Robert, thank you for writing these pieces. I enjoyed 4T and Depending on Nothing. Something seemed to resonate with me and uprooted a lot of what I would now call ‘spiritual-addiction’ or ‘self-help addiction’ for the past 18 years. I have finally been able to free up time from this endeavour to pursue more of my interests and live knowing that this is most likely our one-shot on this earth and we may as well live it well without seeking constant escape-hatches.
I spent most of my life trying to escape my "shitty life / relationship / job", endlessly twisting and turning in circles, feeling suffocated and trapped, no matter what the circumstances were. Spirituality / religion was just one of the many ways that I sought to alleviate the agony that I perceived. It's so nice to feel all of it winding down now! I'm older, not so much wiser, but more at ease and, dare I say it... happier? It certainly seems calmer and more sane. Thank you Robert, both 4T and DONT have played integral roles in this...
Someone I was talking to yesterday described the spiritual path as walking in a certain direction feeling like you are getting somewhere but then ending up back where you started except with a slightly different perspective which you would only get from taking that walk.
Could the idea of free will be a case of mistaken identity, and that what is actually being referenced is our own conscious attention? Conscious attention itself has no perceivable beginning or end, so feels "free."
Robert, thank you for writing these pieces. I enjoyed 4T and Depending on Nothing. Something seemed to resonate with me and uprooted a lot of what I would now call ‘spiritual-addiction’ or ‘self-help addiction’ for the past 18 years. I have finally been able to free up time from this endeavour to pursue more of my interests and live knowing that this is most likely our one-shot on this earth and we may as well live it well without seeking constant escape-hatches.
Hope all is well,
Steve
Thanks for that report, Steve. I wish you all the best.
I spent most of my life trying to escape my "shitty life / relationship / job", endlessly twisting and turning in circles, feeling suffocated and trapped, no matter what the circumstances were. Spirituality / religion was just one of the many ways that I sought to alleviate the agony that I perceived. It's so nice to feel all of it winding down now! I'm older, not so much wiser, but more at ease and, dare I say it... happier? It certainly seems calmer and more sane. Thank you Robert, both 4T and DONT have played integral roles in this...
Someone I was talking to yesterday described the spiritual path as walking in a certain direction feeling like you are getting somewhere but then ending up back where you started except with a slightly different perspective which you would only get from taking that walk.
Could the idea of free will be a case of mistaken identity, and that what is actually being referenced is our own conscious attention? Conscious attention itself has no perceivable beginning or end, so feels "free."