What is the "Sun" to when you feel in need of a return to joy? We need more "Sunshine" in our world. We can each be a Sun.
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Zen teacher Robert Aitken (1917-2010) published the last pre-death book of his many, Minatures of a Zen Master, in his early 90s. He provided short vignettes of sagacious insight from a long life, which included Buddhist practice and teaching, and social activism. Also, Aitken was captured the day following Pearl Harbor and spent the entire war in miscellaneous civilian internment camps in Japan. In one of the camps, a guard loaned him a book on Zen Buddhism. There began his journey in Zen. Here is one of the pieces, "It Is to Laugh," in Minatures of a Zen Master.
The dream we call [spiritual] practice allows us to laugh. I first got acquainted with this phenomenon in Japanese [Buddhist] monasteries. It seemed as though whenever the master opened his mouth it was to crack a joke.
Gempō Rōshi grew up in a family of farm laborers whose language was of the earth. His jokes were simply outrageous. The monks laughed until they wept, and they had to fish in their sleeves for a tissue.
Students who can't laugh can't dream with the sangha [community of Buddhist practitioners]. They are just faking it. Let yourself go - that's what the practice is about, after all.
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I did not laugh much earlier in life. I became a deadly serious youth. That attitude followed me into adulthood for many decades. In my mid-50s, I started laughing a lot. I am often alone, laughing, now in my early 60s. I credit fidelity to spiritual practice over these years for the joy of laughter.
Aitken's words "Let yourself go" in the final sentence above struck me as the key to laughter. When you laugh, is there not a sublimation of ego contraction? A sense of opening? Additionally, pure laughter is a sign of the self-opening. Laughter can be a practice in letting go of all that leads to our suffering - by which I mean emotional. Pain cannot be avoided, suffering can be let go of.
There is much emotional suffering about us. In the United States, 2023 has witnessed the highest suicide rate since 1941. Persons have lost faith in traditional institutions. Politicians incite hate and fear. Much of the conservative church and conservative politicians have aligned with a criminal who tried to overthrow the government and continues to spew hatred and promises revenge. Gun violence is rampant. Hate crime against minorities is on the increase. Many persons cannot afford living expenses, including health coverage. Homelessness is on the rise. This collective suffering reflects that in other nations, too.
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I first saw a famous painting of Jesus laughing in the late 90s. The picture was on the wall in an Episcopal church. I had never seen an image of Jesus where he was portrayed as joyful. The image reflected the bias to the deadly serious attitude I grew up with and taught widely in the churches. The god of many does not laugh, for 'he' has no laughter to laugh.
I later bought a hand-carved Buddha image. And, as in other sitting Buddha statues, Buddha sits serenely, with a subtle but clear joy on the face. I found contrasting this with the prevalent portrayals of the sad, suffering 'Jesus' insightful. I aimed to become more like the serene, compassionate Buddha image. I was tired of the constant message of suffering in the churches. The images we adore shape the image of ourselves we present to others.
This contrast taught me we can suffer and still manifest a joyful spirit and face. We can feel the suffering of others in compassion and still radiant gladness, still laugh. We can suffer and not become suffering.
In line with the above, I was, about the same time, introduced to the principal symbol in the first centuries of Christianity. Now, the cross is the central symbol and worn by many as adornment and witness. In the first centuries, the most popular image was the resurrection: a joyous celebration of new life, not the grief and mourning of death. And the early church placed its weekly sabbath on Sunday, not Friday. Weekly, Christians met on a little Easter, not a little Good Friday. The Sun brings joy to the whole self, including the body.
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Recently, I was sick for many hours during the night. I kept having to get out of bed. I would walk about. I noticed I was in pain but accepting it. I would get up and joke and laugh, being jocular about what was happening. That is possible when you become a joyous being.
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What can we do in compassion for the world? One overlooked thing is laughter. Laughter can be a grace. Yet, laughter needs to come from a pure place, one of joy. Laughter in malice or scorn, for example, is purely evil. There is much of this nasty laughter.
When the lightness of virtuous laughter arises within, the Sunshine will appear on the lips, face, and voice. The world needs our serene bliss and rambunctious glee.
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*(C) Brian K. Wilcox, 2023. Permission is given to use photographs and writings with credit given to the copyright owner.
*Brian's book is An Ache for Union: Poems on Oneness with God through Love. The book is a collection of poems Brian wrote based on wisdom traditions, predominantly Christian, Buddhist, and Sufi, with extensive notes on the poetry's teachings and imagery.
