MN: I love what you’ve done in contemplating arbitrariness and this email contemplation. It is something that needs to be considered throughout practice, from the beginning to ultimate end…arbirariness is just sammuti-nothing is significant or real. We build these gigantic mountains out of arbitrariness, and then suffer so profoundly when something comes into contact with those atta mountains. The amazing thing is, if we are able to pinpoint and destroy wrong viewpoints, those atta mountains can be exploded.

AD: I was thinking about an old psychology experiment: A class of kids gets divided into two groups, one with blue eyes and the other brown. The teacher tells them that the blue eyed kids are genetically inferior –the kids internalize the message, the brown eyed kids bulliend their blue eyed classmates, the blue eyed kids become more demure and disengaged. The physical trait of eye color always existed, but it was irrelevant to these kids before. Then the trait was arbitrarily chosen, given arbitrary meaning — its totally drivel, but once the meaning was internalized the consequences were real. The behaviors of bullying or disengaging, and the resulting consequences (karma) are real. The feelings of superiority/inferiority, pride/shame, etc. — the suffering — and the ensuing consequences are also real. The truth of this world may be anatta, nothing is really real, it is insignificant nonsense. But because of our wrong views, because we imbue meaning into shit that is meaningless, we get swept up and then suffer very real consequences. At least I am beginning to see how destroying wrong viewpoints really can pull the rug out from an atta mountain and it can all just crumble down. Anyway, I’ll keep you posted –I’m sorta in one of those phases where I have lots of flashes, but I am waiting for a picture to really emerge and become crisp.

That teaching on the 3 common characteristics during retreat really was so clear and helpful on all this btw. I watched it 3 times, Eric once with me, it just really hammered home exactly how these 3 simple things works together to form a strong foundation for practice; as I watched I was able to trace the role they have played, and continue to play in my own practice, it sorta let me check and remind myself that I’m on the right track and pitfalls to avoid. Thank you again!