We’ve looked with separation for eons in order to survive in a competitive world. However, merely looking with (and “as”) separation may not be what is conducive to a truly spiritual life. How does one look without separation? It isn’t the result of some method or system that one can apply or copy. Effort itself, through time, is separative and is not the answer. Practicing meditation is not the answer. Belonging to a so-called organized religion or to an abstracted territorial domain (conveniently called “my country”) contributes to division and conflict in the world. Any procedure performed by a supposed central ego is based on separation.
The answer neither involves time nor a central observer.
The Art of Proper Parenting … Photo by Thomas Peace c.2023
There is here We are them “I” is not When is where Past is future Future is past We are water Up is down Uncurled is curled Tears are joy Hate is mindless Poem is reading Awake not dreaming See not knowing Pour was spill Clean was dirty Little is big Born was dead Left to right Wings are resting Desert was thirsty Jungle was noise War is sorrow Flowers are calling She is he Silence is golden Once is always Time is ticking
A few students walked past the elderly Lo Zu as he was sitting quietly in nature. As they were passing, they briefly paused near the wise and highly respected Lo Zu and he briefly stated this: “Beyond all of the so-called religious mumbo-jumbo, just sit still and perish to what you’ve been told. Do not try to ‘make’ the mind silent; just be passionate about the intrinsic beauty of true silence and then perhaps true silence will naturally manifest. You cannot make the un-makable.”
To look without the background of the past is what looks without contamination and time.
It is most noble to investigate into truth without letting fear cause one to cling to inherited, comforting beliefs (or to self-concocted beliefs); deep intelligence does not let fear alter (or cloud) what it sees.
Education is not just memorizing and regurgitating back information; true education involves questioning, pondering, and investigating far beyond what you are “told.”
An intelligent, holistic mind is also a mind that is appreciative of humor and laughter.
The real problem with kleptomaniacs is that they always take things literally.
Intelligent, vicarious suffering often acts to help other people, animals, and the environment as a whole.
Marionettes are easily worked by strings; gullible people are easily swayed by nefarious, diabolical (so-called) news channels that perpetrate hatred, misinformation, and separation.
A truly good doctor (i.e., general practitioner) informs you about how to eat and act in a more healthfully appropriate way and does not merely robotically and hurridly dispense out synthetic pills to you.
Fear necessitates time and requires time. It is often the past dreading what may happen as the future. To transcend fear at its roots, psychological time must be deeply understood and transcended.
Gray hair really isn’t all that bad! Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2022
The deepest truth exists far beyond the limitations of time and searching.
To look without the background of what others poured into you… may be of pristine clarity and wholeness beyond description.
We tend to cling to groups (involving separative countries and religions) and are afraid of standing alone on our own.
When we were young, they taught us that doubt is a very bad thing; on the contrary, doubting often involves the beautiful awakening of true intelligence and wisdom.
The human body is a miraculous, delicate, balanced instrument. We must take precise care of it with tremendous care, concern, and natural, healthy processes… not abuse it with thoughtless neglect and misuse. A healthy body can nourish a healthy brain.
To holistically perceive without separation may bring real compassion and wisdom.
A very beautiful mind inwardly… perceives beyond the dull limitation of symbolic words, fragmentary thoughts, and habitual acceptances.
It’s very comfortable to remain entrenched in traditional beliefs and groups, but it may not at all be wise, noble, or highly intelligent.
Exploring the Universe … Photo by Thomas Peace c.2021
Reaction is fragmentation in (and “as”) time and most of our lives are, unfortunately, merely a sequence of robotic reaction after reaction… which is time.
To perceive without depending upon what was intentionally poured into you — to mold you — doesn’t take time.
Fears can decimate the brain; go beyond the fears that you are.
Beyond the smoke and mirrors of lying politicians — who are bought and paid for by the polluted and foggy fossil fuel industry — lies clarity.
The UPPERCASE LETTERS were prejudiced against the lower case letters, so they sentenced them to a life of extreme poverty.
An inattentive, fragmented mind easily comes up with violent and disorderly ways.
She, for entertainment, often traveled from country to country… but in reality, she never actually moved anywhere (especially from her illusions, loneliness, and sorrow).
A constantly clamoring mind is a broken mind without the pristine silence of wholeness.
Red-Spotted Purple Butterfly resting on one of my outdoor flower pots. Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2021
We won’t ever have a clean planet — free from dying and mass extinction — if fracking is more important for creating jobs and oil than green energy is for world health.
True meditation lies beyond mere practice, beyond calculated methodology toward an end, beyond sequential, conditioned reactions.
John Lennon hit the nail on the head when he said, “If everyone demanded peace instead of another television set, then there’d be peace.”
When the idealism of politicians takes precedence over truly caring for all of the people, then chaos and confusion ensue.
The living, dynamic, moving sacred can neither be retrieved like a stagnant memory nor lead to by a dead, organized path.
The epiphany of profound insight may occur when the mind is naturally quiet without effort.
One of our pet Pearl-scaled Philippine Blue Angelfish … Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2019
Deep passion — to find out about the whole of existence — goes far beyond details and fragmentary parts.
There can be a holistic awareness, not merely of the five “separate” senses that one “has,” but rather “as” the holistic senses working together harmoniously, as one, without thought/thinking constantly interfering, separating.
When one was young, one mustered up all of the energy that one had to perceive the truth and the whole. That’s the only way to be!
Order comes through understanding and perception… not via rigid, limited ideals which bring about conflict.
Many animals value life just as we do… maybe even more so.
Look beyond the learned patterns; see beyond the limited, learned symbols.
True wisdom goes beyond perceived borders and is therefore truly compassionate and caring.
Scarlet-and-Blue Leafhopper …Photo by Thomas Peace c. 2018