Full Of It

Full Of It
by Scott Bradley

Every now and then my mind will pull up short and remember that I am full of it. And because I sometimes seem to have forgotten this most important fact, it concerns me that there may be some reading this who have also forgotten. And thus, I here again make one of my periodic disclaimers. I am full of it.

It's not that I don't believe that I occasionally say something of value here — something that might be helpful to others. I do. And it's not that this way that is emerging for me has not positively affected my own life. It has. It's just important to remember that I have not arrived anywhere that gives me the authority to speak. Nor, quite frankly, do I think I ever will. As I have said before, I am your fellow pilgrim.

My philosophy of life is a work in progress, and like life itself, will never reach completion; existence is an endless becoming. Or so it seems to me. Similarly, this philosophical endeavor must be a kind of thinking on my feet, which means, among other things, that sometimes it goes too far, says more than it should, more than it honestly can. When I realize this, I pull back and re-group; when I do not, I can only trust in your own discernment.

This having been said, let me remind you: "Don't seek the primordial seed outside!" And more importantly, "Always let the cave of eternal life be nourished through the fire!"

These quotes come from the Hui Ming Ching (Book of Consciousness and Life) written by Liu Hua-yang in 1794 and I offer them somewhat tongue in cheek as an example of going too far. This is a (to me) fanciful, yet very elaborate and definitive explanation of how to be enlightened — and gain eternal life. It speaks to me in two important ways.

First, it reminds me of the ever-prevalent inclination to define and explain what is beyond definition and explanation. And secondly, it reminds me that if truth-knowing is not a prerequisite for experience, then neither does it necessarily exclude experience. Liu experienced some form of liberation and then felt inclined to reify it as fanciful 'truth', and another might likewise find some liberation while believing Liu's 'truth'. It's not 'getting it right' that matters, but simply getting it, whatever your 'it' may be.

You can check out Scott's other miscellaneous writings here.