In my adventure of sailing from Toronto ON to Halifax NS over the late summer and early fall of this year, there was a lot of sitting and waiting to see what life presented. This lead me to come up with the line, "A big part of sailing is waiting for parts and fair weather".
One manifestation was waiting to see what crewmates were drawn to the adventure/boat/myself. As a non-overly social fellow the shear number of crew manifesting over the course of the passage was a surprising to me. Another manifestation was sitting and waiting for good weather. Five days was spent in Port Hawkesbury, alone, waiting for wind gusts to fall below 65kms/hr.
Waiting to see what life sends you is a passive action on ones part. There is no 'doing' other than exercising patience. Waiting. One may do things while they are waiting, yet waiting is generally a passive action of its own.
This brings me to wonder if time can, actually, be waisted? We seem trained to feel that if we are not 'doing something' we are wasting time. Over the course of my passage to Halifax it seemed that inaction is sometimes the wiser and more productive choice than action.
Thought to share this thought which seemed triggered by your post.
You know my favorite philosopher, Alan Watts. He and Krishnamurti are at the base of my findings about life, our place in it and how to go about it.
Last week was another breakthrough. In a phone call, I tried to explain what I mean when I say "everything is one". You can hear that quite often nowadays - although for slightly different reasons. Just like a rose being this rose, or a rose, as Master Eckart had figured out so early (13th Century) - we have "A" life and "THIS" life.
In "A" life, nothing can be wasted. In "THIS" life however, our own perception of life, our outlook and point of view determine that we are "wasting time" - by doing (or engaging) in activities, or simply be waiting for something to happen, as we only live when something is happening. That is also a profoundly deep rabbit hole. Because it relegates "doing" over "non-doing". When we "do" "nothing", it can be only from a point of view that every moment in which we "do nothing" is a loss, a "waste of time". Which not only sounds immature, but also reveals one's opinion about the big mystery called "life'.
Now, when we are actually "forced" by life itself to "waste" some "time", there are two possible outcomes. One is the understanding that there is more to life than one's will about how it should be/or unfold. The second one is knowing, that everything is finely synchronized, finely adjusted to "work" together. This is where Alan Watts and Krishnamurti kick in. Both - in ever so slightly different approaches - convey the most important aspect of "wasting time", the ability to tell one apart from the other. There is a difference between wasting time and wasting time. When you are on a boat - waiting for the winds to enable you to leave the harbor - you are simply waiting one moment after the other for the weather to change. You are waiting, not wasting. It is this exact situation in the Universe that creates a lot of misunderstanding about what "wasting time" really means. The Chinese call this principle "Wu Wei". "Waste" does not occur in this setting. The mind is open, yet unoccupied by anything. A full sensationalist state of mind. What arises as a signal, as an impulse by the Universe - meets a mind that is capable to "jump in" and follow the "advise" the Universe is giving us. Without prejudice, without much thought, without a plan - synchronizing with the opening/opportunity to truly use the moment, to "carpe diem" and that is of course your waiting for the wind to pick you up. Like a stray through the vegetable garden where everything is talking to you without ever speaking. You can hear the water talking - without speaking. Wu Wei is a perfect match with sailing. Maybe that's why sailors are closer to the Universe than others. On the water - it is the water's way. A perfect environment to experience Wu Wei. Having always spent time on the water - no wind with a sail boat does not mean there is nothing to do. Sailing is one hand after the other. When practiced often enough, the turn comes smoothly with steady wind. The sailor is NOT thinking when he prepares for the turn. Turning has become second nature. This, "becoming second nature" is not limited to the practical aspects of the sea. No, it is also valid when you are anchored in the harbor. Here too, one hand after the other. Even when they are folded - the next hand is just a hand away. In quintessence, it is impossible to waste time - because it will always return something. Like your waiting on the boat is not really waiting - but being at the ready. Enjoying a Wu Wei moment, or maybe even a Wu Wei hour? Or a day?
Your mind reveals that you are already awakened to the fantastic intricacies of life. Silence is a major aide to get there. And the understanding that - even if it looks like a waste, even if it feels like a waste - nothing is ever wasted. If we do one thing - the opposite remains undone.
Much more has been discovered through patience than through activism. Activism cannot wait. The revolutionary act is waiting without wasting time.
Wishing you an unbelievably amazing time and "Mast und Schotbruch!".
Fantastic take! Thanks for guidance down the rabbit hole.
✌️😎
>Time should never be wasted, of course.
In my adventure of sailing from Toronto ON to Halifax NS over the late summer and early fall of this year, there was a lot of sitting and waiting to see what life presented. This lead me to come up with the line, "A big part of sailing is waiting for parts and fair weather".
One manifestation was waiting to see what crewmates were drawn to the adventure/boat/myself. As a non-overly social fellow the shear number of crew manifesting over the course of the passage was a surprising to me. Another manifestation was sitting and waiting for good weather. Five days was spent in Port Hawkesbury, alone, waiting for wind gusts to fall below 65kms/hr.
Waiting to see what life sends you is a passive action on ones part. There is no 'doing' other than exercising patience. Waiting. One may do things while they are waiting, yet waiting is generally a passive action of its own.
This brings me to wonder if time can, actually, be waisted? We seem trained to feel that if we are not 'doing something' we are wasting time. Over the course of my passage to Halifax it seemed that inaction is sometimes the wiser and more productive choice than action.
Thought to share this thought which seemed triggered by your post.
You know my favorite philosopher, Alan Watts. He and Krishnamurti are at the base of my findings about life, our place in it and how to go about it.
Last week was another breakthrough. In a phone call, I tried to explain what I mean when I say "everything is one". You can hear that quite often nowadays - although for slightly different reasons. Just like a rose being this rose, or a rose, as Master Eckart had figured out so early (13th Century) - we have "A" life and "THIS" life.
In "A" life, nothing can be wasted. In "THIS" life however, our own perception of life, our outlook and point of view determine that we are "wasting time" - by doing (or engaging) in activities, or simply be waiting for something to happen, as we only live when something is happening. That is also a profoundly deep rabbit hole. Because it relegates "doing" over "non-doing". When we "do" "nothing", it can be only from a point of view that every moment in which we "do nothing" is a loss, a "waste of time". Which not only sounds immature, but also reveals one's opinion about the big mystery called "life'.
Now, when we are actually "forced" by life itself to "waste" some "time", there are two possible outcomes. One is the understanding that there is more to life than one's will about how it should be/or unfold. The second one is knowing, that everything is finely synchronized, finely adjusted to "work" together. This is where Alan Watts and Krishnamurti kick in. Both - in ever so slightly different approaches - convey the most important aspect of "wasting time", the ability to tell one apart from the other. There is a difference between wasting time and wasting time. When you are on a boat - waiting for the winds to enable you to leave the harbor - you are simply waiting one moment after the other for the weather to change. You are waiting, not wasting. It is this exact situation in the Universe that creates a lot of misunderstanding about what "wasting time" really means. The Chinese call this principle "Wu Wei". "Waste" does not occur in this setting. The mind is open, yet unoccupied by anything. A full sensationalist state of mind. What arises as a signal, as an impulse by the Universe - meets a mind that is capable to "jump in" and follow the "advise" the Universe is giving us. Without prejudice, without much thought, without a plan - synchronizing with the opening/opportunity to truly use the moment, to "carpe diem" and that is of course your waiting for the wind to pick you up. Like a stray through the vegetable garden where everything is talking to you without ever speaking. You can hear the water talking - without speaking. Wu Wei is a perfect match with sailing. Maybe that's why sailors are closer to the Universe than others. On the water - it is the water's way. A perfect environment to experience Wu Wei. Having always spent time on the water - no wind with a sail boat does not mean there is nothing to do. Sailing is one hand after the other. When practiced often enough, the turn comes smoothly with steady wind. The sailor is NOT thinking when he prepares for the turn. Turning has become second nature. This, "becoming second nature" is not limited to the practical aspects of the sea. No, it is also valid when you are anchored in the harbor. Here too, one hand after the other. Even when they are folded - the next hand is just a hand away. In quintessence, it is impossible to waste time - because it will always return something. Like your waiting on the boat is not really waiting - but being at the ready. Enjoying a Wu Wei moment, or maybe even a Wu Wei hour? Or a day?
Your mind reveals that you are already awakened to the fantastic intricacies of life. Silence is a major aide to get there. And the understanding that - even if it looks like a waste, even if it feels like a waste - nothing is ever wasted. If we do one thing - the opposite remains undone.
Much more has been discovered through patience than through activism. Activism cannot wait. The revolutionary act is waiting without wasting time.
Wishing you an unbelievably amazing time and "Mast und Schotbruch!".