We should never underestimate the degree of stupidity that exists in the world. The understanding and application of this idea can greatly simplify and reduce the amount of pain and frustration in our lives. It does not mean everyone is stupid, or that everything done is done stupidly. What it does mean is that we should not be surprised when things get screwed up, or upset when people disappoint us. Matter of fact, we should be appreciative when things go smoothly and people act in the right way. Everything changes when you recognize this one basic point.
What prompted me to write this blog was two separate conversations I just heard on the radio while driving home from shopping at Sam's Club. (I bought one of their cooked chickens, one of the better deals on the market today.) The conversations were focused on Obama's speech to the Muslim world. Both talk show hosts, Sean Hannity and Lou Dobbs, were criticizing Obama for denigrating the United States to the Arab world. They were berating him for not being more critical of Muslims, for not pointing out how horrible Islam has been. They were also outraged that he would admit that the United States was not perfect. They were shocked that he did not tell them all the great things we have done for the world in general, and Arabs in particular.
Why was Obama speaking in this way? I can think of four possible reasons. #1-He believes that taking the humble, apologetic tact will in the long run be to our biggest advantage. #2-He actually believes what he is saying and is committed to the truth as a way to govern. #3-He has a neurotic need to be liked and says whatever he has to in the moment to get his audience to like him. #4-He hates the United States, loves the Muslins, and is trying to help them defeat us.
The talk show hosts did not consider the possibility that #1 and #2 might be his motivation. They were convinced that it was either #3 or #4. Callers were expressing their outrage that Obama could be so anti-American and not espouse our virtues.
Barack Obama is the President of the United States of America. He was elected by popular and electoral vote. It could be that his strategy about how to handle foreign affairs and create world peace is unrealistic, idealistic, or just wrong. But to think that his primary motivation is to be liked, or to harm America, is ridiculous. To constantly criticize your leadership for being anti-American is anti-American. It doesn't strength our image or generate confidence in America. But millions of people are absolutely convinced that they are right in this matter.
The world is filled with people who believe their viewpoint is correct and that anyone who disagrees is either wrong or crazy. This way of thinking prevents change and compromise, two ingredients of progress. A great definition of stupidity is "a poor ability to understand or profit from experience." To anyone who has paid close attention to life it should become obvious that things are never exactly the way they seem to be, it is very hard to predict the future, and that no matter how sure you are about anything there is always the possibility that you might be wrong.
If we want to make any headway against stupidity we need to start with ourselves and constantly keep in mind that anything and everything we believe may not be right. We need to develop a nimbleness, a flexibility, and an ability to readjust our thinking to more accurately reflect the conditions that exist in the moment. It is this ability to be in the moment, to think in the moment, and to act in the moment, that offers hope of creating a better world. Only if we do this can we can begin to shift our expectations, to live from the view that we should never underestimate the nobility of man.
Showing posts with label Belief systems. Personal development. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Belief systems. Personal development. Show all posts
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Breaking Free from Imaginary Suffering
My wife got laid off yesterday. My sister called; her daughter, my niece, was getting divorced. The big question was what should we tell our mother? Neither of these events were surprising, but my mother has a hard time handling bad news. She would not admit this, but she does tend to magnify problems a little out of proportion. It seems as you get older you should be able to handle whatever happens in life with ease. No one escapes life without pain, suffering, and sorrow, unless they are incapable of feeling anything. The longer you live the more accustomed and experienced you should become in handling difficult times.
One of my most influential teachers, Georges Gurdjieff, a Russian mystic who lived in the early part of the twentieth century, speaks of "conscious labor and intentional suffering" as a means to personal development. He divides suffering into different categories. He speaks of unavoidable suffering that occurs when we we suffer a loss of someone close, or when we or someone we care about is in real pain. We need to deal with this type of suffering as best we can. It's not easy.
Then there is imaginary suffering. This is the most common type of suffering; it's the source of many of the problems in the world. Imaginary suffering is created when our realistic or unrealistic desires are not met. Simply, when we don't get what we want or what we think we deserve. This suffering is part of the programming we undergo as we grow. The amount of imaginary suffering we deal with in our lives is mostly dependent on how we were treated as children and how we were taught to deal with adversity, with not getting our way.
It is difficult to separate unavoidable suffering from imaginary suffering. Both are painful. For some, imaginary suffering is what gives life meaning. It is what makes them feel alive. These people actually thrive on suffering; they love to share it with others. All of us probably have met someone like this or been like this at some point in our lives. But to be happy we need to sacrifice our suffering, our imaginary suffering. Just give it up, see it for what it is.
One of the ways to give up our imaginary suffering is through "conscious labor" and "intentional suffering": putting ourselves in difficult situations; moments when we need to stretch ourselves past our comfort point either physically, emotionally, or mentally. It's putting effort into things that are especially difficult for us. This might include exercise, dieting, gardening, reading, not talking as much, asking our boss for a raise, telling someone how we really feel about them.
The more we choose suffering (activities that force us to break the chains of our existing patterns) the less imaginary suffering we will experience. This is real work, but it has a big payoff. It is a very difficult concept to understand, though, because we love our suffering as much as we love our comfort.
One of my most influential teachers, Georges Gurdjieff, a Russian mystic who lived in the early part of the twentieth century, speaks of "conscious labor and intentional suffering" as a means to personal development. He divides suffering into different categories. He speaks of unavoidable suffering that occurs when we we suffer a loss of someone close, or when we or someone we care about is in real pain. We need to deal with this type of suffering as best we can. It's not easy.
Then there is imaginary suffering. This is the most common type of suffering; it's the source of many of the problems in the world. Imaginary suffering is created when our realistic or unrealistic desires are not met. Simply, when we don't get what we want or what we think we deserve. This suffering is part of the programming we undergo as we grow. The amount of imaginary suffering we deal with in our lives is mostly dependent on how we were treated as children and how we were taught to deal with adversity, with not getting our way.
It is difficult to separate unavoidable suffering from imaginary suffering. Both are painful. For some, imaginary suffering is what gives life meaning. It is what makes them feel alive. These people actually thrive on suffering; they love to share it with others. All of us probably have met someone like this or been like this at some point in our lives. But to be happy we need to sacrifice our suffering, our imaginary suffering. Just give it up, see it for what it is.
One of the ways to give up our imaginary suffering is through "conscious labor" and "intentional suffering": putting ourselves in difficult situations; moments when we need to stretch ourselves past our comfort point either physically, emotionally, or mentally. It's putting effort into things that are especially difficult for us. This might include exercise, dieting, gardening, reading, not talking as much, asking our boss for a raise, telling someone how we really feel about them.
The more we choose suffering (activities that force us to break the chains of our existing patterns) the less imaginary suffering we will experience. This is real work, but it has a big payoff. It is a very difficult concept to understand, though, because we love our suffering as much as we love our comfort.
Thursday, April 30, 2009
Good Stuff and Bad Stuff
Ted Haggerd, evangelical minister of the New Life Church of Colorado, preached to thirty million followers during his career. He was loved and respected by his followers and his wife and children. He spoke of the necessity to follow the teachings of Jesus and resist the temptation to sin. His sermons were passionate and eloquent appeals to let the power of the Holy Spirit guide your actions and to allow Jesus into your life. He was a poster child of the new wave of Christianity which presently impacts tens of millions of Americans. At the height of his power and influence he was accused of and later admitted to using crystal meth and to having homosexual relations with his massage therapist amongst others.
When Pastor Ted was asked how come he did not tell his flock or his family about his actions he replied, "I didn't think they would respond in a positive way." Good thinking, Ted. After being banned from ever entering his church again and kicked out of the stae of Colorado he went on the road with his family, in exile as he called it. He tried to get numerous jobs but was constantly rejected. When asked about whether some one would hire him or not, his response was that it depends whether they Google him or not.
Finally after a year on the road and a three week counseling session he announced that he was cured of homosexuality. When asked about this experience his take on it was that when one sheep out of a flock of a hundred goes astray, Jesus takes the other ninety-nine to find the one lost one. He was the one lost one, the one that Jesus' teachings were primarily meant for.
It's not hard to see what's wrong with this picture. What is hard is to not judge, but recognize that to one degree or another we are all like Pastor Ted. This is probalby an unpopular view. I'm sure that this level of hypocrisy makes your skin crawl. It is hard to see that what this story is about is an extreme example of a level of being that is rampant in the world.
We all have secrets that we are afraid to reveal. We all have thoughts that we can never admit even to our closest friends. We all act in ways at times that would not stand the scrutiny of a jury of perfect humans. I mean lets be real. We all have weaknesses, flaws, and imperfections. Some of us gain positions of power or influence that magnify the effects of these flaws. Most of us only effect the ones closest to us.
The real story here is that Ted Haggerd is actually not a bad guy. I probably wouldn't want to hang out with him, but after watching a mini-documentary about him and doing a little research I can see that he has some good stuff. We all have good stuff, and some bad stuff. There is a race going on in the world right now between the good stuff and the bad stuff. The more honest we can be with ourselves and the less judgemental we can be about others, the greater the possibility will be that the good stuff will win. Take a moment to consider this. I mean really consider this. It is a good starting point for personal development.
When Pastor Ted was asked how come he did not tell his flock or his family about his actions he replied, "I didn't think they would respond in a positive way." Good thinking, Ted. After being banned from ever entering his church again and kicked out of the stae of Colorado he went on the road with his family, in exile as he called it. He tried to get numerous jobs but was constantly rejected. When asked about whether some one would hire him or not, his response was that it depends whether they Google him or not.
Finally after a year on the road and a three week counseling session he announced that he was cured of homosexuality. When asked about this experience his take on it was that when one sheep out of a flock of a hundred goes astray, Jesus takes the other ninety-nine to find the one lost one. He was the one lost one, the one that Jesus' teachings were primarily meant for.
It's not hard to see what's wrong with this picture. What is hard is to not judge, but recognize that to one degree or another we are all like Pastor Ted. This is probalby an unpopular view. I'm sure that this level of hypocrisy makes your skin crawl. It is hard to see that what this story is about is an extreme example of a level of being that is rampant in the world.
We all have secrets that we are afraid to reveal. We all have thoughts that we can never admit even to our closest friends. We all act in ways at times that would not stand the scrutiny of a jury of perfect humans. I mean lets be real. We all have weaknesses, flaws, and imperfections. Some of us gain positions of power or influence that magnify the effects of these flaws. Most of us only effect the ones closest to us.
The real story here is that Ted Haggerd is actually not a bad guy. I probably wouldn't want to hang out with him, but after watching a mini-documentary about him and doing a little research I can see that he has some good stuff. We all have good stuff, and some bad stuff. There is a race going on in the world right now between the good stuff and the bad stuff. The more honest we can be with ourselves and the less judgemental we can be about others, the greater the possibility will be that the good stuff will win. Take a moment to consider this. I mean really consider this. It is a good starting point for personal development.
Sunday, April 19, 2009
Further Thoughts on the Esoteric Path
It's hard to know what advice to believe or who you can really trust. I read today that it is not good for you to stand on your hand. It puts too much pressure on your eyes and can contribute to causing glaucoma. I have been standing on my head everyday for thirty three years. I have also read numerous articles about the dangers of fasting. I have fasted at least once a year for over thirty five years. It seems to me that no matter what I read about these practices or what people tell me I should value my own experiences. I mean after all this time I should know for myself how I feel when doing these things.
One of the major challenges in life is developing confidence in yourself so that you can trust your own instincts, feelings, and thoughts. It is especially difficult when we are contstantly being told what to do and what to think. From the time we are very young, almost immediately after birth , we are constantly being programmed to perceive the world in ways that will enable us to get pleasure and avoid pain.
As we get older and we begin to think for ourselves our attitudes and behaviors are influenced by our parents, teachers, friends, and the media. By the time we have reached adulthood, unless we are very lucky, and have been isolated from the mainstream and exposed to a belief system that promotes personal development and an open-minded skepticism we will be severely limited in our ability to think for ourselves.
It is important to realize the reality of our situation. Hypnosis is real and is usually defined as a state of hypersuggestibility. There are ten levels or stages of hypnotic trance from a very light state to the deepest or somnambulistic state. In the deepest states, the hypnotist can create both negative and positive hallucinations, We can be told that an object that is in our presence does not exist and we will not see it. We can also be told to see an object that does not exist and we will imagine that the object is present. Each of us to some degree or another is subject to the effects of suggestibility. What this means is that we are all hypnotized to some degree and our view of the world is impacted by this hypnosis.
The goal of our life, from the esoteric point of view is to free ourselves from this state. In order to do this, though, we must develop a sense of necessity or it will never become important to us.
We will be happy living in our dream state. This necessity is developed when we recognize what is called "The Terror of the Situation". TTOTS becomes more apparent when we study ourselves and see the degree to which we are not free. The more we study ourselves the more it becomes apparent that only occassionally do we have "free will." As we study ourselves and begin to see the truth about our existence we can begin to see the cause of the world's problems and the degree to which things are out of control. This path of self-study and deprogramming ourselves is a difficult.one. It is called "The Warriors Way". It is the path to freedom and consciousness that I alluded to in my last blog.
One of the major challenges in life is developing confidence in yourself so that you can trust your own instincts, feelings, and thoughts. It is especially difficult when we are contstantly being told what to do and what to think. From the time we are very young, almost immediately after birth , we are constantly being programmed to perceive the world in ways that will enable us to get pleasure and avoid pain.
As we get older and we begin to think for ourselves our attitudes and behaviors are influenced by our parents, teachers, friends, and the media. By the time we have reached adulthood, unless we are very lucky, and have been isolated from the mainstream and exposed to a belief system that promotes personal development and an open-minded skepticism we will be severely limited in our ability to think for ourselves.
It is important to realize the reality of our situation. Hypnosis is real and is usually defined as a state of hypersuggestibility. There are ten levels or stages of hypnotic trance from a very light state to the deepest or somnambulistic state. In the deepest states, the hypnotist can create both negative and positive hallucinations, We can be told that an object that is in our presence does not exist and we will not see it. We can also be told to see an object that does not exist and we will imagine that the object is present. Each of us to some degree or another is subject to the effects of suggestibility. What this means is that we are all hypnotized to some degree and our view of the world is impacted by this hypnosis.
The goal of our life, from the esoteric point of view is to free ourselves from this state. In order to do this, though, we must develop a sense of necessity or it will never become important to us.
We will be happy living in our dream state. This necessity is developed when we recognize what is called "The Terror of the Situation". TTOTS becomes more apparent when we study ourselves and see the degree to which we are not free. The more we study ourselves the more it becomes apparent that only occassionally do we have "free will." As we study ourselves and begin to see the truth about our existence we can begin to see the cause of the world's problems and the degree to which things are out of control. This path of self-study and deprogramming ourselves is a difficult.one. It is called "The Warriors Way". It is the path to freedom and consciousness that I alluded to in my last blog.
Sunday, April 12, 2009
Jesus, Judaism, Myth, and Belief
I am not a fan of organized religion. For the most part I am not a joiner of any group and I believe that organized religion has caused much more problems that it has solved. I do believe in the teachings of Jesus and that in some important way his presence was important to the development of our world. You cannot easily dismiss someone who lived two thousand years ago and whose message and life still impacts billions of people worldwide.
Growing up Jewish, Jesus was never viewed by my Hebrew school teachers as someone we should study, admire of even look upon favorably. In many ways he was viewed as the enemy. It is a little difficult to see Jesus objectively when you are brought up with this viewpoint. It was only when I moved to Lancaster and escaped from the influences of the predominant Jewish culture in which I was raised that I was able to investigate Jesus and who he really was.
I don't know for sure whether Jesus ever lived or not. Matter of fact I went to a workshop by a religiious scholar, Timothy Freke, from Glastonbury England who with his partner Peter Gandy has written a number of well researched and clearly thought out books explaining in a very convincing way that Jesus was a mythological character and that the "Jesus Myth" has been part of many other traditions that preceded Jesus . The idea of a spiritual master being born of a virgin, baptized by another spiritual bigwig, killed by his enemies, and then resurrected is a common story existing in many other traditions.
Whether Jesus actually existed is not as important though as what he represents. First of all what began to make sense to me in my spiritual searching was that the Jewish people at the time of Jesus' supposed incarnation were off the track in their views and beliefs. They had drifted off the path of spirituality and were putting too much emphasis on the letter of the law and not enough on the spirit of the law. Their God, the God of the Old Testament was a wrathful God, not a very attractive or inspiring one. Jesus came along and tried to wake up the Jewish people to a new and more attractive view.
His main message was that it was not important to follow six hundred or more laws that for the most part were trivial in their intent. What was important was to love your neighbor, love God,( an idea that needs to be understood through deeper study and personal development) and to cast aside your old ways, your old beliefs, your old personality, and be born again into a higher, more compassionate and more loving nature. This rings true to me.
What has happened though is that like all great teachings Jesus' message has become distorted and used by power seekers for their own advantage. In the name of Jesus, there have been an incredible amount of atrocities committed. You could look them up very easily if you have the inclination. This does not in any way take away from the value of Jesus's teaching. The message of Jesus or the "Jesus Myth" is a powerful life changing one. What I have done at times is close my eyes, visualize my image of this man called Jesus, and then try to fill myself up with the love, or agape that I imagine was the essense of his being. This has helped me during difficult times.
I still consider myself Jewish. I don't believe that Jesus' teaching are the only valid ones that have been give to us. I just don't believe (as I feel Bill Maher did in his movie Religulous) that we should throw the baby out with the bath water. Just because we see a lot of wackos and hypocrites in the many Christian sects and denominations doesn't mean that there isn't something valuable that can be gained by exploring this man called Jesus.
Growing up Jewish, Jesus was never viewed by my Hebrew school teachers as someone we should study, admire of even look upon favorably. In many ways he was viewed as the enemy. It is a little difficult to see Jesus objectively when you are brought up with this viewpoint. It was only when I moved to Lancaster and escaped from the influences of the predominant Jewish culture in which I was raised that I was able to investigate Jesus and who he really was.
I don't know for sure whether Jesus ever lived or not. Matter of fact I went to a workshop by a religiious scholar, Timothy Freke, from Glastonbury England who with his partner Peter Gandy has written a number of well researched and clearly thought out books explaining in a very convincing way that Jesus was a mythological character and that the "Jesus Myth" has been part of many other traditions that preceded Jesus . The idea of a spiritual master being born of a virgin, baptized by another spiritual bigwig, killed by his enemies, and then resurrected is a common story existing in many other traditions.
Whether Jesus actually existed is not as important though as what he represents. First of all what began to make sense to me in my spiritual searching was that the Jewish people at the time of Jesus' supposed incarnation were off the track in their views and beliefs. They had drifted off the path of spirituality and were putting too much emphasis on the letter of the law and not enough on the spirit of the law. Their God, the God of the Old Testament was a wrathful God, not a very attractive or inspiring one. Jesus came along and tried to wake up the Jewish people to a new and more attractive view.
His main message was that it was not important to follow six hundred or more laws that for the most part were trivial in their intent. What was important was to love your neighbor, love God,( an idea that needs to be understood through deeper study and personal development) and to cast aside your old ways, your old beliefs, your old personality, and be born again into a higher, more compassionate and more loving nature. This rings true to me.
What has happened though is that like all great teachings Jesus' message has become distorted and used by power seekers for their own advantage. In the name of Jesus, there have been an incredible amount of atrocities committed. You could look them up very easily if you have the inclination. This does not in any way take away from the value of Jesus's teaching. The message of Jesus or the "Jesus Myth" is a powerful life changing one. What I have done at times is close my eyes, visualize my image of this man called Jesus, and then try to fill myself up with the love, or agape that I imagine was the essense of his being. This has helped me during difficult times.
I still consider myself Jewish. I don't believe that Jesus' teaching are the only valid ones that have been give to us. I just don't believe (as I feel Bill Maher did in his movie Religulous) that we should throw the baby out with the bath water. Just because we see a lot of wackos and hypocrites in the many Christian sects and denominations doesn't mean that there isn't something valuable that can be gained by exploring this man called Jesus.
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