MEDITATIONS: THE DHAMMAPADA, CHAPTER NINETEEN
The Just
There is no real division between belief and action, just as there is no real separation between body and mind. It is as Tsunetomo Yamamoto said in the Hagakure, “One should every day think over and make an effort to implant in his mind the saying, ‘At that time is right now.’” All three are false dichotomies, not in the fallacious sense, but in the sense that each concept pair are divided by improper definitions.
We are human, and as human beings we possess an ego in the form of consciousness. This consciousness is born out of, serves, and is dependent upon the body—the biology: the frontal neocortex is an outgrowth of the motor cortex, a kind of observer and mediator of unconscious impulses toward bodily action—a rider atop an elephant.
The rider ceases to be without the needs, desires, and constraints of the very animal of which he thinks himself master. However, their relationship is really the inverse. An elephant can live as an untamed beast, but the rider, by the nature of his profession, ceases to be a rider without an animal to assist via his guidance—suggestions, really—and often, the he is merely refining the decision already made by his mount. Once the elephant has determined to step, it cannot be made to immediately stop, only influenced where it might precisely locate its foot, and fast, and with how many repetitions.
Thus is the mind a part of the body, simultaneous a part and conjoined. Thus is self-deception possible. Like the rider, we can think—really will or desire—a thing to be true about ourselves, including our beliefs, and we can be wrong—even backwards. The truth is, we believe what our elephant believes, and we know this because we act in accord with the beliefs of our animal selves. The noble rider guides these actions; the common rider lies via post-hoc rationalizations about why he made decisions in contradiction with his professed, erroneously stated beliefs.
But what about time?
Just as our conscious minds are a subunit of our unconscious bodies, and just as our beliefs are a subunit of our actions, our present being is a subunit of our being across its iterations. We were, are, and will be insofar as we exist across some time-span. There is no person extant without a heredity, whether that be genetic, environmental, and/or cultural. Likewise, there is no person whose current experience is not contributing to his future being. What we do now influences who we will be just as who we were influenced who we are today.
That is all to say that who we are is a consequence of an accord across the multiple dimensions of being human. We cannot engage in self-transformation without going all the way to the core of our being:
One is not wise
Only because one speaks a lot. . . .Gray hair does not
Make one an elder.
Someone ripe only in years
Is called “an old fool.” . . .Not through talk alone or by good looks
Does someone envious, stingy, and treacherous
Become a person of good character. . . .Not by means of a shaven head
Does someone dishonest and undisciplined
Become a renunciant. . . .One is not a mendicant
Just because one begs from others. . . .Not by silence
Does an ignorant fool become a sage. . . .Not with
Virtue or religious practice,
Great learning,
Attain samādhi,
Dwelling alone,
Or thinking, “I touch the happiness
Of renunciation unknown by oridnary people,”
Should you, monk, rest assured,
Without having destroyed the toxins. (Buddha 63-6)
Even earnest intentions and efforts, though requisite, are insufficient. The whole of ourselves must be brought onboard, and for some time, and without cessation. Self-transformation from vicious to virtuous requires the mind and body to be at peace and not war. Inner peace is gained through peace between the internal and the external—integrity. Our actions come into accord with our espoused values. This is accomplished through habituation. Likewise, it is sustained through habituation. We call this discipline when the desires for vices become naturally replaced by the desires for virtues. And we call the virtuous man just by way of his prudence, temperance, and courage.
Thus does Buddhist thought converge somewhat with Greek values to produce a common path toward justice and righteousness:
One is not just
Who judges a case hastily.
A wise person considers
Both what is and isn’t right.
Guiding others without force,
Impartially and in accord with the Dharma,
One is called a guardian of the Dharma,
Intelligent and just. (63)
Buddha Siddhartha Gautama. The Dhammapada; Teachings of the Buddha, translated by Gil Fronsdal, Shambala Publications Inc, 2008.
Yamamoto, Tsunetomo. Hagakure.
