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