Buddhism and the Nine-fold Path: Right Freedom…
Too much freedom can sometimes work against us. And that’s the conundrum, of course, because we’re led to believe that freedom is something of the be-all and end-all of life in this world. But it’s not, not really. It’s most important in opposition to its opposite, i.e. prison, of the heart and of the mind. That’s the importance of freedom, the escape from prison. Too much freedom is not good, though. It’s chaos, with a total lack of control. As always, the truth lies somewhere in the middle.
That’s the Middle Path, of course, that nickel-and-dime philosophy that’s almost always right, without having to even think much about it. That’s the beauty of such simple math. Avoid extremes, and you’ll usually be right. If that means that you’re drinking lukewarm coffee, instead of the really hot stuff or the really cold, then so be it. Lukewarm coffee ain’t bad, not bad at all. If that means that you won’t burn your little fingers, then count your blessings. Ditto on the brain freeze. Do you really like that feeling so much, anyway?
But this is one of the most important parts of Buddhism, even if it’s not as sexy as the basic mindfulness of breathing in and breathing out. We have work to do, too, as adults we do, many of us householders and addicted to the haze and daze of life on this planet. We can’t all be monks. Some of us have to do the work so that the monks will have something to eat. That’s you and me, brother and sister, and we need some help. That’s where the Middle Path comes in, as helpful as Hegel’s dialectic as it is the Buddha’s spiritual path between luxury and lack.
That means that there is always a synthesis, a path forward, between the opposite poles of a dialectic, i.e. a dialog, a discussion, or a decision. And it never stops, like the evolution of species or consciousness. If I don’t know whether to plant early, for maximum growing season, or later, to avoid the heaviest rains, then I’ll split the difference, and keep a watchful eye on the skies. It’s almost like breath. The skies are getting cloudier now, and I know that is information that I can use. And I know that it usually occurs when the days and night are most equal. The sun tells me that when it sets upon the same hill at the same time every year. That’s science. That’s mindfulness. That’s Buddhism.
streaming consciousness... 
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