Creativity starts with the facts
“Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”
The name Vajradarshini means ‘she who sees the vajra’, or ‘she who’s seeing is like a vajra’.
So what is this vajra? It’s a Sanskrit term with the literal meaning of ‘thunderbolt’. It takes the form of a ritualistic implement, like in the images above, held in the hand and referred to as the ‘diamond thunderbolt’, since it has the properties of a diamond, indestructible, and of a thunderbolt, irresistible.
But this is not how my preceptor described my name when she gave it to me. She was much more down to earth. She explained that the vajra in my name pointed to ‘the facts’. What is.
A bit of a comedown, you might think? When I could have had a name that meant ‘she who’s seeing is like a diamond thunderbolt’, I wind up with ‘she who sees the facts’.
The facts are a refuge
In fact, I love this translation of my name more and more as the years pass. It’s 27 so far. With each year, it becomes a more accurate description of what insight actually seems to be. The willingness to be with things as they are. I would even say that if my ordination was about ‘going for refuge’ then ‘the facts’ are that true refuge. Whatever is happening, in us or around us, we can always come back to the direct experience of what is. To what is happening; to what’s happened; to the here and now sensations, feelings, and thoughts. Stripped of interpretation.
Don’t shoot the second arrow
When we come back to the facts we stop ourselves from shooting ‘the second arrow’.
The Buddha’s teaching on the second arrow is one of the most helpful things to have in your Dharma tool box. It says that some things are unavoidably painful, like illness, grief, falling out with someone we love. That pain is like being shot with an arrow. What’s important is that we don’t shoot ourselves with a second arrow (and third, fourth and fifth). The pain of those arrows is avoidable.
The second arrow is when we add pain to the situation. We stub our toe on the bed, first arrow, but then we call ourselves stupid, second arrow, then kick the bed, third arrow. In another scenario a friend doesn’t call us, we are always the one to initiate contact and we feel a bit sad about that, first arrow. Then we shoot the second arrow of speculating that they don’t really care about us, then the third of looking for other faults in them.
But what if we just stay with the facts, the first arrow? The ouch in our toe. The longing to be called.
Acceptance vs transformation
Seeing the facts, being willing to be with what is, sounds a lot like acceptance. But aren’t we supposed to be transforming ourselves, not accepting ourselves?
Coming back to ‘the facts’ is acceptance, but it turns out that acceptance is the basis for all creative transformation. With it we unlock a power that we didn’t know we had.
When we set out to do anything in our lives, whether it’s making a loaf of bread (I’m in the middle of one) or moving house (I’m planning to) you have to start with the facts.
Do I have time to make a loaf today? Do I have enough flour? Did I feed the sourdough starter? If I only have whole wheat flour, I’m going to have to find another recipe. If the kitchen is colder now the weather’s changed I should warm the water a little.
I need to accept what is before I start out. How much time and flour there is. How cold it is. These are the facts.
Acceptance can sound a little woo woo. It can seem soft. But actually it’s just very pragmatic. It’s the necessary basis for any kind of action we want to take.
The Wishless Doorway
Acceptance, fully being with what is, with no resistance, is a traditional aspect of insight. It’s called apranihita, or the wishless doorway. It’s wishless because we’ve let go of the idea that things could be other than the way they are.
Apranihita has other translations, some challenging ones! It’s also called the unbiased, the directionless, and the aimless. You might think the last thing I want is to become aimless!
It’s pointing to a state of stillness. Of coming to rest. Of no longer resisting and reacting to what is.
This insight doesn’t mean that everything is suddenly okay. But that we are suddenly okay with everything as it is. As my granddad used to say, ‘you can’t always have what you want, but you can always want what you have.’
As a state of mind, it’s described as being ‘like a perfectly round sphere on a perfectly flat surface’. Stop reading for a moment and see if you can feel what that would be like. Feel it in your body, in your mind. That sense of poise, of not being compelled in any direction, but also not being stuck. Poised, ready, free to move in any direction.
It’s from this point of stillness we can respond creatively.
Arguing with reality
It’s clear that to argue with reality is delusional. And yet we do it all the time. How often do we use the word should or shouldn’t? It should be warmer than this in July. They shouldn’t wear brown shoes with a black outfit. People should be vegan. We step deeper into the delusion when we say, I can’t believe she’s wearing those shoes. I can’t believe he’s not vegan. We literally do not believe what is before our eyes.
Of course, we all have our preferences, and our preferences will probably outlive our awakening! I prefer warm weather in July. I like my shoes to match my outfit, or at least to contrast in a pleasing way. Our preferences are not a problem, our denial of reality is.
Unlock your energy
When we argue with reality, it takes a lot of energy, energy that is completely wasted. Wishing things were other than the way they are when they are not. Wanting what we don’t have. Not wanting what we have. We spend so much of our energy resisting ‘what is’.
When we become wishless, aimless and directionless, paradoxically, all that energy is unlocked.
It turns out aimlessness is a really dynamic state.
What is all the resistance really about? What are the ‘shoulds’ protecting us from?
From feelings. Underneath every should is an uncomfortable feeling that just wants to be felt. But no, we go straight to thinking, to arguing, criticising, defending. That way we don’t have to just be with the ouch of our toe, or the longing to be called.
When we are willing to be with the facts, we also commit to feeling the feelings that come with the facts. This is why some traditions refer to the ‘wishless doorway’ as the quality of sensitivity.
This still point, this sensitivity, this being with what is, is at the heart of the creative process.
Mirror-like Mind #2
How to think more creatively
This is the theme Dharma Bundle coming out 1st October. It includes:
Video or audio: Relating to thoughts creatively
Audio meditation: Unlock your energy
Video or audio: 7 ways to think more creatively
Creative Assignment: Garbage in, garbage out
Video: Zoom workshop recording
Plus a live workshop 5th October 9.30am (BST)
Using creative thinking to unlock a problem
Find out more about the Dharma Bundle here or sign up below ↓
A ‘bundle’ of dharma resources, thoughtfully made and beautifully packaged.
