Zen and the Art of the Traffic Jam
By John Dunbar 25 September 2008 05:14:00
I wanted to share a recent traffic related experience with readers (all 3 of you). What does this have to do with yoga you say? Well, just stick with it and you will soon see. Recently I was riding with a friend and her relatives in the family car in Bangkok. As it turned out it was rush hour, and for those who have not experienced this time of day in this Asian metropolis, it is something that can really shock you.
I have been in traffic jams in some major cities in Canada and the United States, especially the infamous ones in and around Los Angeles, but nothing compares to Bangkok. Even in the worst case scenario on an L. A. freeway you are at least moving a little, perhaps inching along, but at least moving. In Bangkok, things just come to a virtual standstill. Usually not due to an accident, but more to the sheer volume of traffic that has to move through a city that really was not designed to deal with the rapid growth it undergoes.
The major intersections are where the most serious traffic issues begin. The main factor is the traffic lights. These intersections have traffic police to operate the signals during rush hour. They wield ultimate control from their little air-conditioned booths tucked into a corner of the intersection.
A long traffic light in America might run, say, 45 seconds. That would be close to the maximum before commuters begin to get frustrated. I imagine someone is out there performing tests on subjects to see where the average office worker, heading home after a long day of cubicle life, starts to lose it. Sort of a ‘road rage' monitor. Well in Bangkok we are dealing with a totally different equation. At one particularly busy intersection I decided to time the light. I realize the following figure may be hard to believe, but I guarantee that this is not an exaggeration. Thirteen minutes!!! Did you just read that - 13 minutes! Not seconds but minutes - that is 780 seconds! Well if that had been in L.A. the potential bloodshed could have been horrific. This enters an entire new level of road rage, something more like road carnage!
Suddenly I had this vision of my father sitting at the light, his stress level rising as every second ticked by; the scar tissue from his triple bypass beginning to strain as my mother repeated her mantra of "Now dear, just relax... there is no need to beep the horn so much... getting angry isn't going to make it any better... etc. etc."
Since I like to think of myself as kind of an amateur sociologist I decided some research had to be done into why the people remained so calm in their cars waiting for these long lights. I first looked at my fellow car passengers and then at the surrounding vehicles. I scanned for any sign of agitation, anger or frustration but found none. Everyone appeared relaxed, just chilling in their cars. Then I looked a little closer and actually saw calm on their faces. When I asked my friend and her family what they were thinking about while sitting waiting for the light to change, they all replied, "Nothing really."
In Thailand there are two main forms of meditation; sitting meditation (nan samatii) and walking meditation (duan samatii). Perhaps in Bangkok traffic jams a third form has developed---car meditation (rote samatii). This is a way of just turning your mind off to your surroundings until the car in front of you begins to move. You are present, your eyes are open but your mind is calm and your thoughts are few. I assume acceptance plays a large role in it as well and Thais are professionals at acceptance. They seem to accept whatever hand they were dealt at that moment. No doubt a large part of this results from their Buddhist heritage. But I have also been in predominately Buddhist countries where 13 minute traffic lights would never be tolerated. So there is this very special part of Thais that allows them to somehow peacefully accept their situation, and whatever form of meditation they may be practicing just helps them move through it.
So to drivers, passengers and commuters everywhere - let's all try and practice a little vehicular meditation when we are stuck at a long light or in a traffic jam. Relax your thoughts, breath deeply with your diaphragm and just accept the situation for what it is. Why not give it a try, it can't be any worse than getting upset and frustrated, and it may cut down on future cardiologist bills!
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