Nasty Little Man

Art of the Day

This is an artist's rendition of Buddha Shakyamuni tangling with the dark forces of Mara. I'm a layperson, not clergy, so I might have some of the details wrong here, but it's my understanding that this occurred in the seven days of meditation that led up to Shakyamuni's enlightenment.

In this painting, Mara is personified (or creature-ified). He is an outside force, and certainly all of us at times encounter outside forces of hostility. When we are attacked with hostility from others, it is challenging not to respond in kind.

This challenge between acting with a clear mind or a delusional mind is illustrated in the saying of the lion's gaze. When you wave a stick in front of a dog, the dog will jump around and become excitable. This is the deluded mind. But when you wave a stick in front of a lion, the lion simply gazes at you. He is unmoved by your attempt to manipulate his actions. This is the clear mind.

Not that I've ever tried waving a stick in front of a lion.

Although Mara is an outside force in the painting, Mara is actually within us, and Shakyamuni was wrestling with his own inner darkness. This is the shadow self, and we all have to deal with it. In the painting, stillness overtakes Shakyamuni while his shadow self, Mara, is swirling all around him.

This is an everyday challenge for all of us, to remain still while in the shadows.

posted by Kinder Gentler Little Man @ 1:54 PM