About Chris

Navigating through life by learning. Sharing my thoughts and experiences, hoping that it might help as many as possible live the good life.

The Inevitability of Change

Posted on January 4, 2013 by Chris

“Observe constantly that all things take place by change, and accustom thyself to consider that the nature of the Universe loves nothing so much as to change the things which are and to make new things like them. For everything that exists is in a manner the seed of that which will be. But thou art thinking only of seeds which are cast into the earth or into a womb: but this is a very vulgar notion.” –Marcus Aurelius’ Meditations

Everything around me is always changing. Birth, death, creation, destruction. Things exist for a time, then they will be gone. Eventually our very own sun will begin to “burn out,” but first it is expected to grow into a red giant. The outer limits of this red giant stage will engulf the Earth, unless its orbit increases. In any case, the biosphere will be long gone by then, which means that all life as we know it will be long gone. All the oceans are predicted to be gone at just over 1 billion years from now, and all the water on Earth is expected to be gone by about 3 billion years from now. (get more details here). So we’ve got some time.

The sun is coming to get us; it will eventually.

Actually, most of us have about about 90 years +/-30 years or so. At this point, it is unlikely that there is anything I can do about this.

So, in the grand scheme of things I will relax, enjoy the day, enjoy the moment, and realize that BIG problems aren’t as big as they appear.

Duality: Either/Or vs. The Spectrum

Posted on January 2, 2013 by Chris

WARNING: This post will take you down a very deep rabbit hole if you let it…good luck.

The duality of everything is going to drive me insane, I think. I yearn for independence and yet need thousands around me to survive. I want eternal happiness, yet feel down or depressed for no reason. I strive to be a man of virtue, yet notice some of my actions are inconsistent with right versus wrong.

I’ve really been noticing the contradiction all around me. It really is everywhere. It is everywhere and unavoidable. AND, like I said, my noticing it lately has been driving me crazy. It is like watching an existential tennis match, when you hate tennis!

happy/sad
life/death
practical/idealistic
sleep/awake
materialistic/spiritual
money is everything/money is nothing
individuality/non-self
meaning/emptiness
purpose/futility
good/evil
knowledge/ignorance

I think the insanity begins when you start thinking of all these “opposites” as distinct either/or poles. Either life has purpose or it is futile, either I am happy or I am sad, etc. As soon as you start noticing these things, they pop up all around you, they come at you from everywhere…like that tennis match, or maybe it’s like two opposing walls closing inward on you with ever greater compression (think of the Star Wars trash compactor scene). My personal frustration begins when I try to figure it out. What does it all mean? Is their purpose in life or is it futile? Are we inherently evil or good? Should I reach out to change my world or recede into myself? Should I be happy with what I have, or should I strive for more?

So, this is where I try to break the paradigm, changing that either/or view to one of seeing suchness, one that sees that there is no either/or. What is the answer to those questions I posed above? When I reflect, meditate and breathe, I see the answer is yes and no, all at once. It might be helpful to combine the answer to “yes&no.” Is life meaningless? yes&no. Does life have purpose? yes&no. Should I strive to attain more wealth, or should I be happy with what I have? yes&no. A “Yes&No” view acknowledges that there is a spectrum of non-answers rather than either/or. It also acknowledges that I may be wrong about my own view, that clinging to an answer I KNOW is true, may not be correct. This view is something you can study about, but it must be experienced to truly attain it.

Are there absolutes or not? We want there to be, don’t we? We are comfortable when we cling to our “answers.” From a practical standpoint, we decide yes or no all the time. Should I steal this candy bar? No. Is that the right thing to do? Yes. However, when it comes to our place in all of existence, these answers are approximations for truth. What if we ask even more questions about our candy bar problem? Who is selling the candy bar? What are they doing with the profits? What is in the candy bar? Is it hurting people? Isn’t that their choice? Is my neighbor starving? Am I starving?

My point here is not to convince myself that stealing a candy bar might be the right thing to do (although, I suppose given the right conditions, it might). My point is to illustrate that even with the simplest of either/or questions, there is a spectrum that goes unnoticed by us. We create the either/or world to try and simplify our existence, but it is not reality. If too much of this reality seeps through into our view without the right context, it can drive us mad.

That may very well be where the Buddhist concept of right view comes in. To see reality and thrive, we must have context; a large sea of understanding that helps us see where we fit. When I have a right view, I can see that there is a Middle Way. I know that there are guides to right and wrong, but I understand that these guides are dependent on context, and that all of existence is very complicated.

If I point to the grain of sand, I would be both right and wrong.

If I try to point to the grain of sand, I would be both right and wrong.

What I think I am trying to emphasize is that our understanding is almost always incomplete. The appearance of opposites is an illusion. We must always (yes, I said always) make our decisions with incomplete information. We do not know everything about anything, and we know very little about most things. So, when we make our life decisions we can take heart in the fact that we are doing the best we can with the given information. It seems that it is best when we avoid the opposite poles and favor the middle way.

…and hopefully avoid insanity.

“…what makes [the noble truths] noble truths is precisely that they are actual, undeviating, invariable (tatha, avitatha, anannatha). It is the failure to face the actuality of these truths that has caused us to wander for so long through the long course of samsara. It is by penetrating these truths exactly as they are that one can reach the true consummation of the spiritual quest: making an end to suffering.”

Taken from “Dhamma and Non-duality”, by Bhikkhu Bodhi. Access to Insight, 4 April 2011, http://www.accesstoinsight.org/lib/authors/bodhi/bps-essay_27.html . Retrieved on 2 January 2013.

Samsara

Aside

Samsara – Buddhist term for the repeating cycle of birth, life, death. Can also refer to the the various worldly activities and sufferings of existence, and the unsettled mind through which reality is perceived. We are stuck in it until we can transcend it through enlightenment or understanding.

Suchness (Tathata)

Aside

Suchness (Tathata) – The nature of reality at any given moment. True existence. It is impossible to describe, and when it is attempted, we miss the mark. We can notice it in simple ways: e.g. the stillness of a flower, our loved one’s breath upon us when she sleeps, the sun shining on our forehead.

Disorder (uhh…Entropy)

Posted on December 29, 2012 by Chris

Entropy is the measure of energy in a closed system. When something has more energy, there is more disorder. Think of the molecules in a an ice cube versus that in water vapor. The molecules in the ice cube have less energy and they are all arranged nicely in a solid. Water vapor’s molecules, on the other hand, are warmer and are all over the place…disordered. So, scientifically (and in engineering, of course), the concept of entropy is used to measure the amount of disorder and energy in a system. In a closed system, entropy NEVER decreases. This is called the Second Law of Thermodynamics: “entropy of an isolated system never decreases, because isolated systems spontaneously evolve towards thermodynamic equilibrium — the state of maximum entropy [disorder].” (Thanks Wikipedia)

This is a scientific law, but it necessarily has had philosophical implications. Many, regardless of whether or not they have a scientific background, have referred to entropy to explain why things are the way they are. Everything naturally flows towards more disorder; if left alone, things will become disorderly. So accordingly, something must tidy it up. At the worldly level, it must be man. At the cosmic level, it must be the divine. For some, it proves the existence of God.

But I am straying from my original intent. I do think that the Second Law of Thermodynamics can have philosophical implications. That is, it can give us some perspective on life in general. At this point however, I would like to turn my thoughts away from what determines order or disorder, and limit the discussion to the fact that there simply is disorder in our system. In other words, since the tendency in a system is toward disorder, then there will definitely be disorder in your life.

This flows nicely into the Stoic triad of control, fate, and impermanence. If my life is orderly and just so right now, then I better enjoy it while it lasts. Something will upset this order, because it is the natural way of things. I cannot control most of it; it will happen as it is fate; and things that are so now, will not be so later…they are impermanent.

If your life is in disarray now, if it is messy, then maybe you should consider yourself lucky: it is the natural way of things and you are in harmony with nature. I know, that may be a sick joke, but in humor there is truth, no? Seriously though, you can take heart in the fact that this is just the way things are. Hopefully, you have already prepared for this state with your reflections on reality.

Which brings me to our place in a world of disorder. If there is much I cannot control, this means that there ARE things I can. I need to concentrate on those things I can control: my mental outlook, reactions to the insults, tragedies and attacks that come my way, not to mention my ability to reduce the chaos as much as possible for those around me. I can reduce the entropy in my world. I would definitely concentrate on the “world” inside my head, then limit my efforts to anything around me within a stone’s throw (or soccer ball’s kick, if you will), but that’s just me.

Remember, that entropy/disorder increases in a completely closed system. Since our own “system” is nothing even close to being closed, and we are surrounded by “systems” that are not closed, we can add order to each in our own way.

Just be mindful that the march toward disorder will continue, no matter what you do.

OK now, how about a quote from a Stoic giant. I think this one applies from Epictetus. Think of the onion and shellfish as the order in your life, and the ship as the reality of disorder: “Consider when, on a voyage, your ship is anchored; if you go on shore to get water you may along the way amuse yourself with picking up a shellfish, or an onion. However, your thoughts and continual attention ought to be bent towards the ship, waiting for the captain to call on board; you must then immediately leave all these things, otherwise you will be thrown into the ship, bound neck and feet like a sheep. So it is with life. If, instead of an onion or a shellfish, you are given a wife or child, that is fine. But if the captain calls, you must run to the ship, leaving them, and regarding none of them. But if you are old, never go far from the ship: lest, when you are called, you should be unable to come in time.”