Tagged: life
The beauty of Change
We all know that change is “the only constant in Life.” Change is one of those paradoxical facts of life which we could mentally understand, but yet most are afraid of experiencing it fully and want to delay it as much as possible.
As we do everything in our power to delay the inevitable, and hold on to the “status quo,” our fear increases as well as our anxiety for we refuse to change.
Life has many forms of change, which we label as “good” or “bad,” but nevertheless, those labels only represent transitions for further change.
Our society in general has many taboos which will be challenged in the upcoming times such as our ideas behind death and dying, suffering and one of the most detrimental purposes ever invented in this society: “Success” based on economic status.
Going beyond those old paradigms will be of paramount importance for a new beginning, a new change of perspective for the end of something old, is the beginning of something new.
Life could be described as a roller coaster. Our perspective is what makes the difference. The roller coaster is fun for the child inside, but dreadful for the grown up who only dreams of going up all the time, forgetting that going down brings the necessary force to go higher upwards. That is the game of Life. Have you noticed?
Don’t we want to play that game? 🙂 Then, we learn to fly.
What do I mean? To explore the depth of Life, means to observe it from a high point, like a mountain. To climb that mountain is tedious, tiring, a very challenging task, but necessary. That is the spiritual journey. The mountain is what we call “self.” Flying means to go beyond that “self,” that “personality” in order to be able to see and feel Life from a different perspective.
The roller coaster will make us cry or make us laugh. But when we know that there cannot be an “up” without a “down,” then our perspective changes and then we will smile the whole way until we reach the mountain top. At that point, we may shed some tears of happiness. Crying will be the same as smiling! We have gone beyond duality.
Therefore no matter what Life brings; keep smiling!
Please note: From now on, I will only post when there is the feeling to do so. Therefore, this could be my last post or maybe not. It is that uncertainty, the one keeping things new and fresh. Certainly, this is a change! 🙂
Does witchcraft exist?
Yes, it does.
Its existence is hidden in most people’s belief that it does not. Most believe that “ignorant, less educated people may believe in that.” Through that belief, witchcraft, black magic, sorcery, etc. are able to act upon another against their will, infringing the natural laws of cause and effect.
Individuals lacking knowledge on how Life operates, will use the “evil side” of magic to impose their wishes. Those individuals truly deserve compassion, for their deeds will be experienced by them sooner or later. They do not know what they are truly doing.
For example, someone wants to become a leader of a company and there is a person competing and blocking that wish to be true, then; all of the sudden that person dies unexpectedly, clearing the path of the power hungry person, to be the new leader. Is that a “normal” occurrence? Maybe. But maybe not. Witchcraft is also involved in the emotions of a person as if “cupid’s arrow has hit someone’s heart” to love someone who was despised or not even considered as a partner.
But why bother to use witchcraft when there are other human means to do the same? It is simple. There is no physical evidence. Damage can be done at a distance, or by other less evident means. Even though human justice may not be able to act, the laws of nature are incorruptible. That person soliciting the work of a witchcraft or “brujo” and the witchcrafts themselves will pay the consequences of their doing. That is a simple fact of observing the world of duality, that is cause and effect.
Individuals without empathy and with a crooked, heartless attitude in Life, will usually go to whatever extent is needed to obtain what they wish, even if it is as petty as having more coins and bills in their wallet or the love of someone.
How do we know if someone or ourselves are “under the spell” of someone?
Another “brujo,” “shaman” or “witch,” could tell. These people are able to “read” someone’s aura or they have a connection with other realms which are capable of giving information as detailed as : Who the attacker was, when that happened, how that happened and what to do to clear that “spell.” All human actions are “recorded” and these people have access to that information mostly because they have that skill as a “gift.” This “gift” could be detrimental for the health of the “witch” as well, for their intervention needs to be wisely done as there are consequences. For instance, revealing who the perpetrator was could inspire vengeance in the victim which could end in deeper suffering for all parties. It is important to understand that to fight evil head to head, is to strengthen it, for fighting is evil itself. There are ways to go around it like sorting waves in the ocean. That requires intelligence.
No one needs to believe in that “ witch nonsense,” but I wanted to share my own experience hoping that this info could be beneficial to some.
Most “sleepy” individuals are seduced by the illusion of a world where security means to attain power over others. These individuals do not even realize that their own death is the only security they can ever have as well as the consequences behind the intention of their actions. Paraphrasing Benjamin Franklin: “Nothing is certain except death and taxes.” In Life, there are consequences of our actions just like paying taxes. It is a compulsory “contribution” to repay Life for what we have taken for our own selfish purpose. That requires prompt and full payment when it is due.
Will resume writing on March 31st. Until then! 🙂
Saving the Planet
It is ironic how the most evolved species on the Earth, that is human beings; are at the same time the greatest cause of destruction of the planet.
Why? Many will come up with reasonable causes. But nothing effective has been done.
If we are looking for “solutions,” we will come up with laws, treaties, new behaviors to “save the planet,” etc. But again, very little is done.
It is sarcasm to believe that humans (as we are now) can do something to “save the planet.”
If action is not a consequence of BEING a different human being than what we are now, then any action will be limited; even though we may believe to have found a “solution.”
Why is that? It is not a matter of using logic or reason or money or technology. It is a matter of compassion and empathy. Compassion is not to be sympathetic for the misfortune of others. It is to feel that as your own experience, for we are all together in this. In that feeling action happens.
We cannot know compassion by thinking about it but by BEING it.
The comfort zone
As soon as we become comfortable with a situation, Life will change it. Have we noticed that?
It is as if living in a continuous challenge. That newness will take us away from our comfort zone. That forces us to meet a new setting with new tools. That is to allow ourselves to learn from Life itself. We could meet that newness with rejection, trauma and bitterness or we could appreciate the new challenge and adapt with flexibility.
As we adapt, we learn. As we learn we move onto another challenge.
Comfort is the preamble for a needed change in Life, although; many expect a daily routine that will last forever, eventually that will break apart and then that person will meet his own attachments.
Life is unexpected. The comfort zone will be continuously challenged. Any artificial control to keep things unchanged, is surely an utopia.
The mirror of Life
“The way life treats you is a merciless mirror image of your attitude toward life.” -Unknown
Attitude is colored by our feelings. Thus, what we feel is reflected back at us. Many believe that thoughts are the origin of what Life will give us back, thus the following quote:
“Life is a mirror and will reflect back to the thinker what he thinks into it.” – Ernest Holmes
What is harder to change, a thought or a feeling? I could think about something in a negative way and change it into a positive thought. That is the premise of “positive thinking.” However, when we feel for or against something with a certain degree of intensity, that will not be easy to change. Our attitude is emotional, feeling based first which is then cemented by thought and then expressed through words and behaviors.
“Reflection is the business of man; a sense of his state is his first duty: but who remembereth himself in joy? Is it not in mercy then that sorrow is allotted unto us?” – William Shakespeare
When we have an idea or an opinion formed as a result of meditation, we say that we are reflecting. However if our psychological stage or emotions are not harmonious, our reflection will be inaccurate. Harmony may be described as joy, but the point is to observe that as we are aligned with disharmony, then that will be the reflection back at us. We could experience the consequence of acting based on an inaccurate perception/reflection as sorrow; which is the way Life reminds us to change.
“The beginning of love is to let those we love be perfectly themselves, and not to twist them to fit our own image. Otherwise we love only the reflection of ourselves we find in them.” – Thomas Merton
The “other” is a reflection to show us what we like and dislike about ourselves. Thus, when we allow others to be as they are, we are also that openness. Love starts there. To accommodate another to fit our perception of likes and dislikes only reflects our own narcissistic egotism. There is no love there, but another opportunity to look at ourselves and hopefully, change.
*** Will resume writing on December 16th. Until then!!
Notes on Quotes: Life and Death
“Goodbyes are only for those who love with their eyes. Because for those who love with heart and soul there is no such thing as separation.” – Rumi
For most individuals, a goodbye is experienced as the end; bringing sorrow in the discovery that something unique is missing in their lives. We are all ‘tourists’ in Life, sharing a moment with someone who could touch our journey into the next moment. Love from the heart is a type of consciousness, which could take us beyond the sense of individuality and its fears. Only in the perception of individuality we meet attachment, neediness and label those many times as love. However, beyond that perception there is completeness in feeling, in BEING even though someone may be missing in our lives.
“Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides.” – Lao Tzu
There is no Life without Death, thus it follows; there is no Death without Life. That ‘line’ is truly a circle after all.
“The fear of death follows from the fear of life. A man who lives fully is prepared to die at any time.” – Mark Twain
When we fear one side of a coin, fear will also be for the other side, for a side of a coin cannot exist without being the whole coin. Living fully is not a bag of ideas, thrills, or behaviors. Living fully is known by those who love fully with their heart and soul. Truly, that is not a “preparation to die” which is the idea generated by a stoic mind, but a gift received by those who perceive Life from the heart.
“Death is a word, and it is the word, the image, that creates fear.” – Jiddu Krishnamurti
The ones reading these words will not meet his own death. It will be “someone else.” As Life is change, so ‘we’ change with it. For many, the idea of death becomes more acceptable in their old age. Fear does not remain the same. We cannot fear the unknown (Death) but the idea of losing that which has been known. Therefore, Death is simply a word to fear until we meet the reality of it. Paradoxically, there is no fear in the moment of meeting a ‘reality.’ Fear is always there before, in anticipation.
Beyond good and evil
In a rare sunny afternoon in the middle of Winter, the master and his disciple had a conversation on the master’s house rooftop, while overseeing human “progress” in a classical crowded, busy city: Buildings upon buildings of concrete with the characteristic background noise of cars, motorcycles, horns and even fruit salesmen with megaphones, voicing their latest deals. That setting was perfect to practice observation and appreciation skills. Nevertheless, the master had a few pots there, with gorgeous aloe plants and geraniums to look at, and practice those same skills. The art of appreciating Life is in finding beauty in everything.
The disciple asked: “Master, why is it that good people seem to have so many problems to deal with? My neighbor’s kid ran away from her house then she lost all of her savings during a fire. She is a good person! Why does Life seem to be so unfair?”
The master listened attentively and replied:” Our judgment shows our conditioning. Life events occur as consequences of our actions and emotions. Today you may learn something new. Many are not ready for this yet but, you are. Good and evil are part of the human perception of a society ruled by the misunderstanding of duality. It is conditioning. Life itself is beyond those definitions, those borders created by the human mind.”
The disciple was surprised and replied: “ But master, I see people harming another. We cannot call that good.”
The master listened and smiled: “ If we cannot call that good, we call it bad, evil and we will throw in our emotional charge to demonstrate our rejection. Correct? That is exactly the point. Those labels could be used only to identify something due to the limits of language but if you judge, you are missing the point. If you observe someone harming another, do you reject that one? Look at your emotions. If you find rejection, distaste, you are judging based on your social conditioning. Remain unbiased, even if you participate to avoid further harm. ”
The disciple responded:” But what is wrong with that, master? I will do what is necessary to stop that fight and side with the good ones.”
The master smiled and said: “ Observe how you continue using those dualistic words: good, bad, right, wrong to emit judgment. Do as you wish, but observe that your feelings remain unmovable to either side. Let me explain: A strong Earthquake will kill many. Shall we label that as bad and reject that? Interestingly, many call an Earthquake an ‘act of God’ but yet in their minds, that God is good. Do you see the deceiving game of words and judgment? We do not know about the different events that will happen in Life, for Life is uncertain. There is no security in it; but yet if events are suitable to our viewpoint, we label those as good and pretend to find security in them by holding on with something that will change. We experience fear instead, which we then label as bad. That is the conditioning that we need to become aware of. More important than those labels are the emotions that we send out. Those are actions in itself and that which we emotionally reject, will be attracted toward us like a magnet. Our emotional charge becomes the strength of that magnet. Do you remember the time when you saw a couple fighting? What happened?”
The disciple remembered that episode. The boy was starting to beat up the girl and the disciple tried to separate them. To his surprise, the girl said to him: “ Why do you interfere with our fight? Who gives you that right?”
The disciple said: “ I thought I was doing the right thing. But obviously, they didn’t think so.”
The master smiled and said: “Now, you are starting to understand. You acted with an emotional impulse based on your conditioning of what is right to do. You did not feel inside you whether your presence was required there. You did not ask first, if you could be helpful. You merely thought to be right… and that gave you the right. Similarly, you will find out that our social conditioning is very limited to understand Life. Look at the Sun up there. It is giving light to all. It is not judging who is good or bad, who deserves this or that. Ruminate on this: People are caught in the duality of good and evil but Life and the angelic realm are beyond good and evil.”
Exploring the Depth of Living 