Clarity
Krishnamurti: The first
thing to find out, surely, is whether or not the mind can ever think clearly
as long as it is confused. The fact is that whatever a confused mind seeks
and finds must also be confused; its leaders, its gurus, its ends, will
reflect this confusion, isn't it so?
Questioner: That's
hard to realise.
Krishnamurti: It's
hard to realise because of our conceit. We think we are so clever, so
capable of solving human problems. Most of us are afraid to acknowledge to
ourselves the fact that we are confused, for then we would have to admit our
own utter insolvency, our defeat - which would mean either despair of
humility.
Isn't it also a fact that choice indicates confusion?
Questioner: I
don't understand how that can be. We must choose; without choice there is no
freedom.
Krishnamurti: When
do you choose? Only out of confusion, when you are not quite 'certain'. When
there's clarity, there's no choice.
(Krishnamurti)
Presence
If you really want to see the world around you, you need to be
present.
Being caught up in thoughts,
opinions, beliefs and ideas is not so good.
The mind needs to stop judging, assessing, evaluating, comparing and measuring.
Simply be here and now.
Truth
The
truth is not some concept, some message or
secret. It is everyday reality, all around you.
What is so special about this? Why do people seek the truth?
Reality is not so easy to
see.
We are conditioned to want things we do not need, to crave, to be ambitious,
selfish, careless and blind.
Our lives are spent chasing ephemeral things that lack any real substance or
meaning.
Tao, zen and
our approach to tai chi is all about paring
away the accumulated nonsense that prevents clear sight.
Instead of seeing what we want to see, we learn to see what is really there.
This may not sound like anything significant but clarity changes your entire
existence.
Perception
We see the world according to how we are, not according to how it is.
Perception colours everything.
There is no such thing as 'objectivity'. Objectivity is just a concept, akin to
'infinity' or 'eternity'.
These are words without meaning.
Everyone is subjective.
Your mind interprets what it sees relative to your education, conditioning and
perspective.
Knowledge
Writing something down does not make it so.
Language and books attempt to solidify reality, to capture the complexity of
existence in words.
Can this be done?
Truth is too vast and complex to be verbalised. It is everything that is
happening simultaneously, everywhere, all at once.
Knowledge is profoundly flawed. By its very
nature it is partial and incomplete.
Once we see that information is simply a
pointer indicating the way/the direction, we
can treat it appropriately.
Rather than live in awe of knowledge we must see it as it is: limited.
Words detailing the knowledge and skills of long-dead tai chi people do not
capture any facet of how that person performed the art.
Narrative is dead. tai chi is alive. It is made manifest by the living,
breathing, changing person.
Wisdom
Does the possession of knowledge imply wisdom?
No.
The human race has stored vast sums of knowledge over millennia yet there are
still wars, there is still
hunger, there is still selfishness and greed.
Empirical
Rather than operate from the basis of the known it is perhaps more
prudent to see things without expectations.
Instead of seeking to prove a point or demonstrate a perspective, why not simply
observe?
See what is actually happening.
Insights
Insights arise from the clarity of our seeing.
Instead of looking and seeking - which are both products of the self/the mind -
we are passive, we see.
Seeing the essence/character/nature/quality of something is very important.
This involves paring away everything that impedes our seeing. We must invest in
loss and shed the accumulations of a lifetime.
Insights are not the product of conscious thought, they arise unbidden from the
depths of our minds.
Unexpected associations and connections emerge, new possibilities, nuances,
variations and options.
Shen
When we are utterly invested in the here and now, the self fades and we
become immersed in just being.
The division between this and that, self and other fades.
We become one with the moment.
Simplicity
At the heart of all things is a
simple quality.
Clarity arises when we are capable of seeing this simplicity. When we notice
small things. The details.
Instead of pursuing
greater and wider experiences, we are content
to remain where we are and notice what is in front of us.
The art of teaching is clarity
and the art of learning is to listen.
(Vanda Scaravelli)
Lao Tzu said that you can know the whole world without leaving your room.
He was talking about awareness. About clarity. About being.
Page created 22 July 2002