Detachment

October 19, 2007 by ProudProgressive

Buddha peace cat Buddhists are onto something very important : a concept called equnimity , dispassion in the face of stuff that bombards our senses daily. We americans are conditioned to be passionate , jingoistic, nationalistic , to vote, to take action lots and lots of action. We are doers, oh yeah ! go get em tiger..blah blah blah..

Look at the power of memes , big business of advertising and all the tons of psychological studies that go into what is called “effective advertising.” for every concievable demographic that can be dug up. Lately I have noticed , while bracing for the onslaught of impending holiday advertising what is fed to us , while we are relaxed and “taking in” our tv shows. Our lives are supposed to be a constant succession of “fresh experiences” (even if that means getting the latest frozen food from the grocery store) promising a new twist/”fresh” on dinner. Ironically the foods are frozen NOT fresh. Ok. How about the concept of being grateful to have food to eat in the first place, given the state of the world. ( i read many books on hermits, monks who actually eat the same meager meals for yrs on end, inspirational really) AS for our homes, can we be grateful to have a roof over our head period ? vs. the latest flooring and plumbing fixtures ? Cars, isn’t enough to have a dependable car vs . one that is an ego statement? Apparently the answer is No, in our culture. Meanwhile the tv would us have believe thanks to easy credit “Why everybody is just doing so damn well financially, what is wrong with me that i cannot afford all of these things” that is the subtle or not so subtle message. And generates endless internal chatter of our minds. Buddhist teachings address this normal, and persistent inner chatter. (our inner “movies”, if you will) Taming the chariots of the mind , is job one, paying attention to our inner dialog , not wiping it out per se.

Our traditional ? holidays are coming, those with children on tight budgets, face misery and pressures. Its quite sad to me really.
We can expect the predictable tying of material goods many of us cannot afford to be tied with — wait for it…love.
As for the endless personal appearance ads, obviously the message is “if love has not found you – your hair color, or perfume must just be wrong etc.” Try this stuff ! Never mind if its a poisonous chemical soup, it makes you more attractive.
If you are tired or aging you need to try new potions with names like Elation. Gaak ! Feeling “OK” is not enough – we are supposed to be elated..oh for fuck sakes….
I try to avoid commercial television but it gets through anyhow.
Yesterday i saw a movie, called A Very Serious Person – in it a character says : “What is it , with you Americans you expect to be happy all of the time, one is lucky to have five minutes of true happiness in a life time.” WOW – that sums it up perfectly for me. And what is happiness anyhow , what is it really for each of us its different. But we are conditioned to have such pie in the sky expectations – many of them materialistically based.

The Constant brainwashing we get about pharmaceuticals, new improved products the pathologizing of existential discontent and moods, Take this pill , that pill if your stomach gurgles etc. The endless diet commercials. Ends up pathologizing regular “nothing special” human life. (Joko Beck a Buddhist teacher wrote a book called, Nothing Special. Its a fav of mine) Pema Chodren also is another great Author with book titles such as “When things fall Apart” spoiler alert – it can be a good thing !

One could rightfully assess given all the advertising, that indeed, the American “dream” and happiness is found in a “product” of some kind..you just got to shop harder ! All the while Nivana is right here, right now, in our bodies, in our hearts. ( the products include bible give a aways by some religion happy to recruit you in your misery and discontent) Ironically everything mystical we could possibly need we are born with, it is drilled out of us as we get incolcated into our american consumer culture. And trained to be workers, who work hard and identify more with our job functions , than our own humanity. i.e. the famous sad question at parties – is not how are you , but “What do you do ? ” Conditioning us to forget we are Human Beings vs. “Human Doings.” Its the content of our hearts , not what we do , that make us who we truly are, our essential natures.

On the plus side – we are free in our minds if we want to be. Truth , Beauty, and Goodness can be found in less stuff not more. Less to protect, less to lose.
As for politics , emotional detachment is a must. Engagement however is essential, paying close attention but without the emotional investment – sounds hollow but that is the paradox – the Koan or riddle for those of us who do pay attention to politics and public policies. We can learn a lot from the Burmese monks. We can maintain , endure even flourish – if we have the mind set on simpler things. Simpler practices. And be what is called “mindful”.
Buddhism (and there are dozens of sects and practices) itself has much to offer us americans as we struggle to pay our heat bills, to feed our families, to find meaning in our lives.(as if meaning were lost). The essential message of Buddhism is that there is nothing to be found , because in fact nothing has been lost…….Go figure !
I’m not trying to “sell it” to you by any means , just relaying whats been a benefit to me – in my ongoing philosophical journey past and present. Its about being the change we want to see. And remembering emotions are in fact a biological phenomenon of vibrations within our own bodies, often provoked by our thinking or visa versa. Paying attention with detachment is one way to survive these “interesting times” we live in , here on this geographic spot, called “america” on this planet Earth. The Monks in Burma show us, that contrary to popular opinion- Buddhists can be very engaged in social change – not obliviously sitting in meditation while the world goes to hell in a hand basket. They have taken the AUM to the streets. That is the action of Bodhisattvas -

Crossposted at Some Notes on Living

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