Twitter isn't for Buddhists

I'm now about 32 days into a state of (almost) silence and deafness on Twitter. One thing I'm particularly reminded of is the Buddhist concept of "monkey-mind", and how social media entities such as Twitter and StumbleUpon rely upon and potentially exacerbate this state of mind.

For those who haven't flirted with Buddhism on occasion (or more), Monkey-Mind is a metaphor for "the random, uncontrollable movements of the monkey symbolise the waywardness of the native human mind before it achieves a composure which only Buddhist discipline can effect.". It's a bad thing, in other words. It points to the restless, magpie-like tendency of some people to reach for the next shiny thing. Twitter is all about the next shiny thing - be it a bon mot, a celebrity's indiscretion, the glamour of being retweeted by a celebrity or the repeated opportunity to bond with a group of like-minded friends.

Buddhism suggests that perhaps it would be better to be content without a constant stream of shininess. Another monkey metaphor comes in handy here - that of the monkey trap. You stick a treat in a box that a monkey can stick it's hand into but can not pull the treat out of with the treat in it's grasp. The monkey doesn't let go, because it wants the treat and doesn't realise it's trapped until it let's go. Buddhism is all about letting go of that which is temporary and alluring in the material world and focusing on the bliss of the calm soul.

At the moment, I like shiny. And I like shining. I like the passion I get from caring about this temporary and alluring universe that I find myself in. It's nice to be reminded that there are other paths though.