2007-07-25

Nonduality in the Bible

"Yahweh God formed man from the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul." (WEB)

"At the morning talks recently there has been a musician who plays traditional Indian flute for the group after the talks. The flute does not know music: it does not know 'G' from 'B flat;' it does not know tempo or emphasis, and cannot make music come out of itself: it's just a hollow bamboo stick with holes in it! It is the musician who has the knowledge and the skill and the intention and the dexterity, and whose breath blows through the instrument and whose fingers manipulate the openings so that beautiful music flows out. When the music is ended, no one congratulates the wooden stick on the music it made: it is the musician who is applauded and thanked for this beautiful gift of music.

"It is precisely so with what we think of as our 'selves.' We are instruments, hollow sticks, through which the Breath, the Spirit, the Energy which is Presence, All That Is, Consciousness, flows. Just as it is not the flute making the note, but the Musician making the note through the instrument, so it is the breath which Presence which animates this mind and body and comes out through this mouth to make it seem that this mouth is speaking words." (Perfect Brilliant Stillness, David Carse)

2007-07-21

Assumptions

Humans are causing earth's climate to get warmer.

No, they're not. The climate goes through natural cycles over time.

Human activity puts carbon into the atmosphere and that's affecting life on our planet.

No, it's not a problem. Or to the extent it is a problem, we'll find technological solutions.

The rainforest is being destroyed.

So what? The land that's cleared makes it possible to raise more food for people -- beef cattle, wheat, and so forth.

But that causes species to become extinct.

Spare me the sad music. Yes, some species are becoming extinct. That's a natural process. Species have always come and gone.

... and on it goes.

I wonder if an aspect of the debate and seeming inability of the debaters to find common ground might be different starting assumptions. Here's one: "Growth is always a good thing. We have to grow our economy and culture and value and wealth and worth. More and bigger is always better. More technology, more money, more food, more of the things we want."

Here's another: "Unlimited growth cannot be sustained indefinitely. The well-being of the system as a whole depends upon being in balance. Not too much of this, not too much of that. If we don't limit ourselves, eventually reality will do it for us."

Starting from different assumptions, the same evidence may be interpreted in wildly different ways.

In considering the various on-going debates, it might be most productive for each of the debaters to examine their own assumptions and consider how their assumptions drive them. It seems to me unlikely that this will happen, however. It seems much more in keeping with human nature for each debater to assume certainty and plow ahead, seek to devastate their opposition with clever, compelling arguments. So much for saving the planet and making peace.

Return to the Cold War?

Forbes describes the statements of the man accused in Britain of killing Litvinenko.

A reading based on the idea that Lugovoi is projecting Russian attitudes on Britain would indicate some interesting things about Russia. He calls his target "a haven for criminals," says that her officials indulge in "cynical and impudent lies", that they deliberately provoke confrontations with other nations for political reasons, and other Cold War diplomatic tactics. He implies "imperial aspirations" on the part of his mark.

If all Britain wanted was a scapegoat, seems like it would have been simpler to find one closer to home.

2007-07-18

Your Culture Is Killing You

Read about what high fructose corn syrup does to your liver. And how common it is in food.

Find out what animal protein does to your risk of cancer.

Learn how the ocean is dying due to overfishing and global warming.

Find out how the medical system is failing to keep us well.

The system is broken. Better figure out how to protect yourself!

2007-07-15

The "All is One" Hypothesis

Here's a hypothesis:

There is one big All which human minds divide into millions of little things.

The one big All can't be a thing itself because it consists of awareness and what appears to awareness. The awareness of All can't perceive All directly, just like an eye can't look at itself directly, although it can look at its reflection in a mirror. In the same way, what appears to awareness is a reflection of itself -- All is one, and every thing is part of it. The awareness and what appears to it is All's way of looking at and knowing itself.

One of the things that human minds divide the All into is persons. There is actually no personhood operating at any level, just awareness and the things that appear to it. There is actually no separation between things, despite the cognizing activity of human minds. All of it is just what is appearing to awareness.

Awareness is what knows the meaning of these words.