Conceptualizing The Transcendent

Even though the transcendent is non-conceptual, we try to conceptualize it anyway. Depending on the conceptual structures we try to fit it in, it comes out sounding different.

We could think of the transcendent like the light from a candle...

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: either on or off. If we think of it this way, then it seems are either trapped in samsara or liberated into nirvana -- one or the other. The idea of enlightenment is conceptually structured this way, as a sudden transition from one opposite to another.

Practice based on the idea of enlightenment is likely to focus on creating the conditions under which this sudden shift can occur. It might, for example, involve contemplation of paradoxes which break down our ability to easy categorize and separate, allowing a sudden flash of non-conceptual insight.

Zen calls it the gate-less gate: we have to step from one side of the gate to the other (conceptual opposites) in order to realize that there is no gate (the transcendent "perspective.")

We could think of the transcendent like a radio with a volume knob: sometimes quiet and sometimes loud, depending on where we set the knob. If we think of it this way, then it seems that we can escape samsara by degrees, gradually progressing toward nirvana. The idea of awakening is conceptually structured this way, as motion along a continuous spectrum.

Practice based on the idea of awakening is likely to focus on a series of practice that reveal progressively deeper and deeper insights that build on each other. Alternately (or perhaps concurrently), it might focus on dissolving, rather than smashing, the barriers to the transcendent.

Chogyam Trungpa divides the journey into three sequential stages: hinayana, mahayana, and vajrayana. Broadly speaking, the hinayana stage involves realizing the nature of mind, the mahayana stage involves cultivating compassion, and the vajrayana stage involves embodying insight and wisdom in everyday activity.

We could think of the transcendent like a cut and polished gemstone: many faceted, though each facet shines with the same light, no matter the angle. If we think of it this way, then it seems that there are many paths and many destinations, each with the same essential nature. They are both one and many; they are different, yet the same. The ideas of self-actualization and self-realization are conceptually structured this way, as the embodiment of a panoply of diverse selves that are still essentially similar.

Practice based on this idea of unity-in-diversity is likely to focus on choosing the right practices for an individual, rather than following the universally right or best way. It often involves using multiple practices in parallel -- meditation, bodywork, and psychotherapy, for example.

This sort of approach is advocated in Integral Life Practice, which encourages one to individually select practices that address four facets of your being: body, mind, spirit, and shadow.

These three approaches represent pictures of the transcendent from blue, orange, and green viewpoints. How would yellow see it -- and why?