Subtopic	Posts		Updated
	Archive 01	50		2002/06/14, 11:22 pm

Kendricks - glad you read Siddhartha. It's not only a classic but a great introduction to Buddhism. IMO it's the religion for the non-religious. At the very least, it might help change your outlook on some things. Take care.

Although philosophy is my favorite topic I have not read this thread for about a year.
Hell, it's almost been that long since anyone's responded.
Some quick thoughts on Kendricks post and the subsequent responses:
Like either Mr. Bill or Heading South said, "We are animals". Sure we're animals, animals that are in the early stages of mental evolution. We are animals that have only recently developed language. Sadly, we are not evolved enough to understand that language is a tool, words that for the most part don't represent concepts and ideas precisely. Added together into sentences, paragraphs, forget it, all is lost (almost). We use language like a new toy, but in reality it's more like a runaway train heading to its destination. It has been much more of a detriment than a benefit to mankind, and the main cause of humans maladaptation to his environment. As far as I know, no one has substantially touched on this subject.
In Kendricks case I can't help but think that part of his ocassional quagmire can be attributed to this. He is disappointed in his inability to ask of the world (his existence) the precise questions when he is so much wanting to. With this he joins the club, this is found lacking in all mankind.
To him and to all I say take up critical reasoning classes, while keeping in mind that words are very suspect and must be the most criticized of all.

I speak, therefore I am not?

Maybe words are not perfect but they are an attempt by each of us to express to others how we view the world. Sometimes it is like looking through a dirty window. Still, it's better than nothing.

We could all just stand there like trees or rocks which would probably make some fairly happy.

Tight Fit:
I'm not saying that we not use language, but that we acknowledge its true essence so that we can attain the greatest value as a tool from it.
Man has lost touch with much of reality due to the use of vague, distorted, prepackaged words that are too readily available, with no real critical investigation of the true meaning behind the concepts or if they're even valid or sound.
Have you ever been dumbfounded by the questions a little kid asks? It's because his head hasn't yet been too crammed with a lot of mistaken notions that we see as reality.
Using language precisely also leaves little room for manipulation, and as we all know this world has been manipulated to the hilt.

Kendricks... I know how you feel; I believe that you have experience what some call, the non-meaning. Below is a text that I hope can give you some answer to your question.

--------------------------

The Path

If you believe that your life will end with death, what you think, feel, and do have no meaning.

Everything will end with incoherence and disintegration.

If you believe that your life does not end with death, you must bring into agreement what you think with what you feel and what you do. Everything needs to advance toward coherence, toward unity.

If you are indifferent to the pain and suffering of others, none of the help that you ask for can be justified.

If you are not indifferent to the pain and suffering of others, you must bring your thoughts, feelings and actions into agreement in order to help them.

Learn to treat others in the way that you want to be treated.

Learn to surpass pain and suffering in yourself, in those close to you, and in human society.

Learn to resist the violence that is within you and outside of you.

Learn to recognize the signs of the sacred within you and around you.

Do not let your life pass by without asking yourself, "Who am I?"

Do not let your life pass by without asking yourself, "Where am I going?"

Do not let a day pass by without giving an answer to yourself about who you are.

Do not let a day pass by without giving an answer to yourself about where you are going.

Do not let a great joy pass without giving thanks within yourself.

Do not let a great sadness pass without reclaiming from your interior the joy that you have placed there.

Do not imagine that you are alone in your village, in your city, on Earth, or among the infinite worlds.

Do not imagine that you are enchained to this time and this space.

Do not imagine that upon your death loneliness will become eternal.

After re-reading my previous message.... well, I never said I was good with words.
I'm more of an conceptual or "if you will" spiritual thinker, whereby, I feel, one is more in tune to natural law and its differing aspects. I feel language is a tool that can be very useful, but one must tread its use very carefully because it can be used artificially, distortedly etc. as a substitute for the concepts we mean to convey.

Don't be the EFFECT.

Simple. You are the effect of your environment and uncodified emotion.

One of the worst things you can do is start into asking yourself "WHY." The reason is that you will not likely come up with the right answer or solution. When this happens, you have two probems, the original one and now the one created by the incorrect solution.

Your decision-making (good or bad) is tied to your own certainty of "self" and spiritual awareness.

Sounds like you are "flat" on the things that used to excite you. Not uncommon. Not much on this planet is self renewing in terms of novelty or excitement (except sex). That's why too much of a "good thing" isn't so good.

You might also have reached goals that no longer challenge you.

Sounds like you respond well to challenges and you enjoy having a game to play. It also sounds like the games are getting old and you're getting bored so you are looking inward and you are discovering a sense of spirituality that maybe you didn't see before. This is a good thing.

The only trap with spiritual self awareness is trying to use spiritual universe laws in the physical universe. YOU exist in the spiritual universe but your body exists in the physical universe. Don't get the two mixed up. You'll spin badly.

All you need to do is to re-kindle the excitement and purpose in your life. When the effort is a higher price than you are prepared to pay then it's time to re-evaluate IT, not YOU.

I could go on and on but I think I hit the highlites.

Country John

If there is one lesson to be learned, at least for me, lets all get medical directives in our papers so a husband, a mother, and a father, could avoid all this bullshit.

oops, in the 'for me' part, I don't have a husband.