Vivre sans liens?

“Talking about suffering… Again!” a practitioner told me… “And it’s almost Christmas!” Yes, because during this time, loneliness can be felt very strongly, whether you’re alone or surrounded by others. There’s a feeling of disconnection, of being cut off from others, and this suffering reinforces the disconnection, which in turn reinforces the suffering, and so on. But I don’t want to stop there, of course; the question is how to put an end to it, so I’m going to read the end of the text right away, R. Anderson Roshi’s conclusion: “When we remember again and again the joy that comes from caring for others, from gratitude, when we remember the happiness of a life based on the precepts transmitted by the Buddhas, our lives are illuminated.” “This is our path, from darkness to light… To speak of this feeling of being cut off from others, I chose the old Japanese term “Muen.” MU is a negation, a very famous one for those who have read Zen stories. It’s Joshu’s MU when asked if the cat has Buddha-nature and he exclaims “MU!” This MU is a negation ready to transform, a MUun that can, eventually, turn into “yes.” MUEN is a term that appeared around the 13th century, the Kamakura period, a fascinating era! More or less, until then, everyone knew their place, good or bad, depending on their actions in past lives. Everyone knew how they were connected to others. And this Kamakura period completely transformed society, shattering established positions and certainties. "EN" encompasses everything related to connection, relationships, and bonds, ultimately taking on the meaning of destiny. Thus, a new kind of person emerged: the MUEN, meaning they had lost their connection to the rest of society—and this was seen as a terrible thing! All these people (masterless samurai, landless peasants, orphans) were considered disconnected from the world of the living. They were seen as becoming like the dead, potentially returning as ghosts because they were no longer connected. This interested me because it accurately reflects our current society. MUEN means no longer having a genuine relationship with others, those around us, no longer having a place in the world. Currently, we are MUEN, and we are encouraged to be so. This contains both a form of freedom—we are no longer in a predetermined place in a static society—but also all the anxiety that comes with no longer feeling connected, no longer finding our place in this world. At a time when, in the West, the concept of ego and individual freedom is progressing, so too is this anxiety. And this Christmas season reveals this suffering and tends to amplify it. (…) We are not meant to remain “Muen” because this pain, all pain, we can share, and it is from this recognized and shared pain that we can reach out to others; this is the birthplace of true compassion: not “leaning towards” as if I were external, but the recognition of what we share as human beings—suffering, but also, of course, joy, and the everyday realities of life. I would like to explain how I arrived at this point. We all experience suffering in different ways, but for me, the experience of extreme physical and mental pain during zazen was a moment when I felt I reached the very root of suffering, a place where I connect with all suffering, and where, from this root of suffering, I can share in the suffering of all beings. It is the moment when this suffering pulls me out of Muen and connects me to all beings. For me, it is truly a lived experience that radically changes the relationship we have to our lives and the dramatic events that occur within them. I am not alone; other people suffer, have suffered, and will suffer as well, and this somehow reintegrates me into the fabric of human life with dukkha (suffering, unease) that we all share—and thus I no longer shut myself away in the darkness of my own suffering. If I can get to the root of suffering, then I can approach and perhaps share other forms of suffering. MUEN, when I am cut off from myself and others, there is darkness. It is "ignorance," the 3rd Poison, when I no longer see the living relationship that connects me to everyone else. Reconnected, I return to the light of my true nature. (...) And "we remember the happiness of a life based on the precepts transmitted by the Buddhas, our life is illuminated." Full text: https://www.nousasseoirensemble.org/blog