So the one good thing about standing in line at the DMV is that it gives you time to think. In my last blog, I described how I partially succeeded in letting go of the frustration, annoyance and anger that usually sticks to me when I visit my least favorite bureaucracy.
And thinking about letting go, led me to the idea of Nirvana. I recently listened to a lesson from my friend and teacher Jeffrey Armstrong about Nirvana. Apologies to Jeffrey if I have screwed this up.
I must admit I never really thought that much about Nirvana until I listened to Jeffrey’s lecture. I assumed it was akin to heaven or paradise. And indeed for Buddhists, Nirvana is the goal of the eight -fold path of right practices, and is the gateway for escaping from karma and the cycle of birth and death.
Jeffrey took Nirvana in a different direction. He explained that Nirvana from the Vedic perspective means letting go of everything except who you really are. That means letting go of your attachment to stuff, letting go of your thoughts, letting go of the security of a safe retirement fund, letting go of your plans and ambitions; and importantly letting go of your emotions.
It’s a stretch concept, especially the letting go of your emotions. I don’t know about you, but I really like holding on to feelings and emotions. The good ones like love, and unfortunately some of the bad ones like anger and resentment too.
It’s not that you deny these things. It’s just that you experience them, and then send them on their way. And when you’ve let go of it all, you’ve reached Nirvana, a place of peace, escape from the cycles of human existence, and you can simply be who you really are… more about this later…
…Calling Number K-013. Go to station Number 24…Last call for Number K-013. Go to Station Number 24. The alerts over the DMV loudspeaker, awoke me from these thoughts. There are a lot of different interpretations of Nirvana in Buddhist and Vedic philosophy. What I’ve provided here is pretty bare bones. However, it’s the first definition of Nirvana that really spoke to me.
But please don’t give me an incomplete. The DMV has gotten more efficient, and they called my number before I had finished my thoughts. More on Nirvana and its cousin, purification, in the next blog.
Canti,
Pak Dave
Photo Credits Above: Jamie Street. Below: Lorna