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Annamalai Swami (via ashramof1)
Beautiful and to the point |
Ever since our child hood we’ve been educted to ‘know’ things, in term of math, culture, music and such. The difference in acomplishments or achievements lies in ‘the knowing’, as it seems so cleary to us. It becomes especially true with the expansion of the ‘internet era’, where a few days out of knowing is going to be marcted as outdated or dull. However at the same time it has been tedious and tiring for us since day 1 that ‘knowing’ does not promise result. Therefore all methods of knowing behind the knowing, or methodology, phisolophy have been heated top sale books. The ultimate goal is ‘more knowing’ or ‘better knowing’.
With every respect of the useful function of ‘knowledge’ or ‘knowing’, this article attemps to summize what I called ‘the beautiful not-knowing zone’ which opens a whole new zone of mindset to everyone of us. Those who are familiar with Zen or Buddism should know this is the came concept in the teaching of ‘NONE (空，无为)’. However I will depict in my own language and own experience.
My understanding will deepen along my personal experience process so it will be with many chapters with lots of updates. Hopefully I can continue with it.
So far in a word my understanding is ‘with not-knowing you are with everything’.
Firstly it is useful to examine the ‘knowing’ mindset. ‘I know!’ ‘I know!’ Every ‘I know’ comes with a ego behind which is the deeply underlying insecure sense of ‘better myself’. In essence or nature, it is rooted in human being’s deepest motive — the fear of insecurity and isolation.
Ever since day one we’ve trained to believe that ‘knowing’ is one most powerful solution to this fear and isolation, in the form of accomplishments or achievements.
Let’s just wonder a bit, what if we don’t have this fear of insecurity and isolation?
Through years of spiritual practice, I’ve come to believe that Enlightenment or Awakening is the gaining of consciousness that ‘I am with everything, I am everything’ which naturally dissolves the fear of insecurity and isolation.
That’s a bit off-track, so let’s come to that point later. Now, without having to ‘fight’ this fear or fight this ‘knowing’, we can in our personal experience have a taste of the ‘not-knowing zone’.
Just ask yourself, what if I don’t need to say ‘I know’, what if I just say ‘I don’t know’? Yes, I don’t know this, I don’t know that. Feel the feeling coming up in the heart, the slight discomfort? Slight sense of fear?
Then have a further try of sensing yourself in the zone of ‘not knowing’, which is ‘I just feel I know nothing’. Stay with it, watch it quietly and gently, without making any judgment of any expectation. The emptiness arises and the MIND subsidizes, since in the ‘not-knowing’ zone there is no place for the otherwise busy mind.
In my personal experience, I sensed a quiet space, so still and empty, yet harboring unforeseen but beautiful possibilities eveywhere, so full that it basically filled every inch of the space. Someone once said, ‘with nothing, you have everything’. That’s quite a nice way to put it.
In my daily work and life, there are times when there is just this quiet zone arising even during busy meetings. The sense or feeling is comfortable and beautiful in a way I cannot depict. Yes I believe this is also what people call the sense of NOW.
As I shared above words to my friend Russel, he summarized the concept as one beneficial function - to make peace with ‘not knowing’, not feeling ashamed when you don’t know things, so that you can better prepare yourself to really learn. That is a beneficial side-effect, as I would put it; however the summary is just hitting the surface and far away from what I wanted to say. As every Zen concept or feeling, the ‘not knowing’ is hard to depict as it is hard to understand for people who have just read it or heard it but not experienced it.
Zen is such a rich territory to visit and digest with so much fun in real experiencing. This article is more like a record of personal thinkings.
Niroberg
2013 Feb 10/14
