Art and Dignity

In my every action, I will watch my mind,

And the moment destructive emotions arise,

I will confront them strongly and avert them,

Since they will hurt both me and others.*

*Verse 3 of the Eight Verses of Mind Training

I remember Patrick Gaffney, one of Sogyal Rinpoche's principle students, giving a teaching on working with negative thoughts and emotions. He suggested that you view your mind as a garden and tend it from pests – like a large pig that is trying to get in and wreck havoc. Sometime we need to smack the pig on the nose to get it to leave the garden. As it is with negativity, sometimes we need to be firm in "watch[ing our] minds and driv[ing] out mental afflictions."

Only by being mindful of what we focus on and create can we have any hope of choosing to do no harm to ourselves and others. In previous blogs I wrote about the principles of bodhichitta, one of which is diligence. Choosing to follow a spiritual path requires that we practice principles of good diligently in all of our activities . . . Principles that cultivate love, compassion, kindness, wisdom and equanimity.

In regards to art I have found Chogyam Trungpa's writings very inspiring, especially his book Dharma Art. In the chapter "Art in Everyday Life" we read "Awareness practice is not just sitting meditation or meditation in action alone. It is a unique training practice in how to behave as an inspired human being. That is what is meant by being an artist."

So, to be an inspired human being we certainly can't be dragged down by negativity. We need to train the "elephant of our minds" through meditation and contemplation, by recognizing we have a choice in how we act, and to feed our minds with teachings that point to our true nature. Then, our authenticity will be revealed and we will be real artists. Artists not only of what we paint but what we create in our lives.

The image that I painted with gouache and colored pencil for this verse is of an elephant. There is a diagram in Tibetan teachings on "calm abiding" or shamatha in which the elephant represents the mind that we wish to train. In the diagram shows a monk is chasing an elephant at the beginning and by the end he is riding the tamed and purified elephant. The elephant also is a symbol of dignity. The Encyclopedia of Tibetan Symbols and Motifs by Robert Beer is an excellent resource for understanding Buddhist imagery.

May we all be able to tame our minds and act with dignity.

Be well,

Susan