Change Your Day Day

Hola Everybody,
How’s everyone doing? Shit is getting real now, folks. LOL Fuck it -- whatever happens -- happens.

How to Change Your Day

 

You can’t perceive what you can’t conceive.

Read carefully because the following can change your day... 

Here’s a scientific discovery for you all to ponder: Ninety-six percent of the universe is stuff we’ve never seen. More precisely, the cosmos is 23 percent dark matter and 73 percent dark energy, both of which are invisible -- unseen and unknowable -- to us humans. All the stars, planets, moons, asteroids, comets, nebulas, and gas clouds all together make up the visible four percent.

So, where is the other 96 percent? No one knows. It’s not only concealed from humans, it’s undetectable to the instruments humans have devised, and its whereabouts can’t be predicted by any existing theories. Scientists know how much dark energy there is because they know how it affects the universe's expansion. Other than that, it is a complete mystery.

Knowing this, how does this change your thinking? If the vast majority of reality is invisible to you, how should you adapt to that knowledge? How certain can you be about anything? Maybe one way to adapt to this fact is that we should maintain an open mind.

Seventeenth century church authorities refused to look through Galileo’s telescope. Why bother, they scoffed? Christian dogma made it perfectly clear that moons could not possibly circle Jupiter.

But before you scientifically minded folk get too smug, consider that most of today’s scientists refuse to consider the possibility that unidentified craft might have been flying around our skies for years. It’s absurd to think that beings from other star systems could travel these vast distances, they tell us, as they look down their noses with contempt. They say there’s no valid reason to examine the evidence. It’s a ridiculous proposition. Their certainty contains a major bias: that sentient beings from other worlds can only have ships that are limited to the means of propulsion we have discovered here on Earth.

I’ll insert my patented blank stare here -> ::blank stare::

And please don't get it twisted: I'm not saying that UFOs exist, only that we shouldn't be so smug about our assumptions about their existence or lack thereof.

To the ancient Greeks, electricity was as bizarre and unfathomable as telepathy is to us today. Yet electricity existed before anyone “believed” in it. It’s just that there was no theory that proposed its existence and no means to gather evidence for it. Before electricity could “exist,” the culture had to change in order for people to be able to know where and how to look.

Today we’re aware of electricity as well as black holes, x-rays, and infrared light because we have the instruments to extend our senses. I have to question the wisdom of a mindset that assumes we have developed every sense-extending technology that will be ever be invented.

When Columbus’ ships first appeared on the horizon, First Nation people saw them as floating monsters. They didn’t have the conceptual knowledge or experience to know them for what they really were. You can’t perceive what you can’t conceive. An adult who has been blind all his life and through surgery is suddenly given the gift of sight takes a while to be able to interpret what he’s looking at. The eye alone doesn’t see. The mind and the cultural prejudices it has internalized interpret and shape what we see (and don’t see).

So what the fuck does all this have to do with your day, let alone changing it, you ask? Give me a moment and I’ll try to bring it all home for you.

Some of you may have heard of Einstein’s theory of relativity. I won’t try to explain it, but his theory changed the very way in which we perceive reality. It has influenced (and continues to do so) every sphere of science. This elegant little theory almost single-handedly changed our lives in so many ways I can’t begin to count them. One admiring journalist asked Einstein how he arrived at his theory. “How did you do it?” the journalist asked. “I ignored an axiom,” Einstein is said to have replied.

To be clear, the revolutionary scientist didn’t say he ignored an opinion or a theory, but rather he ignored an idea so well established that it was regarded as self-evident. Furthermore, he didn’t say he rebelled or fought against the axiom: He simply acted as if it weren’t there.

And that’s it in a nutshell, if you want to change your day (or even your life), you have to stay open to the realization that even the most accepted assumption can be wrong. Begin by learning the rules and then break or at least deeply question all of them. Or at the very least act as if the limitations don't exist.

My name is Eddie and I’m in recovery from civilization… 

Thanks for reading. If you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it, please consider helping me out by sharing it, liking me on Facebook, following me on Twitter, or even throwing me some money on GoFundMe HERE or via PayPal HERE so I can keep calling it like I see it.

Nintendo and Meditation

Hola Everybody,
I’m selling a Trek bike -- hardly used -- at a bargain. Email me or comment for more information/ details. I’m off to a job interview… wish me luck.

Many people ask me to post on meditation. I’ve run into so many people who say, “I tried it, but I can’t do it.” But this is like saying you tried seeing... if your vision works, then it follows that you should be able to see, no?

Below, you’ll find a short article by a former teacher who explains in clear and elegant language, the notion of concentration and the development of mindfulness. Enjoy.

Nintendo Dharma

Goldstein, J. (1993). Insight meditation: The practice of freedom. Boston: Shambhala.

You may have noticed how easy it is to stay present when you engage in an activity you enjoy, like playing some sport, watching a movie, reading a book, or even playing Nintendo. Why can we be so concentrated in these activities, and yet find ourselves distracted and restless when we meditate? Surprisingly, this simple question can lead us to a profound understanding of suffering and freedom.

What we call mind is the naturally pure knowing faculty -- invisible, clear, and lucid. In some Tibetan texts it is called “the cognizing power of emptiness.” But mind includes more than just knowing, because in each moment of experience different qualities, or mental factors, arise with it and color the knowing in various ways. For example, greed, hatred, love, mindfulness, concentration, and wisdom, among many others, are all mental factors arising and passing in different moments, each functioning in its own way.

When we engage in various activities, different mental factors are at work. In Nintendo, we need to be right there with the game or we lose. The mind needs to be steady and one-pointed, with the factor of concentration quite strong. In addition to concentration, another quality of mind plays a critical role -- the mental factor of perception. Perception recognizes, names, and remembers appearances by picking out their distinguishing marks. Through the power of perception we recognize each appearing object of experience: woman, man, pine tree, Abraham Lincoln, computer, car, and innumerable others. Concentration and perception keep us present and absorbed in whatever life-game is happening.

Meditation practice is different. In order to develop insight and wisdom, we need to add the factor of mindfulness to the mental equation of concentration and perception. Mindfulness goes beyond the simple recognition of what is happening. It goes beyond keeping the mind steady. Through its strong power of observation, mindfulness uncovers the characteristic nature of experience itself.

Absorption in a movie or in Nintendo does not reveal the momentariness of phenomena. We do not see the impermanence and insubstantiality of all things and events, nor do we notice the empty nature of awareness itself. Perception and concentration arise in every moment; even when the mind gets lost in thought, we still recognize what it is we are thinking. But only mindfulness reveals that we are thinking. This is a critical difference. Perception by itself does not lead to insight into impermanence and selflessness, because it engages us in the content and story of what appears. Mindfulness emerges from the story and notices the moment-to-moment arising and passing of sense impressions, thoughts, and consciousness itself.

If we understand these three important factors of mind clearly -- concentration, perception, and mindfulness -- then their coming into balance becomes the field of freedom.

* * *

My name is Eddie and I’m in recovery from civilization…

Perception and Reality

Hola Everybody,
Two interviews today, two yesterday, one more tomorrow.

Perception

Perception, by x-horizon

One of my favorite topics is perception and how we make meaning our world. In our culture, we identify five main senses that humans possess (seeing, hearing, feeling, taste, and smell). In Buddhist psychology, the mind is considered a sixth sense, since it’s the process of the senses “rubbing up” against the mind that creates perception. But that’s for another day. Today, let’s simply say that we use the main senses to make, well, sense of the world around us. It should then that using all the senses regularly can help make you a better communicator. Senses help you assess situations, analyze events, and interpret your surroundings.

While it’s true that everyone shares the same senses, information is a very individual matter. For example, some people love the smell of sex, while others can’t stand it. A good communicator seeks to know how others interpret information and their preferred sense.

Consider a garden. One person may love the smell of freshly mown grass, another is lured by the color of plants, while a third may be attracted by the birds singing. A scene can mean different things to different people depending on their preference for each sense. While we register senses that come from outside the body, the processing takes place inside, creating individual interpretations of events.

Of course, there are other factors to consider. For example, a party may mean something different to a drunk, someone in love, and someone looking to network. For the drunk, a party may mean an opportunity for more drinking; he or she may be filled with thoughts of drinking. For someone in love, her focus may be on the object of her attraction. Finally, for someone looking to network, a party may look like an opportunity for business. But let’s stay with the senses today because they are basic and extremely important to our perception of reality.

Here’s a brief breakdown of the sense preference:

Visual: What you see, pictures, use of color and decoration, a preference for information presented graphically and pictorially.

Auditory: What you hear, sounds, voices, music, being able to process information presented verbally.

Kinesthetic: What you feel, a preference for touch and experience things personally, learn well by trying and doing.

Olfactory: What you smell (aroma), linked strongly to memory and mood.

Gustatory: What you taste, responses linked to food and drink.

In everyday communication, the first three senses are used most frequently. Think of VHF to remember these three: Visual, Hearing, and Feeling. When the words/ phrases below are used, they give an indication of the speaker’s dominant/ preferred sense. Speaking to someone using the language of their preferred sense serves to increase rapport and enhance communication.

Consider which of the following words you use most frequently in order to discover which your preferred sense is:

Visual – Seeing:

I see what you mean                                                        I get the picture

That looks right                                                               In my mind’s eye…

Show me the money                                                        Let’s take the long view

Keep an eye on things…

Auditory – Hearing

I hear what you’re saying                                               That sounds right

That rings a bell                                                              Listen in to…

That sounds familiar                                                      Tune in to something new

I need to hear people out

Kinesthetic -- Feeling 

That feels right                                                                I found it easy to handle

That touches a nerve                                                       I can empathize with

I’ve got the hang of it now                                             Hold on tight to reality

Come to grips with reality

In addition, each sense can be refined with more detail. These finer distinctions are called submodalities. You can fine-tune submodalities by adjusting the detail to change your perceptions (feelings/ emotions) when dealing with positive and negative situations. 

For example, by changing an image in your mind from color to black and white, you make it less vivid, and can then step back from the situation, disassociating yourself from the emotion. This is especially effective for anxieties and traumas. Alternatively, you can bring humor into a difficult situation by imagining the other person as a cartoon character. Changes can be made in the present time or afterwards when you think back to events and situations.

Submodalities:

Visual

Color (black/ white)                                                          Brightness

Contrast                                                                            Moving or still

Blurred or focused                                                            Close or far away

Large or small                                                                   In a tight frame,

or in a panorama

Auditory

Volume (loud/ soft)                                                           Tone

Duration                                                                             Location

Stereo or mono                                                                  Words or sounds

Pitch (high/ low)                                                                Tempo & rhythm

Kinesthetic

Temperature (hot/ cold)                                                     Location

Intensity                                                                             Texture (rough/ smooth)

Weight (heavy/ light)                                                         Pressure (hard/ soft)

Duration

Using submodalities, you can change your perception of present and past situations. For example, if you picture a past event and it seems small in your mind’s eye, you change that picture to be more panoramic and it will change your perception of that event.

 

The same is true with color. Most traumatic events are vivid in their exacting detail. Change the vividness in your mind’s eye and it helps to disassociate yourself from the grips of the paralyzing fear that accompanies such memories. I have been able to work with people and certain phobias, such as fear of flying and heights. It’s also that can be used with traumatic experiences. Of course, you can’t start with “big” things. You start with less fearful or traumatic memories and work yourself up. I actually “cured” my ex-boss of his fear of flying by using (in part) submodalities.

My name is Eddie and I’m in recovery from civilization…