LITERAL AND LIBERAL INTERPRETATIONS

By changing the “t” in “literal” to a “b”, you go from literal to liberal. What would be the difference between interpreting something literally as opposed to liberally?

I read the following "Daily Buddha Wisdom and like many things we read including the Bible, it would seem the interpretation is strictly up to the reader or listener. How literally or how liberally do we interpret what we read or hear?

DAILY BUDDHA WISDOM

Whoever, abandoning sensual passions here,
would go forth from home--
his sensual passions, becomings,
totally gone:
he's what I call
a brahmin.

Whoever, abandoning craving here,
would go forth from home--
his cravings, becomings,
totally gone:
he's what I call
a brahmin.

-Dhammapada, 26, translated by Thanissaro Bhikkhu

Taken literally, it would seem we are being asked to not have feelings or desires. Taken liberally we might see beyond the surface to find something entirely different.

Just try to not feel any passions whatsoever. Just try not to desire anything and see what happens. The more you try to get rid of something the more it increases. Stuffing is no better. Stuffing feelings - both the ones we consider to be good and the ones we consider to be bad - can cause chemical changes in the body that might lead to disease. Stuffing feelings can make a person an emotional wreck requiring therapy or medications. Stuffing feelings can also encourage the sufferer to use food, alcohol, or drugs in order to not feel or to try to feel differently. None of these responses or attempts of remedy yield the more productive outcome for anyone.

As for desires we could go through the whole paragraph of responses just listed and find the same outcome. On the positive side, desires are a set of energies that cause us to move forward, to find solutions, to evolve, to change, to invent, and to overcome.

So if not taken literally what could this excerpt tell us about our desires and feelings – our passions?

First of all we are going to have feelings and these are predicated upon our interpretation of all the events that we experience and this is predicated upon our thoughts and belief systems. So how we feel and respond to anything and how we interpret it is based upon what is stored in and embraced as "gospel" floating between our ears. If we truly know this, then we can see that we can a)perhaps change how we think about something or what we believe about something and therefore change our response or feelings or tone the feeling down; b)we can know that other people are also coming from their own personal mind set and therefore stop reacting so intensely to what is going on as though they must see it our way; c)or we can recognize by observing what we are passionate about or what we are feeling or desiring we can respond more clearly and objectively rather than subjectively creating a more productive and positive reaction or behavior response. By becoming the “Observer” we can defuse and redistribute passions to react more responsibly which in turn would cause more peace than war, more togetherness rather than separateness on a personal level, a community level, a national level and a planet level.

Denying what you are thinking or feeling or desiring is not the way to go in the long run.
Through becoming aware of your feelings or desires and becoming aware of what you are thinking that causes your response to these, you can better choose how and what you want to think, what you want to feel, what you want to desire, and how you want to react.
A more loving response comes easier when you detach and become aware of yourself and what you thinking and doing and why. A loving response does not mean you have to change what you think, how you think, how you feel, or what you desire but instead will allow more possibilities to flower and it will give you and others the freedom to be who they are at any given moment. It doesn’t mean yielding to others or their passions but rather to respond from a more objective rather than subjective platform that allows you in turn to choose love rather than hate or fear.

Keep and be aware of your passions, your desires, your thoughts, and your feelings but bring them to God (or a place of neutrality, a place void of hatred or fear) to be made subject to Love, to be brought into a place of diverse harmony and you will find that your passions, your desires, your thoughts, your deeds, your feelings will be made whole (holy). Your responses will be more divinely inspired. You will be more integrated within. What you see and what you experience in your world is based upon what you have inside. The world – your world - is a reflection of you.

You can interpret things literally or liberally. The choice is always yours but I tend to think that liberals have more fun and are healthier. They have more freedom. They live and let live. Easy does it for them. The let go and let God. In my opinion it doesn’t get better than that.

SHOWING UP FOR LIFE'S SIMPLE PLEASURES

The best way to enjoy anything or any moment is to show up. Just show up. Be there.

If your body is doing one thing and your mind is somewhere else, you are not showing up for the moment.

When you bite into a grape really taste it. Be there in the experience. See the color as you pick it up to bring it to your mouth. Notice how it pops as you bite into it. Notice the taste. Feel the texture. BE THERE.

At that moment there is no past or future - only now.

When you brush your teeth are you aware of the taste of the toothpaste? Do you feel the brush in your mouth? What else do you notice? Or do you brush you teeth thinking about the next thing on your grooming list or something else?

When you fold your clothes when they come out of the wash do you notice the smells, the textures, the colors, the shapes of your laundry or are you somewhere else in you mind thinking about something else?

When you hug someone are you there or is your mind on what you are going to do next or what time it is or some other concern or are you totally aware of his/her presence to you and yours to him/her?

When you are talking with someone are you really listening or thinking about something else or what you are going to say next?

When you are with the one you love can you share an embrace without words and just be there with each other feeling the love, feeling your souls merge into one?

Be there. Show up.

Life is too short not to show up.

THE GEORGIA HOME FRONT TODAY

Through the cold the sun shines
Laughter echoes in the heart
Smiles play across the lips
Love dances her dance

Joy abounds and peace reigns
The Now appears and obliterates fears
There's no past and no tomorrow
When the mind homes in on the present

Crows caw and heater cycle blending with computer hums
Drafty fingers of air circle the body
Sending cool signals of outside air
A page of chores nudge gentle to remind

And thanksgiving for breath and all that is
Fill the moment with glorious praise
Enrapturing the soul in Divine Bliss
The promise of the day unfolds, beckons

Delight stirs among things yet to come
Yet planted in the womb of contentment
With breath in and breath out life rolls forward
Bringing purpose and meaning to the Georgia Home Front Today

WHERE IS YOUR FOCUS?

What we focus on increases. The more attention and fear we give to a thing, the more it grows.

From the media works to the typed word, to the backyard gossip, to the official word coming out of Washington, to the casual discussions held everyday everywhere, to silent thoughts in an individual, comes the fear and the intense focus upon every conceivable horror contained in the worse nightmare. This is the very fuel for bringing forth that which all hope to avoid, eradicate, or control.

Those claiming that God will prevail and will take care of the mess, break out in a sweat fearing that His will will be that the horrors will continue. We speak with a forked tongue. We push and pull at the same time wondering why we don't get anywhere.

You can't serve "God" and not God at the same time.

You can't want solutions by focusing on the "problem".

You can't be part of the solution if you are part of the problem.

You can't expect to get better results with the same remedy that hasn't ever worked.

Nations are not going to change until people do and people won't change because they don't see the point.

Everything is a call TO Love/God/Truth. Everything!

LOVE AS THE WAY, THE TRUTH, AND THE LIFE

Love is the way. The only medium through which we connect in awareness with God and each other is love. An appliance may be connected to the source of electricity by a cord but unless the connection is opened by a throwing of the switch, no current flows and the purpose for which the appliance was created is not fulfilled. Love is the current and all we have to do is open up to it to fulfill our purpose.

Love is the truth. We can choose to live as though it is not. We can believe the lies we hear and have heard since our human birth that the truth is that no one cares, no one can truly love, and that some people are not worthy of love. Love is the only thing that is real but anytime a person chooses to believe otherwise, then his or her experience will be that it is not. If we choose to believe that love is the truth and live this truth, everything else, everything else falls into place, falls into order, and makes sense. Otherwise we go around without hope scratching our heads and lamenting about the chaos and disorder that is rampant in the world. I believe that love is the only thing keeping this world from totally blowing up in our face. It is the antidote to the warring, the hatred, the abuses, and the horror that is displayed every day in the media.

Love is the life. Love is what brought us here. Love is what sustains us. Love is what powers us and empowers us. Love is each breath we take. Love is all there is. Love is what we are living or not living according to our faith or belief. Love is our purpose and to the degree to which we allow that purpose to flow into and through our lives, have we lived, truly lived.

Foreigner recorded a song in 1984 called I Wanna Know Where Love Is. If love is the way, the truth, and the life, then the only question we might want to ask is “Where is love?” We can start with that.

The way. The truth. The life. Find it. Live it.

LOVE AS THE DRUG OF CHOICE

The more we give (unconditional) love, the more there is to give. It replenishes itself. An addiction to a drug carries with it the fear of it running out or needing more and more in order to feel or obtain the sought-after results. Conditioned love carries the same futil and limited pay off.

Uncondtional love, not only replenishes itself and has no bottom to it, it is the only thing that makes sense to do.

Nothing is more satisfying than to totally and completely surrender to love. When you can give love when it is not well received or it falls upon folded arms; when the one you extend it to cannot reciprocate; when the objection of your affection is mean spirited or hurls conditions upon you before they can unfurl their fists; when it is toughest to even care to love them, but you do it unconditionally, then you have reached a state of being that can bring heaven to earth and you will find a satisfaction that equals no other. I might add that in practicing that, being determined to love unconditionally, and desiring nothing less than that will eventually open the flood gates of love to you that you never knew existed. You will draw to you those who will in turn love you with a pure love unequal to any humanistic efforts to do so that came before and you will love them with the same degree.

When you love purely without stain of conditions or fears and someone loves you in like kind, your souls dance in the fire of God. Where there were two, there is only one. It makes no difference what combination of relationship we are talking about - two people in love, a parent and child, a brother and sister, two friends - the result is the same. And whom God has joined together, no man, no thing can put asunder. Talk about a match made in heaven! When people are not joined in the fire of God, there is not a real union to be torn apart. It never existed in the first place but the opportunity to make it so is always a possibility. Thank you God!

Opening up to this way of being shows me that there never has been a separation between myself and others because I have experienced the One when I dropped all of the conditions I placed upon myself and others. We create our own walls. They aren't real but because they seem real, we keep people out and imprison ourselves within.

Nothing tastes or feels as good as the freedom of real (unconditional) love. It's my drug of choice.

THE DANCE OF LOVE

Love dances me though I have choices.
It speaks to me through all the voices
That meet in my head to put out the fire
Of Infinite Love, of passion, of desire

My self so taut relaxes, surrenders
Put to ashes banishing what hinders
Opening the heart and embracing all
Uniting in One what was split in the fall

For the eyes of Truth have looked into mine
And captured my soul in Love Divine
Bringing me to the place so eternal
Drawing inside all that was external

In ecstasy my soul is enraptured, complete
When souls and God in the now doth meet
For this were we made, our orders Divine
Carried out fully when your soul met mine.

Holy ground is this place where we meet
Unhindered by voices that would carry defeat
And in that moment there’s neither time nor space
Just the radiant reflection of God’s holy face.

LOVE AND THE ETERNAL NOW

The "now" is eternal.

Residing there is only the soul/spirit that I am, a spark of Intelligent Mind, God, or whatever you choose to call our reference point.

In the now there is no past, present or future. There is no time. It is total presence in, through and with Divine Presence.

I have in the now no need for prejudice, pre-conceived notions or ideas. I have no need for my baggage. I have no need to worry. I have no pressure and I am wrapped in the arms of God.

The comfort, the pleasure, the utter knowing that all is well permeates my being and I float like a leaf on the river of Divine Mind, Divine action, Divine Love.

There is a feeling of being totally committed, totally surrendered.

Freedom never tasted so good.

LOVE AND PURPOSE

As I awoke this morning the thought came to me that love is the reason for everything. The real purpose behind every relationship, every task we undertake, every choice we make, every activity, and every experience is to find out that love is the reason we are here.

God is nothing but Love, Love/God is all there really is, and we are the love we seek but to the degree we fail to understand any of this we have failed to fulfill our purpose. That failure will manifest itself as inflated and misguided egos, chaos, death, self abuse and the abuse of others, destruction, war, anxiety, failed relationships, unnecessary illnesses, unhappiness, and a sense of futility. We will continue to build empires; put others down; mistreat and abuse others or/and our selves; lie; cheat; steal; abuse prescription and non prescription drugs, food, alcohol, and other substances; make life miserable for our selves and others; and in general fail to live out our purpose.

No matter how many wonderful things I do if love does not fuel my desires, steady my hands, or power my motivations I have failed to fulfill my life’s purpose.

There is a quote from the movie Moulin Rouge, where Toulouse-Lautrec says: “The greatest thing you'll ever learn is just to love and be loved in return.” I think that about sums it up. It is as simple as that.

LOVE AND DESIRE

Does God/Infinite Intelligence, place desires in our hearts or do we?

When we feel the pull to do or have this or that is God placing that desire or idea in us or do our thoughts, ideas, desires, pulls, tendencies come strictly from us?

When we cultivate these desires or thoughts what is influencing us? Is it God?

If we desire to have or be or do something that appears to be harmful or hurtful to ourselves or others would God have put that idea into our heads? I believe not. So how do I explain, how does anyone explain where all this comes from this good behavior or not-so-good behavior?

I think what may be possible is that each individual’s relationship to and idea of God/Infinite Mind is what will shape how they think, what they think, what desires within will manifest, what choices they will ultimately make and what action they will ultimately choose. The power to make choices and to attract certain situations, people or things into our lives is always there. I just think the only thing that makes a difference or influences us is our level of awareness of Love and Truth.

If we have made room for Unconditional Love to guide our lives then our desires and actions, in fact every event or circumstance we encounter, will always strive to manifest love, gentleness, peace, joy, contentment, and well being. All events, people, circumstance, outcomes, and encounters offer us an opportunity to come back to God, to the Truth that is, to our real and natural selves – a state of being Unconditional Love.

The more we seem to have a grasp of or awareness of the Love that God is and who and what we are in view of that, the more our choices and desires will bring comfort and contentment, and joy into our lives which can then affect others. We have a huge responsibility to wake up to the Christ, the Love, the very Presence of God that we are in the world – this Presence in Whom we live and move and have our being. We have a responsibility to do this in order to fulfill the purpose of our being and in order to create a milieu that allows others the opportunity to do the same. This milieu is Love with no conditions. It is who you are. All we have to do is to be that which we truly are rather than what we have thought ourselves to be. It is so simple and yet so almost out of reach of our doing or understanding.

We have but one thing to do. Once that it is in place all else will come in its right way and right time and then we will know heaven on earth.

THE CIRCLE OF LOVE

Picture if you will your self, your body which incases all that you are or think yourself to be. Now picture a circle surrounding your body, your self - all that you are. You go through life pulling people into your circle or pushing them out. Sometimes pushing people out is called establishing healthy boundaries. But the circle I am speaking of is a spiritual one.

So let’s say that you have latched onto and uphold the idea that God is Love and that you are to indeed love one another as suggested/commanded in the Bible. Or if the Bible is not your source then maybe you just have a sense that loving others is the “right” thing to do or you follow some other excellent spiritual source.

Let’s call this circle not a boundary but rather a spiritual circle of love and you start by bringing more and more people into your circle. You start with those whom you seem to like or love and who validate you. Later you can start adding those whom you are fairly neutral about working your way finally to those who seem to step on your last nerve, stand for everything you hate and who may have in some way hurt, harmed or offended you.

If you do that you will notice your circle had to expand in order to bring all those people in. And lo and behold your “Self” has expanded.

Next you may look around and note that as you bring people into your circle, you see they have circles too and some of them are adding you to their circle.
As this increases you note that not only are you in their circle and they in yours, but you note that there is a bigger circle that encompasses all people and all their circles, but you also note that you cannot see the edges of the circle you just know it is there. You also note that the edges of that circle is forever expanding and there is no end to it.

I now see God as Infinite Being with no idea or concept or name but the “Medium” (if you will) into which we are all connected.

ORDINARY PRAYER AND AFFIRMATIVE PRAYER

Normal or ordinary prayer as most of us know it is one of supplication. Usually this is done by someone who is focused on what is not and wants to ask God who is perceived as a power outside of him/herself to bring forth what is missing or needed or desired. This is not wrong and the desired results can be forth coming but faith and the person’s belief system is what brings about a particular outcome not whether God flipped a coin or weighed the “evidence” and made a decision to give or withhold.

Affirmative prayer takes the position that there is a Universal Law that operates through us. Whatever we focus on the most and what we believe will shape the results of our thoughts and our thoughts draw results to us. It is God’s creative energy that does the work but we put in our order. In a restaurant we tell the server what we would like to see on our plate. We have thought about it and can almost taste it. We look forward with great anticipation enjoying that food and we are excited and thankful to be there enjoying it all. We see and feel it all happening. The server takes the request to the kitchen and the cooks put it together and the results will arrive. So we cooperate with the Creative Energy.

Sometimes in a restaurant the server comes back and says, “I’m sorry but we ran out of _____.” You may have had some doubts about that order but it could be that there was something else at work for the greater good. At that point rather than getting disappointed, you just think of something else to order and you may end up enjoying that even more than what the original order was – that is if you know that all is well and everything is exactly as it should be. If you sit in a restaurant and the server asks what you want and you hesitate between two or three items wavering constantly, it would be difficult to take your order and give you what you want. If you want fried chicken but you think that probably you shouldn’t have it, you probably won’t get it. Let’s say you ordered fried chicken but worried that there wouldn’t be any left or that you really should have chosen the salmon, either (a) the chicken won’t make it to your plate or something will be wrong with it; or (b) you will get it and you won’t get the best value out of it.

Jesus hesitated (but only for a moment) about putting in the request for wine rather than water at the wedding but his mother said it was okay so he did it with just the shifting of his thoughts. Later he told us that we could do even greater works through the same principle and the same God/Creative Force – the “Father” of all things.

The thought with the strongest intention and belief – the one that is most constant usually gets the order filled.

A person who is using sculpting material gets the idea of what they want to see as the end result and God that is in the mind then furnishes the wherewithal with which to make it take shape .

IN PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS

Discontent, war, unrest, unhappiness, pain, separation - these are not pleasant moods, circumstances, or places of the heart to be in and yet it is well to remember (if one can) that out of the ashes of these come peace, contentment, joy, and unity.

Intellectually I know this but at those times when it is the darkest and most painful, it is not easy to find this truth able to give instant relief to the emotions and the feelings that arise.

At times when we are being ignored, shunned, forgotten; times when we have gone through a separation from someone we love through circumstances of death or just a parting of the ways; times when every thing we have attempted seems to fail; times when there seems no up and plenty of down; times when it seems you have no real purpose to perform; times when you can't figure out what the next step is or you have lost your way; and times when everywhere you look there is pain, ignorance, and wars of all types, it is not easy to rejoice, to have a sense of well-being. It is not always easy to try for the brass ring. It is not always easy to keep putting one foot in front of the other. It is not easy to even want to go on but it can be done. At least I keep telling myself those things at those times. :)

I recently saw the movie, "The Pursuit of Happyness" (yes, it is spelled with a "y" in the title). It was all about keeping on keeping on and having hope in the middle of seemingly impossible odds. It is also all about how important it is for others who are significant in our lives to cheer us on, to support us, and to believe in us even when we are not sure how anybody could.

I suppose if we do not believe in the potential within us, other's support of us would not get very far. And maybe the horrific things we sometimes go through can serve to force us to find that potential within and to know that the Spirit within us is always ready and available if we but will surrender to It.