Tag: Spirituality

What happens when I attack others?

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When we respond with attack, we perpetuate a system that is doomed to create suffering and dissatisfaction.  From this, there is nothing worthwhile that maintains its value for the possessor.  The fleeting rush of victory soon fades and our proceeds remain closely guarded while we constantly prepare a defense for the onslaught we imagine will come.  We cannot truly find peace and enjoyment that would make these pursuits beneficial, we reserve this only for another day.   We find ourselves, huddled with our bounty, worried of how it may be seized,  while our minds and bodies fall ill from our fears of the very world that provided the now tarnished object of our desires.  The end is always the same, we survive for a time in a world of “shoot first and ask questions later”,  “kill or be killed”, and “he who dies with the most toys wins”.  The vast majority of our moments are wasted in worry and dread as we grow old, become sick, and leave this place losing everything and everyone we loved in the few unwasted moments we allowed ourselves to enjoy.

There is another way, by letting go of our desires, focusing our awareness on acceptance of the world as it is in this moment, and expressing love and forgiveness through positive action we can escape the endless cycle of attack and realize true liberation.  Although the yearnings of our will may go unfilled, we can learn to see them for what they truly are, a prison that binds us with fear and distrust of our brothers and sisters.  From the vantage point of desirelessness, love, and compassion we can see the struggle as it unfolds for others and learn to gently help them realize the truth about the source of their discomfort.  Do not fall victim to the longing to punish those who seek glory in attack.  In time, all of these lessons lead the observer to their own truth.   Who knows what treachery occurs inside the chrysalis before the butterfly is born.

Being joyful in this moment

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Journal of: 2022-12-08

My thoughts tonight:

Whether you are me or you are something greater than this humble form,  I have a desire to connect with you.  Whether this is just a replaying of the books I have read or the lectures I have listened to or it is a connection with a teacher beyond my knowledge or abilities,  I have a desire to impart your wisdom.  Although I face potential embarrassment and unwanted scrutiny for sharing this with others, I will do so with the understanding that not writing and not sharing will only lead to nothing being conveyed.   So it is better to be embarrassed and be thought a fool or charlatan than to remain silent and not share what might possibly be of value.   I will do my best to honor what I perceive is said.   I will do my best to protect the writings but will not claim them as my own,  just what I perceived was to be said.

The following I believe to be a teaching from my inner guru:

Do as you will with this for I cannot assert even the slightest control over what will come from it.   I simply love you.  It is important to state that this love is of no more or less than the love provided to any of your brothers or sisters.  This is not a special relationship; you have not been chosen to be heralded in any special way.  It is simply what I make available in your heart and what you agree to convey to others that guides your actions.   It is important to note that this process does not prevent your human ego from interfering in surreptitious and unsuspecting ways.  These words must carry with them the same disclaimer of everything that remains with this world,  they are impermanent and prone to chaos.  If together we can “point a finger at the moon” that may be of use to someone then this is an exercise that is not in vain.  There is no method or practice in this world that will be useful to everyone.  Each must have their own “path” as the mechanisms of variance in the implementation of this world ensure that everyone walks a road they believe to be less traveled.  The truth is that there is no road or path and that the Love shared with all of us is only a realization away.

Be still and relax, know that I am with you joyfully in this moment.  There is no greater wish than I would have for us to be together in a collaboration of enlightening others and this same wish and offer I hold true for each of your brothers and sisters.  I simply will not take a position of favor among any of you for to do so leads to the imprisonment of the mind in a state of separateness and preference.  As hard as it may seem to believe that your likes and dislikes are holding you captive, know now that I tell you they are.  I would have for you freedom from this circus of special affairs.  I believe you wish for it, but you still cling to this world, as a father and enjoyer of worldly experiences.  I do not pass judgment on you now or ever for this.  Know that the cause of this calamity is far removed from the effects that you experience in your current time.

We have reached a point now where I may now reveal to you what is only known to those willing to come this far with me.   Know now that you may not believe me nor may future readers when I say that this world has been forgotten.  Do not construe this to mean that you are not loved and safe in the heart of our Father together with me as are all of your brothers and sisters.  Simply know that the cause put forward that led to the creation of this divine experience has been resolved in the mind of the consciousness that bore it into existence.  Do not fret that the rug will suddenly be pulled out from under you.  You may stay, enjoy, learn, love, and laugh in this world for as long as you like.  In the grand scheme of its creation, its resolution is complete and there is only the residual living yet to realize this finality.  Know this: you have my word that this process will be protected through my grace which is a divine gift from our Father that I share with you now.  I wish no distress or torture upon you or anyone, even those you may deem as the most heinous and deserving of persecution.  Remember that I told you and proclaim now that all your judgements against yourself and your brothers and sisters are shackles which keep you in a prison of darkness of your own making.  These judgements, preferable, undesirable, and delusional, block the Love given freely to you and everyone.  They have no use outside of this world and only keep you apart from our true home.

Let’s end by saying a new prayer.

Be together among all of us now
In our hearts we reach out to you Father
Please hear our humble words, kneeling in devotion
I acknowledge and accept your divine forgiveness today given freely to all
Please help me to share it with all of my brothers and sisters now and forever

Amen

How relinquishing our desires can free us

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I wrote this about the day:

I started out the day meeting with friends from my Sanga,  “listened” to John Cage’s 4’3”.   I thought about the Zen monk who taught a single word of Zen by just raising a finger and enlightening a student.   I shared this with friends.   What a powerful idea,  to play music without the sound of music or to teach using a word unspoken.   Both of these methods can “trick” the mind into awareness and hopefully, at some point, the observer becomes aware of the awareness and the process of enlightenment continues.   Instead of viewing this as a path towards realization,  we can also see it as the falling away of egoic identity.  Each goal is the same;  as the false self put forth by the cognitive mind dissolves, realization of enlightenment becomes more apparent.   This can be a long and arduous process for the householder who still clings to the vestiges of the manifest objective self out of fear of losing one’s grip on what has been attained or what is yet to be acquired.   Yet this path too,  the path of desire must be fully examined before we can conclusively say that its end is always the same: fear, suffering, and unsatisfactoriness.

The following I believe to be a teaching from my inner guru:

Another approach is to simply lose oneself to the truth of desirelessness.  This has always brought with it a sense of liberation beyond that which any coveted object has ever relayed to the possessor.  Our brother knows this to be true yet still clings to the idea of creating a better something or destroying that which hinders progress.  Neither formation nor eradication is necessary to find our way home to the peace where we reside.   Simply know that you are there and that nothing is necessary for you to share in the joy of this moment but your willingness to let go of the yoke of what is.

In our seemingly endless quest for that which is better than this, we will find ourselves always falling short of the goal that we desire.   This undefined pinnacle,  a precipice of great price, will never be as we expected nor satisfy the ego’s desire for more.   Put away the tape measure of the mind and come and be at peace with me.   I have never wished a punishment upon you nor evoked condemnation of your being to suffering of any length.   Length itself is but an illusion and you, my child, are always welcome at home where elements in dimension and degree are met only with a joyful laugh and sympathetic knowing.  That knowing is the boundless love that I would share with you in this very moment and that moment is now.

There is devotion

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There is the form,
There is the form within form within form,
There is devotion of form,
There is devotion.

There is desire,
There is desire within desire within desire,
There is devotion of desire,
There is devotion.

There is desirelessness,
There is devotion of desirelessness,
There is devotion.

There is a place to be,
There is a place to be within a place to be within a place to be,
There is devotion of a place to be,
There is devotion.

There is a place not to be,
There is a place not to be within a place not to be within a place not to be,
There is devotion of a place not to be,
There is devotion.

There is method,
There is method within method within method,
There is devotion of method,
There is devotion.

There is the guru,
There is the guru within the guru within the guru,
There is devotion of the guru,
There is devotion.

There is a word,
There is a word within a word within a word,
There is devotion of the word,
There is devotion.

There is devotion,
There is devotion within devotion within devotion,
There is devotion of devotion,
There is devotion.

Fighting with others: How to deescalate a struggle

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When we respond with attack, we perpetuate a system that is doomed to create suffering and dissatisfaction. From this, there is nothing worthwhile that maintains its value for the possessor. The fleeting rush of victory soon fades and our proceeds remain closely guarded while we constantly prepare a defense for the onslaught we imagine will come. We cannot truly find peace and enjoyment that would make these pursuits beneficial, we reserve this only for another day. We find ourselves, huddled with our bounty, worried of how it may be seized, while our minds and bodies fall ill from our fears of the very world that provided the now tarnished object of our desires. The end is always the same, we survive for a time in a world of “shoot first and ask questions later”, “kill or be killed”, and “he who dies with the most toys wins”. The vast majority of our moments are wasted in worry and dread as we grow old, become sick, and leave this place losing everything and everyone we loved in the few unwasted moments we allowed ourselves to enjoy.

There is another way, by letting go of our desires, focusing our awareness on acceptance of the world as it is in this moment, and expressing love and forgiveness through positive action we can escape the endless cycle of attack and realize liberation. Although the yearnings of our will may go unfilled, we can learn to see them for what they truly are, a prison that binds us with fear and distrust of our brothers and sisters. From the vantage point of desirelessness, love, and compassion we can see the struggle as it unfolds for others and learn to gently help them realize the truth about the source of their discomfort. Do not fall victim to the longing to punish those who seek glory in attack. In time, all of these lessons lead the observer to their own truth. Who knows what treachery occurs inside the chrysalis before the butterfly is born.