I'm reading a book about Buddhism called Buddhism Plain & Simple by Steve Hagen. Say what you will about Buddhism or the book or whatever - this post isn't really about any of that. It's about an image on p.28 of the book that had me stalled for a week. Literally. Here is what the author says in the paragraphs preceding and following the image:
---
Truth or Reality is something vague, mysterious, or hidden.
You don’t have no go to someone else to find it --- not to a teacher, or a
Buddha, or your parents, or a priest or rabbi or shaman, or any authority
whatsoever. Nor is it something you can look up in a book. Truth comes to us
through seeing. To see is to know.
Seeing needs no further verification. It’s immediate and as
one with Truth. But we’re usually not very skilled at seeing what is actually
presented to us.
For a concrete example of what I’m referring to, look at the
picture on the next page. Believe it or not, this is a near-photographic
rendering of something very familiar, something you’ve seen (either in person
or in pictures) countless times.
If you do not immediately recognize what it is, then notice
your state of mind. Notice that it is, to some extent, confused.
Some people, when they first see this picture, say, “I think
it might be a man lying down.” But they say it with uncertainty. They’re not
quite sure. They believe it might be a man reclining. (That’s what I thought
when I first saw the picture.) But there’s no sense of seeing, no conviction
that you know what the picture depicts.
Keep looking at the picture. I assure you that when you
actually see what it is, all your uncertainty will immediately vanish. You will
know what the picture is. All beliefs and uneasiness about it will instantly
cease.
If you haven’t yet seen what this picture is, keep looking at it for a while. Eventually you’ll get it. And when you do get it, notice the sudden shift that takes place in your mind. (If it begins to seem hopeless and you need help, you’ll find the solution in the text on page 114. But try to hold out until you do see what it is, so you can witness the shock of recognition and the profound shift in your mind.)
Did you notice how your mind relaxed when, suddenly, you
saw, and knew you saw? You state of mind, which before was vague, mysterious,
fuzzy, confused, and uncomfortable, was suddenly transformed the moment you
saw. You had clarity and total conviction. And that clarity and conviction will
remain with you each time you view this picture again. If somebody says to you,
“It’s a picture of a man lying down,” you’ll know they’re off the mark --- and
no amount of argument is going to influence you.
This is analogous to the difference between seeing and simply
having a belief, an idea, a concept.
The buddha-dharma points the way to a similar, but more
universal and profound, sense of “Aha!” It’s not about pondering some vague,
faraway realm. It’s about here and now. About waking up to this moment, seeing
this for what it is. And, just as your state mind changed once you saw what the
picture was, when you suddenly see the situation you’re in, you experience
certainty. Things clear up.
This is called enlightenment, or awakening.
This awakening is available to all of us, at every moment, without exception.
---
And, the image:
As I said above, it took me a week of picking up the book, staring at p.28 for a bit before going to bed, and putting the book down after having failed to see what it is. I refused to read on until I could see. Yesterday evening, after looking at it some more, I finally saw. When I exclaimed, "I see it!" my wife replied, "Wow. Now that's tenacity."
The reward for me was in trying and trying and not giving up and finally succeeding. If you don't immediately see what it is I'd suggest you return here and keep trying. Because it is fun once you finally do see it.
Just don't see it right away - otherwise you'll make me feel bad.
