For some reason I still don't feel that lying around the house crying sadness. But rather, a very intense painful and boiling rage; a looking forward to biting the head off of anyone who crosses my path kind of rage. Looking forward to it. Welcoming disagreement for a chance to take a swing or burst another into the kind of tears I should be shedding by now. Normally the gentle gregarious and oh so very social Ambassador. Now I seethe. Ready to pounce. This event has brought out the worst in me. Someone I know well, but have not seen in many years. When I was a boy, we knew each other very well. Best friends. Brothers in arms. We used to fight every chance we got. I tore the faces off of every kid I had the chance to with my fists back in school. I was the king of cynicism, vandalism, self destruction, and tearing people down. A rebel with many causes. The angry young man, but not the Billy Joel type (who the hell sings high soaring melodies when truly angry?), but more of the Clash, Sex Pistols, Iggy and the Stooges type. Decades have passed since those fiery days and that aspect of self had seemed to pass along with them. Or so I thought. Every now and then, he returns.
And so once again he is here. I am. So he is. So I am. United once again. Breathing and seething together as one. We need each other now. During moments like this. For sometimes life is wicked and cruel. Slaps us down like the pathetically arrogant while still unknowingly ignorant tree climbing bug eating home destroying parasites we are. Such is life for the lost baggage that we truly are. Left to live or die, fend for ourselves, suffer, groan, cry, scream, kill or be killed. Left for dead on a giant rock that floats in the middle of nowhere in what appears to be empty space. When I contemplate our fate, I welcome my new-found old friend.
Princess Little Tree falls into a puddle of tears, face soaking wet, sobbing, a few times every hour. But I don't. I am a desert. I am a weed-covered hauntingly deserted wall of no emotion. Red brick turned black from soot. Angry acerbic biting vicious cutthroat and cynical. Waiting to pounce. Hence I write. There is not much more I can do. Yesterday I was walking down the sidewalk with both shoulders held wide and broad to protect the pregnant Princess from all the thousands of people we share the city with; she who was holding my hand and walking just behind me. She who was holding our two newest members of our family in her beautiful little belly. Today there is no need for this protection we are told. It is a sudden shocking realization. Just like that. In simple terms, we are no longer pregnant. Some people call it miscarriage. Though this early on.... who knows what to call it. What I do know is that I have a printout of a microscopic photograph of our two precious twin embryos and they were living inside of her perfect body. Now they are not. She has not miscarried yet. In typical fashion. No blood. No pain. Just no more HCG, the hormone which indicates pregnancy.
Friday, June 04, 2010
Monday, May 31, 2010
Different Versions of "The Golden Rule" from Different Religions
HINDU: This is the sum of duty; do naught unto others which if done to
thee would cause thee pain. (inclusive, partial)
ZOROASTRIAN: That nature alone is good which refrains from doing unto
another whatsoever is not good for itself. (inclusive, partial)
TAOIST: Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your
neighbor's loss as your own loss. (selective, complete)
BUDDHIST: Hurt not others in ways that you would find hurtful.
(inclusive, partial)
CONFUCIAN: Do not unto others what you would not have them do unto
you. (inclusive, partial)
JAIN: In happiness and suffering, in joy and grief, we should regard
all creatures as we regard our own self. (inclusive, complete)
JEWISH: Whatever thou hatest thyself, that do not to another.
(inclusive, partial)
CHRISTIAN: All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,
do ye even so to them. (inclusive, complete)
ISLAMIC: No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother
that which he desires for himself. (selective, complete)
SIKH: As thou deemest thyself, so deem others. (inclusive, complete)
We have all at one time or another heard the famous idea that the man called Jesus, of Christianity - not of the Green Day album (though both admirable men to be sure), had once uttered the words "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." We may have even been told this was called "The Golden Rule." What one may find surprising is that those words, ones very similar at least, are not historically attributed to Jesus of Nazareth at all; but instead were actually first spoken by China's brilliant visionary philosopher Confucius FIVE-HUNDRED years prior. Five-hundred years. That's a long span of time.
Siddhattha, the first "Buddha," THE "Buddha," promoted a similar idea right around the same time (fifth century BCE), using slightly different words. Whether Siddhartha heard the idea from Confucius, or it was the other way around, or both men happened upon the concept independent of one another within their own enlightened minds, we will never know. (Though I would readily admit that it was "I" who just typed the above words, "I" also recognize that I might be entirely wrong in that assertion. That is, we may one day sooner or later but hopefully sooner rather than later be able to traverse the space/time continuum in a way that would easily permit us to view events of the past or future as to know exactly how it happened.)
Another question that arises quickly from studying this simple topic is thus: had Jesus already been familiar with the idea before he spoke his own version of it? When it comes to Jesus, THE Jesus, THAT Jesus, there is so much speculation about the man at this point that one finds it nearly impossible to even attempt to prove empirically that he even existed at all; let alone what he heard, said, or did along his travels on his journey to that mysterious moment in time when he seems to appear out of nowhere thirty years after his arrival on earth. (It is a very odd thing this. That the birth of Christianity's great foundational father and son is so well documented, and so too are his misadventures in the last two to three years of his life. But that whole middle section, the real juicy stuff one would posit, have completely vanished from humanity's historical records. Perhaps the Vatican holds the key to all this missing information in their infamous "Secret Archives." But if we cannot even get them to stop themselves from blatant and sometimes very public child molestation, how are we ever to convince them to allow us into those mysterious vaults?)
As a devoted Hindu, Zoroastrian, and Taoist as well a Christian and Buddhist, at least from a philosophical perspective, a big fan, I would certainly pay to see all of them in concert if they ever played New York, I was also intrigued, more actually pleased, to discover that each of these men, each coming successively before the other in our known though shaky history, had spoken almost the exact same thing when attempting to create that "one simple golden rule above all others." In other words, going back as far as we can in our catalog of the great thoughts of humankind we discover that the very earliest thinkers of note we know of had already spoken this same exact idea thousands of years before there ever was such a thing as a Jesus or a "Golden Rule." It is refreshing and inspiring to consider that even as far back as thousands of years ago humankind had already reached this simple compassionate understanding. And furthermore we did not need a religion to base it on, nor base it from. It is at its core purely unconditional compassionate love and tolerance from a very practical point of view.
'That's not such a bad rule,' I remember thinking when the idea was first offered to my young mind as a child. Years later I remember when studying to become a High Priest of Magic, or "The Craft" as it is also called, back in the day that I learned that there was only ONE rule to being a truly great Witch, and that was this: "Do what thou will, but harm none." Other than that, a magician or witch (or warlock if you will, but if you really want to know, the term is not really used behind closed doors - only in Hollywood; men who practice the Craft call themselves Witches just as women do, no difference) can do whatever he or she wants to. As long as they don't hurt themselves or anyone else. I liked this rule. It felt true. Right.
It also conveniently helped corroborate and further explain the Eastern principle of "Karma." Through the idea that: if a witch, or magician, attempts to use their power for bad, such as casting a black magic spell, as opposed to only casting "white magic spells," that the magician will always "know" or "feel" when their spell upon another had manifested because they themselves would first 'feel' the effect of the spell. Then and only then could they be sure that their banishing spell or whatever had worked on that other person. In other words, it was best not to use one's new found magical powers for bad in anyway, not even when one felt justified in doing so, such as when wanting revenge, or even when attempting to protect oneself from perceived potential harm, because the practitioner would first have to feel the grip of the effect of the spell themselves before it became manifest in the other's universe. "Wow," thought I, "instant karma, even in Witchcraft, Karmic Law prevails."
As much a digression as all this was, and though I do not create magic in my day to day life by practicing Witchcraft or Magic any longer but instead just find that I am able to create a very magical life from using other more subtle and less ritualistic tools, I still find it important and an interesting reminder to be vigilant in my thoughts. Karma, though a concept we will never be able to prove holds any validity whatsoever, still may turn out to hold water through our more recent advances and discoveries in Physics. Simply put, if we practice the Golden Rule, irregardless of WHICH particular one we choose - a choice in words more than anything else it would seem - we vibrate goodness for others due to our wanting to vibrate and thus create goodness for ourselves. And vice versa. If Physic's Super-string Theory eventually turns out to be our newest cat's meow and all matter and material in the known and unknown universe is indeed made up of energy vibrations as the theory suggests, then we would be right on track to creating one hell of a good life for ourselves by vibrating goodness for all as that is exactly what we will attract for ourselves through those vibrations.
Yes. Indeed. A very good idea this Golden Rule. Regardless of who thought or said it first.
And isn't it interesting how absolutely close in proximity the scientists of Physics and the New Age Metaphysical types are now vibrating to each other in the theories they are putting forth into mass consciousness? It is a good time to be alive in physical form on planet earth. I would humbly submit that I would rather be here-now than at any other place or time in space/time. (Stating this, one gets the impression that perhaps this idea that our lives are in fact deliberate and not at all random, may be much closer to the truth than we used to allow. Imagine that: I am here. I am me. Here Now. Deliberately. Yes. A good place to be.)
The above list Courtesy of The Committee For The Golden Rule (found through Google)
thee would cause thee pain. (inclusive, partial)
ZOROASTRIAN: That nature alone is good which refrains from doing unto
another whatsoever is not good for itself. (inclusive, partial)
TAOIST: Regard your neighbor's gain as your own gain, and your
neighbor's loss as your own loss. (selective, complete)
BUDDHIST: Hurt not others in ways that you would find hurtful.
(inclusive, partial)
CONFUCIAN: Do not unto others what you would not have them do unto
you. (inclusive, partial)
JAIN: In happiness and suffering, in joy and grief, we should regard
all creatures as we regard our own self. (inclusive, complete)
JEWISH: Whatever thou hatest thyself, that do not to another.
(inclusive, partial)
CHRISTIAN: All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you,
do ye even so to them. (inclusive, complete)
ISLAMIC: No one of you is a believer until he desires for his brother
that which he desires for himself. (selective, complete)
SIKH: As thou deemest thyself, so deem others. (inclusive, complete)
We have all at one time or another heard the famous idea that the man called Jesus, of Christianity - not of the Green Day album (though both admirable men to be sure), had once uttered the words "Do unto others as you would have them do unto you." We may have even been told this was called "The Golden Rule." What one may find surprising is that those words, ones very similar at least, are not historically attributed to Jesus of Nazareth at all; but instead were actually first spoken by China's brilliant visionary philosopher Confucius FIVE-HUNDRED years prior. Five-hundred years. That's a long span of time.
Siddhattha, the first "Buddha," THE "Buddha," promoted a similar idea right around the same time (fifth century BCE), using slightly different words. Whether Siddhartha heard the idea from Confucius, or it was the other way around, or both men happened upon the concept independent of one another within their own enlightened minds, we will never know. (Though I would readily admit that it was "I" who just typed the above words, "I" also recognize that I might be entirely wrong in that assertion. That is, we may one day sooner or later but hopefully sooner rather than later be able to traverse the space/time continuum in a way that would easily permit us to view events of the past or future as to know exactly how it happened.)
Another question that arises quickly from studying this simple topic is thus: had Jesus already been familiar with the idea before he spoke his own version of it? When it comes to Jesus, THE Jesus, THAT Jesus, there is so much speculation about the man at this point that one finds it nearly impossible to even attempt to prove empirically that he even existed at all; let alone what he heard, said, or did along his travels on his journey to that mysterious moment in time when he seems to appear out of nowhere thirty years after his arrival on earth. (It is a very odd thing this. That the birth of Christianity's great foundational father and son is so well documented, and so too are his misadventures in the last two to three years of his life. But that whole middle section, the real juicy stuff one would posit, have completely vanished from humanity's historical records. Perhaps the Vatican holds the key to all this missing information in their infamous "Secret Archives." But if we cannot even get them to stop themselves from blatant and sometimes very public child molestation, how are we ever to convince them to allow us into those mysterious vaults?)
As a devoted Hindu, Zoroastrian, and Taoist as well a Christian and Buddhist, at least from a philosophical perspective, a big fan, I would certainly pay to see all of them in concert if they ever played New York, I was also intrigued, more actually pleased, to discover that each of these men, each coming successively before the other in our known though shaky history, had spoken almost the exact same thing when attempting to create that "one simple golden rule above all others." In other words, going back as far as we can in our catalog of the great thoughts of humankind we discover that the very earliest thinkers of note we know of had already spoken this same exact idea thousands of years before there ever was such a thing as a Jesus or a "Golden Rule." It is refreshing and inspiring to consider that even as far back as thousands of years ago humankind had already reached this simple compassionate understanding. And furthermore we did not need a religion to base it on, nor base it from. It is at its core purely unconditional compassionate love and tolerance from a very practical point of view.
'That's not such a bad rule,' I remember thinking when the idea was first offered to my young mind as a child. Years later I remember when studying to become a High Priest of Magic, or "The Craft" as it is also called, back in the day that I learned that there was only ONE rule to being a truly great Witch, and that was this: "Do what thou will, but harm none." Other than that, a magician or witch (or warlock if you will, but if you really want to know, the term is not really used behind closed doors - only in Hollywood; men who practice the Craft call themselves Witches just as women do, no difference) can do whatever he or she wants to. As long as they don't hurt themselves or anyone else. I liked this rule. It felt true. Right.
It also conveniently helped corroborate and further explain the Eastern principle of "Karma." Through the idea that: if a witch, or magician, attempts to use their power for bad, such as casting a black magic spell, as opposed to only casting "white magic spells," that the magician will always "know" or "feel" when their spell upon another had manifested because they themselves would first 'feel' the effect of the spell. Then and only then could they be sure that their banishing spell or whatever had worked on that other person. In other words, it was best not to use one's new found magical powers for bad in anyway, not even when one felt justified in doing so, such as when wanting revenge, or even when attempting to protect oneself from perceived potential harm, because the practitioner would first have to feel the grip of the effect of the spell themselves before it became manifest in the other's universe. "Wow," thought I, "instant karma, even in Witchcraft, Karmic Law prevails."
As much a digression as all this was, and though I do not create magic in my day to day life by practicing Witchcraft or Magic any longer but instead just find that I am able to create a very magical life from using other more subtle and less ritualistic tools, I still find it important and an interesting reminder to be vigilant in my thoughts. Karma, though a concept we will never be able to prove holds any validity whatsoever, still may turn out to hold water through our more recent advances and discoveries in Physics. Simply put, if we practice the Golden Rule, irregardless of WHICH particular one we choose - a choice in words more than anything else it would seem - we vibrate goodness for others due to our wanting to vibrate and thus create goodness for ourselves. And vice versa. If Physic's Super-string Theory eventually turns out to be our newest cat's meow and all matter and material in the known and unknown universe is indeed made up of energy vibrations as the theory suggests, then we would be right on track to creating one hell of a good life for ourselves by vibrating goodness for all as that is exactly what we will attract for ourselves through those vibrations.
Yes. Indeed. A very good idea this Golden Rule. Regardless of who thought or said it first.
And isn't it interesting how absolutely close in proximity the scientists of Physics and the New Age Metaphysical types are now vibrating to each other in the theories they are putting forth into mass consciousness? It is a good time to be alive in physical form on planet earth. I would humbly submit that I would rather be here-now than at any other place or time in space/time. (Stating this, one gets the impression that perhaps this idea that our lives are in fact deliberate and not at all random, may be much closer to the truth than we used to allow. Imagine that: I am here. I am me. Here Now. Deliberately. Yes. A good place to be.)
The above list Courtesy of The Committee For The Golden Rule (found through Google)
Wednesday, April 14, 2010
The White Bear Comes A Knockin'
Seems our lives, as if not already limited enough, are about to be, or already are depending on the bar you hang out in in cyberspace, ensnared in a '144 characters or less' world of no goodness, as I was unable to post to your wall much of anything other than the usual "whatup dog?" which though mildly amusing like a morning rub and tug are not nearly enough to sustain or feed us to the point of providing real heel kicking call a good friend and scream into the phone "Goddamn I'm happy! Aren't you?!" joy, the kind that some of us still claim as one of our rights for the mere fact that we've made it this far. So I figured I'd throw you a note while my able bodied team continues to work out the kinks to our big move to "dedicated servers." Meaning yours truly cannot post freely on his own turf due to CPU overages they claim are due to traffic violations on the information super highway. So here's that ten-year note. Or is it twenty? Either way, it's been a long time. Too long.
For those in the know (readers of the Transcendence Diaries), this is where Fishy reconnects with White Bear, the beer belching bourbon loving bearded bard of infinite alliteration who mentored young Fishy in his college years while he called Atlanta GA home for a few years. And so, after many, many, many years, the reply to the unexpected electronic letter that appeared from nowhere went something like this.
Dear White Bear,
As older brothers go... I've been missing you too; for years my friend. In response to your question, yeeaap (not too long but slightly drawn out) I was wondering the same thing... I feel our spheres are close enough to share a drink or a two-hour chat now and then. (and they don't call me the ambassador for nothing. I find it awfully difficult to not get along with just about anyone truth be told. Not always to my benefit. But certainly to theirs.) I wholeheartedly agree with you on the Kennedys. Thought Bobby was the White Knight we'd been waiting for for decades. Idolize the man. Love but hate the behavior of the dark forces that took him from us, those same forces that now seem to control everything except my left nut, though even that I wouldn't bet on.
In terms of money and fame, I've haphazardly and ironically made a fortune over the years while chasing that ever-elusive dream of stardom seemingly forever intent on ignoring my imagined greatness. Unlike you, I'm not interested in money. Just give me the influence so I can help right the Becks and O'Reillys of the world. I'm glad we're still playing at the same table on that front, but I do lean more toward the "you don't really believe they're working for different people still do ya?" view. David Icke et al. (Oh how i would love to see you laugh that one out in person) But truly I bailed on all those left versus right legends long ago and tend to operate somewhere outside of but in between it all. Some people refer to it as conspiracy theory (which I find fallacious because that would imply something "secret" and there is no longer anything secret about the self-serving cabal of blood thirsty murdering fuckhead bastards that rules all governments of the world at this point.) Others call it libertarianism I've heard, but I haven't had time to check. I just call it being human. Fluid. Bamboo. Never stop researching.
One thing I'll tell ya is that your influence was a great and mighty one on the young Fishy, once known as Ed Hale, then Eddie Darling, then Guess Darling, and eventually the pretentious as all hell Ambassador. Wrote like a mother f*&ker for 20 straight years based on your many deep-voiced mid-of-night suggestions and ended up with a ridiculously over-weighted 5000 page novel series called The Adventures of Fishy, spent eight years blogging from it (based on a suggestion from another brother from a different mother who you might equally enjoy we call G2) to something called the Transcendence Diaries. See it here: www.transcendencediaries.com. Some damn good passages in there. A few I'm actually proud of. And not a year went by that I didn't wonder what you'd think as I pounded those keys. Thank you for that.
By the way. Got married recently. You may remember my hopeless romantic ideals that true love really does exist somewhere out there if we just wait for it that I would occasionally espouse during those obligatory late night talkies (did we actually get college credit for those as you once told me?) Well it turns out that for once I was right. It does. Sometimes it may right under our noses... PLT, better known to readers as Princess Little Tree, had and has been my best friend for over seven years when I finally proposed to her on a row boat in the middle of a lake in Central Park on the sunniest day the Good Lord ever created. But indeed you really do just have to wait for it. I had plenty of just about everything else; so I knew what I was looking for. And you know what it was? (still is...) A "Yes." Something we hear inside that we ourselves cannot muster up no matter how hard we try. One day I hope she gets the opportunity to meet you... I am sure she will consider it every bit the honor that I did way back when.
Very very good to hear from you my brother. Your presence was missed.
E (or F as the case may be)
;>
For those in the know (readers of the Transcendence Diaries), this is where Fishy reconnects with White Bear, the beer belching bourbon loving bearded bard of infinite alliteration who mentored young Fishy in his college years while he called Atlanta GA home for a few years. And so, after many, many, many years, the reply to the unexpected electronic letter that appeared from nowhere went something like this.
Dear White Bear,
As older brothers go... I've been missing you too; for years my friend. In response to your question, yeeaap (not too long but slightly drawn out) I was wondering the same thing... I feel our spheres are close enough to share a drink or a two-hour chat now and then. (and they don't call me the ambassador for nothing. I find it awfully difficult to not get along with just about anyone truth be told. Not always to my benefit. But certainly to theirs.) I wholeheartedly agree with you on the Kennedys. Thought Bobby was the White Knight we'd been waiting for for decades. Idolize the man. Love but hate the behavior of the dark forces that took him from us, those same forces that now seem to control everything except my left nut, though even that I wouldn't bet on.
In terms of money and fame, I've haphazardly and ironically made a fortune over the years while chasing that ever-elusive dream of stardom seemingly forever intent on ignoring my imagined greatness. Unlike you, I'm not interested in money. Just give me the influence so I can help right the Becks and O'Reillys of the world. I'm glad we're still playing at the same table on that front, but I do lean more toward the "you don't really believe they're working for different people still do ya?" view. David Icke et al. (Oh how i would love to see you laugh that one out in person) But truly I bailed on all those left versus right legends long ago and tend to operate somewhere outside of but in between it all. Some people refer to it as conspiracy theory (which I find fallacious because that would imply something "secret" and there is no longer anything secret about the self-serving cabal of blood thirsty murdering fuckhead bastards that rules all governments of the world at this point.) Others call it libertarianism I've heard, but I haven't had time to check. I just call it being human. Fluid. Bamboo. Never stop researching.
One thing I'll tell ya is that your influence was a great and mighty one on the young Fishy, once known as Ed Hale, then Eddie Darling, then Guess Darling, and eventually the pretentious as all hell Ambassador. Wrote like a mother f*&ker for 20 straight years based on your many deep-voiced mid-of-night suggestions and ended up with a ridiculously over-weighted 5000 page novel series called The Adventures of Fishy, spent eight years blogging from it (based on a suggestion from another brother from a different mother who you might equally enjoy we call G2) to something called the Transcendence Diaries. See it here: www.transcendencediaries.com. Some damn good passages in there. A few I'm actually proud of. And not a year went by that I didn't wonder what you'd think as I pounded those keys. Thank you for that.
By the way. Got married recently. You may remember my hopeless romantic ideals that true love really does exist somewhere out there if we just wait for it that I would occasionally espouse during those obligatory late night talkies (did we actually get college credit for those as you once told me?) Well it turns out that for once I was right. It does. Sometimes it may right under our noses... PLT, better known to readers as Princess Little Tree, had and has been my best friend for over seven years when I finally proposed to her on a row boat in the middle of a lake in Central Park on the sunniest day the Good Lord ever created. But indeed you really do just have to wait for it. I had plenty of just about everything else; so I knew what I was looking for. And you know what it was? (still is...) A "Yes." Something we hear inside that we ourselves cannot muster up no matter how hard we try. One day I hope she gets the opportunity to meet you... I am sure she will consider it every bit the honor that I did way back when.
Very very good to hear from you my brother. Your presence was missed.
E (or F as the case may be)
;>
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