It is indeed inconceivable to the extent what the mind can achieve – a molten pot of amazing and ridiculous ideas and views. It is of no wonders without wisdom, seeing an end to it is rather impossible. As I sat one day in meditation, observing how it jives with itself with whatever ideas that came out in the present moment, it became a little more obvious to me how powerful what the force of the mind can do. At that moment the mind likens to me a metaphor of a huge unimaginable unit of data bank, accepting and rejecting whatever idea that meets its criteria, depending on whatever belief system it had previously stored in it.
With such immense combinations and permutations of views accumulated life after life, it is of little wonder how we can’t get out from our fixated ideas that easily, save with wisdom. I was sharing a book A Thousand Names for Joy by Byron Katie with a fellow practitioner which I felt would have been helpful to him in his practice as it had been for me in tremendously disentangling a certain way I look at my ideas. The feedback I got a few days later was not encouraging, which was surprisingly to me as just a little over a year ago, another practitioner expressed profusely with thanks how amazing this particular book was to him and how it has helped him open up to his practice in new ways he has never seen before. It is indeed interesting to observe the difference between perceptions working.
A book, or for that matter, any teachings, can be seen from the perspective of a thousand ways through the lenses of our convoluted ideas and views, though in simplicity, what is required is merely a simple way that needs no complexity and difficulty to perceive. I remember reading another book by Jed McKenna who mentioned about how simple the Truth is and yet it is indeed boggling how the mind can’t get around seeing it at all until it gets it. Obviously the web of delusion can be so dense, that it is in-penetratable until a wise teaching which resonates with the mind comes along in undoing it. Such is the ignorance of the mind.
No one knows and no one can really tell, which or what teachings can be a corrective and appropriate tool for him or her in undoing the mind considering that in such dense delusion, a gradual awakening is necessary. As such, no one tool can be said useful all the way, depending on which level the person is in. At a certain given time, devotional practices can be necessary; at another time, effort; and yet at some given time, wisdom. Hence to judge one’s practice to another can be sheer ignorance as we can never tell where the person is, not to mention ours.
Hence to be mindful of ourselves, on how the mind works, without making a quick conclusion about it, helps us to develop a little more compassion towards our kindred spirits who have come together to practise towards the path of total emancipation.