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A choice is made. Take the blue pill and remain in the world of illusions, illusions that bring dukkha, dissatisfaction. But these illusions are so familiar to us; they are known and, over a lifetime, have become comfortable because they are predictable. Leaving the familiar, even dukkha, for the unknown, is change. Change, for many, equates with risk; something to be avoided. Most of us simply don’t like change, of any kind. Yet… the only constant according to Buddhism is change.
Or, take the red pill, the one that opens us to dropping illusions and taking the risk of seeing reality for what it is. The risk of change is that it will transform who I am, what I believe, how I think, act and feel. The familiar, the causes of dukkha, will still be there. They do not go away. It is the suffering that will change because our response to dukkha will change. Life will continue to be that “bumpy road” but our relationship to the bumps will change.
Choosing which pill to take was Neo’s dilemma in the 1999 science fiction cult movie The Matrix. It was one or the other. This is where the reality of Buddhism diverges from fiction.
We come to Buddhism because we are tired of staying on the path of dukkha, tired of not understanding why things happen, tired of being fearful of old age and death, tired of well, whatever it is that brings us our own dukkha. We seek a path that relieves us of this heavy burden, the burden loaded with the illusions we are led to believe are real.
Buddhism is not about an irrevocable decision for the red or the blue. The Buddha himself tells us not to believe what he says, not to believe what powerful people say, not to believe what highly regarded teachers say. In Buddhism we each have the responsibility to put the teachings to the test. If they do not work, walk away, find another path. If they work, then continue on the path with your sangha.
The foundation supporting any change we want in our lives is to make that initial decision as if our very life depended on it. With that decision we become willing to risk giving up the familiar. Some of us find it difficult to change the location of a houseplant from one sunny room to another sunny room – too risky. Some of us find it difficult to risk going to a movie alone – too risky. Some of us can’t even imagine going to a white table cloth restaurant for dinner alone – way too risky.
Perceiving change as risk keeps us in a mental and physical lockdown of our own making. It paralyzes us and prevents us from action. Why is that? That is the question we each must face and answer if we want peace in our life. What will living with dukkha,
accomplish? Will it bring back loved ones who have passed away? Will it bring back joys known as a youth? Rationally we know the answer. Stare that fact in its face and like all smoke and mirror illusions, it drifts away.
Buddhism is about liberation, liberation from shackles we forage and lock ourselves into. But we also have the key to unlock our shackles. Perhaps that is why the Sangha is the 3rd Jewel of Buddhism. We have our teacher, the Buddha. We have the teachings, the Dharma. We have the Sangha, our community.
We have a choice, one that always comes with options at any point along the way. As the earth renews itself every spring time with new growth, this may be the time to renew ourselves by making a choice about the power we give dukkha in our life.
Namo Amida Butsu
Namo Amida Butsu
Namo Amida Butsu
Rev. Anita
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