Seventh Blog: Tsu-ssu

Tsu-ssu's writings, though a small collection, were certainly impactful. It mostly tells a very basic truth to people. Be sincere. If people were more sincere, well then I, personally, wouldn't have of 'the dramz' in my own life.

By that I mean, Tsu-ssu's words are translated as 'sincere' but it goes deeper than meaning 'tell the truth'. What he means on a deeper level is that because people are naturally good, the ability to do good is always palpable. It's always something lying in wait, waiting to be taken advantage of by any person. Unfortunately our selfish desires often get in the way of achieving true peace with our neighbors. Something I've never really fully understood. To be able to look at someone with a different background than oneself, and declare to them "You're wrong." is something I definitely can't do. The fact that there are people who can do that is an incredible feat to me.
To have that sort of confidence in your own beliefs, is quite frankly ridiculous. Everyone grows up with different factors of socialization and values, and that people can declare someone 'wrong' or 'weird' because they believe that their own views trump others is absolutely ridiculous and something Tsu-ssu would agree with me on, I believe. After all,
"Don't do to others what you wouldn't want done to you."

Sixth blog: Yehiel Mikhal of Zlotchov

Something that I've definitely thought of at least once before in my lifetime, is that unless you do something great, there is no one to remember once you've died.

Of course your children, grandchildren, and possibly great-grandchildren will remember you, but how many people can name their great-great-grandparents? I personally can only name one out of the four pairs of great-grandparents that I have, and unless one makes some sort of masterpiece, and even then, better make sure it's not all that popular during the present, your name will fade with time. This passage of reading wants to ease people's hearts, as no one enjoys the idea of being forgotten, because once forgotten there's not proof that they even existed at all, and that absence of existence is frightening. Yet, this passage let's one know that the attachment to material possessions and wealth is the reason we end up forgotten, because if you trust is God then God will remember as God is eternal.

These are incredibly profound statements that encapsulate what I feel it is to be religious, that absolute belief in God is rewarded with eternity, with the assurance that your presence was necessary and that as an individual you are important.

Fifth blog: Bakhya Ibn Pakuda

The reading of Bakhya Ibn Pakuda's writing inspires thought about where humans have gone with their society. Bakhya Ibn Pakuda describes the ideal religious people, people who practice perfectly. They are content whether they are suffering or on top of the world. While this may be what the ideal is among religious people, I highly doubt whether people respond accordingly. Especially considering the idea of people with more possessions being able to concentrate on doing what is right. It's more along the lines of people with more money and goods are more focused on keeping it that way. Whereas people with less are rather than being content, trying to become those with more. In this way our world continues down a path to destruction. With people grasping at willy nilly in order to fill their void with material possessions as humans we have over-reached our bounds.

If people could honestly follow Bakhya Ibn Pakuda's teaching I think a lot of the threats facing our world would recede. Just the basic idea of being happy with what you have is a wise teaching that really should be prevalent, but our society is especially obsessed with the idea of “rising up”, whenall that is is adding more stuff to your pile. Then we proceed to guard that crap that we pile up with as much security as we can provide. In any case, Bakhya Ibn Pakuda probably could see into the future and was trying to warn humans in a simple way of how to avoid a lot of problems which are now on our plates.

Fourth Blog: Shankara

The experience described in the writings of Shankara is something all humanity yearns for. It's what people really want. That they belong in the universe, that they are an important part of an ever flowing continuity.

The concept of life, is something always in conflict. People's concepts of “living life” are always different, some may believe that it's living like each day is your last, and others believe that steady planning and a constructed future are the keys to happiness. The reading is disagreeing, however, saying that happiness is the result of finding yourself at peace with the Earth. When one no longer wants for anything, that is when true happiness has occurred. It's a view I am inclined to believe in, as it's something that doesn't need material possessions in order to obtain, it just needs the view that one is a part of the earth, and is the same as everything surrounding it. If everyone was able to participate in that form of thinking, a lot of problems we are faced with today wouldn't be an issue. Inequality would be eradicated, as all people are made of the same substance, and nature would probably be treasured much more than it is at the moment. Though I'm not sure a society would be able to sustain itself if everyone believed that. I think it would end up being a static society where new discoveries would be rare and far between, although whether that's a good or bad thing at this point is something that could be argued.

Third Blog: Ramana Maharshi

Ramana Maharshi is clearly a wise and knowledgeable man. The selections of passages reflects his ideas and thought processes very concisely, clearly and understandably. His view of humanity and of the state of being enlightened reflects what we've learned about Hinduism this week in class. Such as “When we stop regarding the unreal as real, then reality alone will remain and we will become that.” It's reminiscent of the Hindu concept of Maya. That the truth is that all things are one and that there isn't a difference in matter between myself and what I'm typing on, that all things are in a constant state of total flux.

Besides that, his words are words that all people should take to heart. Things which are really just statements of facts rather than a belief that what he says is the all-encompassing truth. I'm particularly partial to the last paragraph in which Maharshi discusses the ridiculousness of praying for God's graces, since God's grace surrounds us all. It serves as something I believe all people should keep in mind, despite their religion, that we are blessed with life, and that's blessing enough.

Sa-go-ye-wat-ha: SECOND POST!

Sa-go-ye-wat-ha gives an enlightened speech about, essentially, the pros and cons of religion specifically, at least from what I know of first-hand: Western Christianity. Even today what Sa-go-ye-wat-ha discusses in his speech are applicable. The different sects of Christianity are divided and, while not necessarily quarreling, definitely don't agree with each other. I have an evangelical friend who has on more than one occasion called Mormons crazy and Catholics completely wrong in their beliefs. Clearly this is not a blanket statement, a large majority of Christians don't push their faith onto others, but that the unfortunate few who won't take no for an answer still flourish in this day and age is something that can't be denied. Coincidentally enough while I was with this evangelical friend at Borders she went to the bathroom and while I was waiting outside of it reading a book I'd picked up (a comic book at that) I was approached by two very young girls, by that I mean about 13, asking me if I'd accepted Jesus into my heart handing out fliers for their church. I couldn't do much besides stare mouth agape that in this public place I was being approached about something which is so personal. Their courage is something which should be applauded, approaching strangers in a public space is something very difficult to do and does require a lot of guts, and yet the act itself is still reminiscent of when in 1805 a Native American chief was called upon to renounce his own belief and follow another's, simply because his “was wrong”.

First blog!

Looking back on the sad past of America is difficult to do, at least for me, while laying on my comfortable air conditioned room and typing on my laptop. It's an incredibly disjointed and conflicted situation, it's easy for me to sit at my computer and lament the loss of an amazing self-sufficient culture which practiced peace and simplicity. But it'd definitely be impossible for me to adjust to the Native American lifestyle. I naturally feel guilty as Mitchell states is something inevitable after reading such a heartfelt and sad speech, acknowledging the eventual demise of his people and his culture. I also feel obligated to react in some way, in order to make it right and fair. The opportunity to do that is, at this point in time, lost. There's no method of traveling back in time and steering Columbus off-course, though that would only prolong the inevitable. The world is finite and the Europeans acted in the only way they knew how, the only way that made sense to them. Even given different circumstances, different people, they would have acted with the same basic behavior installed in all humans, which I do believe is something spread throughout cultures, with no boundaries. People are motivated by the same things, the people who are close to them, and their possessions, and they act in horrible, conniving and unthinkable ways in order to advance themselves and what's important to them.

I digress from my people suck platform to say that Chief Seattle's religious parallels are intriguing and engrossing. He plainly states that he believes that the White Man's God has no place for the red brothers, which is a thought contrary to the actual Christian ideology of accepting all worship. The thought that God would abandon an entire people and favor another is heavy and depressing. Yet demonstrates Chief Seattle's understanding of American culture. He uses comparisons and expressions that all (English speaking) people would comprehend, and uses his mastery of the language to engage and connect to his audience, and eventually to all of us.