Isn’t it interesting how we can all have different perspectives of a subject?

in my case it is more metaphor than literal female.

but it is a comfy image.



in the end "God" is neither man or woman.

as to being in divine image, how silly, the minute we meet the other space faring creatures is the day that gets thrown out the window.

Oh I agree, whenever you see me write Creator, I’m talking from a perspective of no gender or a combination of the two. Take your pick. Our consciousness contains both ( as we’ve discussed before) from my experience. I think from that singularity you get the positive-negative poles. Not in the sense of “good” and “bad” but as a description of energy. Most refer to it as God and Goddess…….it’s interesting how often it’s over looked that their is a Female aspect mentioned in the O.T…..it’s known as the Shikinah. It’s also in Jewish mystical texts as Binah, which is seen to be the feminine aspect of the ONE that  I talked about above. Malkuth ( The Earth) in Jewish mystical literature is also seen as feminine, is in fact considered in some ways to be a reflection of Binah. Then you have the Black Madonnas in certain parts of the world that again hold the idea of the Cosmic Mother. She’s everywhere, and at times nowhere, which is sad, because of the disrespect she seems to receive so flippantly.

Tao sounds like a bit of a mental copy and paste with the bonus that ultimately "god" becomes anything we want him or her to become. I.E we are gods...because we can create ideas about god in our own mind.

The huge draw for secular humanists is that our own morality is then always correct. Which sounds great...until we realize that finding "the ballance" has no objectively true meaning. Is killing the unborn wrong...what about the undesirable cripples...the races we see as unfit?

Scripture tells us that God is the definition of Truth and separate from evil. Judgment and Mercy have meaning just as hate and love.

It is a God that not only Creates but allows rejection and then brings the gift of restoration through His own suffering.
The God who bleeds.

Tao will let one do anything they wish.. as long as their wish never claims to be True.

Jesus said " I am Truth"

Tao is the process of everything you can hear, see and touch, the atoms, the moon and stars, theses are things that can be measured, but can we measure the hand that moves it? So far no.

But the hand? sure she appears in a way that is most comforting but they are just illusions.

She does not speak directly, for it seems that if she did it would ruin the whole point of the universe, to "find the balance" is purely a human creation.

When every atom is your child like it is to her, well, her perspective is unimaginable.

Tao is truth becuase we can see it, but the stone egg? The eternal? The unnamed named? Human truth and falsehood are somewhat irrelevant.

And really when Jesus said he was the truth, well to us like Hesperus, ka-tetof1 and I?

He was only saying he has a peice of it, whether he knew that fact or not.

How rare it is to find someone who sees the same path

I did see their face one time

Just once when i finally pieced it all together

A dream

Old yet young, like a stone statue, ancient Gray silk robes with a witch hat to match, holding the staff that can only be called Tao, standing beneath a baren near metallic tree that bore fruit of stars and singularities that appeared and disappeared in moments, It was cool and foggy, you could hardly see past 50 feet and finally silk moths were absolutely everywhere.

These 2 pictures are a fair example.

Of course that was nothing more than an illusion, only an image that my mind could construct to understand what it was seeing, she always appears in an image that you can understand, It's always something different for every person.

But the understanding is always the same.





@ka-tetof1

Thank you for sharing such a deep experience. The imagery that you describe is quite remarkable and beautiful. I especially like the description of the Tree with the fruit of stars. You should feel blessed to have had such an experience. Having had the opportunity to review individuals journals revolving around this sort of thing for the last two decades, I can tell you from my experience, there are many many people who search for such an experience and never get to have that direct or beautiful of an experience.

There are several indications within what you wrote that display a firm grasp of what you are conveying. I’ve mentioned elsewhere in posts that there are certain things people like me have been taught to look for in relation to whether or not someone has truly had such an experience or if they are “making it up” for one reason or another, or if it was something that was purely in the imagination. Basically a way to tell if it was truly a Spiritual experience.

The way you presented it and the words you use, definitely display more than just “a dream”, or product of your imagination.

Over the last 30 years of doing this stuff my own personal experiences have ranged from the “not so fun” to a few that were the most uplifting experiences I’ve ever had. Owing to the Universal nature in which I approach these things, I’ve been blessed to experience Her in a wide range of images. From Persephone, to Isis (veiled and unveiled) and most recently as Sophia.

My favorite however has been and probably will always be Kwan Yin. While I don’t follow that Path, my interactions with her in that form have been the most profound and heartfelt simply because of the healing she brings and the compassion that she exudes. It’s a comfort unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I know when I see her, there’s a deep healing of one form or another that I’m about to go through.

Thank you again for sharing such a personal experience.

Oh you mean Guanyin

If there was ever a woman that could be called the mother of central and East Asia it would be her

And thank you

Yes that’s it. She’s quite remarkable. It’s quite a unique experience when you get to meet Individuals from Asia who are truly aligned with her and follow her Teachings. They carry a distinct quality (over here I guess we’d call it grace) that is conveyed as compassion and peacefulness. Some of the most amazing people I’ve ever met, were followers of her. I have a deep respect for anyone who takes that path. There’s a tremendous amount of personal work one has to go through in order to be able to express compassion and peace in the way they do.

You won't find Christianity in this thread.

Well at least not form me

Not directly pertaining to the topic, but close enough. Hope you enjoy it, if you haven’t seen/heard it already.

Love this meditation. Thich has always impressed me.

To sleep is to feel.

To dream is to see.

I think you will appreciate this song @ka-tetof1

The more you listen to it the more it feels like a old Tang Dynasty poem, still feels fresh after over 20 years now.



Night Owl calls while the dove soars across the silver moon
All alone the rose petals close and kiss the night
All across the darkened night sky sail fireflies
Gently lighting shadows that hide a thousand eyes.

A dream, dream, no dream
You can feel the forest calling out to you
A dream, dream, no dream
Close your eyes my darling child.
When the dawn comes you'll see these things I have for you
Morning dew and the scent of a jasmine summer breeze.

Night hawk sings as the black raven circles over head.
All alone the white lily bends and slowly dies
All across the darkened night sky the thunder roars
Winds come howling harmony to a lone wolf's cry.

A dream, dream, no dream
You can feel the forest calling out to you
A dream, dream, no dream
Close your eyes my darling child
When the dawn comes you'll see these things I have for you
Lonliness and a silence that smothers everywhere.

Where are my people?

Scattered to the winds.

Where is my Nation?

Nowhere to be found.

China is lost.

Internal Corruption from nobels, Eunuchs, Concubines, meddling Abrahamics and their prosthelytizing heathenism and vile western collectivist ideas have stolen it all away.

Possibly never to return again.

Maybe someday the idea of a Celestial nation will take hold there someday.

A nation free of Dynasties, Nobility, Corruption, heathen ideas and emperors, just a Celestial Republic under the heavens where all ten thousand things are justly managed.

But I will never be alive to see it.

That was very nice. Thank you for sharing it.

The azure sky is already dead.

15k Americans trapped in Afghanistan.

I am in a daze.

@ka-tetof1

@Hesperus

I haven't felt quite like this since 911, Is actually I feel worse, We are completely to blame for this.

At least I didn't vote for it

I never thought my opinion of my own nation and even its people would be so thoroughly damaged

I will never get over or forgive this

Tens of thousands just left there

I belive in the founding ideals of this nation

but not its current reality.

I do not even believe in over half of our population anymore as the are all leftists

It all needs to be rebuilt

From the ground up

The azure sky is already dead

The children play in the fields.

The father brings home the hunt.

The mother prepares the animal and harvest.

The grandmother Cooks the meal.

The grandfather teaches the children.

Your avatar is to specific, what are you exactly?

@Lieh-tzu

Always without desire we must be found,
If its deep mystery we would sound;
But if desire always within us be,
Its outer fringe is all that we shall see.

The Tao can be found
but you will never find it by trying to find it
You know its name
But you will never find it by calling it's name
You can see the Tao
but you will never see it by looking for it

Always there but just out of reach.

Somtimes it seems like you can just brush it with a finger tip.

But it can't be grasped.

Is that "too" specific? I created it myself.

Well, I was raised Christian, and as an adult I choose to retain that belief. Humans have an immortal soul, the spark of the Divine. So I have a Germanic style cross.

Ecclesiastes is one of my favorite books, because it helps put things in perspective, not to get fussed about the trappings of this world which are all pointless inanity in the big picture. That is the core of Taoism. When I moved into adulthood, I explored philosophy, and was drawn to Taoism. It takes Ecclesiastes and expands on it. Taoism also inherently doesn't go in for worldly establishment, so I find it more appealing than other schools of thought. So I dropped a yin-yang in the middle of my cross. It's an emblem specific to me and who I am.

Humanity has put all kinds of trappings on God, which is how you get churches, denominations, and dogma. But those things can't be any more than crude tools to start to understand God. All things are of Tao, but as such there can be no distinctions. All is. God is The Way, the source of All. The way to God is Christ.

Glad you asked, LP, happy to chat. You ever get up my way, drop in and say hi.

Interesting, I grew up quaker friends myself so naturally I grew up around somewhat similar thinking so often we would meet Buddhists and such.

I guess it was only a matter of time before I found the pattern.

Talk about hidden in plain sight.

The Ancient thinkers said that all things in life are by 3.

They were right.

I thought Ford had the Galaxies

An interesting ode to China. The collectivists are surely wanting to erase her past. Just like here.

I don't know what my dreams are trying to tell me anymore

It was an early Saturday morning before hours at the shop, I must have been in my late sixties early seventies.

My old fiat 126 in the Bay and I was tinkering in the back with its engine

The new young Tech comes in as well a real go getter which for some reason didn't seem as uncommon then as it does today, first day meeting him.

You must be the new kid

You must be the old man they were telling me about

Chuckle, yeah I'm just the old part timer, welcome to Vonhassen Kia-Fiat-Skoda.

What kind of ... golf cart? ... is this?

I almost die laughing" it's a old fiat, a old old fiat, Almost as old as you and me put together, It was made in the mid eighties in Poland, Back then you could build a car this small and still pass regulations.

Where and what is Poland?

Yeah you are too young to know about Poland,  Well before the confederation formed to combat Russian and Western European influence Poland was its own nation, It's right on the direct Northeastern border of Germany.

Huh, poggers, is that one of those gas engine things?

Well it runs on propane now but yes, Just how old are you anyway?

20

God just 10 years after the breakup

Yeah my parents and grandfather have told me many stories about the United States with a heavy heart.

We had more wealth and power than you will ever know, every family had 2 cars, parents could afford to get their Kid's cell phones and the number one health problem in country was obesity, But at least everyone is thin and free now compared to those times, well save for that totalitarian insanity on the West Coast.

Yeah that place is a crazy shithole.

From the United States to 7 republics, now the Confederation, India, Brazil run the world and now that Taiwan controls the mainland again In half a century they will be more powerful than the United States ever was, I'm just glad that when we broke up and the world economy collapsed, Communist China collapsed right along with us ...  Oh forgive this old man I've always been a talkaholic and a brooder.

You know old man why are you still killing yourself working on cars?

It's my Raison detre.

Your what?

A very poetic way to say its my destiny.

I don't understand.

You will in time.

And then I woke up.

Don't know what to think.

One of the greatest pains I ever feel in today's time.

A fantastic old video.

Makes me feel like I'm watching Mr. Rogers or Bob Ross painting.



Now we live in a time of CRT insanity

Jesus is telling you specifically that he is Creator. He made all this moon and stars and stuff that you’re fixating on instead of him and his father.  

Note that he doesn’t want to have a conversation about any of that physical stuff he made. He only wants to talk about his moral law.

He also says that atoms aren’t equal. Humans are more valuable to him than say geese or penguins.

Your words won't have any convincing powers here.

They’re the words of the Bible. If God hasn’t called you to see them as his, they’re not supposed to mean anything to you until he does.

As if that will happen.

Such talk has already taken so much what I love away from me never to return again.

Just leave me alone.

The words of the Bible have taken nothing good from you. Humans who twist those words can take a lot from a person. If that happened to you, your starting point is worse than a place of indifference; you’re starting from a negative view of the word.

I grew up Quaker the purest of the Christian denominations.

At least their interpretations and the Jews are tolerable or even friendly, but I will not bother with the rest.

The rest killed the Romans, they almost killed Japan and India, twisted Korea near beyond recognition and are a fair portion responsible for destroying the best hope and nation the world has ever seen that which being China.

So yes I have quite a bitter attitude with dealing with your Book,  It may be good for you but it is evil to me, It is on the same shelf as the Koran and Das kapital.

So leave me alone

You don’t want to be left alone by God though. That’s why you’re trying to grasp that which created all this stuff you see. You understand it has to come from somewhere and are trying to put your finger on what it is.

A mystical, God-without-personality type of entity doesn’t answer any questions besides creation of material objects like human bodies or planets.

As soon as good and evil is practiced by humans we need a lot more answers than that.

And there lies one of the greatest human tragedies that's so many fall for.

We're not alone by God, She is as close as a pebble in your hand but also happens to be as far away as the Andromeda galaxy.

hidden in plain sight by definition, she let's things come and go, She has but doesn't possess, all are memories as good and bad as they are are precious to her as they serve some purpose we can barely understand.

As to try to put my finger on exactly what it is it is like that by design, of course a God without personality doesn't answer questions.

that's the point

She doesn't want us to know her so directly, If that is even possible for her,  I bet even the trees don't notice her most of the time, you can know her actions but to know her is impossible why you are still alive or at least as a caporial being, The most you can do is rest your head on her lap.

As to good and evil and needing more answers well, That's for you to figure out.

"Make me one with everything."

In all fairness, it's a little disingenuous to come to a religion forum, talk about religion, then say the book much of the world follows as the word of God is evil to you, leave you alone.   It's only fair others are allowed to engage your statements.  

I'm reading this in reverse, so I suppose I'll have more questions about your OP when I get there.

I guess you are right.

Quite agitated today about alot of things, being in constant discomfort due to a hemorrhoid is not helping either.

Apologies.

@Martlet

Odd.  It doesn't appear that mention notifications are working.   @LittlePony

Works for me

Interesting.   I always knew ARFCOM was biased against my kind.

They say you can't hear the colors, or see the wind, or act without acting.

They are wrong for they do not understand.

In recent memory and in current day there is a few around who said no to reality, those through sheer fanaticism and zeal simply refused.

Philippe Dufour.

Walter Payton.

Marcello Gandini.

Jan Zelezny.

Or our very own Jerry Miculek.

These are but a few

These are the ones that achieved without doing a thing.

They are not the embodiment or a symbol of supreme action

They ARE supreme action itself.

They stand side-by-side the ancient masters, many of which are forgotten by history.

They are the best of humanity itself, all of what people should strive for.

Here's to and they are them, by them, for them, they have found their Raison detre.

I can only wonder if I have found the same, only time will tell.

We are not for Names, nor Men, nor Titles of Government, nor are we for this Party, nor against the other, because of its Name and Pretence; but we are for Justice and Mercy, and Truth and Peace, and true Freedom, that these may be exalted in our Nation. -Edward Burrough-