We first watched an interesting interview where Dr. Robert E. Carter talked about self-cultivation.
The we read and gave our views on the following.
In the Past or in the Present?
Are you walking dead or are you walking alive?
"Behold, the former things have come to pass, and new things do I declare; before you they spring forth."
Isaiah 42:9
In the Greek myth of Orpheus Descending. Orpheus went into the underworld to rescue his wife from death. He was told that he could do so as long as while on his way out, he didn't look back. Well, he looked back. Consequently, she was lost forever-frozen in time! The same similar story is found in the Bible. Lot and his wife are spared by God from the fiery destruction of the evil cities, Sodom and Gomorrah. They are told by the angel not to look back at the city as they are leaving. Lot's wife looks back; she is turned into a pillar of salt.
The same is true for us when we don't let go of the past We become frozen in the past like Lot's wife who became a pillar of salt and like Orpheus looking back at his wife sees only a frozen memory. Lifeless. We are dead to life. And like a pillar of salt we become bitter like salt. Bitter over the fact something was taken from us or something didn't last forever. We are no longer moving or changing. Stuck! The only change that is happening is the deterioration of our body and our minds because we lack the vitality of ongoing life. Like a pillar of salt, rigid, with time, we begin to crumble. We cease to be moistened and renewed by the current of life. We like Orpheus are in the underworld visiting the frozen images of yesterday. We see people doing the same thing to us as in the past, the same failures, the same relationships with different names, the same attitude and outlook, the same insecurity, the same outcomes- we always keep winding up in the same spot. Stuck in time! We ARE in the same spot! We are a tombstone. Petrified like a pillar marking some past event or past person we won't let go of. A lost marriage, unrequited love, tragic events, a dead companion, past hurts, past regrets, past cherished moments, our childhood. Whatever we want to go back to. We avoid the pain of letting go and the price we pay for that is death! We cut ourselves off from the flow of LIFE. Our thinking and actions becomes become old and rigid. We are dead to Life.
It is ironic that those who live in the past age quickly and are prone to alcoholism and addictions. While those who change and live in the present stay younger, happier and are not addicted. Mother Theresa once said, "Being in the Present is to be with God."
Get Back to the Present: Since Life is a series of deaths starting with the loss of childhood into adolescence. By letting go, we can be reborn into new and greater things. In other words grow or "grow up". By being constantly reborn we enlarge our capacity to experience greater capacities of blessings and opportunities. When we get stuck to someone or something that we need to let go of, we stop in the flow of life. Prosperity and Health cease. Medical science has proven that brooding over the past can bring rapid old age, arthritis, failing vision, heart trouble, high blood pressure, depression and death. With God's help we have to constantly let go of people, memories, ideas, yesterday. We must be in the present to experience Life. We have to renew ourselves daily to attract the blessings in life. We must save our energy from depression caused by being stuck. Youth is only an eternity in the present. In the present we attract prosperity, health and joy! Good things occur regularly. We move ahead in the flow of Life. We are ALIVE!
Saturday, December 20, 2008
Saturday, November 22, 2008
November meeting
First of all we watched "Tony Robbins motivates you in 20 minutes: TEDTalks" a very inspired speaker but seemed rather hyper for us and then we read and discussed the following. (Shortened)
The Fountain of Youth
Jesus answered and said unto her, (the woman at the well)
Whoever drinks of this water shall thirst again:
But whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him
shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be
in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
John 4:13-14
Look first for the Kingdom of Heaven. And all things will be provided for you. Mathew 6 the kingdom of Heaven is within You Luke 17:21
Yes it's always been INSIDE YOU!
Youth it has been said is a "state of awe or bliss"
Among those who had lost their youth it was imagined that there was such a thing as a "Fountain of Youth" which had magical waters which sprung up from a special spring that would give those who drank from it or bathed in it healing and rejuvenation. In effect it would reverse age and return those who drank of its waters back to his youth. Well, many people set out to look for it; sadly, none ever could find it. Why not? Because it was always inside of themselves. What they had of the Fountain of Youth-its healing and rejuvenating powers were inside of them. Then why could they not reach it if it was inside themselves? Because they had abandoned themselves in pursuit of things outside of themselves and found sadness instead. To set out looking for romances, people, power and material possessions to make us happy is to set out on a voyage to nowhere. It is like leaving your house to look for your bedroom.
The important point is that because it is a state of mind, it can be accessed in our minds.
Youth is a feeling of wonder, innocence, freshness; the opposite of cynical and worn out. So in that case younger in age or older in age it doesn't matter, we can be cynical and worn out at 25 years old and we can be full of wonder at 75 years old. Youth is a state of mind that can be found or lost at any age. Youth is a spiritual state! Youth is alive and full of feeling. Youth is vibrant and unafraid. Youth is very much a part of living, changing, discovering and yes, actually staying physically young without the help of cosmetics, fad diets, and work-out regiments. Youth has nothing to do with acting juvenile, crazy, arrogant, irresponsible, or aloof. Youth is child-like - fun, spontaneous, alive, energetic, emotionally responsive, in touch with reality, intelligent, creative and adaptive. Youth is full of wonder and surprise. And above all youth is very much in the "present"!
Pleasures outside of ourselves are seductive powers. They get us hooked and because they can never fulfill us, we drain our life energy pursuing them. We've plugged into a power drainage rather than a Power source. And the source of all Power is within ourselves! So when we hook into pleasures outside of ourselves, we direct that Power from within us to something outside of ourselves. And because those things outside of ourselves need our Power to keep them alive, they can not give us any Power back to replenish the power they have taken from us.
They take our Youth, our innocence, our wonder. They disappoint us and constantly let us down. We become miserable, diseased, insatiable, lonely, bitter. Because our energy is draining, we do not have enough energy to sustain our health. Thus, we become ill, stressed, depressed (drained), diseased, physically aged and inevitably dead.
So, to help with their illness and depression, these people look for cures to replenish their energy and restore them to well-being and health. Or even try moving to a new place, or having a new romance, or maybe it will be a new job, more money, a new project, a new relationship, a brand new drug, a new vacation spot, a new car, a new face lift. more vitamins, a vacation to a spa, a new exercise, a new look-change of clothes, a new house or a remodeling! And as we all know, these things don't last and furthermore, do not give us what we think they should be giving us. We get let down. Does that stop some of us? NO! Pursue and consume and pursue and consume, ad infinitum.
They get "high" on the new, on the pursuit, on consuming, and so forth. And all the while they can not understand why they are getting depressed and why their doctors tell them they have high blood pressure or anxiety disorder or manic depression, or panic attacks, and insecurities or hypertension. And still some of them keep trying to change the outer body to cause a change within themselves. So these people get hooked on plastic surgery, exercise regimens, cosmetic treatments, and so on. In actuality, the more money you have to spend on something to make you happy or to look good, it isn't going to work. That's why it's expensive! Because most of us know that the best things in life are free or minimally priced! It's the spending, the hype, the idea that they can afford it, the status and all the "mind games" If they believe in the "hype" (hypnotic) enough it will cause them to feel a certain way! And for how long? Until the newest invention comes along!
And like the powers they depend on for happiness and health and youth, they become just like them: short lived, worn out, unreliable, dependent, moody, unstable, used and abused, and discarded. An object! The saying "you are what you eat" is the same as you are what you touch, what you consume, etc...Depend on objects become like objects! Depend on the people you depend upon and you become like them. The same is true about ideas, depend on those ideas and you become like those ideas.
And another reason why outer dependency brings disappointment: all things outside of ourselves to make us happy, including people, have to be there for us. That means we have to rely on them being there. That means we have to pay some kind of price to maintain those things or people to be there for us. Very expensive! In a way, we have become dependent or even enslaved or addicted to those things to be there for us to make us happy and healthy.
So when they are not there or are unreliable, they cause us distress. The person or object we depend on becomes the source of power now. They actually control us! Look at how much money and how much energy people waste on others and things they depend on.
If we had to truly depend on ourselves we would find an awakening within ourselves. Throughout history including our own country's Depression in the 1930's people actually got stronger, more creative. Many great statesman and creative geniuses came out of that period. WHY? Because they found their REAL POWER! And that inner Power we always have access to. And we can replenish our inner Power from within through spirituality. And we can draw from it at anytime. And it doesn't matter what is around us or where we are. It's not like a car on a road that runs out of gas 40 miles from the nearest gas station. Whenever, we run out of energy, we can go within and draw from our "fountain of youth" - our source of vitality, strength, wisdom, happiness, creativity, and joy!
No matter who you are or what has happened in your life; whether you are young or old, rich or poor, religious or not, unlucky or lucky, famous or not, youth can be found inside yourself. YES! Everybody! When you find it, you will definitely know it! You will have found YOU! Nothing more needs to be said. You will never need to be like someone or dependent on someone or something ever again!
The Fountain of Youth
Jesus answered and said unto her, (the woman at the well)
Whoever drinks of this water shall thirst again:
But whosoever drinks of the water that I shall give him
shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be
in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.
John 4:13-14
Look first for the Kingdom of Heaven. And all things will be provided for you. Mathew 6 the kingdom of Heaven is within You Luke 17:21
Yes it's always been INSIDE YOU!
Youth it has been said is a "state of awe or bliss"
Among those who had lost their youth it was imagined that there was such a thing as a "Fountain of Youth" which had magical waters which sprung up from a special spring that would give those who drank from it or bathed in it healing and rejuvenation. In effect it would reverse age and return those who drank of its waters back to his youth. Well, many people set out to look for it; sadly, none ever could find it. Why not? Because it was always inside of themselves. What they had of the Fountain of Youth-its healing and rejuvenating powers were inside of them. Then why could they not reach it if it was inside themselves? Because they had abandoned themselves in pursuit of things outside of themselves and found sadness instead. To set out looking for romances, people, power and material possessions to make us happy is to set out on a voyage to nowhere. It is like leaving your house to look for your bedroom.
The important point is that because it is a state of mind, it can be accessed in our minds.
Youth is a feeling of wonder, innocence, freshness; the opposite of cynical and worn out. So in that case younger in age or older in age it doesn't matter, we can be cynical and worn out at 25 years old and we can be full of wonder at 75 years old. Youth is a state of mind that can be found or lost at any age. Youth is a spiritual state! Youth is alive and full of feeling. Youth is vibrant and unafraid. Youth is very much a part of living, changing, discovering and yes, actually staying physically young without the help of cosmetics, fad diets, and work-out regiments. Youth has nothing to do with acting juvenile, crazy, arrogant, irresponsible, or aloof. Youth is child-like - fun, spontaneous, alive, energetic, emotionally responsive, in touch with reality, intelligent, creative and adaptive. Youth is full of wonder and surprise. And above all youth is very much in the "present"!
Pleasures outside of ourselves are seductive powers. They get us hooked and because they can never fulfill us, we drain our life energy pursuing them. We've plugged into a power drainage rather than a Power source. And the source of all Power is within ourselves! So when we hook into pleasures outside of ourselves, we direct that Power from within us to something outside of ourselves. And because those things outside of ourselves need our Power to keep them alive, they can not give us any Power back to replenish the power they have taken from us.
They take our Youth, our innocence, our wonder. They disappoint us and constantly let us down. We become miserable, diseased, insatiable, lonely, bitter. Because our energy is draining, we do not have enough energy to sustain our health. Thus, we become ill, stressed, depressed (drained), diseased, physically aged and inevitably dead.
So, to help with their illness and depression, these people look for cures to replenish their energy and restore them to well-being and health. Or even try moving to a new place, or having a new romance, or maybe it will be a new job, more money, a new project, a new relationship, a brand new drug, a new vacation spot, a new car, a new face lift. more vitamins, a vacation to a spa, a new exercise, a new look-change of clothes, a new house or a remodeling! And as we all know, these things don't last and furthermore, do not give us what we think they should be giving us. We get let down. Does that stop some of us? NO! Pursue and consume and pursue and consume, ad infinitum.
They get "high" on the new, on the pursuit, on consuming, and so forth. And all the while they can not understand why they are getting depressed and why their doctors tell them they have high blood pressure or anxiety disorder or manic depression, or panic attacks, and insecurities or hypertension. And still some of them keep trying to change the outer body to cause a change within themselves. So these people get hooked on plastic surgery, exercise regimens, cosmetic treatments, and so on. In actuality, the more money you have to spend on something to make you happy or to look good, it isn't going to work. That's why it's expensive! Because most of us know that the best things in life are free or minimally priced! It's the spending, the hype, the idea that they can afford it, the status and all the "mind games" If they believe in the "hype" (hypnotic) enough it will cause them to feel a certain way! And for how long? Until the newest invention comes along!
And like the powers they depend on for happiness and health and youth, they become just like them: short lived, worn out, unreliable, dependent, moody, unstable, used and abused, and discarded. An object! The saying "you are what you eat" is the same as you are what you touch, what you consume, etc...Depend on objects become like objects! Depend on the people you depend upon and you become like them. The same is true about ideas, depend on those ideas and you become like those ideas.
And another reason why outer dependency brings disappointment: all things outside of ourselves to make us happy, including people, have to be there for us. That means we have to rely on them being there. That means we have to pay some kind of price to maintain those things or people to be there for us. Very expensive! In a way, we have become dependent or even enslaved or addicted to those things to be there for us to make us happy and healthy.
So when they are not there or are unreliable, they cause us distress. The person or object we depend on becomes the source of power now. They actually control us! Look at how much money and how much energy people waste on others and things they depend on.
If we had to truly depend on ourselves we would find an awakening within ourselves. Throughout history including our own country's Depression in the 1930's people actually got stronger, more creative. Many great statesman and creative geniuses came out of that period. WHY? Because they found their REAL POWER! And that inner Power we always have access to. And we can replenish our inner Power from within through spirituality. And we can draw from it at anytime. And it doesn't matter what is around us or where we are. It's not like a car on a road that runs out of gas 40 miles from the nearest gas station. Whenever, we run out of energy, we can go within and draw from our "fountain of youth" - our source of vitality, strength, wisdom, happiness, creativity, and joy!
No matter who you are or what has happened in your life; whether you are young or old, rich or poor, religious or not, unlucky or lucky, famous or not, youth can be found inside yourself. YES! Everybody! When you find it, you will definitely know it! You will have found YOU! Nothing more needs to be said. You will never need to be like someone or dependent on someone or something ever again!
Saturday, October 18, 2008
17 October
Just the six of us met up again for perhaps the last time to discuss the final aim of what philosophy is all about, enlightenment. We looked at a video of Tony Parsons author of The Open Secret in which he chronicles his Awakening. None of us believed that it was truly the complete answer. Like previous claimants they seem to lose the sparkle of the intellect a price none of us thought right.
This is description of his nirvana.
The Hypnotic Dream of Separation
There is no me or you, no seeker, no enlightenment, no disciple and no guru. There is no better or worse, no path or purpose, and nothing that has to be achieved.
All appearance is source. All that apparently manifests in the hypnotic dream of separation – the world, the life story, the search for home, is one appearing as two, the nothing appearing as everything, the absolute appearing as the particular.
There is no separate intelligence weaving a destiny and no choice functioning at any level. Nothing is happening but this, as it is, invites the apparent seeker to rediscover that which is . . . the abiding, uncaused, unchanging, impersonal silence from which unconditional love overflows and celebrates. It is the wonderful mystery.
This is description of his nirvana.
The Hypnotic Dream of Separation
There is no me or you, no seeker, no enlightenment, no disciple and no guru. There is no better or worse, no path or purpose, and nothing that has to be achieved.
All appearance is source. All that apparently manifests in the hypnotic dream of separation – the world, the life story, the search for home, is one appearing as two, the nothing appearing as everything, the absolute appearing as the particular.
There is no separate intelligence weaving a destiny and no choice functioning at any level. Nothing is happening but this, as it is, invites the apparent seeker to rediscover that which is . . . the abiding, uncaused, unchanging, impersonal silence from which unconditional love overflows and celebrates. It is the wonderful mystery.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Septembers meeting
Another small group but not in enthusiasm, we went back to basics discussing how can Samsara be Nirvana. Despite the wisdom that he who says he knows doesn't, we tried to clarify the meaning by seeing the mind when attachment is withdrawn. The ordinary mind that is the container of all things is spotless when unattached. We then looked at a video of a brain specialist describing her experience when she had a stroke in the left side of the brain. Afterward we read a paper on being a slave or master
Monday, August 18, 2008
August
Only five of us again but we still had a good discussion after watching the sixth instalment of the Kabbala where he explained why we should appreciate all things as a gift and in doing so it gives enjoyment to the giver - God.
Friday, July 18, 2008
July meeting
Only four of us but again we all watched the fifth video from the kabbalah school of philosophy. This one was less appealing with too many names but we got the gist of it and next month we will be shown a tool to gain enlightenment. Should be interesting. We then discussed the paper that proposed the trend for people to get fatter is through trying to fill an emptiness of a spiritual yearning rather than a hunger for food.
Broke up at 12.30 so must have been enjoyed.
Broke up at 12.30 so must have been enjoyed.
Friday, June 20, 2008
20th June
Only six of us but everybody seemed to enjoy the fourth video from the kabbalah school of philosophy. This time a great emphasis was placed on knowing the creator directly without an understanding or intellectual concept held in the mind.
Saturday, May 17, 2008
17th May
As we had a guest today we reviewed the main points of philosophy we have discovered. One the world is not "real". More akin to a hologram than a solid "thing". The "world" is in our minds as all knowledge of reality is an inward awareness of incoming senses. We do not look "out". The ego is not our true self but the unknowable watcher is the same in all of us.
We then watched the third short film of the kabbalah. The instruction given is that we are all on the path to the return to the creator but it can be done the easy way or the hard way. We then had more discussions on on our opinion of this that we never got round to reading the prepared article.
We then watched the third short film of the kabbalah. The instruction given is that we are all on the path to the return to the creator but it can be done the easy way or the hard way. We then had more discussions on on our opinion of this that we never got round to reading the prepared article.
Saturday, April 19, 2008
18 th April
Not many today at today's meeting but still enjoyable. We once again continued with studying the Jewish Kabbalah by listening to a half hour film first then after a break we then read a written summary and maybe you too would like to read it.
Cracking the Happiness Code
In Kabbalah—the science of happiness—happiness stops being a mystery. This elusive notion can be broken down into component parts and understood. And just like e=mc2, there's a formula for lasting happiness
"Quick: think about what would make you really, really happy."
This was the opening line of the cover story in the May, 2007 issue of Newsweek, dedicated to the subject of happiness. Top international psychologists, sociologists, biologists and economists tried to answer the eternal question: "What is the secret of happiness?" or more precisely, "What would it take to make us happy?"
The Dollar Is Always Greener on the Other Side
"Maybe money?" the researchers asked. "If I had the money," claims the typical happiness fantasizer, "I could have, or do, anything I want: travel around the world, buy anything I please, be independent, and take charge of my life... In short, money is bound to make me happy, isn't it?"
Surprisingly (or not), many recent studies show that once we have enough to meet our basic needs, money ceases to make us happier. One famous study showed that even lottery winners who were very, very happy when they won soon lost their euphoria. After a while, their moods were exactly the same as they had been before their big win.
In fact, once we have more money than we need for our basic needs, our ability to enjoy it becomes overshadowed by questions like, "Am I keeping up with the Joneses?" because no matter how much we earn, it always seems as if our neighbor's dollar is a shade or two greener.
Happiness Economics
What about free time? If we worked less and rested more, would we have our longed for happiness?
The happiness researchers flatly dismiss this hypothesis as well. On the "World Map of Happiness," recently published by the school of psychology at England's Leicester University, the hard-working USA takes a whooping 23rd place, while vacationing France staggers behind in 62nd place.
One by one, the happiness researchers revoked the most common theories about the road to happiness. They concluded that in the long run, things like a successful career, a happy marriage, and even good health will not make us happy.
So what would make us happy? That's precisely the question that leaves researchers dumbfounded. Somehow, it's easier to identify the factors that do not make us happy, than to offer a practical formula for true happiness.
"Happiness is everywhere—on the best-seller lists, in the minds of policymakers, and front and center for economists—yet it remains elusive," concludes Rana Foroohar, Newsweek's senior economics writer.
So how do we grab hold of that fleeting happiness?
The Mechanics of Happiness
To crack the happiness code, we must start by realizing who we really are, what our nature is. And that is something very simple: we are the desire to be happy. In other words, we all want to receive pleasure, to enjoy, or as Kabbalah calls it, we are "the will to receive."
"... The will to receive pleasure constitutes the entire matter of Creation, from its beginning to its end. … all the myriad types of creatures and their varieties are but rates and modified values of the will to receive."
Kabbalist Yehuda Ashlag (Baal Hasulam),
"Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah"
Perhaps this sounds like something you already knew. But our nature, the will to receive, is more sophisticated than what we might think. It's not just a constant desire that's always nudging us to find happiness. This will to receive actually motivates everything we do, down to the smallest actions we make, and even every thought we have.
The will to receive seeks satisfaction every at moment and makes sure that we don't rest until we fulfill its demands. It also constantly determines how we feel: if we satisfy it, we're happy, we feel good, life's a song; if we don't, we become frustrated, angry, depressed, and even violent or suicidal.
Perhaps you also guessed this. But the thing that so often escapes our notice—and the key to cracking the happiness code—is the fact that once our "will to receive" is fulfilled, the pleasure we feel disappears.
The great Irish author, Oscar Wilde, certainly knew about this when he wrote, "In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it. The last is much the worst; the last is a real tragedy."
Kabbalah explains the mechanics of this process: initially, we want something and make efforts to acquire it. The moment we get what we fervently desired, we feel pleasure, joy and delight. Or, in Kabbalah's language, the first encounter between the desire and its filling is the peak of the pleasure.
So far so good—but the process isn't finished yet. The moment we get the thing we wanted, the desire abates. In other words, we gradually stop wanting what we attained, and as a result, our pleasure starts fading… until it disappears completely.
For example, you know what it's like when you're really hungry: you could eat a steak so big it needs its own area code (vegetarians: consider that a tofu loaf). But what happens when you start eating?
The first bite is pure ecstasy, and the next bite is wonderful. The next bite is good, and the next bite is… okay, and the next is whatever it is. And the next one is: "not another bite, I'm gonna be sick..."
This happens with everything, not just food. We can spend years dreaming about a fancy sports car and when we finally get it, we're thrilled—well, at least for a few moments or days. But soon we find ourselves enjoying it less and less until it stops giving us any pleasure. And then every time we look at the car, the only thing we feel is the weight of the gigantic loan we have to pay back for the next ten years!
Economics Professor Richard Easterlin of the University of Southern California, a pioneer of happiness research, calls this phenomenon "hedonic adaptation," which means, "We get a new car, and we get used to it. We get new clothes, and we get used to it again... We adjust very quickly to the pleasure we get..."
But that can't be the end of the story, can it? After all, even as we describe this, we all long for lasting pleasure. Did Nature place us in this vicious circle to remain forever unhappy? Could happiness be just a fairy tale, a Santa Claus story that will never come true?
The (Secret) Happiness Formula
Thankfully, Kabbalah explains that Nature is not cruel at all; in fact, its only desire is to bring us the happiness we seek. If our aspiration for happiness was not meant to be realized, we wouldn't have it to begin with. Nature's purpose is to let us independently attain a feeling of complete and total happiness—not "sort-of" happiness or "most of the time" kind of happiness, but the kind that is absolute, perfect, and eternal.
And we're actually closer to it than we think. In fact, the recent trend of happiness research and our growing realization that we are never satisfied have actually brought us closer to true happiness. We are beginning to identify the pattern: happiness has nothing to do with how much money we make or how good our marriage is—in fact, it has nothing to do with any other kind of pleasure we try to receive. We're starting to uncover the fundamental fact that happiness can only be felt using a different principle of enjoyment.
At this point, Kabbalah helps us solve the happiness problem at its root. We've already explained why we never feel lasting pleasure from anything: because the minute the pleasure meets the desire, the desire becomes neutralized. And since our desire is neutralized, we can no longer enjoy the pleasure.
So the secret of happiness, Kabbalah explains, is to add another ingredient to this process, the ingredient of "intention." This means that we keep wanting just like before, only we put a different spin on our desire: we direct it outward, as if we are giving to someone else. In other words, this intention turns our desire into a "passageway" for the pleasure. Thus, the pleasure we feel won't stop; it will keep going through our desire, following our intention. And our desire will be able to keep receiving continuously, without ever being quenched.
And that's the formula for endless pleasure, or lasting happiness. When a person applies this formula, he actually goes through a profound transition and begins to feel different kinds of pleasures. Kabbalah calls them "spiritual," and precisely they are endless.
In Conclusion—a Short Summary
What is happiness?
It's what we feel when we fulfill our "will to receive."
Why does it go away?
Because the pleasure neutralizes our desire, and without a desire, we can't feel pleasure.
What's the formula for feeling endless pleasure?
Adding an "intention of giving" to our "will to receive," so the pleasure will keep flowing through our desire, endlessly.
True happiness is just around the corner, waiting for us to learn how to feel it, how to add an intention to our desire. Studying Kabbalah, we naturally acquire this new, spiritual intention and start receiving the way Nature wants us to—perfectly. This is why "Kabbalah" is Hebrew for "reception"—it's the wisdom that teaches us how to receive.
Cracking the Happiness Code
In Kabbalah—the science of happiness—happiness stops being a mystery. This elusive notion can be broken down into component parts and understood. And just like e=mc2, there's a formula for lasting happiness
"Quick: think about what would make you really, really happy."
This was the opening line of the cover story in the May, 2007 issue of Newsweek, dedicated to the subject of happiness. Top international psychologists, sociologists, biologists and economists tried to answer the eternal question: "What is the secret of happiness?" or more precisely, "What would it take to make us happy?"
The Dollar Is Always Greener on the Other Side
"Maybe money?" the researchers asked. "If I had the money," claims the typical happiness fantasizer, "I could have, or do, anything I want: travel around the world, buy anything I please, be independent, and take charge of my life... In short, money is bound to make me happy, isn't it?"
Surprisingly (or not), many recent studies show that once we have enough to meet our basic needs, money ceases to make us happier. One famous study showed that even lottery winners who were very, very happy when they won soon lost their euphoria. After a while, their moods were exactly the same as they had been before their big win.
In fact, once we have more money than we need for our basic needs, our ability to enjoy it becomes overshadowed by questions like, "Am I keeping up with the Joneses?" because no matter how much we earn, it always seems as if our neighbor's dollar is a shade or two greener.
Happiness Economics
What about free time? If we worked less and rested more, would we have our longed for happiness?
The happiness researchers flatly dismiss this hypothesis as well. On the "World Map of Happiness," recently published by the school of psychology at England's Leicester University, the hard-working USA takes a whooping 23rd place, while vacationing France staggers behind in 62nd place.
One by one, the happiness researchers revoked the most common theories about the road to happiness. They concluded that in the long run, things like a successful career, a happy marriage, and even good health will not make us happy.
So what would make us happy? That's precisely the question that leaves researchers dumbfounded. Somehow, it's easier to identify the factors that do not make us happy, than to offer a practical formula for true happiness.
"Happiness is everywhere—on the best-seller lists, in the minds of policymakers, and front and center for economists—yet it remains elusive," concludes Rana Foroohar, Newsweek's senior economics writer.
So how do we grab hold of that fleeting happiness?
The Mechanics of Happiness
To crack the happiness code, we must start by realizing who we really are, what our nature is. And that is something very simple: we are the desire to be happy. In other words, we all want to receive pleasure, to enjoy, or as Kabbalah calls it, we are "the will to receive."
"... The will to receive pleasure constitutes the entire matter of Creation, from its beginning to its end. … all the myriad types of creatures and their varieties are but rates and modified values of the will to receive."
Kabbalist Yehuda Ashlag (Baal Hasulam),
"Preface to the Wisdom of Kabbalah"
Perhaps this sounds like something you already knew. But our nature, the will to receive, is more sophisticated than what we might think. It's not just a constant desire that's always nudging us to find happiness. This will to receive actually motivates everything we do, down to the smallest actions we make, and even every thought we have.
The will to receive seeks satisfaction every at moment and makes sure that we don't rest until we fulfill its demands. It also constantly determines how we feel: if we satisfy it, we're happy, we feel good, life's a song; if we don't, we become frustrated, angry, depressed, and even violent or suicidal.
Perhaps you also guessed this. But the thing that so often escapes our notice—and the key to cracking the happiness code—is the fact that once our "will to receive" is fulfilled, the pleasure we feel disappears.
The great Irish author, Oscar Wilde, certainly knew about this when he wrote, "In this world there are only two tragedies. One is not getting what one wants, and the other is getting it. The last is much the worst; the last is a real tragedy."
Kabbalah explains the mechanics of this process: initially, we want something and make efforts to acquire it. The moment we get what we fervently desired, we feel pleasure, joy and delight. Or, in Kabbalah's language, the first encounter between the desire and its filling is the peak of the pleasure.
So far so good—but the process isn't finished yet. The moment we get the thing we wanted, the desire abates. In other words, we gradually stop wanting what we attained, and as a result, our pleasure starts fading… until it disappears completely.
For example, you know what it's like when you're really hungry: you could eat a steak so big it needs its own area code (vegetarians: consider that a tofu loaf). But what happens when you start eating?
The first bite is pure ecstasy, and the next bite is wonderful. The next bite is good, and the next bite is… okay, and the next is whatever it is. And the next one is: "not another bite, I'm gonna be sick..."
This happens with everything, not just food. We can spend years dreaming about a fancy sports car and when we finally get it, we're thrilled—well, at least for a few moments or days. But soon we find ourselves enjoying it less and less until it stops giving us any pleasure. And then every time we look at the car, the only thing we feel is the weight of the gigantic loan we have to pay back for the next ten years!
Economics Professor Richard Easterlin of the University of Southern California, a pioneer of happiness research, calls this phenomenon "hedonic adaptation," which means, "We get a new car, and we get used to it. We get new clothes, and we get used to it again... We adjust very quickly to the pleasure we get..."
But that can't be the end of the story, can it? After all, even as we describe this, we all long for lasting pleasure. Did Nature place us in this vicious circle to remain forever unhappy? Could happiness be just a fairy tale, a Santa Claus story that will never come true?
The (Secret) Happiness Formula
Thankfully, Kabbalah explains that Nature is not cruel at all; in fact, its only desire is to bring us the happiness we seek. If our aspiration for happiness was not meant to be realized, we wouldn't have it to begin with. Nature's purpose is to let us independently attain a feeling of complete and total happiness—not "sort-of" happiness or "most of the time" kind of happiness, but the kind that is absolute, perfect, and eternal.
And we're actually closer to it than we think. In fact, the recent trend of happiness research and our growing realization that we are never satisfied have actually brought us closer to true happiness. We are beginning to identify the pattern: happiness has nothing to do with how much money we make or how good our marriage is—in fact, it has nothing to do with any other kind of pleasure we try to receive. We're starting to uncover the fundamental fact that happiness can only be felt using a different principle of enjoyment.
At this point, Kabbalah helps us solve the happiness problem at its root. We've already explained why we never feel lasting pleasure from anything: because the minute the pleasure meets the desire, the desire becomes neutralized. And since our desire is neutralized, we can no longer enjoy the pleasure.
So the secret of happiness, Kabbalah explains, is to add another ingredient to this process, the ingredient of "intention." This means that we keep wanting just like before, only we put a different spin on our desire: we direct it outward, as if we are giving to someone else. In other words, this intention turns our desire into a "passageway" for the pleasure. Thus, the pleasure we feel won't stop; it will keep going through our desire, following our intention. And our desire will be able to keep receiving continuously, without ever being quenched.
And that's the formula for endless pleasure, or lasting happiness. When a person applies this formula, he actually goes through a profound transition and begins to feel different kinds of pleasures. Kabbalah calls them "spiritual," and precisely they are endless.
In Conclusion—a Short Summary
What is happiness?
It's what we feel when we fulfill our "will to receive."
Why does it go away?
Because the pleasure neutralizes our desire, and without a desire, we can't feel pleasure.
What's the formula for feeling endless pleasure?
Adding an "intention of giving" to our "will to receive," so the pleasure will keep flowing through our desire, endlessly.
True happiness is just around the corner, waiting for us to learn how to feel it, how to add an intention to our desire. Studying Kabbalah, we naturally acquire this new, spiritual intention and start receiving the way Nature wants us to—perfectly. This is why "Kabbalah" is Hebrew for "reception"—it's the wisdom that teaches us how to receive.
Saturday, March 22, 2008
21 march
Today we again looked at the Jewish Mystic philosophy of Kabbalah. First with a 30 minute film. It told us that since 1995 kabbalah became available for Gentiles to read and learn after a 4000 year hidden practice.
After a tea break we went on to read about practical Kabbalah from a woman's perspective.
I believe we all enjoyed the morning and intend to continue to learn more as there are 20 more films to continue the journey of discovery.
After a tea break we went on to read about practical Kabbalah from a woman's perspective.
I believe we all enjoyed the morning and intend to continue to learn more as there are 20 more films to continue the journey of discovery.
Friday, February 15, 2008
15 February
Down in numbers through an epidemic of colds but the five of us had a good meeting where we first looked at a short film about the Kabalah. According to this we are only aware of the 1% of reality which is physical the 99% is a hidden spiritual realm. Afterwards following a break for tea and biscuits we then read about this philosophy. (an extract below.)
The Freedom Blues
Did you ever wonder why you like going on vacation? What are you looking for in another place that you can't find at home? Kabbalah explains that what we're looking for is actually right in front of us, or rather, right inside of us.
Looking for a Getaway
Freedom of expression, freedom of religion, freedom of information, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom to create, freedom fighters, academic freedom, economic freedom, free time… In the 21st century, it appears that almost everyone can make up his own kind of freedom.
But is there such a thing as absolute, unconditional freedom? Not freedom of something, but simply limitless, unbounded freedom in every imaginable sense? Is there such a thing as simply, freedom?
Kabbalah says there is, but it's very different from what we usually imagine. For most of us, freedom means getting away from the daily grind and the troubles of day-to-day life. We want to be liberated from the worries, the pressures, the boss at work and the overdrawn bank account. In short, we'd like a bit of escape from real life so we can catch our breath.
So we work hard all year and save money, so as to finally get a few moments of mercy on a sandy beach.
And between you and me, something always doesn't work out quite the way we wanted. One time it's the hotel, another time it's the flight, and if it's nothing else, then the kids decide that now is the perfect time to get sick... Somehow or other, most vacations don't end up being exactly what we dreamed of.
And even when we get lucky and go on that perfect vacation, every passing moment reminds us that it will all be over soon and before we know it, we'll have to plunge back into "real life."
If you stop and ponder this for a moment, some interesting questions will pop up: Does getting away from the routine really make us freer? What if there were a way to live differently so we would not want to escape our lives in search of freedom? And is there such a thing as an endless, perfect dream vacation?
The Freedom Blues
Did you ever wonder why you like going on vacation? What are you looking for in another place that you can't find at home? Kabbalah explains that what we're looking for is actually right in front of us, or rather, right inside of us.
Looking for a Getaway
Freedom of expression, freedom of religion, freedom of information, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, freedom to create, freedom fighters, academic freedom, economic freedom, free time… In the 21st century, it appears that almost everyone can make up his own kind of freedom.
But is there such a thing as absolute, unconditional freedom? Not freedom of something, but simply limitless, unbounded freedom in every imaginable sense? Is there such a thing as simply, freedom?
Kabbalah says there is, but it's very different from what we usually imagine. For most of us, freedom means getting away from the daily grind and the troubles of day-to-day life. We want to be liberated from the worries, the pressures, the boss at work and the overdrawn bank account. In short, we'd like a bit of escape from real life so we can catch our breath.
So we work hard all year and save money, so as to finally get a few moments of mercy on a sandy beach.
And between you and me, something always doesn't work out quite the way we wanted. One time it's the hotel, another time it's the flight, and if it's nothing else, then the kids decide that now is the perfect time to get sick... Somehow or other, most vacations don't end up being exactly what we dreamed of.
And even when we get lucky and go on that perfect vacation, every passing moment reminds us that it will all be over soon and before we know it, we'll have to plunge back into "real life."
If you stop and ponder this for a moment, some interesting questions will pop up: Does getting away from the routine really make us freer? What if there were a way to live differently so we would not want to escape our lives in search of freedom? And is there such a thing as an endless, perfect dream vacation?
Friday, January 18, 2008
18th January
As we had two new members attending our meeting for the first time we summed up the main findings from our last years meetings. Then watched a short film of the enlightened Eckhart Tolle explaining the joy of being in the now. Although we are all in the now as that is all there is most of us are either thinking of the future or the past but Eckhart tells us to regard all events as transient and not to expend our mindfulness on what is not real.
After tea and a biscuit we read and discussed Reality and Consciousness: Turning the Superparadigm Inside Out, Peter Russell, an abridgement of Russell's book, From Science to God.
His main conclusion is that to ask how consciousness arose out of the physical is wrong. This is trying to account for consciousness in terms that are themselves manifestations of consciousness. Space, time, matter, and all the forms and structures we observe in the world, are aspects of the phenomenon arising in the mind; they are aspects of the image of reality appearing in consciousness.
The question we should be asking is the exact opposite. How is that consciousness, which seems so non-material, can take on the material forms that we experience? How do space, time, color, sound, texture, substance, and the many other qualities that we associate with the material world, emerge in consciousness? What is the process of manifestation within the mind?
But this is not a question that science may ever be able to answer. It is more in the domain of the mystic, and others in the more contemplative traditions, who have chosen to explore the nature of consciousness first hand.
After tea and a biscuit we read and discussed Reality and Consciousness: Turning the Superparadigm Inside Out, Peter Russell, an abridgement of Russell's book, From Science to God.
His main conclusion is that to ask how consciousness arose out of the physical is wrong. This is trying to account for consciousness in terms that are themselves manifestations of consciousness. Space, time, matter, and all the forms and structures we observe in the world, are aspects of the phenomenon arising in the mind; they are aspects of the image of reality appearing in consciousness.
The question we should be asking is the exact opposite. How is that consciousness, which seems so non-material, can take on the material forms that we experience? How do space, time, color, sound, texture, substance, and the many other qualities that we associate with the material world, emerge in consciousness? What is the process of manifestation within the mind?
But this is not a question that science may ever be able to answer. It is more in the domain of the mystic, and others in the more contemplative traditions, who have chosen to explore the nature of consciousness first hand.
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