The Fireplace Records, Chapter 26
Assumptions Guide the Way
Frank and Mary were discussing metaphysical doctrines one bright summer afternoon. They sipped ice tea as they pondered issues related to idealism and realism.
Frank supported the idealist view, wherein the Conscious Presence of his current experiences is the main criterion for judging phenomena. The real or what exists depends on his direct and immediate consciousness of same. His body and external objects are in some way figments of his imagination, and many common-sense beliefs are the delusions of dualistic thinking.
Mary supported a realist view, dualisms, existence of objects in the world, and the reality of her and others human bodies. She assumed and supported scientific methods (e.g., logic, inference, precise measurements, mathematics, experimentation, probability, provisional theories, worldwide verification, collaborative work, peer evaluation, and pragmatic considerations, etc.) for discovering truth and using the results in technological applications. Personal consciousness and personal experiences/gnosis, for her, had a limited value when it came to issues of veracity and knowledge.
Mary said, “You are always talking about how your Conscious Presence or Immediate Awareness reveals to you that Constant Change is the Primary Fact. My conclusions are different. An object like my body or the Douglas Fir trees in my back yard or furniture in my office do not change very much at all from day to day. Trees and furniture stay in the same locations. My height and weight and appearance stay pretty much the same each day at the gross level of everyday dealings. My molecular and atomic bodily interior changes quite a bit each day, however I am not aware of these changes unless facing illness. If things constantly change like you contend, and this is unquestionably revealed in your immediate consciousness/experience, then this would be madness.”
Frank said, “If you don’t have consciousness of something, then you know nothing about It. You are bound in unrealistic and delusive dualistic thinking. All the great Yogis, Philosophers, and Zen Masters know this to be clear and true. Read the “Transparency of Things” by Rupert Spira to get correctly informed.”
Mary said, “It is a matter of assumptions. I assume the scientific realists or materialists viewpoints because they are practical, efficient, useful, widely accepted, logically consistent, and in accord with common sense. I once read the “Transparency of Things.” An unconvincing repetition of vague and questionable pronouncements. No index, no bibliography, no notes, no scholarship standards, no inter-subjective verification. There, his Conscious Presence, sounds a lot like a spiritual soul (Atman) freed from his body, mind, and Others and resting in a awesome startling mystical Oneness. He does not even have a Deity (Brahma, God the Father, Allah, etc.) to have a Conscious Presence of the world to keep it in existence (e.g., as for Descartes, Berkeley, Hegel, or Green) while he sleeps in unconsciousness. In my view, just warmed over transparent Advaita Vedanta obscurantism.”
Frank said, “I know what I know directly, immediately, personally. I don’t need the fanciful presuppositions of science to confirm the Experience of Conscious Presence. It is beyond petty distinctions of right or wrong, good or bad, this or that, true or untrue. Human experience is God (the Divine, the Awesome, the Profound, the Real) gradually made manifest. Once you abandon your dualistic thinking, and your own imaginative and ungrounded deluded thinking, you might see the Light and experience deep awakening and enlightenment.”
Mary said, “We have different assumptions and thus follow different paths to understanding and knowing, and reach different conclusions. Nevertheless, we can both agree that the day is warm, the iced tea refreshing, and the garden looks to be flourishing. Is this not just awesome for one's soul?
"Mary!" said Frank, surprised. "Your soul!?"
Mary slapped Frank on the back. "You Zen Masters love to quibble."
A Student's Considerations:
Be clear about assumptions and definitions before the discussion.
Learn how to select useful assumptions.
For an illogical person, conclusions don't follow from assumptions.
Don't abandon the quest for reasonable explanations.
The "Mystical One" may be profound, but passes awareness quickly.
Enjoy being in awe, but don't hang on too long.
Iron Grindstone Liu's Logic can take away our rough edges of stupidity.
Consider Sartre's assumption "Existence Precedes Essence."
Look outside to awaken, look inside to wander in memories.
Related Links, Resources, References
Pulling Onions Over 1,043 One-line Sayings by Mike Garofalo
Subject Index to 1,001 Zen Buddhist Koans
Chinese Chan Buddhist and Taoist Stories and Koans
Fireplaces, Stoves, Campfires, Kitchens, Pots, Firewood
Brief Spiritual Lessons Database Project: Subject Indexes
Sparks: Brief Spiritual Lessons and Stories
Matches to Start a Kindling of Insight
May the Light from Your Inner Fireplace Help All Beings
Taoist, Chan Buddhist, Zen Buddhist, Philosophers
Catching Phrases, Inspiring Verses, Koans, Meditations
Indexing, Bibliography, Quotations, Notes, Resources
Research by Michael P. Garofalo
The Fireplace Records
By Michael P. Garofalo
Subject Index to 1,001 Zen Buddhist Koans
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