Would it be fair to say that being awake is noticing the truth as obvious while being enlightened is a fundamental shift in the mind's perpetual grasping for a more pleasing reality?
Yes that is one way to look at it. Although these shifts happen in stages. And the mind’s grasping will always exist in one form or another. One just realizes the futility of such grasping and doesn’t put much stock in it…
"One just realizes the futility of such grasping and doesn’t put much stock in it…" So, without the grasping...things still get done, responsibilities are fulfilled, (apparent) "good" choices are made, right? I guess the mind wants to really hold on tight, having me believe I need all of the analysis/grasping for a better outcome.
Wow Shiv... you put into words what I have felt but could not articulate. It seems we can sense truth but to imagine it transforms it into fantasy. What a freeing relief to simply experience life (and death) without manically analyzing every action or thought.
I once had a yoga teacher who had this wonderful cosmic giggle. We would be breathing into an asana struggling to do it "right." Just when the pain and effort became intense, he would giggle like a child and our struggle became no more than child's play. Truth may be mundane, but it is also a simple sublime pleasure. Thank you for your wise words of truth... (giggle).
This was shot near the town of Nakusp in central British Columbia last weekend. The lake waters are extremely shallow at parts for quite a distance from the shore. I decided to meditate on this lake and my wife took the shot ... (no filters added)
You say, "Trump running for president is on par with an acorn falling from a tree in the grand scheme of things." Is that statement true? What if a voter is undergoing cancer treatment, and if Trump is elected, that person could lose health insurance. Is that the same as an acorn falling. How can you make that claim. I just subscribed to your substack and, now reflecting on this quote, I am having serious misgivings.
Hi Eric - the “grand scheme of things” rarely aligns with OUR scheme of things. An acorn falling is on par with me losing my life. Does that mean I should approach my own life with such nonchalance? Of course not. I have a vested interest in my own existence.
Similarly, we have vested interests in the welfare of our species. We have vested interests in the welfare of our societies.
But life has no vested interests. That I believe is the point of the article. I personally do not equate Donald Trump to an acorn in significance, but that is because I see life through a lens of values and morals. Life does not adhere to any such value models. Truth is completely ambivalent to what you or I think of Trump vs. Acorn.
Thank you for your initial impulse to subscribe to my Substack. You are welcome to unsubscribe from it if you have misgivings, of course. And I would happily refund you. Unfortunately, unsubscribing from this Substack will change not one iota of the truth of what I am pointing to. For that you will need to unsubscribe from reality - which is what most people in the world have learned to do in order to cope with their lives.
Thank you so much for your reply. It reminds of the line from the Dao De Jing that the tao views the affairs of people as “straw dogs” (this is from memory). Your reply clarifies the confusion I experienced reading your article and it was very helpful. I am very happy to be a subscriber. From the Ursula K. Le Guin version: “Heaven and earth aren’t humane. To them the ten thousand things are straw dogs."
Shiv I really liked this post. I am 75 years old and have been at this pursuit of “truth” for about 45 years. I’ll only say that this post resonates with me and what I have “realized” or “seen”. Thank you.
Would it be fair to say that being awake is noticing the truth as obvious while being enlightened is a fundamental shift in the mind's perpetual grasping for a more pleasing reality?
Yes that is one way to look at it. Although these shifts happen in stages. And the mind’s grasping will always exist in one form or another. One just realizes the futility of such grasping and doesn’t put much stock in it…
Thanks for explaining further.
"One just realizes the futility of such grasping and doesn’t put much stock in it…" So, without the grasping...things still get done, responsibilities are fulfilled, (apparent) "good" choices are made, right? I guess the mind wants to really hold on tight, having me believe I need all of the analysis/grasping for a better outcome.
The mind is only interested in "better" not "true"
Wow Shiv... you put into words what I have felt but could not articulate. It seems we can sense truth but to imagine it transforms it into fantasy. What a freeing relief to simply experience life (and death) without manically analyzing every action or thought.
I once had a yoga teacher who had this wonderful cosmic giggle. We would be breathing into an asana struggling to do it "right." Just when the pain and effort became intense, he would giggle like a child and our struggle became no more than child's play. Truth may be mundane, but it is also a simple sublime pleasure. Thank you for your wise words of truth... (giggle).
You’re welcome, John
Thank you..your words deeply resonate..❤
Glad to hear it, Patricia
and what an amazing photograph! where was that shot?
This was shot near the town of Nakusp in central British Columbia last weekend. The lake waters are extremely shallow at parts for quite a distance from the shore. I decided to meditate on this lake and my wife took the shot ... (no filters added)
Woooow! Happy to be a new subscriber❤️
Happy to have you here
Thank you Shiv. Your words are both sobering and freeing.
You say, "Trump running for president is on par with an acorn falling from a tree in the grand scheme of things." Is that statement true? What if a voter is undergoing cancer treatment, and if Trump is elected, that person could lose health insurance. Is that the same as an acorn falling. How can you make that claim. I just subscribed to your substack and, now reflecting on this quote, I am having serious misgivings.
Hi Eric - the “grand scheme of things” rarely aligns with OUR scheme of things. An acorn falling is on par with me losing my life. Does that mean I should approach my own life with such nonchalance? Of course not. I have a vested interest in my own existence.
Similarly, we have vested interests in the welfare of our species. We have vested interests in the welfare of our societies.
But life has no vested interests. That I believe is the point of the article. I personally do not equate Donald Trump to an acorn in significance, but that is because I see life through a lens of values and morals. Life does not adhere to any such value models. Truth is completely ambivalent to what you or I think of Trump vs. Acorn.
Thank you for your initial impulse to subscribe to my Substack. You are welcome to unsubscribe from it if you have misgivings, of course. And I would happily refund you. Unfortunately, unsubscribing from this Substack will change not one iota of the truth of what I am pointing to. For that you will need to unsubscribe from reality - which is what most people in the world have learned to do in order to cope with their lives.
Thank you so much for your reply. It reminds of the line from the Dao De Jing that the tao views the affairs of people as “straw dogs” (this is from memory). Your reply clarifies the confusion I experienced reading your article and it was very helpful. I am very happy to be a subscriber. From the Ursula K. Le Guin version: “Heaven and earth aren’t humane. To them the ten thousand things are straw dogs."
Yes that quote from the Dao is a good one. Thanks for sharing Eric :)
Shiv I really liked this post. I am 75 years old and have been at this pursuit of “truth” for about 45 years. I’ll only say that this post resonates with me and what I have “realized” or “seen”. Thank you.
Glad to hear it, John