Written yesterday by Signalroom to the mailing list I've made for people studying A Course In Miracles:
I had another remarkable day. There's been another breakthrough. Have been enabled to move through what feels like an ancient psychological impasse. For lifetimes have been withdrawing from the world, been an ascetic and a stoic, because all pleasure seemed to feed my ego, and increased my sense of separation, and every single pleasure was attended by guilt. I had gotten so far away from being able to receive pleasure, that I started confusing suffering WITH pleasure. This is not good. This is sickness.
7 years ago I had a major awakening, without the cognition of how or why it happened, which enabled me to fall in love with the entire world, and all things in it. And all people. Everything in creation was a source of amazement to me, and this joy pouring through me lasted months and months and months. It changed my life. I still feel changed from it.
What happened today was just like that, another major hit. I was driving home on the mountain road, through the snowy fir trees, through the state park, and I started crying, tears pouring out of my face, because of the feeling of being home at last, a feeling of connection with something I'd forgotten, pure pleasure in the beauty of the world. I was remembering my home in the world, it was a feeling I had often as a child, a sense of utter joy and freedom in this place. The beauty of the scene filled me to the brim and poured through me, and I understood, my pleasure gives energy to EVERYONE. To ALL BEINGS. My pleasure not only does not feed my ego, it enlarges the Spiritual world infinitely. It is no longer possible for me to receive pleasure for myself alone. I saw this. I saw that there is no fear anymore of going backwards. It was like my green light to go out and fully enjoy this playground!
This time there wasn't even the most subtle guilt. I now know what it feels like, beyond cognition, to be utterly dissolved of guilt. It is such buoyancy, childlike buoyancy. The phrase came to me, "infinite perfume of bliss, this is an infinite perfume of bliss!" inside myself, out there in the trees, in my hands, my thoughts, in the steering wheel in my hands, everything felt an integral part of this.... pleasure. This utter utter relaxation of feeling home. I still feel this joy, it's like a breath of wind, who cares if it stays or goes, this doesn't even interest me. The idea of "duration" doesn't even concern me. Having seen this ---- that my pleasure increases joy everywhere, and that GUILT has NO GROUND ANYWHERE.
Congratulations Laurie! You are a living proof that life doesn't have to be so difficult after all!
ReplyDeleteTrying to understand what she said is beyond me? No offense, but was any of this chemically induced?
ReplyDeleteI don't understand? If I am not correct than I apologize, but I've read this over several times and still don't grasp where she is going with this?
Anybody? Help me understand?
I did hesitate to post this one, because for people who have never had similar experiences, it could seem incomprehensible and maybe even unhelpful. But I did anyway, because for people who *have* had a glimpse of "universal love" or whatever you would call it, it might be inspirational.
ReplyDeleteSuch experiences might be chemically induced, but I have never tried it, and probably won't. And I doubt Signalroom's was such a one either, it was of the spiritual kind.
I think experiences like this is a spontaneous connection to the creative force behind the Universe.
I think there are quite a few of us who have had this experience of a widened awareness momentarily and unexpectedly.
ReplyDeleteThe challenge, of course, is in being able to enter this enlightened state at will. And even stay in it.
I know a man who had this experience 20 years ago while washing dishes. Since then he has enthusiastically performed this chore in the household hoping to experience it again. To no avail.
The best preparation I know of to increase the chances of experiencing this state is doing yoga.
Wow. Now I REALLY know I've had quite an easy life, relatively speaking!
ReplyDeleteOf course, what made it "easy" was precisely that I've worked on such an understanding since I was very young, and naturally that I wasn't prevented too much from doing so. Clearly I'm lucky for this.
It's self-evident that gratuitous guilt has no ground to be. Decreeing pleasure to be the siamese twin of sin is an ignoble scam. As my father once said, a very long time ago, to an overly religious person loudly decreeing such a rule:
"Tell me then, when you pray the Lord and it brings you great happiness, is it also a sin?"
To the greedy or the unwise, seeking pleasure MAY be a motive for doing wrong. But in itself, there's nothing bad about it. Otherwise, loving one's children would be the greatest sin in the universe. And I would readily indulge in it! :-D
Selfishness at the expense of others, sentient or not : people, animals, nature... THIS is the true sin.
Laurie, loving all there is sounds to me like the core principle of true faith in God. Keep at it, girl. I can feel your joy from halfway across the planet, and it smells like fruits and flowers. (It's winter? Okay then, flower essence, and fruit ice-cream! Yummie.)
Hey, thanks to your testimony, I know at least SOMEONE out there loves unworthy me! ;-)
"The Earth can provide for the needs of everyone, but not for the greed of all." -- Gandhi
Laurie, loving all there is sounds to me like the core principle of true faith in God.
ReplyDeleteFaith in God by loving all there is? Does this include murder, rape, voilent storms, greed, bitter envy, the howling cold wind?
I see one person of speaking about higher awareness or something to this and none of it makes any common sense?
How can one fall into a "trance" or whatever it is and say they "love" everything in the world at once? I'm not trying to be cynical. It just doesn't make any logical sense to me?
I did hesitate to post this one, because for people who have never had similar experiences, it could seem incomprehensible and maybe even unhelpful.
Mr Stobblehouse, if this is universal love I certainly would not want that because then I feel I would be imbracing all the evil in the world too.
I think experiences like this is a spontaneous connection to the creative force behind the Universe.
I could not fathom God encouraging anyone to love everything whether it's all good and evil. The good part is relevant but the evil I can't comprehend? No, I don't think God had anything to do with this? If He did, I'd rather not believe what He has written in His holy scriptures about sin. (Not sinning that is.)
Laurie, loving all there is sounds to me like the core principle of true faith in God.
That seems like a very dangerous thing you just said Mr Pascal. I guess this is something called the "new age movement?" Gives me the shivers.
"Mr Stobblehouse, if this is universal love I certainly would not want that because then I feel I would be imbracing all the evil in the world too."
ReplyDeleteMany philosophies and religions believe that evil "out there" only exists because of something "in here". It only exists *because* of our fears and hates.
there's an old religious saying,
ReplyDelete"I don't care how high you jump when you go up, as long as you walk a straight line when you come down."
The challenge of my life is to find my eternal self, to find God, to see if there is not something more to life than this temporal veil of tears. The only way I've come close to doing this is through learning forgiveness by transforming my mind. It is often like slogging through Middle Earth, not always bright. Eh, Kelly, love can be a hard work.
But it can also be literally out of this world :)
ttl, love yoga. Not classes, I do my own. You too?
lucid, I hear you.
Pascal, a rose for the Little Prince....
Such evils are inventions of man..
ReplyDeleteActually the first sin was committed by Lucifer long ago in Heaven by his very own pride.
Then of course came adam and eve. Yet God said afterwards, "they now know good and evil."
So evil existed before mankind.
It is only through universal love that they can be done away with.
Lucid, forgiveness is also the key. If we forgive one another so shall we be forgiven by the Lord.
signalroom said: "ttl, love yoga. Not classes, I do my own. You too?"
ReplyDeleteI first started doing yoga in 1996. I've done classes and practiced on my own. My practice regime has been sporadical at best, but I am very happy with the results.
nildar said: "Actually the first sin was committed by Lucifer long ago in Heaven by his very own pride."
This is total fabrication. Lucifer (literally "Light Bringer") was an earthly, entirely positive concept. But just like so many other pagan words its meaning has been distorted and the word used as a propaganda tool (fear inducer) by the church.
This is total fabrication. Lucifer (literally "Light Bringer") was an earthly, entirely positive concept.
ReplyDeleteNope. He was a perfect "angelic" being until inquity was found in him. Thus he was kicked out of heaven and thus sin entered earth.
You deny God's words, one day you'll be sorry you ever did.
nildar: "You deny God's words, one day you'll be sorry you ever did."
ReplyDeleteI'm sure God would appreciate a well-intentioned debate. :-)
Nildar,
ReplyDeletePray for them. That's all you can do. I know they don't believe in God's inspired words but I do just like you.
Remember my friend that those in Christ days denied He was the Son of God and they crucified Him on Calvary's Old rugged Cross.
He rose on the third day. Nildar, you gave them the truth and they believed it not. You gave the message.
Just like the rich man in the book of Luke, he believed after his own death but it was too late. Friend, be glad that we are believers with the promise of eternal security :)
In Christ's love,
Sheri
TTL, you're on.
ReplyDeleteWe'll talk in your Afterlife.
sheri, I have no problem believing God's words. The problem I have is with the words you are putting in God's mouth.
ReplyDeleteWikipedia has a well written account on how "Lucifer as a fallen angel" came into modern Christian thought.
The only mention of the word "Lucifer" in King James Bible is in Isaiah, 14:12:
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!
To understand how in late medieval Christian thought "dawn bringer" (morning star) became Lucifer (Satan) read the Wikipedia article.
--
A thundering voice from above said: "TTL, you're on. We'll talk in your Afterlife."
Why wait until "Afterlife"? Why not talk now?
Don't listen to that other guy. You will answer to ME when your day comes.
ReplyDeleteLOL, Lucid, you stole my thought.
ReplyDeleteKelly, you really should have read more about what Albert Einstein explained several times : "Darkness is nothing but the absence of light. Cold is only the absence of any heat. Evil is just the absence of Good."
ReplyDeleteLoving all there is cannot imply loving evil, because evil is a form of nothingness. A vacuum in the "space" of the soul. Loving cold, or darkness, or evil, in reality means hating warmth, light and Good, respectively. It amounts not to being filled with some form of liking, but to being hollow.
As for the incidents of Nature like storms, floods, etc., I just love Nature. We are born from Nature, and live in it no matter the size of our concrete cities. I don't have to cease loving my mother simply because at times she can be angry. Love is not a transient emotion like anger, it's a state of mind.
And these days, when Nature is angry, it's often Man's fault! (Look, Ma, I'm sorry, okay? Let me make it up and start recycling.)
P.S.: I'm not the least bit into "New-Age". But rejecting everything a person likes or believes because you don't fancy that person is dumb and childish. "Hippie types" may have some weird or misled beliefs/attitudes at times, it doesn't mean I have to be their obtuse opposite. Love of my neighbor, respect of Nature, longing for peace... the principles per se are good and solid.
TTL, I like to see your culture. Indeed, Lucifer was initially a minor Roman divinity, way before the Romans interacted with Jews or Christians. It is an other example of "pagan" symbols recycled but the ancient christian Clergy. Just like Beelzebob is the ancient Cananean fly-god. Now, Satan, THAT's a genuine judeo-christian concept. Etymologically, "the Adversary". God's sworn enemy. The others are "competitor" beliefs amalgamated with heresy, probably dating from a time where all non-monotheistic societies WERE indeed enemies. Not by faith, just by socio-political circumstances. A city's secular divinity was its emblem, and worshiping it was mandatory.
Claiming that the rebel angel that turned against God is the same as a pagan religious figure implies that perhaps ALL different divinities worshiped by other populations may have indeed existed too. A hazardous game. It would implicitly undermine the core christian notion of a single creator God.
And as a believer, I prefer not to go down that slippery slope, because I'm no good at slalom skiing.
Voltaire, who was fiercely anticlerical, was also a passionate believer. He just denounced the grotesque hypocrisy of his time's clergy. He notably said : "I God didn't exist, we would have to make Him up." (And he himself DID believe that God existed.)
I think likewise : naive folklores officially known as "paganism" are examples of people who made up gods. And demigods, and mythologies, etc. And I tend to think that ancient Christians sometimes indulged into it too, when they recycled the images of Baal-Zubab or the Bearer of Dawn's Light Lucifer... among many others! Halloween? It was the Celtic Samhain, day of the Dead. Christmas in December? A highly unlikely date, but great for recuperating the Winter Solstice traditional celebrations. Etc. Etc. Etc.
In case I'm misled, I'm ready to account for my errors toward God. But NOT toward self-appointed human zealots claiming to act in His name. The Omnipotent doesen't need foaming fanatics to help Him punish those He wishes.
(Not hinting at you, Nildar. Just making a general statement here. I see too many zealots everywhere around me.)
Lucid, you're right. The image of God, as presented by the early texts of the Bible, appears very petty indeed. And insecure. Take the Babel tower episode (Genesis 11:4-7):
"Come on! they said, let us build ourselves a city, and a tower that'll reach to the sky. Let us make a name for ourselves." [...]
"Eh, the Lord said, they are one people and one language, and this is their first endeavour! Now, nothing they choose to accomplish will be beyond their reach! Let's go down there and scramble their language, so they don't understand each other any more!"
This litterally said that Man wanted to simply do great things (nothing more), and that God feared Man would threaten His power and status. It is not only naive, it was proven to be the re-writing of an ancient Babylonian myth, with several divinities merged into Yahve alone. I'd be hard-pressed to admit that He who created the Universe would be so "small" and amateurish!
Not to mention the ridiculous depictions of cosmology and biology in Genesis 1. Have we forgotten Galileo so soon? Thanks to his "heretic" scientific work, we now have orbiting satellites allowing us to discuss over the internet.
Upon the first human flight in outer space, Yuri Gagarin was asked what he saw "up there". "Well, he said, I sure didn't see God." No bearded guy sitting on a golden throne over the clouds! Antiquated superstitions are the worst enemy of true, modern christiannism. Which is a great religion IMHO. So I'll defend it against enemies from within, the Disciples of Blind Ignorance. Science and knowledge only make my faith stronger by pruning off the dead parasitic branches that grow on its trunk and weigh it down. I want to reach to the sun and the sky! Let me have light, warmth, love.
Amen.
"The mere threat of hell, an eternity of torture to follow a finite life of iniquity, is enough for me to know that such a master is not worthy of my allegiance."
Fortunately for me, I do not believe such a master exists. God has to be different, loving, merciful. The only way to suffer eternally is by refusing eternally to accept the Love. Only Man can be at the origin of an eternal damnation by refusing redemption. Just like Man created Evil by rejecting Good. Evil is nothingness. While even the "empty" outer space contains an average of three atoms per cubic meter. There is no true void in Creation. God didn't create it.
If you manage to make a "perfect" void space in a physics lab, a space with no matter and no heat, you'll find out it's still filled with baseline energy that you cannot withdraw, and which might potentially be limitless. Think about it...
Regrettably, the notion of Hell seems necessary in today's world. Why? Because a great number of people can't, or won't, reach the true enlightenment, and their lower instincts need fear to be kept in check.
Having said that, it looks like fear isn't doing a very good job. Suffice it for the likes of Osama BinLaden to lie to themselves and divert the criteria of fear toward those who think differently, and no fear will ever moderate THEIR madness.
So... Hell? Illogical. Overrated. And inefficient. A true sinner may fear eternal damnation, yet he will still sin. Murder, rape, oppress... the examples are everywhere. :-(
Well-meaning lies are not the way for Good to prevail. Perhaps because God is Truth.
I seek God by seeking the Truth. Even if I don't find God, it'll prove profitable and positive for me.
"There is no forbidden knowledge. Only bad users of knowledge." -- (Me)
Lucid Twilight said...
ReplyDelete"Pascal? Is that you?"
"I am not this Pascal you speak about. I am somebody entirely different, um, yes, that's it!"
Oh, and TTL, I regret to have to postpone till after your long, fruitful and pleasant life, but you must understand that processing all the requests in the time of human Life would waste a lot of it. Too many thick annoying types would readily spend it all bickering, so I had to put My foot down and set strict rules.
Find your own answers for now, you'll thank Me for it afterwards.
0:-)}}
And excuse that low sound from slightly below, I am digesting some doomed souls that tried to play smart-ass in 7.000 BJ (Before Junior). Always tough on My Stomach to devour those, but serves them well! (The noise is part of their punishment.)
The voice from above is only in your head.
ReplyDeleteThe only mention of the word "Lucifer" in King James Bible is in Isaiah, 14:12:
ReplyDeleteCorrection. Ezekiel 28:19 also talks about Lucifer without mentioning his name but He's the same angel that Isaiah 14;12 speaks of.
That's the thing with Satan (Formely Lucifer) is that he loves it when people DON'T believe in him. It's his space between diverging lines that lead people to believe that as long as they are simply good they'll go to Heaven. But Christ said "Ye Must Be Born Again."
So... Hell? Illogical. Overrated. And inefficient.
ReplyDeleteYou are clearly calling God (Jesus) a liar then. I fear for your soul after departing your body sir.
God cannot lie, nor has He ever lied. Hell orginally was created for the devil and his angels but after man fell through his own sin God decided that is where the wicked will spend eternity.
"Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand."
I pray you never end up there. You can "check in, but never checkout."
"they check in but they don't check out"
ReplyDeletethat was an advertisement for a bug trap called the Roach Hotel.
It was actually a very funny ad.
"The voice from above is only in your head."
ReplyDeleteThree guesses where the cavernous voice from below is located...
Damned voice! Will you get out of my head? You're making an echo up there!
ReplyDelete}|:-(>
Besides, I've got gas, and it's bothersome enough. Rolls like thunder in these poorly ventilated underground caverns. Oh, my!
(Urrrp! excuse me) Maybe, perchance, I shouldn't have chowed on that chilly cheesy chili with chinese chips and chocolate shake...
Mister Saddam, you'll say this last sentence five hundred times fast. One whiplash for every mistake. Now, to go "perfume" Zarqawi's face, I feel another big one coming.
"Oooh, boy! Do NOT go in there. Whew!"
An Ace Ventura quote. Now I've heard it all.
ReplyDeleteAnonymous said...
ReplyDelete"God cannot lie, nor has He ever lied."
I thought that was George Washington??? :-|
And a "Yabba-dabba-doo" to you too.
(You know what I mean!)
P.S.: My card.
ReplyDeleteIn case of danger, just cry for help.
You know how to cry for help, don't you? Just put your antennae together and raise your brow.
"TO SAVE, AND FAIL NOT!"
No it was Abraham Lincoln who never lied. Hence "Honest Abe".
ReplyDeleteA cavernous voice from below said...
ReplyDeleteNo it was Abraham Lincoln who never lied. Hence "Honest Abe".
not funny. go back to the jim carey university and study more.
They kicked me out because I was upstaging Mr. Carrey.
ReplyDeleteYes, Fred Flintstone, and you deserved being kicked out. I remember you well. Cavernous or not, your humor was never deep.
ReplyDeleteNow, my Ace Ventura "butt-talking", THAT was profound!
Good afternoon, good evening and good night to you, sir.
Spank you, spank you very much.
ReplyDelete"Wilma Suse said:
ReplyDeleteThat's the thing with Satan (Formely Lucifer) is that he loves it when people DON'T believe in him."
So he's really the opposite of Jesus in every detail, hunh?
But I wonder why he doesn't roast Satanists, if he likes NOT being believed in...
I have the same problem some times. I'll meet kids who claim they're too old to believe Roboroach is real. Nobody trusts what they see on TV any more.
Say, Cavernous, is it true? Are you Wilma's husband? Then you must be neighbors with my good friend Barney! (You know, purple fella, looks like a dinosaur? Children still believe in HIM, but I'm not the jealous type.)
"I cannot tell a lie. I did it." I'm pretty sure this was a George Washington quote. Abe was honest, George was truthful.
So he's really the opposite of Jesus in every detail, hunh?
ReplyDeleteBut I wonder why he doesn't roast Satanists, if he likes NOT being believed in...
Satan doesn't have the authority unless God grants it to him. Trust me, there are Satanists in Hell this very minute crying out for mercy.
I can't imagine anyone making fun of eternal damnation, but I guess they do. Sad indeed.
"Satan doesn't have the authority unless God grants it to him."
ReplyDeleteThat's one of the things that bugs me. If God is almighty, why does Satan supposedly have such a hold on this world? Why is there a battle being fought? Why is he granted such liberty when there is no hope for his redemption?
If Satan aims for the achilles heel of humankind, why not offer complete and total protection from his wiles? Free will would not cease to exist, there would simply be an influence removed from the decision making process. This would no doubt make our actions more sincere as they would extend from who we are and strive to be without the tainted vision of a jaded aggressor weighing upon our hearts and minds.
I am still responsible for the decisions I make while disoriented, but I would argue that anyone who has the ability to help me clear my mind and remove certain negative influences from the picture is equally responsible if they fail to do everything in their power to aid me as I struggle.*
Of course, as I believe I stated earlier, everyone has a right to their beliefs. But do consider the possibilities. It becomes much easier to sway the hearts of men when you are able to step into their minds and see things, for a moment, as they do. It puts you in a position to act from true compassion. This is what we need most in our world.
*I would only argue this if the above paradigm were indeed the one by which the universe functions, ie victims and victimizers. It is my belief that victimization is an erroneous concept. While I believe in helping each other as best we can, no one else is responsible for my fate regardless of what they do or do not do. They are accountable only for themselves.
I am reading a book by Kenneth Wapnick called "Love Does Not Condemn". It's a very scholarly study comparing Christianity, gnosticism, Platonicism, and A Course In Miracles. Recommended.
ReplyDeletePeaceful Blade,
ReplyDeleteYou make some very interesting points.
I've myself been pondering the following conundrum :
Suppose you're an almighty and wise benevolent ruler. There's an evil overlord wannabe, not really dangerous, but with definitely some means at his disposal, and eternally bound on destroying you to rule in your place (and palace). You've known since FOREVER he's recruiting an army for the eventually upcoming battle. Now, since there are many delinquents, criminals, sociopaths and traitors in your kingdom, you ruled to lock them away in a high-security prison.
Here's what puzzles me : why the heck would you assign, of all people, the wannabe Overlord as the single ruler and warden to the prison of all your punished enemies, hunh?
Now, for the translation:
*Presumably infinitely wise ruler=God.
*Spiteful enemy evil overlord= Satan.
*The jail=Hell.
Somebody explain to me the sense in this theory?!? Even GW Bush isn't enough of a moron to hand friggin' Osama Bin Laden the keys to Guantanamo and Abu Ghraib. D'uh!
Unless Satan is not the warden, but just top dog in a prison which is locked from the outside.
ReplyDeleteWhat bothers me more is: If god is omnipotent, Satan is powerless. If Satan has power, god is not omnipotent.
That is, based on the theory that they are real entities and adversaries.
[Pascal said...
ReplyDelete"If God didn't exist, we would have to make Him up." - Voltaire]
I think the same can be said for Satan. "The Devil made me do it" is such a convenient excuse to skip one's responsibilities, isn't it?
Mankind doesn't need a Temptator to justify (and try to excuse) the evil that men do. And we don't need the excuse of God's will to do Good either. Our hearts should suffice. Let God be happy that we are good SPONTANEOUSLY, not because we're following orders or afraid of going to Hell. One who's forced to do good out of fear has no merit other than his selfishness.
He whose faith can move mountains but who has no love in his heart is nothing.
"What bothers me more is: If god is omnipotent, Satan is powerless. If Satan has power, god is not omnipotent.
ReplyDeleteThat is, based on the theory that they are real entities and adversaries."
This is only one of about a million logical fallacies found in Christian religion today.
Satan is a Christian concept. In order to sell a solution, you need to first have a problem. In order to keep selling the same 'solution' for hundreds of years, the problem needs to be inconcrete (so that it never truly can be solved) and fear inducing (to evoke emotion).
This is why all systems of power need a bogeyman. Not only religions but political systems too. And in case your bogeyman ceases to exist, you have to quickly invent a new one.
'Commies'->Bin Laden->Saddam->Al Zawahiri->Mahmoud Ahmadinejad-> etc.
So, let's recap:
1) Define the adversary. (We vs. they.)
2) Step up and present a solution to eliminate adversary.
3) Explain that adversary is powerful, and all resources and sacrifices will be needed.
4) Collect money.
5) If adversary ceases to exist, go back to step #1.
ttl, right on.
ReplyDeleteand I love the phrase "logical fallacies."
slightly off topic, but just saw a great documentary about John Lennon and his courage in the final years of his life standing up to U.S. policies. It's called "The U.S. vs. John Lennon: artist. humanitarian. national threat."
Very well done.
peaceful blade,
ReplyDeletein addition to your lucid thinking, love the name. I would like to steal it for a poem.
Laurie
I heard John Lennon died by gunshot.
ReplyDeleteBut I'm sure there's no relation.
Um, there isn't, right?
"peaceful blade,
ReplyDeletein addition to your lucid thinking, love the name."
You should expect no less from a man who used to call himself lucid. ;)
"I would like to steal it for a poem."
I'd be honored.
"You should expect no less from a man who used to call himself lucid. ;)"
ReplyDeleteDang! It IS a small world, isn't it? :-D