TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS
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CONSIDER:
"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men."
--Pope John Paul II
"There is no hell."
--Pope Francis, the current pope
[in an interview with journalist Eugenio Scalfari]
"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away."
--Yeshu'a (Jesus)
Here, with those who are still driven to talk about "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc., the invitation to them is to view those as verbs, not nouns. See the end of the post for the full meaning and implications of that.
THE RATIONALE FOR CHOOSING SCIENTIFIC FACTS OVER THE EMOTIONAL INTOXICATION GENERATED BY RELIGIOUS / SPIRITUAL FANATICISM:
While Religion and Science Are Not Always Incompatible, Logic and Reason and Wisdom Make Clear That If a Choice Between The Two Is To Be Made, Only One Choice Is the Sane Option
Why do so many resist Maharaj's suggestion that, instead of engaging in years of “SELF-Inquiry,” one might as well complete only the “self-inquiry” process, thereby seeing what one is not, then being free of all identifications, and then enjoying the remainder of the relative existence by abiding in a natural, no identification (and also no Identification) manner?
Why do church-goers and temple-goers and mosque-goers and meeting-goers and other religious-goers and spiritual-goers (who often go to places where they are separated from their mates and children), balk at the invitation to give up their religious and / or spiritual going and doing and zooming and be free of all identifications and then enjoy the remainder of the relative existence by abiding in a natural manner with their mates and families?
Why do so-called spiritual persons balk at that invitation, including those who join spiritual groups and go to spiritual meetings and only have barbecues with their select spiritual friends and play amateur sports with their spiritual friends and go to monthly celebrations with their spiritual friends and go on weekend retreats with their spiritual friends and visit "special, holy or spiritual sites" with their spiritual friends?
Why do they actually balk at the suggestion that they might consider giving up all of their spiritual going and doing and zooming and be free of all identifications and then enjoy the remainder of the relative existence by abiding in a natural manner with their mates and families?
Once again, it’s not about anything religious or spiritual but is often rooted in factors which are totally psychological. (There we are, back to Maharaj’s eventual understanding.)
It has been witnessed here that sometimes that balking is driven by a (psychological) attachment disorder. Consider the person who leaves work and goes to a bar and gets home drunk every night of the week at 10 or 11 or 12 PM or later, ignoring the mate and family. Then consider what often happens when one decides to join a spiritual group in order to quit drinking:
that person often leaves work (if working), goes to a meeting, stays after to visit, goes out to dinner with other spiritual members of the spiritual group during the week and gets home late; additionally, such a person also goes to Saturday meetings and then breakfast with spiritual friends, goes to Sunday meetings and then breakfast with their spiritual friends, etc.
What is the difference in that person's behavior toward family whether drinking or not drinking? Nothing. In both cases, the person is being driven by an inability to express intimacy and an inability to connect and by an attachment disorder and a desire to escape and avoid.
And all of that blocks off any opportunity to sense the unicity and any chance for “bonding” with a mate or one’s children. To go and do and zoom, especially if the going and doing and zooming involves one's religious or spiritual role and involves one's focus on “self” improvement, provides just one more justification for not being available.
See? It’s not about religious or spiritual health or wellness at all. It’s about the psychological factors which are driving one’s thoughts and words and actions, and those psychological factors involve personality disorders which can only manifest after personality identifications have been assumed.
Of the nine basic personality types . . .
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type One Perfectionists are prone to suffer from the Obsessive-Compulsive P. D., the Depressive P.D., and the Narcissistic P.D.
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Two Helpers / Saviors are prone to suffer from the Histrionic PD and the Narcissistic P.D. and the Depressive P.D.
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Three Performers are prone to suffer from the Narcissistic P.D. and the Depressive P.D.
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Fours are prone to suffer from the Avoidant P.D., the Depressive P.D., the Narcissistic P. D., and the Borderline P.D. (if combined with a high Type Six score).
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Five Analysts and Knowers are prone to suffer from the Schizoid Avoidance P.D. and the Schizotypal P.D.
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Sixes who are loyal to those taking care of them are prone to suffer from the Passive-Aggressive P.D., the Paranoid P.D., the Dependent P.D., the Co-Dependent P.D., one degree or another of the Avoidance P.D., and the Borderline P.D. (if combined with a high Four score).
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Seven Adventurers are prone to suffer from the Addictive P.D., the Bipolar P.D., and the Narcissistic P.D.
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Eight Controllers / Bosses / Fighters are prone to suffer from the Antisocial / Sociopathic P. D., the Pathological P.D., and the Sadistic P.D.
Psychically Unhealthy Personality Type Nine Avoiders are prone to suffer from the Schizoid P.D., the Dependent P.D., the Passive-Aggressive P.D., and the Dissociative P.D.
Religion does not address personality disorders or the neuroses or psychoses which personality can disintegrate into.
Spirituality, contrary to the claims made by many “Spiritual Giants,” does not address personality disorders or the neuroses or psychoses which personality can disintegrate into.
“SELF-Inquiry” might remove some of the personality identifications which result in personality disorders or the neuroses or psychoses which personality disorders can disintegrate into, but they can simultaneously generate a whole different set of issues which result after the assumption of "Special Identities” and which also generate arrogance and egotism which can come with that as well as the senses of different-from-ment and better-than-ment which can come with that.
Maharaj said, “This is really so simple,” but complicated, convoluted minds hate the simple and love the complex and convoluted and complicated and drawn-out. The questions for those types are:
"Absorbed in your SELF concept, how much fun are you to be around, really?"
"How available are you, really?"
"While you claim to be 'fully in touch with Reality,' how in touch with reality are you? That is, are you ignoring one-half of the summative statement of non-duality ('I AM THAT; I AM') and focusing on the THAT-ness to such an extent that you are not fully in touch with the AM-ness as well?"
That said, just as persons need not play religious roles or spiritual roles or assume roles supposedly revealed via "SELF-Inquiry," so too persons need not grasp an understanding of the unicity if they could be free of the effects of beliefs regarding personality identification and personality assumption (which lead to a sense of different-from-ment and better-than-ment which leads - in turn - to being arrogant, to judging, and to concluding that one has the right to "play god" and decide who is to die and who is to be allowed to live).
Relatedly, such vanity leads to a sense of entitlement, and a sense of entitlement leads to misery because entitled types never receive all that they think they are entitled to. A simple “self-inquiry” could expose the way that “The Spouse” has expectations of a partner but could also show how the role of “The Super Spouse” generates a whole new level of expectations when vanity and egotism drive that ego-state’s thoughts and words and actions.
With that mindset of being "super," there is never enough; there is always too little of that which is believed to be deserved that is actually being received; thus, such persons never feel that they are being treated special enough; they never feel as if they have enough; they will always be trapped in a lifestyle where accumulation rules; and, ultimately, they will always feel empty inside.
See? Again, there’s the psychological aspect, and personality assumption and the chaos which that generates are always rooted in psychological issues. Maharaj came to understand that the reason why sages for ages have recommended to seekers that they be free of all personal identifications was to allow them to then be freed from being driven by the subconscious agendas of personalities.
Because religion leads to the assumption of multiple identifications and because spirituality leads to the assumption of multiple identifications (or to “One Really Special or Supreme Identity”) then they cannot be the solution to the problems which come with any identifications (or with “a Special Identification”). Whatever generates more identification - instead of eliminating all identification - cannot possibly eliminate humankind's problems which are all rooted in identification.
So Maharaj revealed his take on religion when, as noted yesterday, he suggested to a friend that he take all of his pictures of gods and deities and toss them into the sea.
Of spirituality, he said: “Give up spirituality.”
Of “the spiritual classic” entitled I AM THAT, he eventually told people to stop reading that book and to listen instead to his later talks.
Of “SELF-Inquiry,” he said that it is not really required, and he pointed out that “self-inquiry” - which can reveal all of the false selves that are being assumed and can reveal who you are not - is enough.
After seeing that “ignorance, stupidity, and insanity” are at the core of the Ultimate Sickness, he came to see that those three key symptoms all deal with the mind rather than with one having mastered too little dogma or having a “heart problem.” Further, he came to see that those three key symptoms all deal with the mind rather than with a “spiritual problem” or a “sick spirit” or a “spiritual malady.”
He saw that the Sickness is about a sick mind (that is, a mind filled with nonsensical beliefs) and that the problems of humanity all center in the mind. He saw which version of the Ultimate Medicine provides an opportunity to address the real issue - the mind problems - and which versions of the Ultimate Medicine have nothing whatsoever to do with the real problem . . . the mind problem.
Seeing that the version which can address the mind problem is the wise version to use is what also led him to recommend that seekers reach a state of “zero concepts” and to join him and be rid of the mind totally by purging it of its attachment to all ideas and concepts and notions (a.k.a, “all beliefs”).
To be continued.
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Here, with those who are still driven to talk about "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc., the invitation to them is to view those as verbs, not nouns.
THE EXPLANATION
If looked at as nouns, they point to illusions and are, therefore, a total waste of time to even discuss; if looked at as verbs which are resulting in certain sane but rare behaviors among humanity, then they are worthy of some attention during the relative existence.
Meaning? There are members of certain groups who say things such as "My concept of God in the past was of a weak God, an absentee God, A Santa Claus-type God, a mean, punishing, vindictive God, etc. Today, I am in close contact with a loving and caring God whom I worship and praise and glorify and give thanks to."
The reply to that usually goes like this: "If you are in contact with a God that wants to be worshipped and praised and glorified, then you're dealing with someone like yourself - a narcissist - and hanging out with narcissists will never bring an end to your narcissism (that narcissism evidenced by the fact that you think you are "godly").
Next, in the phrase 'loving and caring God,' any supposed God that truly had her or his act together would tell you that the totally irrelevant part of that phrase is 'God' and that the only part to be focused on should be the 'loving and caring' part.
"That is, a non-narcissistic god / goddess would say, "I care not an iota about being worshipped and praised and glorified by you or anyone else. How arrogant and insecure and needy would I have to be to want that? Forget the man-made, dreamed up noun 'God' and focus on the 'God as a verb' understanding and then go forth and let loving and caring be verbs - not adjectives - and let them generate the act of love and the act of caring and let those actions manifest through you."
Yeshu'a (Jesus) and Pope John Paul II and Pope Francis were spot on:
"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away."
and
"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men"
and
"There is no hell."
