I am Enough
By Jo Campbell
Let me start by being clear that when I say “I am Enough” it is not meant as a positive-thinking mantra or even as Metta – although it could be. In this case I am using the phrase a little differently. And yet the difference may seem subtle to onlookers. “I am Enough”, in this context has little or nothing to do with how good I am or how effective my actions are. It is not a statement relating to any of my qualities, skills or previous experience. Nor does it deny any of these. ‘’I am Enough” is far greater than my actions or abilities, and yet it is also my actions and abilities – just exactly as they are.
Let me put it as a question, one that forms the basis of all mystical traditions.
“Who am ‘I’?” Or rather, “Who am I beyond my name and reputation?”
In Zen we sit quietly on a cushion, settle into our bodies, calm the mind by following the breath, and in one way or another, gradually drop this question into the very grounds of our being. “Who am I beyond my name?” Or, “What is this?” “And this?”
Let’s just assume for a moment, as an intellectual exercise (which Zen is not), that we are all part of an interconnected universe. And taking this a step further, can we see that as such we are not separate from this greater whole? We are the greater whole and the individual all at once, just as a note is both the note and the grand symphony, or a drop of water is the ocean. How can I not be enough when I’m part of the whole?
We can all probably agree that our actions have significance not just to ourselves but to the whole. But just let this thought settle for a moment into the body. “Our lives have significance to the whole.” What about, “Our life is the whole”? Can we truly experience this? Where does this sit in the body? What shifts as this settles?
Acknowledging that “I am the whole/ the whole is me,” gives me a sense of deep belonging, responsibility, reverence, and most importantly a deeply centered legitimacy in my efforts to protect this vast Self. In this way, my actions to ‘save all beings’ are also saving myself and vice versa. This is why we liken Ekodo to a martial art, and say that defending ecosystems and communities is ultimately self-defense, or “Self-defense.” It is also why it is said, “The whole world is medicine”.
“I am Enough” is a practice both on the cushion and off the cushion. “I am Enough” is the intersection between realizing our own true nature and realizing that nature needs us to stand up and express this part of the universe in compassionate action (i.e. not just sitting on the cushion). Saying “Enough!” is the whole expressing itself as any self-regulating system does given the chance. In this way, the sickness becomes the medicine.
So “I am Enough” is not about our capacity to act, it is about our legitimacy to act. It is our birthright to stand up and say “Enough” to protect the greater whole. The work of how we go about saying “Enough!” is a lifelong practice, engendering both wisdom and compassion. But it starts with our experiencing that we are fully legitimate, fully moved, and fully ‘enough’ to walk this path.
In short; ‘The Earth is my Witness’ and ‘’My Witness is the Earth”.
© Jo Campbell
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Let me put it as a question, one that forms the basis of all mystical traditions.
“Who am ‘I’?” Or rather, “Who am I beyond my name and reputation?”
In Zen we sit quietly on a cushion, settle into our bodies, calm the mind by following the breath, and in one way or another, gradually drop this question into the very grounds of our being. “Who am I beyond my name?” Or, “What is this?” “And this?”
Let’s just assume for a moment, as an intellectual exercise (which Zen is not), that we are all part of an interconnected universe. And taking this a step further, can we see that as such we are not separate from this greater whole? We are the greater whole and the individual all at once, just as a note is both the note and the grand symphony, or a drop of water is the ocean. How can I not be enough when I’m part of the whole?
We can all probably agree that our actions have significance not just to ourselves but to the whole. But just let this thought settle for a moment into the body. “Our lives have significance to the whole.” What about, “Our life is the whole”? Can we truly experience this? Where does this sit in the body? What shifts as this settles?
Acknowledging that “I am the whole/ the whole is me,” gives me a sense of deep belonging, responsibility, reverence, and most importantly a deeply centered legitimacy in my efforts to protect this vast Self. In this way, my actions to ‘save all beings’ are also saving myself and vice versa. This is why we liken Ekodo to a martial art, and say that defending ecosystems and communities is ultimately self-defense, or “Self-defense.” It is also why it is said, “The whole world is medicine”.
“I am Enough” is a practice both on the cushion and off the cushion. “I am Enough” is the intersection between realizing our own true nature and realizing that nature needs us to stand up and express this part of the universe in compassionate action (i.e. not just sitting on the cushion). Saying “Enough!” is the whole expressing itself as any self-regulating system does given the chance. In this way, the sickness becomes the medicine.
So “I am Enough” is not about our capacity to act, it is about our legitimacy to act. It is our birthright to stand up and say “Enough” to protect the greater whole. The work of how we go about saying “Enough!” is a lifelong practice, engendering both wisdom and compassion. But it starts with our experiencing that we are fully legitimate, fully moved, and fully ‘enough’ to walk this path.
In short; ‘The Earth is my Witness’ and ‘’My Witness is the Earth”.
© Jo Campbell
Back to Articles List