Praecox-blueprint

Seeing myself in the Mount

Sometimes, I do associate Buddhism with other self-realisation programs, with a more thorough and solid theoretical backbone about human energy and heart. It reveals more and more the part of me that has been... not buried.. but mostly lost in time and the larger environment, over-weighted by materials and short(er)-sighted goals in life.

As a Chinese proverb goes: You can never see the true face of Mount Lu, just because you are right inside. Amidst the noise of senses, a clear sight is not far from impossible and a desired distance requires a large, very large effort. (Art is sometimes one.) In this light, Buddhism is just about training how to look more neutrally (or live mindfully). It involves a critical process of realising oneself as a phenomenal subject in the net of "cultural constructs" (in terms of Structuralism), but Buddhists call it "collective karma". I think the two are not far despite the latter poses a more proactive role for the subject(ed) in its full discourse.

Last weekend I was in my Master's monastery again for a 4-day camp with a similar theme for debate and discussion. "Brainwashing" slipped out of somebody's lips and one of the fellow monks asked what made us so sure in which circumstances we are being brainwashed and which not. "This is merely not a practical question to ask," the thirty-something who had a nickname as "Intellectually First" replied with an understanding smile, gently. It's more important if you can be honest in examining if you are getting what you want at last, and if your mind can perceive such possibility in a practical way. The young monk impressed me a lot throughout the four-day dialogues which made me see vividly myself standing too proudly at the bottom of the Mount. No, I was not frustrated, but saw more light, with joy.

After I joined the first camp of the same series last year, I wrote my very first blog post under a thrust of impulse to share with, if not scare, my friends. With the same hope I would like to tell you, that I have made a lot of wishes during the camp that you will see yourselves, with the same joy.

posted at 11:41 PM | View by Post