So you're reading this and going "got something in my eye" and who really cares, or where the hell is this going to wind
up, talking about some stupid TV show or cartoon? But, no, seriously. I got something in my eye and it won't come out. I don't
know if there's any really deep meaning in that. I almost wish that there was, because then at least something good would
come out of it other than just pissing me off and not letting me get to sleep.
When I was in kindergarten they told me not to rub my eye when I got something in it, because it would only make whatever
it was go in that much deeper into my eye. Which would, obviously, suck. Although this was like 1972 and I'm pretty sure they
didn't use the word suck. What made it worse was that when you get something in your eye it's almost impossible not to rub
it, which confused the hell out of me. And to add to the confusion, they told me that the absolute best thing to do when you
got something in your eye was to cry, which they always told me not to do otherwise.
So, to sum up, when you get something in your eye, don't do the one thing that every cell in your body tells
you that you should do; rather, do the one thing that you've been trained your whole life to never ever do at any other time.
So it's no wonder that I freak out every time I get something in my eye.
Buddha would say that this is a bad thing, at least what I know about Buddha so far in the little bit I have studied
and gone to Temple, I am under the definite impression that he would have been against freaking out in any way. Freaking
out would indicate that you had attachments and this would lead to disappointment and anger, and
that's all negative and bad.
Bad karma, or juju or something.
I like the way that Buddhists approach life and not let things get to them. It's like this, they say:
- We are all ignorant of our own cyclic existence,
- Worse still, we're not even aware of how ignorant we are, and so we project fantasized ways of existing onto others
and even ourselves,
- By doing this, we exagerrate the good qualities of other people and things, and get attached to them, thinking that they
will bring us happiness,
- Then, when things don't work out like we expect, or something interferes with our happiness, we get disappointed, or sad,
or angry, and obviously none of those are good.
In English, this is even simpler:
- Everyone (including you) is a dumbass,
- So just chill out.
Now, this is very cool and if that's all there was to Buddhism, I think everyone would want to be a Buddhist. In fact,
a lot of folks would be Buddhists and not even know it. But there is a lot more to it than this, and when you get into things
like reincarnation and stuff, I don't know, it just takes on a different tone. I don't believe in everything they teach.
It's not like I saw a Buddhist and thought he was cool and so I bought into everything he said. I'm still a Christian
and still have my own church and my own worship. But I can still find truth in Buddhism and in studying and meditating and
talking to the monks and whatever. This can all be a part of
my own religion that I am just now making up.
The thing is, the Buddhists are totally cool with this. They don't reject me when I tell them I'm a Christian, or preach
to me and tell me how wrong they think I am. They ask me a lot of questions, but I guess that's to be expected, and they do
really listen. Because I don't preach to them and tell them they're wrong. Which is all cool.
The Americans I meet who aren't Christians all want to know what a Buddhist temple is like and what do they believe and
hey what's that book I'm reading? And so I tell them about my faith and what I believe, and isn't that what a Christian is
supposed to do?
So, the Buddhists are cool with me being a Christian and coming to their temple. The regular American folks I meet, who
don't believe like I do, are cool with me just doing what I'm doing. Plus, I wind up doing what a Christian is supposed to
do anyway, right?
Why is it, then, that the only folks who seem to have a problem with me are other Christians? I've been told that I'm
a pagan, that I'm worshipping Satan, that God doesn't want me at a Buddhist temple; I've been "warned of the danger" and even
"It sounds like you're buying into all this Buddhist stuff." No one's told me I'm going to hell yet, though I'm sure some
folks have thought that.
It's really hard to be too angry about it, I suppose, especially since up until
5:10 am on July 17, I probably would have thought the same things. I would have been a little more tactful, maybe, and not blurted them out
without asking any questions first, but still. It seems like the only acceptable way for me to go to the temple is to bulldoze
in there and loudly proclaim the Gospel to them. Like they'd listen.
Now, to their credit, most of these folks are friends and they are genuinely concerned, I think. And most of them do
take time to listen to me explain why I'm doing what I'm doing. I'm not mad and thinking that these conservative Christians
are all close-minded asswipes; I still believe that these are all human failings, and no one is any better or worse than anyone
else. I just see this gut reaction and it makes me wonder.
