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Understanding dysfunction
Jeroen
Luminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlands Veteran
in Mindfulness
It seems to me that Buddhism does have some understanding of dysfunction in the mind…
- Tibetan Buddhism has a list of unwholesome mental states and their antidotes;
- There are the Three Poisons of desire, hatred and ignorance;
- In Vietnamese zen there is talk of seeds and store consciousness for wholesome and unwholesome states;
- In Mahayana there are the Perfections, implying that the normal state is imperfect.
It seems to agree with psychology and psychiatry that part of the spectrum of human experience is covered by insanity and dysfunction. This seems true on the scale of nations as well as individuals.
To me it feels like spirituality is in the first instance about uncovering what is sane in us, what is beneficial to our well-being. Only after we have done that can we talk about lofty goals like the Bodhisattva ideal.
Food for thought?
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Comments
Whatever one may think of Osho, he did mix certain forms of therapy with spiritual practice. That is a kind of acknowledgement of dysfunction — if I remember correctly he once said there was a need for catharsis, before proper spiritual practice could take place, for most westerners.
Don't. [top tip]
I'm reminded of one of my old posts from way back when...in 2015 whenI was just plain old @Shoshin
Eckhart Tolle is another person who talks at length about the ego and dysfunctional patterns in the mind. If we take the Bodhidharma quote, understanding the mind means understanding its dysfunction as well.
I find it interesting to read about these dysfunctional patterns, all the ways in which ego can steer the mind to go awry, and to stir deep emotions which otherwise wouldn’t exist. For example if you were sitting at a restaurant and you heard a car in the car park had been crashed into, it might raise mild interest. But if you heard it was “your car”, you’d probably feel quite different. It’s amazing what a difference a little word like “my” might cause.
It is in large part about owning, about identification with, about making-into-yourself and the psychology of loss. For example your reputation is something you might or might not have thought about at length, but if a newspaper was going to place an article which was going to cast you as a liar and a cheat, you might suddenly be concerned.
The ego uses all kinds of tricks to make itself bigger, to try and increase its importance. It is always worried about survival, because it is a thing built of illusions and shadows, fragile when you recognise it. As long as you identify with it, make it’s thoughts your thoughts, it steers you and causes no end of trouble.
But when you start being careful about saying what you own, when you look at renouncing, at letting go of things and mental constructs, then you start deconstructing the ego. The ego’s basic move is to “make things yours” mentally, to make it feel like it matters when something that is yours gets damaged, to expand your “self” to include “things”.
It seems to @Jeroen
Strangely enough, I live in an insane world, with insane people everywhere. And
I am one of them.
For me sanity is simple:
...and now back to the 'Agony Ants' or is it aunts...
Good post @lobster
It is hard to define what sanity really is, it is easier to look at what is insanity. Somehow there is some agreement over insanity — like repeating behaviour that is harmful to yourself. I think to be sane is to be free from these compulsive behaviours.
Any type of addiction or compulsive repetition has elements of insanity. Sanity is to be found in liberation and a thorough understanding of what is beneficial. Kindness comes after that, in bringing first an understanding of what is beneficial, and then real freedom to others.
The mind is first of all a survival machine, that is its main purpose. It picks up on the needs of the body, which generates emotion in response to thought. You can release yourself from these things, survival is just of the body, in whatever form “the body” takes in the mind. The mind works hard at this, but it is ultimately a futile pursuit.
Although I have to say, the above statement may not be as “right” for a non-Buddhist. The idea of what is beneficial has a particular meaning which is caught up in the Buddha’s teachings. It carries a meaning like ‘what is wise’ or even ‘what is best for everyone’.