Dialectics allow a neutral conscious “space”–between and incorporating “will” and “won’t”–that is nevertheless personal. If self identity includes conscious awareness of chosen openness, the self is recognized to be more than a historical entity. It is realized as actual and emergent.
It may be that description, including self-description, is comparative in a manner such that the individual or foreground or momentary focus must be distinguished as something like “not-background”. But since everything is simply “ground”, otherness may be the essential and necessary “conceit” of self-consciousness. In other words, we could not see an individual or foreground aspect without comparison to the background.
Description deals in otherness or comparison whereas consciousness may be simple awareness of being or “I am” or even “am”. In this sense, conscious attention (focused awareness) may seem to imply a logical fallacy, a conceit, a false assumption, or presumption. But this assumption can be made explicit and then deconstructed. This way, individuality is not false or mistaken, ego is not wrong or small; it is relative and emergent.
If basic consciousness or awareness is understood as ground consciousness, it can also be understood to be experienced by individuals as centeredness, certainty, or balance. Volitionally returning attention to ground consciousness is balance and also balanced. Not struggling against the desire to return is somewhat graceful.
Returning is important and healthy, but returning in either an intense or relaxed manner is not important. Rather, degrees of intensity shape our experience of the moment. Endurance of intention is helpful over the course of a lifetime, and intensity is memorable, but they are not necessary or fundamental to returning. The desire for intensity comes with the belief that we need to be shocked out of habitual patterning or comes out of enjoying excitement. This desire is not good or bad of itself, but it is often not informed by wisdom. If this desire remains immature, it easily leads to addiction, anxiety, or ambivalence. The flipside is the desire for rest or peace. When immature, this easily leads to depression and self-pity. The key is not in intensity or relaxation, though. The key is in balance. The desire is not fundamentally for intensity or relaxation; the desire is for something more like certainty and groundedness. One solution is to directly and competently address the external situation; another solution is to return.
When one is certain, it is easier to deal with difficulty. When one is grounded, it is easier to deal with uncertainty. (Of course, groundedness and certainty are fine in better environments as well.)
When groundedness or centeredness is filtered, interpreted by the individual, it feels something like centeredness, certainty, balance, clarity, dignity, trust, or faith. Holding an opinion of disliking the self or individual or ego or foreground is as pointless as holding an opinion of disliking the world or God or background. It’s all ground.
From this viewpoint, we can raise the question of whether holding onto dislike is a pleasant manner of operating, an enjoyable attitude. It seems more humane to stipulate that wisdom includes some form of appreciation. We may appreciate ground or background or foreground, etc., but holding to appreciation instead of holding to dislike makes more humane sense. When appreciation falters, it may be best to return to balance, to groundedness, instead of returning to dislikes.
This return is most often initiated–when it is not spontaneous or quiet–by looking within, simplifying, focusing on sensations instead of ideation, or accepting that the simplicity of the moment is enough for this present moment. This return may be felt as a return of mind or thoughts to body, as a return to self, as turning within, as turning to God, as acceptance, as putting burdens down, as relaxing one’s desires, as relaxing borders, as returning to nature, etc. It is appreciation of simplicity or appreciation of the impermanence of the moment at the same time as being an appreciation of divinity or eternity. With a simple awareness, relaxed or intense, we return to essence.
The wording of this happening strikes us as poetry and the philosophy or ideation is dialectic or contemplative or intuitive. When we think of this movement as individuals, it is appreciation. We might specify that it is appreciation of some aspect of the current situation, of some aspect of self, of some idea, or we may simply appreciate without specifying. It is possible to debate the nature of essence, but it is also possible to share in the commonality of return and the diversity of abundance.
Copyright 2007 Todd Mertz