Y Series: Twelve Links of Dependent Origination
Craving
This is when we cannot bear to be separated from the object of our obsession. Or, specifically, when we are dying and really, really don’t want to. Isn’t that an amazing thought? That we don’t have to mind dying? I find that so contrary to our cultural sensitivities and kind of liberating all on its own. We want pleasure or happiness. Pretty people and things, nice feelings, good things to happen to us all the time. We want to exist always, as permanent things, or we desperately don’t want to exist and we want to avoid all the pain and nonsense of the world. This makes us cling to all those feelings that come with each of those desires. We get weird and very set into expectations and goals that keep us firmly in the ‘pleasant’ category and completely reject the idea of any sort of suffering. Which is ridiculous, since suffering has to offset the happy feelings. Even if just a surfeit of sugar makes us sick. The Dalai Lama encourages us to develop mindfulness and wisdom to counteract this craving by seeing all things as fleeting ideas. Echoes of transience. Let them go without attaching to them. The meditative goal in this link is equanimity, and my personal favorite (lol).
Societies seem to like permanence. Whether that is the idea of a soul, an independent self, a ‘specialness’ that somehow defines one society as above or below another, whatever. This link is specifically counter to that idea. This is the link that rejects permanence, finds no value in despair or cynicism, and suicidal thoughts. Those obsessions with the self that drive us to suicide are just as misguided as the ones that derive material pleasure and sense craving as the only meaning in life.
REFLECTION
1. The space between feeling and craving is a weak spot in the 12 links. If we can learn to experience pleasant and painful feelings without reacting to them with craving, we can cease the production of formative karma.
2. Observe how easily and habitually each type of craving arises in response to a particular feeling. (relationships!!)
3. Practice simply experiencing the feeling without craving for it to last longer or to cease immediately. Cultivate wise equanimity, not ignorant indifference, to feelings.
Clinging (upadana)
Clinging is craving on steroids. It’s the next step in the stupidity of obsession and just increases our need for stuff that is bad for us more and more. Most of this seems to be focused on the act of dying and craving a) not to die or b) craving a rebirth anywhere, even a hell-realm, just to have a body. Evidently, when we get to this stage, we can’t remember what is virtuous or non-virtuous and our poor little body just takes us over with all kinds of polluted karma. Evidently, we enter this stage usually through craving sensual pleasure. I thought this quote was interesting:
“Some people who have the correct view of karma and its results want to enjoy sensual pleasures in future lives. They asked the Buddha how to attain heavenly rebirths or how to meet their spouse again in future lives. The Buddha taught ethical conduct, generosity, and kindness, which they happily practiced to attain their goal.”
Why? I have to wonder why everyone is so obsessed with sex and romance. To want to meet your spouse and go through all that trouble again? What is the big appeal here?
Evidently another big problem for people is the clinging to views. The idea of dogmatism, attachment to ones’ own religion, and denigration of other religions is evidently a place of big Karmic stupidity. There is the clinging to a doctrine of self, which is the force behind most of our afflictions and motivations the majority of our self-centered actions and is very, very strong as we die. Finally, obsession with rules and rituals is also a big no-no. It distracts one from seeing true ethics and moral behavior and promotes a mindless, conformist behavior that can do nothing for us but breed bad karma.
REFLECTION
1. Identify moments of each of the four types of clinging in your experience.
2. How do they affect your life?
I am so selfish. And everyone around me is utterly possessed with their own selfish expectations. Everything we do, from grocery shopping to choosing a mate seems to revolve around these clinging ideas. A permanent self, an “I” that needs boundaries and has ‘needs’ and all the other psychobabble that people spew at a moment’s notice. The dating obsession with finding a partner that really ‘sees’ us. What is there to see? Why are we doing this? The rise of fundamentalism in the US socio-political framework and the profound need for everyone around me to be Christian, promote Christian values, have Christian friends, be a good Christian or, alternatively, reject religion full stop. Religious people are violent, dogmatic crazy people intent on destroying democracy, they are all the same expectations and incorrect thoughts. But you can’t have friends or do anything without feeling this cultural pressure pushing you into one of these camps. But neither work. Neither of them mean anything. It’s very confusing.
3. What ideas do you have for counteracting them?
I like the idea of meditating on equanimity and trying to not hold any defenses or intentions between myself and others. Sort of take down the armor and let go of the cultural conditioning that says, yes, you have to be afraid of rejection and death and if someone doesn’t agree with you, they are probably going to kill you or rape you or beat you to death unless you change your mind. Or, I have a duty/obligation to make sure everyone around me is on the ‘right’ path and taken care of. Inflict wisdom on people, even if they’re not ready to hear it. Even if they can’t hear it. That’s too much. Just letting go of the need to be an ‘I’ and have an opinion, much less inflict that on others without being asked and add my expectations to all the cultural bullshit around me seems unnecessary. Equanimity seems like a good meditative stabilizing practice that I’m going to work with for a while.