So, while I was writing the book, I would go to work every night and as soon as I got bored, I would go, "What should happen next in my story?"
Now that I don't have a particular story to write, I just find myself going... hmmmm... well now I'm bored. and then I promptly fall asleep (which may or may not be due to the narcolepsy I might or might not be privy to.).
Because of this, I've gone back to contemplating Taoism and my role in the universe and how being a correctional officer fits into all of that.
To sum up, there is Yin and Yang. Yin is "negative" and Yang is "positive." They are largely relative and depend upon circumstances to understand in most cases. Now, the Yin Yang symbol is a circle, with the half white half black interior and litlte bits of white and black, you know what it looks like.
Now, the circle is special and misunderstood in Western culture. The traditional Chinese belief is that there are no opposites, just differing manifestations of a concept. For instance, hot and cold are not opposites, they are simply both a form of temperature. Big and small are not opposites, but forms of size.
So, with simple material examples, it's pretty clear cut. But what about concepts? Where do Justice and Crime lie? Where do Punishment and Righteousness lie? Where do Restriction and Freedom lie?
Now, part of my job as an officer is to restrict the activity of inmates. On my end, I am enforcing Justice. A Yang attribute. On the inmate's end, he is experiencing restriction. A Yin attribute. Since the Yin and Yang are present, there is harmony as the opposites complement eachother.
However, it is in our natural state to strive for our desires. Desires can be good or bad, yin or yang, depending I guess on the nature of the desire, and the means you use to achieve the end.
So what does it mean when an inmate strives for freedom? Suddenly, I am no longer enforcing Justice, but I'm imposing restriction, and he is striving for freedom, and then we've flipped sides. But wait, what if I'm still enforcing justice, a yang quality, and he is striving for freedom? Then we have to yang's and no yin! That creates conflict! Of the most universal proportions!
Now, another thing that throws a whole wrench into the equation: The I Ching states that the gua "Meng" is about education. Alfred Huang says on the matter, "...education, for example, should be used to lead the ignorant to the right path. Punishment should not be employed. A norm of proper behavior should be set up. It is important to be maganimous [sic] to docile minority tribes and to educate them in the way to establish harmonious families and help their descendants sustain their families."
So in one sense, simply administering punishment to people is not "steadfast and upright" as Huang would say. It is not the correct way.
So... what then? What solution is there for me to realistically strive for? What can I do as a person to improve the live's of those that I interact with, and at the same time bring harmony to myself?
There are many officers that I work with that deliberately harden themselves, cut off their empathic response to those around them simply because they have committed a crime. They are completely... lifeless and downright despicable sometimes. It's like, they can't handle the possibility of actually having concern for other people, so they become total assholes.
Now, for me, getting too involved hasn't been a problem, and I doubt it will be. I simply treat the people like human beings and give them what they are allowed to have and no more. However, this leads to me being complacent, as I found last night as a person was half-way attacked not two feet away from me last night. She wasn't hurt, but I froze up, completely locked out of what I should do and how I should react. Honestly, I was in the perfect position to take him down and cuff him (and it was perfectly justified.), but I didn't even think about it until after he took off running.
That was also the first time... I think ever that I've had such an adrenaline rush.
So, to review: Yin Yang and adrenaline. Connected?
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6 comments:
you said "But wait, what if I'm still enforcing justice, a yang quality, and he is striving for freedom? Then we have to yang's and no yin! That creates conflict! Of the most universal proportions!"
I think that perhaps you're disregarding relativity. I'm not trying to engage in a debate on relativity as an institution, but I wish to say that no philosophy is without it's faults. Yin and Yang don't apply to western situations the way they apply to eastern situations. I think that trying to apply that philosophy to western justice is like trying to apply the Catholic system of confession to the Muslim of justice for theft. In Afghanistan a person can be stoned for adultery, in Orthodox Mormon Communities, Men can have multiple wives. Many people would consider sleeping with two women, especially if married to one, adultery. . . All I mean to point out, is that these religions, philosophies and opinions are not necessarily interchangeable. I don't think a person can hold themselves responsible for one systems customs or beliefs unless they devote themselves wholeheartedly to that philosophy. Maybe you can't be a taoist and a prison guard. You certainly can't be a taoist and cuff people on the street. I prefer existentialism.
keep writing. You don't need an event to be a writer, you need an ethic.
lest you strat to feel as if you have closed off your emotions, just remember the back hair waxing. Problem solved.
"Yin and Yang don't apply to western situations the way they apply to eastern situations."
You're right. I've overlooked this. After thinking about it, it's kinda like trying to learn to play the guitar with a trumpet method book. The only similarity is that the instruments both make music, but the methodology is so completely different that you won't get anywhere with that book. Always new ways to think about things.
I will say though, that when people ask me what religion I am (which has happened a lot recently, at work) I always say, "I'm nothing in particular, but I guess you could say I'm most like a Taoist." and then I have to go on for twenty minutes about what Taoism is since no one knows. I realize that it isn't right for me to be a renunciant in a Shaolin Temple right now, but the Tao Te Ching says I should serve no master and live a life of inaction. Well, then I guess I'm not really a Taoist, but I do believe in a lot of the ideas. I do prefer this way though, because that means I'm free to pick and choose what I believe in and what I disagree with, and then from there, I'm merely expressing myself, rather than adhering to a strict set of values. Walt Whitman once said, "Re-examine all that you have been told... dismiss that which insults your soul."
All of that aside, I would comment on existentialism, except the one person I've ever tried to discuss it with was a raging douchebag, effectively killing my curiosity in the concept.
too bad about douchebags. Especially the raging ones. Spraying vinegar all over the place. Existentialism is ok, especially for young men. Pick up a copy of The Stranger by Camus, if you haven't already read it. It'll take you a day at most. Even better, one of my favorite stories, The Trial by Kafka.
This is what I meant about thinking that my comment would be pointless by the time I got to the end of the entry, because by the time I finished the whole thing I was like... wow that is really interesting and already applied to life and... I can't really answer the question.
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