Simplicity

What have all these people in common?

Putin, Erdogan, Xi Ping, Sisi, Khomeini, Kim Jong Un, Lukashenko, Salman, Modi and all others, et al?

Answer: Fear is what they have in common. I'm sure the list is longer, but this is just to make a point.

Why fear? After all, they are the most powerful people in their own countries, aren't they? The give away is that each of those "leaders" allow no dissenting voices to rise. Even to the point of kidnapping dissenters in other countries and having them killed. Look at Chine with Hong Kong, Tibet and the Uighurs; Look at Turkey and the Kurds and Gülen supporters; Russia and Navalny, Egypt and the Muslim Brotherhood, Iran and everybody else; North Korea and everybody else, Lukashenko and his own people; Saudi Arabia and anyone who contradicts the leader; India and all opposition.

So what is it that they are frightened of? After all, they are the boss! To me, it appears they cannot cope with change; the want to structure their countries to be populated with Robots who do exactly as they are told without murmurs of discontent. First of all, that's not going to happen, despite all the repression. Why? Because people always look for a way around the rules set up. And they will find it. Secondly, change is the real law and nobody can hold it up. If change isn't allowed to happen now, when it could be routed into helpful and productive paths, then it'll happen at the latest when these "leaders" die. As with many of us, the fear of loss can drive us to extremes in an attempt to control the situation around us. We can't succeed, but we try. This is what I try to show with my poster: the huge number of influences affecting us each moment is constantly changing and all we can do is choose an action. Not by fear, but by understanding that we can only control our actions, not the world.

Fear is not a motivator; it is a depressant. It works for a short while, but nobody can put up with fear for ever. And then comes the revolution which will also bring change via hardship.

I cannot understand these leaders who appear to be incapable of learning from history. The stupidity of this repressive approach is clear when you look at their economic success, or lack of it. China is successful, but is generating more and more opposition both inside and outside the country. Whatever success they and the other repressive regimes may have, it's just a matter of time before they loose control. Countries which encourage innovation and the ability to openly debate alternatives without or at least with very little repression, do much better over much longer time periods. Where religion is aligned with politics, it always turns out bad - look at any country in the Middle East, or North Africa, or India and Pakistan, etc.

Back to my four apocalyptic horsemen: gullibility, stupidity, ignorance and greed - they really do run the show. Sad, sad sad.

Forerunners of the four horsemen of the apocalypse

• The figure representing conquest rides a white horse;
• war, a red horse;
• famine, a black horse; and
• plague, a pale horse. They are often called the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

• gullibility,
• stupidity,
• ignorance and
• greed.

Remembrance Day

I want to be happy!

Isn't that what everybody says? Isn't that what we all strive for? Every action we make is ultimately for the perceived benefit of the feeling of happiness that the action should, in our estimation, lead towards. What do I mean with "happiness"? To me, it's that feeling we have, when everything is - at that moment - right with our world; that feeling we have when we say that we'd like this perfect moment to last forever. You know what I'm talking about. It's the feeling we try to recreate by repeating whatever led up to the moment. Perhaps on holiday somewhere, we experience that moment, so let's go there again next time - only the next time isn't like the first time and feeling doesn't happen again.

When I studied psychology, I recall reading about an experiment with cats, where they had to perform a simple task to get a reward, i.e. press a lever. The cat would try all sorts of ways to get at the titbit on offer and would sooner or later press the lever, usually by accident. The experimenter noted that the cat would then repeat a number of moves it had made to again, accidentally press the lever. It did not understand it just needed to press the lever, it believed it had to do the ritual in order to achieve lever pressing. Just like us: it worked the last time, so all I have to do to get that feeling is do what I did the last time. And it usually doesn't work. Or if it does, we don't notice the precise circumstances are slightly different.

We humans like our rituals and often repeat them until they become meaningless. And all to be happy.

Apparently we don't notice that happiness is a feeling inside and doesn't depend or come from the outside. Like all feelings. But we are trained to find happiness through the outside in, not the inside out. And there the problems beginn. We seek happiness frequently at the cost of the misery of others; if I'm alright Jack, then all is well and fuck the rest.

What a truly sad approach to obtaining happiness. If we understood that we have to pursue that feeling where all feelings live, i.e. inside ourselves, then so much more kindness and empathy would be available to be shared with our fellow travellers.

This video from Prem Rawat talks about this. Listen and learn :-)

Neti Neti (Not this, not this)

I've been reading a lot of "religious" texts lately, including the Koran, the Torah, The Gnostic Gospels, The New Testament and a number of Hindi texts and Scriptures. In all of these texts, there is reference to God as the Almighty, All powerful, Creator of everything, All knowing, All merciful, All love. And yet, when reading the texts which purport to describe and proscribe the purpose of human life, these aspects are frequently replaced by a petty minded, vengeful, mean and sexist God. These two aspects cannot exist together. And don't come with "God moves in mysterious ways" as an explanation. That is not an explanation for a completely contradictory description.  

 So why is there that contradiction? In the Upanishads of ancient Hinduism, I found the best explanation of God, and it's what I've used as the title of this article: "Neti, Neti", which translates as "Not this, Not this" or alternatively, "Not this, Not that".

Our brains are just too small to comprehend infinity and and an infinite Being, which possesses the characteristics starting with "All" as listed above and that is why "Neti, Neti" is so appropriate, because whatever we can conceive of, it's not that. Perhaps to be more accurate, it's that, but so much more that - any description will ultimately fail. We have a powerful imagination, as artists of every kind demonstrate, but we can't go outside our limits and our experiences. We may juxtapose a variety of thinks to create something new, but it stems from what is known. For example, H.R. Giger, the creator of the monsters in the film "Alien". based it on things we know: fast, slimy, venomous, lots of teeth, scaly skin, etc. It's great as art and certainly works in the films, but it's not outside our experiences.

So how much more difficult is it to try and grasp what the infinite Creator is? We just don't have the equipment for it. For example, when I was reading both the Koran and the Torah, I was left with the impression that God is a lawyer laying down the Law. This Being has favourites and enemies; he has no problem with slavery (servants in the Torah) which can be freed or kept as required; Women are certainly not created as equals to men, etc. To me that makes no sense: why would the almighty Creator of everything in the Universe have a need for favourites and at the cost of others in the Creation. It's absurd to me.

I am suspicious of anyone who tries to define the infinite and make it a religion. Either we are all createes or we are not. When I look in the mirror, it's clear to me that I didn't create me and certainly I do not keep me alive. My parents provided the body and it's quirks, but that's not me. I've always seen myself as sitting 5 centimetres from the top and 10 centimetres from the front, moving this body around. Like an Astronaut in his space suit. When the suit wears out, I have to go, until then, I exist and am able to be filled with wonder that that is so and to be grateful for the opportunity to experience what is possible here on this planet with this outfit on. If it was up to me to stay alive, I wouldn't have made it through the first few minutes. I have to be breathed to keep going. It's not me doing the breathing except on the few minutes when I have to "catch my breath". It's the most essential activity to maintain life and I am almost always entirely unaware of it! How crazy is that?

So the only equipment I have to have some kind of inkling of that infinite Creator, is to realise that I am constantly being kept alive and that it's not because of my efforts, it^s almost despite my efforts. And the only awareness I can bring, is my ability to feel. My ability to think doesn't help, but I can feel. And I do feel that power coursing through me when I make the effort to shut up and feel, not think. 

The holy scriptures (what does "holy" mean anyway?) cannot do justice to this eternal magnificence; "Not this, Not this": a great definition.

Are today's politicians crooks or just plain stupid?

The image that keeps occurring to me to describe the current situation is the world, is that of the ship "Titanic". The world is the ship and it's slowly sinking; meanwhile - because there is no competent captain - the passengers are squabbling amongst themselves as which cabin they have and what the furnishings should be and who can be where. The crew that is there, is trying frantically to warn the passengers and trying to slap patches on the multiple leaks, but nobody is listening because they are too busy squabbling.

 The politicians are the stupid passengers and the crew that's trying to do something are the many people trying to do something which the idiocies of the politicians have caused with their "this is mine and I want to keep it" attitude which totally ignores the real situation in which, not only the earth as our home but also most of the people living on it, find themselves.

In the West we have an obesity problem, in the South people are starving. In the West we want everything so cheaply, that only slavery can produce at the price we buy stuff at. We spend trillions on weapons wherever we are, most of which are considered obsolete and never used within a short time span. Talk about Nero fiddling while Rome burns!

Along the equator more and more countries are suffering from such terrible drought that the only option for those living there is to migrate to places where there is still enough water to grow crops, but those countries do everything to prevent migration. Genocide is taking place wherever we look, based on the excuse of the differences between people instead of understanding the far more important commonality of wanting to survive in reasonable conditions.

Every day we read about another politician who has used the position for self enrichment or for personal aggrandisement . Corruption is everywhere. We see companies (in particular their leaders) - especially in the commodities markets - who exploit not only the earth's riches, but also people working for them, just to increase profits and fill their personal bank accounts. We have so many billionaires and so many more with nothing and the truly sick thing is that most people would like to trade places with them and be stinking rich themselves.

We see dictators who have not learnt the most preached thing in all management theories: a happy people will work much better together and individually than an oppressed people. Fear is deemed the best management method, be it by ruthless killers in power or within the workplace with threats of loosing a job.

Given that the ship is sinking, to me corruption and stupidity go hand-in-hand. Will we learn that feeling good, feeling happy - which is what everyone seems to want to be - has never and will never be achieved by these negative means. Every corrupt leader and politician has to constantly look over their shoulder in case somebody tries to stop them. Perhaps they should go and work with a funeral director or a pathologist to see what their inevitable end will be, whatever they do. Will that realisation happen? Not in my lifetime.

My definition of an illusion is of something that appears to have permanence but is, in fact, changeable. Everything is constantly changing but we desperately try to make stop that. On of the words I really dislike, is "Tradition"; it's a tradition, we've always done it like that; it's always been like this. No it's never been the same, it may appear like that, but just as each one of us grows older and changes over time, so does everything else. The proof of the illusion is all around us, even in us, and yet, we don't accept that, we try to stop change. In this way, our corrupt politicians try to maintain at least a status quo, especially if they find themselves in a situation they like. It's impossible, but in trying to do the impossible, they are quite happy for millions of people to suffer and carry the pain of their greed and stupidity.

I also suspect that even when millions have died through malnutrition and lack of water, those remaining will be bitterly fighting each other for what remains. 

And you voters, what are you going to do? Keep supporting the idiots? All it takes is to not play the game. Ah, but then I'll suffer at the hands of the idiots, I hear you say. True, but you are suffering at the hands of the idiots anyway. The main cause of Russian revolution was hunger amid the indifference of the elite. When you're starving, you might as well die through your attempt at revolution as from starvation. People with nothing to loose are the greatest fear that corrupt politicians and leaders fear. So, give them games and bread. Currently that option is working for many, but for how long?

It's a sad state of affairs and each one of us has to look at themselves and ask the question: am I part of the problem or part of the solution?

It's never too late for consciousness

The image used includes the following description:

Memento Mori mosaic from excavations in the convent of San Gregorio, Via Appia, Rome, Italy. Now in the National Museum Bath of Diocletian, Rome, Italy. The Greek motto gnōthi sauton (know thyself, nosce te ipsum) combines with the image to convey the famous warning: Respice post te; hominem te esse memento; memento mori. (Look behind; remember that you are mortal; remember death.)

It seems an appropriate comment for the current times. The future looks very dark for humanity. In the thousands of years that we have existed as the culmination of an unimaginably long evolution, the only thing we appear to have learnt is the divide and rule principle. The ability to kill and maim each other has been refined to an unbelievable degree. The current world situation is deeply ugly. On top of that, we have learnt to exploit each other and use that to form artificial hierarchies to oppress each other. All in the name of progress and civilisation.

And yet, there are, at the same time, so many good things being done to help each other to support and sustain each other. Basically, it's my experience that people are good and that they like to do good. It seems to me that what each person is looking for is to be content, to be happy. The efforts we go to to achieve that is huge: we invest in our education to get a better job, we save our money when we can to enjoy the things of this world, We strive and strive in search of that elusive feeling and forget that the feeling we are looking for is with us all the time, if only we would look. We are convinced it will come with the new partnership or the new job or the new home; it'll be great and perfect when we get that. And maybe it even is for a short time, till the next thing comes along to get or go for.

We don't sit still for long enough to be aware of all we already have and to be thankful for that. No we have to have more. 

For many, however, I see that they get their satisfaction and enjoyment when doing something together or for others. The joy of the smile on a child's face, the thank you smile from someone you've helped or been kind too. 

There was a time when love was what we all aspired to have and to feel. All the songs and stories of everlasting love inspire us to the search for that feeling. But the only constant is change, we all know that. Nothing lasts. Not even you or me. And certainly none of our relationships. And yet, we keep on looking and hoping for that love. I get that. It's what keeps me going. Maybe I have learnt something after all: the fact that I keep on getting breath is a truly remarkable expression of love that will last a whole lifetime. To understand that and acknowledge it makes me very happy. It's my eternal love, not depending on anyone or anything, just there. Now that's why I try to be conscious, to know myself, to understand the value of what I have. That's what makes me happy and I am truly grateful that I have been helped to understand that during my lifetime.

 

I just don't get it!

There is so much bad news about our environment available. Nobody can escape it. from the devastating heating up of the environment as seen by heatwaves everywhere - even the permafrost is melting - to the endless numbers of species which have died out, to the devastating wars, the endless misery of refugees and starvation of millions - even the rich UK has an increase in children with malnutrition - and the homeless and poor everywhere. On top of that, the most fundamental sources of food we have are poisoned through the crap we put in the water and ground. Even the air is poisoned.

And yet, what is the primary interest of politicians? Not our well being, that's for sure. The problems facing humanity are on a scale to make Noah's flood seem a trivial incident. I just don't understand why the problems facing human survival are not at the top of everybody's priority list.

I'm approaching my 73rd birthday and I seriously doubt if my grandchildren will live to such an age. I suspect I was born at a time when the amount of crap in our food and water and air was not quite as prevalent as it is today. It's painful to watch how most people seem to just ignore the facts. When I walk around, I see people treating the world outside their own four walls as a general rubbish dump, lately including face masks just chucked on the ground.

The argument I read and hear is always about the short term and fuck tomorrow. Well tomorrow is what our grandchildren will inherit. If we can't deal with the problems now, how can they possible deal with such fundamental issues facing us today when they have had another 30, 40 years to increase?

I know there are many good people doing their best, despite the self-interests of governments and I suspect that the deterioration of our environment would be a lot further along if it wasn't for their many efforts. I applaud them and hope I can be counted among them in some small way. I know it's down to each individual to take responsibility for their contribution or lack of it. I despair when I see how many of the younger generations appear to have no sense of the precariousness of our situation.

I recently watched a documentary on the planets, by Professor Brian Cox, in which at the end he said he hoped we could go and discover so much more of the galaxy and universe we live in. The idea of this careless and ignorant species populating more planets is horrible. If we can't look after this one and are unable to live in some semblance of peace and with respect for each other, then going to other planets is not good for the universe. We take our unsolved problems with us. Look at what we have already done with the bit of space around our planet, which has so much junk that the fear of a space crash is increasing with every launch, with potentially devastating effects when the bits come hurtling down. There are already groups whose sole task is to monitor this risk, including meteors, but all they can do at present is offer a warning like "here it comes, good night!"

What I really don't get is how we can walk around with such blinkers on so that we blend out whatever doesn't suit us or immediately affect us. Hey, we are all affected, like it or not. The current virus crisis, is just a taste of things to come, With the poisoned environment which also affects the animals, fish and food we eat, an increase in weird and horrible diseases and illnesses is pre-programmed. Apparently, the most important thing is to get the economy moving again - i.e. let's get back to doing what we do best: killing ourselves!

As has been said many times, the devil has long been out of a job - we've taken over the production of hell. Sometimes I think many people haven't developed into human beings yet - they've only made it to the asshole stage.

On a more positive note, the problems we face are made by people not by God or the universe, so people can solve them. We just have to do it!

My Blog has moved

Just a brief note to let you know that I've consolidated everything on my personal website :

https://davidjakob.com

Happy reading!

David J.

Love thy neighbour...

... as thyself. A version of the Golden Rule: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. First found in the Old Testament. Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan to illustrate this commandment.

Often quoted, not lived often enough, sadly!

What does it mean to me? Who is my neighbour? Is it really just the persons living in close proximity to me?

As I understand this quotation today, my neighbour is myself in a different form. After all, I did nothing to be born to the parents I had and in the place they were living. It could just as easily be parents in, say, China or India or the West Indies, or anywhere at all and to parents rich or poor or loving or indifferent. I am certainly not conscious of having chosen. Wherever and in whatever circumstances I was given the gift of life, it's my opportunity to make that life count. In other words: "There but for the Grace of God, go I".

As, in my view, even quantum physics is slowly coming to the same conclusion, it is the same power which creates, sustains and changes constantly all things in the universe, including you and me. If I can truly understand that, then when I see you or anyone, I am, in fact looking at myself. The separation is part of the illusion. If only I could experience that power, then clearly I would also be able to relate to every other human being on the planet. 

Currently there are huge debates about racism, sexism, etc. going on. The word "schism" is defined as "a split or division between strongly opposed sections or parties, caused by differences in opinion or belief". This defines nicely all these parties who support one view or the opposite. Using my understanding of the relationship between all human beings as described above, it should be clear that the cause of all these conflicting views and attitudes is because we do not see our neighbour as ourselves.

Focus on the commonalities: we all have the gift of life; are basic needs are the same: air, water, food, shelter, warmth and love. Our differences in comparison, are what makes us unique, not better or worse. At the end of life, we certainly realise what's important: breath! At that point, we may come to realise that we have spent our lives chasing the ephemeral at the cost of the eternal.

The dreadful death of George Floyd by preventing him from the ability to breathe, has made many people aware of the importance of breath. People dying from COVID-19 choke to death as their lungs become incapable of breathing.

Breath is the manifestation of the eternal in a person. We don't control it, we just have it. That's the definition of the gift of life. And, to me, only love can manifest such a gift, a love I can't understand, only accept.

If we had to do our own breathing consciously, there would be no human beings. How many breaths do you take in a day? Apparently an average person takes between 17,280 and 23,040 breaths a day. Of how many of them were you aware? The gift of life is amazing and staves of death right to the end, when that gift moves on. How conscious of that are we? Speaking for myself, I am aware that I have ignored this fact for most of my life. Now I practice being conscious of that power in me. Not very successfully, I admit, but practice makes perfect and the benefits are huge. Next to a breath, nothing can have the same value - try buying some! The more conscious I become of this, the less importance and value the everyday problems become. That is definitely closer to having peace for me.

I'm grateful for having learnt this lesson. I've been close to real death more than once in my life and as I get older, the more I learn the value of the life I have been allowed to experience. That makes me very thankful to that power, whatever anyone calls it, God, Allah, Jehova, The Great Mother, or any other term. After all the term we use will never encompass the universal power.

The two wolves

Prem Rawat likes to tell the story of the two wolves.

"In a village far away, a boy was puzzled by the behaviour of the villagers and went to the chief and asked if he could ask a him a question. The chief said "go ahead, what's on your mind?". The boy said, he was puzzled because he'd observed that some of the people sometimes did good things and sometimes the same people did bad things. So how come? The chief explained, that everybody had a good wolf and a bad wolf inside them, so sometimes they did good things and sometimes they did bad things. The boy thought about this and then asked the chief "so which wolf wins?". The chief simply replied: "the one you feed wins". 

And that is what makes us human. But we always have a choice as to which wolf we feed - but only if we think first. We are so used to our negative feelings having the upper hand that we react to situations mostly without thought.

So what are the characteristics of the two wolves inside us? I've made a short list to illustrate this:

All of this is inside every human being. All the strengths we need to fight the internal war against ignorance. And how much of it do we use in our everyday life? Don't we give all that positive stuff up as soon as something which doesn't fit our ideas happens?

I'm sure you can expand this list. The point is, that we have all these characteristics, but which one do we choose when we act? Which one dominates us? Which comes easiest into play? It takes effort not to give into the bad wolf's characteristics, but with practice, we can overcome our learnt behaviour.

But starving the bad wolf won't feed the good wolf. The good wolf only grows strong when it's fed.

Food for thought! 

Comparing religious organisations v religion

What's the point in living?

Listening to the news - not always the most helpful activity - I'm reminded of something my friend Jon said in the 70's: "The only good things in the world are atomic weapons and cancer." A bit drastic, don't you think? Why would anyone say such a thing?

Isn't it obvious? The current display of human behaviour (and when was it different?) truly suggests that humankind is superfluous to creation and Jon's comment merely states that we are busy killing ourselves and these items can speed up the process.

My own version of that statement was: "Life is hard, and then you die!" And for many people, that just about sums up their experience of being alive.

Is there any point in living? It doesn't seem to be the case, does it? Should we commit suicide and get it over and done with? Or just carry on to the bitter end?

Let's ask some different questions: Who am I anyway? Is there any meaning to my life? 

Who am I?

Well, most of us have been brought up to believe we are what others say we are. Their judgements of us is what we use to build our own self-image. And that is just so completely wrong! 

As Prem Rawat likes to point out, astronomy has shown us a keyhole view of the universe and that is so vast that we can't grasp it's reality with our minds. All this is creation. And among those billions of galaxies, ours - the Milky Way - was also created; and in among it our own star exists out of the billions of stars in our Galaxy alone, and here is our planet: perfect! truly a paradise - just watch some nature programmes - and here life started and out of the slime, slowly the myriad of different forms arose from the water and on the land and air. And one form was us, the human being and even that took millions of years and now here you are, here I am. And I'm not like anyone else on the planet; not only that, there has never been anyone like me before or will be again. In time and space each one of is unique and as such perfect. The perfect me! And is anything more special than that in the Universe?

So, I'm unique. So what? Well already that is a pretty amazing thing to be aware of isn't it? Especially when you feel you are nobody and worthless. Hey! The Universe has gone to a staggering amount of trouble over an incredibly long period to ensure your existence! That is truly wonderful.

But I need to feel special, not just be told I'm special. Well, here's the key word: Feel. Feel, not think. So how do I do that? Again, the answer is so obvious: choose! Choose which feeling you allow to take you over: Fear or Courage? Love or Hate? Strength or Weakness? Clarity or Confusion? Consciousness or Unconsciousness? Peace or War?

All feelings reside within us and we practice some more than others. Maybe we need to choose more consciously. Here's an example out of my own life: I have owned a car for most of my adult life and I like driving. I also see myself as a good driver (doesn't everyone) and even worked as driver at one point doing deliveries in London, where I learn't to drive. Some years ago, I noticed that I would get really worked up about other drivers on the road, here in Switzerland. I really think the Swiss are the worst drivers I've come across (and I've driven in the UK, Italy, France, Germany, Spain and even Bali). Their driving got me to a point where road rage action was definitely becoming more and more an option in me.

I knew that the drivers weren't going to change to suit me, so Mohammed would have to go to the Mountain. My daughter was taking driving lessons, so I said she could have the car when she passed her test. And that's what I did and I've never regretted it, because I don't have those feelings anymore. Now, if I need a car, I hire one and I don't get bothered, because it's not often I do that.

So, if you don't like the feelings you have, change your situation so you can have the feeling you like. It's only external stuff which comes and goes all the time, but you are there every day of your life, so the change to improving one's condition is the same as the one which leads to deterioration: take responsibility for your choices and become who you really are and not who everyone says you are or should be.

What's the meaning of my life for me?

Arriving on this planet was the start of a fantastic adventure. Each breath I take is a reminder that I am here courtesy of that life force, which can disappear at any time. So to me, my life means that I have an opportunity every day to experience that power manifesting in me. The power of life. Can't buy, can't give it away. I just have it. This generates the feeling of gratitude in me, whenever I'm a conscious of my breath and that life. I want to put effort into remembering and being conscious, because the result is not only gratitude, but joy. If that isn't enough meaning, what can be? I appreciate that for many, this is difficult, when they look at the everyday problems facing them. But I've gone through a lot of problems - and still do - but they seem small in comparison and as most of the problems are created by humans, then as a human being, I know they can be solved. Solving a problem when you fell good is a lot easier that doing that when you feel bad. So feel good and life becomes very meaningful.

And here's a song to cheer you up: "Good to be alive" by Andy Grammer on YouTube - Enjoy!

Justice v. Law

I had a look to see what justice means with Google. Interestingly, I found the following list of interpersonal skills required by the State of Ontario for the selection of a Justice of the Peace  as an example:

• Compassion, empathy, and respect for the essential dignity of all persons
• Courtesy
• Patience
• Moral courage and high ethics
• A reputation for honesty, integrity and fairness
• Strong, dignified interpersonal skills that command authority
• Confidence, with an absence of pomposity and authoritarian tendencies

The only thing I would remove is the words "A reputation for". This list then reflects fairly closely the way I understand the term.

In contrast, we have the Law, defined as: "the system of rules which a particular country or community recognises as regulating the actions of its members and which it may enforce by the imposition of penalties."

So, on the one hand we have justice, which is generally represented as in the image on this page, as the blind goddess Themis, who, in Greek mythology, is the personification of divine or natural law, order, and justice. Her name means justice. On the other hand, we the law, based on rules and regulations set by humans.

Just comparing the two definitions, demonstrates why there is so little justice within the law.
Laws are written by people and as such, have no universal meaning, such as that implied by the word "justice".

The consequences we can read about (or, if unlucky, experience first hand) on a daily basis. It shows it's bias in almost every aspect of our lives, from the way certain groups are able to flout the laws or bend them to their purpose, always in pursuit of selfish motives. Laws are written by lawyers, and, if you can afford one, a lawyer is trained to spot all the little weasel words which can be exploited to ensure the paying client does not pay the penalty at all, or at is at least reduced considerably.

What has that got to do with justice? The law is decidedly not blind, but looks exactly at the benefits to any accused who can pay. The law is a reflection of the values of a society and justice and fairness do not play any role, except in the form of lip service by those who write and then exploit those laws for their own benefit.

I am really not going to list examples. just read any newspaper or look at what people are demonstrating for. They want equality and fairness and justice. Not a chance, sadly. Maybe a little tweak here and there but not much more.

Love is......

Yes, good question: what is love? It's a word that is used in so many different situations that the question is definitely worth spending time on.
I'm sure it's not what I hear in the Blues; or what I hear in bubble-gum music; or what Rosamund Pilcher films show. "I just love your outfit"; "Don't you just love the she moves"; "I just love you to pieces"; "I love you"; etc.; etc.

I'm going to give a try at a definition. To do that I guess, I have to establish at least some defining characteristics, as to what I mean by the term love.

• It's a feeling,
• it isn't dependent on a location, because that feeling can occur anywhere
• it isn't dependent on external factors, because that feeling can be experienced under any set circumstances
• it isn't dependent on possessions, because it can happen independent of wealth
• it isn't dependent on age, because love can apparently be experienced by those of all ages
• it is a feeling which is unselfish and generous and giving, not taking
• it is independent of time and can occur at any point in a life and even at many points in life

For me, the above list leads me inevitably to break down love into two main groups:

• Love which is dependant on external factors and
• Love which is independent from external factors

Love of the first type, i.e. dependant on external factors is not real love by my list of characteristics above. It not something we can just generate when we wish - something I suspect many people would dearly wish that they could generate. We either feel it, or we don't.

So, if that is a feeling and that takes place inside me, what does that imply about the feeling of love? As the person closest to me, I ought to be able to experience that feeling when I wish, so why can't I?

Who says I can't? Of course that has to be possible. I can choose which feelings I have at any given moment at least with practice that becomes a real possibility. Spending time acquainting myself with me, slows me down, so that I have space to make a choice of which feeling I use as an appropriate answer to a situation. Of course, anger often comes, or annoyance or irritation or dislike, but practice makes perfect and I definitely don't react the same as I used to.

Love is not attached to a person or place or object; it is the feeling that everything is right with me and the world. It is not the ridiculous emotion described by the love songs we hear outside. That comes and goes, depending on a thousand external factors and changes over time. Love is the only constant worth striving for and you can: just find that feeling inside and if you can't find someone who can show you how.

Clearly we know nothing about parenting

One thing that never ceases to surprise me, is the number of parents who seem to believe that the children belong to them, in the sense that they believe that they have not only the responsibility for that child's welfare, but as a result, the right to determine that child's development in a way that suits the beliefs and ideals of the parents. This is ownership. In the old days, this was that argument used to arrange marriages. Children are a commodity.

Kahlil Gibran, in his poem "The Prophet", says this about children:

Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life’s longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.

You may give them your love but not your thoughts,
For they have their own thoughts.
You may house their bodies but not their souls,
For their souls dwell in the house of tomorrow, which you cannot visit, not even in your dreams.
You may strive to be like them, but seek not to make them like you.
For life goes not backward nor tarries with yesterday.
You are the bows from which your children as living arrows are sent forth.
The archer sees the mark upon the path of the infinite, and He bends you with His might that His arrows may go swift and far.
Let your bending in the archer’s hand be for gladness;
For even as He loves the arrow that flies, so He loves also the bow that is stable.

If we really understood that, I doubt if we would have so many children, or, even crazier, fertility clinics. Such clinics cater to some woman's obsession to be a biological mother - that is all ego, when there are so many children without a loving home. Such women do not even remotely think about the child, it's all about the fantasy in their heads. 

There is also the issues around abortion which have nothing to do with the welfare of a child. All those organisations which condemm women who have abortions are those who will, at the same, time not take any responsibility for that unborn child. If you are not prepared to step into the breach and take on the responsibility yourself, you have nothing to say and really shouldn't say anything at all. Look to your own faults, not those of others.

It seems to me, that the most important task a parent has, is to provide their offspring with an environment where they can safely learn about this utterly different world into which they have been thrown.

So what does that mean: a safe environment?

 The way I interpret that, is that when a baby comes into this world, it arrives from somewhere so completely different that it is beyond our imagination. 9 months in a complete protected environment where Mum takes care of all the baby's needs and it has to do nothing except grow. Suddenly, an enormous effort, one that won't be denied, and that child is born. Immediately, from having Mum provide everything in the fluid environment, that child is forced to do something so different that it's the only thing that those around that child at that moment are waiting for: will the baby take its first breath! Will it come? Won't it come? To me that was certainly the most magical moment: witnessing a child's first breath.

Now what? The child is loved and the parents do their utmost to keep that child happy and comfortable - let's at least assume that. During the first five years, that child discovers so much and the wonder of that discovery is something we parents really enjoy participating in. But that seemingly lovingly, safe, caring environment, is certainly not consistent. And there's the problem.

There comes a day or a time, when the child is not behaving in a way that suits our mood at that moment. Suddenly that caring, loving parent turns around and shouts at the child! In many cases - think of all the nights with little or no sleep and the resulting frayed nerves - suddenly that loving parent, with whom the child always feels safe, turns into a monster!

How would that affect any of us? The trust is shattered. And with each repetition of that inconsistency, the trust gets more broken and is replaced with, initially at least, utter confusion. What is going on? Why am I being shouted at? Who is this scary monster? Looking at the world today, the result of our parenting methods can clearly be seen. Our focus is exemplified by a friend of mine, who recently told me that his advice to his god-children at the beginning of their adulthood was "to make a shit-load of money first and then think about what else they would like to do with their lives". If that is the thinking behind most parents educational and parental motives, then it's no wonder we have this world, where greed comes before everything and justifies anything.

We foist our expectations onto our children, regardless of their personalities and wishes. Even worse, we load them down with the need to conform to the expectations of others. We add on a thousand judgements and condemnations and then wonder why they rebel. Or, worse, become even more zealous than our parents and teachers, in promulgating the values of others. And this is what we consider to be loving, caring, responsible parenting! I keep coming to the same conclusion: humans suffer from existential neurosis, because of our contradictory upbringing, which leaves us floating in a limbo of uncertainty about ourselves and our place in the universe.

I am acutely aware of the utter confusion I felt growing up, much of the confusion being caused not by the novelty of experiences, but by the inconsistency and unpredictability, especially of those nearest and dearest. Did I have the conscious awareness clearly required, to parent my children? Not a chance. I can't change anything now, of course, but I wish I had understood this before becoming yet another unconscious, if well-meaning, parent. It's no wonder that my teenage years were as fraught as they were - I almost killed myself rebelling. 

Our children are as close to the state of universal consciousness as it's possible for a corporeal being to be. We should be doing everything we can, to foster that in our babies and, at the same time, foster that consciousness in ourselves. Is it too late? It's certainly too late for me as a parent, but I can do my best to attain that consciousness now for me. It's worth the effort.

Civilisation is the wrong word to associate with humanity

The phrase "Civilised Society" is often used to point out the faults of "uncivilised members of human society". When I look at the current state of the evolution of humanity as a society, then I see very little that I call "civilised".

Here is one definition found:

A civilized society or country has a well developed system of government, culture, and way of life and that treats the people who live there fairly:

1. A fair justice system is a fundamental part of a civilized society.
2. The terrorist attack on the UN building has shocked the civilized world.

having a well-developed way of life and social systems:

1. “A civilized society allows for tolerance,” he said.

Cambridge Dictionary

 A description from Wikipedia offers the following:

History of the concept
The English word civilization comes from the 16th-century French civilisé ("civilized"), from Latin civilis ("civil"), related to civis ("citizen") and civitas ("city").[11] The fundamental treatise is Norbert Elias's The Civilizing Process (1939), which traces social mores from medieval courtly society to the Early Modern period. In The Philosophy of Civilization (1923), Albert Schweitzer outlines two opinions: one purely material and the other material and ethical. He said that the world crisis was from humanity losing the ethical idea of civilization, "the sum total of all progress made by man in every sphere of action and from every point of view in so far as the progress helps towards the spiritual perfecting of individuals as the progress of all progress".

The word suggests a structure of social mores and accepted behaviour underpinning the fact that large groups living in close proximity to each other need some kind of way to interact and cooperate.

When I look at what is today referred to as a civilised society, I despair. Is this what civilised people do? Is this what being civilised means? I think I'd rather be a "primitive" than civilised if that is the case.

If humans really were civilised, would we have

• Invented concentration camps (the British during the Boer War)
• Carried out the killing of 6 million humans during the second World War - (Germany)
• Wiped out almost all of the Native American tribes (many nations participated in this, primarily Spanish, British and French nationals)
• Wiped out complete cultures all over South America (primarily the Spanish and Portuguese)
• Wiped out a large part of the native inhabitants of Oceania (British)
• Wiped out a good chunk of the populations in African and Asian countries (British, Dutch, French, Portuguese, Belgians)
• Allow millions to starve to death for the sake of profit (India, Ireland - the British, many African countries)
• Turn whole countries into opium addicts (British in China, etc.)
• Create slavery as the basis for wealth (most countries then and now)
• In a "post-colonial" time, taken away everything from a nation and forced them to give it up for people from a entirely different part of the world (Israel and the East-European Jews)
• Traffic children and women for sex (many, many countries as source and many more as recipients)
• Allowing immense wealth for the few and staggering poverty for others
• Use children to bolster up their armies (Africa, South America, Asia)
• Keep populations in grinding poverty while it's "leaders" live in luxury
• Kill the people of their own country (Spanish Civil war, Irish War, Rwanda, Uganda, Serbia, etc., etc.)
• Educate only some and deliberately ensure that only the select few are fully supported (almost everywhere)
• Religious representatives who use their position to abuse and misuse children over centuries
• Religious groups which kill others who do not follow their views and believe the creator of all is partisan to their lttle group
• Religions which support wars of one state against the human beings of another state.
• Etc.
• Etc.

It's a word we can't, in all honesty, apply with it's original meaning to human society today. The list above shows that we have no concept at all of what a human being is and it's potential for good. It's potential for bad is being explored all the time. I can only shake my head in disbelief that we have not yet changed anything at all for the better. We have got better at killing many at once and screwing up many more lives in an instant, but more civilised? 

When I listen to a brilliant musician or read a wonderful inspiring book or see a painting that raises my spirits, I am made aware of the fantastic possibilities contained in a human being. When I see some of the wonderful things built to celebrate life and the creation, I see that true human civilisation could really be a fantastic and inspiring thing to be a part of. And it's always possible, as those inspirational events and people show. But in every case, it demands personal responsibility to oneself and to one's fellow human beings on the planet.

If I can't understand and know myself, then how could I believe or expect that I can understand and know another person. And if I can't understand myself, then it's easy to misunderstand another. And without that understanding, true human civilisation is never going to be possible. The world is full of egoists with no respect for others. That's not going to work and if you look at the world, you know that this "civilisation" is doomed. The question merely remains, are we going to take the rest of the planet with us into extinction or not.

We really need to wake up and start to realise, we won't exist as a species after a few more generations, because we are to busy killing each other and our supply of needed resources (food, water, air). 

I recently watched a documentary about space travel. In it, one person suggested we needed to get into space travel, "so we could escape from the results of all our mistakes on this planet ans start afresh. What an absolutely terrifying idea: exporting our insane species to wreak havoc on another planet? I sincerely hope we don't achieve that. because we'd be exporting our insanity too - it's not going to get any better somewhere else, if we haven't changed. My father was a functioning alcoholic and he used to tell me, that the trouble with trying to drown your problems, ist that the buggers float! No different here: if we go somewhere else, but are still crazy, then nothing is going to change.

Conclusion: we need to become civilised and quickly. That means YOU! YOU need to realise what an amazing and unique creature you are, who has been given the gift of life and that that is an amazing event!  You are unique on the planet - there has never been another person exactly like you, ever, in the past, nor will there ever be a person exactly like you in the future. You are now and you are the only person like you who exists. That is truly unique. That makes YOU special, all by itself. It also means that is true of every individual on the planet and as such, every one is entitled to the respect we demand for ourselves.

So, what are YOU going to do, to change YOU, nobody else, just YOU? That is enough of a task for any human being and occupies all of life.

When you point a finger at someone else, there are always three pointing back at you.

The absurdity of War

During the current pandemic crisis, we have seen innumerable acts of kindness, generosity, and help from individuals for individuals. That is so inspiring to see and read and makes me realise that "the milk of human kindness" is not just an empty phrase. It is in our nature to help others and to care about each other. We do this spontaneously. 

So why, then are we also capable of unspeakable cruelties to each other?

Teachers such as Jesus and Buddha clearly state variations on "love thy neighbour", so why then do these "religious" countries go to war against each other? Of course it was a Christian religious leader who said that it's OK to fight non-Christians, because they were non-Christians, Pope Urban II with his call for the wars known as the Crusades.

The causes of war always boil down to one answer: the lack of peace in individuals. If we are not at peace with ourselves, then conflict will occur, just as night follows day. So the solution is equally clear: war will stop when the war in our heads stop.

Bob Dylan summarised his disgust with war in two memorable songs, and I reproduce the lyrics here. He uses the phrase "God on our side" as the titel of one song, where he points out the disgusting things people do to each other, all resounding to that phrase: we have God on our side! couple with this is his other song "Masters of War", in which he points out that those who die in these wars are not those who send the soldiers or build the weapons. Perhaps President Trump wouldn't be such a Dick if he'd not been able to avoid the draft. He is typical of those who let others pay the cost of their own vanities.

Here are the lyrics. The titles link to the videos of those songs.

Start with Answers, not Questions

To me it's completely obvious, but apparently I'm in the minority, that I am a human being, the result of billions of years of evolution of the universe. As such, I also recognise and respect my fellow human beings, who are also the result of that unimaginable process of evolution. The creative force required to achieve this wonderful creature, capable of self-reflection and, as such, capable of experiencing the life force itself, is the greatest miracle imaginable. And I am truly grateful for this limited opportunity to experience being alive.

So why do human beings have so little respect for this miracle they represent, that they can wilfully destroy each other and the incredible environment which evolved along with them to sustain them? Everybody asks questions: why this, why that, why is this happening to me, what did I do to have this happen to me, etc. Complaints and blame.

Maybe if we understood what an incredible thing it is to be alive, something for which not a single individual on the planet can claim responsibility for. I know I didn't create me, and yet, when I look in the mirror, there I am! Realising this. I mean really understanding the depth of meaning in that statement, one automatically feels grateful for the opportunity to experience life in this fantastic instrument we've been given. Without it, I couldn't even have a bad time!

Thanks to the blessing of life, we can experience all the ups and downs we do. If we were conscious of that blessing, we would automatically understand that the most powerful tool we have built in, is that of feelings. A feeling is separate from our mind. Our mind can analyse, can show us all sorts of information about the external world, but it does't understand feelings, so we tend to associate our feelings with specific events or situations. For example, in a relationship with another person, we often believe that the feelings we experience are because of the other person. Wrong. You are the owner of all feelings and as such, are responsible for them. Do we accept that responsibility? Mostly no, we see external factors, other people, situations, as responsible for our own feelings and so we blame them and make them responsible. Wrong. How can I have responsibility for your feelings? If that were the case, then every parent would be able to ensure that their child has no horrible feelings, such as when they are sick. I couldn't do that for my children, I can't take your painful feelings away from you. When it comes to feelings, you are on your own and that is freedom! Freedom to choose how I feel.

Creative force, life force keeps the universe going. We like to call this force God. So why do we try and blame God for our problems? As Prem Rawat recently pointed out, God created you and you created your problems. So why blame God? The answer is always the same: we are unconscious and unaware of how fantastic it is to be alive and have such a body to experience, because, there is no way you can say that you deserved it or earned it. It's a gift and that needs to be acknowledged by the recipient, us, individually.

We use the term 'listen to your heart' often, but what is that? It isn't the thing pounding in our chest that we refer to, but something much deeper. It's that part we associate with our positive feelings: love, clarity, peace, happiness, etc. So where is this heart? Clearly we all know what the phrase means, but ask somebody to explain it and they are likely to become somewhat tongue-tied. To me it's that part of the human being which is in touch with the creative force which sustains us every day while we are on the planet. Of course that creative force is in us and sustains us - it's certainly not happening by my own efforts. I can look after my body, but I can't keep the life force in it - as, so far, every human being on the planet up to the present day hasn't been able to.

So, I can see that the force is in me, but if I can't be in touch with it, then having that life is meaningless. My effort has to be, to be in touch with that force in me and to view the world from that perspective, so that I may grow in understanding. And that takes courage, to keep going, despite all the distractions, to want to achieve that goal, despite the setback, to understand that life is special and to live it a gift.

Sitting up Mud and Lying down Mud

In the 60's, Kurt Vonnegut published the story called "Cat's Cradle". In this fictitious world, Kurt invents a religion called Bokonism. At one point in the story, there is the death ceremony. I found this extremely moving when I first read it and I still find it very moving. It expresses Gratitude for Life, so beautifully for me.

I hope you enjoy this too.

DYOT MEET MAT

“GOTT MATE MUTT,” crooned Dr. von Koenigswald.
“Dyot meet mat,” echoed “Papa” Monzano.

“God made mud,” was what they’d said, each in his own dialect. I will here abandon the dialects of the litany.

“God got lonesome,” said Von Koenigswald.
“God got lonesome.”

“So God said to some of the mud, ‘Sit up!’”
“So God said to some of the mud, ‘Sit up!’”

“ ‘See all I’ve made,’ said God, ‘the hills, the sea, the sky, the stars.’”
“ ‘See all I’ve made,’ said God, ‘the hills, the sea, the sky, the stars.’”

“And I was some of the mud that got to sit up and look around.”
“And I was some of the mud that got to sit up and look around.”

“Lucky me, lucky mud.”
“Lucky me, lucky mud.” Tears were streaming down “Papa’s” cheeks.

“I, mud, sat up and saw what a nice job God had done.”
“I, mud, sat up and saw what a nice job God had done.”

“Nice going, God!”
“Nice going, God!” “Papa” said it with all his heart.

“Nobody but You could have done it, God! I certainly couldn’t have.”
“Nobody but You could have done it, God! I certainly couldn’t have.”

“I feel very unimportant compared to You.”
“I feel very unimportant compared to You.”

“The only way I can feel the least bit important is to think of all the mud that didn’t even get to sit up and look around.”
“The only way I can feel the least bit important is to think of all the mud that didn’t even get to sit up and look around.”

“I got so much, and most mud got so little.”
“I got so much, and most mud got so little.”

“Deng you vote da on-oh!” cried Von Koenigswald.
“Tz-yenk voo vote lo yon-yo!” wheezed “Papa.”

What they had said was, “Thank you for the honour!”

“Now mud lies down again and goes to sleep.”
“Now mud lies down again and goes to sleep.”

“What memories for mud to have!”
“What memories for mud to have!”

“What interesting other kinds of sitting-up mud I met!”
“What interesting other kinds of sitting-up mud I met!”

“I loved everything I saw!”
“I loved everything I saw!”

“Good night.”
“Good night.”

“I will go to heaven now.”
“I will go to heaven now.”

“I can hardly wait …”
“I can hardly wait …”

“To find out for certain what my wampeter was …”  (personal totem)
“To find out for certain what my wampeter was …”

“And who was in my karass …” (personal group members)
“And who was in my karass …”

“And all the good things our karass did for you.”
“And all the good things our karass did for you.”

“Amen.”
“Amen.”

Planet Earth: home for the clinically insane

Every day demonstrates that almost all people are crazy. Look at the stuff we do! Look at how we treat each other! And why? because we're nuts, that's why.

And why are we nuts? Because we don't have a clue why we were born or why we are alive. These are such fundamental questions, that not having an answer to these questions means that we do all sorts of things to try and give meaning to life. The saddest thing, is that for so many people the answer is greed and acquisition. It ought to be obvious that this isn't a good answer, because we can't take anything accumulated with us when life ends.

 What other major symptoms of insanity can we see? How about all the furore around climate change? Basically, we are poisoning ourselves with the crap we chuck down from the air, the poisonous substances we chuck into the water we drink or from which we get food, and, of course, the way we manage our land resources with poison against everything we don't like. On top of that we destroy so much of the land grubbing for mineral resources or to make way for crops which destroy more than they bring. The image is that of a person (almost certainly and in almost every case, a man) who is sitting on a branch at the top of a tree and is busy sawing it off from under him (or sometimes her). If that isn't a definition of insanity, I don't know what is.

I found this article which summarises really neatly one example of the insanity on this planet - I've added the link here.

Why are we apparently so intent on killing our own species off, along with as many as we can take with us? It makes no sense to me at all.
Greed will lead to the extinction of the human race as we know it. And from the perspective of the planet, good riddance!

What makes this even sadder, is that we are all looking for paradise on earth and don't seem to realise, we actually have it. Watch some of those great TV programmes from David Attenborough and you know we live in paradise, but we are busy turning into hell, not just by wrecking the planet we live and rely on, but by treating each other as enemies and not as valuable allies who can help you enjoy and preserve paradise on earth. It's not going to get any better by carrying on as we are.

The image I've chosen for this article, is that of looking at paradise from within a prison where we are locked in. What can we do to change this? Stop living in the illusion and experience reality and not expectations.  It's our insistence on illusion which keeps us in the prison of expectations and greed. For that to happen, we need to develop our conscious awareness of ourselves in our environment and to take responsibility for our personal actions. Change is down to you! Nobody else, just you!

What is religion anyway?

As readers may have worked out, my interest is focused on my inner life and self-consciousness, rather than the external world of the senses. So inevitably the word "Religion" crops up, along with "Spirituality". I am not a big fan of these words, as they have endless connotations enabling a thousand interpretations and meanings. That the words are confusing is not surprising, given the thousands of religions and religious texts and the endless parade of people claiming to be spiritual. So what exactly do I mean by these terms? Are they applicable at all?

 Swami Vivekananda describes religion like this:

"Each soul is potentially divine. The goal is to manifest this Divinity within, by controlling nature, external and internal. Do this either by work, or worship, or psychic control, or philosophy — by one or more or all of these — and be free. This is the whole of religion. Doctrines, or dogmas, or rituals, or books, or temples, or forms, are but secondary details."

 His comments on existing religions represents my own views:

Religion, as it is generally taught all over the world, is said to be based upon faith and belief, and, in most cases, consists only of different sets of theories, and that is the reason why we find all religions quarrelling with one another.

These theories, again, are based upon belief. One man says there is a great Being sitting above the clouds and governing the whole universe, and he asks me to believe that solely on the authority of his assertion. In the same way, I may have my own ideas, which I am asking others to believe, and if they ask a reason, I cannot give them any. This is why religion and metaphysical philosophy have a bad name nowadays. Every educated man seems to say, "Oh, these religions are only bundles of theories without any standard to judge them by, each man preaching his own pet ideas." Nevertheless, there is a basis of universal belief in religion, governing all the different theories and all the varying ideas of different sects in different countries. Going to their basis we find that they also are based upon universal experiences.

In the first place, if you analyse all the various religions of the world, you will find that these are divided into two classes, those with a book and those without a book. Those with a book are the strongest, and have the largest number of followers. Those without books have mostly died out, and the few new ones have very small following. Yet, in all of them we find one consensus of opinion, that the truths they teach are the results of the experiences of particular persons. The Christian asks you to believe in his religion, to believe in Christ and to believe in him as the incarnation of God, to believe in a God, in a soul, and in a better state of that soul. If I ask him for reason, he says he believes in them. But if you go to the fountain-head of Christianity, you will find that it is based upon experience. Christ said he saw God; the disciples said they felt God; and so forth. Similarly, in Buddhism, it is Buddha's experience. He experienced certain truths, saw them, came in contact with them, and preached them to the world. So with the Hindus. In their books the writers, who are called Rishis, or sages, declare they experienced certain truths, and these they preach. Thus it is clear that all the religions of the world have been built upon that one universal and adamantine foundation of all our knowledge — direct experience. The teachers all saw God; they all saw their own souls, they saw their future, they saw their eternity, and what they saw they preached. Only there is this difference that by most of these religions especially in modern times, a peculiar claim is made, namely, that these experiences are impossible at the present day; they were only possible with a few men, who were the first founders of the religions that subsequently bore their names. At the present time these experiences have become obsolete, and, therefore, we have now to take religion on belief. This I entirely deny. If there has been one experience in this world in any particular branch of knowledge, it absolutely follows that that experience has been possible millions of times before, and will be repeated eternally.

Uniformity is the rigorous law of nature; what once happened can happen always.

The teachers of the science of Yoga, therefore, declare that religion is not only based upon the experience of ancient times, but that no man can be religious until he has the same perceptions himself. Yoga is the science which teaches us how to get these perceptions. It is not much use to talk about religion until one has felt it. Why is there so much disturbance, so much fighting and quarrelling in the name of God? There has been more bloodshed in the name of God than for any other cause, because people never went to the fountain-head; they were content only to give a mental assent to the customs of their forefathers, and wanted others to do the same. What right has a man to say he has a soul if he does not feel it, or that there is a God if he does not see Him? If there is a God we must see Him, if there is a soul we must perceive it; otherwise it is better not to believe. It is better to be an outspoken atheist than a hypocrite. The modern idea, on the one hand, with the "learned" is that religion and metaphysics and all search after a Supreme Being are futile; on the other hand, with the semi-educated, the idea seems to be that these things really have no basis; their only value consists in the fact that they furnish strong motive powers for doing good to the world. If men believe in a God, they may become good, and moral, and so make good citizens. We cannot blame them for holding such ideas, seeing that all the teaching these men get is simply to believe in an eternal rigmarole of words, without any substance behind them. They are asked to live upon words; can they do it? If they could, I should not have the least regard for human nature. Man wants truth, wants to experience truth for himself; when he has grasped it, realised it, felt it within his heart of hearts, then alone, declare the Vedas, would all doubts vanish, all darkness be scattered, and all crookedness be made straight. "Ye children of immortality, even those who live in the highest sphere, the way is found; there is a way out of all this darkness, and that is by perceiving Him who is beyond all darkness; there is no other way."

To me, all the religious organisations have no value unless it consists of those who have experienced the infinite and are able to help others experience it. It's clear that a pope is the head of a wealthy business organisation based on the teachings of a long dead master. They sell insurance for when a person is dead - after all, nobody has come back to complain that they didn't get what was promised. And the pope is just an example of one religious head. There are the Ayatollahs and Rabbis and those utterly dreadful fundamentalist preachers who use fear as their weapon to extract every penny from their ignorant followers and all those who offer spurious methods for achieving "heaven", whatever that is.

Every priest whose only knowledge is that of books, is of no help in achieving a real experience of God within themselves.

The solution is simple: if you want to experience the Infinite yourself, find someone who is alive and experiences this wonderful feeling directly in their life and ask that person to kindly show you the way to experience it within yourself.

What's the difference between Adults and babies?

Stupid question? Well, there are differences, which I find fundamental today and which - had I or my parents realised this earlier - might well have helped me to become a more fulfilled person in this life.

There are the obvious differences of size and physical ability, but that's not what is interesting. And what is interesting depends on what your purpose is in life. If you want to become rich and famous and successful, then the difference is invisible and uninteresting to you. If, however, you are interested in the development of conscious awareness, then understanding the differences can be hugely educational and beneficial.

 It's taken me 'till now to realise what a baby can teach me. In my specific case, could have taught me :-)

Consider this: when a baby arrives in the world, it has to instantly adjust from the protected environment of the womb, where Mum does it all, to suddenly a, to us now, unimaginably different environment with light and noise and having to instantly learn to breath. That is a quite staggering event. However, that newborn child knows nothing else. All that is what starts to come next. It is, however, equally true that this child is closer to it's inner life at that time, than to anything externally. And from that, I can learn a little bit of what I've lost; that simplicity of just being, full of trust, no discrimination except feeling okay or not feeling okay, which they know how to show. That's it. Everything else is accepted without being questioned or catalogued or anything. Baby is happy or not. Not means that this body is bothering it in some way, so Waaah! When the bother is gone, no more Waaah!

Baby also doesn't have an awareness gender, nationality, religion, station in life, roles, responsibilities, colour, wealth, tradition, rituals - although many will be subjected to some or all within hours, days, weeks, months, years, rest of life! And so we loose our freedom and become the slaves of the outside world and forget the freedom of the inside world. How sad! How unnecessary!

As the child grows up and learns more of our perspective, it still retains that simplicity for many years, before we drum it out of the child. Sadly, we fill it with so much nonsense, instead of realising that there was a time when we saw the world like that and it was great. What happened to us? Why did we let go of that and fill the world full of wonder with a world full of "facts" and in time lost the magic of that time. To me, we lost something important then, something worth putting effort into trying to regain, if possible.

I've moved a long way from that child-like simplicity, although externally I can at least say that I've stopped accumulating stuff quite some time ago. I also take part in the Swiss fetish of being the best recyclers in the world - don't believe me? Check it out. :-)
But de-cluttering my mind. Now that is a truly herculean task! I started on this path in 1975 and my experience is that it's not so hard dealing with the more obvious, surface things. But the deeper, lost in early childhood, that takes the rest of your life. But the important thing, is to keep at it - it's worth it. 
I like to compare it graphically with an image typical in the rural parts of Switzerland. The farmhouses typically have a cowshed and barn all under one roof with the main farmhouse and attached - on the side facing the road - is where the straw and dung from the cowsheds was stacked and then moved to where it was turned into silage. So this dung heap is years old, as old as you are now, in fact. And your job is to clean it. Getting rid of the big pile is relatively easy, with a pitchfork and a barrow, no problem. But then comes the rest, where it takes a bit more work, pitchfork no use. Finally, everything is gone. But is it? What are all those deep brown stains in the concrete? They've got to go too, I'm afraid. And that's why I say it'll take the rest of my life. But I'm good with that. It's about the doing.

It's not about becoming a baby where everything is done for me - I sincerely hope it won't happen like that - but it is about seeing the world in a simpler way, with less judgement, with less expectations, with less anger, with less fear and with more acceptance and even thankfulness. Anyone who knows me will have heard me say how thankful I am for the life I currently lead, here in safe Switzerland and truly, I am grateful. And those are nice feelings. So, I'm going to carry on doing what I do, to live as close to the moment as I can, so I can enjoy the maximum that moment contains. 

What makes us human

 What makes a human being human? We have a lot of attributes, but which one are the ones that are part of our basic nature?

 I find this Video which Prem Rawat made on the 19th of April 2020 during lockdown, makes it very clear. In it, he answers precisely this question. Maybe you'll agree.

Frightened of death? Why?

I've been listening to a radio programme, where there was a discussion about the fact that for many people the Corona virus has confronted them unavoidably with the reality of their own mortality. And the question was, why are we so frightened of a fact which is true from the day we are born?

It is also true, that most people try to avoid this subject. I remember as a child of maybe 8 or 9, my little sister Suzanne died at the age of about 4 and we siblings, were not allowed to go to the funeral or in any way take leave of her. It was done to spare us our feelings, I guess. Death always seemed to be something to avoid talking about.

 So, again, why are we so frightened to look at death as a fact and discuss it? I have personally started to compile all the documents necessary for my executors to be able to take care of anything left behind after my demise: will, prolonging life in hospital or not, funeral details, all the endless bills which have to be stopped, i.e. rent etc. plus, of course, ensuring that this information is known and available when the time comes. My nearest and dearest all have the same reaction when I mention all this - the taboo of death sits very deep.

So how do I look at it? Well, it doesn't frighten me, perhaps, in part, because I have been very close to death on more than one occasion during my life, some occasions due to my own stupid actions, some not.

Through my teacher, what I have learnt is that it's life which is important, the bit between arriving in the world and departing it. I don't know what came before, and I don't know what's coming afterwards and I don't care - it'll take care of itself when the time comes and my worrying or being frightened changes nothing at all except that I am missing the moment speculating about something which hasn't happened and which I can't prevent.

I do my best to be present in the moment and that means ignoring that which isn't happening at the moment. The reality of the moment is life, everything else exists in one's head and that isn't real.

The various religious organisations pretend that they understand what happens when you die, citing a possible great future which you can achieve by believing their words and if you don't listen to them you'll end up in a really bad place. Ignore them: they have no more idea than you do, after all, they are alive and not dead, so it's all guesswork. Do what you can and ensure that you enjoy the life you have within the the means available to you and be aware, we always live in hell or in paradise, depending on our state of mind and circumstances.

The blame game using the example of the USA

In order to avoid responsibility, you have to be able to pass it on to someone else who accepts that responsibility or, alternatively, you don't look for someone willing to take on the responsibility and just blame others for all you do that goes wrong or all that you didn't do but should have because you had the responsibility.

The big problem with this is, that in the end, nothing gets done and many people have to suffer as a result.

I find the USA an excellent example of the problems of the world. I have a friend who is into conspiracy theories. I've tried to point out some of the flaws in her arguments, but without success. According to these theories, there are invisible evil forces in the world who are doing all in their power to have power over all humanity and as such are persuading people to do their evil will. I keep pointing out to her, that there is a much simpler explanation for the craziness in the world, and that is ignorance and stupidity.

I have sometimes toyed with the idea of describing nations in terms of the growth phases of individual human beings. According to that idea, I see the USA as a teenager. They are brilliant, full of ideas and believe that they are always right. Couple that attitude with "Living the American Dream" which encourages the citizens of the USA to have money as their God and with that, permission to trample all over others on their way to what is seen as the top. Greed.

So, President Trump exemplifies this attitude brilliantly, currently. Today I read that he has stopped contributions to the World Health Organisation, blaming them and the Chinese for the Coronavirus disaster in the USA.  Of course they are also responsible for all the climate change problems as well. The fact that he ignored it when he had the chance to do something and then put a number of incompetent people in charge, including his son-in-law who has no background in any of the requirements needed to deal with this huge problem. He cannot lead in a crisis so he lashes out and blames others. The result: more people are dying in the USA than anywhere else from this virus.

In all situations, we see him claiming the high moral ground without having delivered anything. During his tenure, he dismantled the health care that his predecessor had built up for low income families. And exactly these - as always - are those dying in their droves at present. His focus is on the economy - which he doesn't really understand - and not on the people for whom he carries responsibility together with the office of President. To put it crudely: f**k the people, get on with making money. The background to that is his own business empire which is suffering under lockdown and he's never been particularly successful as a business man. However he is very successful at marketing himself. And that has carried him through till now.

The real question for him now, is: will enough people be convinced by his BS to re-elect him? If yes - and people are both stupid and ignorant and don't inform themselves - then I see a very sad future for all of us. I really hope people start to look a bit more closely at the Trump administrations results and not the rhetoric.

Once this panic is over, what will happen? Well the choice is in taking personal responsibility for your life or handing your life over into the slavery of idiots. What will you do? Past experience suggests, that most people on the planet want to get back to the hell they had before, because it might be hell, but it's their hell and they are comfortable in it. The opportunity this Virus has offered the world to reset itself and focus on the really important and not rush back into greed and hate mode, is really here now. I doubt the opportunity will get used.

Love as modern slavery

As the lockdown for Coronavirus continues, so the domestic violence crimes are increasing. Of course, only those reported are in the statistics, if a all. So why is that?

To me, the answer can be found in two areas which we have defined as "Fact" - at least in our heads.

The first answer I offer is, that when a person isn't at peace with him or herself, then it's not going to be long before you are not at peace with others.
The second answer is that the domestic situation started with a misconception as to what love is.

Let me expand on this.

Of course, in my view, there is only really one answer, but two aspects. If you are filled with love, you are automatically filled with peace. But let's focus on that word: love.

Love, defined as an intense feeling of deep affection. Affection for what? To me after a lifetime of longer and shorter relationships (in my case, with women), it's clear that we use the word "love" in a number of different ways. So let me tell you first what that word means to me.

Love is the feeling which enables me to accept the moment as it is without judgement. It is not a feeling that comes from the outside - it is not a feeling dependent on another person or situation, although these things may lead me to that feeling, but the feeling is mine. It is a feeling that wants to give, not one that wants to take. It is in the deepest sense, the basis of life; love on a level which passes understanding, is the creative force of life and as such impersonal but utterly inclusive.

So how is that word used in our largely fake world? Well the first word that comes to mind, is that it is a statement of ownership.
"This is my wife; this is my husband; this is my woman this is my man; this is my child; this is my house; this is my dog; this is mine, mine, mine". These are the possessive pronoun we use all the time to identify a relationship: me and my or mine. You belong to me and I belong to you. Love is exclusive between us.

I hope that just reading the paragraph above makes it clear that whatever the meaning of the word love as it's used, has nothing to do with my own definition. It seems utterly absurd to me that we look and use the word love in this narrow and exclusive manner. But that is now part of the culture.
Even sicker to me, is that in 99.99% of all cases, it's the man who is the possessor and the woman the possession. The absurdity of this  is enough to make anybody feel disgust. 

We use love to mean so many wonderful things, including generosity, , caring, empathy support, etc. And yet, in the same breath we can just as easily talk about what it means for a woman to be loved as a possession: you belong to me - exclusively; You have to obey me in all matters; you have to be there for me when I want; you are a chattel to be taken up at will and chucked away as easily. That is loving a woman as a possession. Pathetic. This is modern slavery and it's practiced all over the world.

Listening to our love songs, reminds me of the absurdity in the lyrics. What are the common themes in love songs. So here are a few repeated sentiments:

• I'll be yours forever, you'll be mine forever
• Please be mine
• I'll always be here for you
• I'll never leave you
• I'll never let you go
• You are my everything
•  etc, etc,
• My heart is broken because you left
• You treated me unkind
• You treated me unkind, now I'm going to get my own back 
• I'll never love again
• I'm lost without you
• I'll die without you
• etc, etc

Look at these statements that we hear in almost every love song or poem. They hark to some idea of romantic love which has never existed. But each one of those statements contains a threat of something awful being the case if our love should end or not be reciprocated. Love and threats do not go together in my definition of love as a universal feeling. Hurt and pain are the inevitable results of the kind of love based on property and ownership and (usually) macho threats.

Love has no boundaries. Love is an outpouring of a feeling which encompasses those it touches. It accepts others as they are, because the lover accepts him or herself completely.

So how to get away from the slavery of what people usually call love? The statements listed above are also filled with expectations relating to the other person (and sometimes themselves). And the twin to expectations is disappointment. The disappointment of unfulfilled expectations leads us almost inevitable to the blame game. I feel shitty because of you. It's your fault this has happened. You don't love me any more. Etc. Add to that pressures from family, religion, tradition, social conventions and the pressure is enormous for both men and woman to make commitments most regret later, although, generally speaking, it's usually stacked in the man's favour, of course. How can love be involved in this? Passion, yes, but not love. And I doubt anyone who has been in a relationship would deny that the Initial passion faded and was replaced with other things, together with the respect previously shown that person. And that's not love. Love lasts and doesn't change, so what's going on? More importantly: why the heck do we keep on doing this to ourselves? Clearly, because we don't love ourselves enough to say I'm not going to do what all these conventions tell me I must. It's not me.

So that's how we get to domestic abuse and violence. The world and in particular the partner, are not conforming to my expectations and wishes, therefore the world is wrong, not my expectations and wishes, and so I'm justified in trying to make the world conform to my expectations. And that usually means those nearest and dearest, if that's the right expression. If this describes you, learn to and sit on the toilet before you freak out and close your eyes and take ten deep breaths, focus on each slow in-breath and on each slow out-breath. You will feel in a better position to look at the problem again for which you were about to use violence as the solution and see if there is another way, or if it's even important. And ask yourself why it got so uptight - what had you been thinking about that threatened you? And work on that. That's constructive use: get to know yourself better.

Because if you don't change then you practice a kind of love which is creepy and disgusting. If you use the word "love" to mean this, you are in for endless disappointment and unhappiness. Look at what's real and then get real yourself. You are always both the problem and the solution.

Greed is a sickness based on duty

Greed follows us everywhere. And it never leads to anything better, but tends to become satisfied at the expense of others. I once had a boss, who told me that the objective was that "somebody else does the work and somebody else pays". This may well be a great adage at work or anywhere, if you don't give a hoot about whoever does the work or whoever has to do the paying.

Swami Vivekananda links greed closely to duty. The need to fullfil one's duty is cited as the reason for greed:

How easy it is to interpret slavery as duty — the morbid attachment of flesh for flesh as duty! Men go out into the world and struggle and fight for money or for any other thing to which they get attached. Ask them why they do it. They say, "It is a duty”. It is the absurd greed for gold and gain, and they try to cover it with a few flowers.

What is duty after all? It is really the impulsion of the flesh, of our attachment; and when an attachment has become established, we call it duty. For instance, in countries where there is no marriage, there is no duty between husband and wife; when marriage comes, husband and wife live together on account of attachment; and that kind of living together becomes settled after generations; and when it becomes so settled, it becomes a duty. It is, so to say, a sort of chronic disease. When it is acute, we call it disease; when it is chronic, we call it nature. It is a disease. So when attachment becomes chronic, we baptise it with the high sounding name of duty. We strew flowers upon it, trumpets sound for it, sacred texts are said over it, and then the whole world fights, and men earnestly rob each other for this duty's sake. Duty is good to the extent that it checks brutality. To the lowest kinds of men, who cannot have any other ideal, it is of some good; ...
Swami Vivekananda

When I think of the educational system I was put through, then it is clear what the Swami means about duty and greed being rationalised. We are basically taught that our job in the world is to get as much wealth as possible: it's your duty. And this is promulgated in so many different ways. If we were truly aware of how fragile our lives are, then why would we want to spend our time running after possessions, which we cannot take with us when we die? 

I'm all for being comfortable, but that can be achieved with very little. The thing that needs to be most comfortable, is me, inside, where my feelings are, where the feeling of comfort resides. Getting stuff and putting all your effort into that, covering it up under the guise of duty - I have to feed my family, I have to take care of this and that and them.... - is all BS - you are doing it because in your greed, you think and even believe, that you will be comfortable and at peace with yourself if you have more, more of everything. That is where it really has become a disease. A disease that has led to vast amounts of cruelty, death for countless people just because someone wanted to have something, be it money, land, possessions or even people.

If that describes you, then you are a very sad person completely lost in the delusion that possessions will bring lasting peace and happiness. Please note: it has never happened up till now, and it's not going to happen in the future. Those feelings we so desperately hunt for with our greed, is inside and for that you need nothing more than yourself, together with clarity, thankfulness and empathy. Go for that - it's worth it?

Do rituals help me become conscious?

Where is the world awake? In the senses. People want to eat and drink and have children, and then they die a dog's death. ... They are
always awake for the senses. Even their religion is just for that. They invent a God to help them, to give them more women, more money, more children — never a God to help them become more godlike!
Swami Vivekananda

In the current Coronavirus situation, many people turn to their rituals to help them. At the weekend it's going to be Easter weekend and currently, most religions seem to be ready to conduct their rituals online, in some virtual form. Maybe it will help the Christians, I don't know.

What I really don't know, is how a ritual is supposed to be helpful.

All religions seem to claim that their rituals are both a reminder of the truth contained in their belief and a way of consolidating the belief by bringing a large number of people together to conduct the rituals as a group. The rituals I have seen and even participated in, demonstrate to me that the rituals and the outward appearance are far more important than any content that they may have had originally.

Easter is a particularly disgusting ritual to me. On Good Friday, Christians "celebrate" the death of their Master Jesus. On Sunday they celebrate the "Arisen Christ". How about celebrating the Life of Christ? After all, it's what he preached that's important, isn't it? The death of a person is never as important as the life. 

Personally - just to say it - I find the idea of life after death the most absurd thing to speculate about. Christians like to cite the Bible stories of how one person spoke to the gardner and later believed that person to be Jesus. Hmm. How would such a person telling such a tale be viewed today? And the other proof cited, is a known opponent called Saul, who claimed to have bumped into Jesus on the road in the middle of nowhere, unfortunately, while he was all alone. And suddenly he's in charge, running a club and building the rituals. I'm sorry, but please look at these books with today's eyes, not those of ignorant people from 2000 years ago. If it's not directly applicable today, then what use is it?

I build habits. Some good, some bad, just like anyone else. For example, I had built up the habit of going to the gym Monday, Wednesday, Friday mornings for a 2 hour workout. This kind of habit, becomes a ritual and serves the purpose of ensuring that I actually do something rather than find an excuse not to do it. I also meditate for an hour every morning, which helps me to focus, especially inwardly. These habits or rituals help me to develop what's good in me and to look after my physical and mental health.

The kinds of rituals I see in religion, seem to me to be designed for showing off. Opportunities to show how godly one is in front of the neighbours. It's about the external show. I'm sure there are exceptions which prove this particular rule. As a child I remember having to go to Church and Sunday School, where I was indoctrinated with the local version of whatever religious place I was taken/sent. I was very good and even won some Bible reading contests. I also read the whole Bible and found it utterly contradictory and - for every day life - pretty useless. After all, this was the 20th century, not ancient history.

So, my recommendation is: build good habits. Habits which remind one that kindness and empathy are the best way of living in this world; Habits which allow the love inside oneself to manifest itself towards the external world; Habits which help one grow in clarity. And for that, nobody needs religious rituals. Be who you are and you are as all others. Enjoy life and help others enjoy life.