Very superstitious, writing's on the wall,
Very superstitious, ladders bout' to fall,
Thirteen month old baby, broke the lookin' glass
Seven years of bad luck, the good things in your past.

oo When you believe in things that you don't understand,
Then you suffer,
Superstition ain't the way

Very superstitious, wash your face and hands,
Rid me of the problem, do all that you can,
Keep me in a daydream, keep me goin' strong,
You don't wanna save me, sad is my song.

When you believe in things that you don't understand,
Then you suffer,
Superstition ain't the way, yeh, yeh.

Very superstitious, nothin' more to say,
Very superstitious, the devil's on his way,
Thirteen month old baby, broke the lookin' glass,
Seven years of bad luck, good things in your past

When you believe in things that you don't understand,
Then you suffer,
Superstition ain't the way, no, no, no

secrets of fluid movement revealled 119 to 129

A person needs to be tough to keep writing in all these social networking applications. They should also know themselves fairly well, I guess. And, remember to throw around those old psych catch phrases about 'projection' and 'transference' to those who don't: otherwise known as h8trs.

In other news 'I' The Ego, received, not one but, two personal emails from MT - it's like Elvis sending me a memo penned by Michael Jackson the day before he died: MEGA.

Finally, I can feel my heartbeat. And a general pulse about the shoulder / neck region. Body starting to run down. Brings on an intermittent sobering focus on the corporeal. I'm no way at all interested in jumping boots and all into any sort of fitness program to redress this natural inclination to the terminal. So I'm experiencing a continual thud, thud, thud type countdown that I find strangely comforting.

I will spend the day marking a few exams and hope to visit Mojo's in Freo this evening - in the rain.

(Thank you me, that was a very nice entry 'I' enjoyed it - somewhat. (It needs an indulgent youtube entry).
I did try the obvious, that scene from Hamlet but it appears the MJ searchers are clogging up the tube.
*ai me*

"The Irish Druids, Egyptian Magi, Native American Shaman, and members of the Lunar and Stellar Cults of the world, understood the subtle relationship between noetic processes and physical events. Long before the advent of modern quantum science, they knew about the Implicate Order and that consciousness is capable of causing matter to alter its nature." MT




noetic
'I would employ the word noetic to express all those cognitions which originate in the mind itself. --Sir W. Hamilton.'

implicate
Archaic. to fold or twist together; intertwine; interlace

"What is matter? Particles or waves?"

"The observer collapsed the wave function simply by observing."

"(Astrology/ the Zodiac) is an inherent attribute of the individual and collective psyche, a genetic encodation, an eidetic image within our so-called "Race Memory," and an archetype projected by consciousness onto the external world." MT





eidetic
pertaining to the faculty of projecting images,
marked by or involving extraordinarily accurate and vivid recall especially of visual images eidetic memory,
of visual imagery of almost photographic accuracy.


"It's as if the panorama already existed within his head... a blueprint for reality."

Jeff Buckley - another Sun King drowned in water for manifesting the divinely tuned human, by those who erected him as a Trojan horse?

OH! Buddha!
I finally cashed in some good karma chips!
My first week back at work was great :D

And, this sunday, I begin the advanced program at my local buddhist centre - studying the same text for two n a half years. Clocking in with my personal meditation object for the week, essays n exams - phew, I made it, to here :D

I think there is something to be said for the notion that individuals need to be wary of everything being blamed on the recession. Particularly when the bogey is such a dry unknowable as the economy. It has few enemies, this bogey and reason to tighten our belts to the point of anorexic lifestyles, because its too damn boring to stick with and figure out for ourselves. So much commentary to wade through. It's like the middle east! After a while its total bs overload and you make a choice - give over my life to working this whole thing out from scratch, without gaps, or walk away. While I can't say why, I do say be careful of those in the know, or more in the know, exacting a pound of flesh based on the Budget Bogey.

Someone must be able to point me in the direction of an articulate conspiracy theory on this one?

http://projects.nytimes.com/44th_president/new_team/show/eric-shinseki

While swatting up on the folks that make up the Obama administration I came across Secretary for Veteren Affairs Eric Shinseki. I doubt a Japanese guy of any make up would get anywhere near such a position in Oz - no way. The reason being the POW experience of Oz soldiers. So, old diggers business being handled by a Jap? Oh hell no. I wonder if there isn't some similar reaction in the US due to the whole Pearl Harbour thing? Which, btw, the Austns told the Americans about. Maybe if they hadn't been called Austn Intelligence the Yanks woulda listened :) ASIO is the brunt of many jokes by us ourselves, to this day, so fair enough. I like Shinseki's response to criticism that he shoulda pushed harder against Iraq at a crucial time 'prolly, not my style'. There is so much to be learnt in that phrase, in retrospect. It embraces the notion that if you want to learn the hard way then well, I guess that's how its gonna be. Im gonna try to remember that when I go back to work: I'll say to my colleagues, "I'm pulling a Shinseki on this one." They won't have a clue who he is, so that will make me smile.


We have the simultaneously very cool and very daggy Penny Wong, Minister for Climate Change, in Ruddy's admin. She is Malaysian / Australian, so everyone thinks she's Chinese, a lesbian - and- a Christian. She wanted to be a doctor but couldnt handle the blood. She has some sort of insane work ethic that comes close to rivalling Ruddy himself.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny_Wong


I wonder if Ruddy's Chinese lingo is a factor Obama will consider using to relate to the Chinese? They can face off, 'C'mon man, I'm way cooler than you' style along the 'Im black' / 'I speak Chinese' (I guess its Mandarin) line. Ruddy will be all 'Get over y'self, you're half black' and Obama will be 'Where it counts baby, where it counts'. When you look at it like that the US n Oz leaders are more Euro-like, got personality and make mistakes but with serious skills.

I am completely smitten, dang! Now, that is something to shut your mouth and go weak at the knees for, right there. And, how many male humans can you actually say that about? Since Jesus? How many? Yeh, that's right, few n far between. Im looking forward to watchn TV for the next 4 years :)

What is the difference, exactly, between a scientific hypothesis and faith?

I've been following a, as I see it for now, valid argument for the existence of spiritual beings based on the fact of my existence as it appears to my pet rabbit.

Those doors to rooms in The Matrix, and of course Keanu Reeves, feature in my musings now and then.

If I exist for my pet rabbit then spiritual beings can exist, in the same way, for me / you. My pet rabbit needs a lot of care, money, mobility, all of which I provide because I love him. He already has been through misery and discomfort and pain due to his teeth. At the end of the week he will endure more pain with 6 front teeth extracted. I will take him to an expert, me being like a bodhisattva and the expert vet a buddha, to really address his specific problem with his teeth. He will be have pain inflicted upon him for his own benefit, under as much comfort as we can provide: anaesthetic, pain killers, soft towels, cuddles, strokes etc. But, he definitely will have to go through the pain of his dodgy dental situation alone, subjectively. As he does that I will watch him and provide what I can for him. To him, I might as well be a spiritual being performing miracles that appear sometimes harsh and brutal and mostly caring and comforting. If I am that to him, spiritual beings can be that to me: spiritual beings can logically, validly exist.

Scientific hypothesis imagines a solution for something then works backwards from there checking if this is valid. Faith then, is perhaps half baked in that it is not (usually in the individual) tested to prove it, for a positive result. It gets stymied in defense against attacks by cynics that its weak minded lack of responsibility for self. Which if fact it may be if it is not investigated fully, tested and, as thought based arguments are, proven valid.

Electrical impulses go through my pet rabbits brain when I appear. I likely do not appear to him as I do to myself and other humans. To posit that reality is nothing more than electrical impulses is okay, as Warner does in his commentary on Dogen's Shobogenzo, but, it is highly likely that there is more to it than that. If my pet rabbit stops where Warner (and supposedly Dogen does) he remains true to his rabbitness but misses out on entering, even a step, into my humaness.

Then the argument arises why does a perfectly excellent rabbit in a happy home need to be anything other than a rabbit? Why does he need a human to take care of him, he could simply die in the wild. No big deal except for the human's attachment. The rabbit is cool and the human needs to get a life! The counter argument of course is that the rabbit suffers as a rabbit, in ignorance and needs to be conscious of all there is. Why? To slowly tread a path out of ignorance and suffering, via wisdom and serving others to a state of omniscience that ceases suffering and ignorant cyclic existence. I think Warner, after Dogen, would say why? Just let the rabbit be, and as a human just leave the electrical impulses in your brain be, and be a good human. What motivates you to want to be more than human, really? Ambition? Desire? Control? Vanity?

Keanu Reeves: "I found another key" (places it in generic door).

*and no, Im not spell n grammar modifying this document.

Woke up feeling two things. That I'd lost a realisation I was only just barely conscious of yesterday about no separateness. Something to do with the universe and mind. No one is separate from the universe if they are in it, they are it so everyone and everything, including ourself / myself is the one thing/universe/mind. Only it wasnt a verbal / intellectual realsiation, it was more playing out in front of my eyes...

I need to dedicate realisations to a dharma protector? I need to investigate this Shugden issue?

Second feeling was of being down due to a friend leaving information on boundaries as they are set in gaol. Handout for staff that focused on never letting an inmate slowly get through your boundaries. Seemed kind of anathema to my practice in waiting of cherishing others. I thought well, this is serious stuff, these people commit heinous crimes so who am I to face the world with bs, namby-pamby cherish others as if they were people I already cherish. So, I felt like a fool. I felt like a fraud, just trying to escape reality again, only with a half baked plan to cherish simply because Ive been told by someone who is better than me to do that. *slump*

Then, I figured, hang on, this is great. Before I return to work and put my plan to cherish, in my own way, into action I have had a preview. It won't feel 'wonderful' and exhilerating, some of the time, it will feel crap. So what! If things feel crap, that doesnt make them crap. Two of the profiles for people who have boundary issues are 'invaders' of others boundaries and 'doormats'. Ive been stressing about those two, thinking I swing between both extremes. Worrying that if I cherish others will they take advantage of my good nature and walk all over me. I know if that happens I will explode into a formidable force: one of two extremes. Knowing that however, I simply watch it, be mindful of balancing the two extremes. That won't be easy but, I can do it or at least try to do it, I know that.

'Even if someone you have helped does wrong by you, don't retaliate' or something like that, is in the 8 Verses. I need to remember that what I did learn from that handout on boundaries in gaol is to TELL someone immediately if a person is trying to infiltrate your boundaries. I can put these two pieces of information (one worldly and practical the other spiritual and practical) together to combat any extreme behaviour on my part:

1) If someone treats me like a doormat in response to me 'cherishing' them, then, I will TELL someone. Not in an accusatory way. Simply note it down and refer it to a superior. Who, btw, I am seeing as my two teachers. I have a computer system at work for noting down all behaviours, these go on record so, I am simply following procedure. This noting down must be objective, using quotes and times and be sequential. I feel if I write any so called doormat treating behaviour down in this way I am dealing with it without sweeping it under the carpet or exploding into the extreme of imposing my will on others and infiltrating their boundaries. *exhale* :)

2) What was the second point? Can't remember.

Finally have something to actually journal to myself about, as in, type it out to make it manifest in order to better understand and to actually practice these, ever so nascent realisations.

1) The eye can't see the eye.
The eye can never see the eye. Eye can't see itself. Keep pondering that.
(I keep getting stuck on 'it can see itself in a mirror' but can't use the mirror as a metaphor for something ...)

2) Cherish others > exchange self for other(s).
Have successfully done this. Must constantly 'try' to see, or even full blown hallucinatory imagine, others as people I already cherish - it will work, just don't know how long it will take. Time's not the issue, perseverance is. Thank Buddha! that's one quality I DO have. I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed but, persevere, at a snail's pace, I do. I am the tortoise in The Tortoise and the Hare.

EG of Cherish/Exchange: At work there is a well known pain in the butt. They just happen to look exactly like someone I completely, unreservedly cherish. I cannot approach them without substituting the person I actually cherish and cannot stop myself from speaking to them and acting around them as I do with the actual cherished person. Result, they are an absolute delight around me. I love being around them, seeing their face, praising them just for being. Although they speak and act beautifully to me, I don't ever think of how they will respond to me, Im not in the picture its all about them just being alive and there. There is no me when they are around. However, this is because of 'the other person', I actually cherish, not them exactly.

Great, that means cherishing others, exchaning self for others works, even if its a type of imaginary hallucination! If it works on someone whose appearance is almost exactly like someone I cherish and exchange myself for naturally, I can work on those who don't look like those I cherish. How will I do this - well, Im Piscean so I can imagine ridiculously hallucinatory shit equal to reality, totally replacing reality for a million lifetimes... Ive done that all my life. I think it comes across as aloofness, but, it's usually just the appearance of me lost in a trippy imaginary world as the real one is too dull or difficult. Again, like perseverence, its not exactly impressive, but it works. Im definitely at the 'whatever works' stage. That should lead to experiential realisations that I can't deny and therefore - realisations along the path, so to speak.

To start: I will actually imagine all people at work (maybe all people later) to look like / appear as people I truly cherish. (NB: Don't use their name, say cherished person's name in my mind or under my breath). These are mainly comprised of children, friends, old people and pets. Not the in love / infatuation stuff - thankfully I don't have that anymore but even still, if it works, Id recommend it. As long as you can know you are imagining and not a tripper who can't live in imagaination without sacrificing reality. I should be fine. So, I will imagine - like a lil kid - that any person in front of me 'looks like' someone I cherish. My superiors: managers and bosses will 'look like' two specific nuns / teachers. I really respect them, so I will imagine I am facing or walking past those two nuns whenever I see a manager or my boss. My colleagues I will see / treat / talk to / approach as a cherished, respected, loved friend who Im a lil nervous of - not my friends who are sort of equal to me. All colleagues and friends will appear as this one person. I should put together a collage, in photoshop or woteva of these people and then see the whole world, everyday as being only repeats of these people until I fully realise this approach really works and then try stepping out into seeing others as they are: not needing to 'look like' people I cherish and respect and effortlessly exchange myself for.

Okay, so use what Im good at, trippy imagination and hallucination.

3) Hell is 'the mistaken belief that' hell is other people.

Oh, how fond I am of that cliched Sartre quote. Fond because I truly feel it. Not because Im fond of Sartre or being seen as an existentialist in some way. It is so real for me. But! Ive realised I love solitude because in solitude I don't encounter this mistaken belief. Not because its better to be alone. Not because there is more peace and quiet and harmony in solitude but because I don't bash up against my own mistaken belief or view that it is other people who cause all my suffering and grief. Wow, for me that is a seriously full on realisation. I knew all these things intellectually but that's not the same thing, at all. It's like a picture of a fire to a potato compared to a steaming, hot actual baked potato on a cold winter day. Potatoes?! Whatever works...

Without others there is no progress along the path. Again, intellectually this is sort of accepted in a begrudging way. It needs to be fully embraced. Im not there yet, Ill be picking it up with tweasers n tongs for a while yet but Im beginning to really accept that view. I gotta say, Im almost excited to put this into practice! Almost. I am such a fckn hot head / opinionated / dominating public person that if I can stay focused on these right views and override my usual, habitual patterns of shooting off and forcing my view on others a few times, I dont think one counts, then I will be seriously chuffed - I need to watch that though coz that could be just like adding notches to my Wannabe Buddhist Belt - ego stroking, so ... need to remember to check, am I adding notches or diving happily into realisations brought about by these practices.

How neat is this backdrop? A friend in theatre posted it. I wanna paint it on my wall, or something similar. It appears to be a theme behind Wizard of Oz type characters, there's another one of a desert landscape inside a heart behind an actor in a cute lion costume.

Having established the pettiness of hair. I thought Id take a leaf out of ocha's lj and perhaps suggest taking pics of something like the contents of our fridge or our latest gadget.

Here is my fridge displaying the essence of emptiness quite well. After the organic growers market tomorrow, we shall see. And, my latest, favourite gadgets are: a tea cup / pot with lid and ground coffee filter, simply pop on a cup and add boiling water.