nothing in the world
is as soft and yielding as water
yet for dissolving the hard and inflexible
nothing can surpass it
The soft overcomes the hard;
the gentle overcomes the rigid.
Everyone knows this is true,
but few can put it into practice.tao te ching
stephen mitchell version
we cannot
achieve balance
by only focusing
on the positive
If we reject
the negative
or pretend it doesn't exist
then we only make ourselves
spiritually lopsided
balance means
embracing all of our reality
~ equally
good/bad
wrong/right
beautiful/ugly
desired/undesired
unless we do that
we will not achieve balance
we cannot reject
half of our reality
we cannot reject
half of ourselves
balance means
embracing all of reality
~ equally
“But Kai, you're so young. You have your whole life in front of you...”
"No Lizi. None of us have our lives in front of us. We only have the lives that are behind us. That, is what defines us.”
The earth is a living organism.
It doesn't make mistakes.
Has the earth deliberately evolved us into a species that can increase carbon dioxide levels in her atmosphere?
Is the earth using us to help melt its polar ice caps, flood its surface, and enter the next phase of its life?
spiritual awareness
is not
when i become aware
of how everyone in the world
should
be living their lives
spiritual awareness
is when
when i become aware
that there are
no shoulds
~ acceptance ~
is the middle path
~ acceptance ~
is the only path
to serenity
i struggle with acceptance
you struggle with acceptance
acceptance is difficult
it’s so much easier
to judge and avoid
we are humans
we like easy
true spiritual growth
is difficult
which is why
so few humans
attempt to do it
are we ‘supposed to’ be
pursuing spiritual growth?
what if everything
is normal?
exactly
the way it is
right now?
What if
it's normal
to pursue spiritual growth
and
it's normal
to not peruse spiritual growth?
can i accept that?
can you accept that?
isn't that true acceptance?
1 i am more like the other animals
~ than i am different from them
2 i am more like other human beings
~ than i am different from them
3 we all have the same instincts
4 we all have the same needs
5 we all have different desires
6 all desire is not evil
~ but desire is the root of all evil
7 i am the architect of my own misery
8 there is no universal right and wrong
9 there is no universal good and bad
10 all things are normal
11 the earth is a living organism
~ it doesn't make mistakes
there are roughly 4,200 different religions in the world
we all have our own piece
of the puzzle
none of us
has the whole picture
perhaps
if we could put
all of our individual pieces
together
we might get a better idea
of what the bigger picture actually is
love and hate
joy and sadness
these are not opposites
all things coexist
side by side
all things exist
on their own spectrum
joy -------------------------------- indifference to joy
sadness ------------------------ indifference to sadness
i feel all things
at the same time
at different levels
where i am
on the spectrum
changes constantly
love for my partner ------ | --------------- indifference
anger at my partner --------------- | ------ indifference
only my position
on the spectrum changes
“The other part is even worse.”
Lizi narrows her eyes, “What?”
“Well... They elected people into public office, who were abused as kids.”
“Nǎo cán!”
“Exactly. Diseased brain, is right. It would never happen today.”
“You mean after they received counsel? Right?”
“No, Lizi. People with unresolved anger and fear.”
“Nǎo cán!”
“I know. It’s unthinkable. Some history tellers think that’s what collapsed the Empire.”
“Child abuse? Child abuse collapsed the Empire?”
“Not child abuse. Abused children. Angry frightened children who became adults, but never dealt with their unresolved anger or fear.”
“Yeah, yeah. You just project it onto other people. Transference. We all know how that works.”
“Others say it collapsed because they protected their denial, instead of their national security.”
“And no one stopped this?”