pattricia Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 When I awoke this morning I rolled over and, almost without thinking, mumbled the words "who are you and what are you doing here?" I soon realised that the question was, of course, not directed at the unsunken pillow next to mine, but rather myself. I felt it was a perfectly valid question, so I should answer carefully and honestly. I pondered the answer for some time but my answers only led me to more questions because I was ignoring the truth. Perhaps avoiding it deliberately because of the equally horrific and beautiful realisation that lies within. The conscious mind was demanding an answer based on who I thought I was. An image projected by all the manifestations of my life. An ego driven roller coaster ride that I thought defined who I was. So I ask you the same question - who are you and what are you doing here? - and I invite you to go deep within to find the answer. What is beneath who you think you are? Do you mean what are we doing on this earth or on SF ?:lol: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
YouFo666 Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 Take yer pick !! It's either a Copper or nosey git alert I'm here because of depoix blame him :hihi: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epiphany Posted May 29, 2010 Author Share Posted May 29, 2010 I'm part Buddhist i guess, i find that i have little waves of karma. Somedays life hurts (self-doubt, no money, worried) and somedays life is beautiful (why worry, be happy). One just has to ride the ups and the downs. Absolutely, well put. We all have "down days" but what has changed for me personally is my attitude towards them. I try stripping away all the prejudices about what brought them about and just let the fire burn, fully aware and fully facing any suffering (of course there are degrees of suffering - I can never say I've truly suffered like some poor souls). Out of this I realise it's all just energy. Energy I can use how I wish. The obvious thing to do is to use it for creative/productive purposes. "Suffering should be creative, should give birth to something good and lovely." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
epiphany Posted May 29, 2010 Author Share Posted May 29, 2010 Do you mean what are we doing on this earth or on SF ?:lol: Neither. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
medusa Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 Ooooh- way too deep a question for me to answer at this time of day. I'm barely past breakfast, you can't ask me questions like that until at least teatime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Waltheof Posted May 29, 2010 Share Posted May 29, 2010 I'm part Buddhist i guess, i find that i have little waves of karma. Somedays life hurts (self-doubt, no money, worried) and somedays life is beautiful (why worry, be happy). One just has to ride the ups and the downs. 24 Hour Party People Quote:Welcome to the Wheel of Fortune. There it is, the wheel that throughout the centuries has been used as a symbol for the vicissitudes of life. Boethius himself in his great work 'The Consolation of Philosophy' compares history to a great wheel, hoisting us up, then dropping us down again. "Inconsistency is my very essence" -says the wheel- "Raise yourself up on my spokes if you wish, but don't complain when you plunge back down" Now spin the wheel. _________________ How delightful to find someone quoting Boethius, my favourite philosopher--for whom fortune's wheel (the famous image which he bequeathed to the world) reached its nadir in 524 AD with his execution at the behest of King Theoderic the Great! It's only fair to point out that he did then go on to suggest that an awareness of the vicissitudes of Fortune is a positive advantage, so that one is not either taken in by her blandishments, nor downcast by her adversities, but can derive moral courage from facing all her treatment with equanimity. Thus the answer to what are we doing here, is to seek the Higher Good by stripping away all of the illusions Fortune places before us. However, it's more complex than that and I'd advise people to read the book andperhaps be more inspired by it. Apart from being perhaps the most translated philosophical work from antiquity, it has been enormously influential. Centuries later, the Italian poet Petrarch wrote his work, De Remediis Utriusque Fortunae ("Remedies for Fortune Fair and Foul"), conveying a similar message. Keep up the good work--quote us some more Boethius! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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