Nirvana Here and Now

      Nirvana, like dharma, has a number of nuances in definition depending on the various schools of Buddhist thought. Some writings suggest nirvana is a place located outside the human body. However, if one takes the position that nirvana is a state or posture within one’s mind rather rather than at some distant location in time and space, then it sheds a different light on its relation to dharma and samsara.
      The meaning of the term dharma as I am using it here should be understood as the "present moment as-it-is." That is, each moment as it presents itself to the individual sans judgment, preference, or the critical analysis manifested in the process of dualistic apprehension.
       Samsara is a term used to identify the repetitive cycles of Dukkha, or suffering, each human being experiences concerning the unique nature of human consciousness; though for some, more easily identified as an omnipresent sense of dissatisfaction. In Buddhist writings it is often connected to the notion of Karma as it relates to the cycle of subsequent lifetimes reported to haunt the unenlightened.
However, my intent here is to confine my commentary to this life, and how these terms might be understood here and now.
      It is a neuro-biological function of the human senses to dissect and filter the interconnected oneness of the universe-as-it-is, into discrete entities which can then be processed by the brain. This process creates our dualistic apprehension of all sensations and as a result, we suffer. We suffer because we are continually ill-at-ease with the changing nature of this sensate world, be it physically, emotionally, or psychologically - inside or out. Or put another way, we continuously feel estranged from a deep sense of security in the face of the an ever-changing and therefore ambiguous, tentative, and frightening universe; both in and outside our bodies.
      What I am suggesting is that if nirvana is not interpreted as a location outside the mind, but rather a posture - here and now - resulting from the extinction of the root cause of our dis-ease (dualistic thinking), we will see clearly the path to liberation in this life. If we are able to undertand it as a new way of being-in-the-world, whereby we embrace or absorb the impact of the constant flow of data upon our senses with emotional and intellectual equanimity (the distinguishing characteristic of nirvana), we will be without judgment (attraction or aversion) and our suffering will be extinguished. This equanimity requires us to see deeply into the connection between four very important truths about our existence - Impermanence, Emptiness, No-self, and Dependent-Arising - and how they are manifested in our everyday life. Or in the words of Christmas Humphreys in his book, A Western Approach to Zen, (pg.182), “ Zen does not deliver us from the conditions of manifestation; it enables us to deal with them efficiently."
      If samsara is understood as simply the cyclical pattern of human suffering, ontological in nature and a main tenet of the Buddha’s teaching, then we arrive at a point where samsara can be recognized as the dharma. However, it is important as well to recognize that this existential dis-ease is not due to the nature of a changing universe, but results instead from our perspective or posture in relation to our world. Our suffering arises when we cling to our limited, myopic view of the nature of our universe. A perspective I gratefully found echoed by Professor Tucci, the authority on Tibetan Buddhism when he suggested that we, "Avoid the harshness of unyielding certainty.” If I am not awakened to the manner in which the aforementioned truths are in fact experiential facts, I will continue on the samsaric treadmill.
      That said, we must always be aware that the suffering about which the Buddha spoke is our birthright as recipients of human consciousness, and samsara is a necessary result. Nirvana however, the extinction and release from this suffering, is with us at all times. Or if I may once again quote Christmas Humphreys: “From the first moment of enlightenment the newly awakened mind uses distinction and discrimination as before but ceases to note the difference.” (ibid, pg.157)
      Nirvana, samsara, enlightenment – all these are illusions created by our dualistic mental processes. They are illusions in the sense that there is no separate, identifiable essence inherent in them (unless one chooses to identify this essence as their referents). They are as “fingers pointing to the moon” – thoughts or ideas that represent something, and in this case, a process; a path out of the woods.

  “Posture is everything.” - Japanese Zen master, Shunryu Suzuki