It was creepy. NOTHING
had been showing up everywhere: all over FaceBook posts, in films, in song
lyrics, even on a popular TV show.
NOTHING was inescapable! So I
started investigating NOTHING—from lectures by Alan Watts to scientists like
Carl Sagan, Einstein and Nassim Haramein; from spiritual leaders such as Osho
to Krishnamurti; I even peaked at the existentialists and other
philosophers—which all accumulated into the constant thread of
non-duality: Nothing is Everything.
NOTHING was associated with EVERYTHING, literally-- from Zen
mind-less bliss (the ultimate state of enlightenment) to the start of creation
(Big Bang) to dark matter and black holes to limitless potential to death and
depression. Thus my question was, “So
what? WTF am I supposed to do with
THIS? How am I supposed to apply
NOTHINGNESS to my life?”
Well, as you can guess, the answer was obvious: Do NOTHING. All of a sudden I had plenty of opportunities
to test this new and very foreign response to life: Threatened with
eviction? Do NOTHING. (Guess what?! It worked itself out!) Angry friend?
Do NOTHING: her anger has NOTHING to do with me, she is just
projecting! Family, friends caught up in
their own dramas? Do NOTHING. They are
on their own path, learning their own lessons through their own experiences and
at their own paces. Seeking new
work? Do NOTHING. Work and money came to me!
I started applying NOTHING to everything and the results
were celebratory! Let’s not forget that
several masters throughout the ages, from Lao Tzu to Jesus to John Lennon (“Let
it be”), have been saying this for centuries.
I finally got it! Literally, do
NOTHING. Try it! For
the sake of experiment: Next challenge,
try to do NOTHING! See what happens,
when you allow everything to take care of itself! I suspect the results are going to stun you!
So what did I do
while I was busy doing NOTHING?
Well, lots of dancing around my house and in public; I read LOTS of
books; watched a lot of films; visited with friends; lots of painting and
writing; chatted to my grandparents on the phone; went on a 4-month “Get Goofy
Road Trip” from Chico to LA and back; spent a month in Alabama; went to 2 music
festivals; cooked my favorite meals; did Osho zen readings for friends and
strangers; got a pedicure and a haircut—basically, having a DAMN good
time. Was it really THIS simple? Shall I refer to Occam’s Razor?
NOTHING reminds me that I really KNOW NOTHING! I have no idea what is going to happen in the
next minute, much less a month or year from now! The Buddhists teach, be attached to
NO-THING. NOTHING lasts forever…ha!
Ha! So ultimately, my BIG lesson was
surrender, letting go and as Osho said, “All
you can do now is to relax into this no-thingness...fall into this silence
between the words...watch this gap between the outgoing and incoming breath.
And treasure each empty moment of the experience. Something sacred is about to
be born.”
Live your bliss,
The Goofy Guru
