Smart Bliss: Smart Water, Sword Fighting, and Death Drives

So lately I've been learning about Chan Buddhism and Taoism, and I was all along for the ride with this "rejuvenate the mind by keeping the body strong" (actually, that's more of a confucianist belief, but, let's not go all lawyer on me). There's a very "go with the flow" attitude towards these religions--it's not exactly passive, but if a Chan Buddhist were to get a D on a paper, they would probably say, "oh, I must study harder next time," rather than "WHY DO YOU HATE ME PROFESSOR, WHY?"
So that's all fine and good. I'm a fan of letting life roll of your back so we can just enjoy the gifts this world has to offer--especially clearance sales at Kohl's, I mean, isn't that a miracle? But what stumps me is when the masters of Buddhism and Taoism start bashing analytical thinking. They're more "hey, let's take a blind leap of faith and everything will be dandy."

There's kind of an issue with that. I'm far from a scholar on Eastern religions, but I have read the Tannisho in between episodes of Girls. And while I acknowledge that the text is very deep and powerful and has some badass names in there, it's because of rhetoric that this is the case. The Tannisho writers are persuading you into this sect, this belief, but you cannot use rhetoric in response. It would be similar to going into a dual with a stick, while your opposition has some super epic sword. Unless that stick were a wand in disguise, you're kinda dead.

And the winner is....

(In case you were wondering, I do, in fact, [kinda] know how to sword fight. Thank you, RenFaire for that one).










We could all use some acceptance in our lives. I mean, it gets to a point where over-analyzing every little thing just makes us miserable. Let's say you're shopping with some friends because you have a little extra moolah to spare (how do you do it?? How, you secret mother-fridging alien?). You put on a super adorable dress that will draw just enough attention from the male population, but won't make your grandmother fall on her death bed right on the spot. Your friends ooh and ahh in excitement and say "that makes you look so pretty!"

To which the normal population would reply "thanks!" but to the analytical sort, the response would be something like "What, am I not naturally pretty? What are you saying, that I shouldn't go out in the world 'cause I'm too fat and ugly? I just shouldn't buy anything! I should become a hermit who clothes herself in a paper bag and eats cat food!"

And then you become crazy and die alone, blah blah, yadda yadda.

I certainly get the damage of reading too much into things. Once you try to find the meaning in "hi" and "hey" in a text messages, you know you've gone a little too far.

Unless of course, you're reading into this text message:

Passivity isn't inherently bad. If someone tries to mind-fuck you 24/7 because they know you won't respond, you might want to take some action. But especially in our speed up and conquer the world in 60 minutes or less atmosphere, some chilling out is always a good idea.

However, I wonder at what level analytical thinking goes from useful to unnecessary. My favorite class in the history of forever is a literary theory course, where we apply theory to novels, poems, films...basically everything.

That cat you just got? Analyzed, bitches. Animals have death drives too!

It's really rather helpful to study psychoanalysis in order to study other people's motivations. I now know that person with the face and the eyes and the teeth didn't get along with his father. But in all seriousness, the vast variety of theory doesn't just end at literature--it transcends into life as well. I mean, we're all bound by paradoxes, and chicks who are all "I'll live in the kitchen if that's what I wanna do, you misogynist!". Understanding where those patterns come from is one of the most valuable life lessons.

New Historicism would have made social studies a lot less confusing in elementary school. They should teach this stuff in kindergarten.

Sometimes, analytical thinking doesn't even take away reading for pleasure. It's a different kind of fun, but whipping out that pen and underlining the hell out of your book brings a new level of satisfaction that episode of Jersey Shore didn't quite cover.

But then we go back to those ancient beliefs that intellect is irrelevant--that true life mastery comes from faith, good karma, and the ability to stop burning toast. Is becoming smarter going to make us more miserable? Are we becoming bogged down by all this knowledge? Should all just renounce from this whole school thing and search for bliss through other means?

During my month in an ashram, I paired the two together as best I could. When chanting the Guru Gita, I didn't try to figure out what every single stanza meant. I think I read the English version once. Instead, I tried my darndest not to mess up pronunciation, felt the vibrations of the chanters around me, and leaped saying the Sanskrit words. But during my time off, I would read books and revert back to my word-underlining, text-analyzing ways.

I'm still not sure if I can equally balance pure acceptance and critical thinking. I'm a fan of both; I'll try to explore the idea farther as I return to the ashram.

I mean, we are naturally inclined to question the world. There's "smart water," and what could be more natural than water?

Do any of you have life-approach preferences? Do you find critical thinking to make you happy, or bring down your bliss-levels?

Namaste.