Thoughts that can build a world or destroy it with as much ease

[Update: See note at end of post for more details.]

Attention, all! See the marvels of God! He plants flowers and trees all over the earth, bans war from pole to pole, breaks all the weapons across his knee.“Step out of the traffic! Take a long, loving look at me, your High God, above politics, above everything.”

- Psalms 46:8-10, the Message translation

Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth.

- Psalms 46:10, King James Version.

This bible verse gives me pause - and I know I will more likely than not take it out of context, sometimes words out of context tell you more than books with context because of the real secret to the world, we give these things context - "with our thoughts we make the world" it is claimed the Buddha said.

We may find a moving image somewhere be it from another culture or another place and time and have that speak to us as people, shape us in ourselves to only find the original text meaningless, does that make our life before a fiction and this is reality?
This is a complicated question well out of the scope of my intention right now - but let me say that I think that the stories we tell ourselves about ourselves shape our lives, they inform the way we see the world and the way we think - this changes the way we relate to other people, events, ideas and situations.

As a species I think we have an idea of what the "best" we can be as people that can exist - an idea of God, Jesus, Buddha, Allah, Krishna, et al. The idea of the optimal person, always able to think clearly yet able to be embodied as pure compassion - or something along those lines. We know we can backslide emotionally, psychologically, spiritually or physically on an individual scale so we can have a vague sense of one who doesn't - one who is "eternally lucky", every back step we made was a step forward to them - and they progressed just as we did when we could. I imagine all these ideas and dreams being projected as a form - like an image of a person being displayed by a projector. I tend to call this idea Amitofo/Amitabha - as that is the name of the Buddha of infinite light and infinite life, fitting I think; infinite light because it is a mass projection of each individual's light and infinite life because ideas of people and projected images cannot die.

[Quick aside: is there a being at the center of this projection being projected upon? I am not sure, if there was I believe they would not care too much, they just happen to be neverendingly lucky and the furthest progressed being they would presumably just deal with it as it was just another thing to deal with like most people have to "deal with" following the social contract. Whatever is there reflects most of what it receives, perhaps as a skillful mirror.]

The Psalms were originally songs to be sung, so their lyrical quality is intentional - and even after translation their ability to put a lot of thought in a small space makes them poetical.

So back to the bible - where would this idea be? I think calling it God would be a pretty safe statement, Jesus would then be an earthly manifestation of such a being - God made flesh to feel our pain and suffering first hand. Then what about Psalm 46:10? It was sung by those suffering, those in pain - it was sung by us, by all humanity. "Be still, and know that I am God" is you as a person thinking of something beyond you that transmits it's immense and intense light onto you - cleans you, purifies you and speaks through you to remind you we are all one. I am god as much as you are or anyone else - any other living being. We can all make these statements - we can all "other" ourselves to give us the self-acceptance we need and have been missing from time to time.

Is it sad we need to project our love in order for it to come back? To love in order to be loved. It doesn't really matter - if you need that form of a feeling you will find it, and you should use it if it's useful.

I mean with our thoughts we make the world ... right?

[Note: On further reflection, I am not sure this post is pleasant, useful or interesting - I was considering removing it but that in itself would help me feed my ego. How will anyone be able to see the real me, or how will I even be able to present that side of me to the world (or more importantly myself) if people are only used to seeing a cleaned up, stage managed and heavily curated version of me. After seeing that for so long seeing the real me may be a shock - and that is why I am here - to try to share that part of me.]

Now and then

So it appears I am back here again.

Why? Because my path brought me back here - in some ways I never left. I would always use this place as I originally intended to - to store those things I find useful along the way in one place - to use as a reference, I would look at the posts and ponder.

I may even put here some of the things I found on my most recent trek between leaving here and my return.

What I was then and what I am now is somewhat similar - yet different.
I used to type under Alt.Delete - if that matters.
Alceste Rank is my new pen name - but a names and titles are just shortcuts. References to things and ideas to save the time of talking about them in more detail - so don't fixate on that unless it is your path to do so.

I hope I write better now - but that may not be true. It is of little interest to me. I am here to write because I need to write to help me think about things - to articulate them in my own mind. If another finds that articulation useful then I am glad to be of use, but it is of no matter to me to be of use to you - you should work out how to be of use to yourself.

I write here and try not to advertise it because I need to write - if people need or want to see what is here then I need not show them. Let them do it themselves then they will be happier for it as they would have learnt how to act on their own.

If you do find the things here useful I hope you do so on your own terms - thinking about these ideas and coming to them or not for you in your way. Don't think of things here as true or authoritative because they may claim to be so - test it for yourself, please.

Also unless where otherwise specified I will be speaking personally - with all the benefits and drawbacks thereof, so my ability to express myself will be limited to my skills in communication and even then I will be pointing at ideas in the form that I related to them at the time, from my personal point of view, so be aware.

In more practical terms - I think this place may see some changes upcoming. Hopefully not too distracting in the process - again the presentation is of little value, but shouldn't detract from the reason I am here and why you may be here; hopefully it will come to enhance it.

Now I best be off, lest I get too self-indulgent.

Silence. Bow. Begin.

Meditation from Thursday 24 September 2015

It is Thursday 24 September 2015 - some interesting big things have happened recently. You are up now - the house is quiet, it's dark, it's 1 o'clock in the morning here. The air is pregnant with possibilities.

You were annoyed.
You listen in the dark quiet to your body.
You hear the thunder - the noise is infectious.
You smile.
This is you.
You are sitting ill.
You can't lie down - that makes your illness worse right now.
You smile your subtle smile.
This is a gift.
You sit like you sat before.
You sit and listen to yourself.
You smile at the noise.
What happens happens.
Such a way to experience your body!
Listen to it groan and moan in it's pain.
Feel it do what it needs to rid itself of illness.
This body is not you.
It is a vessel you are given the opportunity to express yourself with and in.
Take care of it.
No gift lasts for ever.
You were annoyed.

Someone made you ill.
You saw many people recently.
It most likely was the person you know that had a recently ill family and discovered they could be ill themselves.
Was it them?
It could have been anyone else though too.
Your illness may not be their illness.
It matters not.
You are ill.
You need to to what you need to get better.
Let that process occur.

You learn from your body.
You learn the signs of your body in stress, your body in pain.
This is what it feels like to be ill like this now.
All ills are different.
This one is unique.
This one will never occur like this again.
Smile.
Sit.
Bow.
Take reverence in the moment.
What this moment is sharing with you now is fleeting.

This message - this text - will never be taught upon like this again to anyone ever.
Sit.
Bow.
Smile.

If something this ... uncomfortable can teach you, then all can teach you.
When you open your ears and hear - there is opportunity to learn.
Learn.
Share.
Grow.
Use this ill - use this lesson to increase your knowledge of you.
Your power.
Your understanding.

When the lesson ceases only the idea remains.
Beyond words - remember.
Use the idea wisely - use it sparingly.
That is how you get better.
Idea of a person can never be touched or handled with human contact, with human words.

You remain untouched, lighting the way of the world - being the mirror reflecting the light.
You are light.
You are ill.
You are you.

The illness of this world will not cease while this world continues.
You may use it to debase yourself - to spread the dis-ease.
You can use it to reflect the world back on itself.
You can use it to reflect the light, the way of the world back on to the world.
Light the darkness and shine forth.