Playing with Perspectives

[UnbornTao]

Useful distinctions:

• Subtle and gross
• Abstract and concrete
• Broad and specific
• Shallow and profound

Edited May 25 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Hope arises from imagining a future that is positive and, at times, even fantasized. This emotion has its roots in the positive expectation of how life, an experience, or event may - or will - unfold or turn out. That's my current view of what hope is in its essence.

Disappointment, on the other hand, occurs when that hopeful expectation collides with reality - when what actually happens falls short of the imagined or idealized outcome. Is disappointment related to the past?

Edited August 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

When it comes to seemingly simple - or even "basic" - communications from others, is there something beyond the expression that you might be missing? An insight, perhaps? Do you tend to dismiss such interchanges as basic or obvious, based on the impression they make on you? Do you take them for granted in any way? What does it take to truly listen?

There may be something deeper underlying them, especially if they come from a skilled or profoundly conscious person. Listen carefully and ask questions such as:

1. Where are they coming from? What is the experience they are pointing to?
2. What's the reality behind the communication?
3. How are they perceiving reality in a way that allows them to be masterful or conscious in that particular subject or domain? 

Edited August 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Can a thought be true in and of itself? How could a representation of something possibly be that something? How could a concept be the thing it is referring to? A thought is always about something; it is never the thing it is attempting to represent. Contemplate the implications of this.

Edited June 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

No experience, state, or perception - however novel, healing, or dramatic - is enlightenment. "Enlightenment" is a direct consciousness of your nature or the absolute nature of existence. Mistaking mental activity or a process for the realization is a common trap. Doing that is a denigration of it.

Edited August 30 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

How did this particular invention come to exist? What if it were to be rebuilt from the ground up? What would it take for you to do that?

'Reinventing the wheel' helps you grasp its nature at every level. This, in turn, enables you to recreate it more effectively - opening the door to genuine innovation.

Contemplate its foundations, which requires starting from nothing, as if it hadn't been invented yet. 

Edited August 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

How does the invention of language influence your experience? Without the context of language, what is your experience like? 

For example: Can your internal dialogue exist without language? Could most of your thinking exist?

Edited May 30 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Keeping your feet on the ground doesn't necessarily imply inflexibility or stubbornness. It means having your perception rooted in accurate, real distinctions, avoiding wishful thinking, and being present with the event as it occurs. 

Edited May 30 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

In the context of spirituality, the notion that "all roads lead to the same destination" is mistaken. Not every path or practice shares the same purpose and goals - most of the time, they differ significantly from one practice to another, even if their self-described mission statement sounds similar on paper. Beyond the goals claimed by proponents, what do these practices actually achieve in the end? This is an open question, not necessarily an attempt to denigrate or dismiss them - just an invitation to soberly assess the results of any given tradition or practice.

More often than not, people are seeking a better experience; and in the majority of cases, they are invited to believe in something assumed to be true by others involved in the practice.

Edited August 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

You jump into a pool, you get wet - instant karma! Notice the consequences of your actions. What and how you think - what you do with your mind - has consequences.

Edited June 2 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

What exactly is a perspective? Is it a way of holding reality? How could you shift perspectives in a way that's real and profound? How could you relate to something differently?

Edited May 30 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

What creates depression is imagining a negative future for your life. Imagining a positive future eliminates the root of the depression.

Edited May 30 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

As much as you can, and when the situation calls for it, communicate in a way that the expression can stand on its own.

This journal is an example of not doing that.

Edited July 3 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

How you frame an event in your mind determines how you perceive it.

Edited May 25 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Perceiving reality through models can easily become a trap if you treat that effort as more than simply "drawing an apple." When you're hungry, you go for the real thing. By its nature, a model can't accurately represent what is there - it is not the thing itself. Still, models can sometimes be useful.

A representation, however, is often mistaken for "reality," superimposing extraneous, unnecessary concepts onto your experience and causing you to miss what is actually perceived.

Edited June 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

To change something, first you need to become aware of what it is and how it works. If you don't see it as it is, your ability to interact with it will be severely diminished. 

Edited May 23 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Do you presume your thoughts are true simply because they come from you?

It seems we live under this unquestioned assumption most of the time.

Because they appear to be yours or coming from you - or so we believe - you may be blindly trusting in their legitimacy, without knowing where they came from or why they arise at all.

Edited July 7 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Being invested in something, especially on an emotional level, tends to hinder an impartial observation. 

Edited May 23 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Do what you want and make it work for you.

What purpose could you create for your life? 

Edited August 15 by UnbornTao

[UnbornTao]

Getting involved in intellectualization and abstraction can easily become a trap when the subject matter pertains to the subjects of experience and consciousness. Experience belongs to a different domain than intellect. On paper, this distinction seems straightforward; in practice, it is much more tricky to notice. 

Edited July 21 by UnbornTao