The Forensics of “I” – Part 2
Every human being has a favorite subject: him or herself. This is only natural since it is the “I” who experiences the world and there is no subject that any of us know so well as ourselves. Right? But what if this conceit is, in fact, wrong? What if we know absolutely nothing about ourselves [...]
Tender Mercies
Most days when I fetch my 8-year-old from school I arrive early, situate my car in the parking lot and pull out a book to read for a few calming minutes before, quite literally, all hell breaks loose as hundreds of elementary-aged children swarm from their hive. Depending on where I park, some days I [...]
Knowing Me, Knowing Me
A key conceit of spiritual study is that we don’t really exist – at least not in the sense most of us imagine, which is to say a distinct body, name, personality, history, beliefs, etc. There is no “me,” per se, just a share of the same total consciousness that permeates everything. At least that’s [...]
Watching our Thoughts
It takes some discipline but I’ve discovered the home-brewed serenity possible in simply watching one’s thoughts vs. identifying with them. This is one of those recommended steps en route to awakening but is easily overlooked. Thoughts arise and disappear in an continuous flow, like rain striking a sandy beach. We have little control over these [...]
The “H” Word
There is nothing like a spiritual crash to teach a person the meaning of the word “humility.” Indeed, I think it safe to say that a man or woman cannot reach rock bottom unless the basic concept of humility has been forgotten (or never learned in the first place). A few years ago, when I [...]
Loving Goose AND Gander
For reasons not entirely clear to me, I’ve got an unusually large number of friends suffering from a variety of crises. One in particular is having a tough go of it with a wife who suddenly announces her desire for a divorce (she is also carrying on a secret relationship on the side via a [...]
The Forensics of “I” – Part 2
Every human being has a favorite subject: him or herself. This is only natural since it is the “I” who experiences the world and there is no subject that any of us know so well as ourselves. Right? But what if this conceit is, in fact, wrong? What if we know absolutely nothing about ourselves [...]
Tender Mercies
Most days when I fetch my 8-year-old from school I arrive early, situate my car in the parking lot and pull out a book to read for a few calming minutes before, quite literally, all hell breaks loose as hundreds of elementary-aged children swarm from their hive. Depending on where I park, some days I [...]
Knowing Me, Knowing Me
A key conceit of spiritual study is that we don’t really exist – at least not in the sense most of us imagine, which is to say a distinct body, name, personality, history, beliefs, etc. There is no “me,” per se, just a share of the same total consciousness that permeates everything. At least that’s [...]
Watching our Thoughts
It takes some discipline but I’ve discovered the home-brewed serenity possible in simply watching one’s thoughts vs. identifying with them. This is one of those recommended steps en route to awakening but is easily overlooked. Thoughts arise and disappear in an continuous flow, like rain striking a sandy beach. We have little control over these [...]
The “H” Word
There is nothing like a spiritual crash to teach a person the meaning of the word “humility.” Indeed, I think it safe to say that a man or woman cannot reach rock bottom unless the basic concept of humility has been forgotten (or never learned in the first place). A few years ago, when I [...]
Loving Goose AND Gander
For reasons not entirely clear to me, I’ve got an unusually large number of friends suffering from a variety of crises. One in particular is having a tough go of it with a wife who suddenly announces her desire for a divorce (she is also carrying on a secret relationship on the side via a [...]