Wednesday, June 30, 2010

The Taste of Attachment

Another enso. Another day. More Thoughts.

"Not knowing how to work with thought means one is controlled by thoughts. Knowing how to work with thought means that thought is brought into awareness and used either for positive purposes and virtuous action or is liberated into its empty essence. This is how thought is utilized in the path. In the same way, we can bring delusion, suffering, and any experience whatsoever into the path. But to do so we must understand that the essence of all that arises is empty. When we do, then every moment of life is free and all experience is spiritual practice: all sound is mantra, all form is pure emptiness, and all suffering is a teaching. This is what is meant by “transforming into the path.” - Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche

Teaching, suffering, attachments, lots of thoughts all mixed together in a gooey stew. This was today's meal. And when it was served up we got to chew on some hard bits and some bitter tastes we didn't much care for but there you have it, life stew 101.

You need all the tastes, salty, sour, sweet, bitter and pungent to create a really memorable dish. Today's meal was made up of the news that the owners of this lovely property are not ready to sell it. While we understand, we were filled with sadness and disappointment. We got to see how attached we'd become, how we rested our hopes on a few spoken sentences. And how this imbued meaning, these thoughts created suffering. Simple story. And the work was to not deny our disappointment but to spend some time with these weighty feelings, shed a few tears and not run with a story. Not to call ourselves foolish for harbouring hope, not to incriminate others for speaking words that fostered hope, but simply to know this is a common human dance. If we were wiser beings we might have been completely open to whatever came along. But being lesser mortals we drifted in and out of sadness and disappointment

But nothing is ever wasted if you learn from it. We learned how quickly hope can build and how little is needed to fuel it. And we learned that it's all okay. No one did anything wrong. It is an opportunity now to move in a different direction. My old Dharma teacher always said, "a no is as good as a yes". It is an opportunity to look up and have faith and trust that things work themselves out, that there is a bigger picture that we don't see.

And as we ate our dinner we remembered to have gratitude for these folks who have generously shared their beautiful home with us. It was a wonderful, magical welcome to the island. We look forward to the next step into the great unknown. May life bring you what you need.

8 comments:

  1. Beautiful painting and beautiful thoughts. Your perfect home awaits you.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Leslie, it seems you are always reassuring me that the right home awaits me! Thanks so much for your encouragement and support! Good to have friends (online & otherwise) that remind me to look up.

    ReplyDelete
  3. "And the work was to not deny our disappointment but to spend some time with these weighty feelings, shed a few tears and not run with a story. Not to call ourselves foolish for harbouring hope, not to incriminate others for speaking words that fostered hope, but simply to know this is a common human dance."

    Wise words here. I know the waiting for home dance ever so well. You describe it beautifully and accompany the story with a fitting piece of work (Simplicity LL3) so fragile yet strong...like we beings are.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Beautiful post! And so timely for me... "Not knowing how to work with thoughts means we are controlled by thoughts... suffering...spending time with the weighty feelings... (not)trusting that things work themselves out..." (oh boy there's a biggie) :) Today was contraction 101 :) I have found that sometimes even knowing how to "work with thoughts" I get lost in the contraction of thought unable to find my way out...

    Am glad that you have left the breadcrumbs for me to follow back "home." :)

    ReplyDelete
  5. I look forward to your blogs so much. Always insightful and always beautiful artwork.

    ReplyDelete
  6. oh... I am resonating with that need to let things be and fear around it. So hard to keep the breath steady through it all. Thank you for your wisdom, Carole.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Oh! yes the bittersweet taste of attachment that says love and suffering all at once. And the wonders of wisdom, and practice that can make all the difference between getting closer, or further away from pure mind.

    And thank you for all the beauty - in your words, your thoughts, your images . . . such a gift to those who read you.

    Deep bow to you.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Thanks again for your kind and insightful visits.

    And Merci33 you have named this painting. I love it "Simplicity LL3". Nice to feel the connection that you too have gone through the dance of finding home.

    MeAnderi, it is true we move in and out of the awareness and ability to work with thoughts. I always have to remember to be kind to myself when I fall down (and that's a good time to have a nibble of breadcrumbs!)

    Genju- yes to remember the breath, that's the first thing to go sometimes and then we're lost in the stories. And sometimes I am amazed at how long I can hold that breathe, contracting into my attachments.

    Marguerite - I took solace in your post on attachment. We must have been feeding at different tributaries of the same Dharma stream!

    ReplyDelete