This being, organism here, expressing as a self is organic. Robert’s work has freed up so much searching. Just being is a gift, from where no one knows. Life is finite and perhaps even human life, like the dinosaurs, is finite. I just want to appreciate that this all showed up on my watch. Many thanks to Robert and interesting commentators!
I love the essays and responses...I am in awe of the seeming ease in which Robert can articulate things that go beyond description.
We all have our own experiences yet share this same space (life). I've approached this life with a deepening sense of "everything we need has already been given". We talk about no self yet know of many extremely "selfish" folks. The view from my kitchen lately has been one of this.
If what we need is here (like our breathable atmosphere) how do i react to this? Am I able to accept or receive that which is in front of me, or do I make a blindly selfish choice, act or thought?
I am not able to offer much more in the terms description today just that I wish all a Happy and Healthy New Year!
Sounds right Stephen! There is so much written, “there is no practice that can lead to awakening”, etc. I use “awakening” here only to describe the falling away of the doer. Most say, “it either just happens, or it doesn’t, nothing you do can help or hurt.” It kind of agitates me when I read this…which could mean it is pointing somewhere I need to go…or not 😉
For me, the distinction is between seeing a practice/activity/path as leading inevitably to a destination in some anticipated future, and looking back from how things are arising now to the activities/experiences that may (or may not) have contributed directly to that. So retrospective not prospective.
Someone mentioned the phrase "description not prescription"...
Hey Stan! So, yes, I think that reading Robert's writings over the years, and more recently reading his posts and interacting with him and the community of people who respond to them has definitely influenced my worldview. In combination with other influences, of course - many of which I am almost certainly unaware.
I have found his insights and reported experiences resonate to a degree that I have not encountered in any other individual author.
My interactions with readers, and even exchanges I only watch from the sidelines, have reshaped my understanding as well. I feel fortunate to have such a bright readership.
Publishing essays here has forced precision. I have had to look closely because I have no answers to the questions that come my way. At best, I describe what is seen, but I cannot account for it, and I do not try. As John Fogg put it, I live without explanations.
People call that clarity. I accept the word, because the coherence of my loop—if systems language applies here—rests on a preference for simplicity and precision.
Indeed...clarity - clear seeing is what I feel I have gained. And its value reaches like the filaments of a web into so many areas of my lived experience.
This being, organism here, expressing as a self is organic. Robert’s work has freed up so much searching. Just being is a gift, from where no one knows. Life is finite and perhaps even human life, like the dinosaurs, is finite. I just want to appreciate that this all showed up on my watch. Many thanks to Robert and interesting commentators!
Yow and yow again. Well that's just fine. Burn down the whole forrest ! Now what do i do ?
Nothing burned. Feeling comes first, same as before.
100%
Thank you
I love the essays and responses...I am in awe of the seeming ease in which Robert can articulate things that go beyond description.
We all have our own experiences yet share this same space (life). I've approached this life with a deepening sense of "everything we need has already been given". We talk about no self yet know of many extremely "selfish" folks. The view from my kitchen lately has been one of this.
If what we need is here (like our breathable atmosphere) how do i react to this? Am I able to accept or receive that which is in front of me, or do I make a blindly selfish choice, act or thought?
I am not able to offer much more in the terms description today just that I wish all a Happy and Healthy New Year!
Yes! 🙏🙏🙏🙏 for your clarity
Right on!
Happy new year.❤️
A fair summary - nicely said.
🈚️🫶
A wonderfully simple message to start the new year. Thanks, John and Robert. 🙏
Is reading a practice? I think it depends on each individual's perspective and the meaning attributed to the activity.
Did Robert's insights help in letting go? Same.
Did daily zazen for a decade contribute to my worldview now? Same.
Bottom line is : there's no universally applicable right or wrong answer to questions such as this. Nobody "knows". It's opinion, nothing more...
😄
Sounds right Stephen! There is so much written, “there is no practice that can lead to awakening”, etc. I use “awakening” here only to describe the falling away of the doer. Most say, “it either just happens, or it doesn’t, nothing you do can help or hurt.” It kind of agitates me when I read this…which could mean it is pointing somewhere I need to go…or not 😉
For me, the distinction is between seeing a practice/activity/path as leading inevitably to a destination in some anticipated future, and looking back from how things are arising now to the activities/experiences that may (or may not) have contributed directly to that. So retrospective not prospective.
Someone mentioned the phrase "description not prescription"...
🤷♂️😄
Yes…description. I like that.
Let's hope whoever said it hasn't got a copyright on it...😂
Hey Stan! So, yes, I think that reading Robert's writings over the years, and more recently reading his posts and interacting with him and the community of people who respond to them has definitely influenced my worldview. In combination with other influences, of course - many of which I am almost certainly unaware.
I have found his insights and reported experiences resonate to a degree that I have not encountered in any other individual author.
🈚️🫶
Stephen—what you wrote connects.
My interactions with readers, and even exchanges I only watch from the sidelines, have reshaped my understanding as well. I feel fortunate to have such a bright readership.
Publishing essays here has forced precision. I have had to look closely because I have no answers to the questions that come my way. At best, I describe what is seen, but I cannot account for it, and I do not try. As John Fogg put it, I live without explanations.
People call that clarity. I accept the word, because the coherence of my loop—if systems language applies here—rests on a preference for simplicity and precision.
Indeed...clarity - clear seeing is what I feel I have gained. And its value reaches like the filaments of a web into so many areas of my lived experience.
In gratitude.
🈚️🫶
Right back at ya, bro...without implying fate or predestination in any way, I am grateful and consider myself fortunate to have found you all.
🈚️🫶