Buddhism is all about connecting to the living where they are not where your ego or self wants them to be. Old Zen koan does my dog have Buddha nature and the Zen master says Mu. Mu has some famous paintings of 7 permissons of which 2 are translucent implying emptiness. And and another Zen student asked his dog and the dog answered Who cares. Just throw the ball.
Being Present, you become the people you love, you see them, their experiences become your experience, the urge to fix or correct is no longer there.
I am stuck on the why was he believing he was a turkey. I think that entering his world with compassion would be getting to the why of it. Clothes, food etc are simply the visible issues. How does believing he is a turkey serve him? I do this with my clients. If they express that they have a "bad" behavior, I ask them, "How does this behavior benefit you?" Then we find other ways to meet that need. This makes it a shameless process.
I was taught once to respect the fact that everyone has the inner resources to find what they need. In any case, it seems an imposition to project my own ideas of how someone should be when I’m still discovering who I am. If learning to have the courage to be in “not knowing” applies to me, how much more so to those I encounter?
We learn and grow most by someone simply being with us, not someone trying to correct or change us. That's why many of us grew by having a dog who is faithfully with us, not trying to fix us, usually valuing us more than we value ourselves. I had a friend who would simply be with me, comfortably being himself as we were together, which helped me be myself and grow. What helps me resist the urge to fix someone is my having learned that what helps the most is when I don't try to fix or help, don't correct or give advice, and simply be with the person, not just sitting quietly but being myself and saying what I am experiencing as I am with the person without asking for any response or trying to do anything. I believe that when I am really being present in that way the other has no pressure from me and has the space to be himself or herself.
Reading this passage evoked my empathy and compssion for the person suffering from identity confusion. "Who am I" is an imporatant question we face in our country and in many parts of the world. People are dicriminated, harrased and some times killed because of racial, religios and cultural diversity.
We need to recognize and deal with this situation with an open and empathetic mind. We all are citizens of the world. Sadly many countries are working against each other and causing suffering and destruction. It is time for all of us to wake up and join our hands to create a compassionate and constructive world. If we coninue liviving in this world with racial, religious, politcal and other biases and divisiveness we all will pay a heavy price.
Namaste,
Jagdish P Dave PhD, PsyD
Namaste.
Jagdish P Dave PhD, PsyD
What moves me in this story, and in the pairs of yellow flowers, is the profound wisdom of companionship. As a gardener, I know that seeds do not grow alone. We need the encouragement of the living soil, the nourishment of water, the warmth of sunlight, and the unseen relationships beneath the surface. Perhaps healing is much the same. The sage’s willingness to crawl beneath the table reminds me of the deeper, subcortical layers of our being/brain, where experiences not yet integrated may still be waiting for safety, connection, and expression. This is what I love to call Conscious Composting. Not rushing to fix or correct, rather allowing what has been buried, fragmented, or forgotten to become nourishment for something new. And how much easier it is to let go when we are not alone! Companionship invites us to emerge together, to rise from beneath the table, not because someone has pulled us out, but because trust and space to learn safely together has made a new m... View full comment
What moves me in this story, and in the pairs of yellow flowers, is the profound wisdom of companionship. As a gardener, I know that seeds do not grow alone. We need the encouragement of the living soil, the nourishment of water, the warmth of sunlight, and the unseen relationships beneath the surface. Perhaps healing is much the same. The sage’s willingness to crawl beneath the table reminds me of the deeper, subcortical layers of our being/brain, where experiences not yet integrated may still be waiting for safety, connection, and expression. This is what I love to call Conscious Composting. Not rushing to fix or correct, rather allowing what has been buried, fragmented, or forgotten to become nourishment for something new. And how much easier it is to let go when we are not alone! Companionship invites us to emerge together, to rise from beneath the table, not because someone has pulled us out, but because trust and space to learn safely together has made a new movement possible. Like sunflowers turning toward the light, we discover that our capacity to grow is relational. ME 💞 WE 💞 WORLD Perhaps gathering together is the most essential ingredient of all. And perhaps love begins simply by being willing to crawl beneath the table and stay awhile. 🌻💜🌀🙏🏽🪶🌎🦉😌 Hide full comment