SHONEN, JO: True Consciousness, Stillness
SHO-NEN true consciousness
JO stillness, samadhi
These teachings may be the conclusion of the Budddha's noble eightfold path -- number 7 and number 8. A bastard son of a king of masturbation, who spent 70 years looking into them is strongly of the following view: true consciousness means balance of the autonomic nervous system, and the power of samadhi is the harmonized energy of a person enjoying balance of the autonomic nervous system.
Thus, the Buddha's teaching is turned into its opposite. Not only is true consciousness reduced to a physiological phenomenon, but stillness is turned into fixity.
When true consciousness emerges, Master Dogen says, fear paralysis and panic cannot intervene.
If I react, as I do, with fear, passive or active, to whatever stimuli life throws at me, it is only a symptom that, by clinging on to body and life, to old views and to the end-gaining habit, I am preventing true consciousness from emerging.
Still, there is real meaning in these Chinese characters of Master Dogen's -- there is treasure to be hunted, and joy in the chase.
SHO-NEN true consciousness
JO stillness, samadhi
posted by Mike Cross at 5:26 AM
4 Comments:
How can true consciousness be anything other than phsyiological?
If it was not there is only metaphysics and the function of the mind (delusion).
That does not mean I in any way agree with Gudo Nishijima's belief about the ANS.
I refer you to Jordan's comment to the last post -- brief, practical, true.
True consciousness is like the moon reflected in water.
Saying true consciousness is physiological is like saying it is hydrogen and oxygen atoms.
They key thing, as I understand it, is not to go for true consciousness directly, but to really mean a decision not to do something... and yet do it.
To give oneself an end, like moving a leg, and really be clear in one's decision not to move it in the habitual way... and yet move it.
As a martial artist, I learned to hide from an opponent my intention to do something -- e.g. to perform a kick -- and yet do it.
What Marjory taught me was to hide my intention to do something from myself! And yet do it.
True consciousness does not emerge from intellectual discussion; it emerges out of this kind of practical work to inhibit one's old patterns of reaction, out of what Alexander called "thinking in activity."
Consciousness is NOT physiological - it merely announces its presence (to us) through the physical.
Mind exists outside of time and of space. It knows no past or future. It only becomes present when it creates images of what we know as "now". We then attach the label "conscious" to the acknowledgement of the image.
To try to observe consciousness is like watching the flat ocean waiting for a wave to form.
Jeff,
Well put.
Buddhsim holds that mind and body are not seperate; so when we let go of labelling thoughts of 'body' and 'mind', 'time' and 'space' then does body/mind exist outside time and space? Or rather, has 'time' and 'space' ever really existed?
Regards,
Harry.
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