I find it amazing how people can't see the simplicity of it all.
Honestly.
Is it a desire to hold on to their beliefs-religious, scientific, intellectual or otherwise-because they think that's their identity? If so, you can sure see how easily swayed humanity would be.
Which it is.
It's true though. Try to tug at someone's belief and watch their identity get yanked with it. How did we get to identify with our ideas and beliefs as if they are ourselves? This has been a point of discussion for eons. If you go back to Plato you'll get the classic illustration of illusion versus reality and why the cave dwellers are the way they are.
It just doesn't register until someone has had the experiential breakthrough. To tell the cave dwellers there's a whole other True reality if they'd get out of their stupid little self bubbles and connect with the sunshine of Universal Truth is still met with the same antipathy as it always has.
To them, these shadows are it. They always were and always will be.
Do they fight it because the Truth Is humbling?
I think so. I mean Truth negates everything the ugly ego stands for. You can tell a person's ignorance by their grip on their ego. Defensiveness, stubbornness, unrighteous anger, prejudice, arrogance, intellectual pride, lack of humor. These are all symptoms of self-reinforcement, when that's the last thing in the world you want to fortify.
I mean, what a relief when you realize there's nothing to defend! And that in fact if someone can help destroy this ugly contracting ego muscle that keeps us from the Truth, more power to them!
But alas, everything in this shallow manipulated world system of false shadows is intended to reinforce ego, self, separateness. What's the biggest concern of most people? Their image. They'll literally ask people to take a knife to their body to carve a better figure, spend their every waking hour studying magazine and television images, and even hire expensive advisors to help create the right image.
It's nuts, but it's "normal" in a world based on selling images.
Even more so this image infatuation affects all of life's choices and most of all the design of the character and personality. We learn language and self expression habits based on wanting acceptance of this image we think we need or want to be. So whoever controls the mass image machine, as in mass imagination, is now in control as much as people are attached to this fabricated image of self.
That's why we have to detach more than anything else.
Belief Vs. Fact
Faith is a funny issue. So many say they have it when they don't. Faith is knowing...or supposed to be.
But belief is even weirder. You can tuck almost anything under the belief umbrella. It's about as vague a concept as you can get. On top of that it's terribly misused. "I believe I can fly" is a popular song refrain. You do? Just don't do like the kid on acid and jump off a building. Do like Bill Hicks said and try to take off from the ground first.
Ah idiocy. All encouraged by the popular culture vultures.
When you know something you know it. It's experiential. People just aren't clear a lot of the time. The belief word comes to the fore for lack of clear understanding. The cool thing about real Consciousness is when you're there, you just know. When you're not, you temporarily "forget" and just need to get back to where you know.
Vague enough?
Let's start over with what knowing is not, and what insecure belief systems foster.
What Knowing is Not:
-Petitioning an unseen Source over and over for the same things when you "believe" it answers your every prayer.
-Screaming your "belief" system as loud, insistently and offensively as possible in order to forcibly convince others of your subjective persuasion.
-Building huge and multiple temples of worship and legions of hierarchical autocrats to give the appearance of institutional credibility, all at the cost of the subjects they are supposed to be "serving".
-Living meaningless lives that have never answered nevermind addressed the basic questions of who are we, where did we come from, and why are we here?
-Stubborn unwillingness to consider something may be wrong or limiting or that there's another perspective to whatever belief they're clinging to, no matter how "scientific", "rational" or passionate the mindset.
...just to name a few...
Ego - Mud Catcher on your Nothingness
People would be so happy if they just died to self. Just let the bullshit go. Be who they truly are, know they're fine just as they are, and revel in creation knowing we are eternal spirit having an earthly experience. When you identify with your projection you're just asking for problems.
Yes, it is that cool.
But the entrapment is the challenge. Not only that the fabric of what you seem to see, hear and perceive are just a construct particular to this current experience on earth, but that there are forces manipulating it.
Ha! Complicates the already complicated!
But that's the case, and it makes perfect sense. Look at the microcosm...manipulators work the economic and political markets and always have...why wouldn't forces of whatever source try the same at every other level? Hmm?
The Beauty of A Simple Truth
This eternal, all-pervading and connecting loving Consciousness is the only reality you can trust and a place you can dwell in and watch from as much as you like. What could be more wonderful? And it translates into a loving world if people would only tune into it and let it guide their thoughts, words and actions.
You can call it what you want. The Universal Creative Force or whatever. Words are powerful but they're just pointers. If you want to call it God fine, but that usually carries a lot of sneaky baggage so I'd be real careful with that one. A programmed belief is attached to that word in the collective subconscious like a 4th dimensional virus and not many have the firewall good enough for full protection.
Just watch out for limiting labels. "I'm a Christian. I'm a Buddhist. I'm a libertarian. I'm agnostic." I'm this race, that type, this kind, yada yada. How often we hear the I'ma's. I mean even the God of the Bible said his name was "I Am". Period.
Shoot, that's ironic!
Intuitive Knowing Is the Answer
That's how we've got to learn to think and operate. Intuitively.
Intuition is defined as instinctive and unconscious knowing without deduction or reasoning. It is way beyond predefined belief systems and the shackles of the ego.
It's also your best defense in a world at war with your soul. In the words of Lao Tsu:
The power of intuitive understanding will protect you from harm until the end of your days.
So called empirical knowledge supposedly based on scientific or academic fact is so much hooey. You can't trust any of it. Oh, there's truths in there, that's not the point. It's the abuse of truth that so permeates the supposed facts projected by the Powers That Be that's the problem.
It's all limiting, mislabeled, out of context and ceilinged off. Look out for that.
And stay conscious. It's a challenge but a total rush when you get the hang of it. There's a cost, but one you'll pay eventually anyway.
Everything....ha!
Revel in the Love of the Truth!..and pass it on!
Love, Zen
