Skip to content

A Zen’s-Eye View: Drive all blames into one

We live in a society and a world filled with blames and complaints of all kinds. When something goes wrong — and something always goes wrong — we look for something or someone to blame. Liberals blame the Conservatives; the Conservatives blame the Liberals. Environmentalists blame mining and industry. Our court system is built on blaming and punishing. In domestic squabbles wives blame their husbands; husbands blame their wives.

We live in a society and a world filled with blames and complaints of all kinds. When something goes wrong — and something always goes wrong — we look for something or someone to blame. Liberals blame the Conservatives; the Conservatives blame the Liberals. Environmentalists blame mining and industry. Our court system is built on blaming and punishing. In domestic squabbles wives blame their husbands; husbands blame their wives. And if we can’t find someone specific to blame for the troubles we face, we choose someone willy-nilly and create a scapegoat.

It is true that if we are trying to solve a problem, we need to uncover its source, to understand who or what is responsible. That is just practical, and gives us a way to correct the problem. But far too often, our attempt to find someone to blame is not all that straightforward, and not very helpful, either. Think of all the intractable seemingly never-ending conflicts in the world. For many with no solution in sight and each side convinced that they are right. “You are to blame!” “No, it’s your entire fault!” And it goes on and on. On any given day we can observe this habit of blaming on the playground, in families, in the workplace. The blaming game is continuous. It has a life of its own and leads nowhere.

Conveniently, blaming others allows us to avoid looking into our own role in the problems and conflicts we encounter. We look outward, but we do not look within. And even in looking outward, once we have assigned the blame, we go no further. We slap our hands together as if we can remove the dust of the world and imagine that we have got to the root of the problem. We imagine that if so and so would stop doing this or that, the problem will go away. Satisfied that we are off the hook and someone else is at fault, we fail to identify action that we ourselves can take to resolve harmful issues.

This slogan is quite radical. Instead of blaming others, we look inward for the cause of a problem. Even if it is not our fault, we take the blame. At least, then, the blaming game is over, and we can begin to look for a solution. Of course, it is important to distinguish this practice from neurotic self-blaming or regretful fixation on your own mistakes. This slogan is not an invitation to wallow in self-blame. Nor does it imply that we should not point out wrongdoing or blow the whistle on corruption. When we see harm being done it is important to speak out. But at the personal level, we simply notice the urge to blame others and reverse it.

Practice suggestion: For the next two weeks, pay attention to how blaming arises in you, and what patterns it takes. See what happens when you take on the blame yourself. Notice what changes in your own experience and in what you observe around you.

This column is a long series of short essays exploring the meaning of the Lojong Slogans. It is inspired by the work of Judy Lief.

Kuya Minogue is the resident teacher at Creston’s ZenWords Zen Centre. For more information, she can be reached at 250-428-3390.