This week’s readings primarily concerned meditation and the self. Both of these topics are rather mind-bending and required repetition and multiple perspectives (Powers, Bodhi, and Thurman) to set me on the path to understanding them.

Meditation is defined by Powers as having two primary aims:

“quieting the mental confusion that afflicts ordinary beings,”

and

“developing clear understanding of Buddhist tenets” (Powers 81).

In this sense, the act of meditation has negative and positive goals; it aims to remove afflictions of the mind such as lust, desire, ignorance, and hatred, as well as to add complete knowledge of the four noble truths, among other things. In Bodhi’s words, the purpose of meditation is both to still the mind and to generate insight.

I am very interested in the positive goals of meditation. While the negative goal of removing afflictive mental states is compatible with my previous (and limited) definition of meditation, the idea of synthesizing new truths about life during meditation is new and fascinating to me. Upon reflection, it makes sense that meditation would be an effective way to properly ascertain and internalize the “true nature of reality” (Powers 81). Bodhi reaffirms Powers’s definition of meditation by stating that meditation intends to

“stabilize the mind and clear away the obstacles to the unfolding of wisdom”

and

“awaken direct insight into the true nature of things as disclosed by the Buddha’s teaching” (Bodhi 257).

The idea of meditative states was also interesting to me. The states of calm abiding,

“a non-fluctuating meditative stabilization conjoined with special pliancy,” (Powers 91)

and higher insight are the goals presented by Powers in the act of meditation. Upon reaching these states, one is able to perform calming and analytical meditation (i.e. the positive and negative goals of meditation) simultaneously, which demonstrates great control over both the body and mind. It is surreal to imagine the possibility of reaching such a state of perfect control, and I am very taken by the idea of these higher meditative states.

Bodhi’s focus on meditation as a means of stilling the mind is very well reflected in a metaphor he presents on pages 270-271:

“Suppose, brahmin, there is a bowl of water mixed with red, yellow, blue, or crimson dye. If a man with good sight were to examine his own facial reflection in it, he would neither know nor see it as it really is. So, too, brahmin, when one dwells with a mind obsessed by sensual lust…”

The passage goes on to add metaphors of boiling water to represent a mind obsessed by ill will, water covered in algae to represent a mind obsessed by dullness and drowsiness, and water rippling in the wind to represent a mind obsessed by restlessness and remorse. These metaphors, and particularly the repetition and variation of these metaphors, are an effective means of visualizing the impact the mental afflictions have on the mind. They imply that the ideal, awakened mind is like a still bowl of pure water through which one can easily see one’s own reflection. I found these metaphors to be so effective because I can look inward to my own mind and see the ways in which the “water” is dyed, or stirred by wind, etc., and identify ways in which I can clarify that water.

Powers and Bodhi (Bodhi 260) each describe meditative solutions to sexual desire which really stood out to me. Their solution involves reminding oneself that everything eventually dies, so it is counterproductive to grow attached to another individual.

“Alternatively, meditators sometimes bring to mind people they find particularly attractive and then imagine what these people will look like as decaying corpses” (Powers 82).

hallucinogen

To me, this solution to sexual desire at first seemed so extreme as to be satirical; the suggestion to picture one’s sexual interest as a decaying corpse as an antidote for intrusive sexual desire is incredibly grotesque. After some consideration, however, I can understand why Buddhist teaching would prescribe this solution. It is consistent with other teachings because it involves cognitive restructuring, and it is achievable via meditation. It also ties directly into serenity, one of the two things that makes up true knowledge:

“When serenity is developed, what benefit does one experience?... All lust is abandoned” (Bodhi 267).

With that said, one question I do have is whether Buddhist teachings account for the evolutionary advantages conferred by sexual desire. In other words, if the goal of the teachings is to strive toward an awakened population, is procreation a part of this population? I wonder if Buddhist teachings provide solutions that do not impede a population’s growth/maintenance while also staving off the affliction of sexual desire.

While I was admittedly a bit mystified by Bodhi’s descriptions of the self (Bodhi 319), the Thurman reading proved much more accessible to me in trying to grapple with the issue of the self. He frames the issue in a way that is easily understood by an American audience by providing analogies to American culture (IR 67). He goes on to ponder what “I” actually is:

“When I pronounce my own name, ‘Bob,’ does an image of myself arise in my mind? Is it a recent snapshot of my face? Is it a specification sheet? A curriculum vitae? A biography?....” (IR 75).

Thurman’s use of personal anecdotes and straightforward metaphors allows him to clearly convey some of the more complex ideas related to the self which we see in the Bodhi reading. In general, I find Thurman’s writing to be incredibly engaging and fun.