The woes of America and attachment to form

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Red, white and Buddha was an early decor theme for this blog for those who remember it from its early days. I think that it has a new meaning for me now, as there is an Eastern teaching that America needs now more than ever: non-attachment to form. This won't require anyone to convert to anything or from anything in terms of their formal religious affiliation, but it does mean a change in how we in the United States (del Norte) see ourselves and our country. This change is essential if we hope to live up to our ideals of freedom and prosperity and to move out of the spiral of declining standards of living for all but the wealthiest of our citizens. I don't expect that anyone must listen to or agree with me, but I don't see the point in letting the ambiguity keep from at least trying to say something. It can't hurt to give it a try. If it helps even one other person think about some important issues for a few moments, it is well worth my time and effort.

The concept of attachment to form has many nuances, so to clarify what I am talking about there is akin to the old saying "If you love something let it go." We can get hung up on possessing something and wanting to preserve it just like we remember it, encased in amber, perfect forever in terms of conforming to our (personal or collective) memory of it. We don't want it to grow, change, fade, or disappear. Yet this is the fate of all things. Living things cannot be encased in amber, or preserved in a chemical pickling, or pick your process. That is for dead things, and if we do this to living things they die. We often want to preserve things as they exist in our memory because we cling to them to keep ourselves from being swept away. Our own bodies, thoughts, feelings and conceptions are constantly in flux as well, and this too is natural. It's like floating down a stream. But sometimes we get panicked, and want to stop the ride, so we reach out and grab whatever is close at hand and try to hold on, but we are only fooling ourselves because everything is floating down the stream, even that to which we clinging.

Now, if I were going to talk explicitly about religion and spirituality, this would be an opportune time to mention that our truest, deepest self is the water itself, the eternal stream, and hence there is no need for flailing or grasping. But instead I want to briefly hint at how attachment and non-attachment to form (form can be any physical, emotional or mental object) relates to current problems in American society. This includes our xenophobic jingoism and our cannibalistic form of corporate capitalism. Both of these things are corroding our current societal well-being as well as undercutting our future. They reflect outdated ways of thinking that are sadly straining to retain and build their influence over our people. They can only serve to increase our burden and our misery, both for us and for future generations.