Is Goodness Invisible?

thinkBuddha has an interesting piece entitled The Invisibility of Goodness, where Will Buckingham posits that we have a natural tendency to notice "the bumps and the ruts and the knocks" because they tend to interrupt the normal flow of life, but that common acts of kindness or charity are often overlooked.

There's a lot of truth to that view. In examining my own mindfulness, it was apparent that it was quite easy to pick out instances where I wasn't exhibiting right thought or right action, but it was much more difficult to pinpoint specific acts of goodness because, as Will explains:

What we don’t notice are the everyday kindnesses, the moments of ease, the small acts of generosity. These things are not invisible to us because we are gloomy or ungrateful, but because they have kind of natural ease to them.

There's also the lack of a math component to living a life of goodness. You can't add or subtract based on whether a particular act was good or not, so as to keep a running total of where you stand. First of all, it doesn't work like that - and it would drive you insane if you attempted this approach. Secondly, that would entirely invalidate the premise of leading a good and mindful life, which is to act in a manner that is kind and generous while understanding how we're all connected in a myriad of ways.

So what do you think? Is goodness truly invisible, or are we just not looking for it?

Video: Learning from Everyone

Via The Art of Noncomformity, a short video that reinforces an interesting perspective. Rather than being critical, look for opportunities to learn something new from people and viewpoints with which you disagree.

Dharma Punx

The NY Times has an enlightening article on Dharma Punx, a Buddhism-based meditation organization that's part Sid Vicious and part Dalai Lama. If that seems incongruous to you, read on.

I was a bit of a punker in the early 80s, wrapped up in the music of the Sex Pistols, Dead Kennedys, Pork Dukes, Plasmatics, Generation X, and others, taking Texas road trips from Fort Hood to Austin to slam dance at Raul's. Punk was an outlet for aggression, angry chords and evil lyrics, and I couldn't have been in a more aggressive point in my life than when I was a member of Mother Green, the Killing Machine.

So I'm familiar with the pure punk methodology, which differs considerably from the identity that most of the college kids latched on to, both then and now.

Josh Korda, leader of the NYC group that is the article's focus, is a good example of the dichotomy: Perched on a ledge behind Mr. Korda, who was kneeling at the front, was a small white statue of a seated Buddha — with a mohawk. It is a curious combination; punk is typically seen as an expression of aggression, whereas Buddhism espouses compassion. But Mr. Korda and his friend Noah Levine, who started Dharma Punx, say both movements are rooted in dissatisfaction with the way things are, a desire to live in the present and a thirst for peace of mind.

Levine, himself a recovering heroin, crack, and alcohol addict who beat his demons through Buddhist meditation, began leading meditation sessions in his living room, in jails, and in studios in California, and created "Meditate and Destroy", with the underlying concept consisting of banishing dark thoughts.

F-bombs and salty language are generally taboo in most meditation groups, but not among the Dharma Punx crowd. What the sessions lack in politeness they make up for by honoring the basic tenets of Buddhism, most notably that happiness comes from within and is not created by external factors like material wealth, career success, or relationships. Being able to realize that certain thoughts can cause suffering, and working to replace them with thoughts and actions that do not, is something that Korda encourages. Korda continues to drive the message that there is “not a finite amount of joy in the world.”

Dharma Punx has been branching out to other locations in the country, and it's a noble effort. Decidedly not new-age, gritty and real, with a disdain for candles, Dharma Punx cuts through the trappings while getting down and dirty with mindfulness. God save the Queen.