Reincarnation - Life after death?

It's amazing how many people believe in some form of reincarnation. I've been thinking quite a lot about that and here's my view on it.

For me, it boils down to one thing: is there any proof that human Beings have more than one lifetime? I can't find any credible proof for reincarnation other than belief and those who claim to recall different lives. Those who claim they recall their previous lives, never seem to bring with them a knowledge of the details and specifically what they did well and what they have to improve on in their current life. Most also see themselves as "old souls" who have transited many times and have now reached a stage of wisdom surpassing that of us ordinary mortals, or "new souls". In China, there is even a database of "living Buddhas".

A more interesting question to me is why so many people believe in something which is so devoid of proof and seek endlessly for proof. Surely if you know your past lives you don't need proof or even others who believe: you know what you've got to do in this life. And if you don't know what the current step is you need to take, then what use is reincarnation anyway?

So why do people believe in reincarnation? Well, death is brutal. Suddenly everything stops. No more getting up, no more going to work, no more time with loved ones, no more good food, no more games, no more anything! That is brutal and very hard to accept. We want it to go on. We want to right the wrongs we have done; we want to be able to feel love and joy. But we can't and that is very tough.

In such a situation of finality, it is to me not particularly surprising that people don't want to accept that its just over. I have seen dead people and there is definitely nobody left there to laugh or smile or cry or say anything. Nobody home, just a dead corpse waiting to be disposed of with whatever rituals those still alive deem appropriate.

The conclusion I have come to, is that we are so frightened of such a finality that we don't want to accept it. And it is very hard to accept. Nevertheless, I have never seen anyone come back to life, either after a burial or a cremation. I have never read the "Returned to Life" column in a newspaper, only the deceased column. The fear of such an absolute ending leads almost inevitably to the kind of wishful thinking that suggests life continues elsewhere; somewhere we can't see as a living being. So we can invent anything we like. Religions suggest some kind of paradise or a hell "up there" wherever that is. I have also read the we continue on another planet as some kind of higher evolved beings. Many offer the possibility of becoming some kind of God - not the supreme God, of course, but someone with special abilities. There are ghosts and spirits which surround us, we have guides to help us. But everything is in a dimension we can't see. And, of course, it all depends on how you lived your recent life on what the future has in store for you: Karma, Sins, Good Deeds, etc.

Doesn't work for me. I need real proof that I can see and test myself. And so far, that means: die and find out! I'm OK with that. To me the fact of being alive is the most amazing miracle I could ever experience. Having a body and consciousness is a gift which cannot be surpassed as far as I'm concerned and it is there for me to savour up to the last breath. The idea of more is incomprehensible to me. I try to be as consciously appreciative of what I have and to experience gratitude for this life. All else is way beyond imagination. But now; now I have life! And I intend to maximise my appreciation and thankfulness for this life. To ask for more is insulting.

Mammon, God of Greed, Stupidity and Ignorance

I know a person, who is a fan of just about every conspiracy theory going. One of them talks about "Reptiloids", i.e. not human beings who look like humans but are actually demons or come from another planet. I'm not clear on that, but there is something that is pointed towards in that theory. There definitely are people around who have forgotten their humanity and what have they given it up for? Money and apparent power.

Why do I say they have forgotten their humanity? Simple, a human being has empathy and a heart which wishes to do good. If that stops being the case, i.e. when empathy vanishes and doing good for others is irrelevant, then that essential aspect of a person, their humanity, has been forgotten. Not irretrievably but definitely forgotten.
I look at the Senior Executives and Board Members of some major companies, who have caused an unbelievable amount of damage to both the planet and the people they employ or who live near the places of employment. These companies include pretty much all of those listed in the commodities markets, covering metal, energy, livestock and meat. I've said this before but I have no idea how the people at Glencore, BHP or Rio Tinto, Jiangxi Copper and Vale ( all Mining companies) or those at Saudi Aramco, Royal Dutch Shell, BP, ExxonMobil, TotalEnergies, Chevron, Gazprom and Marathon (all Oil Companies) besides countless others can sleep at night, knowing the levels of pollution, the ruining of land with poison, the miserable conditions their employees have to work in, while they lie in their beds in their mansions, full fed and safe.
Of course this is the same with all the lunatics in the world who for reasons unfathomable to me, get elected to high office where they then proceed to ruin the lives of their electorate. That makes the electorate very, very stupid. Why? Because they keep doing it. Look at the crazy people in the USA, who claim to do God's will, although they clearly don't give a Damm about their own souls. If they really believed in God, then the highest adage they should follow is "let him who is without sin cast the first stone", meaning (for those too stupid to understand) that only those who are faultless have the right to pass judgment upon others (implying that no one is faultless and that, therefore, no one has such a right to pass judgment). But blame is the basic tool of the stupid.

What is the driving force behind it all? Mammon. Or to be clear: Greed. Everyone recognises the word as a negative and yet, so many bow down before this God. There is no person on the Planet who has more than 24 hours in the day. If I am cook cooking for others for 18 hours a day in the Kitchen, am I doing more or less that if work in an office and spend 18 hours a day hitting a keyboard or using a phone? I'd say in the kitchen is tougher than in an office. I've done both. I got paid more in the office. Why? There is a lot of crap talked about levels of responsibility. When I see how today Senior Staff are paid bonuses even when their area of responsibility is failing, then I don't want to hear about levels of responsibility. Those at the top bear a responsibility for all their subordinates. If they don't give a toss about them, then they shouldn't be paid for ignoring that. I have worked in a variety of companies and held both senior positions and none at all. I was surprised every time, when I discovered that my senior managers didn't even give a shit about the company paying them - it was all about personal advantage. Skill-set is the other big thing used to justify huge pay. There are skilled managers - they are the ones who know that it's not about them, but about a team, a joint effort and success or failure. These managers share with their employees, they nurture them, they make sure integration is happening and with a happy team, everything can be achieved. The stupid managers - and dear Lord how many there are of those - are those who only care about themselves, who are so ignorant that they actually fear their team in case they are better than him - I say him, because it is almost always a man. These types are the ones who put you down, who wont promote you who just make sure they are the ones getting any benefits going.

Ignorance plays a big part. I don't know everything and I know that I don't know everything. I know some things and I am ignorant of the rest. When Greed comes along, ignorance is an asset not a liability. Combine it with stupidity and you have the person who has forgotten their humanity. A classic example is ex-President Trump, whose ignorance is truly vast and combined with stupidity and greed enables him to do the huge damage he has done. The USA has been broken for a long time, but it is now completely broken and splintered thanks to that Person's ego and inability to change - a deadly characteristic for survival and here we get to the core of it all. There are many President Trump's currently in the world and each of them is trying to be greedier than the other. Look at President Putin's landgrab right now.

Is there formula here? D= Damage, s= success factor, G=Greed, S=Stupidity and I= Ignorance So D= (Gxs)x(SxI) i.e. the amount of damage caused can be calculated by the level of Greed multiplied by the success so far and then multiplied by the level of ignorance multiplied by the stupidity factor. A little game for the mathematicians.

What I see - which isn't the least bit amusing - is the effect on the world currently. Nobody is prepared to do with less. Enough is never enough. We, all of us, are currently in a very tricky situation. The planet is running out of good stuff and warming up with catastrophic effects, we desperately need to reduce everything. With the stupid war that egomaniac Putin has started, we are confronted with less fuel for our energy needs. Instead of seeing this as an opportunity to reduce our usage, we fight to keep it all at the same level. With all the grain not being shipped from the Ukraine especially to Africa, all we worry about is that we have enough in the West, that area which chucks thousands of tons of food away every day. Instead of seeing this opportunity to reduce travel and transport, we fight to maintain everything as it was. Pathetic. Of course it's going to go badly - everybody with half a brain knows that, but we all just focus on our little patch and  watch as our grandchildren slide down the tube to a disastrous future on planet Earth.

This is the reason I practice Knowledge and do my best to become a better human being, because not just I need the benefits, we all need the benefits. We need to get away from Mammon - you can't take it with you, after all - and find our way back to the heart of the human being. Will all those who have forgotten their humanity join in? I doubt it. Will these idiots get voted out? I doubt it. There is only one thing I don't doubt, and that is that I want to make my effort to be a better human being and that I want to remind people of the opportunity we have to be a better human being. I might not succeed, but that isn't the point. The point is to try and not give up.

Here's some great quotes on this theme:

 “Earth provides enough to satisfy every man's needs, but not every man's greed.”
― Mahatma Gandhi

“The world says: "You have needs -- satisfy them. You have as much right as the rich and the mighty. Don't hesitate to satisfy your needs; indeed, expand your needs and demand more." This is the worldly doctrine of today. And they believe that this is freedom. The result for the rich is isolation and suicide, for the poor, envy and murder.”
― Fyodor Dostoyevsky, The Brothers Karamazov

“He who is not contented with what he has, would not be contented with what he would like to have.”
― Socrates

Human Education

Looking at the state of the crazy world we live in, it seems to me clear that whatever we have been teaching our children and ourselves doesn't work.
Oh, we are great at understanding and using technologies, but we are really crap at living together. Which one is more important to you?
Basically, we don't learn what it means to be an individual human being. Have a look at some of the definitions of the term "Human" offered over the internet - everything I came across is basically a circular definition or along the lines of "not an animal". So if we don't know what a human being is, what are we going to teach these creatures?

One of the most fundamental facts about us, is that we humans can learn from experience. That may well be true, although what exactly we learn and from whom is something that needs to be carefully considered. An experience which humans have had for Millenia is war. What has that experience taught us? To make better weapons and to be constantly vigilant - trust no one. We have a lot of history lessons but all we learn about war is the dates, the number of dead and the weapons used. Is that education? Not to me. If we haven't learnt to live without war, we haven't progressed at all.

Another fundamental fact that isn't clearly taught, is that we have a limited lifespan and we don't know what that span is, but we definitely know that there is an end for each being on the planet. Of course, many religions offer an insurance contract: keep supporting us and you'll be alright when you're dead. That is not a deal to inspire confidence. Those telling us that, are alive, so they certainly don't speak from experience. The best case a religion offers is that Jesus was resurrected after three days dead. Well, if He really showed up, then He wasn't dead. There are plenty of documented cases where people were assumed to be dead, but suddenly woke up, occasionally in the Morgue! If He was dead, then he stayed that way. The only person who absolutely claims he saw him was /Saul/Paul. Mary wasn't sure and thought He was the Gardner! Saul/Paul was totally against him, but saw his opportunity to take the gang over, by claiming he actually chatted to Jesus on a road somewhere with nobody present. Again, there are a lot of people who have since claimed to have seen Him. Well, I haven't and nobody I know has. The world is full of religious crazies all of whom claim to have the real Truth. My view: prove it so everybody has the same experience, but without drugs! Why this little rant? Because knowing, really knowing you have a very limited time - and for that there's plenty of proof - fundamentally affects how you perceive your life. Ask anyone who has come very close to the exit door. They all tend to say something similar about realising how valuable life is.

On top of that, there's Maya, the illusion. Again, nobody wants to look the facts in the face, but how can we progress if we ignore the facts. Of course it's all illusion! Every creature on the planet is in a different location and therefore has a different perspective. Everyone has a view and nobody agrees 100% on who or what is The Truth or The Right Thing? We use language which is an abstraction of individual and personal experiences, so almost nobody means the same thing when using the same words. Now enhance that with the fact that there are countless numbers of objects from the size of a particle to the accumulation of particles which make up all the objects in the universe all of which are in constant change and movement. How can anyone not see that they are not in control of anything or have any kind of complete perspective of anything at all. We pretend to know what we are doing and that we have stuff under control, and that is as good a definition of Maya as you can get. The reality is that we have no idea what reality really is. We have learnt to manipulate bits of our world to produce certain effects, but it always goes wrong at some point. Nothing stays the same forever.

Here's a quote from a professional educational institution looking at child development:

"Children are already learning at birth, and they develop and learn at a rapid pace in their early years. This provides a critical foundation for lifelong progress, and the adults who provide for the care and education of children from birth through age 8 bear a great responsibility for their health, development, and learning. Transforming the Workforce for Children Birth Through Age 8, a 2015 report from the Institute of Medicine and National Research Council, explores the implications of the science of child development for the professionals who work with these children.

Young children thrive when they have secure, positive relationships with adults who are knowledgeable about how to support their development and learning. The science of child development and early learning makes clear the importance and complexity of working with young children from infancy through the early elementary years. Research during the past decade has revealed much about how children learn and develop. Studies have shown that early childhood is a time when developmental changes are happening that can have profound and lasting consequences for a child’s future. While people have long debated whether “nature” or “nurture” plays the stronger role in child development, recent studies reveal the importance of how the two influence each other as a child develops: what a child experiences and is exposed to interacts with his or her underlying biological makeup. Research has also shown that much more is going on cognitively, socially, and emotionally in young children – including infants – than scientists or care and education professionals previously knew. Even in their earliest years, children are starting to learn about their world in sophisticated ways that are not always reflected in their outward behaviour. Learning and development for young children is both rapid and cumulative, continuously laying a foundation for later learning. These and related insights emerging from research have strong implications for settings where young children are cared for and educated. This booklet provides an overview of this research and its implications for what educators and other adults who work with children need to know and be able to do in order to best support children’s healthy development."

Given that learning process starts so early, we need to help our children, not by ignoring reality and only thinking of people as work fodder, but by being conscious ourselves as adults and realise that there is very little we can teach, other than fundamental truths, such as: the gift of Life is a fantastic opportunity to experience life in this environment and that it doesn't last. Realising that life is a gift one did nothing to get, should make us aware of just how fantastically precious it is. With it you have everything, without it, nothing. Thems the facts, kiddo. I often think about birth and how suddenly you arrive. Not even that makes sense. A total overload of impressions and experiences and somehow we have orient ourselves. That seems to be instinctive. But it's quite a staggering though what those first moments of life contain.
My hope is that if we truly understand the value of our personal life, life as a one-time opportunity, then we automatically realise that each human has the same value and requires the same loving conscious care. So far, I'm not impressed by what we refer to as the educational process. It needs to be rethought and in particular, set totally different priorities for that learning. Teach children the wonder of it all, teach them to strive to be a better, more conscious Human Being. Don't teach them to be better than others, but better at being their own, completely unique self.

The real Miracle

I received a letter recently which led to a lot of thinking. The handwritten letter was addressed to me personally and came from someone in the next village along to where I live. This person was a Jehovah's Witness and judging by the writing, relatively young. It contained the usual do you know God and I'd be happy to tell you more about Him.

 The letter went in the bin, but I started to fantasize how the conversation would have gone if that person had been here talking to me. In addition, in a recent conversation with one of my relatives, it was mentioned that they didn't believe in God, which surprised me as I know they are regular church goers. And that led to the following scenario in my head:

Whenever I have doubts, I stand in front of the mirror and look at my reflection. I look and ask the question who am I? What am I? How come I'm here? The answer is actually quite spectacular. 
I know I did nothing whatsoever to be here. Suddenly, there I was with not even an idea of here or of existing. Not a single thought happening - can't think without language. Sensations which I have no way of interpreting. The organs that I don't know anything about are delivering information to which I have few means of responding as I don't know anything yet. The feeling I later learn is hunger or pain or discomfort I can only respond to with what those around me interpret as crying. When none of those are there, everything is alright and that will eventually lead possibly to a smile and contented gurgling. But I understand nothing, I know nothing except these sensations.

And yet, here I am, whatever I am. And that, people, is the most amazing miracle that any of us will ever experience. And it's not just the miracle of birth, it's the miracle of life. The first thing all the people in the birth room want to see and hear is that first breath, that sign that an independent being has successfully arrived. What gender the baby is is not relevant without that first and subsequent breath coming and going.

That miracle takes place for the rest of one's life. If it was up to us to consciously take each breath, we'd be dead in the shortest time; there wouldn't even be a first or second breath. We are breathed. 

Looking at the reflection in the mirror, I am overwhelmed. I did nothing but I am here; My breath goes in and out despite my lack of consciousness. And on top of all of that, each one of us is unique! Never has anyone exactly like you existed in the past or the present or the future. Just you. It is totally beyond imagination that I could be and yet, here I am. 

It's because all of these factors that I am able to experience all the possibilities which having a body like ours offers. Good, bad, indifferent - all only possible because of that miracle occurring with each breath, right up to the last one. 

Do you think your parents could have created a human being? All parents can do is initiate the growth of the container and do their best to enable the healthy growth of that container. But neither your parents or doctors and midwives present at birth can make that life breath start and keep going. The secret and miracle of life are in you, within each human being. And that life force on which we depend, is what I call God and that power is most assuredly real as real as I am.

Where does that leave me? Thankful. I am truly grateful for the possibility to experience life as a human being with all our senses. You couldn't come up with an idea like that and be able to execute it. I put effort into being conscious of the gift of life which I've been given, because the most valuable gift I will ever have is more than worthy of my full attention. The specific things that happen, the ups and downs we believe is life are trivial in comparison to that ongoing miracle. Water to wine? Trivial. Not a miracle to compare with life. In fact nothing we call a miracle deserves that term in comparison to miracle of life.

The kind of God most people seem to believe in, is this rather unpleasant old man with a white beard who is a control freak who offers all kinds of goodies, but linked to threats. Stick and carrot. The goodies are also only really available when you're dead - mind you, so are the threats. That old man also apparently has favourites and doesn't treat all equally - especially women! 

When I look up at the Milky Way in the night sky and know that I am only seeing a fraction of everything there is in the Universe; when I know so little about that Universe, not even what is happening inside my body, which is closer than anything else; when you realise that we are all made up of just a few elements and we will never be aware of all that is going on at atomic level, it makes me wonder how anyone ever came up with the idea of that Old Man in the Sky as having that level of detailed interest in this little dot that's me on a blue dot in the farthest reaches of this galaxy doesn't make any sense to me at all. The same force that lives me, lives the universe. The fantastic thing is, that I can experience that life force within me, with the tools this body contains. And that is the most wonderful experience anyone can or will have in their life time. That's what I find is truly worth putting every effort I can into; just to experience the contentment, the love, the peace which that feeling generates. I definitely recommend it!

Wake up tomorrow and be aware that you have woken up, that you are still here, that you have the chance again to enjoy life and to be conscious of that.

Alive and Conscious?

I was chatting to someone the other day and they said that they didn't believe in God. I know there are a lot of atheists and agnostics, so this little article is aimed at them :-)

How do I know I'm alive? Well I am conscious of my life in this body and that wouldn't be the case if I hadn't been born. I also know that I had nothing to do with that happening. Suddenly, I was here, that's all I know. Of course, you may well say, well, my parents have that responsibility, they are the ones who gave me my life and this body. I have had the privilege of attending the birth of two of my children and I can assure anyone reading this, that I had nothing consciously to do with those lovely little babies arriving in good health and complete. Yes, I provided the sperm that started the process in conjunction with the egg and womb of the mother. But after that, what was my involvement? The mother provides the environment in which that baby can come to term, but she isn't busy doing anything in there, she feeds herself and that provides nutrients to the foetus. None of that process in which we are involved determines the character and experience of that child. One day it is here and the real process of becoming a human being starts. I can help with that process or I can hinder it, but in either case it will take place inside that little being for which I take responsibility to try and ensure the child will be able to cope with life on planet Earth with all the other beings it shares the place with.

And that is where the real work begins: becoming a conscious human being. To me, all I have to do is look into a mirror and I know that I had nothing to do with being born. My parents didn't give me life, that was the present that would either be given or not. It was given in my case. And if I didn't do it and my parents or the doctors or midwives didn't put life into my body, who or what did? When a baby is born, everybody who is in attendance at the event waits for that magic moment when the first breath enters that body and independent life begins from that moment on. That power which gave me life, which ensured that first and each subsequent breath up to the very last one, is what I call God. It is what keeps me alive. It is not some old man in the sky who rewards and punishes from on high as the whim takes him. No, it is the same power that underpins everything and I am very, very grateful for that precious life.

If it was up to us to keep us alive, we wouldn't have got much past that first breath. It is estimated that a person takes approximately 20'000 breaths a day and that for say an average of 80 years, adds up to  about 584 million breaths in a lifetime. If you had take each breath consciously yourself, how long do you think you'd last? So who or what is breathing us? 

OK, I'm alive, that bit is clear, so what is the "conscious" bit? I describe myself as a person who is motivated by feelings. I love whatever makes me feel good and I try my best to avoid the things that don't make me feel good. For example, I find that the Swiss are the most self-centred and egotistical drivers of all the countries I've driven in. So much so, that I would get road rage almost every time I had to drive anywhere, especially on the motorways. I really didn't like that feeling and as it was obvious to me that the other drivers were not going to change their habits, I would have to change mine. So I gave away my car and used public transport. That for the last 20+ years. I have never regretted it at all and now, if I really need a car, I rent on and that I can cope with fine.
What has that got to do with consciousness? Well for me to change my habits I had to be conscious of them first and then I had to consciously consider my options and make a choice that would support me in distancing me from that specific feeling. The additional step which has to be made, is to accept responsibility for my feelings - not blame everyone else and hope they would change, but to realise, the problem was the feeling which I had and which I didn't like and that therefore I would have to change something in me.

This is true of all feelings. If you don't like the feeling you get from a situation or person, remove yourself from it and see what you can do to avoid it in future. Becoming conscious of yourself is hard work and is a lifetime occupation. We are subject to change all the time. Every breath is a new one and will never be repeated, so if I want to experience the world consciously as it is and not as others ttell you it is, you have to let go of all your prejudices and opinions and allow the world to be without the pink or black or blue glasses on, just simply as it is. Let yourself be aware of your surroundings, not with tinted spectacles, but as it is, the colours, the sounds, and especially the feelings the natural and real world offers you. 

The insanity in the world currently, stems from this lack of consciousness. If a person is really aware of the value of this one-time gif of life, you automatically realise the value of each life for that being. Each on of us is a unique being. There has never been anyone exactly like you or me ever, neither in the past, nor will there be in the future. People will pay millions for a unique but lifeless painting, but are happy to kill another human being for free. 

The world is full of unconscious people who see themselves as unimportant and without any rights unless they have serious amounts of money. Those who have serious amounts of money see those without as unimportant and whose rights can be ignored. Both of those views demonstrate a clear lack of consciousness, both are wrong for the reasons I've mentioned above. Currently the stupidity associated with the belief that one can own something - you own what you brought with you into the world: nothing - and so we draw borders and tell others "this is mine and entry is only possible if I say so". And from that we get the hatred and theft and wars that we see currently taking place or about to take place. This primitive attitude is killing the species (and not just ours) and driving people insane. Read any newspaper and you know the world is not conscious. 

So, the question is: do you want to be conscious or would you rather carry on blaming the whole world for the perceived mishaps and fight and kill to survive? If the former, there's plenty of hints in this blog, which is my attempt at becoming more conscious. As said, it's a lifetime project, and so far it's taught me to be grateful for the life I've lived - and there were plenty of downs, not just ups - and cannot be thankful enough. Every day I wake up is another opportunity to feel how life pulses within me and to enjoy all the feelings the day will offer. Make the effort - it's well worth it.

Balance is always

When an object is not moving, according to Physics, it's in a state of balance. Any forces on the object are balanced by forces in the opposite direction. The thing is, nothing is ever really in a state of equilibrium, because there are always forces acting on everything, either pushing or pulling or twisting. The Universe does not stand still, even if it seems that way to us, our perspective is a very small proportion of all that is taking place at any given moment in time. So what, you may well ask?

 Balance has entered my consciousness lately and I've been thinking a lot about that. If everything is balanced, it can also be tilted in a specific direction and for human beings that direction is the result of choice. The image I've chosen for this particular note, shows heaps of stones towering over the bare patches and other pebbles lying there. Balance here is not just in terms of the piles not falling over, but also in the instability of the piles - anything could knock it over. And look at it's creation: to build it, the stones had to be taken from somewhere else, so now we have bare patches where the stones once were.

That illustrates to me the effect of greed in the world. In order for a person to accumulate financial wealth, someone else has to pay for it by loosing wealth. Disagree? Well just look at the ridiculous distribution of financial wealth in the world. Millions have almost nothing while a few have staggering amounts. Is that good or bad? Given that good or bad are very relative, I suspect that is the wrong question. As with most of life, it is a matter of choice what we do within the limits of our circumstances, but what is the point of that accumulation, which causes deprivation somewhere else? Enough history books have been written, to demonstrate the instability of our action, both towards each other and towards our home planet. For example, the wealth of western Europe and North America is entirely based on the ability to create goods and trade them, with only minimal costs for labour, i.e. through the use of slavery. We like to think of ourselves as enlightened and progressive, but forget the cost that many nations have paid for that.

And now another idiot wants to accumulate by stealing from others. And how do we react? Certainly not be reviewing which choices led to that state of affairs and what is my contribution to that situation? The biggest single contribution we individuals have made towards war and greed, is choosing the representatives we voted for. Vote for a greedy self-interested person who promises you everything you want to hear but delivers almost nothing of it whilst accumulating for themselves at the voter's expense. That's the usual contribution we make. The USA, it seems to me, has lost all perspective of what's important and is focused on blame and finger pointing in an ever more nasty way. The elected representatives are a real problem. Add to that religion. The one Christian organisation which is backing the current aggression is the orthodox one. When I read how Jesus was one for peace and joy, it makes me realise that that is not what the organisation is about, but what Jesus was all about. It's no different to the Muslim beliefs that see God as the Almighty, Creator of all, but women do not count except as baby machines.

We know that the planet is out of balance and that we could do something about that, but instead of focusing on a real objective affecting all, we focus on the loss the Greedy have to accept in order to help the planet back into balance. At least, everywhere I look, our elected representatives are trying to help those of us with no power, but not at the expense of those with the power. Suddenly this current war in the East brings Energy back into sharp focus, but instead of realising the great opportunity to really get behind alternative and safe energy sources, we start talking about nuclear power, when we still haven't sorted out how to deal with the waste products of the existing power stations. I suggested 30 years ago that a law be passed that no new building will be built that can't provide most of it's own power needs through solar energy. It's still not being supported, although there is clearly a great deal to be made with that technology.

If we truly realised how vulnerable and short-lived we are, would we spend our brief time accumulating stuff we can't take with us? Do we need several homes for the few nights we visit somewhere else? Do we have to travel around the world when all that we really need is on our doorstep? I understand human beings less and less. But I do know something: balance will be restored. That's the laws of physics. If we don't understand that and that we can help the direction of that balance, we will be ground down to nothing by the mechanisms behind the restoration of balance. I rather suspect the collective stupidity of the human race will determine our future as a species.

Fear as the driving force

Einstein said, “There are 3 great forces in the world. Stupidity, fear and greed.” And looking at today's world, who can contradict him?

Thinking about the latest war, the one in the Ukraine, it seems obvious to me that the autocratic leaders in the world today, all act from a basis of fear. Fear of losing power, fear of others gaining some sort of control, fear of missing out.

At the same time, fear is also an aspect of greed. Greed for more of anything is also based on the fear of missing out (FOMO) or losing something. 

I find that behaviour and the rational (if there is one) behind it, utterly ridiculous. That's the stupidity bit. Why? Let's look at reality for an answer.

Reality is the fact that:

• Not one single human being on the planet is the same as another. Each one is unique in time and space and that uniqueness is so real that there has never and never will be another individual like you or me or anyone in all of time. 
• Not a single person on the planet comes born with possessions other than their body. Not a single person has been able to take anything with them when they die. So the accumulation of stuff (including people) is only temporary - it's more of a loan and usage than ownership.
• Not one human being is born because of a human law. Our laws - which vary from place to place, from culture to culture and from time to time are as fictitious as the idea of possession.
• Look into a microscope and you see the endless molecules, atoms, chemicals, currents, etc. Any scientist worth his salt and honest, will tell you that the sheer complexity of that micro-universe means that we will never fully understand or control it. So, all the autocrats discover this at some point: they are not really in charge, life does not evolve according to their plans, however carefully designed. Mr. Putin is currently discovering that reality is way beyond his powers to control.

So what's my point? Well, it's time to get back to basics. Realise that you're unique, with a unique opportunity to have a body and all the possible experiences which that offers for the few years given to us. So running after ephemerals like power and possession means losing perspective of the amazing fact of being a human being, given life and an opportunity to enjoy that, which is far more valuable than running after stuff you can't take with you and pretending that you actually have your own and the lives of others under your control. It might seem as if you have it all sorted, but just wait - the next event which contradicts your expectations is just around the corner. If you need a reminder, take a daily stroll around a cemetary - it's full of people who came and went, brought nothing and took nothing with them. You want a place in history? Well, nobody remembers you or what you did after a while. Important is that you have enjoyed being alive so much that the only feeling you have left is thankfulness for the opportunity to be.

What is religion?

If I have any readers, they will probably have worked out that essentially I am only interested in one thing: living my life to become a better human being.
I've written elsewhere what the characteristics of a human being are and that it is the positive side that I am trying to manifest, such as kindness, clarity in my decisions, love and joy. It's not easy - it demands constant work to be conscious of what I am and what I'm doing. One of the key elements is acceptance. But what exactly should I try to accept? And why?

I like the definition of religion which Swami Vivekananda offers. His analysis points out that generally speaking, many if not all religions and sects have dualistic approach. There's God and there's everything that we see as the manifested universe. We have been offered a set of rules which the religious organisations have developed over time, together with rituals to assist in living according to those rules. looking at many of these religions and their practices, it's possible to identify many common elements, suggesting that all are trying to reach the same goal of being a good person who, according to the rules will achieve an afterlife in what most call paradise.

However, that viewpoint doesn't hold up. I am a very logical thinker - having studied philosophy strengthens that enormously - and the reason it doesn't hold up for me is contained in the word "infinite".

It is claimed by religions that God is infinite. Infinite as in everywhere, and almighty. And here comes the BUT! "Infinite" offers an either/or choice. Either something is infinite as in neverending, or it's not. It is also said that God is the creator of everything. If that everything includes the universe, then the universe is also infinite. Why? Because there can't be two infinite things - that doesn't make sense. The infinite being, is infinite and there can only be one infinity.

Where does that lead us? It means that we are all part of infinity and being a part of it means, by extension, that we are infinite. We are a part of the Total, not separate from it. We are part of the endless variety of infinity and the infinite part of us, is always there and, because it is infinite, cannot be created or destroyed. Physics supports this. So am I God? No, I am a part of that infinity. It is the part which never dies. My body is subject to all the natural laws we find exist and will change and go back to its constituent parts, but the infinite part merges back into the infinite.

Infinity can be viewed like an ocean. From the ocean the process of evaporation lifts endless minute particles into the air which together form clouds. These in turn drift and eventually comes back to earth as raindrops. Each drop naturally seeks the way back to the ocean, forming streams and rivers and torrents until each drop is again merged with the ocean. So we are like drops of the ocean and it is our natural need to do whatever  it takes to get back to the ocean.

So, I see my life as the opportunity to merge again with the infinite. The infinite is always there in each of us, but we are so distracted by the external, we forget to look where that infinite resides: inside each individual: in fact inside everything is that spark which has manifested itself in all the myriads of forms and shapes that make up the whole universe. 

So how can I become conscious of that infinite part inside me? That is what I've been looking for all my life and it's what I put my effort into. I am doing everything I can to become conscious of that. It is hard work - as Prem Rawat once said, the world is the perfect distraction; why? Because it works! We are so immersed in the world of change that we forget to look for the unchanging, that which keeps us alive and that which one day will go back to that infinite ocean. The only real thing there is. I equate reality with the unchanging, the endless, the infinite. The external world offers me nothing, it just attempts to pull me away from reality and mostly it succeeds. That's why I practice everyday and put my effort into experiencing the most wonderful thing there is: infinite love, infinite clarity, infinite kindness, infinite joy. I recently gave all my family a copy of the new book by Prem Rawat, called "Hear Yourself in a Noisy World" with the subtitle "How to find peace in a noisy world". In that he points out practical steps on the way to true consciousness. I have been practicing his Knowledge since 1975 and I can only tell you, it works. I am most definitely not the person I was before that time and have been working on myself since then. The benefits are huge. Currently I am wrestling with the hardest experience I have had in my life: the abandonment by my children. Slowly, through regular practice, I am beginning the process of letting go of the attachment I have always had for my children and finding that peace again. But it's hard. But my longing for that infinite is everything and that gives me the strength to keep going - the rewards are paradise, but here and now and not in some imaginary place after I'm dead.

That raises another point. I am most familiar with the Christian religion, but have studied many of the books of the various religions, including the Koran, the Tao Te Ching, the Bible and the Torah, the Bhagavad Gita, the Guru Granth Sahib, as well as numerous other Holy Scriptures during my long search. Each one claims to be the only way. and yet they all search for the same thing: a way to the infinite. Sadly, instead of recognising that we are all human beings searching for joy, peace and love in the different ways, each of the religions views the other as wrong, not as a variation on the same theme. The result is the world we have today, where hate and fear and greed and stupidity rule, always at the cost of others. It's time to stop and realise we are on a journey in which we can aid each other, not as now, attempting to force all to believe the same thing. I don't want to believe, I want to Know! So, let's start with the common wish of all: enjoying a life of peace and joy, instead of seeing each other as rivals or worse. We are, whether we know it or not, all part of the infinite, and there isn't a single human being better or worse than the other. The only difference is one of conscious awareness. Making it big in the external world means nothing - go visit a few graveyards and you'll see that all those people, high and low, took nothing with them and all their wealth or lack of it never gave them a single extra breath when it came to the end. That is reality: we are temporary beings and the question we have to answer is: did I make the effort to leave richer in joy and consciousness? If yes, then going is just a change of circumstance and nothing to fear. Certainly, given that everybody goes against the rules of their religion at various points in their lifetime, nobody is going to get to paradies anyway!