is followed by a stray dog, one might ask oneself, "why me? why this particular dog? who might it have been in a previous life?" since time is beginningless, it is said that all beings have been reborn numberless times as the mothers of all other living beings. jainism understand -literally- that all beings are then our "mothers." so, if a being tries to harm us today, at some time in the past it has nurtured us as our mother. this is why we should repay its kindness by seeking its welfare now.
here comes the turtle. it's quite easy to assume an anthropomorphic blind-sided attitude. the i'm-a-human-and-that's-it attitude. which doesn't go deep enough. what is human?
it's then that understanding the turtle becomes crucial. we living things ARE ALL JIVA! "humans" don't come from a different, special, pre-destined arrangement.
so long as one retains one's sword, one has not attain complete fearlessness.
Friday, September 21, 2012
earth, air, sea and plastic bags
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The plastic bag is a thing of this world. A derivative of petroleum or natural gas, the plastic bag is a close relative of other esteemed domestic household objects: the salad bowl, the cheap kitchen clock, the asthma inhaler-device, the computer chassis, the CD we listen to. It figures as a part of our Teflon coated pans, the acrylic paint on our walls; as alloy to wind-resistant windows, even corn starch.
Every day millions of plastic bags are carried out of our malls and supermarkets. They wind up everywhere, peppering park's greenery, polluting the streets. A dense layer of flotsam (choking marine life) and jetsam (drifting to shore) dirtying our beaches.
Innocuous container or recalcitrant matter?
In his essay "Plastic Materialities," Gary Hawkins explores how things have the power to capture us in new relations. His idea is to show a less obvious perspective of the thing. In American Beauty, Ricky, the aspiring film maker and pot-head, is obsessed with beauty. He videotapes a plastic bag as it floats, to-and-fro, at the mercy of the wind. Ricky's video shows the thing-power, a "depth from which objects rise up towards our superficial knowledge."* Here's Ricky's narration:
It's one of those days when it's a minute away from snowing. And there is electricity in the air, you can almost hear it right? And this bag was just... dancing with me. Like a little kid begging me to play with it. For fifteen minutes. That's the day I realized there was this entire life behind things, and this incredible benevolent force that wanted me to know there was no reason to be afraid. Ever... video's a poor excuse. I know. But it helps me remember. (PM, p. 135)One can think of other examples, such as this, where plastic bag becomes a "plastic-bag chair."
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| Ryan Frank, Plastic Bag Chair, 2008. |
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| Shipwrecked: My Life for a Bag, 2010. |
What is thing-power?
Thing power is a kind of agency, it is the property of an assemblage. Thing-power materialism is a (necessarily speculative) onto-theory that presumes matter has an inclination to make connections and form networks with varying degrees of stability. Here, then, is an affinity between thing-power materialism and ecological thinking: both advocate and the cultivation of an enhanced sense of the extent to which all things are spun together in a dense web, and both warn of the self-destructive character of human actions that are reckless with regard to other nodes of the web.(PM, p. 135)I'd like to read Bennet's thing-power with Shvetashvatara's holistic glasses. The old Hindu sage would agree that all things "are spun together in a dense web". But "the self-destructive character of human actions" is as much part of the web as the rest. If the living and the non-living are connected, then creation and destruction become connective possibilities.
Shvetashvatara is not afraid to talk thing-power from the bottom up:
You are a woman, you are a man, you are a boy; also a girl. As an old man you totter along with a walking stick. As you are born you turn your face in every direction. You are the dark blue bird, the green one with red eyes, the rain-cloud, the seasons, and the oceans. (...) You live as one without a beginning because of your pervasiveness, you, whom all beings have been born. (Shvetashvatara Upanishads, 4.2-4.4)In a perverse geological sense, we are walking plastic bags!
If ecology is going to address living and non-living, then clouds, air, trees, earth, sand, proteins, viruses, humans, plastic bags are all part of the whole. What's the point of differentiating when everything is (a part of) Brahman?**
We cannot think outside the whole. There is a democracy of creation and destruction everywhere. If we destroy ourselves that's inside the whole. Nothing and everything is it. Only by facing this predicament can we understand how to deal with our mounting ecological problems.
On the other hand, this sea turtle is out of the loop.*** Though part of a network that includes sun, sand, sea, predators, plastic bags, etc, it cannot fathom the subtleties and contradictions of thing-power. Think about it, the turtle is jiva amidst the all-absorbing power and extent of ajiva. We have to find new ways to deal with our living/non living dichotomy.
Is it really about them or about us? Or is it both?
___________
* Jane Bennet, Vibrant Matter: A Political Ecology of Things, (Duke University, 2010) p. 2. **Brahman doesn't have to be our anthropomorphic God. Just the totality of all things put together. *** Plastic bags are among the 12 items of debris found most often in coastal cleanups, according to the nonprofit Center for Marine Conservation. Marine mammals, seabirds, and sea turtles can become entangled in the bags, and sea turtles can mistake them for food such as jellyfish, then die from starvation resulting from intestinal blockage.
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
secularism or theocracy?
here is the post i mentioned in class today (you are welcome to post your opinion here if you want).
we have a philosophy club
leave your name and the position you want: president, vicepresident, treasurer, secretary. if you are not pursuing a position, leave your name anyway, or any questions you may have.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
kafka, prometheus & the inexplicable
"There are four legends concerning Prometheus:
According to the first he was clamped to a rock in the Caucasus for betraying the secrets of the gods to men, and the gods sent eagles to feed on his liver, which was perpetually renewed.
According to the second Prometheus, goaded by the pain of the tearing beaks, pressed himself deeper and deeper into the rock until he became one with it.
According to the third his treachery was forgotten in the course of thousands of years, forgotten by the gods, the eagles, forgotten by himself.
According to the fourth everyone grew weary of the meaningless affair. The gods grew weary, the eagles grew weary, the wound closed wearily.
There remains the inexplicable mass of rock. The legend tries to explain the inexplicable. As it comes out of the substratum of truth it has in turn to end in the inexplicable."
Sri Aurobindo or why you cannot escape (as much as you want) philosophy
By Sri Aurobindo Ghosh
Aurobindo (1870-1950), perhaps India's foremost "modern" philosopher, wrote profusely on a multitude of topics and themes. His idea of integral nondualism is very attractive and controversial:
Aurobindo holds that reality in its inmost essence is non-dual, non-verbal, and non-conceptual. That is to say, indeterminable and logically indefinable, yet reality is accessible to direct experience on the non-verbal level, to the penetrative insight of spiritual intuition born of the integration of human personality. Non-dual reality is beyond the scope of categories including that of number (?). Strictly speaking, monism, unitarianism, trinitarianism, pluralism, etc., are just different human ways of intellectual comprehension of the various aspects of reality. Caveat: Is Aurobindo's own nondual integral philosophy not just another way?
For Aurobindo, even monism (which utters a profound truth in proclaiming the fundamental unity of existence) commits the rationalistic fallacy of identifying reality with a conceptually formulated principle or intellectual scheme. Monism interprets the essence of reality in terms of the concept of the One, a determinate logical or dialectical structure, or a sum of well-defined powers and qualities.
Nondualism is opposed to such identification of reality with a determinate principle of unity. Either the conceptually formulated One as "infinite substance" of Spinoza (scroll down for the definition), or the absolute idea of Hegel, represents only a particular metaphysical standpoint, a specific rationalistic way --one among many ways-- of comprehending the nature of reality. According to nondualism (advaita), reality is beyond one and many, beyond substance and quality, beyond cause and effect, and beyond any rigidly conceived thought structure. So, reality is not to be equated with any conceptual formulation or logical construction, or system of words and symbols.
The problem is how do you avoid categorization? Aurobindo seems not to see that identification or miss-identification is a necessary condition of any worldmaking. What do you think?
Thursday, September 6, 2012
getting "it," recycling thoughts, hermeneutic cycle, my bad & salvation as illusion
remember i'm closing the post on m.bourbaki friday at 11pm.
excellent class discussion. thanks. more voices, more yin, more plurality, more minds working in unison at the same yielding better results.
some points worth remembering:
* the more you get "it" the less you "get" it (this is only a cautionary metaphor).
* micro/macro should be handled carefully. when micro implodes into its opposite the metaphor ends up cannibalizing itself.
* listening is important.
* own the moment. you know.
* let's recycle more (both metaphysically and ecologically)
about the importance of texts, don't worry too much for the original language. philosophy is more than hermeneutics. too much to hermeneutics is a potentially vicious cycle: is the interpreter not -just- another interpretation? and what makes this one better than the other since there's nothing but interpretations to appeal to?
is there a way out? yes. a slap in the face. true philosophy is a speculative discipline. mental gymnastics. thought experiments. possible worlds. let go, but remember: PROBLEMATIZE!
a point about my use of moksha in my post on hinduism brought to me by jonathan at the end of the class. the meaning of moksha, literally, is salvation, not confusion (as the link in the post obviously indicates). i used it loosely making a leap which i didn't justify in detail. you see: i believe that salvation presupposes a fundamental illusion. why?
first, a theological problem: maya, the deity of illusion: divine mother constantly weaving a phenomenal veil of "as ifs," right before our eyes. is the deity's intention to deceive? well, she does, she has to (each has to do what he/she does).
secondly, an ontological problem: salvation presupposes a safe-conduct, earned tit-for-tat. to win salvation one must work at it. he/she who is saved has something to show for. why is one saved? one wants it more than anything. wanting salvation is a desire for salvation. and yet, that desire (as you'll see very soon) is detached. remember our conversation about yajna (sacrifice). if one gives to receive, is there sacrifice? salvation means working at it, becoming better, i.e., feeling better. feeling is part of the journey. but behold, feeling is problematic because it means attachment: the very thing that salvation rids one of. so, in a sense, there is no salvation -eternal life, bliss, one-ness, call it what you like- that would not preclude the possibility of attachment (selfishness) re-appearing. this is the point of this important passage in the patanjali sutras:
III, 50: When the presiding-deities invite, there should be no attachment and no smile of satisfaction, contact with undesirable being again possible. Comment: This is the moment when everything can be lost or everything gained; it is the moment when the superior powers are themselves to be rejected, even as the visions and ecstatic experiences of the saints are to be rejected since they are manifestations of the divine but do not themselves constitute the divine experience. To rest in these accomplishments is ultimately no better and possibly worse than the activities he or she came from initially.how is it possible that there shouldn't be any attraction (attachment) to the invitation of the deities right at the moment of salvation? it seems to contradict the very idea of the gift of salvation, isn't it? unless the hope for salvation is ego-driven. isn't the place of mortals to be with mortals? will not "the saved" come back always again in the endless wheel of samsara?
salvation, thus, precludes a state of "confusion," in the sense that true salvation is not (cannot) be exempt from the possibility of contamination, i.e., the very idea of being saved as something completely other than what needs salvation. which brings me to this question:
is maya a global state of things? is it a lack we all suffer? if maya a necessity, i.e, god playing games with us when she asks me to be self-vigilant. but wait, even atman (i.e., my access to self) can be illusory! how do i know that the self i think i've found is not a travesty? (which is why we need to get to a subtler state of mind by leaving the "thinking" mind behind).
of course, this discussion of the confusion of salvation needs more time.
i wanted to thank jonathan for the observation. true, moksha means salvation, but the desire for salvation always presupposes avidya, another meaning for the confusion of illusion (i should have made the observation and i didn't).
if you want to tackle this discussion is fine with me. i left the comment box open.
NIYAMSARA (or THE PERFECT LAW)
CHAPTER ONE: JIVA
9. Soul, Matter, Medium of motion, Medium of rest, space, (substances) having dimensions, and Time, together with their various attributes and modifications are said to be the principles (Tattvartha).
10. Soul is characterized by Upayoga. Upayoga is towards Darsana of Jnana- Upayoga is of two kinds, Swabhava Jnana or Vibhava Jnana.
11-12. Natural knowledge (is) perfect, unassisted by sense and independent. Non-natural knowledge is of two kinds. Right knowledge of four kinds :- Sensitive knowledge (Mati Jnâna) Scripture knowledge (Shruta Jnâna) Visual knowledge (Avadhi Jnâna) and Mental knowledge (Mana-paryaya Jnâna), and Wrong knowledge of three kinds, beginning with sensitive knowledge.
13. And conation attentiveness (is) of two kinds (i. e.,) natural (Svabhâva Darshana), and the opposite of its kind, non-natural (Vibhâva Darshana). That which is perfect, unassisted by senses and independent, is called Natural.
14. Non-natural conation is said to be of three kinds : Ocular (Chakshu Darshana). Non-ocular (Achakshu Darshana) and visual (Avadhi Darshana). Modification (is) or two kinds, irrelative (natural, Svabhâva Paryâya) and relative to itself and others (i. e., Non-natural, Vibhâva paryâya).
15. Human, Hellish, Sub-human and Celestial conditions are said to be Non-natural conditions free from miseries arising from the effect of Karmas are termed Natural.
16-17. Human souls are of two ; born in Work region or in Enjoyment region. Hellish souls should be known to be of seven kinds, because of the regions. Sub-human souls are said to be of fourteen kinds. Celestial souls (are) of four kinds. Their detailed account should be known from (the scripture) Loka-Vibhâga.
18. From the practical point of view, a mundane soul causes material Karmas and experiences; but from the (impure) real point of view the soul creates (and) experiences thought- activites arising through the Karmas.
19. From the substance point of view (all) souls are free from the modifications mentioned before; but from the modification point of view souls are possessed of both ( the Natural and Non- Natural).
CHAPTER TWO: NON-SOUL AJIVA
20. The substance matter is of two kinds; in the form of an atom (Parmanu) and in the form of molecules (Skandha). And the molecules are of six kinds and atom (is) of two kinds.
21-24. Gross-gross, gross, gross-fine, fine-gross, fine, and fine-fine are the six kinds. Solids like earth, stone, consist of gross- gross molecules (Liquids) like ghee, water, oil are gross. Shade, sunshine, etc., consist of gross-fine molecules. Objects of the four senses (of touch, taste, smell and hearing) are of fine- gross molecules. Karmic molecules, in the condition of being bound up with soul are fine. Those which are unlike these are of fine-fine molecules.
25. That which is the cause of the four root matters (earth, water, fire and air) should be known as cause-atom. (Karana Parmanu). The Smallest possible part of a molecule should be known as effect as,
26. That substance which (is) the beginning, the middle and the end by itself, inapprehensible by the senses, and (is) indivisible, should be known as an atom.
27. That which possesses one taste, color, and smell, and two touches is of natural attributes. Those tangible to all (Senses) are in Jain Philosophy said to be of non-natural attributes.
28. The modification which is independent of other objects is the natural modification (Svabhava Pryaya); and modification in the molecular form is the non-natural modification, (Vibhava Pryaya).
29. From the real point of view an atom is said to be "Matter substance"; but from the other (i.e., practical point of view) the "Matter substance" has been applied to a molecule.
30. The auxiliary causes of motion and rest to soul and matter (are called) the medium of motion, and medium of rest (respectively). (That which is the auxiliary cause of) filing space to all the substances, soul, etc. (is) space.
31. Practical time is either of two kinds, instant and wink (avali); or of three kinds (past, present and future). Past (time is) equal to the number (of the liberated souls) who have destroyed their bodily forms, multiplied by numerable winks.(Om (Karya Parmanu) deification).
32. The instants of the practical time are infinite times (of the number of) atoms, which again are infinite times (of the number of) souls. (Time-points) which are packed full in the universe, are (called) the real "Time".
33. That by the help of which, all substances, soul, etc., are altered in their own modification, is "Time." The four substance; the medium of motion, (the medium of rest, space and time) have (only) their own natural attributes and modifications.
34. Excepting Time, (the other five) of these six substances, (are known) as "Extensive substances," (Astikaya). Extensive substances occupy many spatial units, as mentioned in Jaina scriptures.
35-36. The atoms of matter are numerable, innumerable and infinite. Verily there are innumerable points of space in "medium of motion," “medium of rest" and in each individual soul. The same (innumerable number of spatial units are) in the universe; and in the other, i.e., (non-universe) (there are) infinite (number of spatial units). There is no extensiveness in Time; therefore, it has one spatial unit (only).
37. The matter substance (is) material; all the rest are immaterial. Soul (has) consciousness as its nature, all the rest are devoid of the attribute of consciousness.
CHAPTER THREE (PURE THOUGHT)
38. The external principles, soul, etc., should be renounced. One's own soul, absolutely free from all the attributes and modifications, caused by the impurity of Karmas should be realized.
39. (From the real point of view), there are in the soul, no stages of (impure) thought-activities Vibhava Svabhava Sthan, neither there are there degrees of regard and disregard, nor grades of feelings of pleasure, nor degrees of the feelings of pain.
40. In soul, there are no stages of duration bondage, (Sthiti Bandha Sthana); neither (there are) the stages of Karmic nature (Prakriti Sthana); nor (are) the degrees of the molecular bondage (Pradesha Sthana) nor are the grades of fruition (bondage) (Anubhaga Sthana), nor are the degrees of operation of Karmas (Udaya Sthana).
41. (In soul there are) neither the stages of destructive thought-activities, (Kshayaka Bhava), nor the degree of destructive subsidential thought-activities (Kshaya-Opashamic Bhava), nor the grades of operative thought activities (Audayika Bhava), nor the degrees of subsidential thought activities (Aupashaika Bhava).
42. In soul (there is) neither wandering in the four conditions of life (gati), nor (are there) birth, old age, death, disease, and sorrow, nor are there the stages of bodily materials is (Kula), nuclei (yoni), soul-classes (Jiva Samasa) and soul quests (Margana).
43. Soul (is) turmoil less, bodiless, fearless, independent and faultless; without attachment, free from the activities (of mind, body and speech), devoid of delusion and free from ignorance.
44. Soul (is) possession less, free from attachment, blemish less, devoid of all defects, desire less, anger less, pride less (and) without lust.
45. Colour, taste, smell, touch, conditions of, female, male, and common-sex inclinations, etc., (six kinds of bodily), figures, (and six kinds of) skeletons; all these are not found in the soul.
46. Know the soul to be, devoid of taste, colour and smell, not cognizable (by the senses), possessed of the attribute of consciousness soundless, incomprehensible by any outward sign and one having no describable form.
47. Just as liberated souls (are) free from oldness, death and birth, and are crowned with the eight attributes; so (are) mundane souls (from the pure real point of view.)
48. Just as liberated souls, residing at the top-most of the universe are bodiless, indestructible, independent of senses, free from (karmic) filth, and pure, so the mundane souls (also) should be considered (from the pure real point of view.)
49. From the practical point of view, all mundane souls have been described as possessing all the aforesaid conditions; but from the pure, real point of view, they also (are) of the same nature as liberated soul.
50. All the aforesaid conditions relate to either foreign substance or foreign modifications; hence (they) should be renounced. Internal principle is one's own substance, i, e., and soul. (It only) should be realised.
51. Conviction (in things ascertained as they are) alone without (any) perverse motive (is) right belief, (Samyaka Darshana). (Knowledge) free from doubt, (Samshaya), perversity (Vimoha) and vacillation (vibhrama) is right knowledge (Samyak Jnana).
52. Conviction, from wavering, impurity (Mala), and non-steadfastness (Agarha) alone (is) right belief. Correct understanding (Adhigama) of what principles are worth renouncing and what are worth realizing, (is) right knowledge.
53. The external causes of right belief are the Jain scriptures and the persons, who know them; while the destruction, etc., of right-belief-deluding Karma are said to be the internal causes.
54. Listen, (Just as) Right Belief and Right knowledge are the (causes of) liberation, (so) is Right Conduct. Therefore, I shall describe Right Conduct from (both) the real and the practical points of view. 55. Right conduct from the practical point of view, is to practice austerities from the practical stand-point, while Right Conduct from the real point of view is to observe austerities from the real stand-point.
CHAPTER FOUR (PRACTICAL RIGHT CONDUCT)
56. Thought-activity free from (all) undertakings (injurious to any of) the mundane souls (which are) known as existing in (any of the various) physiques, nuclei, soul-classes, soul-quests, etc., is the first vow (non-injury), Ahimsa.
57. A saint, who renounces thought-activity leading to telling falsehood, on account of delusion, attachment and aversion is (said) to observe always the second vow, (truth), Satya.
58. He, who renounces the thought-activity of picking up articles belonging to another, lying in a village, a town or a forest, (is said) to observe the third vow (non-stealing), Achaurya.
59. He, who having seen the beauty of a woman, is not moved by a desire for her; or whose thought-activity is free from sex-animate feeling, (is said to observe) the fourth vow (chastity), Brahmacharya.
60. The carrier of the load of (right) conduct, i.e., a saint, who having first formed the idea of being unconcerned with all worldly attachments, renounces them is said to observe the fifth vow of possessional, (Parigraha Tyaga.)
61. A saint, who walks upon a trodden path, free from living beings, in day time, after seeing (carefully) a distance of four arms length (two yards), (is said) to observe carefulness in walking (Irya Samiti).
62. He, who renounced backbiting, ridiculing, talking ill of others, self-praising and harsh words, speaks what.
63. He, who calmly takes food which is free from living-beings, and given by another (with devotion), is said to have carefulness in eating (Eshana Samiti).
64. (A saint who has) acted with care in picking up, and putting down, books, and jug (Kamandala), etc., is said to have carefulness in lifting and laying down, (Adana-nik shepana Samiti).
65. (A saint who) discharges his waste, etc., in a place which is secret, and free from all living beings, and where is no obstruction on behalf of any body, (is said) to have carefulness in wasting (pratishtha-pana Samiti).
66. Renunciation of delusion, animate-feeling, attachment and aversion, and other impure thought activities, is from the practical point of view, called control of mind (Mano-gupti).
67. Renunciation of censurable gossip relating to people, state, theft, food, etc., which cause the bondage of evil Karmas, or refraining from telling falsehoods, etc., (is called) control of speech, (Vachan-gupti).
68. Renunciation of bodily movements, such as binding, piercing, beating, contracting, expanding, etc., is called control of body (Kaya-gupti).
69. (From the real point of view) know, that abstaining from attachment, etc., is control of mind; and freedom from falsehood, etc., or silence is control of speech. is good for himself as well as for others (is said) to have carefulness in speech (Bhasha Samiti).
70. (From the real point of view) refraining from bodily movements, non-attachment to the body, restraint of body or renunciation of causing injury, etc., is called control of body.
71. Worshipful Lords (Arhats) are those who are entirely free from all the (four) destructive Karmas, and are possessed of the highest attributes, omniscience, etc., and are crowned with the thirty-four extraordinary glories, (Atishaya).
72. Those (souls), who have destroyed the bondage of the eight Karmas, are possessed of the eight great attributes, abide at the topmost of the universe and are the most exalted and indestructible, are Perfect Souls (Siddhas.)
73. Those (saints), who are possessed of five kinds of conduct, who have trampled down the fury of the elephant of five senses, who are firm in their determination, and who are profound in virtue are (called) Heads of the order of Saints, (Acharya).
74. Those (saints), who are brave, possessed of the three jewels, are preachers of the categories enunciated by the Conqueror (Jina), and are endowed with the thought activity of desirelessness, are (known) as the Preceptors (Upadhyaya).
75. Those that are free from all (worldly) occupations, are always deeply absorbed in four kinds of contemplation (Aradhana) and are possession less and delusion less are (said) to be the Saints (Sadhus).
76. From the practical point of view, (all the previously mentioned) meditations constitute Right conduct; that (which is known) as Right conduct from the real point of view will be described further on.
CHAPTER FIVE (REPENTANCE)
77. I am neither in any of the Soul-quests, nor I am in any of the Spiritual stages, nor do I belong to any of the soul classes. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
78. I am neither hellish, nor sub-human, nor human, nor am I in the celestial condition. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
79. I am neither a child, nor young, nor old, nor the cause of any of them. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
80. I am neither attachment, nor aversion, nor delusion, nor the cause of any of them. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers. 81. I am neither anger, nor pride, nor deceit, nor greed. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
82. By practicing self-analysis, (a soul) becomes equations and thus (gains) Right Conduct. In order to fortify this (conduct) I shall speak of repentance, etc.
83. He, who leaving aside (all) forms of speech, and getting rid of (impure) thought-activities, such as attachment, etc., meditates upon his own soul (is said from the real point of view) to have repentance (Pratikramana).
84. He, who avoiding (all sorts of) transgressions particularly, is observed in self-contemplation is said to have repentance; because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
85. He, who avoiding (all sorts of) disinclination towards conduct, is absorbed in self-conduct, is said to have repentance, because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
86. He, who avoiding the wrong path, firmly walks in the right path of the Conquerors (Jainas) is said to have repentance because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
87. A saint, who avoiding all thorny thought-activities enjoys the modifications of only an unblemished thought-activity, is said to have repentance; because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
88. A saint, who avoiding uncontrolled thought-activities is absorbed in the three-fold (of mind, body and spirit.
89. He, who avoids (both) the thoughts of pain and ill-will, and entertains righteous and pure thoughts, is said to have repentance in the aphorism delivered by the Conquerors (Jinas).
90. (Impure) thought-activities, (such as) wrong belief, etc., have been experienced before since eternity, by a mundane soul, (but) pure thought-activities such as right belief, etc., have never been experienced by this soul.
91. He, who having completely renounced Wrong Belief, Wrong Knowledge and Wrong Conduct, mediates upon Right Belief, Right Knowledge and Right Conduct (is said to have) repentance.
92. Soul is a supreme category, Saints absorbed in it destroy the Karmas; therefore self- concentration only is the repentance of the highest order.
93. A saint absorbed in self-concentration, renounces all defects. Therefore self-concentration only constitutes the repentance of all transgressions.
94. He, who having understood the modes of repentance, as related in the scriptures known by the name of "Pratikramana Sutra" meditates upon it, is then said to have repentance (from the practical point of view). Each is said to have repentance; because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
9. Soul, Matter, Medium of motion, Medium of rest, space, (substances) having dimensions, and Time, together with their various attributes and modifications are said to be the principles (Tattvartha).
10. Soul is characterized by Upayoga. Upayoga is towards Darsana of Jnana- Upayoga is of two kinds, Swabhava Jnana or Vibhava Jnana.
11-12. Natural knowledge (is) perfect, unassisted by sense and independent. Non-natural knowledge is of two kinds. Right knowledge of four kinds :- Sensitive knowledge (Mati Jnâna) Scripture knowledge (Shruta Jnâna) Visual knowledge (Avadhi Jnâna) and Mental knowledge (Mana-paryaya Jnâna), and Wrong knowledge of three kinds, beginning with sensitive knowledge.
13. And conation attentiveness (is) of two kinds (i. e.,) natural (Svabhâva Darshana), and the opposite of its kind, non-natural (Vibhâva Darshana). That which is perfect, unassisted by senses and independent, is called Natural.
14. Non-natural conation is said to be of three kinds : Ocular (Chakshu Darshana). Non-ocular (Achakshu Darshana) and visual (Avadhi Darshana). Modification (is) or two kinds, irrelative (natural, Svabhâva Paryâya) and relative to itself and others (i. e., Non-natural, Vibhâva paryâya).
15. Human, Hellish, Sub-human and Celestial conditions are said to be Non-natural conditions free from miseries arising from the effect of Karmas are termed Natural.
16-17. Human souls are of two ; born in Work region or in Enjoyment region. Hellish souls should be known to be of seven kinds, because of the regions. Sub-human souls are said to be of fourteen kinds. Celestial souls (are) of four kinds. Their detailed account should be known from (the scripture) Loka-Vibhâga.
18. From the practical point of view, a mundane soul causes material Karmas and experiences; but from the (impure) real point of view the soul creates (and) experiences thought- activites arising through the Karmas.
19. From the substance point of view (all) souls are free from the modifications mentioned before; but from the modification point of view souls are possessed of both ( the Natural and Non- Natural).
CHAPTER TWO: NON-SOUL AJIVA
20. The substance matter is of two kinds; in the form of an atom (Parmanu) and in the form of molecules (Skandha). And the molecules are of six kinds and atom (is) of two kinds.
21-24. Gross-gross, gross, gross-fine, fine-gross, fine, and fine-fine are the six kinds. Solids like earth, stone, consist of gross- gross molecules (Liquids) like ghee, water, oil are gross. Shade, sunshine, etc., consist of gross-fine molecules. Objects of the four senses (of touch, taste, smell and hearing) are of fine- gross molecules. Karmic molecules, in the condition of being bound up with soul are fine. Those which are unlike these are of fine-fine molecules.
25. That which is the cause of the four root matters (earth, water, fire and air) should be known as cause-atom. (Karana Parmanu). The Smallest possible part of a molecule should be known as effect as,
26. That substance which (is) the beginning, the middle and the end by itself, inapprehensible by the senses, and (is) indivisible, should be known as an atom.
27. That which possesses one taste, color, and smell, and two touches is of natural attributes. Those tangible to all (Senses) are in Jain Philosophy said to be of non-natural attributes.
28. The modification which is independent of other objects is the natural modification (Svabhava Pryaya); and modification in the molecular form is the non-natural modification, (Vibhava Pryaya).
29. From the real point of view an atom is said to be "Matter substance"; but from the other (i.e., practical point of view) the "Matter substance" has been applied to a molecule.
30. The auxiliary causes of motion and rest to soul and matter (are called) the medium of motion, and medium of rest (respectively). (That which is the auxiliary cause of) filing space to all the substances, soul, etc. (is) space.
31. Practical time is either of two kinds, instant and wink (avali); or of three kinds (past, present and future). Past (time is) equal to the number (of the liberated souls) who have destroyed their bodily forms, multiplied by numerable winks.(Om (Karya Parmanu) deification).
32. The instants of the practical time are infinite times (of the number of) atoms, which again are infinite times (of the number of) souls. (Time-points) which are packed full in the universe, are (called) the real "Time".
33. That by the help of which, all substances, soul, etc., are altered in their own modification, is "Time." The four substance; the medium of motion, (the medium of rest, space and time) have (only) their own natural attributes and modifications.
34. Excepting Time, (the other five) of these six substances, (are known) as "Extensive substances," (Astikaya). Extensive substances occupy many spatial units, as mentioned in Jaina scriptures.
35-36. The atoms of matter are numerable, innumerable and infinite. Verily there are innumerable points of space in "medium of motion," “medium of rest" and in each individual soul. The same (innumerable number of spatial units are) in the universe; and in the other, i.e., (non-universe) (there are) infinite (number of spatial units). There is no extensiveness in Time; therefore, it has one spatial unit (only).
37. The matter substance (is) material; all the rest are immaterial. Soul (has) consciousness as its nature, all the rest are devoid of the attribute of consciousness.
CHAPTER THREE (PURE THOUGHT)
38. The external principles, soul, etc., should be renounced. One's own soul, absolutely free from all the attributes and modifications, caused by the impurity of Karmas should be realized.
39. (From the real point of view), there are in the soul, no stages of (impure) thought-activities Vibhava Svabhava Sthan, neither there are there degrees of regard and disregard, nor grades of feelings of pleasure, nor degrees of the feelings of pain.
40. In soul, there are no stages of duration bondage, (Sthiti Bandha Sthana); neither (there are) the stages of Karmic nature (Prakriti Sthana); nor (are) the degrees of the molecular bondage (Pradesha Sthana) nor are the grades of fruition (bondage) (Anubhaga Sthana), nor are the degrees of operation of Karmas (Udaya Sthana).
41. (In soul there are) neither the stages of destructive thought-activities, (Kshayaka Bhava), nor the degree of destructive subsidential thought-activities (Kshaya-Opashamic Bhava), nor the grades of operative thought activities (Audayika Bhava), nor the degrees of subsidential thought activities (Aupashaika Bhava).
42. In soul (there is) neither wandering in the four conditions of life (gati), nor (are there) birth, old age, death, disease, and sorrow, nor are there the stages of bodily materials is (Kula), nuclei (yoni), soul-classes (Jiva Samasa) and soul quests (Margana).
43. Soul (is) turmoil less, bodiless, fearless, independent and faultless; without attachment, free from the activities (of mind, body and speech), devoid of delusion and free from ignorance.
44. Soul (is) possession less, free from attachment, blemish less, devoid of all defects, desire less, anger less, pride less (and) without lust.
45. Colour, taste, smell, touch, conditions of, female, male, and common-sex inclinations, etc., (six kinds of bodily), figures, (and six kinds of) skeletons; all these are not found in the soul.
46. Know the soul to be, devoid of taste, colour and smell, not cognizable (by the senses), possessed of the attribute of consciousness soundless, incomprehensible by any outward sign and one having no describable form.
47. Just as liberated souls (are) free from oldness, death and birth, and are crowned with the eight attributes; so (are) mundane souls (from the pure real point of view.)
48. Just as liberated souls, residing at the top-most of the universe are bodiless, indestructible, independent of senses, free from (karmic) filth, and pure, so the mundane souls (also) should be considered (from the pure real point of view.)
49. From the practical point of view, all mundane souls have been described as possessing all the aforesaid conditions; but from the pure, real point of view, they also (are) of the same nature as liberated soul.
50. All the aforesaid conditions relate to either foreign substance or foreign modifications; hence (they) should be renounced. Internal principle is one's own substance, i, e., and soul. (It only) should be realised.
51. Conviction (in things ascertained as they are) alone without (any) perverse motive (is) right belief, (Samyaka Darshana). (Knowledge) free from doubt, (Samshaya), perversity (Vimoha) and vacillation (vibhrama) is right knowledge (Samyak Jnana).
52. Conviction, from wavering, impurity (Mala), and non-steadfastness (Agarha) alone (is) right belief. Correct understanding (Adhigama) of what principles are worth renouncing and what are worth realizing, (is) right knowledge.
53. The external causes of right belief are the Jain scriptures and the persons, who know them; while the destruction, etc., of right-belief-deluding Karma are said to be the internal causes.
54. Listen, (Just as) Right Belief and Right knowledge are the (causes of) liberation, (so) is Right Conduct. Therefore, I shall describe Right Conduct from (both) the real and the practical points of view. 55. Right conduct from the practical point of view, is to practice austerities from the practical stand-point, while Right Conduct from the real point of view is to observe austerities from the real stand-point.
CHAPTER FOUR (PRACTICAL RIGHT CONDUCT)
56. Thought-activity free from (all) undertakings (injurious to any of) the mundane souls (which are) known as existing in (any of the various) physiques, nuclei, soul-classes, soul-quests, etc., is the first vow (non-injury), Ahimsa.
57. A saint, who renounces thought-activity leading to telling falsehood, on account of delusion, attachment and aversion is (said) to observe always the second vow, (truth), Satya.
58. He, who renounces the thought-activity of picking up articles belonging to another, lying in a village, a town or a forest, (is said) to observe the third vow (non-stealing), Achaurya.
59. He, who having seen the beauty of a woman, is not moved by a desire for her; or whose thought-activity is free from sex-animate feeling, (is said to observe) the fourth vow (chastity), Brahmacharya.
60. The carrier of the load of (right) conduct, i.e., a saint, who having first formed the idea of being unconcerned with all worldly attachments, renounces them is said to observe the fifth vow of possessional, (Parigraha Tyaga.)
61. A saint, who walks upon a trodden path, free from living beings, in day time, after seeing (carefully) a distance of four arms length (two yards), (is said) to observe carefulness in walking (Irya Samiti).
62. He, who renounced backbiting, ridiculing, talking ill of others, self-praising and harsh words, speaks what.
63. He, who calmly takes food which is free from living-beings, and given by another (with devotion), is said to have carefulness in eating (Eshana Samiti).
64. (A saint who has) acted with care in picking up, and putting down, books, and jug (Kamandala), etc., is said to have carefulness in lifting and laying down, (Adana-nik shepana Samiti).
65. (A saint who) discharges his waste, etc., in a place which is secret, and free from all living beings, and where is no obstruction on behalf of any body, (is said) to have carefulness in wasting (pratishtha-pana Samiti).
66. Renunciation of delusion, animate-feeling, attachment and aversion, and other impure thought activities, is from the practical point of view, called control of mind (Mano-gupti).
67. Renunciation of censurable gossip relating to people, state, theft, food, etc., which cause the bondage of evil Karmas, or refraining from telling falsehoods, etc., (is called) control of speech, (Vachan-gupti).
68. Renunciation of bodily movements, such as binding, piercing, beating, contracting, expanding, etc., is called control of body (Kaya-gupti).
69. (From the real point of view) know, that abstaining from attachment, etc., is control of mind; and freedom from falsehood, etc., or silence is control of speech. is good for himself as well as for others (is said) to have carefulness in speech (Bhasha Samiti).
70. (From the real point of view) refraining from bodily movements, non-attachment to the body, restraint of body or renunciation of causing injury, etc., is called control of body.
71. Worshipful Lords (Arhats) are those who are entirely free from all the (four) destructive Karmas, and are possessed of the highest attributes, omniscience, etc., and are crowned with the thirty-four extraordinary glories, (Atishaya).
72. Those (souls), who have destroyed the bondage of the eight Karmas, are possessed of the eight great attributes, abide at the topmost of the universe and are the most exalted and indestructible, are Perfect Souls (Siddhas.)
73. Those (saints), who are possessed of five kinds of conduct, who have trampled down the fury of the elephant of five senses, who are firm in their determination, and who are profound in virtue are (called) Heads of the order of Saints, (Acharya).
74. Those (saints), who are brave, possessed of the three jewels, are preachers of the categories enunciated by the Conqueror (Jina), and are endowed with the thought activity of desirelessness, are (known) as the Preceptors (Upadhyaya).
75. Those that are free from all (worldly) occupations, are always deeply absorbed in four kinds of contemplation (Aradhana) and are possession less and delusion less are (said) to be the Saints (Sadhus).
76. From the practical point of view, (all the previously mentioned) meditations constitute Right conduct; that (which is known) as Right conduct from the real point of view will be described further on.
CHAPTER FIVE (REPENTANCE)
77. I am neither in any of the Soul-quests, nor I am in any of the Spiritual stages, nor do I belong to any of the soul classes. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
78. I am neither hellish, nor sub-human, nor human, nor am I in the celestial condition. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
79. I am neither a child, nor young, nor old, nor the cause of any of them. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
80. I am neither attachment, nor aversion, nor delusion, nor the cause of any of them. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers. 81. I am neither anger, nor pride, nor deceit, nor greed. I am neither the doer, nor do I make others do, nor am I the approver of the doers.
82. By practicing self-analysis, (a soul) becomes equations and thus (gains) Right Conduct. In order to fortify this (conduct) I shall speak of repentance, etc.
83. He, who leaving aside (all) forms of speech, and getting rid of (impure) thought-activities, such as attachment, etc., meditates upon his own soul (is said from the real point of view) to have repentance (Pratikramana).
84. He, who avoiding (all sorts of) transgressions particularly, is observed in self-contemplation is said to have repentance; because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
85. He, who avoiding (all sorts of) disinclination towards conduct, is absorbed in self-conduct, is said to have repentance, because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
86. He, who avoiding the wrong path, firmly walks in the right path of the Conquerors (Jainas) is said to have repentance because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
87. A saint, who avoiding all thorny thought-activities enjoys the modifications of only an unblemished thought-activity, is said to have repentance; because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
88. A saint, who avoiding uncontrolled thought-activities is absorbed in the three-fold (of mind, body and spirit.
89. He, who avoids (both) the thoughts of pain and ill-will, and entertains righteous and pure thoughts, is said to have repentance in the aphorism delivered by the Conquerors (Jinas).
90. (Impure) thought-activities, (such as) wrong belief, etc., have been experienced before since eternity, by a mundane soul, (but) pure thought-activities such as right belief, etc., have never been experienced by this soul.
91. He, who having completely renounced Wrong Belief, Wrong Knowledge and Wrong Conduct, mediates upon Right Belief, Right Knowledge and Right Conduct (is said to have) repentance.
92. Soul is a supreme category, Saints absorbed in it destroy the Karmas; therefore self- concentration only is the repentance of the highest order.
93. A saint absorbed in self-concentration, renounces all defects. Therefore self-concentration only constitutes the repentance of all transgressions.
94. He, who having understood the modes of repentance, as related in the scriptures known by the name of "Pratikramana Sutra" meditates upon it, is then said to have repentance (from the practical point of view). Each is said to have repentance; because he himself is the embodiment of repentance.
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
brahman? everywhere, but then
remember our discussion of duck/rabbit?
brahman is nature,
nature is everything there is
man is nature and brahman.
but man destroys nature
so, man destroys himself
did man learned from brahman?
for IT being nature destroys nature and man
thus, brahman destroys itself
what's the riddle?
we cannot lie to ourselves pretending that we live in this safety isle outside the relationship of brahman/atman, pakriti/purusha.
a more honest relationship between man & nature means recognizing that we are -also- nature. but, what nature? do we even know how to look around? do we really see nature or do we see ourselves outside?
i propose environing as learning to weave one-with-another. let's begin with understanding what's difficult. in aesthetics, there is this category of "ugliness",
the so called unpleasant & unsightly in nature. the different, the awkward, unattractive, the queer. people are definitely afraid of the ugly duck. or the frightful (the putrid smell of the marshes, abandoned animal carcasses in the country site, sulfide vapors coming up from the earth's bowels).
and death?
lord byron (who is not precisely afraid of death) has this to say:
The world was void,
The populous and the powerful was a lump,
Seasonless, herbless, treeless, manless, lifeless,
A lump of death, a chaos of hard clay.
The rivers, lakes, and ocean stood still,
And nothing stirred within their silent depths;
Ships sailorless lay rotting on the sea,
And their masts fell down piecemeal; as they dropp'd
They slept on the abyss without a surge
The waves were dead; the tides were in their grave,
The moon their mistress had expired before;
The winds were withered in the stagnant air,
And the clouds perish'd; Darkness had no need
Of aid from them. She was the universe.
or baudelaire, in fleurs du mal:
Je veux dormir! dormir plutôt que vivre!
Dans un sommeil aussi doux que la mort,
J' établerai mes baisers sans remords
Sur ton beau corps poli comme le cuivre.
Dans un sommeil aussi doux que la mort,
J' établerai mes baisers sans remords
Sur ton beau corps poli comme le cuivre.
I wish to sleep! to sleep rather than live!
In death as sweet as sleep,
I shall remorselessly cover with my kisses
Your lovely body polished like copper.
fearing less, loving more. that's one way to find one's place within nature. mind you the love i'm talking about is awe before the beauty of nature. it's beauty you wish to keep because it's there in its perfection (in hindu "everything that is is perfect").
how about insects (our misunderstood enemies? the spider is a famous character in the upanishads). ants, one of the smartest and most sociable insect. how about roaches? i found this on a website of people inquiring about miami as a place to live:
I've been hearing a lot about these large flying roaches and it's starting to scare me from relocating here. Are they in all homes? Do they bite? I think I could handle seeing them once in a while outside, but if I saw one of these things flying around my house I think I would want to pack my bags and leave!
Sunday, September 2, 2012
post for comment
hi class. thanks for the interesting discussion on thursday.
as promised, this my post @ m.bourbaki. leave your comment there.
Thursday, December 1, 2011
Koans by Dogen Zenji
Koan: A puzzling, often paradoxical statement or story, used in Zen Buddhism as an aid to meditation and a means of gaining spiritual awakening.
_____The true person is
Not anyone in particular
But
Like the limitless deep blue sky,
It is everywhere, and everyone in the world.
***
In the stream,
Rushing past
To the dusty world,
My fleeting form
Casts no reflection.
****
Because the mind is free --Listening to the rain
Dripping from the eaves,
The drops become
One with me.
****
"Mind itself is buddha" -- difficult to practice, but easy to explain;
"No mind, no buddha" -- difficult to explain, but easy to practice.
****
I won't even stopat the valley's brook
for fear that
my shadow
may flow into the world.
****
Midnight,
No waves,
no wind, the empty boat
is flooded with moonlight.
****
Water birds
going and coming
their traces disappear
but they never forget their path.
****
The World? Moonlit
Drops shaken
From the crane’s bill
****
To study the buddha way is to study the self.
To study the self is to forget the self.
****
What is the old buddha mind?" The master answered, "Fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles."
****
What is the old buddha mind?"
The master answered, "The world collapses in ruins."
The monk asked, "Why does the world collapse in ruins?"
The master answered, "Better without my body."
****
Following the Buddha Way really means following yourself.
****
Make no use of incense or bowing or chanting or ceremonies or scriptures.
****
Remembering is time, forgetting is time.
Black lines of scripture are time,
Great and small doubts are time,
Hungry ghosts and naked demons are time.
****
Because the mind is free --Listening to the rain
Dripping from the eaves,
The drops become
One with me.
****
"Mind itself is buddha" -- difficult to practice, but easy to explain;
"No mind, no buddha" -- difficult to explain, but easy to practice.
****
I won't even stopat the valley's brook
for fear that
my shadow
may flow into the world.
****
Midnight,
No waves,
no wind, the empty boat
is flooded with moonlight.
****
Water birds
going and coming
their traces disappear
but they never forget their path.
****
The World? Moonlit
Drops shaken
From the crane’s bill
****
To study the buddha way is to study the self.
To study the self is to forget the self.
****
What is the old buddha mind?" The master answered, "Fences, walls, tiles, and pebbles."
****
What is the old buddha mind?"
The master answered, "The world collapses in ruins."
The monk asked, "Why does the world collapse in ruins?"
The master answered, "Better without my body."
****
Following the Buddha Way really means following yourself.
****
Make no use of incense or bowing or chanting or ceremonies or scriptures.
****
Remembering is time, forgetting is time.
Black lines of scripture are time,
Great and small doubts are time,
Hungry ghosts and naked demons are time.
Wu-wei (update)
How is it possible to acquire something that supposedly comes without effort?
Tao is obvious, right in our face (Nature does not have to insist...) but this obviousness is precisely the reason we miss it. One must learn to read its subtle language. To observe the cyclic phenomena we must empty our minds of old baggage.
Let's observe poertically! Wu-wei is a form of universal poetry that is acted through virtue (... to produce but not possess, to care but not to control, to lead but not to subjugate.
When our observation becomes efortless, wu-wei happens. Remember, wu-wei is not passive, but active. We choose the world.
Tao is "what is": the rule of the universe.
Verse #7:
The universe is deathless,
Is deathless because, having no finite self,
It stays infinite.
A sound man by not advancing himself
Stays the further ahead of himself,
By not confining himself to himself
Sustains himself outside himself:
By never being an end in himself
He endlessly becomes himself.
#22
To yield is to [be preserved whole.
To be bent is to become straight.
To be empty is to be full.
To be worn out is to be renewed.
To have little is to possess.
To have plenty is to be perplexed.
Therefore the sage embraces the ONE.
Thursday, November 24, 2011
do your work & step back (post for comment)
Thomas Bayrle, Maxwell Kaffee, Oil on canvas (1967).
atRifF
i'd like to talk about this void of tao calling what fullness?
imagine an event before us, which appears incomplete. it's out of joint. and what isn't?
i take thomas bayrle Maxwell Kaffee (above) as a metaphor for the nausea that implacably pursues roquentin in La Nausée, the paradox of one-and-the-many that we find again in kenyan artist ingrid mwuangi's If:
The Tao gives birth to One.
One gives birth to Two.
Two gives birth to Three.
Three gives birth to all things. (vers. 42)1
The Tao doesn't take sides;
it gives birth to both good and evil.
The Master doesn't take sides;
she welcomes both saints and sinners.- Tao Te Ching
it gives birth to both good and evil.
The Master doesn't take sides;
she welcomes both saints and sinners.- Tao Te Ching
atRifF
i'd like to talk about this void of tao calling what fullness?
imagine an event before us, which appears incomplete. it's out of joint. and what isn't?
i take thomas bayrle Maxwell Kaffee (above) as a metaphor for the nausea that implacably pursues roquentin in La Nausée, the paradox of one-and-the-many that we find again in kenyan artist ingrid mwuangi's If:
The Tao gives birth to One.
One gives birth to Two.
Two gives birth to Three.
Three gives birth to all things. (vers. 42)1
Ingrid Mwuangi, If, digital c-prints mounted on aluminum (2001).
The Tao is like a well:
used but never used up.
It is like the eternal void:
filled with infinite possibilities. (vers. 4)
according to the tao te ching, our will to fix things can paradoxically take us into unexpected detours. when to let just things be?
If you don't realize the source,
you stumble in confusion and sorrow.
When you realize where you come from,
you naturally become tolerant,
disinterested, amused, (vers. 16)
you stumble in confusion and sorrow.
When you realize where you come from,
you naturally become tolerant,
disinterested, amused, (vers. 16)
we generally don't see our will as being impeded by anything other than our desire to act (a point we should heed from hard determinists). yet, in the big realm of overall causation, we're not alone. our will is "differential," one amongst hundreds of millions of other intersecting wills. seldom we stop to ponder our volitions as an infinitesimal fraction of an overall sum of (unknown) wills in the here and now, plus the already existing chain/reactions which our time/space.
how to see one's will vis-a-vis this higher order of will/differentials? what's the relative limit between one's doing and one doing too much? and viceversa, how much of our lives simply end up -unknowingly- "happening" to us?
ray bradbury, A Sound of Thunder, edition of collier's magazine (june 1952).
just as in bradbury's A Sound of Thunder,2 imagine how much of our planet's future is -and is not- in our hands right now.
The Tao is like a bellows:
it is empty yet infinitely capable.
The more you use it, the more it produces;
the more you talk of it, the less you understand. ( vers. 5)
on the positive side, think of serendipity in science, randomness in quantum mechanics and aleatoricism in music. 3
Marco Fusinato, Mass Black Implosion, ink on archival facsimile of score (2007).
on the negative side, think of Black Swans, popper's historicist fallacy and uneventful events. which brings us back to the mismatch of essence/appearance. of course, the question that we need to answer is how can we tell the difference?
Look, and it can't be seen.
Listen, and it can't be heard.
Reach, and it can't be grasped. (vers. 14)
the answer to the problem is not that simple, because there is no single unequivocal course of action. it's at this point that jazz can help. when musicians improvise, they are also part of a center of energy given by the whole ensemble. if one sees it synchronically (as if you could make a slice in the music sequence) the musicians seem to solo, if one sees it diachronically, it plays as a perfectly fit sequence. the success of the solo depends precisely of this give-and-take between part and whole and vice-versa. this is known as "groove," the sort of tao of jazz.4
as in jazz, taoism is perspectival, i.e., there can be different solutions to a given problem. this doesn't mean that all solutions are the same. just as there are good and bad improvisations, there are good and bad solutions to a given problem (in its uniqueness, tao is plural).
tao has multiple interpretations. why? think of this question: is the Big Dipper made by nature? Philosopher nelson goodman thinks not: a constellation is a "version," i.e., a construction that picks some stars from others. the same with "star," which is a version that "picks" (configures) stars from other celestial bodies.5
Lecia Dole-Recio, Untitled, paper, vellum, tape and gouache (2003).
goodman explains:
Truth of statements,rightness of descriptions, representations, exemplifications, expressions,... is primarily a matter of fit, fit to what is referred to in one way, or other renderings, or modes and manners of organization.6in our quest/struggle with reality, we keep building construction upon construction (human endeavor in science, politics and the arts, reflects this dynamic). what comes first in Ochoa's Collapsed? hint: the concrete wall is the future event of the aggregate of rock, sand and water. you see the cause, then you see the effect, but never at once. art does the trick!
Ruben Ochoa, Collapsed, Concrete, steel, burlap, wood, dirt (2009).
at some point we discussed the apparent riddle of the Tao Te Ching, which brings forth the idea "speaking/not speaking" in zen, which we'll go into detail pretty soon. the Chuang Tzu helps: "if tao is made clear (by words), it is not tao. if words are argumentative, they do not reach the point."yeah, every now and then we just have to let go and shut up. at that point one really but briefly understands the value of letting words flush down the word/sewer.
Close your mouth,
block off your senses,
blunt your sharpness,
untie your knots,
soften your glare,
settle your dust.
This is the primal identity. (vers 56)
block off your senses,
blunt your sharpness,
untie your knots,
soften your glare,
settle your dust.
This is the primal identity. (vers 56)
tao listens to silence. composer & buddhist john cage puts is beautifully: "every something is an echo of nothing."
let's pay attention to tao's subtle groove:
If you want to become whole,
let yourself be partial.
If you want to become straight,
let yourself be crooked.
If you want to become full,
let yourself be empty.
If you want to be reborn,
let yourself die.
If you want to be given everything,
give everything up. (vers 22)
let yourself be partial.
If you want to become straight,
let yourself be crooked.
If you want to become full,
let yourself be empty.
If you want to be reborn,
let yourself die.
If you want to be given everything,
give everything up. (vers 22)
in our reading tuesday, we commented an important and often glossed over element in taoism: humor. Let's come back to it. chuang tzu counsels: "the general idea is to show the happy excursion, the enjoyment in the way of inaction and self-enjoyment." (Chuang Tzu, A Happy Excursion)
no one fits this metaphor better than a child. we must try to bring back our lost innocence and sense of wonderment. there is something to be said for a child's natural ability to take in the world without any prejudice.
Brian Chippendale, Ninja and Maggot Series, (2006).
unfortunately, growing up means repressing this ability so that the adult becomes an entrenchment of hardened stereotypes. meanwhile, our ability for enjoyment gets regimented and instrumentalized.
"having fun" -as we usually use the word nowadays- carries this sense of being entertained, which in our post-capitalist society is exactly the opposite of true fun, the equivalent of forfeiting our curiosity by domesticating ourselves into vacuous, purposeless compliance.
against this disposition we must present tao's flexible, contrarian, comical, side:
Teruhiko Yumura This is Ja, for Flamingo Studio
tao's flexibility avoids the pitfalls of intellectual constipation:
Proud beyond measure,
you come to your knees:
Do enough without vieing,
Be living, not dying.
now the fool comes back. he's been with us this semester. chuang tzu says: a man who knows he is a fool is not a great fool. how close this is to this. as you'll see, the fool becomes an distinguished character in zen.
i'd like to warn you however, of unproblematically going for enjoyment, not only because, to begin with, the capitalist imperative "enjoy yourself" can castrate the true feeling we seek, but because, as sarah kay points out, enjoyment can be a double-edge sword: "enjoy-meant," and the meaning displaces being.8 said differently, the desire ends up killing the feeling. i think this is what philosopher simon critchley has in mind when he cites a telling passage from beckett's Watt:
The bitter the hollow and -haw, haw!- the mirthless. The bitter laugh laughs at that which is not good, it is the ethics laugh. The hollow laugh laughs at that which is not true, it is the intellectual laugh. Not good! Not true! Well, well. But the mirthless laugh is the dianoetic laugh, down the snout - haw!- so. It is the laugh of laughs, the risus purus, the laugh laughing at the laugh, the beholding, the saluting of the highest joke, in a word the laugh that laughs -silence please- at that which is unhappy. 9it is risus purus that may work as a therapy to demystify the negative attitudes of our political comedy: anal-retentiveness, social hostility, impetuous rage and self-importance.
________________
1 taken from Tao Te Ching, translated by s. mitchell. 2 in his short story A Sound of Thunder, ray bradbury imagines the impact of the so-called butterfly effect:
Maybe Time can't be changed by us. Or maybe it can be changed only in little subtle ways. A dead mouse here makes an insect imbalance there, a population disproportion later, a bad harvest further on, a depression, mass starvation, and finally, a change in social temperament in far-flung countries. Something much more subtle, like that. Perhaps only a soft breath, a whisper, a hair, pollen on the air, such a slight, slight change that unless you looked close you wouldn't see it. Who knows? Who really can say he knows? We don’t know. We’re guessing. But until we do know for certain whether our messing around in Time can make a big roar or a little rustle in history, we’re being careful.3 serendipity is the finding of something valuable without its being specifically sought. in general, activities and skills that can function in parallel may interact in unplanned and unforeseen ways. professor Jeffrey McKee argues that some of the most important forces of human evolution (the roles of which have been largely neglected) are chance, coincidence, and chaos. according to McKee one cannot understand how humans evolved without taking these three factors into account. see, The riddled chain: Chance, coincidence, and chaos in human evolution (Rutgers University Press, 2000). 4"when jazz is really grooving -whether it's a solo pianist, a quartet, or a big band -there is indeed an unmistakable feeling of buoyancy and lift (...) relaxed intensity is the key." Johnny King, What Jazz Is: An Insider's Guide to Understanding and Listening to Jazz (Walker: 1997) p. 24. 5 Hilary Putnam, Renewing Philosophy, (Cambridge, 1992), p. 115. 6Nelson Goodman, Ways of Worldmaking, (Hackett Publishing, 1978). 7 See, Youru Wang, Linguistic Strategies in Daoist Chuang-Tzu and Zen Buddhism: The Other Way of Speaking (Routledge, 2003), p. 98. 8Sarah Kay, Zizek: A Critical Introduction (Cambridge, 2003), p. 162. Simon Critchley, Infinitely Demanding, (Verso, 2007), p. 82
Tuesday, November 22, 2011
The mystery according to Ge Hong
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| Illustration by Pomme Chan |
The Mystery is the first ancestor of the Spontaneous, the root of the many diversities.
Unfathomable and murky in its depths, it is also called imperceivable;
stretching far into the distance, it is also called wonderful;
so high that it covers the nine empyreans,
so wide that it encompasses the eight cardinal points;
shining beyond the sun and the moon,
speedy beyond the rapid light;
it both suddenly shines forth and disappears like a shadow.
it both surges up in a whirlwind and streaks away like a comet;
it is both stirred up by deep eddies and like a clear deep pool,
it is both flaky and at the same time misty, rising up in clouds;
it takes on form and gender, and it exists [you];
it returns to darkness and solitude, and it is no more [wu];
it plunges beyond, into the great darkness, and buries itself deep;
it rises above the stars and floats on high;
neither metal nor stone can equal its hardness,
and the moist dew cannot attain its softness.
Square without set-square, round without compasses,
it comes and no one sees it,
it leaves and no one follows it;
through it, the sky is high and the earth low,
through it, the clouds rush by and the rain falls.
It carries within it the embryo of the Original One,
it forms and shapes the two Principles (Yin and Yang);
it exhales and absorbs the great Genesis,
it inspires and transforms the multitude of species,
it makes the constellations go round,
it shaped the primordial Darkness,
it guides the wonderful mainspring of the universe,
it exhales the four seasons,
it encloses the void and silence in darkness,
it frees and parcels out natural abundance,
it makes the heavy fall and the light rise up,
it makes the rivers Ho and Wei flow.
If one adds to it, it does not increase.
if one takes away from it, it does not grow less.
If something is given to it, it is not increased in glory.
If something is taken from it, it does not suffer.
Where the Mystery is present, joy is infinite;
where the Mystery has departed, efficacy is exhausted and the spirit disappears.
Thursday, November 17, 2011
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Wednesday, November 9, 2011
the chicken soup dilemma
a chef & lover of philosophy invites a group of 4 philosophers over to try his chicken soup:
A is an absolutist
S is a subjectivst
R is a relativist
K is a skeptic
being quizzed about, they all counter affirmatively:
a great soup this is!
how could these four contrasting individuals agree?
because a statement by itself cannot constitute a criteria for a philosophical position.
Monday, November 7, 2011
Buddhism (review for quiz this Thursday)
Find the notes for Buddhism for our quiz on Thursday here.
As usual, I'll ask you to complete the definitions for the basic terms as stated in this review.
As usual, I'll ask you to complete the definitions for the basic terms as stated in this review.
Tuesday, November 1, 2011
Update: comments for my posts
Dear friends: Let's address the comments for my posts once again. These are posts for comments. They are mandatory. Comment should have 100 words, be informative and show a level consistent with the engagement we have with the class. The post is open for 7 days and I'll close them after that. Comments are part of the final grade. Please, from here on, post your comments in proper fashion.
Thanks.
Thanks.