Tag Archives: buddhism

Dark Night of the Soul

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Although the “dark night of the soul” depressed_manhas fallen into common usage, I would like to credit St. John of the Cross for his treatise by that title written in the 16th century.  Since we have been discussing the possibility of alternate views on “depression” his work seems quite relevant.

St. John of the Cross describes the “dark night” and extols its purpose and benefits to spiritual growth.  Notice the similarity of his descriptions to depression.

“The dark night puts the sensory and spiritual appetites to sleep, deadens them, and deprives them of the ability to find pleasure in anything.  It binds the imagination and impedes it from doing any good discursive work.”  (The Dark Night, Book 2, Chapter 16)

“…although it may seem to them that they are doing nothing and are wasting their time, and although it may appear to them that it is because of their weakness that they have no desire in that state to think of anything.  The truth is that what they will be doing is quite sufficient…”  (The Dark Night, Book 1, Chapter 11)

“Spiritual person’s suffer great trials, by reason not so much of the aridities which they suffer, as of the fear which they have of being lost on the road, thinking that all spiritual blessing is over for them and that they have been abandoned* since they find no help or pleasure  in good things.”  (The Dark Night, Book 1, Chapter 10)

For someone on a spiritual path that thinks themselves “depressed” I highly recommend, The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross.This work includes The Dark Night of the Soul and The Ascent of Mount Carmel where he begins his discussion of the dark night.  He divides the dark night into three phases:  the active night of the senses, the passive night of the senses and the passive night of the spirit.

The active night is where we are actively turning from things that provided us with “empty calories”.  It is where we decide that twelve hours of television a day may be entertaining, but it doesn’t really satisfy us.  Or perhaps we decide that while certain foods taste good, they ultimately make us sluggish or contribute to ill health.  In this way we “actively” enter a dark night of our senses.  We are turning from simple sensual pleasures and looking for more inner meaning.

“We are using the expression “night” to signify a deprival of the gratification of the soul’s appetites in all things.” (The Ascent of Mount Carmel, Book 1, Chapter 3)

Here he refers to “things” meaning “worldly” things in contrast to ultimate reality.  He further explains that it is a dark night because turning from worldly things is a dark night for our senses, relying on faith is a dark night for our intellect, and reaching enlightenment is a dark night to the soul in this life.

However, we can only get so far with that process.  To get to enlightenment, St John says we need to enter a passive process by which unseen forces (God) begins to change us. The passive process is best described as depression.  Before we were actively turning from superficial pleasures and now we inherently find no pleasure in anything.  This includes not only worldly things, but our spiritual practice as well.

“The soul suffers great pain and grief, since there is added to all this the fact that it finds no consolation or support in any instruction or spiritual master.” (The Dark Night, Book 2, Chapter 7)

The Buddhist parallel is “purification”.  Purification is the process by which our “shit” arises, we watch it without reacting, and that is the end of it.  This process is facilitated by mindfulness based meditation.  St John advises:

“If those souls to whom this comes to pass knew how to be quiet at this time, and troubled not about performing any kind of action, whether it inward or outward, neither had any anxiety about doing anything, then they would delicately experience this inward refreshment in that ease and freedom from care.” (The Dark Night, Book 1, Chapter 9)

The dark night is completely individual and unpredictable.  It can be short, severe and brutal.  It can also last years and years.  Usually the longer courses of dark night are intermingled with times of illumination.  Hmmm… sounds a little bipolar.

So perhaps when you are thinking you might just be cursed with mental illness you can consider other possibilities:

“It will happen to individuals that while they are being conducted along a sublime path of dark contemplation and aridity, in which they feel lost and filled with darknesses, trials, conflicts, and temptations they will meet someone who will proclaim that all of this is due to melancholia, depression, temperament, or some hidden wickedness.” (The Ascent to Mount Carmel, Prologue, Section 4)

On that note, I will slip back into my night.  The effort that I applied to complete this post has been great and I am spent.  I now relax into the infinite repose that is the nature of ultimate reality and I can breath again.  Being is enough.

Want to read more St. John of the Cross?  Here is a post on contemplation.

* I replaced “God has abandoned them” with “they have been abandoned” for a more universal appeal.

The past does not exist

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Total Recall is another good movie that illustrates the complexity of the mind as a metaphor.

My favorite quote by the character Matthias:

“It is each man’s quest to find out who he truly is, but the answer to that lies in the present, not in the past. The past is a construct of the mind. It blinds us. It fools us into believing it. But the heart wants to live in the present. Look there. You will find your answer.”
 Reminds me once again that whatever is arising in my mind based on conditioning is simply a construct of the mind. There actually is no scientific proof that the past exists, yet everyone believes it.

End of Buddhism

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All things that are created are subject to impermanence.  This is one of the fundamental teachings of the Buddha.  So how long will Buddhism last?  The Buddha gave different predictions at different times.  At one time he said the Golden age of Dharma would last 500 years in its pure form and another 1500 years in a shadow of its former glory.  However, when relating the story of the life of Angulimala he said it would last 1000 years, in the Essence of the Moon Sutra he said 2000 years, In the White Lotus Sutra, 1500 years and in The Sutra of the Goddess of Flawless Light, at least 2500 years.

It is thought that some of the statements may have been referring to the Dharma in India, which did die out before it was reintroduced in the last 100 years.  The Sutra of the Goddess of Flawless Light states that at 2500 years the Dharma will spread to the people with the red faces, which some interpret to mean the Americas although Tibetans have also been referred to as red faced.

Great sages throughout the ages have made predictions as well.  Vasubandhu (4th century) in his commentary of the Abhidharma Kosa claimed the Dharma would last 1000 years from the Buddhas passing.

Kamalsila (8th century) claims in his commentary to the Diamond Cutter Sutra  that the Dharma would last 2500 years. He cites a few sources including the Great Commentary to Perfection of Wisdom (which give 5000 years) to substantiate his prediction.

More recently, Choney Drakpa Shedrup (1675-1748) in the Sunlight for the Path to Freedom, (another commentary on the Diamond Cutter Sutra) gives 5000 years.  He had the benefit of knowing that the Dharma was still in the world at his time (2200 years after the death of the Buddha).  He divides the decline of Buddhism into ten 500 year periods.

The Era of Results

  • 500 BC until 0 AD – Lots of people become arhats (attain nirvana)
  • 0 to 500 AD  –  Lots of people become non-returners (don’t return to desire realm – born in the form or formless realm)
  • 500 to 1000 AD – Lots of people become stream enterers (see emptiness directly)

 

The Era of Practice (Trying):

  • 1000 to 1500 AD – People are training in wisdom
  • 1500 to 2000 AD – People are training in concentration
  • 2000 to 2500 AD – People are training in morality

 

The Era of Physical Dharma (people talk, but have no practice or attainment):

  • 2500 to 3000 AD – Books and teachings on wisdom exist
  • 3000 to 3500 AD – Books and teachings on concentration exist
  • 3500 to 4000 AD – Books and teachings on morality exist

 

Era of “Just A Trace” (no one understands or practices Dharma) (4000 to 4500 AD)

These predictions refer to Buddhism as taught by Gautama Buddha.  Of course, within every time period there may be pockets of higher level practice and attainment.  In addition, anyone who knows about the nature of future readings and predictions knows they are not set in stone.  At any one moment there are infinite possibilities.   Buddha may have been pessimistic in expressing his predictions in order to motivate his students.  Or his predictions may have been perfectly accurate in that moment, but motivated the students which subsequently led to changes that made his predictions obsolete.

Also, individuals can be contacted by buddhas and teachers “living” in the form and formless realms and taught directly. This may result in teachings and the practice that lead to enlightenment without being labeled “Dharma”.  In addition, there is evidence that Christian contemplatives reach nirvana and high levels of realization without what would be called “Dharma”,  although this is not widespread.

REFERENCE
Geshe Michael Roach (199?) Asian Classics Institute Course Six, Class Four Audio & Student Class notes.