Abu Yazid Al-Bistami

I really like this quote: “Anyone whose reward from God is deferred until tomorrow has not truly worshiped Him today.” This is probably because I’m a terrible procrastinator and I often put things off until the next day. This quote to me seemed like a religious version of the live life by the moment, be proactive, seize the day, type of quotes one so often sees. It seems to say that by missing out on opportunities given one has given up chances to enjoy God. Or at least that’s how I’m reading right now…

“Be in a realm where neither good nor evil exits. Both of them belong to a world of created beings; in the presence of Unity there is neither command nor prohibition.”

I also thought that this was interesting because growing up Catholic I remember Church seemed to spend a lot of time talking about good and bad. You had to be careful not to sin, and make an effort to be a good person. But if one truly did find this unity, they probably would not need to think about good and bad, heaven and hell. Things would just be. It would be nice to escape that constant struggle between the two poles of good and evil.


“For thirty years I used to say, ‘Do this’ and ‘Give that;’ but when I reached the first stage of wisdom, I said, ‘O God, be mine and do whatever You want.’”

It’s weird but from a lot of these quotes I got the sense that you almost have to lose yourself to find God. On the one hand it makes sense because you can’t have your ego and pride in the way if you are to find God, but at the same time it sometimes seems like you cease to be you once you find God. I guess I feel like you no longer are in control of your life once you find God, it's God who is directing you. I don't know how I feel about that loss of self-control. Somehow it seems like cheating if once you find God you no longer have to consciously make decisions. I guess I that once one becomes accustomed to living a certain way it becomes natural.

Muhammad

I really like how Muhammad connected God to the earth and his people. Right off the bat Muhammad writes: “We made every kind of joyous thing to grow for insight and for token to every penitent servant” I really got the sense that the earth is a sacred place that was created for the good of the people. The earth is a reflection of God and it is always with you. I guess this reading just made me feel very thankful and appreciative for my life and the world that I live in. I especially like the section that talked about the blessed rain from heavens bringing life to earth. It just was a nice sentence.

It does not really talk about suffering or pain, though. We know that rain can turn into a flood. And while it is all well and good to love the earth, there are times when the world is a harsh place. How can something that is a reflection of God contain suffering? But maybe if you truly see God in the earth you might be able to escape the suffering.

I also noticed in the first paragraph of this writing, the word we is used a lot. “We created man: We know the very whisperings within him and We are closer to him than his jugular vein.” I was getting confused who the we was referring to. It seems like it must be god because it talks about the we creating earth, but why would god be plural…I thought this was a monotheistic religion.

The Gospel of Thomas

This is very interesting to me because this really seemed to emphasis the power of perspective. The summary of the Jesus quotes really sums things up when it said “when we change the way we see the world, we change the world.” On the surface it seems like such a simple thing to do. Jesus seems to be saying that the kingdom of heaven is right here in front and inside of us, if we can only open our eyes. There are so many things to see in the world birth, nature, murder, crime…it makes it hard for me to grasp how one could view all of these things and feel surrounded by the kingdom of heaven. It probably just takes more faith and trust then I have. Makes me nervous to think that I could be talking to Jesus or that the new world has come and I might not have any idea. Sometimes I wish that religion didn't require so much self reflection and insight. Those are of course some of the qualities that make religion so important and good, but it's frustrating to try to find this Kingdom of Heaven, not be able to find it and then have only yourself to blame.

Some of this reading is very interesting in that it seems like it focuses on the melding of opposites: birth and death, male and female. I was wondering if in some ways this might be a bit like the idea of yin and yang in eastern religion?

Padmasambhava

I liked this reading. Overall I got a positive feeling about passing into death and how you could enter a way of existence where you were in an enlightened state. They talk about the “luminosity of death” and somehow that makes death seem like just another journey – nothing to be afraid of. I also like the emphasis of how all you need is your mind and you are ready for this journey: “The uncreated, self-radiant wisdom of your original mind, actionless, immaculate, transcendent over acceptance and rejection, is itself the perfect practice.”

The whole time I was reading this I was thinking about a friend that I had that was originally a delivery room nurse and then transferred to a hospice. I remember that a lot of people would ask about how she could go from birth to death. She always said that the two were seemed very much the same to her…just different transitions in life. This reading sorta gave me a sense of what I think she may have been talking about.

So this is a very random post. I’m just going to comment on a couple of quotes that I found interesting:

“Your own mind is not separate from other minds; it shines forth, unobscured, for all living beings.”

I really like this quote because I like the idea that everybody is connected in some way. I like to think that we all can have a positive affect on one another. I think that it is very true; I know that when I am around people with a positive energy, I find myself unconsciously acting more happy and energetic. Likewise if I’m hanging around someone in a bad mood I find that my happiness tends to decrease a bit.

“When you realize that all phenomena are as unstable as the air, they lose their power to fascinate and bind you….All phenomena are your own ideas, self conceived in the mind, like reflections in a mirror.”

I like the emphasis on looking to your own mind for the truth. The quote above really made me think of my old high school physics teacher who was always talking about how are minds recreated the universe and how what we were looking at was just a figment of our imagination. He had a more technically math way of describing this, but it is interesting to me that both physics and religion see a matrix like universe.

Chuang-Tze

I really loved Chuang-Tzu’s story of the monkeys. I think that there are a lot of instances in my life where I act like the monkeys. Things that seem so important and I’m fighting to control often don’t really matter that much. I know that there have been time where like the monkeys I really fought and experienced all of these emotions trying to get my way. But later after some reflection I realized that the very thing that I thought matter so much, was not that important and I used effort stressing over it that could have been used some other way.

I think that it ties in well with the story of the man of ancient times who seemed to just live life and stress over the amount of nuts he received. I need to try to live where I don't stress so much about the future and just focus on the gifts that I have.

I also enjoyed the part where Chuang-Tze askes "How do I know that the dead do not wonder why they ever longed for life?" I think that there are a lot of people that are fearful of death, but there may not be any reason to be afraid. Sometimes the thing that we are most afraid of turns out to be a pretty good thing afterall. Why fear something you can't really control?

Tzu-ssu

“What is bestowed by heaven is called human nature. The fulfillment of human nature is called the Tao. The cultivation of the Tao is called true learning.”

If we are all heaven gives us human nature and human nature is supposed to be so great, then why is there so much bad in the world? It seems so contradictory to tell people to just act with their true nature and they will find the way to God. I think that for a lot of people it can be hard to do the right thing at times. I guess it just seems like if something is natural to you and good then it shouldn’t be so hard for society to be in harmony. Yet as much as people tell us that we are inherently good, etc. we still have wars and say mean things at times. I think that people are inherently good, but at the same time why is it so hard to act good?

Nothing is more manifest than the hidden; nothing is more obvious than the unseen.”

It can be so difficult for me to read this kind of stuff. What on earth are they trying to say? That things are infinite and interconnected? I don’t know but whatever is being said is over my head. It can be such a headache to read this type of contradictory stuff.

“The mature person accepts his situation and doesn’t desire anything outside it…”

I can see from this quote where people get the attitude of religion brainwashing people. Here the author is telling people to be happy with their lot in life regardless of whether they are rich, poor, or a barbarian. It doesn’t even seem to encourage that they should try to better themselves. By saying that “if he is among barbarians, he acts as a barbarian should ” it suggests one should just sort of go with the flow and accept whatever life gives you. I think that one needs to appreciate life and all that one has been given, but I don’t know if the whole go with the flow attitude here is the best attitude to have.

The Hebrew Bible

I liked this highlights of the Hebrew Bible reading, although it is a bit difficult to get if you are like me and are not familiar with the Bible and so do not know what contexts the quotes were taken from. Just like the previous reading I was really struck by the faith in God. I just got the overall impression that God is always there for his people. There is no need to question his presence because he will provide for you. Not only that but God is in everybody’s heart so one can always find him. Even in darkness God is present. Anyone can find and love God. There was an overwhelming sense that God is there for his people.

I found this quote rather interesting: “I form light and create darkness; I make peace and create evil.” I’m not really religious so I don’t really have a very good sense of God, but I had always pictured God as the embodiment of goodness. I had always assumed that any action that God performs is one of goodness. However in this quote it characterizes God as creating evil. Maybe it’s possible to create evil for good or maybe you get into some sort of philosophical thing where you need evil for peace and goodness – I don’t really get it, but I thought that it was interesting that in this definition of God he is both the light and the dark. Maybe it ties in a bit to the Bakhya Ibn Pakuda reading where you have to trust God in both suffering and good times.

Bakhya Ibn Pakuda

Bakhya Ibn Pakuda
I really liked the relationship the author talks about people having with God in this reading. That imagery of the woman realizing God’s infinite goodness and bowing down before him with God coming to lift her up was pretty powerful. I liked the idea of her complete trust in God, but I also really like that God was there to help and guide her. It just sounds like a very fulfilling relationship. I have a hard time trusting in one thing as much as the author encourages us to trust in God. However, it seems that by living your life for God and trusting completely in him you will find a peace of soul and all one’s worldly anxieties will disappear. Even all the sufferings that befall one are fine because you can trust in God. It quotes Job who says, “Thought he kill me, yet will I trust in him.” It’s a bit of a weird concept to grasp; suffering isn’t really suffering if you have God. In a way it’s almost a good thing to suffer because it’s almost like a badge of honor to show that even in bad times you stand by your God. I guess that overall I was really struck by the grace that one lives by if they can devote themselves to God. The introduction by Mitchell really sums up the article for me in that if you can master devoting your life to God suddenly it becomes a natural easy thing to do. Suddenly you live life with the natural grace of a concert pianist or a great tennis player. Somehow by living in this way you no longer will have to worry about suffering, money, wealth, and all of the other underpinnings of life. I wonder if many people actually embody this way of life?

SA-GO-YE-WAT-HA

I really admired the faith and compassion of Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha. He talked about how the Great Spirit had always provided for his people by creating food and clothing. He felt that the Great Spirit taught and loved his people. This is a very positive outlook considering that they had lost so much. His faith is still very important to him and he still has very strong beliefs. I think that if I was in this guys shoes I would really be questioning the existence of a Great Spirit. I was really impressed by the strength of his faith - the man feels very blessed.

I also found the passage where Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha talked about how the Great Spirit had made us all very interesting. The idea that the Great Spirit had created everybody but given different gifts to his children was cool. I liked how tolerant this man seemed to be towards other people’s religions and beliefs. The idea of honoring your God with a “sincere heart” was very moving. He seems to be saying that as long as you are a good person God doesn’t care what religion you choose. I think the world would be a much less complicated place if more people could adopt this way of thinking.

I also found it interesting that he questioned the Bible. I don’t really know anything about religion but it seems like many people use the Bible as proof of God’s existence. You hear people quoting passages as fact. Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha’s outlook on the Bible was an interesting contrast to this. The written words did not have any meaning for him. The Bible was not important for his relationship with the Great Spirit.
The other part of Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha’s speech that was interesting was his call for results. Towards the end of the speech Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha says that he wants to see the effect that this religion has on his neighbors. Sa-Go-Ye-Wat-Ha says that if the religion causes people to be more honest and good then perhaps he would consider it.

SHANKARA

In this reading the author asks the question “When the moon shines in its exceeding beauty, who would care to look at a painted moon?” I think here Shankara was trying to make the point that real satisfaction comes from a world with the true experience of God. Shankara talks about how Atman is everywhere. This statement seems contradictory to me because the author goes on to say, “The Vedas, the Puranas, all scriptures and all living creatures only exist because the Atman exists. How can any of them reveal the Atman, which is the revealer of everything?” If Atman is indeed everywhere why wouldn’t you see it in scriptures. I can understand that nobody can tell one how to find God - you need to find it on your own - but if Atman is everywhere wouldn’t you be able to see it in both scriptures and painted moons?

The other thing that I found interesting about this piece was the need to be selfless. The lack of attachment, and emotion is supposed to bring one satisfaction. By not having expectations or desires I guess that leaves little room for disappointment. In some ways this seems like a very apathetic way to live life. But it is also very admirable to follow the advice to forget all thought of “I” and “mine.” To be able to live your life where you find satisfaction in following the Atman, regardless of hunger or pain, is pretty amazing. I really enjoyed the comparison to that child like state of being absorbed by a toy. To be able to find such peace would truly be a cool thing to find.