Friday, April 10, 2026

 

The Spirals of Elsewhere, 40th Day of Spring, 526 M.E. (Electra): To put an end to greed, Zen Master Dogen advised, we have to depart from the egocentric self. In order to depart from the egocentric self, we need to realize the impermanence of all things. 

To depart from the egocentric self is to abandon ego-attachment, the assumption that there is a separate self that exists in the body or mind, and thinking it to be substantial and eternal. This is a fundamental delusion, Dogen advised. 

To practice egolessness and see the impermanence of all existence is to live without the greedy desires that seek fame and profit.

Greed is an extreme form of desire, and the Buddha's primary teaching is that suffering arises from our desires. Hence, it makes sense that greed - extreme desire - will give rise to extreme suffering. Putting an end to greed by recognizing the impermanence of all things, including the egocentric self, obviously puts an end to suffering.  

When I look at the Stable Genius, I see a man consumed with greed, with  an undying lust for more money, more gold, more power, more attention. I see a man suffering and suffering greatly, and his pain is eating his bloated body and destroying his mind, causing him to fly into fits of rage and anger with vows of retribution and revenge. He's starting wars, both cultural and social, as well as actual wars, invasions of other countries. 

The "man who has everything" and can't seem to get enough of anything. 

I'd feel sorry for him and I might on some level, but his greed, hate, and delusion are destroying this country in which I live and the whole world at large. I don't see the Stable Genius departing from egocentric self or recognizing the impermanence of all things in his lifetime, so the happiest outcome for him is probably for his lifetime to end. All that suffering, for him and the world, will be over. An end to his existence is the kindest thing I can wish upon the Stable Genius.      

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