After the Deluge ... Without Condition

After the Deluge, Kailua, HI, March 2021, iPhone 11 Pro © Steven Crisp

Last night and into this morning we had torrential rains fall.  Indeed, I was awakened by the noise at 1:30 AM, and could not get back to sleep.  So I got up and did some reading on the sofa, hoping to fall asleep (no luck).  

The rains continued into the morning, and first-world-problem-I-know, we had our Yoga class cancelled 🤣.  And still the rains came.  Finally, the intensity diminished, and I put on a raincoat and went out for a walk.  And lookee what I found at our normally completely dry "grotto" near where we live.  So the rains were not all bad, eh?

Anyways, after this experience, and related to some non-dual spiritual reading I was doing, I wrote whatever this is ... enjoy (or not ;-)

            Without Condition

Unconditional, that is, without condition
No legalese to sign
No ifs, ands, or buts
Whatever is … is … just as it is

And so can be your acceptance of it
Unless of course you have preferences (and who doesn’t)
Now you are comparing “what is” to what you desire
And my guess is most of us would choose our desires over what is right here, right now

But here’s the revelation, and a radical proposition
There is another way
We can instead “desire” what is happening in the present moment
After all, that’s really just “desiring” Life as it is unfolding

And what would that be like to desire Life exactly as it is?
Without condition?
Well, it would be a complete “allowing” and “acceptance” and yes,
even profound “gratitude” for just what is, right now, in this moment

And the next moment … and the next
Then you are desiring Life exactly as it unfolds
Without trying to make it different
Without trying to change anything

Ahhhhhh, such a sigh of relief
All that is needed is your awareness
And acceptance of this mystery while
Being awed by the resplendency of Life

And then what becomes apparent
Is that this is, in fact, Unconditional Love
For the present moment 
For circumstances and people (and even yourself) just as they are

No need for anyone to change
For anything to change
Make no doubt about it, though, things are going to change
In every moment — that is the Reality and Truth that is Life

And now Life will be directly influenced 
by your Open Awareness,
by your Gratitude and Acceptance
... Without Condition

Imagine how you would respond to someone who met you
with that much openness to this Mystery of Life
with Simple … Unconditional … Joy

What have you got to lose?  Only your suffering.

Walking Along The Way

Walking Along The Way, Pill Box Trail, Kailua-to-Lanikai, HI, April 2020, Nikon D600 with FX 18-300mm VR lens, 
135mm, 1/60 sec @ f10, ISO 200, -0.67 EV, no flash © Steven Crisp  [Click on the photo to enlarge]

Have you been cooped up lately, while "sheltering in place."  Do you feel like getting outside and going for a walk?  Where shall you go?  Will you pick some destination?  I vote no!

After all, it's not about the destination ... it's about the journey ... it's about The Way.

Remember to pay attention each moment along your journey.  For that is your life.  And that is Life itself.  Can you sense it?  Tune into it?  Feel it?   Be it?

Be present.  Savor this moment.  Smell the fragrance of each flower.  Hear the call of each bird. Feel the texture of the tree bark and the unfurling leaves. 

This is holy presence.  Sacred awareness.  Can you feel it in your body?  Each step along the path. Really feel it.  Become one with the rhythm of your steps ... rhythm of your breath ... with the rhythm of Life. 

Then wherever you are is your current destination.  You are always right here, right now.  Never waiting to arrive, nor wanting something different from what is.  Again, that's Life you are witnessing.  But don’t worry, something different will present itself in due course. Then just be present for that.  

Look deeply inside and see what your heart's intention is. Open yourself to the splendor of Life. Be awed by its depth.  Notice the interdependence of all things.  Recognize both the impermanence and the continuity of Life.  See your role in this and Life’s role in you. 

May you dwell in the present moment and find peace and happiness in abundance. 

So depart with no destination.  Set no fixed pace.  Arrive every moment with each step. And be grateful for your blessings.  

And speaking of blessings, consider these words and images from Brother David Steindl-Rast:

Caricature

Caricature, Tokyo, Japan, February 2007, Nikon D40 with 18-200mm VR lens, Focal length 82mm, Exposure 1/5 sec @ f5.3, ISO 200, no flash © Steven Crisp [Click on the photo to enlarge]

Caricatures are interesting, don't you think? And they can be quite fun and entertaining as well -- perhaps you've had one drawn of you or someone in your family.

Of course, we understand what we are seeing here. The good ones are recognizable likenesses of the subject, but usually with many of their least flattering features exaggerated for comic effect. It can be a good laugh. Or it can sometimes hurt a bit, if the subject lacks self confidence.

And so we have the Virginia Tech massacre, and the media frenzy. I mean, really, have you seen anything like it? No, no, I don't mean the tragedy. I mean the media.

Some of you may know that I don't watch TV, don't listen to talk radio, and I don't read the newspaper or weekly news magazines. Ohmigosh, how will I ever know what is going on in the world? Well here is my secret. I subscribe to two free news summaries over the internet (CNN and NYTimes). I receive daily headlines and editorials. Based on the headlines, I decide if an article might be worth reading. Perhaps you can guess that I don't read very many of them.

So yes, I did know about the shooting. But that is all I really needed to know. I could easily predict the media frenzy.

In the comments section of a recent post regarding Attention, an anonymous commenter from the other side of the planet and I veered into this topic area. Feel free to check out that dialog if you like. It is where I realized that what we are seeing on the media is simply that: a caricature of American life, intentionally designed to exaggerate our least flattering features.

[D]o not become trapped. This is NOT America, nor the world. This is a caricature drawn for a single purpose: to titilate, to stimulate, to profit. There is no accuracy to the picture. You know that in your heart. Your experiences tell you that as well. But the infernal drumbeat looking to steal your attention will continue. Just turn it off. That is your choice.

OK, so you know my bias. But what on earth is my point?

Just this: Life as told to you by another person is nothing but a concept. There is nothing real about it. You are distorting what you've been told with your own biases, just as that person distorted his perceptions when forming them into concepts and words. This may be intentional (like much of the media) or not (like a friend trying to make you understand their perspective).

But either way, it is not reality. What you must do is find for yourself your own reality. You must directly experience life, and come to a deeply resonant internal "knowing". Some would call this a mystical experience. Again, this is but another concept, which surely means something different to you than it does to me.

And when I look with mindful attention, when I am present and deeply aware of my surroundings, I can see the pain and the suffering in the world, and I can try to be fully present for it. But I can also see the compassion and the joy, and I can try to be present for that as well. And when I am mindful, I keep noticing beauty and safety and kindness and compassion all around me.

So let's not report on what others see. Let us describe our own experiences.

Let a thousand individual voices create the harmony that reduces the media drumbeat to mere background noise. Which your mind is designed to naturally filter out. Until it might as well no longer exist.

When you see the caricature painted by the media, and the frenzy of talking heads feeding at the trough of sorrow, throw back your head and laugh. It is tragic comedy, not reality. The suffering for the families of the victims, and the family of the killer are real. We can be present for that. Respectful of that. And offer them our love and forgiveness. And one act we can take to help heal our worldly family in this time of sorrow, is to turn off the TV. Just turn it off. Be present for your own family. And begin your own journey of awakening to real life.

Do you have the time?

Magnificent sunset, Waikiki, Honolulu, Hawaii, February 2005, Pentax Optio 555, Exposure 1/500 sec @ f6.5, ISO 64, no flash © Steven Crisp [Click on the photo to enlarge]

So tell me ... do you have the time? Time to visit? Time to be aware of the world around you? Would you miss a beautiful sunset like this because of your pre-arranged plans?

What is this life if, full of care,
We have no time to stand and stare.
-- from "Leisure," by W.H. Davies

We've all heard the phrase "it's the journey, not the destination" but how many of us really understand what that means and live by it? How many of us get caught up in the busyness of planning to get to Point X, then traveling to Point X, and finally reminiscing about Point X? All the while missing what might have been in store for us at Point B or on the way to Point G, or while zipping right past Point Q?

(BTW, when trying to spell "busyness", I accidently spelled it "business". I think that is somehow profound.)

I came across this article from the Washington Post today. It's rather long, and knowing you are busy (and might not have the time ;-) I thought I would excerpt a couple of quotes from it.

This is a story. Actually, a well told story of an experiement. Of a world-class violinist positioned as a run-of-the-mill street performer at a busy D.C. metro station. Do you stop and listen? ... What if he's really good? Do you have time for beauty? Shouldn't you?

I wish not to spoil the results of the experiment. You might want to read the article. Over tea, perhaps. When you have a moment. Or two.

The violin is an instrument that is said to be much like the human voice, and in this musician's masterly hands, it sobbed and laughed and sang -- ecstatic, sorrowful, importuning, adoring, flirtatious, castigating, playful, romancing, merry, triumphal, sumptuous. ... So, what do you think happened?

This might cause you to reflect philosophically: What is beauty? Is it a measurable fact (Gottfried Leibniz), or merely an opinion (David Hume), or is it a little of each, colored by the immediate state of mind of the observer (Immanuel Kant)?

How might you have felt, lucky enough to be one of the passer's by during this experiment? Would you really notice? Would it make a difference? The violinist's bow begins to dance; the music becomes upbeat, playful, theatrical, big. ... "Whatever it was," he says, "it made me feel at peace."

Are you sure? Perhaps you have another focus. A hundred feet away, across the arcade, was the lottery line, sometimes five or six people long. They had a much better view ... if they had just turned around. But no one did. Not in the entire 43 minutes. They just shuffled forward toward that machine spitting out numbers. Eyes on the prize.

What kind of tunnel vision do we create for ourselves? Let us not blame it on the work, or the lists, or the destination. "Couple of years ago, a homeless guy died right there. He just lay down there and died. The police came, an ambulance came, and no one even stopped to see or slowed down to look. People walk up the escalator, they look straight ahead. Mind your own business, eyes forward. Everyone is stressed. Do you know what I mean?"

In closing, I'd ask you to reflect on the experiement, and the story. What is it trying to tell you? How do you interpret it? If we can't take the time out of our lives to stay a moment and listen to one of the best musicians on Earth play some of the best music ever written; if the surge of modern life so overpowers us that we are deaf and blind to something like that -- then what else are we missing?

What else indeed. How can we possibly know?

But there is good news here. Really good news. You control the end of this story -- how you choose to treat each passing moment, each glimmer of beauty, each breath-taking sunset. Why not pull up a chair, lean against a wall, turn off the iPod, put down the paper, and have a look and a listen. I promise you -- you won't be dissapointed -- and you do have the time.