Happy Trails

                                                            I am painfully Aware that he majority of my blog conclusions are rife with despondency {and despondency is ridiculously generous] .   "IT" could be better if I were able to be more uplifting , to somehow be more positively Spirited ~~~~  .  While I was Zen Walking on the street this arrived :  We need a Battle Hymn of the Resistance {"The Battle Hymn of the Republic"} and I didn't have to go very far when this arrived :   The Battle HIM to the Republicans which is  

                                                       

                                                                    FUCK TRUMP  .

                        

                    I qualify it as follows :  It's the Fuck of "Fuck YOU", the Fuck of  "Fucked-over", and the Fuck of  "We are SOOOOO Fucked", and even better , the Fuck of "GO FUCK YOURSELF" .  

                    This is all I have for this morning, and I will tease you that Music will be {MITE BE} the topic of tomorrow's consideration .

                                                    "Happy trails to you, until we meet again

                                                      Happy trails to you, keep smilin' until then." 

...religiously pathetic .

                                                           I am compelled to elevate "The Instinct of Self-Preservation" to

 ||| The LAW of Self-Preservation|||  in order  to re-make "IT" a part of Evolution .  It's a removal from the Psyche of us mere Mortals {Human-Kind} {{The "Collective Unconscious"}}  to Infinity where I believe it should reside .  Is there EVIDENCE ???  Good Question .

                           I view trump's "Vanity Projects" as manifestation(s) of his Law of Self-Preservation, despite the Law's OBVIOUS PERVERSION .   Trump seeks IMMORTALITY via these Projects which will, he thinks, endure FOREVER .  Self-Preservation is the PERPETUAL maintenance of one's specific "bloodline" and of course this Continuance is PROTECTED by Mother Nature, {as best She can} .   This >Continuance< is well represented by the Pyramids and other TREMENDOUSLY MASSIVE Structures .   The folks who constructed them were intent upon being remembered for EONS, and they built them to withstand CATACLYSMS --which they have .   In the infinitesimal, we, as Humans, have constructed "Grave Stones" to mark OUR >>>Presence<<< on this Planet .  I have cynically qualified them with "I was here" a scrawl I read while pissing into a bar urinal .   That's the best we can do as Humans, "I was here".  Fuck if that aint religiously pathetic .  

"Child is Father to the Man"

                                                            I have endeavored to promote my Belief that we, as in ALL of Us, are connected to the "Divine Infinite" via Spirit, the HEAVENLY Spirit that Native Americans Revere as "The GREAT Spirit"  and further that the Individual is manifestation of ALL Human-Kind .  Here now the  concretization of "The Micro-Cosm IS the Macro-Cosm" and also, "Child is Father to the Man" .  As said manifestation, we, as Entities of the Divine, are subject to "IT" 's Laws, among them the Law of Evolution which I claim to be Divine Trajectory toward ---> Perfection .  In the same way that Evolution, whose children are Mother Nature and Mother Earth, manifests CHANGES, to enhance and perfect Her offspring, so it is that we, too, must FULLY Acknowledge Her Directive to become >Perfect< .   Darwin has 'given' us "Survival of the Fittest" as an Explanation of Species ---> Continuance .   Those that cannot change are doomed to Extinction, restated ; Those that cannot or REFUSE to Adapt are "Dis-continued" and are therefore relegated to the Domain of Memory IF they are fortunate enough to be Remembered at all {Dodo bird} .  

                                  

"Return To Forever"

                                                            I want a "Return to the Truth" .   I will leave this >Truth< to be regarded as "Self-Evident" for now, because I am reluctant to explain it in depth .   I need "IT" "out there" in the broadest way, and rely on everyone's Understanding of Truth as it currently exists .  I have presented Zen and now Sufism as "a means toward an end", that End being the above, a Return to the Truth .   Specifically, Zen is a "Way" to establish and maintain >Reality<, rather, the Perception of Reality, so that the so-called Truth of Reality can be experienced .  My  Gentle Readers  are  firmly  aware  of  my  pet phrase :  "We create our own 'Perceptual Reality' " .   Here it is and here it MUST-BE that one's Perceptual Reality be in accord, in HARMONY, with prevailing Conditions, meaning, if the Prevailing Conditions include Lie Telling ASSHOLES then the Perceptual Reality must recognize those Conditions and be able to "Call a spade a spade" ,  NOT  to call a spade a club or diamond .   I have communicated my own personal adherence to the Ancient Kung Fu Order whose Primary Foundation is to "Protect the Truth" .  I insist, it takes "GUTS" to Defend the Truth, and the Truth Seeker/Protector must have the Spirit of a Warrior, a HUMBLE Warrior but a WARRIOR, none-the-less ---there is a name/title for such a one, it is "Bodhisattva Warrior" and that title serves us perfectly .   Bodhisattva = Kind, Compassionate and Generous, and I supplement that as follows :  Skilled, Reliant and Valorous .   

Freemasonry

                                                           Shah uses History to place Freemasonry as an adjunct of Sufism .  It is essential to make note that American Freemasons were an integral part of the American Birth, and remained so in its formative, and later, mature Politics .   Among these George Washington, Ben Franklin, Paul Revere and John Hancock are KNOWN Freemasons .   Here now the CONNECTION between Sufism and Americanism*, at least EARLY Americanism .   America was awash in an Idealism that origined* in Self Knowledge which manifested  as Universal Politics in the form of "The Body Politic" and "IT" 's Ideologies {Idea-ology} .   Freemasons were exposed to Sufism, a reliable precursor to Zen .  Dare I suggest that both Sufism and Zen are in American Blood ?   I do .

                           

                                  

                              

Crystal METHods

                                                           We must ask, "What is the Nature of Ghazali's --> 'Truth' ? :  What is the Nature of Gnosis 'Divine' ?  ? .   Inevitably, after years of Practice, one will arrive at the Understanding that he or she is One with the Universe, that we are all Born DIVINE .   In this, we are all Manifestations of GOD, of the Higher Power, [ make that the HIGHEST POWER] and as such WE ARE EQUAL, since we have reached "Human Status" .   Does this not make Us  CONNECTED  by   UNBREAKABLLE Bonds ?   Indeed it does, indeed it MUST !   

                            Sufism, Gnosticism, and Zen-ism are, at their Core, METHODS to reach Ultimate Truths for Humans, as I have just stipulated, that We are One, We are Divine, that each of us is a "Living Miracle", hence Dr. Joseph Campbell's insistence upon "The MAJESTY of Being" .   

                            I contend that should the Shia and Sunni, America's republicans and democrats, DEMONSTRATE the Understanding that we are ONE Race, ONE SPECIES, then we can Advance into Planetary Altruism, meaning, WAR will become ABHORRENT and that DIPLOMACY will become the "ABSOLUTE" Means to address World Crisies NOT Death and Destruction .   THAT'S the "thing" about lofty Idealism, it make so much Sense that it appears grudgingly stupid, and ridiculously obvious,,, but look where we are ... .  

The Bridge over the River WHY

                                                            Yesterday I offered that Sufism and Zen could Change Islam and America but I did not explain the most Vital ---> HOW ?  .   We, as in I, have been trying to establish "Shared Commonalities" that Sociologists recognize as >Essential< if Humankind is to Advance in a preferred Evolutionary manner .   Elsewhere I have argued to promote the Conscious-Ness* of One-Ness, that we, as in All Earthlings, are Connected by an Essence that IS "Human NATURE" , and that this Essence is ---> Spirit, Biblically recognized as "The Breath of God" .   I used these 'tools',  "The Spirit of God is WITHIN", and what the Buddha Taught, "We are, each of us, Buddhas" .

                            In this Light, what, then, is the Nature of Zen and Sufism ?   I return us to yesterday's Consideration and these two :   Zen is, "Seeing into one's Self and the Attainment of Buddha-hood" (Enlightenment) ; and  Gnosis is, "The Immediate and Direct [PERSONAL] Experience of the Divine" ;  and today I add Shah's note of El Ghazali :  "He arrived at his knowledge through his upbringing in Sufism, (among Sufi), and through a form of direct perception of the Truth...".   It must be noted that Zen, Gnosis, and Sufism get their 'POWER' from a "Turning Inward", the Depth Penetration of first Conscious WILL and then the UN-Conscious >Tuning< of the Self to COSMIC {Spirit} Vibrations .   When a certain level of Harmony is thereby reached, "IT" "opens the doors of Perception" where Entry introduces not only Cosmic Knowledge but Universal WISDOM as well .  

                          Here it is where "One-Ness" is Revealed, where One-Ness is the TRUE Nature of ALL Humans .   

Sunday

                                                           I'm leaving this here for today, I've been at this since 4 a.m., my ribs hurt and I am famished .

                            We will get to the How of HOW is Zen and Sufism gonna 'fix' America and Islam ?  GREAT Question and I will address that in future blogs .   Right now I'm just gonna enjoy b-fast and find content where I can .

                                                             Tare Forward and Keep the Faith

"The finger pointing to the Moon"

                                                           For MANY Years I Studied Ancient Esoteric Christianity and the most prominent Feature of Esoteric Christianity is Gnosticism .  Gnosticism is this :   "The Direct Experiential Knowledge of the Divine" .   I supplement that Definition as follows :  The Direct PERSONAL Experience of the Divine .   When I read the Original what surfaced immediately was one of the definitions of Zen, "Seeing into one's Self, and the Attainment of Buddhahood ".  I tagged Gnosticism with, "The ZEN of Original Christianity" .   Check this out from Ibn el-Arabi :  "Angels are the powers hidden in the faculties and organs of man" .   Note the word "hidden" and that the Sacred "hides" itself in Mystical Teachings .  Many of Us, those that consider Zen to be a Journey INTO the Sacred where we can find the so-called "Secret Teachings", regard these Wanderings as MYSTICAL EXPERIENCES , but here is one such Secret :  "I draw water, I carry wood"  which is frightfully COMMON and as such SHOULD-BE considered nothing more than a trivial task .   Those like me consider "IT" a SUPER-HUMAN MIRACLE .  I know rite ?   "Fucked-up" gets us there .  

                               Another Zen Definition is this :   "No dependence of words or letters" .   Please read what Shah has written :  "Sufis contend that, far from this lore being available in books, a great part of it must be personally communicated by means of interaction between teacher and learner .  Too much attention to the written page, they insist, can even be harmful .  Here is a further problem; for it appears to oppose the scholar no less than the member of the vast modern literate community who feels, if at times only subconsciously, that all knowledge must surely be available in books. "

                              Some things are "Too good to be True", this THIS is not among them .

The Guiding 'Hand of the Universe'

                                                           Somehow, "IT" got into my head that Sufism could Change Islam .   Probably NOT a coincidence because I figured {and still Figure} that  ZEN could Change {Save} America .   

                              Most of my Gentle Readers know that I studied Islam as a HUGE Part of the [Ancient] Middle East course, while I was a Junior at U.Conn .  Thing with THAT is, we did NOT 'cover' Sufism to any GREAT degree and only precious little has survived the years of 'Away-ment'* .   Several months ago I saw [at a yard sale] a paperback titled,  THE WAY OF THE SUFI , inked by one Idries Shah .  It's a 1970 publication by E.P. Dutton & Co., INC .  and would have been concurrent with my Studies of the Middle East .  Obviously, the Universe set this text in my "Path" for Future Reading and Reference and to refuse the Universe's ----------------------> Suggestion would be an egregious SIN --- I know better than to Refuse what is Offered as {VITALLY} Important but it DID take me some Time to 'get' to it .

                          >>>"IT"<<< was the same for the text I bought {procured} from a Used Book Store on the U.R.I. (University of Rhode Island) Campus years ago .   When I finally 'got' to "IT" I found it to be a V-----A-----S-----T Treasure of Ben Franklin's MIND, manifested as his Writings, of within which, "Poor Richard's Almanac is contained .   So it is with THE WAY OF THE SUFI .   

"Things Fall Apart"

                                                           I WARN my Gentle Readers that what has transpired in america can transpire in YOUR Lands as well. DO NOT BELIEVE  "THIS WILL NEVER HAPPEN HERE" .  America MUST BECOME the LIGHTHOUSE on the Shore of Tyranny  that Warns your Nation of "The DANGER that lies ahead".    

                              Elsewhere I have insisted that Americans are Born into "Original Sin", and I have qualified that by stating the OBVIOUS : even at its Inception what was to become America was dependent upon SLAVE LABOR and the WHOLESALE ACCEPTANCE of Slavery IS the Original Sin of Democracy.  America has NEVER been TRULY Free .   The Signature Statement of America, [that] "All Men Are Created Equal"  is a fucking LIE .   America therefore, is itself, A LIE .  The [Rhetorical] Logic is indisputable .   Nature, Herself, dictates, "All Men are NOT ---> Equal" ---all we need do is look around for verification .

                             If your Nation had the Karma to be free of Slavery at its Inception then you MAY not be subject to what transpired in america.  Still, according to Buddhist Dogma and the Science of Physics, it is KNOWN that all things are subject to the Absolute Four :  "Arising, Stability, Decline, Dissolution" .   Nations and Empires CANNOT escape that punishing Exactitude .

                             The GREAT Nigerian Author, Chinua Achebe, says it so that ALL OF US can Understand :

                                                               THINGS FALL APART .

         {{{ This is me, I am Him .}}}

Orwell

                                                           There's an 'expression' I will examine, it is :  "That will never happen here", and even more precisely, "That will never happen".   

                            In Junior High School we had to read Orwell's Animal Farm .  That was 7th Grade mandatory reading and in 8th Grade most of us had taken "IT" upon ourselves to read his (Orwell) 1984 .  I can say with ease that WE WERE SCARED SHITLESS, but this FEAR was somewhat mitigated~~~~~ that our Country --AMERICA-- would NEVER allow Communism to get even ONE 'foothold' in the American Political System.  We took REFUGE in that BELIEF .  We TRUSTED America and its politicians some of whom were Worthy enough to be tagged ---> Statesmen......so when trump ran for President, WE BELIEVED that "America" would NEVER elect such a cad, such a cur, such a DOLT ! He had NO political training   WHATSOEVER   and `that` alone should have disqualified him from   ANY serious Consideration .  

                             Look what happened ............ .

Martian Ears

                                                           Trump has managed to 'weaponize' --->  hypocrisy .  In the Before Time, trump ravaged Obama for setting out the Red Carpet for "dignitaries" who decried Democracy, now look at what HE did for both putin and xi .   The RED Carpet for the RED of Communism .   Xi's ass has hickeys on it .

                             In HIS "LOVE ME"  POLITICAL AD, trump vowed that america would NEVER `become` Communist and yet... and YET ... .   The Media has BELLOWED --->   WHERE ARE THE REPUBLICANS ??????? !!!!!    Nowhere to be seen, nowhere to be heard, nowhere TO BE QUESTIONED .    They are as French and German BOOT LICKERS in WWII --  content with the WAR so long as THEY remain Free to Live as they please, of course at OTHERS Expense, where >expense< is code for SUFFERING .   

                             I NEED you folks to look "into the Abyss" .   All NATO had to do was ACCEPT Ukraine into its 'fold'. THAT would have stopped putin COLD !   In that exact same way, all republicans had to do was band together, literally DO THEIR JOB,  and THAT would have stopped trump COLD !  "IT" didn't happen .  Was NATO too >>>CHICKEN SHIT<<<, are the republicans TOO >>>CHICKEN SHIT <<< ?   You can hear the clucks from fucking MARS  .  

Tri-Axis of Evil

                                                          I thought I could forego any mention of trump's reception of xi .  I thought I could find something else for today's Consideration .  I thought I could use the STORM currently being experienced by those of us in the American North-East as a TRUE Obstacle that PREVENTS any commentary whatsoever ............. .

                              I had a fitful night, I awoke at various moments expecting to hear BIBLICAL DELUGE and instead heard the WINDS literally trying to RIP the leaves from trees, and LASHING all that stood .   Where was the Rain I DREADED ????   

                              I wanted to break my own Rules, the first of which, "Don't step over dollar to pick up a dime" .  Translation :  DON'T IGNORE THE OBVIOUS {that which is of superior Value} .

                              The Code of AA inflicts this, "You can't call a man an Alcoholic until he himself admits that, yes, I am .  In this, you can't call a Country a Dictatorship until it admits it is .

                             I WISH I could speak for every American, obviously, I cannot, but I CAN speak for myself and perhaps others like me, those of my "ilk" .

                             I have vehemently stated, not only is trump "The FACE of america"  he  IS   america .  Trump has "turned" america from communism HATING to Communism LOVING .   Now there is a Tri-Axis of EVIL ;  china, russia, and america .  

                                                                   TRUMP WON .

Karma

 

                                                       "The people have the government they deserve ."

                                                                          Joseph de Maistre

"...defenses against folly..."

                                                           I haven't been able to find a positive conclusion for this morning's Effort, but I haven't looked that hard either .   What follows has been by the side of this machine for a couple of days, maybe it will satisfy .

                                           "When the war had widened its gap, not between nobles and commons, nor between rich and poor, but between the commercial and industrial class, which prospered, and the agricultural which suffered :  and when the city had as leaders  not the far-sighted and independent Pericles, but men of less wisdom and meaner spirit, more disposed to foment and exploit than to restrain outbursts of popular emotion, then these defenses against folly were not strong enough ."

                    The "defenses against folly" are not today's topic and require much more time to articulate.  but here, you can see the parallel .   The above passage is from the chapter, "The Greeks At War" found in Kitto's THE GREEKS .

                                                                 {As best you can}

                                                      Tare Forward and Keep the Faith

"Meanwhile, back at the raunch..."

                                                           American democrats are flailing and thrashing about in a pool of Anti-trump revulsion, they don't know what to do or what to say to the American Electorate to convince them to vote for DEMOCRATS other than "DO YOU BELIEVE THIS FUCKING SHIT ??? "    The American Media Outlets,  specifically NEWS Outlets,  have joined together to boycott trump .   "IT" 's something .  BUT when will those news outlets finally 'get around' to asking democrats for a fucking PLAN OF ACTION ?   At what time will reporters ask democrats  WHEN ARE YOU GUYS GONNA DEMAND THAT THE GOV RAISE THE MINIMUM WAGE, and not by a little, but by enough so that it becomes a LIVING WAGE ???    In the Olden Days of Yesteryear [the 70's] we would bemoan the FACT that the Minimum Wage was a SLAVE WAGE , that it was IMPOSSIBLE to advance in Life because "IT" was a --->  SUBSTISTENCE wage INCAPABLE of supplying ANY "liquid capital" .   

                            Further,  when are the news people gonna ask "DO YOU HAVE A PLAN TO TAX THE RICH AND FORCE THEM TO PAY WHAT WE PAY  IN TAXES ????  

                            The PEOPLE have a LIST yet the democrats are listless .

We're gonna "take it up the ass and pay through the nose" .

                                                            The republican candidates that are distancing themselves from trump are DEMANDING an end to trump's WAR  WITHOUT suppling ANY 'specifics' as to the "HOW" .   Notable Figure, James Carville laid out his analysis for an End, and it WASN'T 'pretty' .   The only way out is MONEY  V----------A----------S----------T sums of CASH given to Iran in the expectation that MONEY will ease them towards an END of the WAR and the opening of Hormuz .   Technically its "War REPARATIONS" but what will be the Cost of the MURDER of Iran's Leaders, and the Family Members ????    Trump has NO ---> Leverage, meaning, Iran CLEARLY has "The Upper Hand" and can squeeze America to DEATH .  Resupply ships are steaming from Russia and China and Iran has a FLOURISHING  "Black Market" that exists between Iran and its bordering neighbors --- only the Population is in DIRE STRAITS .   Iran will DEMAND  the Money to rebuild what americans Destroyed, all its Infrastructures, Power Sources, Schools, Hospitals, the List is almost endless .   Even if amercan LEAVES with nothing left behind, Iran will still have Hormuz and use IT to exact tolls, and impose tariffs, and further demand TRIBUTE from those that attacked Iran, the Countries of the Arabian Peninsula and Beyond .   

                               You wanna Believe that in an Enlightened Civilization the U.N. would DEMAND that the u.s. STOP its Aggression and LEAVE ---> IMMEDIATELY and then supply the Funds to rebuild Iran .   We do NOT live in an "Enlightened" Civilization, putin's WAR against Ukraine is Proof .  There it  was that NATO could have admitted Ukraine into its Network thereby NEULTRALIZING putin and HIS Aggression but THAT never happened .    The REASONS why "IT" didn't happen are grotesquely SICKENING .   

Polling the Polis

                                                           70% of those that have been polled [disfavor] trump and his Shit .   The polls are suspect and at times have been utterly RWONG* .   It's difficult for me to accept that between 1,000 and 2,000 folks can represent what a Nation Feels and Thinks .   Can those folks be Trusted to given an HONEST response ?   They may say one thing yet think quite the opposite .  We say, Ya gotta take "IT" with a grain of salt" .   I don't even know what that means .  On the surface it may mean "BE WARY" and >that< does "IT" for me .  {Suspicion is a bit cynical} .   I BELIEVE that folks publicly SAY they voted for a democrat, but SECRETLY they voted for trump--- {shame has power} .

                             Pundits have made assertions that republicans on the ballot are beginning to distance themselves from trump and his ratings, meaning,  NOW they do NOT want to be `associated` with trump, his WAR, his Economy, which are WELDED to each other to produce a fucking morass of SUFFERING .  Still, there is a riding sentiment that "people are 'coming around' ", that is, are awakening to trump AS A FASCIST DICTATOR, whose only CARE is for himself, his kin, and his cult leaders --- the rest of the nation be DAMNED .   No one has yet to declare these same republicans as "RATS DESERTING A SINKING SHIP" .  Trump's "Favorability" is going DOWN and so is he .

                            

"WE WILL BURY YOU"

                                                            Yesterday trump was at the U.N. to deliver some sort of speech welcoming the Nations of the World .  I expected 'fireworks' and 'bombs' .   I figured the World Nations would be incensed over trump's WAR, putin's WAR and netanyahu's WAR and that there would be GLOBAL CONDEMNATION by the Aggrieved .  Holy fuck was I off .

                           Trump's 'speech' if you want to call it that, was as BOASTFUL as ARROGANCE could be, he claimed that america was in a "Golden Age" and it was the LEADER of the World in every category that a Nation could be  evaluated .  I could barely believe what I was hearing .  I had expected the nations to BOOOOOO  trump, I  had wished  they  would  stand  and  walk  out to  express their REVULSION .   Only Cuba walked out--- not Iran, not Yemen, not one from the Arab Peninsula--- .

                          I mean shit, all the Countries that trump has "fucked-over" just sat there receiving his words as if he were Normal .  

                          Trump said he had been deliberating over whether or not he should remove Iran from the Face of the Earth ,  he was Nikita Khrushchev standing, removing his shoe and thundering it on the desk BELLOWING    "WE WILL BURY YOU" .   I was HORRIFIED, Sickened and Dysgusted* .   Not even a PEEP from the nations .     "IT" was all "trump being trump"  as "Ho Hum" as "IT" gets .  WTF can't even get close ... .

Aesop

                                                            Aesop on the Auction Block at Ephesus

                         "Aesop was standing between an orator and a singer .  A prospective buyer was the Lydian philosopher, Xantus .  Xantus asked the orator what he could do--- 'Anything' was his answer .   He asked the same question of the singer--- 'Everything' came the reply.   Finally Xantus got around to Aesop and asked him what he could do --- 'Nothing' said Aesop .  'Nothing' repeated Xantus disbelievingly .   'One of my companions',  said Aesop, 'says he can do anything and the other says he can do everything, that leaves me with nothing' .

                           "Xantus liked Aesop's answer and asked, ' If I buy you will you promise to be good and honest ?'  'I'll be that whether you buy me or not', said Aesop .  'Will you promise not to run away?'  'Did you ever hear of a bird in a cage tell his master he intended to escape ?'

                                                    Quoted by Dick Gregory in his NO MORE LIES .

                                                           Tare Forward and Keep the Faith 

*** Just so you know Aesop is pronounced   E  sow  as in the porcine sow .

                            

                                                                  

Cato the Elder

                                                           We, as a Civilization, need Models .  Below is one of my Most Intense .

                                              Plutarch writing of Cato the Elder (Priscus) [a Roman] .

                            "What was even more remarkable was that he followed the same habits, not merely while he was young and full of ambition, but even when he was old and gray-headed and had served as Consul and celebrated a Triumph, and that he continued, like some Champion Athlete, to observe the rules of his Training and maintain his SEL-DISCIPLINE to the end .

                             "... he would rather do what was right and go unrewarded than do wrong and go unpunished, and that he was prepared to forgive everyone's mistakes except his own ."

                                       I LOVE this MAN  and I LOVE Plutarch for his Observations .

                                                                     

                                                  

                               

Is not trump a 'great' man ?

                                                            What follows is from Han Yu .

                             "With the great men of the present day, however, things are quite different .   They make the most searching demands on others, but are sparing in what they ask of themselves.  In consequence others have become most reluctant to do good, while from themselves the great men obtain little.   Before they have acquired any skill, they say, 'I am good at this, and this is quite enough' .  Before they have obtained any ability, they say, 'I can do this, and this is quite enough' .  They impose on other men without and upon their own hearts within .  Before they have made even the smallest advance, they give up. Does this not show that they are very sparing in what they ask of themselves ?

                                                             Han Yu continues :

                           "But in dealing with other men, they say, 'He may be good at this, but that is no reason to commend his character', or, 'He may be able to do this, but that is no reason to commend his services'.   they pick one shortcoming to the exclusion of TEN merits .   They search into a man's Past and take no account of what he is NOW .   Their only fear is that other men may gain a reputation .  Is this not to make the most searching demands of others ?

                            " In fact, it may be said that they fail to apply even ordinary standards to themselves, but demand from others those of a SAGE .  How can they have Self-Respect ?   Such conduct has its root an source :  and these are laziness and JEALOUSY .   Laziness prevents their own development; Jealousy makes them dread development in others" .

                                             2 words :   Assholes be assholes .

Arete

                                                           I had thought to continue yesterday's travels that we may find Corruption and its Consequences--- I am not of that Mind this morning, I felt that it would be too negative and substantially dour , so  I changed my Mind .   

                               I want Planetarians to retain their focus of attention on the Individual, since it is the Individual that is the Model of the Empire, that is, according to the Ancient Chinese, with whom I am affected .  However, it is NOT the Chinese that I call upon to describe the Ultimate Individual, it is the Ancient Greeks and the Blind Poet, Homer specifically .   

                              Previously I have introduced the concept of "Arete" [ R-ray-tay ] to my General Readers, I reintroduce here .  Arete is not simply "Virtue", it is better defined as "Excellence", that is, PERSONAL Excellence .

                              What follows is from H.D.F. Kitto and his The Greeks .    "Arete implies a Respect for Wholeness or The Oneness of Life, and a consequent DISLIKE of Specialization {and 'specialists'}.   It implies a CONTEMPT for efficiency--- or rather, a much higher ides of efficiency :  and efficiency which exists not in one department of Life, but Life itself . 

                             Further :   "If Arete is used in the context of a Man, it will connote Excellence in which a man can be Excellent--- MORALLY, INTELLECTUALLY, PHYSICALLY, PRACTICALLY .   Thus the Hero of the Odyssey is a great fighter, a wily schemer, a ready speaker, a man of stout Heart and broad Wisdom who knows that he must endure without too much complaining what the gods send; and he can both build and sail a boat, drive a furrow as straight as anyone, beat a young braggart at throwing the discus, challenge the Phaecian youth at Boxing, Wrestling or Running ;  flay, skin, cut up and cook an ox, and be moved to tears by song .   He is, in fact, an Excellent 'All-Rounder and he has surpassing Arete."

((( All caps, boldface, and italics are mine)))  { }  indicate my internal dialogue 

Digging Deep

                                                           The BEST Definition of Karma in Biblical Form is punishingly revealing ;  Karma is     "As ye sow, so shall ye reap" .      "It don't get no better" .   

                                I submit that History IS  Future,  the Study of History IS the Study of Future .    Seeds sown in the Past have grown and they have yielded the "Fruits and Vegetables" of Present Day Harvest---unsurprisingly many of them have been found to be Poisonous .    

                               It gets worse .   I mentioned Roman Senators that if they were to be transported to their Future OUR Present, they would "fit rite in" .   "IT" begs the question, Has Humankind EVOLVED ?    Has Human NATURE  Evolved ?????   

                                 Consider .

                                                       Tare Forward and Keep the Faith 

The Garden of Stephen

                                                            We are living in the Future, of course it isn't OUR Future but it IS the Future of HITLER.   We are living in a Future that Ancient Greeks and Ancient Romans could never have imagined, yet if one or two Roman Senators were transported to our Time THEY WOULD FEEL QUITE AT HOME such is the Nature of Present Day Politics .   If HITLER were to be transported to our Now you gotta believe HE'D BE THRILLED .   Killing HITLER DID NOT KILL HITLERISM, he HAS SURVIVED.  The Jews killed Jesus, but look what happened, TWO THOUSAND YEARS LATER, He is ALIVE and some would say FLOURISHING .   Christianity is the NUMBER ONE Religion on EARTH, [second is Islam, third is Hinduism] .   

                               I use to think that if I used a Venn diagram it would help us grasp the nature of "Just Now", the present MOMENT.  These days I'm not so sure .  Indeed, I feel as if the Future CANNOT be assigned to a Venn diagram because when you look hard, the Future can exist ONLY as an abstract mental construct .  Indeed, it is  IMAGINATION  that generates the concept  of  Future .  I don't like it, never have .   

                               We believe that IN THE FUTURE there will be Peace on Earth --- Really ????  How ?

                               The Past is like a Garden, as far as I see it .   If the Past has planted seeds of Peace, then Peace can be harvested .  If the Past has planted HITLERISM, then HITLERISM WILL BE THE HARVEST .   You can see it rite ?

Future Corruption

                                                           There are 2 Problems that need Confrontation, the recognition of "The Future" and Human Corruption .   Elsewhere I have written that Islam steadfastly REJECTS ---> ANY "Future" because the further one gets from Mohammed's Teachings the more CORRUPT Islam becomes .   Straight up you can see the Dilemma that 'the Future' contains--- without the POWER of the Future, Military Defense is IMPOSSIBLE .   Muslims CANNOT  Deny the Power of 'the Future' but in the same breath they RENOUNCE ANY Future  that carries them away from the Prophet and His Teachings .  Even the word >conflicted< isn't enough to qualify this state of Concern and Distress that is experience by even ordinary Muslims let alone ITS Religious Sanhedrin and that of the Military .   

                             Christianity fares no better especially Catholicism, whose only Objective is to maintain MASCULINE control over the Teachings and PREVENT Women from ascending into its hierarchy, which to those of us who KNOW that it was WOMEN who Preserved Jesus' Teaching IN THEIR HOMES by holding what was to be known as "Masses" for the Believers, has become a Silent OUTRAGE .   

                             I do not know enough about Hinduism and Its view of the Future .  I regret not familiarizing myself with the Vedic Texts -- but Hindu's have yet to start a World War so, I mean, there's THAT .

The BIG Three

                                                           There is Difficulty ahead for Planetarians .   At some point World Religions, especially the BIG Three [ Christianity, Islam and Hinduism] MUST be addressed because of the sheer numbers of Adherents to each .    There is a term that can be applied to those interested in finding "Common Ground", what Sociologists refer to as "Shared Commonalities", and it is "Comparative Relgionists" .   I am one .    Of the Countries with MAJOR Muslim populations, there is heavy Readership of my words :  they include Indonesia, Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, and Turkiye .   "It" 's something of a Marvel because my Readers KNOW I am a Buddhist and further, a ZEN SWORD Buddhist .   I have stated my Conviction to present [introduce] Zen Buddhism to the World in such a way as to make the SPIRITUALITY of Buddhism tolerable at worst and acceptable at best .   Elsewhere I have argued that Spirituality binds the BIG Three since Spirituality, by Definition is both Holy and Sacred .  To be an Adherent to the each of the BIG Three means that one is bound to the Supreme Ultimate {God} in such a manner that affords the Relief of Suffering, and a FEELING of Belonging to both Earth and Heaven .

                                Religions also CAUSE Problems , where Problems is Code for Suffering .

R&R

                                                         I'm gonna leave this here and begin the R&R .  I URGE my fellow Citizens to do the same---  eat, rest and TRY to find some element of Peace SOMEWHERE and if you can't then FUCK-IT .   Just know that we MUST put our burdens down so we are NOT ground into the dirt and dust that leaves us feeling nothing other than abject Misery .   We need time to HEAL .

                                                            Tare Forward and Keep the Faith 

Sprots*

                                                            "God rested on the 7th Day" .   I wonder about that, I mean WHY would a God of UNLIMITED POWER NEED to Rest ?   I don't know, but if HE needs to Rest who are we to deny ourselves that similar Time ??   

                                   It's Sin-Day for me, I'm gonna eat 'til I puke, which is Code for munching, and grazing ALL DAY {with my fav snacks and treats}, and watching whatever sports are available .   I Confess I'm a TV ADDICT .   I use TV to stay apprised of World News, as a Classroom, and I kid myself that watching sports ss a Clinical Analysis of Human Behavior, I mean, it MITE* be but I DO allow myself to SNOOZE when I am overcome with satiation and sloth .  Weak I am, and to my Core .

                                  I have but one class this morning,  Fareed Zakaria's GPS [Global Public Square], a Mainstay, for me and Planetarians alike .  But after THAT it's American Football, a WAR-Game with controlled VIOLENCE as its Agency .  I played football like FOREVER. from [age] 10 to 17 and I LOVED it, except for my High-School years .  I wasn't Weak then .

                                  Still, I couldn't help myself, I got On-Line to read posts about the WARS, with the Mind to protect my Sin-Day Interests, that failed, how could it succeed ?   

                                 Here's the GAG :  It takes WORK to "do" Nothing .

Sin-day

                                                            My 'first sentence' was abysmal :  We've had a Tough week .   I have resisted screening it, that is, putting it up onto the screen, for over 4 hours, and I even checked out other topics worthy of a Sunday `exploration` ;  but now I return to it .

                               It's been a Tough week .  I have been beaten by the doldrums {is that lame ?} and at points VIOLENTLY dyslocated* from my Center, a not-as-rare-occurrence as you mite* think for someone like me .   I Confess, at my age my Inmost Resolve gets threatened on a Routine Basis : Daily almost,, and it takes hours for me to restore Balance between What-I-Want and What-truly-IS .   I have railed about the "Sensory Bombardment" of trumpian PROPAGANDA and even News Broadcasts that report of the MASS CORRUPTION that has now become 'standard fare' for each and every American Citizen and dare I hazard, for the Global Population effected by putin's WAR in Ukraine, the netanyahu's WAR in Gaza and Lebanon, and of course, trump's WAR over Hormuz and now indirectly, Iran .   Good, Honest, and Decent Citizens are surrounded by trumpian WAR MONGERS, and BILLIONAIRES, whose only Agenda is the SUBJUGATION of  ALL, in their effort to establish and maintain THEIR >Version< of Utopia .  

Trump the Loveless

                                                           I contend that trump "WANTS to be loved" ---that he CAN'T be loved because he's SUCH a fucking asshole and he knows it, THAT'S why he has to PAY prostitutes to fuck him, which is CODE for "Making LOVE" .   Trump will most certain deny such an accusation, and he may even claim the cliche, "Money can't buy Love" .   He is INCAPABLE of 'seeing' what is directly before him .   He WANTS  to be LOVED by EVERYBODY such is the Grand Canyon CHASM-OF-NOTHINGNESS that IS his heart .   

                            In 1973 the Doobie Brothers rolled out "The Captain and Me" .  The first tract is titled "Natural Thing" and the opening line is , "We all need to be loved, it's a NATURAL THING" .   AT LEAST once a week, and sometime more, I listen to the songs as a means to cope with Present Day Reality .   "IT" is as if I need to remind myself of the Natural Order of Human Existence, in which LOVE is MORE than a Maternal Delivery .   On my end, Love Heals and Love KILLS,  We LOVE our Nation and are completely willing to KILL OTHERS to Defend it .   "IT" sickens me and always has .   Trump "LOVES" alright, but "IT" is a Self-Love that denies him both Empathy and Compassion .  He CANNOT Love beyond himself {his Self} and in THAT is a Sickness that borders on Perversion ;  I contend that IT IS Perversion and his sex life confirms "IT".  

                          Trump is a loveless imperator, devoid of even a shred of Human Decency .  I have submitted that it was Evolution who injected him into our Civilization but I must supplement that view with the Realization that it was WE who birthed trump and WE who educated him, and WE who cuddled and cajoled him .  WE did trump to ourselves .   WE must own THAT .

Victimism*

                                                           Trump just doesn't think he's "Perfect" ---he BELIEVES "IT" .   According to his `Heart Logic` He is Perfect and Perfect people "can do no wrong" .   He BELIEVES that he is some AWESOME Individual with TREMENDOUS 'personal skills' that includes "Building shit .   He BELIEVES he is a RESTORER of D.C. Antiquities and a "Modernizer" of D.C. Architecture , and, on a Global Scale, a Bringer-of-Peace-and-Prosperity; for has he not brought PEACE to seven or eight Warring Nations ???????   He can see his own fucking BRILLIANCE and is FURIOUS that Others cannot~~~ hence his Victim-itus which manifests as Victim-ISM and politically as an Ideology that contends, "America is done being the VICTIM of the Tariffs of other nations."   

                               You can see "IT" rite ?   Trump is PERFECT and he wants EVERYBODY to be like him {to be as he is} ---for has he not achieved the HIGHEST POSITION ON EARTH ????  Indeed he has .    Now,,,  he considers "IT" to be the Role of Planetary SAVIOR, an Entity that CONTROLS the Planet in such a way that PLEASES him and conforms to HIS View of what Earth SHOULD BE = LAWLESS and CHAOTIC .   

                            Trump's Problem is that there are OTHERS [he FEELS] that are even GREATER than he, Putin--Xi, and he can >Better< them by stopping Putin's War, and Tariff-Punishing Xi .  By stopping Putin's WAR and Opening Hormuz, surely THAT would place him ABOVE all OTHERS and be worthy of INFINITE EXALTATION from "Around the World" .   

                          

Clown Crown

                                                           I had a plan to write about trump and his decision to ban CNN, MSNOW and one other from the Press room of the White House, denying them access as permitted by the Constitution blah-blah-blah .   He accuses them of writing "Fake News" a something I can't wrap my head around~~~ .   I KNOW "fake" means untruthful I don't know why he insists on using >fake< .   He claims that they consistently write bad things about him, that theirs is a gross bias AGAINST him .  He NEVER thinks that his shit is bad, that if he did GOOD shit, they WOULD write ---> THAT , THAT being favorable or complimentary .  IN HIS MIND, HE IS A VICTIM OF 'BAD' PRESS .  He has defiantly INSISTED that he is the VICTIM of WORLD OPPRESSION,  that THE WORLD ITSELF IS AGAINST HIM .  Perhaps soon, "IT" may very well BE .

                            Because I know MY Mind, I >KNOW< HIS .   Trump is resoundingly INCAPABLE of "Internalizing" ANYTHING .  His EGO won't allow it .   He can never ask himself, "What can I do to be perceived in a 'better Light' .  What can I do that will make the Press see me as a "Good Person" instead of an EVIL FUCKING  CLOWN ?   He can't do it,,,,, never could .

                            

"What can a poor boy DO ?"

                                                            Mick Jager, Modern Day Zen Master, asks and answers, "Well what can a boy boy DO, but to sing in a Rock & Roll Band", which seems superficial and irrelevant, but is, IN FACT, sheer GENIUS .   We ain't talkin' 'bout Sex and Drugs, no and FUCK NO, we are talking about singing PROTEST SONGS, those that bring PASSION to the Street, and are capable of EXHORTING the Peoples, AS A UNIFIED WHOLE, to abandon the existing Status Quo and in its place construct a NEW WORLD ORDER .   Look at Bruce [Springsteen] and the SUCCESS he has achieved by Being the Song-Voice of those of Us driven nearly INSANE by trump and his OPPRESSION --- TRUE Genius .

                               The title of that song is "Street Fighting Man" and is the last tract on "Get your Yah Yahs Out", the BRILLIANT  Live Concert Recording .   That 's what I want and THINK we need to Become --- Street Fighters, who can wield Truth with Sword'sMan-ship  Ferocity .   When confronted by those-who-believe-in-trump {and their Numbers are dwindling} we must reside in the TRUTH of  Our Humanity, meaning, we must reside in Altruistic Political Righteous-Ness, the CONVICTION that ALL of us are to be 'Cared For' EQUALLY .   Trump has all but OBLITERATED the Foundation of Reasoning that DEMANDS that the Government WORKS FOR US AND OUR WELL-BEING .   Nothing less will do.  

Praying Mantis

                                                            Years ago, when Mitt Romney was 'running', I was the first to claim that the republicans would say ANYTHING and DO Everything to remake the government in their image.   Trump continued that same (get this) Conceit, and we are living the results of that ---Genesis .   Trump HAS "REMADE" the American government IN BOTH HIS LIKENESS AND IMAGE and HIS WAR is the result of his    V-----A-----S-----T    Ignorance, Imbecility, and Diabolical GENIUS .   He has constructed a seemingly  IMPENETRABLE  Fortress to protect him from ANY True Justice WHATSOEVER .   He has his own ARMY  AND  his own "SS" .   He OWNS  what use to be the "justice department" and he OWNS every single member of his hand picked cabinet .   He's a "Slave Driver" .

                           I insist that trump HAS MADE SLAVES of all his "people" and fully intends to MAKE SLAVES OF THE ENTIRE AMERICAN POPULATION .   Indeed we have become "Slaves" to his whims and fancies, of all his impulses, fantasies and desires .  He does what he wants WHEN he wants and THERE IS NO STOPPING HIM  !!!!!  

             We have been as a praying mantis, holding up an appendage to stop a horse drawn carriage .

See Changes

                                                           I awoke at 4 with the 'first sentence' for this morning's Consideration .  It rarely happens .  Yesterday I was (get this) engulfed by Depression, the Depression that is the result of a Feeling of both helplessness, and even worse,  Futility .  So here we go... .

                                    We are in some SERIOUS Shit .   There is no stopping trump, at present, meaning, he and his have ultimate control over EVERYTHING, which when combined with the fact that he is EXEMPT from Constitutional Law via Dictate from HIS "Supreme Court"  generates a FORCE of Dispassion and Cruelty as has never been seen since hitler and his .   

                                     News outlets have touted the `changes` in the Psyche(s) of those-who-voted-for-trump, and claim that THEY will "Vote Blue" in the American Midterm elections in November .   The outlets have intimated that the democrats will succeed in HUGE 'numbers' and gain Control of the House of Representatives, and they even suggest that the House of Senators may also be 'changed' .   

                                    Gaining "Control" of the House of Representatives WILL NOT BE ENOUGH for Transformation, since any Bill the House passes will be subject to presidential VETO .   Same with the Senate .   In order for there to be "Sea Changes" the democrats must win a TWO THIRDS MAJORITY IN BOTH HOUSES which would then make any Bill ---> INVULNERABLE  FROM PRESIDENTIAL VETO, which would then make trump >>>>>IMPOTENT<<<<< > .  

Demon-ocracy

                                                           Democracy elected trump .   Democracy promotes trumpism .  Democracy started the WAR in Iran .  Democracy will NOT feed its school children nor those who are "less than" .   Democracy doesn't care about Affordability .

                                 Democracy cannot fix democracy .  More Covid did not fix Covid .  

                                     Consider .

Amurderca

                                                           I've often wondered why there has been no Revolt in Russia, no Revolt in  China  and no Revolt in any of the Communist countries and those that lean toward Communism .   Of course there's been no Revolt in America since 1776 .  I gotta figure no one wants to Sacrifice themselves for their Home Country, i.e., no one wants to Die for Political Ideas .   You look Back and wonder about the American Revolution against the King .   Folks would rather DIE than continue to pay taxes to a government unwilling to give them Voice and Representation .  How the fuck did that happen ?????  

                           Ya gotta figure Life is TOO Good, that one's Death does NOT solve the Problem of Political {Taxational} Oppression .   Elsewhere I've stated that Americans consider elevated gas prices as just a mere inconvenience ---that the Slaughter of thousands of Iranian INNOCENTS is just a ho-hum condition that does NOT Effect Americans in any way .  I am ashamed of America, the only country I have ever Known--  the one that use to FEED THE WORLD and do so WILLINGLY .   

Fear Sphere

                                                   I have taken Exception to the "8 Sufferings" ---only >>>8<<< ?   I wonder if ---> Fear might not be considered as Suffering, specifically, the Fear of Time devoid of Future, meaning, presently, there is no Future, that those in Power seek us to RETURN to Times Past, that they seek to PREVENT a Future in which THEY have NO Power .   As Planetarians we seek a Future wherein Suffering can be minimized, a Future wherein Prosperity, check that, the Achievement of Prosperity is within the Grasp of ALL of US who are Earth Born .  

                            I'm gonna Argue that Fear is DREAD but on STEROIDS .    When some of us are asked, "Do you FEAR Death?" We answer, No, We do not FEAR Death but some of us FEAR --->  Life .   How much does that fucking SUCK ???????????

                            Perhaps I need to devise the `8 Fears` --- more importantly, I need to devise that which can NEUTRALIZE those Fears .   What neutralizes Fear ?   Beliefs, Certainties, maybe even Faith .

                            "IT" 's gotta be done, we are running out of Time .

                              Q. Why'd the Moron own so many watches ?

                               A.  He didn't want to run out of Time .

                            

                                                        Tare Forward and Keep the Faith

The BIG Three

                                                           The other night I awoke from  Dream in which I was operating a vehicle on a road in some country-side .  It was no ordinary vehicle, it was an Antique that was >Modernized<  for Optimal and PEAK Performance, a "HOT ROD", as it were .  As I was driving I marveled at its speed, and maneuverability.  I mean, it could have been a race car --- ... .   I awoke to a feeling of Pleasure, I was able to drive FAST and still be in "Complete Control" .   It was   SOOOO good I returned to sleep no problem .   

                            I Know my Self .  I knew that the Vehicle was a manifestation of the ---> Vehicle Buddhism tags as Teaching . For instance, there are greater 'Vehicles' and lesser 'Vehicles' .  Hinayana is a 'lesser Vehicle' while Mahayana is a 'greater' Vehicle .   I was driving a "lesser Vehicle" but it had been MODERNIZED to "keep up with" and perhaps PASS even modern Vehicle Others .   I KNEW what my Unconscious was (get this)  'driving at' .   I have long been forlorn that Buddhism is so ANCIENT that it is difficult for Moderns to "Grasp" .  Indeed, I perceive my Role in Civilization is to Modernize Zen Buddhism to make it more 'accessible' to those Moderns who have an Interest in Buddhist Spirituality but can't "get by" its sometimes Inscrutable Orthodoxy .   It's imperative to me to make the Basic Elements of Zen and Buddhism ---> scrutable* , meaning, to Modernize ["Customize"] those Elements so they CAN-BE recognized as VALUABLE to the  Modern Conscious-Ness .   

                           The Hinayana Teaching is the ultimate "Old School", I LOVE It .   Hinayana has what I call "The BIG Three" :   "Insight into Impermanence ---  Insight into Impurity --- Insight into Non-Self " .

Sin icism

                                                           I have a bias towards Suffering :  I am quite fond of telling folks, `I'm only happy when I'm Suffering.  Suffering  EQUALS Happiness ???  How the fuck did THAT get there ?????  I know "IT" 's  Root and Source .   When I learned about Christian Ascetics, how they spent most of their lives in a desert wearing "hair vests" and "mortifying the flesh", how they fasted, how they used Self-Imposed Suffering to "be nearer to God" --- I was straight-up ENTHRALLED .  "IT" made Sense to me .   Years later, I realized {real eyes} that I could have spent a few lifetimes as a Christian Ascetic .   Keep in Mind that The Buddha Himself was also an Ascetic, spending 6 years denying the Value of flesh, indeed, there are statues and figures that depict him as a wraith, with little or no flesh on an emaciated body .  

                             This --> "IT" is not just a matter of wanting to be 'Near God', in this manifestation Jesus .  Are we to Believe that the ONLY  >Way< to be "Near Jesus" is to Suffer ?   "IT" 's  not only Harsh it reeks of Cynicism  [and not the GOOD kind either] .   Being CRUEL to one's Self, how the fuck is THAT ---> Holy ?????    Nope, I aint buyin' it .

The 8 Sufferings + The 5 Desires

                                                           Please accept my apology .  In the Realm of Shit Happens, I was called away from my desk yesterday to attend to details beyond my control, the very definition of "Shit Happens" .   It pleases me GREATLY that my Gentle Readers took some time out of the day to read material I wrote during better days .   I Thank You .

                                Speaking of yesterday :  I had to clear the gutters of storm debris and general shit .  I was on my 20' "Louisville" ladder, [with extension], and as I worked the word ---> Balance arrived .  I bilocated to allow >Balance< to manifest as today's Consideration {Topic} but I did not awaken from last night's sleep to any sort of delivery .  Instead, Suffering arrived, specifically the Buddhist determination that there are Eight Sufferings :   they are ;  "Birth, Old Age, Sickness, Death, Being separated from those you love,  Being  in the presence of those you dislike, Not getting what you desire,  and  The imbalance of the five skandas" [the five Senses] .  

                             You noticed "Not getting what you desire" .   Buddhism recognizes only FIVE Human Desires, they are :  "Desire for material wealth, Desire for sex, Desire for fame, Desire for food, Desire for sleep ."   

                             Recall the 2nd Noble Truth ;  "The Cause of Suffering is DESIRE" .   The Sword Slash is this ;  If we do not Desire, then, we will not Suffer .  Were that "IT" would be that simple .

Miss Fits

                                                            Don't "get me started" on those who wear Yoga pants .   If "All the World's a Stage" , and "All the World's a Bedroom", then, according to Yoga Pantsers* "All the World's a Yoga Studio" .   Thing is, some folks SHOULD NOT WEAR YOGA PANTS, in the exact same way some older women SHOULD NOT WEAR MINI-SKIRTS,  it's just so INAPPROPRIATE .   I've given some Thought to THAT :  I'm figurin' that Aliens do have an Intelligence Bureau that 'reads' the latest Earth Fashions and FADS, and supplies suggestions for APPROPRIATE Attire to the Earthling Wanna-be's .  They get sorta confused and supply MISINFORMATION to theirs, THAT'S why you see such fashion DISASTERS at Walmart .   Aliens want to "FIT IN" to become just average and reg'lar folks, to be relatively INVISIBLE and as such seek the most common outfits to wear "IN PUBLIC" .   Many of these Aliens come from Home Worlds of greater Gravity and come to Earth that has a lesser Gravity so that they can be of excessive weight and NOT feel the effects of Crushing Gravity .   I conclude that not all BIGNESS is Earth Goodness, that BIGNESS is Extra-Terrestrial in both Scope and Measure .   

                                I'm tellin' you-all  :  the jokes write themselves .

Dysturbians

                                                          I've seen folks wearing PAJAMAS in Walmart as if they BELIEVE that Walmart is just an e--x--t--e--n--s--i--o--n of their own residence, that, Walmart is just a Warehouse {Wear House}  {Wares House} where they store new items .   Since it is THEIR Warehouse, what need is there of personal presentation, what need is there to be appropriately attired  as if one is "IN PUBLIC" ??  This sort of >Mindlessness< is characteristic of Earthlings, or "groundlings" to use Shakespeare's term .  I, personally, can't escape the notion that these groundlings just don't give a shit, they don't CARE that they are viewed as CONTEMPTUOUS of "IN PUBLIC" standards, or that maybe "IN PUBLIC" standards do NOT apply to them .  I devised a gag for this THIS :  When you are in public wearing pajamas YOU ARE SLEEP WALKING .  Nasty rite ?   "All the world's a BEDROOM and I am but a Sleeper ".  

                           You definitely can Forgive this shit IF THEY WERE FROM ANOTHER PLANET AND "DIDN'T KNOW NO BETTER" .   THAT'S why I don't approach these Sleep-Walkers, they may be from another Planet that is HOSTILE to Waking Consciousness .  I suggest that these Sleep Walkers have a pajama top that reads, "DO NOT DISTURB"  .   The gags write themselves .

                           I, as in WE, can conclude only that they MAY BE "Sleep-Walking through Life, unaware that they are REPRESENTING themselves, that their attire actually, in part, DEFINES THEIR EXISTENCE .   Is it then safe to say,   "You ARE what you WEAR" ?  I'm Thinkin'  maybe YES, at least in the Public Sphere . 

                             

Way Station Walmart

                                                          Yesterday morning, on the way, to Walmart, I was assailed by a mild "anxiety arrival" .   It was a lower case a anxiety not the upper case A Anxiety that marks an Anxiety ATTACK .   I wondered what Planetarians are suppose to  >> DO<< with regard to ACTUAL deployment of Energies, those of "At Work" ;  those of "At Play";  and those of "Other Activities" --- Energies expended during our Daily  "Out-and-About" .   Specifically,  What are those traits and characteristics that identify US, as Planetarians ?   What makes Us different ?

                             Elsewhere, I have described Walmart as some sort of "Star Gate" .  Walmart is like a "Way Station", a location where "Entities" from other Worlds, Solar Systems and even Galaxies use to enter the Realm of Earth, for any number of Reasons .   I mean, there are "folks" who don't resemble Human Beings except for the FACT that they DO !!!  It shakes me up and rocks me OUT .  Let me Confess, I try NOT to be "HY" when I 'do' Walmart .  I see too much and I get (get this) a-scared .  Not aFRAID, a-scared .  I'm like 2 or something .  But I digress ... .

                             A gentle Reminder that the construction of Planetarianism is ---> Ongoing .  We have a few Definitions, and a few Constructs as well as a certain number of >Ideations< .   Planeatarianism lacks a "Mission Statement" and a "Manifesto" , nor is there a "Belief System" a System that acts as Foundation for Common Sense, Logic and Higher Order Reasoning .   A System of Beliefs that we 'Turn to' when critical Decisions must be made at crucial Times .   We often hear Christians ask, "What would Jesus DO" and in that same Vein, we must have, "What would PLANEATARIANS DO ?"  

The Sunshine of OUR Love

                                                            I must insist that Planetarianism Requires 'elements' that "Define Its Existence" and in the exact same way that our Personal Elements Defines Individual Existence .  Here the Inmost Beliefs, those Beliefs that reside in one's Core Being, are to brought to bear on those of a Planetarian .    You Qidz* know I am no fan of Democracy and those "Self-Evident Truths , Life Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness" DID NOT HAVE THE STRENGTH of  Wear-with-all* necessary to Inspire Correct Conduct nor Behavior .   Those words "Did their job" for the Ancients but  now we need MODERN  "Truths" that may NOT be --->  "Self-Evident" .   

                                                                   Tare Forward and Keep the Faith 

Miss Appropriate

                                                            With regard to "Beliefs" and "Code of Conduct" [Codes of Conduct] my offerings will be Buddhism heavy for reasons easily at hand, {{{I'm a Zen Buddhist}}} .   Here's the thing, if you want to become a Philosopher, you gotta start somewhere, so most Students begin at the Beginning of Philosophy, the Greeks, although the Civilization of Sumer has its own Wisdoms, we are gonna leave the Sumerians to theirs, I mean,,,, for now .  In the same way that we need a "points of Origin" for Philosophical pursuits so we must have a point of Origin for Planeatarianism .   I have taken the "5 Precepts" ---  they are   "Don't kill, Don't Steal, Avoid Sexual Misconduct, Don't Lie and Don't get drunk" .    And then there are the "Paramitas"  the Virtues practiced by Bodhisattvas [ Buddhist `Saints` ]  and these are , "Generosity, Precepts, Forbearance, Samadhi, Practice, and Wisdom " .   Buddhists that want to become Bodhisattvas have "The Four Great Vows" ,

                     "However innumerable the sentient beings, I vow to save them all .

                       However inexhaustible the passions, I vow to extinguish them all .

                       However immeasurable the dharmas, I vow to master them all .

                       However incomparable the Buddha's Truth, I vow to attain it ."

                                 Grouch Marx once exasperated, "Why a four-year-old could see the problem --- go get a four-year-old because I can't make 'heads or tails' of it ."  I can say the same about my 'fix'  ---I can't make "heads or tails" of the Code or Codes required to 'Make' a Planeatarian, but still

                                                              WE GOTTA TRY !!!!!!!!

Miss Connected

                                                            Yesterday there were 3,921 readers of my words of Grief and Sorrow which manifested as Mourning .   My most HEARTFELT Gratitude to Each and Every One of You .

                            How is it that we can find Unity in Suffering but so little Else ?   

                                                                                     *     *     *

                             The "Work" on Planetarianism is ongoing, but appears as "Fits and Starts" .   I have it in my Mind that the GOAL of Planetarianism is the Establishment and Maintenance of (you guessed it)  UTOPIA ~~~ the so-called "Heaven on Earth" .   I feel the Need for a "Manifesto", on the order of  "The Communist Manifesto" :   I also feel the Need for something on the order of the Judeo-Christian Ten Commandments and the "10 Rules of Islam" .   Buddhism, too, has its "Code of Conduct", the Precepts and the Vows, but they are numerous and, for me, unwieldy .   Also, I am suspicious of my own Bias, the Thinking that I can glean what we need from other "Orders" to make an "Amalgam" that suits both the Psychology and Physicality of Planeatarianism .    There are days in which I REVEL at the plethora of Mental Illnesses  that reside in my  Psyche,  and naturally there are days that I LOATHE and DESPISE them .  I have a perverted Tendency to complicate even the Most Trivial, and in so doing actually CREATE Obstructions, Pitfalls and TRAPS that prevent Clean and CLEAR Intellectual 'Enunciation', better viewed as Lucidity .   I heard this at an AA Meeting, "There's nothing worse than a confused Psychology Major ."    My 'condition' is something like THAT .  

Morning Mourning

                                                           I'm gonna spend the morning in Mourning .   Every year I try to avoid writing about 9-1-1 , the Horror almost unspeakable .   How is it the Man could inflict such untold Suffering on millions of Innocents ?   

                                   The First Belief of Planetarians is this :

                                                             ALL LIFE IS SACRED .

                                                            Tare Forward and Keep the Faith   {{{ if you can}}} 

"No Mind" is Know Mind

                                                            The definition of  "Emptiness" is NOT to be found in THE SHAMBHALA DICTIONARY OF BUDDHISM AND ZEN,   DON'T "have a meltdown" .   Know this, without  Emptiness  there IS no Creation.  Matter, in its physical sense, arrived INTO Emptiness, in the exact same way that when water is poured into a bowl, it is the EMPTINESS that "HOLDS" it .   A SOLID block cannot hold nor contain that same water .   It CAN be said that it is EMPTINESS that allows for the manifestation of "The 10,000 Things" .    We have heard, "That asshole is a BLOCKHEAD", meaning, nothing can "go in" and surely, nothing can "go out" .   

                                Years and years ago I had a dream in which a Koan [Japanese  Kong-an in Korean] was brought to my Conscious-ness ,,, it was this : "What's the most important 'thing' at an airport ?"   When I got passed "WTF" {after SEVERE  Bouts of aggravated Mediation} this arrived :  "Space"  is the most important feature of an Airport, but SPACE wasn't enough, and then Emptiness arrived, and I had the Answer to that Kong-an .   

                                We accuse Others of being "Empty Headed" and only a Buddhist or Zen Buddhist could appreciate the pun that results .   

                                I'm leaving this here for today .

                                                              Tare Forward and Keep the Faith 

"OPEN 24 HOURS"

                                                           I don't have the Mind to continue with the 'book report' of REGIME CHANGE .   I  awoke with the desire to write about  Planetarianism,  my  Contribution  to  Earth's Civilization .    I have yet even to begin the Finalization of "The Planetarian Manifesto", it does exist, but only in outline, that is, skeletal Form .   For instance,  there is the Necessity of each Planetarian, to include, as a part of one's 'Daily Regimen',  Meditation .   Formal [Seated] Meditation is uncomfortable for Beginners, not to mention the Difficulty of focusing one's Attention on achieving [Attaining] an "Empty Mind" , a Mind devoid of Thinking and Thinking's manifestation --->  Thoughts .   I Value Meditation because success "on the cushion" leads to Success in one's Daily Activities, meaning, because Meditation 'Clears' one's Mind, that Clear Mind can be utilized throughout the day under ALL Conditions and  ALL  Circumstances .

                                 What is the NATURE of this Clear Mind which results from Meditation ?   The BEST Description is found in the "Heart Sutra" .   When you engage your favorite 'search engine' you may find Edward Conze's translation, provided by "Dharma-Net International" .   I did NOT "grow up" with this Translation, but Edward Conze is perhaps the MOST BRILLIANT translator of Hindi .  He is FAMOUS and "World Renown" .   His translation is cumbersome to me, the Korean translation is succinct and far less gawdy .   The Korean translation [into English] is used by my Order, so---I mean---there's THAT .   

                                 The Reading of this may be your first introduction to "Form is Emptiness. Emptiness is Form" but do NOT let this Buddhist Dogma become an Obstacle to you .   When I was first made aware of "Form is Emptiness---Emptiness is Form" I was warned that completely Understanding THAT would take AT LEAST  >>>>>>>>>>> TWENTY YEARS .   I confess :   it took me AT LEAST  20 and did not happen until I had read THE TAO OF PHYSICS .   

                                 For now, simply read the Sutra with an OPEN Mind and of course an OPEN Heart .