(Source: weheartit.com, via wakeupandbefree)
How is it that hardly any major religion has looked at science and concluded, “This is better than we thought! The Universe is much bigger than our prophets said, grander, more subtle, more elegant?” Instead they say, “No, no, no! My god is a little god, and I want him to stay that way.” A religion, old or new, that stressed the magnificence of the Universe as revealed by modern science might be able to draw forth reserves of reverence and awe hardly tapped by the conventional faiths.
- Carl Sagan, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space
(Source: ninefoldgoddess, via terramantra)
I have no fear of losing you, for you aren’t an object of my property, or anyone else’s. I love you as you are, without attachment, without fears, without conditions, without egoism, trying not to absorb you. I love you freely because I love your freedom, as well as mine.
- Anthony de Mello
(Source: starryyeyed, via scatteredwords)
I have revisited and rewritten my vow:
On April 4, 2011, with the conclusion of my freshman year of college, and simultaneously with the conclusion of my first Eastern religions class in Hinduism, I began to allow a vow to work on my mind. I realized throughout the year that I did not feel like a person fit for the Unitarian Universalist ministry, especially when I shape this goal around my drive to change that which I disagree with in how the Unitarian Universalist Association is run. I base my religious philosophy on the philosophies of UU, and of Hinduism, considering it was my introduction course into non-Westernized religion. I do not claim a Hindu or Buddhist identity, though I find very much solace in them. In this way, I have grown to love the Eastern(primarily Hindu) god of Ganesh, and he has become a major token for me throughout this past year. Certainly, a lot has changed since I originally drafted the very strict vow that started this blog and journey a year ago. I would be wrong to say that I managed to consistently keep in check with it, and largely I failed to abide by it at once last summer ended and anxieties took over. However, it still remained vivid in the back of my mind, and I still most definitely hold that it had a large effect on my trajectory in this past school year. Today (May 19, 2012), I revisit my vow, and reconstruct it with the maturity and perspective I have gained since beginning. It is indeed less strict, but that is because I have learned how to have self control and self awareness while doing that in which I may indulge, and I have learned that setting such strict parameters makes it all the more difficult to come back if ever I stray. But, for the most part, I’m picking back up from where I left off.
The Vow
- I will continue to build healthy relationships with people who I consider good friends, and I will remain faithful and communicative with the person with whom I am currently in a romantic relationship.
- I will allow myself to take pleasure and relaxation in substances, given that I never exceed my limits, practice them with caution and knowledge, and always remain confident in my mind’s grasp on my world and my body’s signals.
- I will smoke as medication for my anxiety, but I will not smoke as an escape, or when I know that smoking may be detrimental to the day’s activities.
- I will keep a consistent sleep schedule, and make sure I always get the rest my body needs.
- I will eat as healthily as money and circumstance allows, never overindulging, though leaving room for occasional indulgence in moderation.
- I will do my job as it should be done, for the fact that it is my job, with diligence and strength without abjectly complaining.
- I will keep a steady pace in reading and writing as preparation for my independent study in the fall.
- I will do that which is required of me as part of my internship, though unpaid and uncredited, for the fact that I have agreed to this opportunity, with diligence and strength without complaint.
- In instances where I find myself free of any obligations or self-assigned tasks, I will be productive in another manner with writing letters, running errands, organizing, etc.
- I will talk less about myself and instead find more interesting, less self-centered ways to relate to others.
- I will listen more to those I’m speaking with, paying close attention, even when their matters may not concern or interest me.
- I will regularly engage in any kind physical activity, especially yoga or bicycling.
- I will regularly engage in some form of solitary meditation.
- I will be punctual and prepared for all job and internship related events.
- And, most importantly, I will practice self-awareness and discipline in my actions - two values instilled through the Bhagavad-Gita that encompass everything listed above, as well as an umbrella for much more that I simply do not have the time nor space on which to properly elaborate.
Through this vow, I hope to:
- Achieve a better understanding of every aspect of my inner Self, though I do understand that complete and total comprehension of such is near to impossible, and would take years in an ascetic-like lifestyle under the teachings of a wise guru
- Cultivate a clear and controlled mind, with ability to decline temptation that goes against the above values and further allow me to make the appropriate decisions for and give the suitable teachings to the Unitarian Universalist congregation
- Build up a positive amount of self respect while straying from conceit, eliminating any sort of self-hatred or struggles with body-image and confidence in my relationships
- Become self-sufficient, while still loving others.
- Learn to love deeply and unconditionally without attachments
- Better perceive and comprehend my spirituality, not necessarily decisively knowing what to believe, but forming a more concrete foundation for my personal truths
These are not goals to be accomplished in any amount of time, and the limits of this vow will be ever-changing as I grow and learn more. It is a process, and a long one at that, but it began with my entrance into college - a coming of age - and it is slowly working on my mind, and taking root in my heart. This process will most definitely transcend summer, and go, hopefully, my entire lifetime. For now, though, we’ll keep it simple, with A Summer’s Vow. And, really, more than anything, I wish to inspire my peers to delve into themselves as well, and uncover what lies beneath the flesh, as it may surprise the unassuming mind.
I’m currently sitting in a hotel in New Orleans with Garrett and Thomas on our fourth day here. We leave tomorrow. In reflection, this trip has been something I’ve needed for a while, but in reality we have been constantly on the border between an awesome time and a quite devastating time. Every day presented possibilities of things going badly, but each time things took a turn for the better and we always had a blast. But something I’ve been really grateful of this entire time is encountering Ganesha everywhere I go here. New Orleans surely doesn’t seem like a particularly peaceful place, but somehow I happen to find Ganesha in the most strangest of places, and I feel a growing connection to him. He’s been there to both calm my anxieties and remind me of myself every time I’ve needed it, and it’s honestly been blessing.
I guess in this post I just want to convey how a token can be one of the most powerful and necessary ways to connect to who you are and where you are and the fact that you’re alive and everything’s okay. I find solace in Ganesha.
It is the unique and all-encompassing nature of Hinduism that one devotee may be worshiping Ganesha while his friend worships Subramaniam or Vishnu, and yet both honor the other’s choice and feel no sense of conflict. The profound understanding and universal acceptance that are unique in Hinduism are reflected in this faculty for accommodating different approaches to the Divine, allowing for different names and forms of God to be worshiped side by side within the temple walls.
— Satguru Sivaya Subramuniyaswami (1927-2001)
(via m3ditate)
