Learning to be Intolerant

Acceptance is a big deal in Buddhist circles.  We're told that we must accept suffering, accept mistreatment, accept the opinions of others.

We're told to be like the ocean, which accepts all things and rejects nothing.  Much of this thinking is rooted in a slavish dependence on the absolute.  

This is especially true in Zen circles where the conventional world is painted as less than, and we're told all things are resolved in the unborn mind.

This puts practitioners in a tough spot because right and wrong clearly exist.  2+2 = 4, not 5.  But if we care too deeply for the truth, if we "have preferences" then that's seen as proof of an unenlightened mind.

I struggled with this contradiction for many years, wondering how I was supposed to practice Buddhism without practicing Buddhism.

Then I studied the life and teachings of the historical Buddha, putting aside the words of Western "masters", and I noticed something interesting.

The Buddha never taught acceptance.

Quite the opposite, he cut the world in half.  He named each tenet of the Noble Eightfold Path as "right" (e.g. right speech, right action, right livelihood, etc.) and contrasted them with wrong speech, wrong action, wrong livelihood, etc.

Morality was important to Buddha; the end of suffering was important to Buddha; acceptance... not so much.  If we are to live in this world, if we are to find a way out of suffering, we must stop practicing acceptance.

We must hold tightly to the Noble Eightfold Path and turn our back on things that aren't in keeping with it.  More than that, we must judge others by that same standard. 

Like the Buddha, we must learn to be intolerant.

For me, this lesson is reinforced each time I do work on my homestead.  When I first moved to this property, I had a "live and let live" relationship with the plant life.  But I learned that refusing to pull weeds from my garden beds stopped the vegetables from growing.

I tried to let nature take over in areas that couldn't be seen from the road.  But my refusal to clear brush allowed poison ivy to choke out medicinal plants.

So, I did research. I learned what plants to tolerate and what plants to avoid.

Then I bought a scythe, and I became death, the destroyer of worlds.  I swung my blade fearlessly and without mercy.  I cleared large swathes of land; being selective in what plants I allowed to see another day.

The effect was immediate.  Tangled vines were replaced with fruit trees and noxious weeds were replaced with flowers.   

In my vegetable garden, the crops grew rapidly towards the sun.  Unwanted plants that competed with them were either yanked out by the roots or buried in piles of mulch.

My intolerance allowed my land to flourish.

Similarly, when we are intolerant of immoral behavior, our lives begin to flourish.  This doesn't mean that we never make mistakes.  There will always be weeds in the garden.  

However, it does mean that we take note of our missteps, and we strive to do better in the future.  Also, we view the actions of others through the lens of the Noble Eightfold Path.  

If their behavior is not in-keeping with the Dharma, it is wise to separate from them.  If separation isn't possible, we must limit our interactions; ensuring that we aren't harmed by their bad behavior.

In the end, our lives function like a garden.  We must learn when and how to be intolerant for our garden to grow.

Namu Amida Butsu

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