Compared to the body (our personal universe), that nerve nexus known as the conscious part of the brain - wherein consciousness has at least gained the beginnings of a foothold, tenuous though it is - could be viewed as Life. Life, in the Universe.
The body, for all intents and purposes is a gigantic machine -"alive" to a degree (but only "to a degree"), wheels within wheels within wheels - or, organically speaking, systems within systems within systems - each genetically pre-programmed to perform certain functions within very strict and definite limits, with slack and give-and-take - and well-lubricated - so the entire system doesn't freeze up. Cells grow and divide, and accumulate into larger and more sophisticated structures - not unlike galaxies, or star systems - and there is a very definite kind of communication between the systems, though at a very rudimentary, and quite physical level - unlike the brain/mind where it's form of transmission is electrical. That is, blood and lymph and chemicals and hormones are required to transmit these messages to and from the various systems. However, those mediums-of-transmission could be likened to earth-based vehicles, (in our particular case) requiring burnable-fuel-based engines, which therefore are limited in their relative speeds-of-transmission. Not much faster than racehorses, though today, 300-horsepowered-horses.
The conscious part of the brain, which is the electric spark-of-potentiality in all humans, from birth - though only when naturally developed to the point where the human can speak, both to himself and to other similarly equipped men - could be likened to Life in him: him, the body: body, the universe. Life in the Universe.
It is presumed by most today, that because Life on earth does indeed exist, and it flourishes everywhere - from inside the hottest and coldest places (undersea volcanic vents and arctic ice packs), as well as inside and outside the hardest and softest places (rocks and air), that Life must therefore be assured a long and prosperous duration, here and the Universe. Almost 4 billion years, the scientists tell us, Life has flourished on this planet, but only in the last 120 thousand, has the spark-of-potentiality mentioned above been viable, and perhaps, there is a reason for it, of which we are both not presently aware, and duty-bound to discover. (Homo sapiens sapiens - modern man, "knowing man", first appeared about 120,000 years ago.) Perhaps Life on earth had an "easier" go of it then, for 3.8 billion years or so - it's continuance assured. Perhaps, something happened, when it instinctively realized that more would be necessary to continue and prosper here, i.e., consciousness, thinking about existence, as distinct from just instinctively existing, as it had successfully done so many millennia before.
But what if, in fact, Life is no more than an accident of universal proportions - a coming-together of certain events, sizes of stars, distances of planets, circulations by moons, atmospheric conditions, etc. - and NOT a normal/natural event in Universes at all. This would not be all that surprising when you consider that within the entire planet, earth, there is only one creature with the capacity for intelligent and reasoned speech, and further, the capacity to drastically and dramatically change the environment. Perhaps, what he calls his "consciousness" is as rare an event even in ONE human (universe), as Life is a rare event in the only ONE universe of which we are cognizant.
Becoming fully conscious - as conscious as you can be - assists the great work alright, but the great work of Life, not some arcane system-of-thought revered by the sleeping masses even today.
(an "escape hatch" for those so-inclined to squeeze through.)
First, you must "get really small,"
then you can pass through anything,
even "death" and "life."
But always remember, a "back door" is NOT an "escape hatch."
Everything produced here is
© "Praybob in Nirvana"
Wednesday, October 20, 2004
Tuesday, October 19, 2004
...conscious as he >>could<< be...
If you can be conscious in the immediate present moment of your existence, the way you could be - not the way the "imaginary ones," have you told throughout their dark ages - you would wake up from your waking dream of words, no matter how titillating the self-aggrandizing self-concept arising therefrom.
If you could see the world around and within you in the present moment of your existence, you would not see trees as anything but simply, trees; you would not see birds as anything but birds; you would not see nature as anything but natural, in the same way you would see your own conscious apprehension of consciousness as natural to you, and wonder how you never did before.
If you could see the world around and within you in the present moment of your existence, you would not see trees as anything but simply, trees; you would not see birds as anything but birds; you would not see nature as anything but natural, in the same way you would see your own conscious apprehension of consciousness as natural to you, and wonder how you never did before.
Monday, October 18, 2004
Snoring, versus Scanning - you be the judge
Notice, the mystics never said: "Man is asleep but *should* be awake," or "Man is in prison but *should* be free." They said, "Man is asleep but with certain kinds of effort can awaken," and "Man is in prison but with certain kinds of effort can be free." There is certainly a big difference, but to read and listen to most people who write about such things, you'd think they missed it. According to most of those kinds of people (who seem, apparently, interested in waking up, enlightenment, liberation), all men should be awake, and that all men are not now awake, certainly means (according to them and their teachings) there is something wrong, and it should be fixed.
This is an error.
Man is as he is, because Life is as IT is.
You are the way you are, because Life is the way Life is.
There is nothing wrong, and nothing needs to be fixed.
Not in you, and not out there.
If men were "naturally" awake - as conscious as he >>could<< be - as he is, he would probably either kill himself, go completely crazy, or live a much harsher, and much shorter existence. Almost all of technology and science, and all of his culture and civilization is directly the result of his being naturally asleep - that is, NOT as conscious as he >>could<< be. Something is ALWAYS wrong in that state, and technology, science, culture and civilization on the whole, is the full-time effort to FIX what is considered flawed and in error. Good, in general for mankind, "bad" in specific for a person who wants to be awake and stay awake. (Not, "bad" really, just annoying, and then only for a few of the few of the few here and there.)
This is an error.
Man is as he is, because Life is as IT is.
You are the way you are, because Life is the way Life is.
There is nothing wrong, and nothing needs to be fixed.
Not in you, and not out there.
If men were "naturally" awake - as conscious as he >>could<< be - as he is, he would probably either kill himself, go completely crazy, or live a much harsher, and much shorter existence. Almost all of technology and science, and all of his culture and civilization is directly the result of his being naturally asleep - that is, NOT as conscious as he >>could<< be. Something is ALWAYS wrong in that state, and technology, science, culture and civilization on the whole, is the full-time effort to FIX what is considered flawed and in error. Good, in general for mankind, "bad" in specific for a person who wants to be awake and stay awake. (Not, "bad" really, just annoying, and then only for a few of the few of the few here and there.)
Sunday, October 17, 2004
Puppet lore
There are, basically, two kinds of people: 1) those who believe they existed before the birth of the body, and will exist after the death of the body, and attribute this feature or characteristic of their "existence" to something they tentatively call, their "soul" or their "spirit," and; 2) those who believe they don't exist before birth or after death, and the present lifetime is all there is, not believing in some intrinsic "soul," "spirit," or "otherwise."
Who's right?
Can both BE right?
Can both BE utterly wrong?
What think you? Can puppets have thoughts, either way, about any topic, whether it has to do with their "essential being" before "The Great WoodCarver in the Shop" had a twinkle in his imaginative eye, or a twitch in his carving fingers?
Or, are the only thoughts puppets can have, those that issue forth from their mouths, due to the electronic device tuned to a frequency known (by the woodcarver) and unknowable (by the puppet) - a radio in their wooden heads?
What think you? Do YOU exist at all, or are you just the transiently anomalistic responses due to causes outside your control, that you react to - on cue, and quite predictable everytime?
What think you?
Who's right?
Can both BE right?
Can both BE utterly wrong?
What think you? Can puppets have thoughts, either way, about any topic, whether it has to do with their "essential being" before "The Great WoodCarver in the Shop" had a twinkle in his imaginative eye, or a twitch in his carving fingers?
Or, are the only thoughts puppets can have, those that issue forth from their mouths, due to the electronic device tuned to a frequency known (by the woodcarver) and unknowable (by the puppet) - a radio in their wooden heads?
What think you? Do YOU exist at all, or are you just the transiently anomalistic responses due to causes outside your control, that you react to - on cue, and quite predictable everytime?
What think you?
Friday, October 15, 2004
Two, two, two consciousnesses in one.
Or, Wild monkey love with alien chicks - take your pick (swap genders if you must.)
Let's say for argument, there is just one consciousness, and that it permeates all, from insects and below, to humans and above. That which can be experienced by a being, insect or human, is a direct function of the machinery (nervous system) of that being. Insects have no machinery for consciousness, animals much more, but humans have the requisite type to at least experience self-consciousness -he can recognize himself in a mirror, and a few other relatively useful things.
What if, the consciousness that all people who have ever lived, experienced - could experience - was based upon their inborn at birth genetic machinery. That's the first consciousness.
What if, a person wanted a different consciousness - what could he possibly do to achieve it, since no one who's ever lived achieved it? (How can this be known? Because it's never been talked about, written about, or even referred to as even a possibility.)
The only consciousness ever mentioned, is "Consciousness of Self", which they call "Enlightenment". But, that's only one kind of consciousness, because it's predicated on "self". There can not be consciousness somewhere that is not experienced by you. If you're not experiencing something directly, then for you, it doesn't exist. In sleep, there is no consciousness - not for you anyway.
The consciousness possible for humans alive today, is far more advanced than that of humans 500 years ago. We know about, and can even build, nano-sized things and we also know about parsec-sized things - they absolutely did not, so our consciousness can be aware of a much wider spectrum of possibilities. Five hundred years from now, the spectrum widens further - >>much<< further, perhaps exponentially further.
What if you could achieve a new kind of consciousness, possible only for humans living in that age - wherein their circuitry, their nervous systems, had, through natural evolution, advanced in complexity, to transmit/experience the all-consciousness with that more advanced being.
The primary difference in the two consciousnesses, is that the first consciousness, does not change the capacity for conscious thought, thinking. People think the same - different words, perhaps more directed on-point words, but functionally, the same. The second consciousness, however, expands the capacity to Think - to be able to consider what is around one anyway, but to think to the end of it, to "get to the bottom of things".
Try it out for yourself right now if you dare. Put on your best, enlightened dress, stand in front of your prayer beads or mirror or whatever, and pick a subject out of the hat of subjects that you've NEVER considered before - like, for example, "why are there conspiracy theories?" or "how did the idea of God dawn upon mankind?" - and start thinking about it, from the question to the ANSWER - that is, not necessarily the final answer, but at least final enough for you, that you REALIZE you've gotten to the bottom of things, on that subject (again, for the time being).
Are you still standing there, waiting for someone to say, "Start?"
Let's say for argument, there is just one consciousness, and that it permeates all, from insects and below, to humans and above. That which can be experienced by a being, insect or human, is a direct function of the machinery (nervous system) of that being. Insects have no machinery for consciousness, animals much more, but humans have the requisite type to at least experience self-consciousness -he can recognize himself in a mirror, and a few other relatively useful things.
What if, the consciousness that all people who have ever lived, experienced - could experience - was based upon their inborn at birth genetic machinery. That's the first consciousness.
What if, a person wanted a different consciousness - what could he possibly do to achieve it, since no one who's ever lived achieved it? (How can this be known? Because it's never been talked about, written about, or even referred to as even a possibility.)
The only consciousness ever mentioned, is "Consciousness of Self", which they call "Enlightenment". But, that's only one kind of consciousness, because it's predicated on "self". There can not be consciousness somewhere that is not experienced by you. If you're not experiencing something directly, then for you, it doesn't exist. In sleep, there is no consciousness - not for you anyway.
The consciousness possible for humans alive today, is far more advanced than that of humans 500 years ago. We know about, and can even build, nano-sized things and we also know about parsec-sized things - they absolutely did not, so our consciousness can be aware of a much wider spectrum of possibilities. Five hundred years from now, the spectrum widens further - >>much<< further, perhaps exponentially further.
What if you could achieve a new kind of consciousness, possible only for humans living in that age - wherein their circuitry, their nervous systems, had, through natural evolution, advanced in complexity, to transmit/experience the all-consciousness with that more advanced being.
The primary difference in the two consciousnesses, is that the first consciousness, does not change the capacity for conscious thought, thinking. People think the same - different words, perhaps more directed on-point words, but functionally, the same. The second consciousness, however, expands the capacity to Think - to be able to consider what is around one anyway, but to think to the end of it, to "get to the bottom of things".
Try it out for yourself right now if you dare. Put on your best, enlightened dress, stand in front of your prayer beads or mirror or whatever, and pick a subject out of the hat of subjects that you've NEVER considered before - like, for example, "why are there conspiracy theories?" or "how did the idea of God dawn upon mankind?" - and start thinking about it, from the question to the ANSWER - that is, not necessarily the final answer, but at least final enough for you, that you REALIZE you've gotten to the bottom of things, on that subject (again, for the time being).
Are you still standing there, waiting for someone to say, "Start?"
Tuesday, October 12, 2004
Fragment of an unknown teaching
There are, basically, two groups of humans: 1) those who are not particularly interested, nor stimulated by the terms, "waking up", "enlightenment", "nirvana", etc., and 2) those who are most definitely interested and stimulated.
What happens next, for the second group, is the likely accumulation of books, over the course of the next few years or more, about those very topics, and a whole lot of talking about them, mostly to other people.
Now, there are, basically, two groups of humans previously grouped into the second group above: namely, 1) those who study the books they've accumulated, and presumably, the human of which those books are constantly referring (the author and his nearest cohorts - Jesus, Buddha, Gurdjieff, and countless others) and sometimes even, if they are "on the edge" of this distinction being made herein, themselves personally, and 2) those who study the thing which does the studying (the mind), which they somehow innately realize, could not proceed at all, EXCEPT for the thing they want to study - the mind.
Can you see the BLATANT, obvious difference?
One group couldn't care less about waking up, nirvana, self-improvement, and spend all their allotted days in worldly pursuits. Fine.
A second group cares a great deal about waking up, nirvana, self-improvement and spend many of their allotted days absorbed in studying specific books on those topics, hoping often to become experts, professors, teachers, and (hopefully) a few of their allotted days actually studying their "person", studying "themselves," though they do not study their ordinary consciousness, because they don't know how to do that yet. For both groups, studying the ideas is paramount.
But a small minority of the second group, actually a third group, though the numbers are often so small, as to be, statistically near-zero, go straight to the essence of the matter, DIRECTLY to the source of the confusion that initially divided humanity into two nameable groups. (The confusion regarding "who am I?" and "what is going on?", questions which have been "bothering" mankind for 5000 years.)
The direct way to knowledge, is NOT a "way" in the classic sense, as Buddhism is a "way" or Christianity is a "way." The direct way to knowledge is an ACTION - first and foremost - started by the conscious part of the brain, which MUST hear about it, before it can profitably undertake it, and consists of a "sentence fragment" that sounds something like: "...brain here...", which action occurs whenever thoughts are flowing therein, morning till night till death, or until the pooch finally sits down, while realizing he will instantly arise and chase some other attraction, unless you keep your eye (it keeps it's I) on him.
The direct way to knowledge, is the ACTION of branching out in the nervous system, which does not branch out naturally, as it spends all it's allotted days, finding out; (that is, answering questions, which it doesn't even realize are totally meaningless in the first place.)
What happens next, for the second group, is the likely accumulation of books, over the course of the next few years or more, about those very topics, and a whole lot of talking about them, mostly to other people.
Now, there are, basically, two groups of humans previously grouped into the second group above: namely, 1) those who study the books they've accumulated, and presumably, the human of which those books are constantly referring (the author and his nearest cohorts - Jesus, Buddha, Gurdjieff, and countless others) and sometimes even, if they are "on the edge" of this distinction being made herein, themselves personally, and 2) those who study the thing which does the studying (the mind), which they somehow innately realize, could not proceed at all, EXCEPT for the thing they want to study - the mind.
Can you see the BLATANT, obvious difference?
One group couldn't care less about waking up, nirvana, self-improvement, and spend all their allotted days in worldly pursuits. Fine.
A second group cares a great deal about waking up, nirvana, self-improvement and spend many of their allotted days absorbed in studying specific books on those topics, hoping often to become experts, professors, teachers, and (hopefully) a few of their allotted days actually studying their "person", studying "themselves," though they do not study their ordinary consciousness, because they don't know how to do that yet. For both groups, studying the ideas is paramount.
But a small minority of the second group, actually a third group, though the numbers are often so small, as to be, statistically near-zero, go straight to the essence of the matter, DIRECTLY to the source of the confusion that initially divided humanity into two nameable groups. (The confusion regarding "who am I?" and "what is going on?", questions which have been "bothering" mankind for 5000 years.)
The direct way to knowledge, is NOT a "way" in the classic sense, as Buddhism is a "way" or Christianity is a "way." The direct way to knowledge is an ACTION - first and foremost - started by the conscious part of the brain, which MUST hear about it, before it can profitably undertake it, and consists of a "sentence fragment" that sounds something like: "...brain here...", which action occurs whenever thoughts are flowing therein, morning till night till death, or until the pooch finally sits down, while realizing he will instantly arise and chase some other attraction, unless you keep your eye (it keeps it's I) on him.
The direct way to knowledge, is the ACTION of branching out in the nervous system, which does not branch out naturally, as it spends all it's allotted days, finding out; (that is, answering questions, which it doesn't even realize are totally meaningless in the first place.)
Sunday, October 10, 2004
CPB
The conscious part of the brain is your only hope and possibility. Without that, you can't even be called human. Science knows this, and so does, by now, everybody else.
The heart will not help you, the soul will not help, the spirit will not help. The only thing that can help you is the conscious part of the brain.
Except that (there's always an "except") the conscious part of the brain is in collusion with your hormones and blood to keep you fast asleep. That is, the brain, the non-conscious part of the brain primarily, keeps the entire organism alive, pumping blood to all parts of the organism, and keeping it healthy. The conscious part of the brain has nothing to do with it - though, it most definitely has the capacity to invent science, medicine, intricate and totally astounding tools and to teach human bodies to perform post- and pre-mortem surgery upon humans, including themselves (and other creatures) for the purpose of detailed study of the parts of the organism, and while alive, doing what the non-conscious parts can not, or will not do - keep the organism alive and healthy.
This collusion, unseen by everybody though it's effect can certainly be seen - just not comprehended - consists of inventing ("creating") a fictitious character to keep itself company, the neurons being as it were, quite alone in there, and to duck blame whenever anything goes wrong. So, when the body gets sick - even though the immune system is perfectly capable of dealing with most external foreign substances, and has daily practice and exercise to keep it in shape - "I" feel bad, and it's probably even "my" fault for shaking that guy's hand, or petting that dog, or smoking that 14th cigarette, or drinking that 14th beer, or eating that 14th cupcake.
And, there's nothing left to do but wait it out, or pray to some god, because everybody ("me", "I") is impotent.
Get that? The brain (that entire 3 pound organ in your skull) is in total charge of the entire organism, from the tip of the head to the soles of the feet and everything in between, yet when IT screws up, and falls down on the job, IT blames "you", or, put in terms you can better understand, YOU blame yourself.
This is collusion, and you are the one fooled.
Fool!
The heart will not help you, the soul will not help, the spirit will not help. The only thing that can help you is the conscious part of the brain.
Except that (there's always an "except") the conscious part of the brain is in collusion with your hormones and blood to keep you fast asleep. That is, the brain, the non-conscious part of the brain primarily, keeps the entire organism alive, pumping blood to all parts of the organism, and keeping it healthy. The conscious part of the brain has nothing to do with it - though, it most definitely has the capacity to invent science, medicine, intricate and totally astounding tools and to teach human bodies to perform post- and pre-mortem surgery upon humans, including themselves (and other creatures) for the purpose of detailed study of the parts of the organism, and while alive, doing what the non-conscious parts can not, or will not do - keep the organism alive and healthy.
This collusion, unseen by everybody though it's effect can certainly be seen - just not comprehended - consists of inventing ("creating") a fictitious character to keep itself company, the neurons being as it were, quite alone in there, and to duck blame whenever anything goes wrong. So, when the body gets sick - even though the immune system is perfectly capable of dealing with most external foreign substances, and has daily practice and exercise to keep it in shape - "I" feel bad, and it's probably even "my" fault for shaking that guy's hand, or petting that dog, or smoking that 14th cigarette, or drinking that 14th beer, or eating that 14th cupcake.
And, there's nothing left to do but wait it out, or pray to some god, because everybody ("me", "I") is impotent.
Get that? The brain (that entire 3 pound organ in your skull) is in total charge of the entire organism, from the tip of the head to the soles of the feet and everything in between, yet when IT screws up, and falls down on the job, IT blames "you", or, put in terms you can better understand, YOU blame yourself.
This is collusion, and you are the one fooled.
Fool!
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