Vipers in a Pool (The First Noble Truth)
I was thinking about Kirk's post here: http://www.treeleaf.org/forums/showt...uth-and-dukkha
And it really got me to sink into the nature of the first noble truth.
Imagine a huge pool, with tall concrete sides (far too tall to climb). Some parts of the pool are pleasing to the senses, surrounded by tall shady trees, others are crumbling and strewn with detritus. In some places, still and moving pictures are projected onto the walls. Some pictures tell stories about pools that never were and the heroes and villains that live in them. Some tell stories and show images from other places within the pool itself. There is a system that keeps the water constantly circulating with a gentle current. But at regular intervals, poisonous vipers slip into the system and end up in the water, ever more with the passage of time.
This is the situation all beings are born into. Some are lucky, and are born into the pool where the water is comfortable, and the vipers are rarely seen. Others are not so lucky, and are born into the dangerous areas, in the eddies where the vipers congregate. Initially, there are beings close to us (such as our parents and friends) who will try to shield us from the vipers. In some areas, there are even people who are paid to try to protect everyone in that area from the vipers (doctors, police, etc.). However, the longer we are in the pool, the more the vipers accumulate. The vipers can bite us at any time, but the more time passes, the more vipers there are, and the poorer our chances. Eventually, we and everyone we love will fall to the vipers, and everything we care about will sink into the depths to crumble or rust.
Some beings spend their time watching the pictures projected onto the walls. Some may dream of other worlds, with pools far more wondrous or dangerous than their own. Some beings explore the pool soaking in the sensory experiences it offers: warm and cold, fast and slow, shaded and sun-baked. Others study the pool unlocking the mysteries of the water, the currents, and beings, and the vipers themselves. Most beings cluster together for safety. Some battle with other groups for protection or resources. Most do their very best to not look directly at the vipers, but all know they are there.
There is much talk in the pool about what happens to beings "after the bite" when they eventually succumb to the vipers, for nearly all are afraid of the bite.
Some beings believe that if you believe earnestly enough, and ask for salvation, he who built the pool and created the vipers will transport you to a pool that is entirely pleasing to the senses and free of vipers.
Some beings believe that you are simply born into a new pool, one that has the exact parameters of the current one: pool, water, vipers, and all.
Some beings believe that after the vipers there is oblivion: no pool, no water, no vipers.
Some beings point out that it is irrelevant what happens after the viper bites, the important thing is to care for other beings and the pool itself. Some truly radical beings (Buddha, Jesus, etc.) say that we should love all beings, even the vipers.
So what is Buddha? What is Zen? My poor answer and current understanding is that Zen encompasses the practices that lead to the uncovering of the ever-present original mind - that the beings, the pool, and the vipers are different forms of one harmonious whole, separate but not different. The vipers are not the enemy, other beings are not the enemy, there is no enemy, except for suffering itself. Some may read this sentence and say "well I know THAT", but can you really KNOW it, when it matters? When the viper is swimming towards you, beneath your feet is only the deep, and behind you is only an unforgiving wall, will you KNOW it in your heart and mind?
What can possibly uncover such a state of mind? Is it words in a book? Is it the chanting of Sutras? Is it a "breakthrough" with a Koan? Is it a Kensho on a misty morning upon hearing the call of a crow? Is it a lifetime of Shikantaza (that exists in a single moment)?
I cannot answer, which is why I travel with the beings here. I bow to your experience, believing that you can help uncover this mind, but cannot find it for me.
What would it be like to swim in the pool with such a state of mind? I imagine it would be to swim fearlessly, open to all beliefs about "what comes after the bite." How could we do anything but work to alleviate the suffering of all beings (including vipers)? If possible, some might even return to a pool when bitten, to continue working to alleviate all suffering.
What is Buddha to you? What is Zen?
Deep bows,
Sekishi
