spirituality/philosophy/religion thread

[Himu]

Great thread.

http://www.reddit.com/r/Buddhism/comments/2mu99k/buddhism_at_work/

[Himu]

http://www.tricycle.com/feature/present-moment

Targets the modern Mindfulness movement. Defends and critiques it. Very informative.

[CatsCatsCats]

Is anyone here familiar with nonviolent communication (NVC) ?

There's a series on YouTube on it, I listened to the first two sessions and it really speaks to me

http://www.cnvc.org/

[Himu]

I am in dire need of spirituality right now. I am hurting inside deeply. I need to practice metta.

[kick51]

What type of meditation do you do?

Vipassana.

I've only done around five 30 minutes sessions so far but once I quit my 2nd job I'll have more time to dedicate to it.

How can you think psychedelics encapsulate a spiritual consciousness if you've never done them?

From some of the accounts that I've read and listened to.

I mean, I am of the mindset that everything can be and is a spiritual experience to some degree.

I think this book sums up psychedelics nicely:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008DZEWF8

It's kind of an extreme example.  but I could relate to it perfectly up until his trip started going on for weeks.

What they actually do is break down the system of symbolism most of us are accustomed to/agree on, which makes up reality.  A chair is a chair, we don't think much of it aside from it's practical use, its physical location, maybe what it's made of, etc.  but on psychedelics, it can come to symbolize the support the whole world needs to keep going and then your brain uses this as a springboard to riff for an hour or 8 about the meaning of life and wow the wood grain is swirling like a hurricane, no wait, it's a spiral, the spiral is like energy and energy is what makes up everything and blah blah blah.   

It lets your mind wander and make associations like crazy.  This can lead to positive realizations and insights into one's self. It allows you to think much differently than you ever have before.  But it doesn't really grant anyone special spiritual insights that aren't attainable in sober life and more importantly, it's just like being "told" these things, you still have to act on them or figure out how to act on them.  I found it just creaked open my mind and made me more adventurous/calm in every day life.  And I had some trips where I really just sat there thinking myself into oblivion, trying to write things down that made sense, then reading them in the morning and wondering what the fuck "balloon is the heart beat of the lungs, the energy of truth is everywhere" means.

[Stoney Mason]

LSD was about the only time I've ever experienced anything close to spirituality. I'd take psychedelics over any traditional religion any day of the week.

At least the fleeting inner peace that comes with that doesn't force me to join in collective delusion.

[jakefromstatefarm]

I like organized religion

Or at least examining it as a social construct and wrestling with its concepts/learning about its greater ramifications in the human experience. I don't really have to deal with any dogmatic zealots on a regular basis so that probably colors my outlook; I understand how that could get annoying.

[kick51]

LSD was about the only time I've ever experienced anything close to spirituality. I'd take psychedelics over any traditional religion any day of the week.

At least the fleeting inner peace that comes with that doesn't force me to join in collective delusion.

Some famous person said everyone should try LSD at least once.  There's probably some truth to that.  of course, we'd have a lot of people discovering their latent schizophrenia and others going fucking ballistic with the whole free association thing.   

It's not a super safe bet though.  It can also just lead you down a completely weird tangent in life.  I started trying to get deep into eastern philosophy and religion, but in that dumb, superficial "just looking for confirmation bias" way.  I thought I was finding the secret to happiness or whatever it was I was trying to grasp during my trips, just because it was something different (kinda like how weeaboos think japanese shit is superior just because of the exotic mystique factor.) then I took an academic class on the history of confucianism, taoism, and buddhism and had the realization that I could pretty much never "get" it...it's too much of a cultural barrier for a white suburban boy to cross.  That is, to practice those religions in the way they're meant to be practiced and not just reading books for soundbytes that confirm my existence.  And that "it" was just as silly as any western religion...they all mean well in their texts, it's just how people have interpreted them that sucks.  Oppression has been instated and blood has been shed in the name of eastern religion as well at certain points of history.  The marketing for this stuff in the west glosses over the truth of what those religions are--they're just other religions like the ones we have in the west!  Not to completely undermine them. There are things we can learn from them, culturally and philosophically.

I'm kinda lucky and never got heavy into it.  It gets much uglier than that.  Got to any Phish show parking lot while the concert is going and see all the human waste that just sits outside, completely out of it, looking like shit. 

[Stoney Mason]

I like organized religion

Or at least examining it as a social construct and wrestling with its concepts/learning about its greater ramifications in the human experience. I don't really have to deal with any dogmatic zealots on a regular basis so that probably colors my outlook; I understand how that could get annoying.

I don't like any of the super natural religions just based on concept and logic but everybody is entitled to their opinions on what delusions they need to cope and get by with. In countries where religion has been neutered it's probably tolerable at least. I wish I lived in one of those countries.

[Stoney Mason]

Some famous person said everyone should try LSD at least once.

I definitely would fall into that thinking. I think people should try it at least once if only to see how a slight chemical imbalance can make you believe anything with the strongest feelings you've ever felt. Traditional religion only made sense to me after I had tried LSD.

That being said, like anything its easy to over-dose on something that you feel gives you deeper insight into the life condition until you become a husk. You still have to have some kind of tether that grounds you to real life.

[jakefromstatefarm]

Not to be pedantic,  but what even is organized religion? :dualities

There's been a lot of literature written since the 70s on civil religion and the nature of transcendence that argue that, in modernity, national symbols/flags/etc and mass culture occupy the same role that religion used to in western society; it's why I don't fuck with the notion that western secularism and clericalism are inherently opposed to each other. Imo, there's evidence they're just two sides of the same coin

[Am_I_Anonymous]

A message from black people: LSD and black people do not mix. Trust me. Been there. Not good we argue with turtles and shit.

[Himu]

This article perfectly encapsulates what I've been dealing with for a few weeks. It is ruining me spiritually and emotionally. I feel like I have regressed ten years in terms of how I think of others' well being. I cannot fucking empathize with anyone right now. I'm just pissed and I have no idea what to do with it aside from kick and punch a muay thai bag. I haven't taken any vows, or precepts or anything, and I feel like such a goddamn fool.

http://www.elephantjournal.com/2014/12/do-bodhisattvas-get-angry-a-response-to-to-the-killing-of-eric-garner/

[Himu]

I wrote a letter to the pastor to rescind my church membership because it forces me into obligations and rote calls to try to bring me into the fold.

I Decided not to do it.

Dad said I'm doing this cause drama. That I do this on purpose, and that I'm trying to ruin them (my parents). I said that the letter shouldn't cause drama in an ideal church. Then he went on a rant about how my friend died from drugs as a teenager, that he was stupid and killed himself and somehow that's related to the letter because in his mind it all connects because that's when I started to think like this. That's not what happened. He said I'm not an atheist, and that the letter was disrespectful. I said I talked to a few people about it, and they didn't find it disrespectful at all, and he was like,"well of course, they think like you!"

So it's whatever. Lol I'm not doing it.

[benjipwns]

Don't mean to start any shit, just was watching this debate and died at this part: Christopher Hitchens and Peter Hitchens: Brothers debate God and War

 

Surprised Hitch didn't use it more often as this is his only use of the bit I can seem to find from a casual search.

Necocracy
 

[benjipwns]

To be fair and balanced:

[Himu]

I stopped watching that video halfway and i can say about that video is I'm atheist and I think Earth and the universe are beautiful and that life is more than reproduction.