WINTER SOLSTICE
THE CHRISTMAS STORY
In the darkest nighttime, in the
coldest and most cheerless time
of the year, at the season of the
winter solstice—the Christ child
can be born. It has to be that way
—light in the darkness. The Sun
dies and the Sun is reborn. It is
the same sun that dies and is
reborn, but from time
immemorial this has represented
a mystery. The child that is
reborn, the Christ child, is
something new, something
promised and long awaited, a
messenger from another realm
for whom the highest part of us
waits. And waits in the darkness
for the coming light.
Every part of the Christmas story
has to do with man. Any man:
you, me. It is an account of real
man as he could be—the God-
Man, the Hu-Man—but it is also
the story of man as he is.
Very few, like the Cherubinic
Wanderer of the Middle Ages
recognise that “I must myself
become Mary and give birth to
Christ.” But all of us owe a debt
for the gift of our lives, a “tax”
that will one day have to be paid.
Sometimes we remember that.
In the way we at present live,
each of us is the Inn, where there
is no room for the Christ child to
be born. The Inn his too full, too
busy, there is too much coming
and going, getting and spending.
It has its own life and knows no
other.
And so the Holy Family who
have come to pay their tax can
find no place for the child to be
born except in the manger, the
place where the animals eat.
Bethlehem also means, “the
house of eating.”
Who are the holy family? The as
yet unborn Christ child, and
Mary, his mother. Mary is called
the Virgin and the meaning of
virgin is unused. Mary is also the
name for the sea: the living water
in which higher forms can exist.
Mary represents the unused
energies in us. These are the
higher energies we disregard and
waste during the course of our
lives. Joseph is not actually a part
of the Holy Family. He is that
part of us that is able to recognise
and care for them, value, guard
and keep them. This he does in
the story.
There are only two animals
present at the birth of the Christ
child, the ox and the ass. They
are alike in that they spend their
lives in patient, unremitting toil
for others. They have nothing of
their own.
In that dark night all the world
was oblivious and asleep, save
for some shepherds in a higher
place—“the hillside,” where they
watched their sheep by night.
Because they were awake they
could be present to a mystery
beyond their understanding—
they heard the angels rejoicing at
the birth of Man.
Something of the magic and
mystery of this story has rung
down through the ages and we
can hear it still. Children are not
strangers to this starry night, this
night of lights and music
emerging from the darkness.
Even now there is still that child
in us which is not buried totally
under the grossness, the
sentimentality, and the lies with
which we at Christmas fill our
“Inn.”
The three wise men followed a
star—the inner light reflected
from above—and travelled from
the East, where the sun rises.
They brought gifts for the divine
child. Gold incorruptible for the
King; frankincense, which when
burns ascends in fragrance, for
the God; but for the man, Jesus, a
bitter herb. For any who would
really be like Jesus must taste
that bitterness.
But the wise men could not
remain and they were obliged to
return to their source “by another
way.” They needed to avoid
Herod, the Tetrarch who wished,
and will always wish, to destroy
that which threatens the status
quo. He is also part of us.
The story is told, the year is
ended. Tomorrow the ordinary
light of day will be a fraction
more, the dark a fraction less.
But for a moment the vault of
heaven opened and the wonder
and the glory could be sensed.
Now we are asleep again. Herod
is safe. The cock crows, the dog
barks, the donkey brays. The
noisy, busy life of the Inn begins
all over again.
Friday, 24 December 2010
Monday, 11 October 2010
Saturday, 7 August 2010
DEDICATION
everything here is dedicated to the One Source of all Life, all Love, all Intelligence, and to all my brethren whose lives are dedicated to the possibility of being able to 'sense' this Source, which i sense is the Reality of all realities.
to this One Source, all i can offer is my love my gratitude and my worship.
it is only though Grace that i can sense this reality as a certainty
man has been putting a word on this One Source since he first appeared on this planet,i suppose.
my heart swells with love for it and joy in the sensing of it.
i also sense that sensing it as a reality is the beginning of the only Freedom.
WHO, BY ACTIVITY CAN CLEAR THE MUDDY WATER?
the Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao.
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29
And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
i suppose, on reflection that saint Jesus did not say throw away your common sense either.
i never ever 'believed in God. i'm not sure 'belief' is useful
i would tentatively venture that belief is to faith what happiness is to joy.
belief seems to me to be a species of 'opinion'.
i mind that saint Paul describes faith as 'evidence' of the 'unseen, perhaps 'certainty' of the 'unseen'. if i have evidence, i don't need belief.i have that evidence thanks be to the One. He is 'self' evident.
there is always the wind in the trees, and the next moment.
and the space between.
it is always reconsidered, and the change explained.
there is always this, and this,
and the space between.
'
to this One Source, all i can offer is my love my gratitude and my worship.
it is only though Grace that i can sense this reality as a certainty
man has been putting a word on this One Source since he first appeared on this planet,i suppose.
my heart swells with love for it and joy in the sensing of it.
i also sense that sensing it as a reality is the beginning of the only Freedom.
WHO, BY ACTIVITY CAN CLEAR THE MUDDY WATER?
the Tao that can be named is not the eternal Tao.
Therefore I say unto you, Take no thought for your life, what ye shall eat, or what ye shall drink; nor yet for your body, what ye shall put on. Is not the life more than meat, and the body than raiment?
26
Behold the fowls of the air: for they sow not, neither do they reap, nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feedeth them. Are ye not much better than they?
27
Which of you by taking thought can add one cubit unto his stature?
28
And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin:
29
And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
30
Wherefore, if God so clothe the grass of the field, which to day is, and to morrow is cast into the oven, shall he not much more clothe you, O ye of little faith?
Take therefore no thought for the morrow: for the morrow shall take thought for the things of itself. Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof.
i suppose, on reflection that saint Jesus did not say throw away your common sense either.
i never ever 'believed in God. i'm not sure 'belief' is useful
i would tentatively venture that belief is to faith what happiness is to joy.
belief seems to me to be a species of 'opinion'.
i mind that saint Paul describes faith as 'evidence' of the 'unseen, perhaps 'certainty' of the 'unseen'. if i have evidence, i don't need belief.i have that evidence thanks be to the One. He is 'self' evident.
there is always the wind in the trees, and the next moment.
and the space between.
it is always reconsidered, and the change explained.
there is always this, and this,
and the space between.
'
what to call this?
here is a little tale that i pass on to you, we could call it " cosmic catch ":
on an island that any fool can find, there is a tree that any fool can find.
if anyone goes to the tree and walks exactly 10yards exactly to the west and digs down, he will find a fortune in gold and jewels.
this fortune is there for the taking, on one important condition:
while digging he must not think about, or picture or in any way have an association about, a white monkey
if, while digging, he does so think about a white monkey, the entire fortune will disappear and be lost forever at that instant
on an island that any fool can find, there is a tree that any fool can find.
if anyone goes to the tree and walks exactly 10yards exactly to the west and digs down, he will find a fortune in gold and jewels.
this fortune is there for the taking, on one important condition:
while digging he must not think about, or picture or in any way have an association about, a white monkey
if, while digging, he does so think about a white monkey, the entire fortune will disappear and be lost forever at that instant
On Attention and Understanding of "Beelzebub's Tales"
On Attention and Understanding of "Beelzebub's Tales": "- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Monday, 28 June 2010
Saturday, 26 June 2010
Thursday, 10 June 2010
Tuesday, 25 May 2010
JOY AND WOE
Man was made for Joy & Woe;
And when this we rightly know
Thro' the World we safely go.
Joy & Woe are woven fine,
A Clothing for the Soul divine;
Under every grief & pine
Runs a joy with silken twine
And when this we rightly know
Thro' the World we safely go.
Joy & Woe are woven fine,
A Clothing for the Soul divine;
Under every grief & pine
Runs a joy with silken twine
levels of consciousness
evels of consciousness
[info]vhawk1951
March 6th, 16:33
he two usual, that is, the lowest, states of consciousness are first, sleep, in other words a passive state in which man spends a third and very often a half of his life. And second, the state in which men spend the other part of their lives, in which they walk the streets, write books, talk on lofty subjects, take part in politics, kill one another, which they regard as active and call 'clear consciousness' or the 'waking state of consciousness.' The term 'clear consciousness' or 'waking state of consciousness' seems to have been given in jest, especially when you realize what clear consciousness ought in reality to be and what the state in which man lives and acts really is.
"The third state of consciousness is self-remembering or self-consciousness or consciousness of one's being. It is usual to consider that we have this state of consciousness or that we can have it if we want it. Our science and philosophy have overlooked the fact that we do not possess this state of consciousness and that we cannot create it in ourselves by desire or decision alone.
"The fourth state of consciousness is called the objective state of consciousness In this state a man can see things as they are. Flashes of this state of consciousness also occur in man. In the religions of all nations there are indications of the possibility of a state of consciousness of this kind which is called 'enlightenment' and various other names but which cannot be described in words. But the only right way to objective consciousnessis through the development of self-consciousness. If an ordinary man is artificially brought into a state of objective consciousness and afterwards brought back to his usual state he will remember nothing and he will think that for a time he had lost consciousness. But in the state of self-consciousness a man can have Hashes of objective consciousness and remember them.
"The fourth state of consciousness in man means an altogether different state of being; it is the result of inner growth and of long and difficult work on oneself.
"But the third state of consciousness constitutes the natural right of man as he is, and if man does not possess it, it is only because of the wrong conditions of his life. It can be said without any exaggeration that at the present time the third state of consciousness occurs in man only in the form of very rare flashes and that it can be made more or less permanent in him only by means of special training.
"For most people, even for educated and thinking people, the chief obstacle in the way of acquiring self-consciousness consists in the fact that they think they possess it, that is, that they possess self-consciousness and everything connected with it; individuality in the sense of a permanent and unchangeable I, will, ability to do, and so on. It is evident that a man will not be interested if you tell him that he can acquire by long and difficult work something which, in his opinion, he already has. On the contrary he will think either that you are mad or that you want to deceive him with a view to personal gain.
"The two higher states of consciousness—'self-consciousness' and 'objective consciousness'—are connected with the functioning of the higher centers in man.
"In addition to those centers of which we have so far spoken there are two other centers in man, the 'higher emotional' and the 'higher thinking.' These centers are in us; they are fully developed and are working all the time, but their work fails to reach our ordinary consciousness. The cause of this lies in the special properties of our socalled 'clear consciousness.'
"In order to understand what the difference between states of consciousness is, let us return to the first state of consciousness which is sleep. This is an entirely subjective state of consciousness. A man is immersed in dreams, whether he remembers them or not does not matter. Even if some real impressions reach him, such as sounds, voices, warmth, cold, the sensation of his own body, they arouse in him only fantastic subjective images. Then a man wakes up. At first glance this is a quite different state of consciousness. He can move, he can talk with other people, he can make calculations ahead, he can see danger and avoid it, and so on. It stands to reason that he is in a better position than when he was asleep.
But if we go a little more deeply into things,take a look into his inner world, into his thoughts, into the causes of his actions, we shall see that he is in almost the same state as when he is asleep. And it is even worse, because in sleep he is passive, that is, he cannot do anything. In the waking state, however, he can do something all the time and the results of all his actions will be reflected upon him or upon those around him. And yet he does not remember himself. He is a machine, everything with him happens. He cannot stop the flow of his thoughts, he cannot control his imagination, his emotions, his attention. He lives in a subjective world of 'I love,' 'I do not love,' 'I like,' 'I do not like,' 'I want,' 'I do not want,' that is, of what he thinks he likes, of what he thinks he does not like, of what he thinks he wants, of what he thinks he does not want. He does not see the real world. The real world is hidden from him by the wall of imagination. He lives in sleep. He is asleep. What is called 'clear consciousness' is sleep and a far more dangerous sleep than sleep at night in bed.
"Let us take some event in the life of humanity. For instance, war. There is a war going on at the present moment. What does it signify? It signifies that several millions of sleeping people are trying to destroy several millions of other sleeping people. They would not do this, of course, if they were to wake up. Everything that takes place is owing to this sleep.
"Both states of consciousness, sleep and the waking state, are equally subjective. Only by beginning to remember himself does a man really awaken. And then all surrounding life acquires for him a different aspect and a different meaning. He sees that it is the life of sleeping people, a life in sleep. All that men say, all that they do, they say and do in sleep. All this can have no value whatever. Only awakening and what leads to awakening has a value in reality.
"How many times have I been asked here whether wars can be stopped? Certainly they can. For this it is only necessary that people should awaken. It seems a small thing. It is, however, the most difficult thing there can be because this sleep is induced and maintained by the whole of surrounding life, by all surrounding conditions.
"How can one awaken?
this is an extract from "Fragments of an unknown teaching"
this is a link to my very slightly, more spiritual blog
http://grumpycripple-vhawk.blogspot.com/2010/03/gurdjieff-international-review.html
[info]vhawk1951
March 6th, 16:33
he two usual, that is, the lowest, states of consciousness are first, sleep, in other words a passive state in which man spends a third and very often a half of his life. And second, the state in which men spend the other part of their lives, in which they walk the streets, write books, talk on lofty subjects, take part in politics, kill one another, which they regard as active and call 'clear consciousness' or the 'waking state of consciousness.' The term 'clear consciousness' or 'waking state of consciousness' seems to have been given in jest, especially when you realize what clear consciousness ought in reality to be and what the state in which man lives and acts really is.
"The third state of consciousness is self-remembering or self-consciousness or consciousness of one's being. It is usual to consider that we have this state of consciousness or that we can have it if we want it. Our science and philosophy have overlooked the fact that we do not possess this state of consciousness and that we cannot create it in ourselves by desire or decision alone.
"The fourth state of consciousness is called the objective state of consciousness In this state a man can see things as they are. Flashes of this state of consciousness also occur in man. In the religions of all nations there are indications of the possibility of a state of consciousness of this kind which is called 'enlightenment' and various other names but which cannot be described in words. But the only right way to objective consciousnessis through the development of self-consciousness. If an ordinary man is artificially brought into a state of objective consciousness and afterwards brought back to his usual state he will remember nothing and he will think that for a time he had lost consciousness. But in the state of self-consciousness a man can have Hashes of objective consciousness and remember them.
"The fourth state of consciousness in man means an altogether different state of being; it is the result of inner growth and of long and difficult work on oneself.
"But the third state of consciousness constitutes the natural right of man as he is, and if man does not possess it, it is only because of the wrong conditions of his life. It can be said without any exaggeration that at the present time the third state of consciousness occurs in man only in the form of very rare flashes and that it can be made more or less permanent in him only by means of special training.
"For most people, even for educated and thinking people, the chief obstacle in the way of acquiring self-consciousness consists in the fact that they think they possess it, that is, that they possess self-consciousness and everything connected with it; individuality in the sense of a permanent and unchangeable I, will, ability to do, and so on. It is evident that a man will not be interested if you tell him that he can acquire by long and difficult work something which, in his opinion, he already has. On the contrary he will think either that you are mad or that you want to deceive him with a view to personal gain.
"The two higher states of consciousness—'self-consciousness' and 'objective consciousness'—are connected with the functioning of the higher centers in man.
"In addition to those centers of which we have so far spoken there are two other centers in man, the 'higher emotional' and the 'higher thinking.' These centers are in us; they are fully developed and are working all the time, but their work fails to reach our ordinary consciousness. The cause of this lies in the special properties of our socalled 'clear consciousness.'
"In order to understand what the difference between states of consciousness is, let us return to the first state of consciousness which is sleep. This is an entirely subjective state of consciousness. A man is immersed in dreams, whether he remembers them or not does not matter. Even if some real impressions reach him, such as sounds, voices, warmth, cold, the sensation of his own body, they arouse in him only fantastic subjective images. Then a man wakes up. At first glance this is a quite different state of consciousness. He can move, he can talk with other people, he can make calculations ahead, he can see danger and avoid it, and so on. It stands to reason that he is in a better position than when he was asleep.
But if we go a little more deeply into things,take a look into his inner world, into his thoughts, into the causes of his actions, we shall see that he is in almost the same state as when he is asleep. And it is even worse, because in sleep he is passive, that is, he cannot do anything. In the waking state, however, he can do something all the time and the results of all his actions will be reflected upon him or upon those around him. And yet he does not remember himself. He is a machine, everything with him happens. He cannot stop the flow of his thoughts, he cannot control his imagination, his emotions, his attention. He lives in a subjective world of 'I love,' 'I do not love,' 'I like,' 'I do not like,' 'I want,' 'I do not want,' that is, of what he thinks he likes, of what he thinks he does not like, of what he thinks he wants, of what he thinks he does not want. He does not see the real world. The real world is hidden from him by the wall of imagination. He lives in sleep. He is asleep. What is called 'clear consciousness' is sleep and a far more dangerous sleep than sleep at night in bed.
"Let us take some event in the life of humanity. For instance, war. There is a war going on at the present moment. What does it signify? It signifies that several millions of sleeping people are trying to destroy several millions of other sleeping people. They would not do this, of course, if they were to wake up. Everything that takes place is owing to this sleep.
"Both states of consciousness, sleep and the waking state, are equally subjective. Only by beginning to remember himself does a man really awaken. And then all surrounding life acquires for him a different aspect and a different meaning. He sees that it is the life of sleeping people, a life in sleep. All that men say, all that they do, they say and do in sleep. All this can have no value whatever. Only awakening and what leads to awakening has a value in reality.
"How many times have I been asked here whether wars can be stopped? Certainly they can. For this it is only necessary that people should awaken. It seems a small thing. It is, however, the most difficult thing there can be because this sleep is induced and maintained by the whole of surrounding life, by all surrounding conditions.
"How can one awaken?
this is an extract from "Fragments of an unknown teaching"
this is a link to my very slightly, more spiritual blog
http://grumpycripple-vhawk.blogspot.com/2010/03/gurdjieff-international-review.html
pETER CODNER'S BLOG: The Work in Life
pETER CODNER'S BLOG: The Work in Life: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"
Sunday, 16 May 2010
Zen Buddhist Stories - Buddha's world- A PICTURE OF REALITY?
Zen Buddhist Stories - Buddha's world: "- Sent using Google Toolbar"
having been very worried by my predicament after Life sent me a necessary shock, i(?) cam to the conclusion that this being was now in a position similar to a tree growing on the slopes of an erupting volcano.
this was only a formulation of the formatory apparatus.
however to my joy and laughter, something told me that like the man caught etweeen the 2 tigers, that was no more nor less than how my life had ALWAYS been.
now i am simply grateful to the Source for this precious life that He has given to me and I.
i have slept through my life without ever realising "I_AM_ALIVE!"
now what is my debt?
surely i took my birthright and spent it on riotous living and sleep.
having been very worried by my predicament after Life sent me a necessary shock, i(?) cam to the conclusion that this being was now in a position similar to a tree growing on the slopes of an erupting volcano.
this was only a formulation of the formatory apparatus.
however to my joy and laughter, something told me that like the man caught etweeen the 2 tigers, that was no more nor less than how my life had ALWAYS been.
now i am simply grateful to the Source for this precious life that He has given to me and I.
i have slept through my life without ever realising "I_AM_ALIVE!"
now what is my debt?
surely i took my birthright and spent it on riotous living and sleep.
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