goals vs no goals in spiritual practice

At the beginning and through the initial stages of our practice the goal of practice, and by this I mean activities such as sitting meditation practice, is to discover and gradually establish a condition of ease in body and mind.

As we progress on the path, though, goals actually become an obstacle. This is what Nan-yueh meant when he said that sitting in meditation in order to become a Buddha is like polishing roof tiles in order to make a mirror.

As we get into regular practice we need to forget about what you think meditation is or how you think it should be done. Most definitely let go of any expectations of what the experience should be like. Let it all go and just sit with a “beginner’s mind.”

One of the most illustrative statements about this was made by Alan Watts. He said in a talk in Sausalito in the late 1960’s:

“We could say that meditation doesn’t have a reason or doesn’t have a purpose. In this respect it’s unlike almost all other things we do except perhaps making music and dancing. When we make music we don’t do it in order to reach a certain point, such as the end of the composition. If that were the purpose of music then obviously the fastest players would be the best. Also, when we are dancing we are not aiming to arrive at a particular place on the floor as in a journey. When we dance, the journey itself is the point, as when we play music the playing itself is the point. And exactly the same thing is true in meditation. Meditation is the discovery that the point of life is always arrived at in the immediate moment.”

There is no “correct” experience. There are no mistakes in meditation. If there is a sense of strain or struggle, it’s just a sign of effort and the solution is to simply to let it go.

All well and good, until we find ourselves involved in more and more subtle forms of struggle that originate in movements below the level of our awareness. Again, let it go, realize that you can’t do anything about these. You may have a glimpse of an understanding that you never could and never will be able to “do” anything about this!

Eventually we all have to get to the place where we see more and more clearly that seeking liberation (or enlightenment, or just plain relief) is the most effective way to block liberation. The seeking itself is the problem. Seeking implies that you don’t already have what you are seeking for. It is an expression of want or need. Now we enter a phase or stage where we need rely on trust.

You begin to open up to the possibility of dropping the idea of a journey towards someplace you’ll never get to. You’ll never get there simply because you are already there. You don’t fully appreciate this because “you” are the problem. Let “you” drop out of the picture and it is instantly revealed that it is and has always been nothing but timeless peace and happiness.

This is a mind-blower. It is intended to be one. If your mind isn’t blown by this, you haven’t heard it. That’s fine. If you hear it or not is really not in your control anyway. Don’t make a problem out of it.