Author: LittleKnownMystic

The brain is not simple.  It has many parts.  Reality is even trickier since commonly us human beings (at least us mere mortals) perceive reality through the instrument of our brain, as manifested by the mind.  Perhaps that is what Bob Dylan was alluding to in the song Cold Iron Bounds: “Reality has always had too many heads.”  I am writing this piece to suggest that from our western objective and scientific point of view we can make some statements about the brain, essential nature of human beings, and nature of reality that may be helpful to move us past the current mess that this world is in.  After all, we appear to be products of evolution and being an optimist, I believe that we can hopefully apply our intelligence in a positive way. The objective would be to improve the mental hygiene of society by understanding the fundamental nature of existence through the tools of Science, together with application of Eastern Concepts embedded in Buddhist philosophy and other Eastern disciplines (meditation, yoga, mindfulness, etc.)  Along these lines, there is a beautiful article by the Dalai Lama entitled Science at the Crossroads wherein he notes the compatibility of science and scientific discovery with the Buddhist contemplative tradition.  Practical applications of scientific and medical advances in neuroscience may in turn help advance societal mental health and cultivate compassion akin to Buddhist goals. In the words of the Dalai Lama:

If it turns out, as the Buddhist tradition implies, that mental practice can effect observable synaptic and neural changes in the brain, this could have far-reaching implications. The repercussions of such research will not be confined simply to expanding our knowledge of the human mind; but, perhaps more importantly, they could have great significance for our understanding of education and mental health. Similarly, if, as the Buddhist tradition claims, the deliberate cultivation of compassion can lead to a radical shift in the individual’s outlook, leading to greater empathy toward others, this could have far-reaching implications for society at large.

The concept, “The Brain Models Reality,“ stemmed from reading Michio Kaku’s book (he is a theoretical physicist) The Future of the Mind which is a book about developments in understanding the brain.  The term “mind” is loosely used referring to the mental process of the brain as viewed by the person (my take).   Kaku defines consciousness as:

“…the process of creating a model of the world using multiple feedback loops in various parameters (e.g., in temperature, space, time and in relation to others), in order to accomplish a goal (e.g., find mates, food, shelter). “

Here is Michio Kaku describing his ideas, which he calls his theory of space-time-consciousness.

He also goes on to define the term (human) self-awareness.

“Self-awareness is creating a model of the world and simulating the future in which you appear. “

So here you have it, the brain itself is a modeling tool and it models essentially all that there is in the physical world within the sensory limitations of the body. So fundamentally it is all “mind stuff” as we can never truly hug or touch anything. The fundamental nature of our brain’s projections is a simulation of reality. One definition of a model is that it is an approximation (or can be a simulation) of a system that is either too difficult or impossible to display directly.  Refinement of the term model to scientific model might help the reader understand where I am coming from.  But the magic comes when you consider that the simulation itself, the brain’s model, the signals and patterns you see feel and manipulate, is something extraordinary and special.  “We” are part of the subject-object process and, yes, when that tree falls in the middle of the forest and you are there, it is different than when you are not.  This mind stuff, consciousness if you want to call it that, is unique and all that we really know.  Yet, we hardly seem to know it at all.  Perhaps the great Zen Master Huangbo (also known as Huang Po) referring to the Mind was trying to convey something similar:

Stepping around, for now, recent theories regarding consciousness and quantum physics (there are some brilliant minds out there!), I will just say that there are forces and energies much greater than us, keeping in mind that Buddhists believe there is no separate self. Conventionally speaking we can call these energies and forces the “external world.” It is the world where we might encounter our true love, or the barrel of a gun.   But if there is no separate self, then perhaps it is not so far fetched to infer no true separation between the “inner” and “outer” world at some level, offering us the opportunity to reach what the Buddha called the other shore.

The term letting go, or detachment is important concept for anyone attempting a spiritual journey.  We don’t appear to live in a “let go” world; it seems more like a “hold on” world.   Let me add another word, “retirement.”  Leaving my job at the end of 2016 and “retiring” has provided an opportunity over the last 9 months to observe a milieu of emotions and thoughts related to this thing called retirement.  The Dictionary notes that retiring involves withdrawing. I withdrew from my position/occupation and concluded my career.  But retire can also mean to withdraw, especially for privacy: “She retired to her room.”  So, when you retire, you just don’t disappear, in effect you move to a “different place.”  To complicate or perhaps “amplify” my initial retirement experience, my wife and I decided that a two story home was not the perfect future home, so the first 6 month were spent fixing, selling packing and eventually (literally) moving to a new home.  The process continues as we build a place (house to home) in our new location.  So why is this relevant in the context of the Mystic?

These last nine moths have been a shock.  Most of us establish our sense of self, or to expand, a particular society establishes a collective sense of self (we could call it World View ) in relation to our current situation, knowledge-base, occupation/job, family, hobbies, religion, house, possessions, state of health and a plethora of other wrappers; including physical image/body, ethnic origin, sexual orientation, (and moving to the collective — sports, socioeconomic status, country, etc).  These are all attachments. This world view is as seen from the person to the outside, but also on the flip side defines the person or “persona.”  We present an image to others, in part feeding back an image that others imprint on us.  Seems pretty normal and human, right? It’s kind of like having a center and homeostasis.  Through memory we establish a self-schema. We weave and bob in this personal and societal web, or network of attributes, making adjustment through time, since nothing ever stays the same, but collectively for ourselves and our greater society it “stays the same,” sufficiently!  That is the magical illusion we accept.   

My friend, a psychologist, told me that some of the greatest stressors of life are retiring and moving. Wow!  Having some rudimentary skill using Mindfulness I was able to observe some of the attachments in my life.  Mindfulness employed here was to simply watch my reaction and behavior from a quiet, non-judgmental place.  Rip away the routine of work, rip away a place lived in for 16 years. Then build a modified identity… The most important observation for me was that while the physical situation changes the changes themselves manifest as emotions.  In this case the emotions were anxiety, sadness, fear, and on the positive side excitement, joy, and hope.

Letting go conjures some sort of image of falling off the edge of the world, loosing ones identity, etc.  It is very antithetical to what we consider normal life.  I think letting go starts with simply observing our attachments using mindfulness techniques and realizing that there is the Observer that does not have a job, does not get anxious, and seems to extend beyond what we think of as ourselves.  Letting go, is likely more a state of mind than perhaps stereo typically thinking of those who let go as having “given up.” Stuff will keep happening around us, but letting go or conversely not being so attached just might bring Happiness!

What is a mystic, anyway?  And why have I titled the website “Little Known Mystic?” “Mystic,”  besides being a river in eastern Massachusetts flowing southeast into Boston Harbor, is defined by Merriam-Webster for English learners as “a person who tries to gain religious or spiritual knowledge through prayer and deep thought : someone who practices mysticism.”  Perhaps taking a zig where there should have been a zag, Merriam-Webster lists some synonyms as magic, magical, numinous, occult, weird. And I say maybe that this is a detour—to lump mystic and mystical with the occult or religious or, well downright weird?  Moving back up-hill the roots of mystic are intertwined with the word mystery.  So here we have descriptions such as “secret,” “unexplained,” unknown;” including the phrase “not understandable by the application of human reason alone.”   Ok, so we just don’t know.  From a logical scientific exercise we can go circularly (exchanging word for word — example being the definition or meaning of “mystery”).  Life, existence, being is a mystery.  A very cool non-secular definition of mystic was provided by Evelyn Underhill (in 1915!).  “Mysticism is the art of union with Reality. The mystic is a person who has attained that union in greater or less degree; or one who aims at and believes in such attainment.” See Practical Mysticism.  An example of a contemporary writing in blog format, examining the traits of a mystic is available here: Am I a Mystic. One thing perhaps left out, according to my even lesser known mystical friend, is willingness or desire to let go or try and let go of your ego, and your attachments.

The term “Mysticism” seems to have been primarily been used by writers of non-Asian countries, but the fundamental essence applies both in the East and West and we could say that the Buddha was a mystic and certainly many of the yogis/holy men of India.  Finally, I am blown away at finding this super discussion of Mysticism on the Wiki. Please read on.

So this little discussion has exposed a lovely can of worms with them all wiggling around asking more questions!  The snake biting its tale.  But as the intro blog stated, how can some eastern thought such as the Buddhist tradition be translated to the west?  The western culture seems so rational, but even William Shakespeare in As You Like it has his character narrate: “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven ages.”  Going further according to Hindu and Yogic traditions life is merely lila or Devine play.  If this kind of thought makes you uncomfortable –that life is simply illusion or perhaps pre-destined, it does the same for me.  Sometimes a tree is just a tree. And for sure, if it is falling and you are in the way, the consequences will be significant. We will do some more examination. Stay mindful!

Who are we anyway?  When I was a small child, perhaps seven or eight, I remember sitting thinking about the purpose of life, while my friends played.  Over fifty years later the same thoughts still cross my mind.  Meaning in the traditional sense is only meaningful to subject, or the “I.”  Could meaning include both subject and object and be self-contained in the pair (which is really one)?  So, the “I” can never know and the purpose of life will forever elude the “I?”  And then meaning becomes Meaning.  This blog is written to explore ways that we can move on and evolve our consciousness and consider how this relates to society and the planet.  It’s also a personal journey for me and the reader as undoubtedly the road we take will be crooked, or maybe straight.  A lifetime of meditation and yoga has been useful and Life itself has provided insights, insights that should be shared.  This mystic does not claim to be enlightened, just another passenger on space ship Earth (or a “Bozo on the Bus,” if you will!).   The blog is not about religion, but cannot help to touch on religion.  From my somewhat limited readings it seems that there have been mystics of all faiths with the Buddha, in his time, encouraging people to retain their religious practices as they saw fit. See What Buddhists Believe. Another example — check out the Trappist monk, Thomas Merton’s writings from perspective of the Christian faith and with great observations regarding other traditions in Mystics and Zen Masters.  Thich Nhat Hanh is a Vietnamese Buddhist monk, truly one of my favorites– a wonderful human being and prolific author. He notes that for Zen Buddhism to “work” in the West, it must be adapted to western culture.  Our culture is very diverse and rapidly changing, shaped by science, technology, and explosion of social media. Adaptation could and will take different forms and certainly Zen perspectives are active in the West.   Can science and religion co-exist or more importantly can society use science to assist in areas other than material well-being?  (OK, mental and material are interchangeable.) The following is not a new discovery, but nevertheless an important concept.  The so-called physical world may be “over-rated!” Have you ever stopped to consider that we can never truly “hug” anything and that “our” World is all strictly mind stuff (and much more)?  Our brains can be likened to “bio-computers” as author and truth seeker John Lilly explains in The Center of the Cyclone.  And going further, the brain can be viewed a modeling tool for reality.  Discussion of the brain as a modeling tool, in future blogs and what the heck is a mystic anyway?  “Normal” is a lot weirder than in our wildest imagination!  With Love, positive vibes, and don’t confuse the finger pointing at the moon with the Moon itself!

While there may be many troubling events in our world and in our lives, Life and this World forever intrigue me.  I Love this World!  The purpose of this blog will be to mutually (you the reader and myself) to explore the fundamental nature of existence and reality.  About myself: mystic (why? what is the purpose of life?), science background, meditation, music interests, just retired (but still feel like a little kid), positive and hopeful.  I am not enlightened, so if you are please show me the way.  The fundamental premise in any blog that has spiritual, mystical, new-age or religious content is that words can only point the way to Reality.  My leanings are toward Buddhism and Eastern Philosophies, but science behooves us to remain objective. Is this possible?  In his day the Buddha encouraged locals to keep practicing their religion.  Those of major faiths, I don’t mean to infringe on your beliefs or faith.  Faith is a form of positive thinking.   Just asking, do you think you are the wave or the ocean, or perhaps both?