11/8/11
Ffolkes,
We begin anew, night into day; we are fresh, we are alive. We are…..
To whom the mornings are like nights,
What must the midnights be!
— Emily Dickinson
One of my favorite parts of life is experiencing serendipity. There is something very fulfilling, very soothing about getting more than expected from Reality; like a free sno-cone, or finding a forgotten dollar bill in your pocket. And every time I come across another poem by Emily D., I get that thrilling feeling, of having looked for dirt, and found diamonds instead. How fascinating it would be, to be able to hold a conversation with someone whose mind possessed such a unique vision of the world, and found within herself the language to describe those visions with clarity, and beauty. This one is typical of her ability to show a side of Reality that most folks never consider, and put that piece of Reality into a form that brings the reader to a deep understanding of what they heretofore had never known. And in two miserly, but meaningful verses, at that!
The appeal of Ms. D’s poetry is as strong today as it was during her life, and its timelessness is borne out by the fact that even today, her verses have lessons for us to learn that are as important as they were a hundred years ago. The program I use to generate a lot of my Pearls, and where I found this little nugget, suggests that this poem could easily be descriptive of the hackish culture, (from hackers, aka rogue, or independent computer programmers) members of which are frequently to be found working through the night, and whose world-view could be described as being as unique as hers. To my way of thinking, poetry that is timeless, and as deeply insightful as this, is the pinnacle, the ultimate, most important use of language, for it makes us more human for having read it…..
— How many
Zen masters
— does it take to screw in a light bulb?
Two: one to change the bulb and one not to change it.
The writings and teachings of Siddhartha Gautama, known as the Buddha, or Enlightened One, were created during his life in India, in the time before Jesus of Nazareth was born. His words have inspired humankind for well over two millenia, bringing peace of mind and hope for the future to all who would follow its precepts. An integral part of Buddhist practice is meditation, using the clarity of mind brought about by introspection to lead one along the path to pure enlightenment. A Zen Buddhist will sit and contemplate, for example, the duality of perception, examining Reality from both sides, and how the nature of being human is grounded in our method of perceiving the duality present in every object, and concept, in this universe. We see due to the presence or absence of light; we hear because each word is surrounded by silence. Coming to an understanding of how we relate to the events of our life as another expression of the dual nature of the universe is a valuable tool, useful in coming to terms with events that would otherwise be troubling. A deep-seated knowledge of how Reality works can only be helpful in a world that constantly challenges us to meet demanding standards, and won’t even tell us what those standards entail. In other words, it’s a good tool for slowing down Entropy, or at least painting it a nice lively color…….
“Animals can be driven crazy by putting too many in too small a pen. Homo sapiens is the only animal that voluntarily does this to himself.” — Lazarus Long, from Robert A. Heinlein’s — “Time Enough For Love”
Regular readers of this…..I never know just what this is, so we’ll call it an ongoing exploration of reality….will be aware that a common subject of discussion is the power of human stupidity, and how deliberate ignorance plays a big part in the sad state of affairs of society at large. The reason I end up writing about this so often is pretty obvious; the news every day is chock full of examples of how another bonehead move, deliberately aggressive behavior, or ignorant remark has caused some kind of problem, problems that may or may not involve death, destruction, injury, or even, heaven forbid, halitosis (gasp!!!). People are people, and they are constantly finding new ways to abuse this sorry old planet, believing in their own false immortality, and worst of all, believing they have the right to act any way they wish, regardless of how it affects others or the outside world.
This sense of entitlement, encouraged shamefully by organized religions that tout Mankind as the inheritors of the Earth, chosen by their (G)od to “have dominion” over the rest of the life forms, is the underlying false premise behind most of society’s ills. When a premise is false, the conclusion can only be false, as well, and this idea of the superiority of our species, can be seen as the critical factor in human nature that allows us to make decisions that are only in OUR interests, and the rest of Reality matters not at all. As long as I’ve got my milkshake, who cares about the rest?……selfish creatures, are we not?…….
Hmmm….a little less positive than I like to be, but truth nonetheless….. y’all take care out there…..
—
and sometimes
I just sits.
gigoid
Kowabunga!
gigoid 