Comments on: Clarification?

By: sstormc

sstormc — Sun, 03 Apr 2011 21:16:51 +0000

“Isness is.” Hmmm. My English teacher mind wants to reject that one, but I love it. Make a noun out of “is”. Maybe another would be “isiosity”? “isability”? Okay, I’ll be serious. I think what struck me most reading this entry is that yes, we humans have always found ways to explain and validate. And then we all develop a faith in these explanations. This was difficult for me to deal with when I was younger because I wanted someone to tell me what was “right” and “true”. I wanted to be close to God, but I wasn’t raised to be one religion or another. When I moved to the bible belt, where everyone is defined by where they go to church, I didn’t know where I belonged. Which is the “right” church? Have you ever noticed that they all think they are the right one? And really, beyond that…which is the “right” religion? The “right” god? I wanted someone to tell me. Over the years, I think the answer has come to me…there is no right religion, no right god. God is in us, with us, a part of us, and plays a part in every religion where there is love. I’ve left religion behind and moved on to spirituality. I am not a religious person, but a spiritual one. I noticed, Paul, on your list of books, you mentioned Many Lives, Many Masters. One of my favorites! I recommend it to those of you who haven’t read it. There is much more to “after” than we could ever guess. And if we are merely following the doctrines of a “faith” and religion without meditating and seeking answers from one another, we are not growing spiritually. Having stories of our “faiths” without having tolerance for the stories of other faiths just doesn’t make any sense at all, yet that is the way of most religions.

By: jade

jade — Fri, 04 Jun 2010 20:58:13 +0000

We must learn to receive and appreciate all that is without judgment or opinion. We reserve the justification of our existence through our experience of that which truly is.

By: MoriaDole

MoriaDole — Mon, 31 May 2010 06:25:24 +0000

Pmg:

I’m sure I’m asking too many questions: I’ve always had (or been) an “inquiring mind. If I may, though, I’d like to ask you this….

If–as you say–we experience our existence through our senses; the interpretation, description, and measurement of what those senses tell us; and our ability as humans to witness/see ourselves doing all this, don’t we run the risk of locking ourselves away from basic human beauty without the equalizing properties of “the mind” (or thinking) to balance us? Yes, the mind deceives….But no more so than the senses. Both are duly and unduly influenced by the sum total of our life’s experiences. Sometimes even distorted. So wouldn’t focusing to that extent on the senses and feelings eventually lead to a dangerously distorted view of ourselves? Our world? Of those aound us?

How can a person live, love, and give (healthily) like that?

How can a person not become so blinded by their own “senses” that they lose touch with the ability to respect, see, or understand others?

How can a person, in that way, ever really be honest with himself? And if dishonest with the self, how can you be honest (or honorable) in your interactions with loved ones?

Or honestly love at all, for that matter?

If ever you have the time or the inclination, I’d appreciate your perspective.

~M. Doland

By: Christine

Christine — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 19:43:08 +0000

Hi Pam T, Funny you should mention the meditation, yes I have tried but I think it takes some working at. Personally I have never been good at ‘switching off’. I guess we are all different, the mind is a funny thing, have you ever noticed how a problem seems so much worse in the middle of the night? come the next morning things can look different. Then the whole process starts again lol.

Hi Rach, I hope you had a good weekend. I guess time either goes too fast if we are having a good time, or boy can it go on forever otherwise! I have a whole stack of books by my bedside the only thing I find is that I stay awake longer to get to the end lol. You look at the clock and hours have past by. I’m a hopeless case Rach take care love Christine xx

By: Rachelle

Rachelle — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:27:00 +0000

Hi Christine

Weekends go way too fast don’t they!? lol……

You’re right at times we just need a break from our minds worrying and really just give ourselves a moment to forget – to have fun, be kind to ourself, and treat ourselves well. I’m not referring to the sleeping time, but in general. At night a good book usually will be a great sleep aid.*g*

Happy Monday, Rach

By: PamT

PamT — Mon, 12 Apr 2010 17:01:26 +0000

Christine,

As someone whose mind has a tendency to chase its own tail, I think I can relate a little to what you’re saying. A while ago, I came across the following:

Down in the village
the din of
flute and drum,
here deep in the mountain
everywhere the sound of the pines.

Have you tried the meditation which PMG suggested a while back? Among other things, I find it unwaveringly quietens an over-active mind. Maybe it would help.

PamT

By: Christine

Christine — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 21:54:21 +0000

Hi Rach, Hope your weekend has been good for you. If its true about being creative in the mornings I ought to be quite amazing by now lol. Only thing is I don’t get much sleep before the mornings arrive! Have you ever noticed how you can feel totally drained and yet the moment your head hits the pillow the mind just won’t switch off?. I sometimes think that I think too much. The constant re-thinking and working out that goes on in our heads, I think I need a break from myself lol. Best wishes, Christine.

By: Rachelle

Rachelle — Sun, 11 Apr 2010 01:34:24 +0000

Hi Christine

I agree with you my friend! Understanding, compassion and forgiveness are so important in our lives and something to always work toward. Also, freely giving to another without expecting anything in return is truly a blessing.
Happy weekend to everyone! I hope Paul, Pam and the fellow bloggers are all enjoying this lovely weekend!! TGIS!
Rach
PS I think you write very well at 5:30 am and our mind is supposed it’s most creative in the morning.*g*

By: Christine

Christine — Sat, 10 Apr 2010 04:49:19 +0000

Hi everyone, You know sometimes its more of a case of really trying to see the other’s point of view.
If we try to step into another’s shoes for a moment it really does give us a whole new look on things. When my children were small it never failed to amaze me how they saw things in that totally honest and non judgemental way because at that age they had not been given the chance to develop that cynical approach to life. As we get older there is not only the tendency to go with our preconceptions but as we get more knowlegdeable we lose or should I say we tend to lose that ability to really ‘see’ things for what they are. We are taught to think something but not to say it, can you imagine how uncontrollable this world would be if we didn’t abide by the socially acceptable rule?.
I think we ought to be more understanding and compassionate towards other’s, try not to be so cynical in this life, it gets to a point in life where if you do a good turn there just has to be a ‘reason’ behind it, you just can’t want to do it. If you do see the good in other’s you are accused of being ‘naive’.
Just my ramblings at 5.30am. You see this is what happens when I can’t sleep lol. Most intelligent people are sleeping now!. Anyway, I’m off for a cup of tea, goodnight to you Paul, and Pam in LA, and good morning England!.
With love as always, Christine xx

By: marly

marly — Fri, 09 Apr 2010 07:45:09 +0000

Hello Janise and fellow bloggers,

Janise, I enjoyed your “rambling” about judging very much!
I always admire people who are able to use, simple, recognizable examples to shed more light on complicated topics.
Thank you for providing me/us with more food for thoughts.

“judging comes into place when we take those observations and filter them in the mind. Hence how 4 people can see the same car accident and all have a different interpretation of what they saw”.
In college it was part of our training to develop and exercise our observational techniques.
One of the tasks we were being given was to stand in front of a window for a few minutes and to observe closely what was going on outside.
I remember how amazed we all were when we discussed afterwards what each of us individually had managed to observe. Of course, there were lots of similarities but it was staggering to find that there were just as many differences!
Years ago, when I was very much into impressionist art, I read that the painter Claude Monet once wished that he could have been born blind in order to gain his sight and be able to paint objects without knowing what they were……
At the time I didn’t fully understand what Monet meant but by now I think I do.
Just like Monet I often feel hindered by my assumed “knowledge” of the world around me which threatens to prevent me to see things as they truly are.

The way we perceive, define and judge the world/people around us is, whether we like it or not, based on the pre-knowledge we already have gathered as an individual.
I can strive to observe the behavior of the children I work with as objective as possible but no matter how well trained I may be, I won’t be able to avoid my very own assumptions, preconceptions, etc.
What I can do is to stay aware of my assumptions as much as possible and therefore I’ll need to practice self-reflection again and again.
Is a human being capable of being 100% objective and therefore able to not judge?
Nope, I personally don’t think we are but that’s not an excuse for not trying to use every available tool within our reach to strive for more objectivity and less judgment in order to become more understanding/compassionate towards ourselves and our fellow human beings.
As Janise states, let’s try to remove those filters.

Take care and have a nice weekend!
Marly