General feed back on "belief and spirituality"

Francis king said:
alex...

a person wants a religion... They want one really bad lol... Not sure why they want it too much... But, they do... But They don't have one... And it seems like they will never have one....

my thoughts?

Religion is like chocolate... in small doses, it is great- theobromine, releasing endorphins, potentially causing a serotonin cascade- wondrous stuff...

yet... too much chocolate makes a person fat and rots their teeth...

Religion is like a relationship... u start off not being able to keep your hands off each other, u want to spend every minute of the day with ur new lover... u can laugh at their bad jokes, ignore they've eaten garlic bread, still want to dive on them... then... this wears off, something else develops...

u either develop committment, love, companionship, get married, or u start noticing that their cute ways annoy u to death, and u start arguing, u split, u move on...

Religion is like society... it has it's rules and regulations, it's in and outgroups, it's shared goals and values... you won't agree with everything "society" says, but you choose "inside" or "outside" for yourself...

Realistically... people "quest" for "truth" not just for the sake of truth... it is best to see whether u involve urself with "questing" for the sake of "truth", or for the sake of something else, such as... belonging, community, a rock to tether yourself to when storms approach, somebody to tell u what to think, etc...

If u examine urself, and think ur motives lie outside of "questing for truth", then ignore religion. Take up an art class, go to the disco more often.
But, if truth is what u seek, then u will quest forever...

forever u will almost grasp it, almost taste it, you will consider giving up, you will hate it and love it, but the quest will always beckon...

and one day..? The truth appears...
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I don't care for discos.... (like I said previously, not a social creature by choice.) lol. And I don't need to go to classes for art I is me own teacher :D Not looking for someone to tell me what to think, I am looking for something that will click in my thoughts and I'll somehow magically know it's right and that is the way onwards ;/

And one day the truth appears? lol... You speak like you hold the truth...





wil said:
Namaste my brother,

I hear ya!! I walked that walk. Couldn't find a home and wanted one.

I agree with Dauer, interfaith or UU could be a place to play and explore. Maybe even Bahai.

I tried all sorts of Christian denominations, visited and explored a variety of eastern religions, found a lot that I like in a lot of other than Christian religions. In the denominations I found the reality of the congregation didn't resonate...the walk and the talk didn't coincide.

Then I was recommended to try a church because of the way I walked and talked...folks thought I belonged there. I tried it, and it was like coming home. There are others like me!! That was 13 years ago after 20 years in the wilderness.

I had really quit looking. I was sure I didn't need a building, or congregation, or preacher or dogma or creed or religion...that I was comfortable with my beliefs and reading. Then like I said I walked in those doors. And now I love the congregation the preacher, the .....
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lol... Thanks for sharing that, So you got suggested via friend and that was it you'd found the place! Whats it feel like? I mean how does it feel to know you're where your on the right track?
 
Alex P said:
lol... Thanks for sharing that, So you got suggested via friend and that was it you'd found the place! Whats it feel like? I mean how does it feel to know you're where your on the right track?
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Like sliding down a slide at the water park, instead of the roller coaster...still thrilling, but a comfortable landing, loads of fun without all the ups and downs, fear and dizziness. I don't go to church because I'm afraid I'll go to hell if I don't, I go because I want to. I drive 30 miles one way, twice a week, because it feeds me. I get into phone and email discussions about the Sunday talk or some such because it challenges me. I go to 2 church retreats, 1 regional retreat, 2-5 youth retreats, 1 adult ed retreat a year, because it furthers spiritual and personal growth and I enjoy the heck outta it. (didn't realize there were so many till I wrote them down...maybe I'm some kinda fanatic??)

I don't go to brag, or prove I'm better, or be part of the club, I go because I like it, because it carries me over on a high for the week.
 
wil said:
Like sliding down a slide at the water park, instead of the roller coaster...still thrilling, but a comfortable landing, loads of fun without all the ups and downs, fear and dizziness. I don't go to church because I'm afraid I'll go to hell if I don't, I go because I want to. I drive 30 miles one way, twice a week, because it feeds me. I get into phone and email discussions about the Sunday talk or some such because it challenges me. I go to 2 church retreats, 1 regional retreat, 2-5 youth retreats, 1 adult ed retreat a year, because it furthers spiritual and personal growth and I enjoy the heck outta it. (didn't realize there were so many till I wrote them down...maybe I'm some kinda fanatic??)

I don't go to brag, or prove I'm better, or be part of the club, I go because I like it, because it carries me over on a high for the week.
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Wow....

Can't think of much else to say lol, dedicated huh? 60 miles a week just to get to the church? That is some inner drive... Nothing I have ever experienced (religious or not) has motivated me to go out of my way by that much... lol I seriously am missing something.... Thanks for the post again man!

-edit-

Wait! I lie, I once drove to exeter and back, four times in a week to adopt a dog! That is 47.33 miles each way lol... That's a one off though, not a weekly or monthly or routine of sorts.
 
Wil,

you religious fanatic. :D

More seriously though I'm in complete agreement with you.

-- Dauer
 
brudda alex, this is from the "jesus:what happens now"thread. it came to mind as i was reading yours and dauer's posts. hope you remember.

alex p said:
And today on my way home I saw many signs of this I thought I had it real bad, but I passed a man in a wheel chair, two animals dead by the side of roads and a lady who had a disfugred left arm and hand.... That is indeed something to be thankful for that I am not in their situation, but to stop there... Isn;t enough, I have to help these people...
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you ask what spirituality is? it could jump up and bite you in the ass and you wouldn't have noticed it! you are one humble guy, you know that? noticing these things, alex, is the essence of spiritualilty. the core. to feel the pain of others is a very very rare thing. especially in this messed up world. don't ever stop feeling the pain of others. and don't ever stop wanting to help others. this is the true religion. as soon as we feel each others pain, on a massive scale, global if you will, then is when we will all be as one.

my friend, you don't need a "club" to be spiritual. the majority of religions lose sight of what is really important, they concentrate on their own self righteousness. their own doctrine and in the process, forget that a person really only wants to be listened to. that they simply just want to talk because their heart is broken. the world has lied to us. stabbed us in the back and it hurts. we're like weeping orphans looking for that love that was robbed from us, because we were too selfish to give this love to each other.

look, these are merely my thoughts. i don't need a religion. what i do need to do is what is right. i did so many stupid things in the past and i am still making up for those mistakes. i don't think i'll ever make up for these things and no religion in this world will help me with this.

i can understand that you want to feel like you belong somewhere, but what you feel is very rare. if you notice all the posters here on cr, look how far apart we all are. and we are only a hand full! it would be amazing if we all decided to just pack up and live in some sort of community and talk about religion face to face all day. and travel the world and help people in need, sort of like a super hero team or something. anyways, its a lonely road, get used to it. that is all i have to say on this. thanks for reading and hope you find what you are looking for, bruh.
 
LeoSalinas22 said:
brudda alex, this is from the "jesus:what happens now"thread. it came to mind as i was reading yours and dauer's posts. hope you remember.



you ask what spirituality is? it could jump up and bite you in the ass and you wouldn't have noticed it! you are one humble guy, you know that? noticing these things, alex, is the essence of spiritualilty. the core. to feel the pain of others is a very very rare thing. especially in this messed up world. don't ever stop feeling the pain of others. and don't ever stop wanting to help others. this is the true religion. as soon as we feel each others pain, on a massive scale, global if you will, then is when we will all be as one.

my friend, you don't need a "club" to be spiritual. the majority of religions lose sight of what is really important, they concentrate on their own self righteousness. their own doctrine and in the process, forget that a person really only wants to be listened to. that they simply just want to talk because their heart is broken. the world has lied to us. stabbed us in the back and it hurts. we're like weeping orphans looking for that love that was robbed from us, because we were too selfish to give this love to each other.

look, these are merely my thoughts. i don't need a religion. what i do need to do is what is right. i did so many stupid things in the past and i am still making up for those mistakes. i don't think i'll ever make up for these things and no religion in this world will help me with this.

i can understand that you want to feel like you belong somewhere, but what you feel is very rare. if you notice all the posters here on cr, look how far apart we all are. and we are only a hand full! it would be amazing if we all decided to just pack up and live in some sort of community and talk about religion face to face all day. and travel the world and help people in need, sort of like a super hero team or something. anyways, its a lonely road, get used to it. that is all i have to say on this. thanks for reading and hope you find what you are looking for, bruh.
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Hermano,

That was an amazing post... lol Seriously... That was really, really awesome. It would be great if we all packed up and lived in some kind of community in the wild! Travelling to help others would be sweet too :D!!! Hehe..

So my thoughts/actions for others are spirituality? I have no idea about spirituality huh? The reasons I say I look for a religion, isn't because I want to be apart of a club... But, I feel sometimes, that surley I must have some kind of religion.. And that Love can't just be it.... "all we need is love" Hard to explain.. lol nevermind I have attmpted now to type what I mean seven times and I keep deleting it cause it ain't what I mean lol... Screw it, lets all off and be superheroes! :D
 
If we're all gonna be superheroes then I'm The Flying Jew! I can fly and I can hit a bad guy with a bagel from 500 meters away using my patented bagel gun. It all started during a freak accident in the bagel factory where I work. I was monitoring the quality of the bagels on the conveyor belt when I noticed a shiny penny. When I bent down to pick it up a radioactive bagel went past me on the conveyor. It got stuck in the machine. I investigated and got zapped with compound J, a radioactive material that previously had only been seen in dimension eleventy. I start to rise, like a bagel, and then I realize I can inflate and deflate myself like a bagel to control the height I'm at. I build rocket boots to help me maneuver more effectively and my patented bagel gun along with other gadgets like the magen david ninjew stars and the cholent cannon. Oh man I can't wait for champions online. xD
 
A-List -- Atheist Extraordinaire. Battling the forces of religious fundamentalism everywhere. His powers, he has long long lists -- think spells -- that he can read off to do damage to religious fundamentalists. He wears a dress suit with the image of a light bulb on the back as a symbol for brights.

The Bahai Behemoth! 10 feet tall, really big guy. He absorbs the abilities of evil-doers and uses them to promote dialogue.

Seeker. Curious, x-ray vision, etc.

New Paige. She used to be old Paige but then she died and like the Phoenix rose from her own ashes. She's an empath who can levitate. She also has the ability to channel beings from other realms, but when they inhabit her body she loses all self-awareness, nor is she very good at deciding who will inhabit her body.
 
Namaste Alex P,

thank you for the post.

Alex P said:
A person (me) wants a religion... They want one really bad lol... Not sure why they want it too much... But, they do... But They don't have one... And it seems like they will never have one.... :/ Thoughts?
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i suppose that there are several thoughts that i have on this particular subject but mostly they start with the question "why"?

why do you want a religion? from some of the responses that i've seen it would seem, correct me if i'm wrong, that there is a sense of impermanence in that you will die and be gone with nothing left behind, and this idea is unsettling and thus it has prompted you to inquire about religions.

i'm also reading that it isn't the social aspect which you are seeking.

religion, per se, has a broad enough definition that we could probably find some aspect of your life which has ritual and routine enough that it could be a religion. i've got a friend in the Temple of Psychic Youth who explains his view is that religion is that which we focus our attention on the most during our average day. i'm not so keen on that explanation but it does give a different perspective regarding what we are putting our attention towards.

in a very real sense the seeking is part of the practice so in that sense you are engaged in a spiritual pursuit :)

in terms of joining a formal religion or going for refuge, as Buddhism would term it, i'm pretty certain that it s a matter of timing more than anything else. i can relate to your sentiment in that you are looking for something that clicks. i can assure you that such does happen, just like love at first sight, it remains that most beings are not patient in that regard.

the only real practical advise that i can give is to continue to read and practice which is the key point. reading gives you the theoretical base upon which you can base your experiments with the teachings under consideration but i would caution against letting the study replace the practice. in some situations its rather unavoidable for a whole host of reasons but teachings which you can directly test should be, in my estimation, directly tested.

i'd say that if you test a teaching and find that it corresponds with your experience then it is one which bears a more thorough examination before accepting. if it doesn't correspond with your experience there is no reason to keep it around.

metta,

~v
 
Vajradhara...

Thank you for your reply! :D

Yes I see life without some idea of religion, that there is only one chance and after that, that is it... And that is one of the only feelings I have in me that says that just can't be... Then I ponder and dwell... And It does get to me.. Because Is it out of some kind of fear that I do not realise that I "feel" there -has- to be more to this. OR is it because there just has to be something more to this? Or something instructing me that there is more to life? You know I ask questions, I gain more nothing but more questions.

That combined with my personal opinion of life is simply impossible... I conclude to there "bieng something" And I would like to be apart of that, whatever it maybe.

No I am not seeking the social part... If it comes then sure I will welcome it... Because If I find what I need to find and it feels right and something "happens" lol.... (I mean within me something happens) Then sure if apart of that is being within a group and socialising, then I will do so... But, I am not looking for a religion to socialise correct.

lol I looked up spirituality... It gave me "The fact or quality of being spiritual." lol... What? So I went to "spiritual" and I got, A spiritual matter or being.....

Uhm, that helps lol....

Yeah patience is indeed a virtue :p
 
LeoSalinas22 said:
....they simply just want to talk because their heart is broken. the world has lied to us. stabbed us in the back and it hurts. we're like weeping orphans looking for that love that was robbed from us, because we were too selfish to give this love to each other.
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Hello again,

People sometimes drift toward religion because the vessel that otherwise holds love is actually broken. They are trying to understand how to fix it and how to prevent more harm. The heart may need to be healed first.
 
Alex P said:
How do you heal the heart??
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One way would be is to be conscious of the effect the pain has and make a point to counteract with a conscious choice. For example, makes shift from self-pity to gratitude by recognizing that this pain is a learning/strengthening experience that will have silver linings. The pain is an opportunity to discover the causes of pain and try whole new ways of being.

I wanted to add to what I said before. Loving others is actually a way to love ourselves, so it's not entirely true that a wounded heart must heal first before love can be given. I think it is more accurate to say that a strong course of action empowered by right intention does require a goodly level of wholeheartedness.

I believe we are in control of our emotional environment. That means we choose emotions. And the more we choose them, the healthier we are. When there has been damage to the heart, it is important to be specially conscientious about the emotions we choose.

The Buddhists have a list of healthy, wholesome emotions that safeguard the heart. I think you might like Buddhism because it will not expect you to commit to a G-d concept. Nor does it require you too believe in the supernatural. It will show you how you can evolve your own devotional path and find your own light.
 
Netti Thank you for taking the time to reply :)

So like harness your "weaknesses" as they can be used for strength?

Sorry that I don't seem to be replying majorly to most posts, I kind of just want to take peoples views on boards and basically listen to what is being said.

Think I should look into Buddhism? Which way? Left or right? Mahayana or Theravada?
 
Alex P said:
Netti Thank you for taking the time to reply :)

So like harness your "weaknesses" as they can be used for strength?
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Or perhaps re-discovering strengths you forgot about.

Think I should look into Buddhism? Which way? Left or right? Mahayana or Theravada?
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Either one. The Mahayana is more psychological. I would stick with the Indian Buddhism like Nagarjuna, which is fairly powerful without need of any commentary.
 
Alex P said:
He wrote many books... Is there any particular one I could study as an overall? Reading isn't a strong point lol......
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There are quite a few for free download. Maybe grab some and see which one you want to spend time with.

Nagarjuna's writing style is very succinct --unlike some of the commentaries. :)

This page has links to get you going.....
http://www.comparative-religion.com/forum/n-g-rjuna-9048.html

If you do a Goodle search on Nagarjuna, you'll find more.
 
I just use torrents... Just downloaded....

"Paths and Grounds of Guhyasamaja According to Arya Nagarjuna"

No idea what it's about but it sounds like a starter book lol.... I will let you know quite soon what I think, The first few minutes of reading a book determins if I will stick to reading the entire thing.. As I said... Reading not a strong point.
 
dauer...lol.. I'm loving the nin-jew stars... hahaha... Who would have thought: a penny and a bagel and now he's a superhero!

Oy Voy!
 
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