Going Mobile

“Thereby do exemplary people travel all day without leaving their equipment. Though they have a look of prosperity, their resting place is transcendent… abundant possessions mean much loss… They cling to nothing, and so lose noting… Sages do not accumulate anything but give everything to others, having more the more they give.” ~ Lao Tzu

“…Go, sell everything you have and give to the poor… Then come follow me.” ~ Jesus

I am giving away everything I cannot carry with me on foot/on bike, and leaving my home.

It’s all the same to me.

I’ve said in a previous post that Jesus seems to be the embodiment of Love. Everything He did, His purpose here, His death- everything was about Love.

John, writer of the fourth Gospel, is called the Apostle of Love because of his focus on this aspect of Jesus’ mission here. If I bring together some key statements about Jesus, then the Christian religion, according to John, becomes far less exclusive, and much closer to what I’d expect from a loving God. It also seems to show us a path to Transcendence (of consciousness, purpose, life…) and Oneness (with the Divine and with men).

Forgiving Paul of Tarsus

‘Pauline’ Christianity, that group of religions built around both the Gospels and the writings of Paul of Tarsus, has, at its core, a message of love and hope for everyone. The problem that many have when they approach this message is that it is also bound up with messages which degrade women and condemn homosexuals. 

Expectations Block Love

I have been thinking about love some more the last few days. I have been looking at the differences between the love I described in my last post (the love I have for my child in the first couple years of their life) and the love I have for an adult. The difference is that one is selfless, the other is tainted by the Self.

Cleanliness is next to Godliness

Cleanliness is next to Godliness.

I’ve been thinking about this phrase the last couple days. It’s source doesn’t seem to be certain. I personally have associated it with Christians, although I am not sure why. Some say it can be traced back to ancient Hebrew writings.

A big part of my journey, and my personal belief system, has to do with cutting through the illusions and deceptions of my (western) world. As I learn more about how and why things (including myself) work, increasing my understanding, the more of my ‘Self’ (my perceived needs, values, prejudices, etc.) I shed. This is part of what I am talking about when I refer to ‘Return’ as one side of an aspect of the human experience.

I have noticed that as this process takes place, the more I revert/return to being a person that might be called ‘good’, and the more my thoughts and actions are in line with common moral teachings of the major religions.

This process of shedding my ‘Self’, and unlearning, might be like cleaning myself up. I have been removing the stains (some of them very tough) of values and beliefs that have been drilled into me, through various channels, since I was a child. Some of these values, ideas, and ‘needs’ don’t actually serve me, let alone the community. They are selfish, divisive, materialistic, vain… They are dirt.

To paraphrase St. Paul (not that I am a Christian), I won’t be conformed to this world, but be renewed (made like new again) by the transforming of my mind. I will return to my natural/original state, perhaps created in God’s image, and perhaps intended to walk in the same manner as He walked.

In other words, as I clean myself up, removing the stains I have acquired from my/this western world, perhaps I will emulate Jesus in my own humble way, and be next to Godly

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Whoever Jesus was, He was like water. He was good to all, expressing and doing love. The Tao Teh Ching (chapter 8) says that higher good is like water- the good in it benefits all, and it can be found in lowest of places, where people dislike to be. As I make my own humble journey in this direction, I hope to emulate water- clear, yielding, noncontentious, and good to all. Having said that, I will also say that I hope to emulate Him (Jesus), in my own less-than-perfect way.

Jesus’ unconditional love, keeping company with, and guiding, even the lowest of His society (tax collectors, prostitutes, etc.), placing Himself in harm’s way for others, not clinging to worldly wealth, serving others… I could go on. These are all attributes of someone who has no self, but who instead has an existence and purpose that transcends his individual life. It makes me think of someone who has achieved enlightenment and Oneness- the ultimate result of the Return.

Truly if Jesus had the consciousness of God (you can’t get any higher of a consciousness), total perception, knowledge, and understanding, then His ‘Return’ would be complete- His enlightenment would be complete, and He would be indistinguishable from the the Divine (…maybe that statement is redundant… or maybe that’s how some recognized Him to be Divine).

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I have observed many parallels between the walk and attitudes of the Taoist sage, and the Christian path. I think If I were to substitute the word ‘heaven’ for ‘God’ in the Tao Teh Ching, it would be hard to distinguish the practical teachings of the Bible and that Taoist text.

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I am off on a tangent here, just rambling on, thinking out loud/in typed word… Any thoughts, regardless of how religious or Christian they might be, would be welcome. Jesus’ qualities, and description as Divine, as example of the ultimate result of Return, is an idea I intend to explore.