Life, it appears can be a seemingly infinite series of paradoxes that we confront both in ourselves and in everything and everyone we confront in life. So, in the womb, during birth, after birth, toddlerhood, learning to speak our parents languages, dealing with making and keeping friends, all the stages of life from conception to apparently passing on are paradoxes. How we deal with all these paradoxes decides who we are and what kind of life we will have in the interim.
Often, the first stage of the paradox is confusion or horror. In otherwords, "This wasn't in the instructions I was given!" But that is because there are some things (most things) that only by experiencing them can you actually make any sense of at all. So, even if you try to teach someone about these things before hand all you will get is blank stares because no one will believe you are want to believe you that this is actually what might happen to them. But, if one learns to laugh at these paradoxes because in the end the Universe and life is sort of a serious joke after all, then enlightenment can be attained in regard to everything. For, in the end, life can be understood, maybe just not in the way you initially expect. That is one reason why "ZEN" in some ways is so important a concept" like what is a Zen Koan example? "What is the sound of one hand clapping?" The mind says what does that mean? One hand cannot clap. That is the point. Struggling with an impossible concept is a paradox and paradoxes tend to bring enlightenment when we laugh at the impossible concept and move beyond it with happiness and laughter. In the end it doesn't really matter how serious the concept is, if you can't move beyond it somehow you will get stuck. And getting stuck has to be met with with laughter internal or external to move beyond the paradox whatever it is.
I just met another paradox. My wife wanted to use the bathroom and I was there typing this at 5:30 in the morning. I went into the bedroom to write more and she returned and told me to turn the light of my laptop off. So, I went back into the bathroom. I could get angry with my wife but because I am old and wise it only brings a smile to my face. Another paradox of life has been reached and met with success and laughter! How many million more little and big paradoxes will we face? And will we face these paradoxes with dread and horror or will we meet all these paradoxes with a smile and laughter knowing the universe is just making us a better person more useful to ourselves and to all life in the universe?
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