On the way into work this morning, I was listening to the 43rd episode of the Dharma Podcast and was struck by Beate Stolte-Overtheil’s mention of graffiti near a busy road that read, “This is not traffic.  You are the traffic.”  Coincidentally, I was sitting in traffic at the time (er, I was being traffic at the time).

This simple statement really sums up the idea of taking responsibility for the moment, accepting the role that you play in shaping the way the world is.  We might want to blame the traffic on all those other drivers, but that traffic wouldn’t exist without each individual driver being there, just like a world of violence wouldn’t exist if not for the collaboration of those perpetrating the violence, those remaining silent about the violence, and those benefiting from the violence.

Of course, maybe this graffiti was just making a statement about the environmental impact of cars, but hey, we have us to thank for that, too.

Brad Warner directs us to this interview with David Chadwick (Crooked Cucumber):

Brad points out a section that snapped me to attention (emphasis mine):

And in the interview Chadwick answers a question I always hear, which is how do you get motivated to do Zazen practice. The answer, which Chadwick poses a bit more politely than I’m about to, is fuck motivation, just practice. He compares it to writing, which I can relate to. Any writer knows that if you only write when you’re specifically motivated to do so you won’t produce anything worthwhile. You just gotta sit down and do it. Same with Zazen. You set a time each day for Zazen and you do it then, whether you want to do it or not, whether it feels like you think it should or not. You just get down and do it.

See, I’ve been dealing with this exact thing recently. I’m been looking for motivation not only to sit zazen but to work on the book that I’m writing. Looking for this internal motivation to do whatever needs to be done really has nothing to do with motivation, it’s all about finding an excuse not to do something. The weird thing is, that something can be something you really want to do, but may be avoiding for any number of reasons (”I don’t deserve to spend time doing that,” “I have to deal with _____ first,” fear of failure, etc.).

So, there you go. Just practice. Just write. Just avoid quoting Nike slogans (”Just (get underpaid children in Vietnam to) Do It (for you)”).

(One question about the video, though: what’s with the cheesy set?)