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Talk: 2015-03 04 No Title.json Start_time: 00:55:47 Display_question: How do we accept the world as it is and remain engaged? Keyword_search: practice, injustices, fair, suffering, Buddha views, opinions, meditator, clarity, Mom’s, meditation in action, relationship, reactivity, conditioned, response, energy, clear mind, engaged, Tibetan llama, Tibetan Buddhist Vipassana, employer, lovingkindness Question_content: Questioner: I think one of the hardest things, in practice, and dealing with the most personal injustices that I've encountered, as well as, like, world injustices, is the concept that the world should be this, it should be fair, it should be nice, it should be this and that, as opposed to really just the world is, what it is. And I noticing how much it kind of be in denial of seeing the world, as it is. And I was wondering how I could bring that into practice, because I don't think I'm very useful in helping, or benefiting the world, or be a benefit in the world, if I'm stuck and well, it should be this or that. I mean, I could do things, but it might cause suffering. And I feel like this is simply, to be able to see it for what it is. Larry: Yes Questioner: Well, life is unfair. Larry: Okay, unfair, that's a concept too. Fair, kind of. But look, if you pay attention, typically it sounds like there's a bit of suffering for you, because of this, right? Suffering is a beautiful that's, (alarm sound) like an alarm goes off; practice, this is where you go. It's nothing vague about it. The Buddha said, all I'm teaching is suffering, and the end of suffering. Now, suffering doesn't just mean torment. It can be very subtle, ranging from kind of existential feelings of incompleteness, to tremendous torment. So, whatever this is bringing up, this issue you have, I think we all understand what you're saying. The world is the way it is. Now, I'm not going to suggest, how it should be, because I would just feed into more of what you're talking about. So the role of meditation is for you to start with yourself. Break_line: How is the impact, in other words, what is behind your question? Something in your life, prompted that question. So, the answer is in the question, in a sense, in you, not in me. I can't answer it. And if you get clearer, by seeing how you have views, and opinions, or it shouldn't be this way. But then again, here's typically how minds work. I don't know about yours. Well, that isn't fair, it shouldn't be that way. And then you, being broadly educated, well, who said it shouldn't be that way? Should and shouldn't. And then you get into a discussion. The different selves are starting to talk. A little conference is going on there between... they're all representing you as being you, and then they're gone. And then the next one comes in, and says, no, I'm you said, no, you're not. You are just conditioned that's habitual. You shouldn't do that. Meditators don't do things like that. I'm you, as a meditator. Well, but then it's the same thing. In other words, but as you see that, it falls away, and what's left is, clarity. Break_line: So then in the particular examples, I don't know what your life is like. You do have a better chance of… let me give you a very simple example of it. There's so many cases of this, moms who... moms and dads, but it seems mainly moms, let's say children growing up. Here's an example. I've heard it a hundred times, easily, over the years. Johnny doesn't… I don't know why it's always the boy, but it is, okay. Johnny doesn't clean up his crumbs, after he eats. And so he says, and I've told him first nicely, he's like six years old, seven, eight, whatever; saying and now I get very impatient, and I get annoyed, and I know that's wrong, but I can't help it. I mean it just doesn't seem to change. What can meditation, how can it help me? So that's meditation, in action. In other words, in relationship. So, let's say, the mom asked Johnny, people have done this, now clean up your crumbs. How many times do I have to tell you this? If you don't do it, your father, or I, have to do it, or your sister has to do it, and then the child does it, begrudgingly, pushes a few crumbs on the floor, all that stuff. Break_line: But if you watch it, your reactivity, if you watch your reaction, which is conditioned, you can't help it. That gets weaker, and it falls away, and then the mind is clearer, and that makes room for a response. To me a response is very different from a reaction. This is language, I'm using language this way. Reaction is, you can't help it. So it's conditioned. Just like, prick me, I'll bleed. Don't clean off the crumbs, I get angry. I would get impatient. Okay, as you watch the reactions, and they lose their potency, simply by seeing them, not trying to get rid of them. Because if you try to get rid of them, you're giving them life, in an odd way. As that falls away, it makes room for a response. The response may be the very same words, but the energy is different. Johnny, you know that if you don't clean the crumbs, others, we have to do it, and we have other things we have to do. Daddy has to get to work, I have to get to work, your sister…and what people report, is that it's the same message, but the energy is different, because it comes from a response, rather than a reaction. So what you would say, or do, I don't know. Now one of the things you start to learn to trust, is the clear mind has a better chance of doing something that's pretty good, than the mind that's full of conditioning. And often you don't know what's going to come out of your mouth, but it seems to be it's right, because it was clear. So that's a small example. But do you see what I'm getting at? Questioner: I do. I do. I think when I… with the issue like the world should be this or that. I noticed through practice, there's certain qualities of disengagement from it, which is definitely disempowering. And I want, or I guess crave, is to be engaged, and to be able to go beyond the should, and just simply again, have clear seeing, to have a better engagement with the world. Does that make sense? Larry: Yeah. But remember, what I'm saying shouldn't be misunderstood as, passivity, and fatalism. Like oh just walk right over me. I practice Buddhist meditation, I'm just a doormat. In other words, what you say, or do, if it comes from clarity is, very, very different. For example, there was a Tibetan llama who... I used to live here. This is my apartment for eleven years. You're all in my apartment. Get out. You're in the kitchen. And he stayed up here, and for about two months, a couple of nights a week, he would give talks on Tibetan Buddhist, Vipassana. And towards the end, one time, it was on Tibetan, on Buddhist economics. And someone raises their hand. This may be getting at what you're… and they say, well, I've been working, I can't remember the numbers. I'm just making numbers up. Said, I work for an employer, and he promised me $400 a week, but then when I get my paycheck, it's really only $200 a week. And the person's really angry as they're delivering it. What is a Buddhist? The person is really baiting this llama. What does a Buddhist do about that? Break_line: And so, the llama got quiet and said, well, I would send as much lovingkindness, as you can muster up. Send it to your boss, remember…oh, he had been giving… the llama had been talking about how one of the things he didn't see in the west, was that we didn't seem to have gratitude for employers, who invested money, and created companies, and buildings, so that we could have a job. We only wanted to get from them, and they wanted to get from us. That's what prompted this question. So, this person was needling the Tibetan llama, expecting some kind of platitude. And so, the llama said, well, I would send as much lovingkindness to your employer as you can, and then sue him for the rest of the money. So, it's not being a jerk. End_time: 01:04:33
