Whether it's Pandora's mythological box or the Bible's infamous Tree of
the Knowledge of Good and Evil, the metaphor is quite the equivalent. The Book of Genesis
and Greek mythology as well as most all cultures each have their own stories
of man's beginnings and a prescription of how man has and should deal with life
from its very creation to how the gods have decreed that one should experience
it on a daily basis. The most important consideration is our simply coming to know the truth of our own unique reality and the world of
which we are all such an integral part and hopefully not have that confused
by/with the incoherence that often accompanies man's infinite explanations
of the actual etiology of the human race. Ignorance may be considered blissful for and by some,
but in the sometimes devious and conceptualized minds and hands of those who would
willfully intend to enslave our bodies, minds and spirits, ignorance becomes the willing
fertile ground in which to impregnate mass deceptions; deception that are
taken on their face value as being that of the consummate, absolute and irrefutable
truth.
The chains of slaves and pains of hate, we loose
When first the path of Truth and Love, we
choose.
When we finally make that often-difficult
choice to abandon our child-like innocence and then dare to look the truth squarely in the
face, the experience is probably a bit overwhelming for many of us. I would propose that a
more than significant number of people could too quickly retreat backwards into their
perceived safe-place much like the popular spring groundhog that quickly reenters
his darkened borrow upon first seeing his shadow. I would not dare to form a
judgment of
anyone for making either choice. I would however cautiously warn those who begin to expose
themselves to the truth, that it is usually considered almost impossible for any of us to
put that not so ignominious genie back into his restraining bottle. If you have read this
book to this point, you have already risked the idea of exposing yourself to the truth.
Please note that I am not proposing any specific philosophy, religion or
ideology that you are to neither believe nor put your faith in;
that is entirely your choice. The simple idea of your loving your
neighbor unconditionally; without regard to his uniqueness is a wonderful
choice that could be made by anyone irrespective of his religion,
nationality or the color of his skin. I'm not so ignorant as to
believe that that there will be some equity in this simple commandment;
there will always be those whose life is govern by hate and self doubt;
don't be infected with their infirmity nor let their own hateful behavior
deter you from experiencing your own rightful happiness in life. It
still may be quite possible for you to totally discount everything that I dared to share
with you so far and simply make a very pointed and cognitive accusation that it's all
just a bunch
of unfounded babblings of a senile modern cleric. Understand that I am only
attempting to expose you to the false foundations upon which so much of our
belief and faith is so rooted; so rooted that most never dare to challenge
its veracity. But if I have just possibly touched
something a little deeper in your mystifying soul, then you might need to be prepared to
expand your consciousness to its greatest potential. The first thing
you might want to do is to check out your local library (the reading of
books are free and accessible to all) and discover for yourself the
intriguing history of our Western culture and the countless and varying
explanations for reality that has constantly changed over these past two millennia
and just keep in mind that reality simply doesn't change for the
intellectual or spiritual convenience of anyone. It will be your own
discovery of these mass inconsistencies that should give rise to your
discovering what might actually be the truth of the matter. It might
be nice to put aside the anxiety of not knowing whether there actually is a
heaven or hell, and try and appreciate all the beauty that surrounds us; be
reminded that there is no charge for viewing a magnificent sunset or
enjoying the smell of a pine forest.
The truth can sometimes be rather painful to deal with at first
encounter, but the potential of the preferred liberation that inevitably follows frees the
individual in body and mind to be able to at last stop and smell the sweet scent of roses.
Keep in mind that there still aptly remains those other less desirable
scents, and you'll still likely have to wake up Monday morning and start off
another work week; perhaps you are your own boss? The
additional freedom allows the individual to make his own choices and most
importantly those choices of how you perceive your own individual
environment. Consider seeking and viewing the good in things despite
the reality that there will remain many aspects of life that aren't always
in concert with the more positive aspects of life. The Orientals
having been around for centuries before the birth of our own culture have
come to understand the natural balance that is needed in all creation and
they call this balance of all things in nature as the yen and yang, which
also represent the masculine and feminine. I don't even begin to pretend
that I have all the answers or even, a sufficient number for anyone except possibly
myself. If I were to be so pretentiously sure of myself as to believe
that my path to the truth is the only way for all others, I would be committing the same
gross faux pas that I most wittingly attribute to those others that have so intentionally
contrived to enslave our minds with lots of nothing. I can guarantee you that the truth
can be easily found and comprehended by almost anyone that sets out to go down that narrow
and least traveled path. All of us from time to time have probably had at least a brief glimpse at the
obvious through the often-distorted glasses that had been so ungenerously provided by our
too often unobserved slaveholder. I would strongly suggests that your search begin by
revisiting where you have been in life, except that this time remove many of those
deceptive premises and most certainly those hideous blinders that were most conceivably
previously applied to your innate insight. For the last several years of this unusual life
of mine, I have endlessly marveled at what had always existed in clear view that I had
somehow totally blocked from my own awakened consciousness. Most revealing of all was a
poignant poem that I
had once composed when I was in the last year of my teens. I thank my
mother for having saved much of my poetry without my have any knowledge of
her motherly appreciation and even more revealing of her own intuition was
her returning these poems at a time in my life when my own deeper spirituality
was finally beginning to blossom. One of these poems in particular now reveals itself as evidence
that I had from the very beginning of my own spiritual and intellectual
growth that innate potential of self-actualization; and most significantly
without the misdirection of those who would wish for me to follow their own
insanity. If all of this wonderful discovery was and
is something so possibly for me, I am confident that those self-same puissant potentialities
exist in every single one of us; you are most assuredly included:
MYSELF
The
times have been when needs were great,
But now there's been a change of
late.
Before and now my God's been first,
But
now I haven't that saintly curse.
My life so far has sought ideal,
But now I've found a fertile field;
MYSELF
There
are only a few basic truths/realities that I might suggest you incorporate
as part of your own scheme of personal discovery and enlightenment. The
first is to value the remarkable uniqueness of who and what you are, most
naturally with the rightful assumption that love alone is the governing
factor in how you approach your entire life's experience. Love yourself
first and know that you are worthy of the best that life has to offer, and
then willingly love your neighbors with that same degree of respect and
passion for exactly who and what they are no matter how you or the rest of
society might judge them. Jesus most specifically proclaimed that all
of the law is founded on this singularly profound concept; it's not a
belief, it's a way of living life more fully. Understand that if you
achieve this first step towards salvation and freedom, you will be able to
proclaim that you and that mysterious Father are as one. Know that love does
not arduously bind you as some prisoner, quite the contrary, it most
certainly frees you so that you might have more joy in your life and have
that joy and life more abundantly. Just consider the whole state of
your being and the discomfort you experience when you harbor ill feeling
(hate) for someone who most probably offended you or even abused you either
physically or mentally; it's a dreadful state of agitation that disrupts and
dominates our life until those feelings are dispelled. It is that
supreme act of forgiveness that we are commanded to do, not just for any
benefit of the offended, but also most assuredly for our own peace of mind.
Any doctrine that tends to condemn you like that awfully contrived concept
of original sin is an ignominious restraint on your most infinite capacity
to love. Let those who pretend to purport that doctrine suffer their own
ignorance and reap what they sow; you're not bound by any doctrine.
Pope Innocence III proclaimed, "In our obsession with original sin, we
often overlook original innocence;" no poetic pun intended! Were
that accursed state to actually exist, one would have the greatest need to
avoid giving any credence at all to that doctrinally condemned sinner,
particularly if it might be purposely directed at that lovely person in the
mirror. I have known some beautiful souls that grew up imprisoned in a wall
of self-hatred because they had dared to accept that doctrine of original
sin as some absolute truth. What an awful and totally unnecessary indictment
to have been placed on the birth of an innocent child. Of course, this was a
restrictive doctrine intentionally created to enslave the soul by a maligned
church that also emphatically demanded absolute obedience to all of its
other binding and misleading dogmas. It is only the truth and not
man's intentionally fabricated doctrines that have the innate and ultimate
power to set any of us free to love our neighbors and most certainly
ourselves. You are worth every bit of the love that you can muster and
shower upon yourself; go for it!
There
always appears to exist some ominous warning about venturing into the
unknown territory of either the knowledge of good and evil, an alternative
to our present beliefs or simply the truth. Having opened the mysterious box
for myself, I can now more fully appreciate that avoiding the stalwart
encounter with reality may just apt to leave some of us seekers in that
sometimes-enviable state facetiously known as blissful ignorance. The more I
learn, the more that I come to understand that I have actually only jus
begun the journey. Opening Pandora's box is certainly a viable
alternative to blissful ignorance and one, which I fully understand is quite
impossible to reverse once you have placed your tired feet upon that sacred
ground of truth. I would suggests that you haven't treaded too far
just yet even though I may have justly tempted you to plunge head-on into
the river of life. Take some time to consider where you are headed and
know that you can always open that intriguing Pandora's box that is readily
available to you at any given instance in your life. I can attest that
some of the more profound realizations that I have encountered in the real
world of truth have been at times a bit overwhelming.
There
have been those times that I would have gladly returned to some previous
state of mind or even consider checking into that infamous Hotel California
from which I understand there is no reasonable chance of checking out. This
very literary exercise of sharing some of my more astute observations
through that glass darkly of truth is my own confessed testament that
the journey isn't always easy n or joyful—it is, however rewarding.
It is totally remunerative in terms of human values. First of all
because the adventure has the potential to equip one with that unique
ability to actually counsel and console some of your more troubled fellow
travelers through this Garden of Eden. Secondly, the experience aptly
imparts the peerless capability of further discerning the truths that can
best insure your continued sovereignty. There is now hardly a day in which I
do not learn more about myself, and this sometimes-wonderful world that I
find myself such an integral part of. That is not to say that
everything becomes rosy; quite the contrary. There still remains a great
deal of despair at times, but with knowing more of the truth, it can make
this sometimes-treacherous journey far more meaningful. If you decide
to take the plunge, you may at times expect to find yourself alone and no
one to share your marveled discoveries; it is difficult to fathom just how
so many people remain in the dark. But on the other hand, you will
aptly find that the only reason that doesn't seem to be anyone to share that
joy is because so many of our brothers and sister are simply afraid to
disclosing their doubts about just about everything; they often reside in
that preverbal closet believing that they are the only sane soul. Like
so many of those closeted brothers and sisters, I have found that some of
the more profound insights that I have unearthed are possibly just too
discordant with accepted popular postulations. I just don't wish to push
some points and risks the possible disruption of some perceived equilibrium
or the qualified thinking of anyone who finds themselves quite comfortable
occupying their present space of blissful ignorance; "Don't rock the
boat!"
I
hesitate
to judge anyone for where they freely choose to be ideologically excepting
in the cases where someone is aggressively exhorting their faith or beliefs
on others. I am most offended when some over-zealous cleric claims that his
particular take on the universe provides the only true source of salvation.
First of all, I would specifically question salvation from what; are they
willing to make my next mortgage payment or simply pay my rent? Only
the individual has that intimate knowledge of who and what they are and
whether they actually have any real need for salvation. And they/you
alone have that inalienable right to decide whether they/you wish to remain
where they/you are or seek some alternative course. No one has the right to
open Pandora's box for you or even forcefully have you open it against your
own will. Don't be seduced by anybody temping you with any promise of
salvation that is accompanied with all sorts of doctrines or formulas for
success. Even in the very tempting face of those who would adamantly
postulate the need for salvation, keep in mind that that it has always
remained your free choice alone. Always keep your options open for
yourself and your neighbors.
There
are no doors to the inhabited internal rooms of my residence including the
majority of even the bathrooms. There is one guest bath at the front
entrance for those more modest visitors. There are certainly doors to the
outside, mostly to keep uninvited wild critters from entering including the
occasional visit of a brown bear. However, these exterior doors are usually
left unlocked as long as someone is in town. As for the lack of
interior doors, it is so specifically and intentionally designed so that I
can never shut a door in anyone's face not ever lock anybody in or keep
anybody out. You are free in my home to come and go as you please. And to
those, whose inquiring minds address the delicate subject of privacy, I
dutifully inform them that privacy itself should only be the consummate
matter of respect for one another and never any form of an artificial
barrier. This design also reflects my take on that world of the mind
and I would equally never insist that you live or believe in that same
manner as I attempt to do. I would hope that my home would always
posses the feeling of being a natural extension of that Garden of Eden.
No more than I would wish to be expelled from that sacred place of my
natural inheritance, I do not desire to expel anyone unnecessarily from my
own life. Of course, there is always the likely presence of those who
do not willingly extend the same freedom of movement and thought to me, and
that would likely make the very exercise of this personal postulate and
lifestyle of mine quite impossible to enforce.
Knock
and it shall be opened unto you. This
is the Biblical expression of the same promised dynamic that the truth is
always available to anyone earnestly seeking salvation in any form. I
sometime wonder why in the mythological story of Adam and Eve that Eve was
so easily tempted in lieu of the reported fact that she and her god-imaged
man enjoyed the beauty and bountifulness of their idyllic setting. Maybe
this tongue-in-cheek scenario is also an aptly placed and initial
description of that blissful ignorance and Eve was simply getting
down-right bored to the point that anything different was likely a heatedly
welcomed diversion. The truth of the matter is that this imagined yet
thoughtful story doesn't give Eve the deserved respect due to one who is
willing to venture beyond their comfort zone.
The
present comfort zones of too many of our neighbors rest to firmly with a
hypnotic affixation on passive entertainment as I had alluded to in that
section addressing the various opiates of mankind's modern existence. I
would suggests that for those of us, who have been more generously endowed
with that cerebral gray matter, an intellectual curiosity that just won’t
go away and that often accompanying insatiable zest for personal
fulfillment, that that comprehended less undesirable state of some more
comfortable and meaningless homeostasis become a notorious anathema.
Stated more succinctly in the vernacular, that state of nothingness is
boring as hell! It appears that we are all programmed and pronged to
seek some form excitement; the word excitement is all too common to almost
anyone's vocabulary and the number of various ways in which most of us
express this need is equally limitless. Not all of us appreciate the
spiritual and intellectual challenges that exist, but for those of us who
require more than a viscerally stimulating football game on a Sunday
afternoon and ideally viewed from the very creature-comfort of a leather
La-z-boy recliner, opening a Pandora's box could be the ultimate experience.
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