Wondersense

Balance is not always even. I know this sounds like a contradiction, but it isn’t. What I am referring to is “balance in the moment.” When we look at balance over a very long period of time, it eventually seems to even out. But in the moment, it can seem very un-even. I believe this is because of the rigid restraints we put on balance. We need to let balance be more flexible. Balance can come over time instead of the moment. It can also come via different levels of the consciousness (happiness or depression) or by manifesting itself in different physical ways (health or sickness). And balance needs to more based on quality, rather than quantity. Focusing solely on quality is very limiting. So you see, balance is a very flexible thing. And when we try to force it to be otherwise, we are not letting it manifest itself correctly.

Greed. We’ve all felt it… we’ve all been the recipient of it. But what is the real source of this unhealthy emotion? I think the answer is easy if we look at its opposite… generosity. When one exhibits generosity or kindness, one is considering someone else’s needs over their own. True, one can hide behind “over generosity” because of guilt or lack of self worthiness. But true generosity comes from the heart…from a sense of love. That love can be love for a family member or a close friend. But it can also be a love, for the actual “act” of generosity itself. For some people, kindnesses and generosity are a way of life. One that they have a real genuine love for. And this comes from their sense of abundance. Not an abundance of material things. But an abundance of things of real value. Things (or more specifically…feelings), like love, self-worth and happiness. And it’s the lack of these real things, that creates the foundation for greed. When our thought process begins from this sense of lack, we will always be struggling to fill that void whenever we try to fill it with things of no value (money, house, etc). This is because these things have no real permanent or lasting existence. They are always in short supply and only temporary. So you will constantly be trying to replace them greedily. Instead, what we should be filling that void with, is with what is really needed. And that is the missing feelings of love, self-worth and happiness. By the very nature of their design, these things are always available to us…but only if we so choose to access them. And because they are always available to us…we will always have an abundance to share with others, generously.

You may have noticed that some of my recent posts, have had a much more spiritual tone to them. This is mainly because I’ve been doing a lot of soul searching of recent. This is nothing new to me. I go through waves of this every so often. And most times I come across a person who I think can help me in my endless quest for truth and the betterment of myself (and of course, the world around me). Unfortunately, I am almost always let down by any spirtual leader or teacher. While they present themself as open and flexible, they almost always end up being one the most narrow minded and inflexible persons I’ve ever met. Not necessarily bad persons. Most actual have very good and geniune intentions. But if you don’t buy into their system of “just believe because of faith,” you are very quickly cast aside in favor of those who don’t question them. Their inability to try and “come down” to the average man and translate their teachings, creates this aura of elitism that is barely stomachable. They preach all inclusivnes and different paths for everyone. But the truth is, there is only one path in their eyes…and it’s theirs. And the only people they want to surround themselves with is flaky wannabes, who’s sole purpose is to feed the spiritual teacher’s supposedly non-existent ego.

That’s not to say there are no great spiritual teachers out there. Just like the school system, there are good and bad teachers. But as we are dealing with matters of the soul, we should be holding those who proclaime themselves to be spiritual teachers or leaders, to a much higher standard. Hell…we are not talking just about 12 years of education. We are talking about our eternal fucking soul here! But once again, I am not condemning all spiritual teachers. But there seem to be so many these days that have…well…to coin a phrase, “lost their way.”

You want to know (in my opinion) how to really help your fellow mankind, be the best they can be? Stop hiding behind your faith, your rituals, your crystals, your smudging or whatever other doctrine or symbols you are attached….yes “attached” to. Start remebering what it’s like to “not” be connected to anything higher than your ego. That way you can truly relate to others. Honestly…and earnestly, treat all beings as your equal. Not somone you have to change or “raise” up. Everyone is perfect as they are. Your focus should be just on helping them to realize it. And if they want to better themselves, help them to find their own path and then let them walk it on their own. Accept that what works for you, may not work for them. Your way is not the only way.

If I could sum up all of the above, it would be this…to be a better teacher, let your teachings be more flexible. True teachings are able to fit all shapes and all sizes. They are universal. Spiritual teaching is not about marketing to only a select group of people. It’s about reaching each and everyone out there. It’s about helping all become the best they can be. It’s not about only helping those you deem wothy. It is the fundemental right of every living being, to have the opportunity to be the best they can be. And it is the sole role of any teacher to help them achieve that goal…nothing more…nothing less.

This is a tough one. Faith is a very important and personal topic for a lot of people. And I am no exception. Except for maybe different reasons…I really have a problem with it. Even though faith and trust may at first seem to have the similar belief systems…they do not. The system of trust specifies that evidence is required. I have trust (based on the evidence provided) that the airplane I’m riding in won’t crash because the airplane, the pilot and the overall technology is sound. The system of faith though, by design, specifies that evidence is not required. And this is where I take issue with it. Lets take a look at the same example above. Say we knew absolutely nothing whatsoever of airplanes. Then we are told, that someone just built this 735,000 pound cigar shaped piece of metal, that can fly us to New York from Los Angeles. And then…we are told, that we just have to have faith (without evidence) that it will get us there safely. I don’t know about you, but I sure wouldn’t be taking that first flight. People will say, “What about those times where you didn’t have evidence but you still accepted someones word and that it turned out to be true? Aren’t you taking a leap of faith?” Not really…I’m still trusting them based on set of variables I know about them. It’s not complete evidence, but it’s still “some” evidence. And it also depends on the degree of the possible outcome. To trust someone on whether something tastes good with minimal evidence, is a small risk. But to completely accept anyone’s view without “any” evidence, in my view, is completely insane. Even if the risk is minimal, it still just doesn’t make any sense. Faith asks us to ignore validation and without validation, we have no proof. I think we all can agree, that one of the ultimate pursuits of human existence…is truth. And I personally think, that faith is also asking us to suspend that.