Paradox and Confusion |
Friday Jun 27 2008
Someone was telling me recently that some of Buddhist temples in Japan are guarded by two fierce-looking demon-like figures. These guardians of ‘Truth’ are known as ‘Paradox’ and ‘Confusion’. These days, paradox and confusion seem to be states I alternate between in my quest to discover who I am and what future I want to create. If I’m not confused, then I’m trying to embrace something that defies intuition. My ‘truth’ seems elusive.
I’ve been contemplating different possible futures for myself, visualizing myself in different situations, doing different things, and being with different people. Casting aside all of my limiting beliefs and patterns, I’m coming up with a wild assortment of possibilities to choose from. And I’m totally confused. It’s almost as disheartening as trying on different bathing suits at the store (another instance where I get confused). Except that in my imaginings of the future, I’m virtually experiencing everything—both the ‘good’ of my intentions manifesting and the ‘bad’ of being distracted by temptation. An encounter with paradox.
I can resist anything except temptation.
—Oscar Wilde
How
can I find my ‘truth’, my ‘authentic self’ inside these apparently
contradictory visions? Moments of clarity are like a tourist’s fleeting
glimpses of what exists behind the golden doors of the sacred temple.
Rigorously looking at each possibility seems the only way to find
clarity. As Polonius so aptly stated in Hamlet: “Though this be
madness, yet there be method in’t”. Another paradox.
And so it
goes. We must all—individually and collectively—look at possible
futures and choose what we want. Making this inquiry into a
conversational art is at the heart of Eldering.
I’m determined
to succeed both for myself and for humanity. So I’m focusing on doing
everything possible to keep myself healthily engaged in a state of
creativity and excitement without getting overwhelmed by the confusion
or the paradoxes. The future, whatever it is, will definitely include
different experiences…including ones we can’t even imagine.
I can hardly wait.
Tagged with: confusion eldering future paradox possibilities
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