Sir Darius the Clairvoyent

Self explanatory : ) Sure, the language and practices are different, but do they all, at their core, convey the same message? That message, I interpet, as oneness.

1 hour ago, Chang dao ling said:

Me too. Meditation practices from Hinduism, Taoism, Buddhism are experimental and logical 

I get where you are comming from, but is it acctually that different from prayer, charity work, sufi dancing, church choir etc?

How about this premise: the philosophy of the devil. What would it look like?

20 hours ago, Nungali said:

 

Why ?  I see it like this .

 

You might be able to walk to the top of the mountain  with a map . But what if you want to test your skills and what you have learnt previously and see if you can get up there without a map   . And lets say you have been up that mountain many times before , then you would be just working on memory and not skill  of orienting a new way forward .

 

So you go through a process where you forget what you knew about the mountain and the way up , to see if you can work it out again .

 

You might make it ... or you might fuck up ... and least later  you will know where and why you fucked up ... and take that on board  for next attempt  .... ie. try to remember the  processes that worked for you  because the actual route will be erased from your memory each time you try it .

 

The details of each life may not be that important , its the learning of 'process'  or what the Sufis call 'learning how to learn ' ... so it 'sticks'

 

Sorry if  this attempt at simplicity made my  communication unfathomable   

I think I get you: when you walk the same path every day, you stop to live conciousley and go by autopilot. So the point is to live conciously, correct?

And yess, there are certainly many trying to tell you who you are, where you should go, what you should buy, say, think and feel. Muddying the map a little. If I am a allowed to be a little dramatic; the whole word tries to manipulate you.

19 hours ago, Nungali said:

or perhaps you want my private specifics , how i found my kvharenah  and how I was able to fulfill it ?

Yes, that was what I had in mind.

«There is a frustration though, knowing this has all but died out . Like many elders here ; I am one of the last, I'll be gone , tradition gone , knowledge gone , modern people 'going to hell in a hand basket '  (as they say )  ... sad ?  yeah but .... mhe .»

I feel like an absolute ass commenting this when you are talking about one of lifes… idk, scariest and biggest question, but why let the religion with no name die?

11 hours ago, Nungali said:

 

11 hours ago, Nungali said:

Spiros may not agree ;

 

 

 

 

 

And also this  is in a context of  a few discussions (posts on DBs) , posts I have made or in discussion with 'Natura Naturans '  re ;

eudaimonia , 'True Will' , Khvahrenah ' , in short one's reason and purpose for being here . It might seem insignificant but this is viewed in contrast with the many modern westerners who dont know why they are here or what their purpose is . Its even said that is the main question of life .   Eg; in another thread I said '' Is it rational to go to work every day in a job you dont like that is unfulfilling and depressing ? ''  There might be a rationale in WHY you are doing it  but that is something different . 

Fucking Spiros 

One thing I should probally have asked you a long time ago, but that I have not, is this: how do you live in accordance to your true will? What is essential for you?

19 hours ago, zerostao said:

I've lived much of my life in the wilderness of a large Ancient National Forest. What I've witnessed some animals do, 99.9% of ya'll wouldn't believe anyways. 

To label them, Magical, would be a gross underestimation of their capabilities,virtues, powers,,,

Especially, "possums".

Id love to hear.

Let me clarrify one thing: I do not for a moment doubt animals inner life, personality and emotions. Not for a second, one would have to be completely devoid of empathy to do that. Let me quote you the section I read that inspired the question. The following is quoted (and translated by AI) from the foreword of Epiktets work, by Viggo Johansen:

Quote

Page 15:

"According to Stoic philosophy, humans are reasoning animals. We share our animal nature, that is, our biological nature, with all other animals, while what is unique to humans is our capacity for reason. This is often translated to mean that we possess rationality, which tends to be equated with our ability to think. However, it is important to be cautious here, for this is the central point in the entire philosophy—everything else rests upon it—and if we misunderstand this, we misunderstand the entire argument. So let us proceed carefully.

To understand the Stoics' view of what it means to be human and what the good life consists of, we must begin with..."

Page 16:

"...their view on existence itself. The foundation of their worldview lies in the belief in the goodness of nature and its purposefulness. Nature is divine. Epictetus uses the words 'Nature' and 'God' as synonyms. We are obviously not talking about God as a person or entity but as the highest principle. Therefore, it is not so strange that God can be equated with Nature. We do not live in a cold and meaningless universe, where life is random, but rather in one that is absolutely meaningful—essentially. The ordering principle in existence, logos, is embedded in humans as our reasoning ability, or our capacity for understanding. As a metaphor, and perhaps to better grasp its implications, there is a divine spark inherent in every human being—something that is like God—and it is this that separates us from other animals. Humans have an inherent ability to transcend their biological nature and recognize their divine nature. To move from being bound to being free.

Thus, it is not thinking that is essential to our reasoning ability, even though thinking is derived from it, but rather that it is possible for humans to live in truth. To live in truth is to live in harmony with nature, that is, with the highest principle. For our biological nature, survival and reproduction are the most important principles for life, while for our inner nature, truth is the most important principle—and if these come into conflict with one another, a true Stoic would say that it is better to die alive than to live dead. Therefore, it is not surprising that Socrates is the prime example for Stoics, both in how he lived and how he died. Socrates drank the poison without complaint—although he could easily have avoided it by yielding to external demands—and by his action, he demonstrated the crowning example of Stoic calm: that reason overcomes even death."

Page 17:

"It is no coincidence that the Handbook begins with the words: 'With everything here in life, it is as if the individual thing is what you determine, while others do not.' What we determine, understanding, is the compass in life. If one follows its instructions, external goods lose their allure—health, money, reputation, power—everything worldly is seen from a bird's eye view. Life's events follow the whims of fate, and as humans, we experience both success and adversity, but none of this has anything to do with the good life. For humans, what matters is wanting what happens. Stoic self-discipline is about becoming so attuned to existence that one's own will aligns with the will of life itself; there is nothing in me that resists life's movement—whether it goes 'well' or 'poorly' outwardly. The Stoic understands, or lives in such a way, that they are part of the universe's center, not the center itself—life revolves around me, and I submit myself accordingly to Nature. Then there is no conflict in me, no opposition, which is the same as Stoic calm. The Stoic calm is therefore not about becoming immune to life, but rather about becoming like life itself. A Stoic is not indifferent to life, but rather completely transparent in meeting life—fully alive."

Is it our failure to live in accordance to nature, god, "true will," what have you, that lead to misery?  And why do we fail?

So, famously, the greeks considered rationality as the defining feature of humans - what seperates us from animals.

i have two cats. They seem to live in constant bliss, without any sense of worry or suffering. Do you agree that animals generally dont suffer, while many humans do?

How do explain that the only creature capable of rationality, wisdom and virtue, is the most miserable of them all?

3 hours ago, Gerard said:

Buongiorno, this Taoist will make a tasty Ribollita next week.

 

Yum!

 

Grazie, no cuisine like the italian one.

16 hours ago, Thrice Daily said:

Almost same everyday although I change portions and undulate calories (sometimes  )

 

3 Meals and 1 Bedtime Snack 

 

4 eggs, 100-150grams Organ meat [chicken hearts or 100 grams liver], Fermented cabbage, bed of rice, 20g Fat of some sort, usually from butchers lard (maybe heavy good brown bread) [50g Protein]

 

Protein Shake with 1 and 1/2 cups of oats and 1/2 litre milk + sultanas and creatine [50g Protein]

 

4 eggs, Cottage cheese, Fermented cabbage, bed of rice, 20g Fat of some sort (maybe heavy good brown bread) [50g Protein]

 

**Best Meal 

High Fat Greek Yogurt 200g and a scoop of chocolate protein powder. Awesomeness!!! [35g Protein]

 

I love my food me but I keep it pretty much the same. I’m a uniform eater, don’t give it any more energy than needed and can do it with my eyes closed. Tend to fast till 1:30-2:30pm

 

I add garlic or ginger as and when, use as medicine. Same with full lemon every morning in water. As and when needed.

 

NOTE** DONT HAVE MORE THAT 100g LIVER IN ONE SERVING!!!! VItamin A LEVELS ARE OFF THE CHART AND ITS TOXIC TO HAVE MORE!!! 

i used to live like that to a few years ago. Damn it felt great. But somewhere along the road I turned into a goblin. Working on fixing it now tho!

The principles progress from a pursuit of knowledge (1), to the establishment of independence (2), to the understanding of a universal order (3), and further to applying this understanding in one's own life and environment (4), and then to action and courage in the face of challenges (5). The principles of mortality (6) and beauty (7) put this entire journey into perspective, while the final principle (8) encourages bringing everything together in a process of self-realization and wholeness.

11 minutes ago, Nungali said:

 

 

How about this beauty: https://youtu.be/W-hrBhA4XkM?si=rRXGWqQ1TncTynUH

2 minutes ago, Nungali said:

 

Why would I be pissed off ?   

 

After all I am a young shapely woman born again Christian now .   

 

How's that for the transformative 'power of Christ '  ! 

I post a scetch appropiate for a wise man who was around 50 years ago:

Point is: I like Christ if we separate him from the dogma of biblical Christianity. Happy?

Maybe not universally unpopular (overwhelmingly popular infact), but it will piss our dear Nungali off: I belive Christ has some of the most powerful quotes in excistence.

4 minutes ago, Cadcam said:

Yes! Where is it

Here you go, good sir: https://www.thedaobums.com/topic/56160-lifes-essence-eight-principles/

13 hours ago, DBT said:

Does our past still have a hold on us, events and experiences from long ago, do they still hold sway in our lives. Can we/should try to avoid them or cancel them out.

This is just me thinking aloud.

Maybe I am misunderstandint the question. If so, apologies. If not, I would say most definetly yes. Who can say that a break up for instance, did not effect their personality and world view for a good time afterwords?

@Cadcam I just made a thread about «my» philosophy if youre interrested.

Life's Essence: eight Principles

"Every acquisition, every step forward in knowledge is the result of courage, of severity toward oneself, of cleanliness with respect to oneself."
Friedrich Nietzsche, Ecce Homo

Background

I'll be honest: I have dug myself into a deep hole. Life can be pure bliss, but at times it can be a real struggle, perhaps even hell. As it says in the Gospel of Matthew, the gate to damnation is "wide and broad," while the way that leads to life is "narrow, and few find it."

Given my current life situation, I have decided to create a short and concise list of the most important principles for a good life. I have pre-determined that I will limit myself to 10 principles, without knowing exactly what they will entail. This is because I want them to be impactful and to the point. Naturally, this is a personal list — my rules for my life, and by no means intended to be universal. However, I am very open to feedback, comments, and your own principles on the path to paradise.

Jordan Peterson's 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos

The project is clearly inspired by the aforementioned book. I know he is a controversial character, but I don't give a f***. I like him. He argues that life is characterized by order and chaos. It can perhaps be compared to yin and yang; I wouldn't know, as my knowledge of Eastern philosophy is practically nonexistent (unfortunately).

Peterson points out that too much order and too much chaos can both be harmful. Too much order can lead to rigidity, stagnation, and even totalitarian tendencies, while too much chaos can result in fear, anxiety, and the disintegration of meaningful structures. Humans need a dynamic balance between these forces to live a rich and meaningful life. Rules, routines, and structures can help us find this balance, without losing the ability to adapt and grow in the face of unpredictability. Here, I will create my own "rules for life."

"The scientific world of matter can be reduced, in some sense, to its fundamental constituent elements: molecules, atoms, even quarks. However, the world of experience has primal constituents, as well. These are the necessary elements whose interactions define drama and fiction. One of these is chaos. Another is order. The third (as there are three) is the process that mediates between the two, which appears identical to what modern people call consciousness. It is our eternal subjugation to the first two that makes us doubt the validity of existence — that makes us throw up our hands in despair and fail to care for ourselves properly. It is a proper understanding of the third that allows us the only real way out."
― Jordan Peterson

Norse Mythology - Order, Chaos, and Creation
In the Norse creation myth, Ymir is the first being, a primordial entity that holds the potential for the entire world within itself. Ymir exists in a chaotic primal state, where all opposites — light and darkness, order and chaos, male and female — exist simultaneously and indivisibly. Through his asexual creation, the giants emerge, making Ymir a symbol of a state of unity where all contrasts are merged.

The dualities of the world come into being through the sacrifice of Ymir; his body is divided by the gods to create earth, sea, trees, and mountains. This act of violence marks the transition from unity to diversity, showing how order often arises from chaos. Ymir must die for the world to exist, and his sacrifice makes it possible for opposites such as night and day, land and sea, gods and humans to take form.

This illustrates how order and chaos function as complementary forces in creation. Ymir represents chaotic potential that must be shaped, while the gods create order. Creation becomes a process where both forces are necessary; they are not merely opposites but also prerequisites for each other. The world emerges in a tension between these forces, and it is in their interplay that the cosmos finds its form and beauty.

This is the backdrop for my ten principles: an understanding of life as a dance between order and chaos, between light and darkness, and how we can find our way through this landscape by embracing both structure and spontaneity.

The eight principles
1. Read Great Thinkers

This will make more sense as the majority of the "rules" contain quotes from great thinkers. People have pondered over life's great mysteries since practically forever. One of my favorite artworks illustrates this in a spectacular and beautiful way:


Lions, Chauvet Cave, France

The cave painting is 35,000 years old. No one can convince me that these people did not have as rich an inner life as us. Once in a blue moon, people so profound appear that reading them will enrich your life immeasurably. The older, the better. If it has stood the test of time, there is undoubtedly a reason for it.

2. … but you are the final authority

By all means, listen to the wise. Listen to everyone, in fact, because I believe everyone has something to contribute if you give them the chance. However, beware of the conman.

"Go alone, my disciples, You too, go now alone. Thus I want it. Go away from me and resist Zarathustra! And even better: be ashamed of him! Perhaps he deceived you… One pays a teacher badly if one always remains nothing but a pupil. And why do you not want to pluck at my wreath? You revere me; but what if your reverence tumbles one day? Beware lest a statue slay you. You say that you believe in Zarathustra? But what matters Zarathustra? You are my believers – but what matter all believers? You had not yet sought yourselves; and you found me. Thus do all believers; therefore all faith amounts to so little. Now I bid you to lose me and find yourselves; and only then when you have all denied me will I return to you… that I may celebrate the great noon with you."
― Nietzsche

3. Logos - Universal Reason
According to Herodotus, "Persians educate their boys to ride well, shoot straight, and speak the truth." The Persian word for truth would be asha or arta. This is part of a shared Indo-European notion of cosmic order. The wiki page on Proto-Indo-European mythology says the following:

"Linguistic evidence has led scholars to reconstruct the concept of *h₂értus, denoting 'what is fitting, rightly ordered', and ultimately deriving from the verbal root *h₂er-, 'to fit'. Descendant cognates include Hittite āra ('right, proper'); Sanskrit ṛta ('divine/cosmic law, force of truth, or order'); Avestan arəta- ('order'); Greek artús ('arrangement'), possibly arete ('excellence') via the root *h₂erh₁ ('please, satisfy'); Latin artus ('joint'); Tocharian A ārtt- ('to praise, be pleased with'); Armenian ard ('ornament, shape'); Middle High German art ('innate feature, nature, fashion')."

This is also where the Hindu concept of karma and dharma stems from. In classical Greek philosophy, particularly in the works of Heraclitus, logos refers to the rational structure that permeates the cosmos. Heraclitus saw logos as the universal law or principle that governs change and order in the universe. He believed that even though the world is in constant flux, everything happens according to an underlying rational order — logos.

This is why my username is NaturaNaturans (nature natures).

4. Eudaimonia (term coined by Aristotle, often translated to human flourishing) - nurture your environment
"Think of a flower. If you water it, give it enough light, maybe feed it a little, then it will grow and bloom… Human beings can flourish like plants too."
― Nigel Warburton

5. Kill the Dragon - One Foot in the Known, One in the Unknown
Science tells us that this is the key to a fulfilling life: finding the balance between order and chaos. Too much order, and life becomes meaningless. Too much chaos, and you become lost and confused, at best.

In the Norse universe, the first humans, Ask and Embla, were made of wood. Just as God breathed life into dust, Odin and his brothers breathed life into them. Odin, Vili, and Ve, Woðanaz, Weljon, and Wixan, their names meaning shamanic fury, the will, and the sacred respectively. They gave their creations, humanity, Midgard, a beautiful and magnificent place between the gods' fortress and the great unknown: Utgard, where they would dwell until Ragnarok.
To explain this further, I must elaborate on the concept of "gard." Gard means enclosure: a fenced-in and protected place. We have Asgard, the fortress of the Aesir (the divine), Midgard, home of the tribe and the known and protected from Utgard (outside the fence), where giants, enemies of the gods, dwell. Utgard is frightening and exciting. Sometimes necessary to explore, but with great risk, and the potential for everlasting fame.

Here's something to note. Firstly, they divide the world into three mental categories: the high and divine, the known and safe, and the wild and unknown. The high, the mundane, the low. Heaven, Earth, Hell. In Voluspa, Odin learns of the fate of the gods and their creations:
"The sun turns black, earth sinks in the sea,
The hot stars down from heaven are whirled;
Fierce grows the steam and the life-feeding flame,
Till fire leaps high about heaven itself."

Despite this, the knowledge of one's own and others' demise, Odin travels through the different realms in search of wisdom, to prepare for the inevitable end and to challenge fate itself. He takes the bravest warriors with him to Valhalla, where they prepare for the final battle.

In the vedic epic of Bhagavad Gita, two rivaling royal families stood ready to battle in the northern plains of India. Arjuna, the rightful heir to the throne, was prepared to fight for his right. But as he looked at his relatives, teachers, and friends on the opposing side, he was overwhelmed by deep sorrow. How could he kill his own kin? It was at this moment that the Supreme Personality of God, Krishna, revealed Himself to Arjuna. In the text, Krishna is described as the source of all existence. Arjuna humbly asked for guidance: "Now I am your disciple, and my soul is surrendered to you. Please instruct me."
Krishna/the Supreme Personality of Godhead said: "My dear Arjuna, how have these impurities come upon you? They are not at all befitting a man who knows the value of life. They lead not to higher planets but to infamy. (...) Give up this petty weakness of heart and arise."

Trito, from proto indo european mythology, is the archetypical warrior/hero. He would chase down an foreign enemy to retrieve the cattle they had stolen. To do this, he had to face a serpent, three headed monster or something similar. By retrieving the cattle, he was welcomed back as a hero. This is where we get the so called serpent slaying myth, which lives on to this very day. You even find it in Shrek haha.
Point is, the greatest treasures is to be found in a dark cave, guarded by a fire-spitting, flying reptile - the ultimate predator. Only by facing him bravely, can you achieve the highest good.

6. Memento mori
All the following quotes are from Marcus Aurelius:
"Your days are numbered. Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun. If you do not, the sun will soon set, and you with it."

"Your days are numbered. Use them to throw open the windows of your soul to the sun. If you do not, the sun will soon set, and you with it."

"It is not death that a man should fear, but he should fear never beginning to live."

"If souls survive death for all eternity, how can the heavens hold them all? Or for that matter, how can the earth hold all the bodies that have been buried in it? The answers are the same. Just as on earth, with the passage of time, decaying and transmogrified corpses make way for the newly dead, so souls released into the heavens, after a season of flight, begin to break up, burn, and be absorbed back into the womb of reason, leaving room for souls just beginning to fly. This is the answer for those who believe that souls survive death."


7. Appreciate beauty
"Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them."
Aurelius, meditations


8. Become whole
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=15pjQRA80bs

And at last:
"Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one."
Aurelius

29 minutes ago, Cadcam said:

We need a central thesis, one that catches the mind, and that can be used to craft other observations.

 

Something like " man was meant to create beauty"

«create art»

My «bible(s)»

Thanks all. Apologize for not answering, I am not that active here, but appreciate it.

Read great books. Listen to the wise, but disregard what you dont understand/agree with. Trust yourself. Make things beautifull, create something beautifull. Create a beautifull enviorment to grow into who you supposed to be

None of these are really «original,» but at least I havent plagerized something.

ECKHART: The “dark night of the soul” is a term that goes back a long time.  Yes, I have also experienced it. It is a term used to describe what one could call a collapse of a perceived meaning in life…an eruption into your life of a deep sense of meaninglessness.  The inner state in some cases is very close to what is conventionally called depression. Nothing makes sense anymore, there’s no purpose to anything. Sometimes it’s triggered by some external event, some disaster perhaps, on an external level.  The death of someone close to you could trigger it, especially premature death, for example if your child dies. Or you had built up your life, and given it meaning – and the meaning that you had given your life, your activities, your achievements, where you are going, what is considered important, and the meaning that you had given your life for some reason collapses.

It can happen if something happens that you can’t explain away anymore, some disaster which seems to invalidate the meaning that your life had before.  Really what has collapsed then is the whole conceptual framework for your life, the meaning that your mind had given it. So that results in a dark place.  But people have gone into that, and then there is the possibility that you emerge out of that into a transformed state of consciousness. Life has meaning again, but it’s no longer a conceptual meaning that you can necessarily explain.  Quite often it’s from there that people awaken out of their conceptual sense of reality, which has collapsed.

They awaken into something deeper, which is no longer based on concepts in your mind.  A deeper sense of purpose or connectedness with a greater life that is not dependent on explanations or anything conceptual any longer.  It’s a kind of re-birth. The dark night of the soul is a kind of death that you die. What dies is the egoic sense of self. Of course, death is always painful, but nothing real has actually died there – only an illusory identity.  Now it is probably the case that some people who’ve gone through this transformation realized that they had to go through that, in order to bring about a spiritual awakening. Often it is part of the awakening process, the death of the old self and the birth of the true self.

The first lesson in A Course in Miracles says “Nothing I see in this room means anything”, and you’re supposed to look around the room at whatever you happen to be looking at, and you say “this doesn’t mean anything”, “that doesn’t mean anything”.   What is the purpose of a lesson like that? It’s a little bit like re-creating what can happen during the dark night of the soul. It’s the collapse of a mind-made meaning, conceptual meaning, of life… believing that you understand “what it’s all about”.  With A Course in Miracles, it’s a voluntary relinquishment of the human mind-made meaning that is projected, and you go voluntary into saying “I don’t know what this means”, “this doesn’t mean anything”. You wipe the board clean. In the dark night of the soul it collapses.

You are meant to arrive at a place of conceptual meaninglessness.  Or one could say a state of ignorance – where things lose the meaning that you had given them, which was all conditioned and cultural and so on.  Then you can look upon the world without imposing a mind-made framework of meaning. It looks of course as if you no longer understand anything. That’s why it’s so scary when it happens to you, instead of you actually consciously embracing it.  It can bring about the dark night of the soul – to go around the Universe without any longer interpreting it compulsively, as an innocent presence. You look upon events, people, and so on with a deep sense of aliveness. Your sense the aliveness through your own sense of aliveness, but you are not trying to fit your experience into a conceptual framework anymore.

38 minutes ago, Nungali said:

I eat at Mc Donalds  usually a few burgers and heap of fries and wash it down with shakes . 

 

Then I internally transform it all via Daoist inner alchemy into golden light prana food .

 

 

Nungali, the walking paradox ❤️

This thread id like to follow. Can I you, @DBT, how have you benefited and how did you Get started? How do you seperate the gold from the dirt?

When, what kind of food, how often etc. l am asking both because ive gained some weight, and because I want to be healthier.