Along the road to Somewhere Past, I saw a shiny coin and paused,
Then took what I had almost passed—but knowing not what this had caused:
The habit of a watchful eye—a tool of the life well-spent.
And having since reaped bounties, I am thankful for that single cent.
20090124
20090119
The Secret of the Yogis
I recently read the ancient Yoga Sutra, attributed to the renowned (by some) eastern philosopher Patanjali. I was expecting a mystical exercise manual that would teach me to do the splits and hover cross-legged in the air; what I received was a vague and wordy outline of yogic philosophy, which seems quite similar to Buddhist philosophy. Basically, Patanjali argues that one’s ultimate goal must be to halt the flow of thought through the mind: “When thought ceases, the spirit stands in its true identity as observer to the world. Otherwise, the observer identifies with the turnings of the world” (1.3-4). He goes on to outline the various powers available to one who practices such liberation from thought, including supernatural strength, levitation, and telepathy. In case you were wondering, he does not provide detailed instructions on how to practice these powers. “Just stop thinking”—that’s pretty much all the help he’s willing to give us.
Like most religious worldviews, Patanjali’s philosophy is hit or miss. It is impossible to halfheartedly agree with him; either you agree that cessation of thought is the ultimate goal, or not. This is true of all real religions. Either you accept the Resurrection of Jesus, or you are not a Christian. Either you accept the Torah as divinely-revealed Law, or you are not a Jew. Either you accept the supreme power of human reason, or you are not a rationalist. Any lukewarm religious devotion is uninspiring and, if you ask me, pointless. Why should I be a Catholic if I don’t believe Christ was born to a virgin, performed miracles, and rose from the dead? What’s the point? If you don’t believe Jesus was God, all that you’re really doing at church every week is remembering a really nice guy. Bob Hope seemed like a nice guy, but nobody worships him. What’s the point?
This idea (in the words of Sinatra, “All or Nothing At All”) applies just as strongly to Patanjali’s philosophy—so as a Christian, I must wholeheartedly reject it. Nonetheless, I do believe it wise to read a text such as this (opposed as it is to my beliefs) in search of wisdom, because there certainly is some wisdom to be found in a source like the Yoga Sutra.
In this case, the Christian wisdom is found by interpreting some of Patanjali’s words in a different sense than he likely intended. While reading the section entitled “Mastery of the Physical World,” I was struck with the inspiration to interpret his message metaphorically. The way I received this inspiration is a rather entertaining story.
I had just read that “from loosening the fetters of bondage to the body and from awareness of the body’s fluidity, one’s thought can enter into the body of another” (3.38). I instantly knew what Patanjali was telling me—I could read minds! After concluding that reading people’s minds would not constitute a betrayal of my own religious convictions (it would just be really cool), I decided to give it a try. Centering myself in a prayerful and loving frame of mind, I “reached out” and tried to put myself into the head of someone in the neighboring room. As I concentrated, a message materialized in my thoughts: “IT’S CALLED EMPATHY.”
And I had to admit that Whoever inspired that thought was right. Empathy does allow us to read minds. By conscious effort, we are able to understand and experience another’s thoughts and feelings. Sure, we may be wrong sometimes—but so would a mind-reader. And empathy doesn’t take nearly as much practice.
I quickly scanned the other powers Patanjali listed:
“From perfect discipline of the strength of an animal such as an elephant, one gains that strength.…From mastery of the vital breath rising in the body, one does not sink into water, mud, or thorns, but rather rises above them. From mastery of the breath of fire in the belly, one acquires a fiery radiance. From perfect discipline of the relation between the ear and space, one has divine hearing” (3.24, 39-41).
So let’s read this text as non-literal. What do we find? Discipline results in great strength. Calm, controlled breathing results in a light and buoyant existence. Strong breathing powers one with fiery energy. Awareness of the sense of hearing reminds one that it is a truly divine gift.
Perhaps, then, the secret of the yogis is simply this: reality is magic. The powers of humanity are supernatural enough; there’s no need to wish for more! Want to be super-strong? Exercise and take good care of yourself—you’ll be stronger than you imagined possible. Want to read a mind? Think about someone else’s problems and try to put yourself in their place. Want to float in the air? Try being truly happy, and you will feel light enough to fly. Voila! We all have magic powers. Few of us choose to put them to good use. The most wonderful things about life are the simplest ones, and great power is found in a calm acceptance of the present moment, coupled with profound gratitude to one’s Creator.
Am I reading into this too much? Perhaps I am, if you are a yogi. But I am a Christian; St. Paul tells me “work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). Thus, it is my job to relate everything I read back to my own beliefs. This is how I bring myself closer to God. I hope this post finds you closer to Him, as well.
Enlightenedly His,
Joezilla
Like most religious worldviews, Patanjali’s philosophy is hit or miss. It is impossible to halfheartedly agree with him; either you agree that cessation of thought is the ultimate goal, or not. This is true of all real religions. Either you accept the Resurrection of Jesus, or you are not a Christian. Either you accept the Torah as divinely-revealed Law, or you are not a Jew. Either you accept the supreme power of human reason, or you are not a rationalist. Any lukewarm religious devotion is uninspiring and, if you ask me, pointless. Why should I be a Catholic if I don’t believe Christ was born to a virgin, performed miracles, and rose from the dead? What’s the point? If you don’t believe Jesus was God, all that you’re really doing at church every week is remembering a really nice guy. Bob Hope seemed like a nice guy, but nobody worships him. What’s the point?
This idea (in the words of Sinatra, “All or Nothing At All”) applies just as strongly to Patanjali’s philosophy—so as a Christian, I must wholeheartedly reject it. Nonetheless, I do believe it wise to read a text such as this (opposed as it is to my beliefs) in search of wisdom, because there certainly is some wisdom to be found in a source like the Yoga Sutra.
In this case, the Christian wisdom is found by interpreting some of Patanjali’s words in a different sense than he likely intended. While reading the section entitled “Mastery of the Physical World,” I was struck with the inspiration to interpret his message metaphorically. The way I received this inspiration is a rather entertaining story.
I had just read that “from loosening the fetters of bondage to the body and from awareness of the body’s fluidity, one’s thought can enter into the body of another” (3.38). I instantly knew what Patanjali was telling me—I could read minds! After concluding that reading people’s minds would not constitute a betrayal of my own religious convictions (it would just be really cool), I decided to give it a try. Centering myself in a prayerful and loving frame of mind, I “reached out” and tried to put myself into the head of someone in the neighboring room. As I concentrated, a message materialized in my thoughts: “IT’S CALLED EMPATHY.”
And I had to admit that Whoever inspired that thought was right. Empathy does allow us to read minds. By conscious effort, we are able to understand and experience another’s thoughts and feelings. Sure, we may be wrong sometimes—but so would a mind-reader. And empathy doesn’t take nearly as much practice.
I quickly scanned the other powers Patanjali listed:
“From perfect discipline of the strength of an animal such as an elephant, one gains that strength.…From mastery of the vital breath rising in the body, one does not sink into water, mud, or thorns, but rather rises above them. From mastery of the breath of fire in the belly, one acquires a fiery radiance. From perfect discipline of the relation between the ear and space, one has divine hearing” (3.24, 39-41).
So let’s read this text as non-literal. What do we find? Discipline results in great strength. Calm, controlled breathing results in a light and buoyant existence. Strong breathing powers one with fiery energy. Awareness of the sense of hearing reminds one that it is a truly divine gift.
Perhaps, then, the secret of the yogis is simply this: reality is magic. The powers of humanity are supernatural enough; there’s no need to wish for more! Want to be super-strong? Exercise and take good care of yourself—you’ll be stronger than you imagined possible. Want to read a mind? Think about someone else’s problems and try to put yourself in their place. Want to float in the air? Try being truly happy, and you will feel light enough to fly. Voila! We all have magic powers. Few of us choose to put them to good use. The most wonderful things about life are the simplest ones, and great power is found in a calm acceptance of the present moment, coupled with profound gratitude to one’s Creator.
Am I reading into this too much? Perhaps I am, if you are a yogi. But I am a Christian; St. Paul tells me “work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). Thus, it is my job to relate everything I read back to my own beliefs. This is how I bring myself closer to God. I hope this post finds you closer to Him, as well.
Enlightenedly His,
Joezilla
20090108
Bring It On
And if this band don't desert me,
Then there's nothin'
In the world can hurt me,
Long as I'm singin' my song.
As long as I'm singin',
Then the world's all right
And everything's swingin',
Long as I'm singin' my song!
—Bobby Darin, "As Long As I'm Singing"
I'll bet Bobby Darin never dreamed, as he sang this song, that it would be a source of earth-shattering inspiration for someone who would walk the earth half-a-century later. In case you were wondering (if, in fact, there is someone reading out there who might be wondering), this song was exactly that (i.e. a source of earth-shattering inspiration) for me this morning.
Take another look at those lyrics. Actually, if I were you, I'd just listen to the song. Here, follow this link (and appreciate it, too—it's not every day that I offer links on this blog! You're lucky I'm feeling charitable today…):
http://free.napster.com/player/?play_id=13761920&type=track
In addition to being a wonderful song, it reveals some key truths about living the life well-lived. First off, life is what we make of it. As we concluded in the last entry, "As you think, so shall you be." Your thoughts determine your words and actions, which determine your habits, which determine your character, which determine your destiny. Whew! This thing we call life is actually a pretty dangerous game, when you think about it! But if we don't play, we don't have a chance of victory. But I digress.
The point is, your thoughts determine, in large part, what your life is like. How is it that a CEO with a six-figure salary and a Cadillac could be miserable, while a blue-collar family man with two mortgages could be happy? The answer is perspective. What do those men see when they walk out the door in the morning? The negative man sees the same thing he sees every day: his driveway, the ground, the sky. It doesn’t' ever change. He goes about his day intensely focused on his work and his obligations, and, therefore, paradoxically, he is supremely unfocused on life itself. The positive man, however, sings a song of gratefulness and contentment with every action he takes. Every sight, sound, and circumstance is a blessing, whether obvious or concealed. Every problem (and he realizes how few his true problems are compared to others' maladies) is an opportunity, and a challenge to find that opportunity, seize hold of it, and use it to light a match of goodness in this weary world, to shamelessly ape Shakespeare's beautiful metaphor.
But there's something else about this song that struck me today:
And if this band don't desert me,
Then there's nothin'
In the world can hurt me,
Long as I'm singin' my song.
He's right. Nothing in this world can hurt us except ourselves. If we believe what we read in the Bible, then it becomes abundantly clear that this fact holds. As long as we do our part, God protects us. The only way a man can fall off the wagon is by throwing himself off of it. The only way a man can end up in the gutter is by purposefully jumping into it. One might say that at birth, or perhaps Baptism, we are placed on the elevator to Heaven. It is solely our choice whether to press a button and get off at a lower floor.
I can't help but feel relieved and grateful for this realization. God actually loves us all, and He has promised us that if we do our best for Him, He will not let us down. He wants us to succeed. The Creator and supreme Power of the universe is cheering us on every day. Is there any more inspiring fact than that? I think not!
Thankfully His,
Joezilla
Then there's nothin'
In the world can hurt me,
Long as I'm singin' my song.
As long as I'm singin',
Then the world's all right
And everything's swingin',
Long as I'm singin' my song!
—Bobby Darin, "As Long As I'm Singing"
I'll bet Bobby Darin never dreamed, as he sang this song, that it would be a source of earth-shattering inspiration for someone who would walk the earth half-a-century later. In case you were wondering (if, in fact, there is someone reading out there who might be wondering), this song was exactly that (i.e. a source of earth-shattering inspiration) for me this morning.
Take another look at those lyrics. Actually, if I were you, I'd just listen to the song. Here, follow this link (and appreciate it, too—it's not every day that I offer links on this blog! You're lucky I'm feeling charitable today…):
http://free.napster.com/player/?play_id=13761920&type=track
In addition to being a wonderful song, it reveals some key truths about living the life well-lived. First off, life is what we make of it. As we concluded in the last entry, "As you think, so shall you be." Your thoughts determine your words and actions, which determine your habits, which determine your character, which determine your destiny. Whew! This thing we call life is actually a pretty dangerous game, when you think about it! But if we don't play, we don't have a chance of victory. But I digress.
The point is, your thoughts determine, in large part, what your life is like. How is it that a CEO with a six-figure salary and a Cadillac could be miserable, while a blue-collar family man with two mortgages could be happy? The answer is perspective. What do those men see when they walk out the door in the morning? The negative man sees the same thing he sees every day: his driveway, the ground, the sky. It doesn’t' ever change. He goes about his day intensely focused on his work and his obligations, and, therefore, paradoxically, he is supremely unfocused on life itself. The positive man, however, sings a song of gratefulness and contentment with every action he takes. Every sight, sound, and circumstance is a blessing, whether obvious or concealed. Every problem (and he realizes how few his true problems are compared to others' maladies) is an opportunity, and a challenge to find that opportunity, seize hold of it, and use it to light a match of goodness in this weary world, to shamelessly ape Shakespeare's beautiful metaphor.
But there's something else about this song that struck me today:
And if this band don't desert me,
Then there's nothin'
In the world can hurt me,
Long as I'm singin' my song.
He's right. Nothing in this world can hurt us except ourselves. If we believe what we read in the Bible, then it becomes abundantly clear that this fact holds. As long as we do our part, God protects us. The only way a man can fall off the wagon is by throwing himself off of it. The only way a man can end up in the gutter is by purposefully jumping into it. One might say that at birth, or perhaps Baptism, we are placed on the elevator to Heaven. It is solely our choice whether to press a button and get off at a lower floor.
I can't help but feel relieved and grateful for this realization. God actually loves us all, and He has promised us that if we do our best for Him, He will not let us down. He wants us to succeed. The Creator and supreme Power of the universe is cheering us on every day. Is there any more inspiring fact than that? I think not!
Thankfully His,
Joezilla
What Was I Thinking?
I've been thinking a lot lately. Perhaps it is disconcerting for you, dear reader (if, in fact, you exist), that there are times when I'm not thinking a lot. No matter; because, if you must know, I have been thinking a lot lately about the importance of thinking. It has come to my attention yet again just how important it is to keep careful control over our thoughts.
No, I did not come to such lofty conclusions on my own—I was handily conked over the head with them by a book I recently began reading, entitled As A Man Thinketh (by James Allen). It's one of the oldest self-help books I've ever seen (excepting the Bible, of course), a short and delightful read, voiced in that wonderfully dressed-up and wordy style of a long-forgotten and much classier age—it was written in 1902. There is something in this book's message that resonates with me deeply; each paragraph sends an arrow of inspiration straight to my heart, and empowers me. Here's an example from page 26:
Law, not confusion, is the dominating principle in the universe; justice, not injustice, is the soul and substance of life; and righteousness, not corruption, is the molding and moving force in the spiritual government of the world. This being so, man has but to right himself to find that the universe is right; and during the process of putting himself right, he will find that as he alters his thoughts toward things, and other people, things and other people will alter toward him.
You said it, my friend! Isn't that awesome? I think we all have experiences like this—this deep sort of inspiration can be triggered by the written word, the spoken message, or, perhaps most dramatically, in the vibrant poetry of music, which, being indescribable in words, is among the most mysterious and inexplicable forms of inspiration. I think that when we are blessed enough to find one of these sources of individual inspiration (individual, because different people respond to different sources), we need to preserve them, hold them close, and remind ourselves of them constantly.
Now I know what you're thinking: "Really? Remind yourself of it constantly? That seems like overkill." Well, if that's overkill, then overkill is the secret to success. If someone wishes to be good, why not pursue goodness at all times? In fact, how can one possibly attain goodness if he doesn't constantly work to keep it at the forefront of his mind? We know what human nature is like—if we don't master it and use its great potential for good, then it changes according to environment and circumstance.
As human beings, we are wired to be creatures of habit. We are constantly urged by our nature to settle into routines. It's sort of a biological law of inertia. We have the choice, then, to settle into routines that will slowly destroy us, or routines that lift us up and improve our lives (and, therefore, the lives of those around us). Another favorite source of inspiration, the motivational speaker Matthew Kelly, loves to repeat this challenge: "If you can tell me your habits, I can tell you what kind of person you are." He's so right! It's the habits that make or break us. I'm going to be keeping that in mind, hopefully for a long time. I suggest you do the same.
Inspiredly,
Joezilla
No, I did not come to such lofty conclusions on my own—I was handily conked over the head with them by a book I recently began reading, entitled As A Man Thinketh (by James Allen). It's one of the oldest self-help books I've ever seen (excepting the Bible, of course), a short and delightful read, voiced in that wonderfully dressed-up and wordy style of a long-forgotten and much classier age—it was written in 1902. There is something in this book's message that resonates with me deeply; each paragraph sends an arrow of inspiration straight to my heart, and empowers me. Here's an example from page 26:
Law, not confusion, is the dominating principle in the universe; justice, not injustice, is the soul and substance of life; and righteousness, not corruption, is the molding and moving force in the spiritual government of the world. This being so, man has but to right himself to find that the universe is right; and during the process of putting himself right, he will find that as he alters his thoughts toward things, and other people, things and other people will alter toward him.
You said it, my friend! Isn't that awesome? I think we all have experiences like this—this deep sort of inspiration can be triggered by the written word, the spoken message, or, perhaps most dramatically, in the vibrant poetry of music, which, being indescribable in words, is among the most mysterious and inexplicable forms of inspiration. I think that when we are blessed enough to find one of these sources of individual inspiration (individual, because different people respond to different sources), we need to preserve them, hold them close, and remind ourselves of them constantly.
Now I know what you're thinking: "Really? Remind yourself of it constantly? That seems like overkill." Well, if that's overkill, then overkill is the secret to success. If someone wishes to be good, why not pursue goodness at all times? In fact, how can one possibly attain goodness if he doesn't constantly work to keep it at the forefront of his mind? We know what human nature is like—if we don't master it and use its great potential for good, then it changes according to environment and circumstance.
As human beings, we are wired to be creatures of habit. We are constantly urged by our nature to settle into routines. It's sort of a biological law of inertia. We have the choice, then, to settle into routines that will slowly destroy us, or routines that lift us up and improve our lives (and, therefore, the lives of those around us). Another favorite source of inspiration, the motivational speaker Matthew Kelly, loves to repeat this challenge: "If you can tell me your habits, I can tell you what kind of person you are." He's so right! It's the habits that make or break us. I'm going to be keeping that in mind, hopefully for a long time. I suggest you do the same.
Inspiredly,
Joezilla
20090106
To The Honest Seminarian
Greater admiration I reserve for very few,
For few it is who will to offer sacrifice like you.
Thanks to God, Who in His mercy gave you love so true,
To reap the harvest, save the lost, and help make all things new.
For few it is who will to offer sacrifice like you.
Thanks to God, Who in His mercy gave you love so true,
To reap the harvest, save the lost, and help make all things new.
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