I and Thou

Martin Buber's little book is one of the most important you can read. It is very short and very simple, but it can change the way you see the World.

Buber's thesis is that you can relate to the World in 2 ways, I-It and I-Thou. I-It is how we generally go through or days and it is useful. This is a relationship where you see things as just that, things. It is the view of secular life.

I-Thou is a relationship of life to life and this is a sacred relationship.

For example: If I go out and see a tree, like the oak outside my door and see it as just a tree, that is I-It. But, if I see it as the magnificent living being that it is. That is I-Thou, a sacred relationship.

Sometimes, and we all are guilty of this, we even see other people in an I-It relationship. Instead of seeing a human being, we might see Fred the car repairman who is taking to long with my car. When you do this, you have reduced Fred to an object. This is more apparent in wars where instead of an individual being you must relate to, you just label him as enemy, a thing.

Buber explains this far better than I can and I urge you to read his book; it will change how you perceive the World.

The Bible

Very few books can set off a firestorm of discussion and harsh argument. The Bible is one. I recently have been sorting out my feelings about the book.

The Bible, contrary to those who take it literally, is not history, nor is it science. It was an effort by the people of the ancient Mid East to figure our their relation to the Creator and to one another. It is not literally true and that was never the intent. Those people understood something that we have forgotten. Stories. mythology, is written in poetic language. Poetry is how we talk about subjects that are almost impossible to talk about. Through poetic language, we can approach the truth, hint at it, create images, not diagrams.

The Bible is full of wonderful stories. Are they about people who really lived? Did those things really happen? Who knows? Probably some did and some did not and likely none of them are the step by step, historically accurate, but that is not the point. They are pictures of human beings struggling to understand their World and, as such, are true.

Ken Kesey, in his novel One Flew Over The Cuckoo's Nest wrote, at the books beginning, "It's the truth, even if it never happened, it's the truth." That's how I view the Bible. 

Pay Attention

The human mind is a strange critter. The mind, contrary to what some neuroscientists say, is not just the brain. What it is, is just not known, but the mind perceives the World through the brain, which in  turn processes the information received from the senses.

The brain takes that data and turns it into a picture of the World. Seemingly, half the brain works in terms of totality and pictures; while the other half uses words. This is, of course a simplified view, but it is sufficient. All of this is needed for our survival but it limits how we see the World.

It is possible to turn this picture we paint and the mechanisms that paint it, off, for short periods. There are techniques: meditation, prayer, rhythmic movements, music, mental games (such as the koans of Zen), and even drugs (effective but a hard and dangerous method).

What happens then is wonderful. The boundaries between things, especially living things, becomes less substantial. You begin to see the exquisite glow of life shining through. Your World becomes a radiant wonder and, you never forget the experience. Life, when you  return to normal consciousness, is richer.

Now, this is not a state you can live in all the time, nor should you. You must return to normal thought to survive and do your work. Actually, you will seldom spend much time in the altered state. If you can hang out there for a few minutes, consider yourself blessed. So, on occasion, try to turn off your brain and see the fullness of existence.

Don't Overlook the Small Blessings

Recently, during Hurricane Matthew, we lost power during the high winds a heavy rains. Those same winds and rains slowed the Power Company workers. We were lucky. We were only powerless for a day and a half. Some folks nearby were without for a week. Still, it was odd and, there was a time in my life that I would have been climbing the walls wondering what was taking so long.

But, I have learned to value the little things. I would have liked a nice hot meal, but, we had a bunch of things like cheese crackers and trail mix and canned sausages, and guess what? When you are hungry, they are great.

I would have liked to turn on the air conditioner, but we opened the door and, with the breeze (okay, strong wind) it was reasonably comfortable. No hot water made for an icy shower, but, still we got clean. And while I would have enjoyed watching golf on TV, it was nice to sit quietly and read and talk.  

Probably best of all was when those first patches of blue sky came through, indicating that the storm was almost past. The little things of life are important. If you learn to slow down and enjoy them, to savor the small blessings, you will be a lot happier.

Patience

One of the most powerful spiritual powers available is patience. Things happen as they happen. Now, that sounds simplistic, but stay with me.

Where I live, we experience Hurricane Matthew. Watching the radar as it approached was maddening because the details of its path determined just how much we would be affected. I finally stopped watching because it really did not matter what we were seeing, we just had to wait. Things unfolded as they unfolded and all the watching and worrying was useless..

We weren't hit too hard, but we had a mess. Electric power went off and there was much speculation on when we would get it back. Surprisingly. ours was back the next night. However, not far from here, it took a week.

We lost cable TV and the internet service, Since we got power back so quickly. it seemed logical that they would soon follow. Instead, we waited 10 days. Things had to be worked on in a certain order and we had to be patient.

You know, it wasn't so bad. I read a lot and talked a lot, got a bunch of rest and a fair amount of exercise. I also learned a bit about patience

Mother Nature Wins

As I sit here in Brunswick, Ga., a hurricane is coming. We figure to be hit fairly hard, but I don't think it will be as bad as the news people are saying. Still, it's nothing to play with.

I am always amazed by these huge storms. Having spent 50 years in S. Florida, I have seen a bunch of them, and they are awesome.

We humans are a prideful lot, and deservedly so. We have built fantastic structures and a world that would have seemed like a science fiction dream to my Grandparents. Still, every now and then, Mother Nature reminds us who the boss is. It is hard to describe the power of a storm carrying 100+mph winds. I have seen tall trees bent double and seen oaks uprooted like toys. I have seen roofs ripped off like they were Legos.

In theology, there is a term for this, mysterium tremendum. When you perceive the awesome power of Creation as beautiful it is called myterium fascenens. When you see it as terrible, that is mysterium tremendum. In the beauty of a hurricane, you experience the latter. Frightening? Yes, but it is beautiful, sublime.

When push comes to shove, Nature wins and, it is good for the soul to occasionally be reminded of that. If you are reading this and are in the path of the storm, use your head and you will be fine. The rest of you? A prayer for those in danger would be helpful.

Finding the Sacred in Everything

The World should not be divided into the Sacred and the Secular. This is a grave mistake. By creating such separation, we cheapen much of life. If you do not see the Sacred in everyday life, you will not take care and will not cherish the World.

Frank Herbert, in his great book Dune, makes the point that all religions are, to varying degrees, anti-life, and, with the possible exception of the animistic religions, this is true. Christianity and Islam, with their belief that the afterlife is what matters are surely guilty of this and the Eastern religions, with their belief in Nirvana, the goal beyond life and beyond all, are equally guilty.

I am not sure that the founders of these belief systems meant for their teachings to be taken that way. Actually, I am fairly sure they did not, but they lost control over those teachings and, for what ever reason, those religions do have a kind of distaste, if not a downright disgust, with life.

This should not be. Ask yourself this. Can you explain why anything exists? Why is that ant crawling over your kitchen table? Why is it raining? Why are you breathing? Ultimately, why is their something rather that nothing? No one, not even the great priests or scientists  can answer that. It is a Sacred Mystery, beyond our understanding, likely beyond our capacity to understand. Thus, if you look at things the right way, everything is Sacred.