IMAGINE
“Vision without action is merely a dream. Action without vision just passes the time. Vision with action can change the world.”
(James Christensen, The Art of James Christensen: A Journey of the Imagination)
One of the things that has occurred to me in the process of recovering from surgery is a need for some kind of creative stimulation, something engrossing that can help pass the time I’d normally be spending in more outgoing, physical activities. Sadly, I’ve spent too much of this precious “down time” binge-watching Jack Ryan, and then trying to erase that gratuitious violence with episodes of “Young Sheldon” and/or “Frasier” reruns.
I am well aware how toxic it can be to feed my imagination such disturbing images as often witnessed on TV, or described in the books I’m reading. (NB Thanks to “Once Upon a Time in Hollywood” I now scrupulously read reviews and download samples/trailers before committing to any book or film that might give me nightmares for weeks). This strategy is not a case of sticking my head in the sand and avoiding anything controversial or unsettling. Rather it’s a matter of using my inner resources, in this case my imagination, to the best possible advantage.
As to cultivating imagination, I once gave a workshop in which I asked participants to write down any pressing issue, obstacle or problem they’d brought with them to the workshop. Then, after a time of spiritual practice or quiet reflection, I posed the question: “If it didn’t have to be this way, how else could it be?” (This is also useful in dealing with problematic habits like procrastination — which is why I’m “cramming” to finish this blog before midnight on Monday). The point is, we often create a self-fulfilling prophesy by telling ourselves why things have to remain the same: “I can’t change X,Y,Z because of A,B,C!”
In some cases this is indisputably true. But not all. And probably not even most of the situations in which we feel stymied and/or incomplete. If we genuinely wish to make changes in our lives, (vs blaming and complaining) we need to at least suspend this belief about how things have to be, and recruit two of our most powerful tools: the power of choice and the power of imagination. Rather than accepting something as a necessary evil, say watching the evening news, I can choose to engage in any number of more constructive activities that will better prepare me for a peaceful night’s sleep. Researchers tell us that what we see or hear just prior to bed is apt to both seed our dreams and influence the next day’s mood.
Despite having created some helpful bedtime routines, and starting my day with practices designed for balance and equanimity, I am not impervious to the bombardment of information that Swami Radha describes below, in Kundalini Yoga for the West;
“The complexity of life has become such that one becomes either panicky or lethargic. In the latter case, the attitude of “It doesn’t matter anyway” may act as a key sentence in the mind and, through its unaware repetition, may achieve an almost hypnotic effect. Once settled in the mind, it is kept alive by emotions that can be both desperate and depressive. If violence is not one’s nature, resignation to life seems the only way. The natural life rhythm simply cannot absorb the constant impact of news, television and urban living, combined with the many power struggles that are outside the domain of an individual’s control.”
I refuse to buckle to either hypnotic suggestion or desperation/depression. Instead, I have begun a practice of listing what is currently disturbing me, and, after quiet reflection, asking myself how else it could be. When I hear stories of cruelty, corruption, hatred or greed I enlist the opposite of these behaviors, thus substituting gentleness for cruelty, honesty for corruption, loving kindness for hatred, and generosity for greed. Every day presents myriad opportunities to embody these and many more positive qualities. As Swami Radha would say:
“It’s up to each of us to develop a balanced, healthy diet for the imagination, a taste for quality and compassion, that can then manifest and help create the kind of world we want to live in.”
The power of choice emboldens me to co-create the change I wish to see in the world today. Besides, I can still eat popcorn without having to watch TV or movies…