Getting Out of the City ~ The Hidden Dangers of Duality and Spiritual Materialis
Meninggalkan Kota ~ Bahaya Terselubung dari Dualitas dan Materialistis Spiritual
Sharing sessions at the 10 Day Silent Illumination Retreat held at the Dharma Drum Retreat Center, Pine Bush, New York, Oct 10, 2004
Berbagi pengalaman 10 hari retret di Dharma Drum Retreat Center, Pine Bush, Newyork, 10 Oktober 2004
Many Buddhists these days are leaving the city. Urban life is hectic, frantic and scattered. So it makes sense that practitioners who want to slow down to live at a pace that is sane are deciding to move out into the countryside. In fact, anybody who wants to slow down their life enough to enjoy it has my full support. But in all things, intention matters. And acts born of fear are to be discouraged.
Banyak buddhist yg meninggalkan kota sekarang. Kehidupan kota terlalu ramai, gelisah, dan pecah. Jadi baik kalau pemeditasi pindah ke daerah pedesaan. Saya sih mendukung siapapun yg ingin menikmati hidupnya yg lebih sederhana. Tapi apa dulu niatnya? Kalau tindakannya lahir dari rasa takut, maka saya tidak mendukung.
It is foolish to leave the city because one is afraid of it. Running away from our problems is an act of ignorance.
Bodoh kalau lari dari kota karena takut. Lari dari masalah tu sebuah kebodohan bathin.
There are many practitioners who are falling for this trap. They are deeply sincere in their commitment to the Dharma. I acknowledged and applaud that sincerity. The trap is very subtle. It is no surprise that many fall for it.
Banyak pemeditasi yg jatuh ke jebakan ini. Mereka udah sangattt tulus junjungin Dhamma. Saya akuin ketulusannya. Tapi Jebakan ini sangat halus, jadi ga heranlah kalau banyak yg kena.
There are two concepts that work in combination to create the pitfall: spiritual materialism and thinking that nirvana is separate from samsara.
Ada 2 konsep yg bekerja menciptakan jebakan betmen ini: materialistis spiritual(1) dan berpikir nirvana terpisah dari samsara(2)
Spiritual materialism
The spiritual materialist is lurking within all practitioners to some degree. It is that part of us that wants to make spiritual practice a credential; something to be proud of; something to rely on for happiness. The average materialist relies on things like status, wealth, attainment, fame and the like. In each case, the materialist seeks out objects that he thinks will bring him happiness. He thinks, "I am working hard now, and I am not happy. But that does not matter because soon I will have a promotion (or new car, or beautiful partner … whatever really) and then I will be happy. After that I will be loved, and I will never have to be afraid or feel incomplete ever again." This is the way that most people think. It is natural. But it is this kind of thinking that makes life go round in endless cycles of suffering. This problem is clear to all of those who are sincerely committed to spiritual practice. "How can happiness come from getting a promotion?" says the practitioner. "No. Happiness must come from within," he concludes. So far so good. But what happens when the practitioner says, "I must become proficient in practice, and only then can I be happy. Only then will I have the capacity to help others"? Essentially, he or she is doing the same thing as the materialist, except the materialist waits for worldly promotion while the spiritual materialist waits for spiritual promotion. "Once I have eradicated all scattered thoughts … Once I can consistently enter samadhi … Once I have seen the Nature … only then …."
Materialistis Spiritual
Penyakit materialistis spiritual terjadi pada setiap pemeditasi sampai taraf tertentu. Ini yg membuat latihan spiritual penting bagi kita; membanggakan; menghasilkan kebahagiaan. Materialis biasa bergantung pada status, kekayaan, pencapaian, pamor, dst... Materialistis mencari-cari objek yg bikin mereka hepi. Dia pikir, "Ga apalah gw skr kerja keras n ga hepi. Yg penting nanti dapet promosi (atau dapat mobil baru, atau pasangan sexy ... dll), saya jadi hepi. Setelah itu gw akan dicintai, tidak ada takut lagi atau merasa kurang." Inilah cara hampir semua orang berpikir. Ini alami. Namun berpikir kek gini bikin hidup terus berputar dalam lingkaran penderitaan tak terbatas. Masalah ini jelas sekali bagi setiap orang yg berteguh pada latihannya. "Gimana hepi bisa datang dari promosi?" kata pemeditasi. "Bukan, hepi datang bersamaan" dia pikir. Okelah. Tapi apa yg terjadi kalau pemeditasi mikir, "Gw harus ahli dalam meditasi, jika demikian baru gw hepi. Hanya begitu baru gw mampu nolong orang"? Intinya sih, yg dia lakukan sama aja dg materialistis, kecuali materialistis bergantung pada obek duniawi, sedangkan dia pada objek spiritual. "Ketika gw udah menghapus pikiran yg kemana2... Ketika gw udah bisa gampang masuk samadi.. Ketika gw dah lihat hakekat sebenarnya ... hanya ketika itulah... (gw hepi)..."
Practice in the world of samsara: nirvana is rooted in samsara
There are some who are looking for a bit of bliss to escape the world. It is no good to engage in such "state-chasing". It is addiction of a different kind. But what of those who are not just looking for the bliss of samadhi? What if they genuinely want to help others but feel that they are not strong enough to do so? Do I still criticize those people? Yes, I do. The problem is subtle. I have noticed that many of those who are leaving the cities are high-achievers. They are very capable, diligent and sincere people. And there is nothing wrong with being a high-achiever; in fact, it can be a very good thing. But all good things go wrong when not understood properly. One way that the high-achiever mindset can go wrong in the context of practice is when one seeks out the "perfect" conditions for practice. I know a practitioner who made a fervent vow to attain Buddhahood. First he tried meditating in the city. But it was too noisy. How can anyone not be distracted by the crazy people, the barking dogs, the honking cars? So then he moved to the countryside. He lived as a hermit by a stream. "What a peaceful place," he thought, "Finally, I can settle down into my practice." But once he sat and closed his eyes, he noticed that the stream was full of frogs and insects and birds. None of them would shut up! So then he removed himself deep into a cave in the mountains. It was so dark he could not even see his own hands. What a perfect place for practice. But there was a problem – the whispers of the wind. Unwilling to give up hope, he stuffed up his ears with earplugs. At this point he was disturbed by nothing … except the beating of his own heart. In the end he told me that practice is impossible in this world. This practitioner spent so much of his time looking for "perfect" conditions for practice that he had none left for practice itself. No wonder he could not stand the beating of his own heart.
Berlatihlah di samsara: nirvana berakar di samsara
Ada beberapa yg mencari bis... eh bliss (kebahagiaan) untuk keluar dari dunia. Tidaklah baik mengejar2 kondisi begini. Ada tambahan lain lagi. Bagaimana kalau mereka bukan cuma cari bliss di samadhi? Gimana kalau mereka sebenarnya mo bantu orang lain tapi ga cukup kuat? Apa kamu masih kritik orang ini? YA, SAYA KRITIK. Masalahnya sangat halus. Saya melihat orang yg meninggalkan kota adalah orang yg sudah mahir. Mereka orang yg mampu, pintar dan tulus. Tidak ada salahnya menjadi mahir; Kenyataannya adalah itu merupakan hal yg sangaaat baik. Tapi hal baik bisa jadi buruk kalau salah pengertian. Salah satunya jika mereka mencari kondisi "sempurna" utk berlatih. Saya tau mereka bersemangat utk mencapai Kebuddhaan sesuai sumpah mereka. Pertama ia berlatih di kota. Terlalu ribut. Siapa yg tidak terganggu dg orang2 gila, gongongan anjing, klatson mobil? Pindah ke pedesaan. Hidup sbg pertapa di pinggir sungai. "Tempat yg sangat damai", pikirnya. "Sekarang gw bisa mantap latihan." Tapi baru duduk dan tutup mata, ia denger suara kodok, serangga & burung. Mereka ga mo diam! Jadi dia pindah ke gua. Gelap banget sampai2 dia ga bisa liat tangannya sendiri. Tempat yg sempurna. Tapi ada 1 masalah --- ada deru angin. Udahlah, sumbat telinga ini. Wah udah ga ada yg ganggu... kecuali... detak jantungnya sendiri... Akhirnya dia berkata tidak mungkin berlatih di dunia ini. Pemeditasi ini menghabiskan waktu utk mencari kondisi "sempurna" utk berlatih tapi ga ada. Tidak heran dia tidak dapat mengatasi detak jantungnya sendiri.
to be continue
ke wc dolo yah