Comments on: Living With Yourself http://kentonwhitman.com/blog/2007/01/25/living-with-yourself/ Zen-Inspired Self Development Fri, 21 Nov 2008 10:30:59 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.1 By: Karl Staib http://kentonwhitman.com/blog/2007/01/25/living-with-yourself/#comment-1481 Karl Staib Sat, 23 Jun 2007 19:06:16 +0000 http://kentonwhitman.com/blog/2007/01/25/living-with-yourself/#comment-1481 I agree that many of us use outside sources to avoid really understanding ourselves. I've noticed that as I continue to develop my self-awareness that I am less prone to need a drink because I want to dive into the feelings. They are so much more entertaining than any high alcohol could provide. I agree that many of us use outside sources to avoid really understanding ourselves. I’ve noticed that as I continue to develop my self-awareness that I am less prone to need a drink because I want to dive into the feelings. They are so much more entertaining than any high alcohol could provide.

]]> By: Kenton Whitman http://kentonwhitman.com/blog/2007/01/25/living-with-yourself/#comment-1527 Kenton Whitman Tue, 26 Jun 2007 13:00:12 +0000 http://kentonwhitman.com/blog/2007/01/25/living-with-yourself/#comment-1527 Hello Karl, I've appreciated your thoughtful comments throughout the site. Again, you touch on an important point -- that our feelings (and every other aspect of our reality) is simply amazing. Just sitting, we can be in awe of this very moment of experience. But once we have laid our symbols over everything (and symbols are much less entertaining than the real deal), life can indeed seem boring -- it's as if we glance around us, and instead of seeing ever-changing trees, shifting patterns of sunlight, and the infinite amazement we call 'people', we instead see only our words -- a tree, a patch of sunlight, and Bob. Living in a world of symbols is not only confusing, but stale and rather frightening. In our longing to once again have magic in our lives, it's all too easy to try to find it in any number of methods. You mentioned alcohol, which has a certain stigma attached to it, but there are many other methods which our society sanctions -- video games, television, and zen-inspired blogs being just a few =) And yet, it's not enough for us just to avoid these things (or use them in moderation). Because the real problem isn't the escape -- it's that we need to escape in the first place. And this comes from an even more profound sanctioned method -- our method of dividing the world up into broken pieces in the first place! Most of us spend our lives trying to fix the symptoms, when the disease is left to create more and more problems. Just why is it that we are longing for 'more'? Why do we feel frustration, loneliness, or anger? Why is it that life doesn't always feel 'right'? These and similar questions can lead us to discovering what's at the foundation of all our suffering. And that's when we can encounter the disease itself, and see it for what it is. Unmasked, it loses all its scariness and all we're left with is this impossibly beautiful thing we call Now or life (or whatever word we'd like to lay over it). Sweetwater, Kenton Hello Karl,

I’ve appreciated your thoughtful comments throughout the site. Again, you touch on an important point — that our feelings (and every other aspect of our reality) is simply amazing. Just sitting, we can be in awe of this very moment of experience. But once we have laid our symbols over everything (and symbols are much less entertaining than the real deal), life can indeed seem boring — it’s as if we glance around us, and instead of seeing ever-changing trees, shifting patterns of sunlight, and the infinite amazement we call ‘people’, we instead see only our words — a tree, a patch of sunlight, and Bob.

Living in a world of symbols is not only confusing, but stale and rather frightening. In our longing to once again have magic in our lives, it’s all too easy to try to find it in any number of methods. You mentioned alcohol, which has a certain stigma attached to it, but there are many other methods which our society sanctions — video games, television, and zen-inspired blogs being just a few =)

And yet, it’s not enough for us just to avoid these things (or use them in moderation). Because the real problem isn’t the escape — it’s that we need to escape in the first place. And this comes from an even more profound sanctioned method — our method of dividing the world up into broken pieces in the first place! Most of us spend our lives trying to fix the symptoms, when the disease is left to create more and more problems. Just why is it that we are longing for ‘more’? Why do we feel frustration, loneliness, or anger? Why is it that life doesn’t always feel ‘right’?
These and similar questions can lead us to discovering what’s at the foundation of all our suffering.

And that’s when we can encounter the disease itself, and see it for what it is. Unmasked, it loses all its scariness and all we’re left with is this impossibly beautiful thing we call Now or life (or whatever word we’d like to lay over it).

Sweetwater,

Kenton

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