Author: hyattcarter

Philosopher Ken Wilber poses a question that I’ve often wondered about: what does Enlightenment—total Enlightenment with a capital “E”—what does this mean in an evolving universe where creative advances accumulate in an ever-increasing totality? Wilber’s answer: “Enlightenment is the realization of oneness with all states and all structures [or stages] that are in existence at… Continue reading The Sliding Scale of Enlightenment

“like that waterfall on the upper Suli Gadthat turns to mist before touching the earthand rises once again into the sky.” — Peter Matthiesssen,The Snow Leopard The word levity derives from a root “lev-” that is also found in words such as levitation, and in virtually all the world’s religions there are stories not only… Continue reading Let There Be . . . Levity

A Good Prayer Ends in Laughter Ha-Ha-men! The sacred syllable AUM is said to be made up of four elements: aaah—uuuh—mmmm: representing birth, life, death, and these three enclosed by the fourth element: the creative silence out of and back into which it unceasingly comes and goes. It is of more than a little interest… Continue reading A Good Prayer Ends in Laughter

A Ba-ba-babble-ing by Bā-bē Step outside, far and wide　Open road, your abodeRise above, like a dove　Sunward spring, tip a wingFlip flap fly, bright blue sky　Laugh out loud, on a cloudHave some fun, be the sun　Interface outer spaceMirth and mime, beyond time　Soar up out of sight, at the speed of lightBe at home and play, in… Continue reading Wriggledy Wryddles Wriggorously Wrymed

When the great mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss was a young lad in elementary school, the teacher posed a problem for the class: find the sum of the first 100 numbers. Gauss almost immediately came up with the answer: 5,050. He was able to do this not by rapid addition of the numbers 1-100, but by… Continue reading An Intellectual Smile

The Japanese word satori, “enlightenment,” can actually be read, according to context, as a translation of either of three Chinese characters, which have these nuances of meaning: 　kaku ( 覺) “awakening”　go ( 悟) “realization”　sho ( 証) “verification” The Japanese word shu (修), meaning “practice,” when combined with sho (証) is an abbreviation of the fourfold… Continue reading The Sho-Me State

　 　A mountain monk, desiring moonlight in the well,　Ladled it out with water into a vessel,　But, upon returning to the temple,　He emptied the vessel and the moon too was emptied. Chinese Text: 　山僧貪月色，　井汲一瓶中。　到寺方應覺，　瓶傾月亦空。 Enjoy some thematic music while contemplating this verse. Claude DeBussyClaire de Lune To extend the moon thematics . . . Can Beethoven… Continue reading Moonlight in Water

The Zen monk Shuiliao had a meeting with Master Mazu. He asked the Master, “What is the meaning of Bodhidharma’s coming from the West?” Mazu immediately gave him a kick in the chest and knocked him down. Shuiliao was suddenly enlightened. He jumped to his feet and laughed out loud with big uproarious laughter. Later,… Continue reading Laughing Out Loud at Enlightenment

For those of you who like riddles, here is a riddle that is posed three times, with variations, in James Joyce’s book Finnegans Wake: Mark the Wans, why do I am alook alike a poss of porterpease? Mark the Twy, why do I am alook alike two poss of porterpease? Mark the Tris, why do… Continue reading Finnegans Wake Riddle