I have struggled a long time over the seeming paradox of accepting everything as it is and yet taking action in this world. The way I have come to look at it is this:
When I accept this moment, the now, the moment is not static. Within every moment is a kind of momentum that moves us forward. Evolution is a simple example of some irresistible force that has continued to produce creatures more and more aware of themselves and their universe. The now I am embracing is not only the static moment of how things are, it is that life force, the chi, that runs through everything, that causes continual renewal and growth.
Accepting the now means being aware of and yielding to that force within me in this moment - the "still small voice", the path I am on, the person I have learned I am becoming. All of these things imply movement for the future, as well as integration of the past. So, do I accept my grumpy attitude today? Yes - but I also accept the energy within me today that is slowly moving me towards a life of more peace. This means I don't have to fix myself, or fix the world - I just have to dance with it - to "play the chess game", instead of thinking I have a thousand serious moves left.
And cherishing the now means to fully see the miracle of that energy flow within me, to fully appreciate it, to get to know it, to feel gratitude for it, to even become fond of it - to have a deep love for it, for the divine within me, within all of us.
That's the theory, anyway :-) That is the direction I want to move.
Friday, January 7, 2005
Thursday, January 6, 2005
Is it logical to accept things as they are?
From a friend:
"I call it 'logical' (rather than mystical or spiritual) because what could be more reasonable than accepting things as they are *because they ALREADY ARE that way*, whether I like it or not?"
I call it spiritual as opposed to logical because it is based on experience, and how our spirit/feelings respond to it. I actually find no "reason" to accept things as they are - actually I find a lot of good reasons to dislike the world the way it is, and the only "reason" to accept it may be utilitarian - to not make myself miserable. But it is not a logical conclusion to me that just because the world is a certain way, that I should accept it, or say it is "okay" in any sense. For me, there is a step beyond reason that comes from my experience. I know, when I stop trying to change people, and start to accept them as they are, that things start to flow much better. I only know it from experience, not from logic. Spirituality, the way I use the word, is all about experience - gaining truth from sensing and feeling rather than from deduction or logic. That's why it can't be proven - it has to be picked up by each person in their interactions with life.
"I call it 'logical' (rather than mystical or spiritual) because what could be more reasonable than accepting things as they are *because they ALREADY ARE that way*, whether I like it or not?"
I call it spiritual as opposed to logical because it is based on experience, and how our spirit/feelings respond to it. I actually find no "reason" to accept things as they are - actually I find a lot of good reasons to dislike the world the way it is, and the only "reason" to accept it may be utilitarian - to not make myself miserable. But it is not a logical conclusion to me that just because the world is a certain way, that I should accept it, or say it is "okay" in any sense. For me, there is a step beyond reason that comes from my experience. I know, when I stop trying to change people, and start to accept them as they are, that things start to flow much better. I only know it from experience, not from logic. Spirituality, the way I use the word, is all about experience - gaining truth from sensing and feeling rather than from deduction or logic. That's why it can't be proven - it has to be picked up by each person in their interactions with life.