I Do

Now how simple is this.

There is motivation to do things. How does this change for the enlightened?

Now Master Hsing Yun said that "the Bodhi mind is not a rocking chair" 

And a common picture of Buddha at his enlightenment under the Bodhi tree is :

And its common to think that on enlightenment when the cares of the world fall away we just lie back and enjoy the bliss. Which I'm beginning to wonder is actually the experience of body giving up grasping. It is not "me" who is in bliss, but awareness becomes freed from the stress of a confused body gripping onto things it thinks are essential for its existence.

Once freed it is true that the body and the whole of existence become free from stress and suffering. But it is not "me "that becomes free, instead it is the awareness of the body and mind constantly being hassled that stops.

So what becomes of the "I DO"?

There is an "I AM" which becomes purified of fixation of the near world and instead of being filled with a confused narrow "I" being limited to the body and mind it becomes freed and able to be an unlimited I.

Well in the same way that the "I AM" sneaks away from the shadow of a particular body and mind, so the "I DO" sneaks away from being a slave to just this body and mind.

Fully realised we do not abandon this body and mind as Jesus is sometimes considered to have done. But, we see it in the full context of the world around it and we operate on that world and not just on the body and mind.

What is the real goal of the "I DO?" Well when we are focused on ourselves it is to solve problems and sufferings. When hungry or bored the "I DO" is motivated to find relief. For the creative person something inside needs to be expressed and the "I DO" step up to fulfil this. As we let go of this particular body and mind the "I DO" cam now start to deal with suffering in a broader sense. We are able to attend to other people's needs more easily and find less conflict with our own. Ultimately once the body and mind let go and we are freed to see the whole view our actions are to attend to suffering everywhere.

Portrayed as Guan Yin with a foot stepped down ready to attend to suffering anywhere. This is the same "I DO" as anyone, but this is not hassled by a clinging body and mind that grasps at all the attention and demands its suffering fills the whole world.