Blinded By Sight

Having left my evangelical Christian beliefs a few years ago, I find myself often appalled at my past beliefs. I marvel at how easily I would believe so many tall tales of religious lore. Perhaps some of it was from a child hood that loved fantasy and wished for a reality fashioned more like my comic book interests. This repulsion of past naivety and love for the clear and empirical have often made me enjoy reading or listening to the thoughts of atheists who speak out against the irrational beliefs of the religious. I can so much identify with their criticism and sometimes cynicism. Yet, I can never go as far as they. Whereas I heartily agree that the Bible is filled with tales that upon logical inquiry are nothing more than legends, I cannot cast such ideas as credence to not believe in God. I also empathize with the thought that clear and empirical evidence will not be found for God's existence. Yet sometimes I think that this is the trap of the empirical. Empiricism relies on our five senses. It is tangible. However so much in life is not tangible. I live in the realm of thought. Are my thoughts tangible to anyone but me? Can someone see my thoughts? No, I have to communicate my thoughts to people. They then must take my words by faith that they truly represent my thoughts. How about love or joy? There is nothing empirical about this. Both are very real emotions that shape our lives but they are nothing that you can quantify or experiment with scientifically. There are many other things that are strong parts of our reality that are not subject to empirical or at least simply by sight. Heat can be felt and measured but not seen. The wind can be felt and it effects visible but no one can see it. We know that we are composed of millions of cells that are made of millions of atoms. However, that is not what we see in our day to day reality. We only see the huge structures that those atoms and cells make when joined. So much of reality is not visible, and some of it is intangible. I believe we are often blinded by our own sight. We often think of reality as simply what we see with our eyes. Yet we know scientifically and experientially this is not true. There is so much more there than meets the eye. When I consider this, I do not find the idea of spirit as unreasonable. What animates these atoms and molecules to become living organisms? Is there any clear scientific explanation? Surely we have not created this from raw chemicals and minerals in a lab. For me this means it is reasonable to call that energizing aspect spirit. I cannot see this, but I do see its results and I feel them. I think this is logical faith. It is not empirical but it is reasonable. While I must say I often identify with agnostic/atheist ideas and criticisms, I can never be so dependent on my own sight and the empirical.

Talking Snakes

Recently I have been amazed at the health care debate that has been occuring in our country. I am appalled at the wild claims like 'death panels' that so many quickly believe and so vehemently speak out against. It is both sad and comical to see people ardently and feverishly criticize items that are not true or based loosely on fact. I am so tired of hearing about the exaggerated claims about socialism. I sometimes puzzle how people can be so naive. However, while considering this I have reflected on days past when I was an evangelical Christian. I remember reading the story of the garden of Eden in Genesis 3 and hardly stopping on the fact that Eve dialogued with a snake. How odd that we as people can so easily accept things that in any other context would be laughable. Part of me wants to chuckle now at the absurdity of the story but I humbly remember, "oh, yeah I used to believe that was true too." Perhaps naivity and gullibility are both native weaknesses for our species.

Streets of Gold?

It is funny for me to think now on the views I once held of heaven. I remember the description of heaven having streets of gold. Now I am sure that would be a beautiful site but what more would it be. I don't want streets of gold. Rather give me a sandy beach. Let me feel its grit between my toes. Let me see the calming movement of a lake or sea. Let me have the refreshing coastal air blow through my hair. That would be heaven to me. Or even give me a path in the forest. Let my feet trod on an uneven path full of nature's debris and undergrowth. Let me drink in nature and feel alive. Let me lose myself in the reality that all that is truly is one. That would be heaven to me.

One

“Believe me, my boy, ‘That’ which is the subtle essence in all that exists has its Self.
It is Brahman, Consciousness, Awareness, Reality, Love. It is Self and you are ‘That’!”
- The Chandogya Upanishad Part 12 verse 3
Truly you are That and I am That. We are united. There is no one who does not fit or belong. Everyone belongs and everyone fits. The truth is we are all One.

Bliss

Bliss is deep happiness. Bliss is the state of being full of joy. It is not like the simple forms of happiness that come in and out of our days. It is not just some momentary and fleeting emotion, rather bliss is our innate possession. It is the natural state that belongs to us when we choose to be awake to God. The union of our spirit with Her spirit is bliss. The feeling of deep completeness that is so positive that nothing else around you matters. This is bliss. The best part is that this wonderful reality and this liberating state is easily accessible. When we focus our hearts and minds on God and come to the place where we forget the distractions around us, we can enter into this state.

The Importance of Focus

The mind is like a man peering out the window of his city apartment that overlooks a busy street. All day the street is filled with activity. The man may passively watch the things happening in front of him or he may choose to focus his eyes on one item. Even though he can see what is going on around him, the happenings are not his. He is simply an observer. The mind is similar. Every moment that we are awake the brain is flooded with information. Perpetually our minds are barraged with information and feed back from our environment. Most thoughts do not come simply from our own conjuring. They represent our awareness of what we are sensing around us and within us. We choose to interpret this data. Some thoughts we have inform us and help us, while others can derail us. Anxious thoughts birthed from stress and fear often pass through our minds. These futile thoughts can clear our mind but in their negative fashion make our hearts cower. Doubts come to mind and cripple our ability to improve ourselves. The more we entertain negative thoughts the more we begin to internalize their ideas. We begin to see them as our own thoughts and they shape our identities. Yet the mind need not be like this. The mind is at our control. We can choose to focus it on the thoughts that we desire. We do not have to waste any moment on passing thoughts of doubt or fear, rather we can redirect our thinking to positive things. Most importantly we can focus our attention on God. We can make Her our focus. When we purposefully reject negative thoughts and replace them with purposeful thinking about God, we give rise to our spirits. Only then can we be awake to God.

Mystical Union: At The Heart of it All

Mystical union is spiritual communion with God.
Mystical union is the unspoken desire of all.
Mystical union is the underlying aspiration of the human soul.
Mystical union is what gives life.
Mystical union is what connects our souls to divine joy and peace.
Mystical union transcends all other rites and rituals of religion.
At the heart of most religions is the desire to find meaning, truth, and God. These faiths have paved roads with ritual, liturgy, and dogma. Yet the destination is simple. The destination is not far away. The destination is found where our spirit unites with God's Spirit. This is not a reality that needs to be obtained but only recognized and embraced. We are spirits living in a greater Spirit who pervades everything. There is no escaping this great being. Our connection point is our own spirit which is connected to Him. This connection point is where we can know God. Connecting with God, our spirit with His Spirit, is mystical union.