Is Thinking the Only Way to Use the Mind?

by Tim Che'

"We are what we think. 
All that we are arises with our thoughts. 
With our thoughts, we make the world."
(Allegedly the Buddha)

This quote is generally accepted as a "truth", as it is presented, in the 'New age' movement and it is particularly appealing to the intellectual part of the mind. You know... the part that likes to "think".  Most likely this quote was translated by a thinking mind as it made sense to the thinker.

It is interesting to observe that the Buddha, and Buddhist teachings, clearly advocates, and are associated with, the meditative state of "no thinking". Yet, here he is said to claim that thinking is what we are!? And that "ALL that we are arises with our thoughts". And "with our thoughts we make the world".

Hmmmm... so let me get this straight: Thinking creates my world and it is what I am. Basically it’s everything!  But, we are to go through extraordinary measures and disciplines, for maybe 20 or more years, to learn to,  NOT THINK?

Huh?

Disclaimer: This writer is in no way  claiming to be any kind of expert on the Buddha or Buddhism. The writer is only expressing his own revelation as it has been presented to him. If you are in disagreement with any statements in this article, the writer is agreeable to leave you with them in peace.

I am guessing that the "thinking" minds really love this Buddha translation:
" Look! See how great thinking is!"
 But is this quote true and is it what the Buddha really said and meant? There is clearly a conflict with this quote’s interpretation and the teachings, so let us explore it.

Images in the Mind...

Thinking is a tool. 

Yet, it is a lesser tool than the gift of the Imagination.

You can Imagine something.
That is a creative action.

You can think about what you Imagined and that is a re-action.

Thinking is always in response to something. Either from the "outside" world, or often in response to itself.

As a tool, thinking can enhance or be useful to a creative act of Imagination.

Losing control of the thinking tool can be very destructive.
Proceed with caution! Be patiently aware and assert your mastery of the tools of your mind.

Love is Not Emotion...

"Obviously love is not sentiment. To be sentimental, to be emotional, is not love, because
sentimentality and emotion are mere sensations. A religious person who weeps about Jesus or Krishna, about his guru and somebody else is merely sentimental, emotional. He is indulging in sensation, which is a process of thought, and thought is not love. Thought is the result of sensation, so the person who is sentimental, who is emotional, cannot possibly know love. Again, aren’t we emotional and sentimental? Sentimentality, emotionalism, is merely a form of self-expansion. To be full of emotion is obviously not love, because a sentimental person can be cruel when his sentiments are not responded to, when his feelings have no outlet. An emotional person can be stirred to hatred, to war, to butchery. A man who is sentimental, full of tears for his religion, surely, has no love."          - Krishnamurti, The First and Last Freedom, pp 232-233

Is Money Really the Root of all Evil?

The following is an exerpt from Ayan Rand's novel,  'Atlas Shrugged". This
monologue is in response to a  character in the book who makes a disparaging remark directed at the speaker, claiming that he is the product of money and that money is the root of all evil. His response is very in-depth and will really make you question all our programming about money. It is a very idealistic viewpoint and it would appear that modern culture has drifted far away from that ideal. The movie is fascinating and the novel is even more controversial today than it was back in 1957. We like this quote because it makes us think and even if we are not quite sure what we think about parts of it... we enjoy the exercise!

“So you think that money is the root of all evil?” said Francisco d’Anconia. “Have you ever asked what is the root of money? Money is a tool of exchange, which can’t exist unless there are goods produced and men able to produce them. Money is the material shape of the principle that men who wish to deal with one another must deal by trade and give value for value. Money is not the tool of the moochers, who claim your product by tears, or of the looters, who take it from you by force. Money is made possible only by the men who produce. Is this what you consider evil? 

The Prodigal Son... a Mystical Revelation

 by Tim Che'

 Here, we will be discussing the biblical story of The Prodigal Son from the perspective of the mystic. And from that perspective the story is a true revelation. Keep in mind that the bible can be read on many different levels and what is interpreted comes at the level of consciousness of the reader or the interpreter.. 

The religious contemporaries see the story as  "A story of forgiveness, redemption, and the unfailing, never-ending love of the Father who waits for each of us to come home."...Which is nice. 

Sometimes the 'father' is seen as a physical father waiting for his long lost son, and sometimes the 'father' is seen as God waiting for you (the son) to come to your senses and return. But the story falls apart when the wayward son returns and gets the robe, the ring, the fatted calf and the party! The faithful son who stayed behind by God's (or the father's) side seems to have

Feed Your Satisfaction... Not Your Hunger

"You may feed your hunger by thinking of your desire, or feed its satisfaction by thinking from its fulfillment." (Neville)

...A critical distinction in the use of your mind towards creative ends. It is important to remember that

thoughts do not create things. 

Thoughts come in patterns from the channel you are tuned into unconsciously. To change to a more desirable channel, one must tune the mind to it by 'Thinking FROM the fulfillment of desire'. That means imagining the FEELING of already having what you now desire. Practice the feeling until it feels natural and normal. You may even lose the feeling of desire for it. The worst case scenario is that nothing will change but you will have the joy of feeling better while you practice. And if you practice, for as little as 17 seconds a day, you WILL see results!

Yoga is Balance...

click to read about YOGA http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/real-yoga.html

What Can We Do Together?...

Beyond the Consciousness of Fascism...

Discover the Imaginative Power of Redemption

by Tim Che'

from the April 2007 issue of Edge Life Magazine

Freedom to Fascism is an Internet film by director Aaron Russo. Its title reveals its content as it relates to current affairs in this country.

It is a real eye-opener about some dire possibilities that exist as potential truths that could affect the freedoms and the way of life we have become so comfortable with in our society.

To us... this film raises some important questions that directly relate to the power of the "states of consciousness" we entertain individually and collectively.

 It is also a magnificent opportunity to learn to exercise the power of redemption -- that is, our ability to revise any images in our mind, of the past, present or future, to conform to our ideals. Such a revision will affect a change in the world, and yes, that includes the past that we all love to believe is so permanent. This revision is not an idle rearrangement of language in the chattering mind. It is actually... READ MORE click here

A THRIVING Balance...

One the great secrets of our fabulous life is the nutritional enhancement we experience with the THRIVE 3 Step program. Having been experts in health, nutrition and entrepreneurship for many years,  we have tried a zillion products. THRIVE is the one we have found works the best for us, physically, spiritually and financially. We HIGHLY recommend you try it. Find out more http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/thrive.html

Relationship as a Means of Escape..

Read more about Relationships at http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/we.html

"Relationship has true significance only when it is a process of self-revelation, when it is revealing oneself in the very action of relationship. But most of us do not want to be revealed in relationship. On the contrary, we use relationship as a means of covering up our own insufficiency, our own troubles, our own uncertainty. So relationship becomes mere movement, mere activity. I do not know if you have noticed that relationship is very painful, and that as long as it is not a revealing process, in which you are discovering yourself, relationship is merely a means of escape from yourself."  - Krishnamurti, The Collected Works vol V p 230

Celebrating the Best of Humanity...

Outdoor Stage

Our lifestyle of freedom, health and Awareness recently landed at the RockyGrass Folks Festival in

Lyons, CO. A stunningly beautiful music venue surrounded by towering cliffs while a child-like river flows past the hauntingly echoing music of some soul-full performers. Truly a celebration of the best that life has to offer... People smiling, children laughing, blue skies that can carry you away if you let them. The merriment of Life Well Lived!

More pictures...

Bearing the Beams of Love...

"You see, all things are taking place now. Eternity exists and all things in eternity independent of creation, which was an act of mercy. Entering a certain section of the dream, we animate it and become aware of that which already is. The past has not ceased to be. It is taking place as it took place and still takes place when anyone enters that section of time. The same is true with the future. The year 1969 finds us standing on the moon. It always has been so. The world is, and we are placed upon this little space called earth to learn to bear the beams of love, for God is infinite love. I know, for I stood in His presence, then came down and entered a specter in order to learn to love and take on substance. 

Not long ago I was in another section of time instructing a group of maybe a dozen men all seated around me. In the center with me was a spectrum, a shadow of a man. I could move him about and do with him as I willed. Then I said to him, "Go and love. To the degree that you love, you will acquire substance. Only then can you take part in the drama and awake with life in yourself." 

What I said to those men I say to you now. At the present time you are only an animated being, not a life-giving spirit. One day you will acquire substance (acquire love) then you will become one with life in your self, knowing that all things were made through the creative act of love (the act of mercy) and without it was not anything made. As life-giving spirits we all return to the one being as that one being, yet retaining our own identity. We will never lose our identity, but rather we will grow ever-greater individualization."  Neville, From "Behold, the Dreamer Cometh"

Read More Neville at http://neville-goddard.blogspot.com/

Mantra for Grown-Ups...

Read, "A Child of Earth and a Time to Grow up".   http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/2014/12/a-child-of-earth-and-time-to-grow-up.html

Look Who's Smiling!

The Trivium & Quadrivium...

The most powerful, creative apparatus in existence... The Imagination. 

But, alas, it sits idle in our minds because we have been taught to use our minds to "Think".

Now, had we been taught the Trivium & Quadrivium before the chaotic garbage of "education" set in, "Thinking" would be a bridge to the Imagination, and its partner, in a unique, creative expression.

If you have not heard of the Trivium & Quadrivium, we suggest you take a quick look at its Wiki description here https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trivium https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Quadrivium
They teach the mind HOW to THINK... Amazingly absent from modern education, at least among the masses.

Also Excellent Viewing:

The Ultimate History Lesson with John Taylor Gatto Author of Weapons of Mass Instruction, and The Underground History of American Education.

The Landscapes of Imagination...

Dehydrated Human Beings...

A Cool Dream...

“In a dream, when deep sleep falleth upon men, then he openeth the ears of men, and sealeth their instruction.”

I had a dream the other night... A women was holding a very transparent cube of ice and as a I looked through it I said, "What a cool way to look at things". I laughed uncontrollably until it woke me up!

So, You Say you Love God?

When you say you love God what does it mean? It means that you love a projection of your own imagination, a projection of yourself clothed in certain forms of respectability according to what you think is noble and holy; so to say, 'I love God', is absolute nonsense. When you worship God you are worshiping yourself - and that is not love. - Krishnamurti, Freedom from the Known,79

Immaturity and Ignorance...

Respectability... a Symptom of Disorder

Touch...

By David Whyte:

...is what we desire in one form or another, even if we find it through being alone, through the agency
of silence or through the felt need to walk at a distance: the meeting with something or someone other than ourselves, the light brush of grass on the skin, the ruffling breeze, the actual touch of another’s hand; even the gentle first touch of an understanding which until now, we were formally afraid to hold.

Whether we touch only what we see or the mystery of what lies beneath the veil of what we see, we are made for unending meeting and exchange, while having to hold a coherent mind and body, physically or imaginatively, which in turn can be found and touched itself. We are something for the world to run up against and rub up against: through the trials of love, through pain, through happiness, through our simple everyday movement through the world.

And the world touches us in many ways, some of which are violations of the body or our hopes for safety: through natural disaster, through heartbreak, through illness, through death itself. In the ancient world the touch of a God was seen as both a blessing and a violation - at one and the same time. Being alive in the world means being found by the world and sometimes touched to the core in ways we would rather not experience.

Growing with our bodies, all of us find ourselves at one time violated or wounded by this world in difficult ways, and still we live and breathe in this touchable, sensual world, and through

Hell Invented by Church to Control People with Fear...

This video is of an interview retired Episcopal bishop John Shelby Spong did with Keith Morrison of Dateline NBC back in August of 2006.

"I don’t think Hell exists...",  "Religion is always in the control business...",  

"The church doesn’t like for people to grow up, because you can’t control grown-ups. That’s why we talk about being born again. When you’re born again, you’re still a child. People don’t need to be born again. They need to grow up. They need to accept their responsibility for themselves and the world."  

"God is not a Christian. God is not a Jew or a Muslim or a Hindi or Buddhist. All of those are human systems, which human beings have created to try to help us walk into the mystery of God. I honor my tradition. I walk through my tradition. But I don’t think my tradition defines God. It only points me to God.

No Path to the Truth...

Read the historic speech "Truth is a Pathless Land" http://thekrishnamurti.blogspot.com/p/this-speech-is-from-www.html

Romancing the Self...

The Incredible Lightness of Being...

Wayne Dyer Meets Abraham Hicks! Live...

It's like "The Buddah meets Lao Tzu"... sort of

InJoy!!!

An Un-Real Life...

Truth Invalidated...

“You may remember the story of how the devil and a friend of his were walking down the street, when they saw ahead of them a man stoop down and pick up something from the ground, look at it, and put it away in his pocket. The friend said to the devil, ‘What did that man pick up?’ ‘He picked up a piece of Truth,’ said the devil. ‘That is a very bad business for you, then,’ said his friend. ‘Oh, not at all,’ the devil replied, ‘I am going to let him organize it.’

Read "Truth is a Pathless Land" http://thekrishnamurti.blogspot.com/p/this-speech-is-from-www.html

Your Ten Commandments...

Far greater in dimension, scope and understanding, is the mystical interpretation of Scripture. 

And one of the best presentations of the biblical Ten Commandments, can be witnessed by watching the videos of Bill Donahue at http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/bill-donahue.html#commandments and click on the title of the video you wish to watch.

The Only True Sovereignty...

Sovereignty is the freedom from external causes. It is the realization that You are the source... the "cause" of all that is in your world. You are the projector of it all and you are in Union with its reflection.

In this new paradigm, you will endeavor to master your ability to change and uplift that which you are experiencing. This is done with your mind... But NOT the thinking part. It is done with the Imagination. 

If your Imagination has atrophied, you may build up its potency by studying the works of Neville Goddard http://neville-goddard.blogspot.com/

Aging and the Abyss of Non-Existence...

It is said that space is Feminine, the holder of the objects of life and existence. And that objects in space are Masculine. You cannot have an object without space and what is space without an object? Space and objects are ONE. 

To look into the abyss of emptiness... empty-space, is frightful to the anyone who does not know this. The normal process of aging should mature the awareness of our relationship with what we call our "Self". And it will actually become a comfort to have the direct realization that the abyss of emptiness is actually the infinite potential of ourselves.

Tim Che'

A great link to explore more David Whyte  http://www.shkaminski.com/Classes/Readings/Whyte.htm

Establishing the Imaginative View...

Imagination is "behind", "above" and "beyond" thinking. We are used to using our brains for thinking and only thinking. Most people cannot stop their thinking even for a moment. Thinking is just a small part of what you are... and what you are is "All Imagination". Thinking is but the "Ten Percent" that must be given away, or "Tithed", so that you can allow the 90%, the Imagination, to perform.

You use your Imagination when you step into an "inner vision"... a mental construction of your minds choosing. This vision need not be "True" as defined by what your "outer" eyes can see. It need only be accompanied by the "Feeling" of satisfaction, as you Imagine your vision, to give it validity in your mind in order that it may be expressed in the "outer" world.

Learn more about the Imagination and Neville Goddard at http://neville-goddard.blogspot.com/

Truth is in the Living...

These words from Jiddu Krishnamurti sound like cryptic, double-speak, but if you really stop and think about it... You begin to see its truth. Humanity is in the habit of discovering a bit of truth and then preserving it in the salt of memory. And because memory is subject to constant distortion, humanity tries to hang on to the once discovered truth, through ritual and dogma. But, alas... it has already slipped through the slippery fingers of their thoughts.

Have you ever played that game, when you were a child, called telephone? You know, I whisper something in your ear and you turn to the person next to you and repeat it into their ear, and so on...etc etc. Well after about 15-20 repetitions, it comes back to you and is not at all what you started with!

That is what happens when you remember something. It is diminished or enhanced by new information or experiences. This happens each time you remember something over and over again. And so it is clear that memory is not truth.

Truth resides in the understanding of this process and the liquid, synthetic, ever-changing nature of the mind. Truth is only available to the mind that is "still" enough to see without distortion.

Tim Che'

Read more about Truth from J. Krishnamurti at http://thekrishnamurti.blogspot.com/

You Might be a Gnostic If...

...You have a sense that...

Gnostic means "Knower"

Knower of knowledge that cannot easily be transmitted by by words to "non-knowers"

It comes through direct experience only

Click Here to watch Bill Donahue Discuss Gnostic wisdom and Carl Jung

http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/bill-donahue.html#paragraph link

(Click on the Title of the video when you get to the page)

Sound, Silence and the Creation.

Simon and Garfunkel's song, "The Sound of Silence" is a poetic and artistic expression of the drama of Life, which is "motion", or "sound"... and its source, which is "Silence", or God.

 This is a hauntingly powerful version of this song that is in a class of its own! Hope you have a good sound system or headphones to really do this justice...

"In the Beginning... God moved"

Sound is movement, motion.

Silence is Stillness... non-movement.

Imagine God in the beginning. Everything was created and perfect, yet, it had no life. It was still.

Until God "Moved".

Place your hand in a bucket of water and hold it steady. Everything is still. Move your hand forward and a wave will form. A bulge in front of the movement of god and a trough behind it. The entire pail is disturbed, yet the hand (God) is not affected, it is unchanged.

"Be still and know that I Am is God"

Sound is a "wave" and "the secret of life is in the "wave".  Everything came out of the Sound including "light".

The Sound is the expression. The silence is God. 

The Sound of Silence is the expression of the mind of god.

And it takes "MAN" to express the "Mind of God"

Ode to our Stay in Santa Fe...

I see, I say, I saw
I hear, I said, with awe
I taste, I spoke, I knew
I feel, I speak, of You

And when there is no other
I call the all my brother
For I is not unknown
And you is me
The shown

So far we've been
Apart from then
So long we've come
It's where we're from

It seems a dream
On this fine day
I see the stream
Seems far away

For things you love
Are things from thee
The love of things
Is left to be... READ MORE

To See Anew...

Read the article "Knock, knock... who's actually there?"  http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/2016/04/knock-knockwhos-actually-there.html#more

The Perfect Time...

You may notice that the word "FROM" is emphasized here. We have seen this quote bouncing around social media using the word "To" instead of "FROM". This change makes all the difference in your world. Our modern culture has programmed the minds, of those in it, to believe that everything comes from outside of the Individual. And, even though it may seem that way, I does NOT.

Now, in an act of "Shameless, Self-Promotion", we would like to invite you to the THRIVE 8 Week Experience. Mystics have to eat too, so don't be critical... just know that the commercial support for our lives is of "Integrity and Mutual Benefit"

THRIVE is the best nutritional system we have found in our over 50 years of experience and we take our health VERY seriously... DO YOU?

We will send you a sample for FREE if you would like to try it. Just text 480-298-2354

Are You Dreaming?

Watch Bill Donahue's Videos on Carl Jung http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/bill-donahue.html#paragraph link

Affirm the Best...

Explore the Teachings of Neville http://neville-goddard.blogspot.com/

To the Pure...

We live in a "Process Oriented" culture and consciousness. We are told that we are the result of the process called "evolution". And that health is a result of a process of "healing". And knowledge is the result of a process of "education". etc... etc... etc.

It comes down to the matter of "CAUSATION".

"...You do not “achieve” enlightenment or “attain” Christ consciousness.  You express it.  So what is stopping you from expressing it now?  Could it be this simple?  Just dropping your attachments to these ideas and starting to express something else?  Or are you too identified with them?  Who would you be if you didn’t have the so-called security of a belief system?  A belief in the continuity of what you believe yourself to be?  Don’t worry, it is a historically habitual reaction to disregard this type of inquiry for the comfort and safety of what you think you know and who you think you are: all the “my” and “mine” measurements of attachment.  And there is nothing wrong with that.  But if you have made it this far your inner self might be compelling you to find something beyond the superficial world of ideas and concepts..."

Read "Beyond the Consciousness of Healing" http://lifestyleluminaries.blogspot.com/p/articles.html