just1peaceofthepuzzle

There is no way to happiness, happiness IS the way...

2009-01-14T22:33:00.001-05:00

Out of my head, into my heart....it's a new day.

some spokes on the wheel

2009-01-14T22:26:00.003-05:00

Christianity for comfort.

Buddhism for self-knowledge.

Taoism for acceptance, contentment, the way... Baby!

On Jesus

2007-03-17T20:43:00.000-04:00

At times it may seem that I am tormented by my belief in Jesus. Torment is a little harsh but I do admit it is an ongoing mind-game/discovery of who Jesus is and the part that he played in my life.

These days I lean much more towards the view that Jesus was a man -- an incredible man. To be honest I think that I am finding more value in that then to believe that he was an 'all-knowing, all-powerful' God -- more on that some other time.

Savior, martyr, brother, friend, God -- Jesus has been all of these to me.

I realized that if I am to praise God for every wonderful event or day in my life then it is only logical and fair to also blame him/(her, it) for every crisis or event that has brought me heartache and pain. Above all, I believe that the God of my world is a loving God -- Love has no room for blame. Therefore, as much as it has been a struggle at times, I have found that the only way to move away from the 'blame game' is to desert it all together and move from a belief in a personal God to a non-personal God -- one that is not so much more distant than it is mysterious.

So I struggle today in where it is that Jesus stands with me. I would not be the person I am today if not for my belief in Jesus. Yet today I view the impact that Jesus had on my life almost in terms of 'my imaginary friend Jesus', as in "what you give power to, has power". I am not completely clear on this but the best way I can describe it is moving from the person of Jesus, solely to the spirit of Jesus--the man.

Healing Through Emptiness

2006-08-08T21:36:00.000-04:00

The following is from A Path with Heart by Jack Kornfield

In Buddhist teaching, "emptiness" refers to a basic openness and nonseperation that we experience when all small and fixed notions of our self are seen through or dissolved. We experience it when we see that our existence is transitory, that our body, heart, and mind arise out of the changing web of life, where nothing is disconnected or separate. The deepest experiences in meditation lead us to an intimate awareness of life's essential openness and emptiness, of its everchanging and unpossessable nature, of its nature as an unstoppable process.

The Buddha described human life as comprising a series of everchanging processes: a physical process, a feeling process, a memory and recognition process, a thought and reaction process, and a consciousness process. These processes are dynamic and continuous, without a single element we can call our unchanging self. We ourselves are a process, woven together with life, without separateness. We arise like a wave out of the ocean of life, our tentative forms still one with the ocean. Some traditions call this the Tao, the divine, the fertile void, the unborn. Out of it, our lives appear as reflections of the divine, as a movement or dance of consciousness. The most profound healing comes when we sense this process, this life-giving emptiness.

You live in illusion and the appearance of things. There is a reality, but you do not know this. When you understand this, you will see that you are nothing, and being nothing you are everything. That is all. Kalu Rinpoche

Middle Knowledge

2006-06-29T23:02:00.000-04:00

This is apparently some concept that is out of my reach. But the terminology itself interests me. So, with the help of a few tasty beers, here is what I've got...

My definition of middle knowledge:

While following the 'yellow brick path', dancing like a child, I get temporarily entangled in my ipod wires. I laugh. I know as behaving as a child, my ipod may crash to the ground and it will all be over, I will resume to adulthood.

Middle Knowledge = having awareness of 2 separate frames of mind at the same time.

The Absolute Knowing

2006-06-29T22:54:00.000-04:00

When I die it's what I expect. The absolute knowing-- all I've wondered about, those I've met and wondered about, situations not asked for but received and wondered why. I can only imagine.

All put to rest when I leave-- move on. That is what I expect from heaven. Answered questions. Until then, I enjoy. I seek.

What do you expect?

Into the Mystic

2006-06-29T22:46:00.000-04:00

When we get so rooted in this world-- hold so tight to a belief that has the power to define us-- we get attached and removed from the eternal.

My way to God was through Jesus, but I do not think that it is the 'right way' to think to believe that is the only way to reach God.

Getting caught up in ideas and thoughts. Just float.

Shedding

2006-06-27T21:37:00.000-04:00

Trees shed their leaves.
Snakes shed their skin.
Animals shed their fur.

Eternal Life -- We come from God and we will return to God.

God shed us.
So will the earth and we will return to the spirit of one.

Recycled bits of God.

Shed ourselves of this earth before we return home. Let go of the past, shed it. Do not hang on. Be in the now.

God's Kingdom

2006-06-14T14:45:00.000-04:00

It is not belief but behavior that will bring on the Kingdom of Heaven.

One God with Many Faces

2006-06-07T11:30:00.000-04:00

I've been hearing this a bit lately-- 'one God with many faces'.

As humans we experience many emotions. There are many facets to our personalities.
Different people depending on what role they play in another's life are exposed to different sides of one unique individual.

Some people bring out the best in others-- open them up, positive energy flows.
Other people bring out the worst in others-- shut them down, energy stops flowing or negative energy prevails.

So it may be with God.

It seems to me that more often than not(so far) in my own life, things happen on God's time. Yet I look at some other peoples' lives and it would seem as though God has left them untouched. It's as if God is sharing different sides of himself with different people and some may have more exposure to him than others.

Initially, some will view tragedy and life's difficulties as if they are a punishment from God. But with time, one may come to view these same events as a privlege, an honor. It's as if God is choosing to interact with some more than others--he dips his hands down into their lives and exposes them to things that they have never been aware of before, he shares a unique part of himself and in turn-- hopefully-- he opens them up, brings out the best in them.

little K

2006-03-18T00:05:00.000-05:00

Just wanted to record this because I found it interesting and thought-provoking, as well as cool. This comes from a 3 1/2 year old. I think of it as sort of poetry, but anyway, here goes.....

Last night, as I walked out of the mall in the evening with my oldest daughter, she asked me "who made the sky?"

I replied, "God did."

She then asked, "how did he make it?"

I replied, "I don't know, we don't know that".....(paused)...then asked her "how do you think it was made?"

She replied, "He kissed his dreams good-bye and gave them to the world."

Leave yourself open

2006-02-12T21:23:00.000-05:00

I take issue with defining myself. I have difficulty with others defining themselves.

Although I take on many roles in my everyday life I have found that there is only one that I have absolutely no problem defining myself as(that happens to be 'mom'). It is possible that this is through fault of my own in that my mind is quick to assign connotations to any given role. That is the psychological side of things.

From the spiritual perspective, I find that defining oneself can be constrictive to one's spiritual growth. With that said, I would like to share the following words by Thich Nhat Hahn....

It is like a wave. A wave may seem to have a beginning and end. A wave might be seen as high or low, big or small, different or not different from other waves. These terms--beginning, ending, high, low, more or less beautiful--they belong to the dimension called historical, but the wave is at the same time the water. Water transcends the form of the wave, the idea of beginning, ending, high, or low. These notions apply to the wave but not to the water. The moment when the wave realizes that she is water, she loses all her fear and she enjoys much more being a wave. She is free from birth and death, being and non-being, high or low, because when we are able to touch our ultimate dimension, we are no longer subjected to fear-- fear of being; fear of non-being; fear of birth; fear of death.

2006-01-22T20:33:00.000-05:00

from Living Buddha, Living Christ Thich Nhat Hahn

Seeing the Way, Taking the Path
When Jesus said, "I am the way, " He meant that to have a true relationship with God, you must practice His way. In the Act of the Apostles, the early Christians always spoke of their faith as "the Way." To me, "I am the way" is a better statement than "I know the way." The way is not an asphalt road. But we must distinguish between the "I" spoken by Jesus and the "I" that people usually think of. The "I" in His statement is life itself, His life, which is the way. If you do not really look at His life, you cannot see the way. If you only satisfy yourself with praising a name, even the name of Jesus, it is not practicing the life of Jesus. We must practice living deeply, loving, and acting with charity if we wish to truly honor Jesus. The way is Jesus Himself and not just some idea of Him. A true teaching is not static. It is not mere words but the reality of life. Many who have neither the way nor the life try to impose on others what they believe to be the way. But these are only words that have no connection with real life or a real way. When we understand and practice deeply the life and teachings of Buddha or the life and teachings of Jesus, we penetrate the door and enter the abode of the living Buddha and the living Christ, and life eternal presents itself to us.

Inspired by King Kong (2005)

2005-12-28T22:07:00.000-05:00

One of a kind in every way.
Loneliness.
No one alike to understand your plight.

If you were all-knowing, all-powerful --- do you suppose you would then create more like yourself for companionship?
God created man in his image or man created God in his image.

Perhaps God created us as equals to himself so that he could see himself in us. Relate.

We are a reflection of God. Combined consciousness.
It takes every piece in a puzzle to make the puzzle complete.

Nothing to be identified if there is only one.

Heaven and Hell

2005-12-22T21:24:00.000-05:00

Caught up in something.
Believing in a story, fable or legend--- so much so that it takes your mind away from 'the now'--- this is hell. Lost, misguided.

Heaven is in 'the now'. Anything that distracts from 'the now' is an illusion, a distraction.

When you are truly in the now, you experience a slice of heaven.

Take away the story

2005-11-29T21:37:00.000-05:00

Subtract from your life that which has defined you. What is left?

Loving parents, solid foundation. Broken life.
How to put it back together? Build and rebuild all to attain the comfort known as a child. Letting go.....a constant. Security and clarity in distance.

Stripping away ourselves in this world.....finding what is eternal.

Breaking down one generation and building onto the next.

Denying Evil

2005-11-05T21:49:00.000-05:00

I may be guitly of denying evil. I know that it exists yet I feel very removed from it. I am fortunate to have who I consider to be good people as friends and family.
The television news channels are covered with stories that contain the proof of evil. I don't have a need to watch the news.
Some may view that as ignorant.....that is, to not keep up with what is happening in the world today. I don't see it that way.
I believe that I've got one life to live, this is it. I want it to be good. I will create my reality, I will not allow a news network to create it for me. People do wonderful things for one another everyday.....it is a wonderful world.

Jesus as God or Jesus as a child of God?

2005-10-26T20:57:00.000-04:00

If you believe that Jesus was in fact God, well then you would look to the sources that were closest to him for information. But... if you believe that Jesus was not the 'only son of God', that we are all equal children of God and that Jesus set an example of how we should be/behave, then you would believe that we all have the potential to love as greatly as he did. If God is in every one of us as he was in Jesus, then empathizing with Jesus may bring one closer to him than reading about him would.

More than just a bumper sticker

2005-10-22T20:51:00.000-04:00

Bliss
1 : complete happiness
2 : Paradise, Heaven

Knowing 'bliss' is a life-changing experience. Once you have experienced bliss more than once you know then that it is real....the overwhelming joy that you felt makes you aware that there is something greater than yourself at work.... a higher power.... and everything in that moment just feels right.

Bliss can not be chased, it cannot be sought after. It is a state of being that is the result of a way of life. Letting go of your idea of self. Want nothing --- even to want nothing is to want something. If you can completely let go of life and trust God, bliss comes. It is found in non-doing.

If you strip away your ego, you will find that God resides in the space that is left.

Let go, let God.

Personal God vs. Impersonal God

2005-10-18T22:40:00.000-04:00

Personal God -----
In good times you give credit and praise to the Lord for all the gifts he has bestowed upon you.
In bad times it is then natural to blame God, as if he caused them or was not paying attention---not looking out for you. You get caught up in your emotions, you feel as though maybe you hadn't been praying the right way or have been a bad person and are being punished for it.

Impersonal God ----- Believe in the laws of nature and that God created those laws.
In good times you are joyful and in awe of God's masterpiece.
In bad times you don't take it personal...it is all just a part of life.....take the good with the bad.....yin yang. You are able to move forward without beating your head against the wall, wondering 'why? why? why?'

Cannot change the world but you can change your view of it. Could not change my world but I could change my view of it.

'When you learn to love hell, you will be in heaven.'
-from The Lazy Man's Guide to Enlightenment by Thaddeus Golas

Reality

2005-09-28T19:03:00.000-04:00

Life takes us places. Experiences and the feelings that go along with them cannot be denied. Should not be denied.

No two have ever travelled the exact same road.
The sun shines today upon the land and never will it cast it's light in just the same manner again.

Life is forever changing and so it is with reality. We have the facts, but they alone do not create reality. Much of our 'view' creates our reality.

2005-08-09T01:17:00.000-04:00

God created us. God loves us.
Do you think he is playing some game with us...perhaps, 'catch me if you can'?
Do you think he treats us as if we are little children, not giving us enough credit to understand him? No? Okay,....... then why the bible? Is God's love reserved only for those who like to read or go to church?
What if you were blind and deaf.....how would you receive his love if you could not see it, hear it or learn of it?

Religion often teaches people to 'take the long way home' and there are certainly no shortcomings in the way of warning people of what might lie ahead if they should 'take a wrong turn'.
I believe that if one is searching for the truth, Religion may be detrimental to their discovery of it.
To leave your relationship with God in another's hands is woeful. Countless people have done so and now believe that they do not believe in God, yet it is really the God that someone else defined for them that they do not believe in.

On the path to the truth, Religion itself can often be a 'distraction on the side of the road'.
In finding the truth, there is no where to go, no where to look, nothing to wait for. God is a constant. Why look to history when all the answers are in your hands right now. God is inside. He is not logic, nor education. He can be found simply through awareness. All of these other things that carry promises of a connection to God.......they are all risky and will only get you so far in your attainment of the truth.

Jesus had the answers, but much of his message was misunderstood....today and in his day.

2005-07-02T21:44:00.000-04:00

If it's in Nature it's O.K. Answers can be found in nature..........possibly.
Fall comes, leaves drop--- yet some linger on. Seemingly dead yet still attached to the tree. They don't want to let go.......but it is inevitable that they will drop.
Some detach themselves from the tree of life in all their glory---bright and beautiful.
Others shrivel while they are still on the tree.
Which would you be if given the choice?

2005-07-02T21:40:00.000-04:00

Everything has a dark side. A light side and a dark side. Look at something as simple as a leaf on a tree in the summertime--- there is an upside that the sun shines upon, and then the underbelly. Opposites. Without opposites, that which is in question would not exist. It is only recognizable when or because it has an opposite.