Many of us have the tendency to find our experience in dualistic terms – self and other, mind and not mind, pleasant and not pleasant.
- In itself, relating to the world dualistically isn’t any great tragedy.
- In fact, we’re disposed and conditioned by our cultural, familial, and individual backgrounds to make distinctions
- not only for their survival value, but also for the role they play in social interaction, and the performance of daily tasks.
From a simply practical point of view, the ability to map and navigate our daily lives in dualistic terms is essential.
Re-source: Recognize
to acknowledge acquaintance with : to show awareness of; approve of or appreciate
Defining experience in terms of subject and object, self and other, and so on, is simply one aspect of awareness – a useful if limited tool.
- For example, We can accomplish many tasks with our hands, is what we do with our hands doesn’t represent our entire capabilities
- (see, hear, smell, decide, etc.)
- It’s a bit more difficult to recognize that splitting experience into opposing terms represents only a fraction of a capacity.
Until we are introduced to a possibility of a different way of relating to experience, and embrace the possibility of exploring it; our dualistic perspective and variety of mental and emotional habits that arise from it, prevent us from experiencing our full range of our inherent potential.
craving and resource from “Joyful Wisdom” – embracing change and finding freedom – by Yongey Mingyur Rinpoche with Eric Swanson