Changing the world

[Marblehead]

Buddha -- "Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense."

 

^ Yes Sir!

 

haha

Yep. But even this should be taken with a pinch of salt. I know, from my own experience, that one can operate from the position of faulty logic. Therefore, even my own reason and common sense has let me down. "Test and try before you buy."

[skydog]

Evil flourishes when good men do nothing - Edmund Burke

 

 

 

Do nothing does not really mean sit in the corner and do nothing, it means let go of doing and let yourself/at the same time guide a little bit what one can, in a natural effortless way.

[skydog]

Do nothing does not really mean sit in the corner and do nothing, it means let go of doing and let yourself/at the same time guide a little bit what one can, in a natural effortless way.

I thought I would make up another pretty poem to explain some thoughts.

 

 

There was a man called john, john would cry, scream and smash the table because of the state of the world, he would attack and condemn others and emit a holier than thou arragant preachy attitude. He would also suffer a lot because he was so idealistic, he struggled to see reality as it was. So for a year he struggled and angrily frustrated, cursed everyone and the state of things because of poor kids in africa, so he raised some money and went to kenya. He felt like these kids were so poor because of his opinions of material wealth and he was somehow better. He projected an attitude of "you should be unhappy" to these kids, which the kids really didnt understand, they didnt know what a plasma tv was so how could they be unhappy about not having one. Also the kids seemed far happier than any young kids he knew back at home, they actually wanted to give to him, he seemed like an angry, discontent man to them. All his condemning the world and not enjoying life didnt actually help any of these kids.

 

Have you ever heard of the enlightened buddha who spent all day suffering about the state of the world and trying to change it? No, neither have I.

Edited January 24, 2013 by sinansencer

[eye_of_the_storm]

Yep. But even this should be taken with a pinch of salt. I know, from my own experience, that one can operate from the position of faulty logic. Therefore, even my own reason and common sense has let me down. "Test and try before you buy."

 

yes indeed.

 

It's an interesting puzzle...

[Birch]

It depends on where and what the world is.

[GrandmasterP]

Did you hear about the guy who didn't know the difference between putty and custard MH?

 

Neither had he until his windows fell out.

 

I want to learn from the guy who has made mistakes, the ones who claim to be perfect aren't to be trusted.

[gatito]

Buddha -- "Believe nothing, no matter where you read it, or who said it, no matter if I have said it, unless it agrees with your own reason and your own common sense."

 

^ Yes Sir!

 

haha

 

Isn't the translation - "unless it agrees with your own direct experience" (or words to that effect)?

[eye_of_the_storm]

hm maybe I don't know

so many... strange translations of things

I wouldn't doubt it

[gatito]

hm maybe I don't know

 

so many... strange translations of things

 

I wouldn't doubt it

 

[Vmarco]

Once you are awake, and you have cultivated abundant virtue...what action do you take then?

 

 

First,...when you awake, virtue, a man-constructed ideal, is dissolved, just like morality.

 

A Buddhist once said, "Morality can only be imposed from without when we are asleep. It can only be pseudo, false, a façade, it cannot become your real being…morality is bound to be nothing but a deep suppression. You cannot do anything while asleep; you can only suppress. And through morality, you will become false. You will not be a person, but simply a "persona"—just a pseudo-entity. . . . Only a dishonest person can be moral."

[eye_of_the_storm]

Allegory of war

Unlike any other religious scripture, the Bhagavad Gita broadcasts its message in the centre of the battlefield.^[45] The choice of such an unholy ambience for the delivery of a philosophical discourse has been an enigma to many commentators. Eknath Easwaran writes that the Gita's subject is "the war within, the struggle for self-mastery that every human being must wage if he or she is to emerge from life victorious",^[46] and "The language of battle is often found in the scriptures, for it conveys the strenuous, long, drawn-out campaign we must wage to free ourselves from the tyranny of the ego, the cause of all our suffering and sorrow".^[47]Swami Nikhilananda, takes Arjuna as an allegory of Ātman, Krishna as an allegory of Brahman, Arjuna's chariot as the body, and Dhritarashtra as the ignorance filled mind.^[48]Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, in his commentary on the Gita,^[49] interprets the battle as "an allegory in which the battlefield is the soul and Arjuna, man's higher impulses struggling against evil."^[50]

Swami Vivekananda also emphasised that the first discourse in the Gita related to the war could be taken allegorically.^[51] Vivekananda further remarked, "this Kurukshetra War is only an allegory. When we sum up its esoteric significance, it means the war which is constantly going on within man between the tendencies of good and evil."^[52] In Aurobindo's view, Krishna was a historical figure, but his significance in the Gita is as a "symbol of the divine dealings with humanity",^[53] while Arjuna typifies a "struggling human soul."^[54] However, Aurobindo rejected the interpretation that the Gita, and the Mahabharata by extension, is "an allegory of the inner life, and has nothing to do with our outward human life and actions":^[54]

...That is a view which the general character and the actual language of the epic does not justify and, if pressed, would turn the straightforward philosophical language of the Gita into a constant, laborious and somewhat puerile mystification....the Gita is written in plain terms and professes to solve the great ethical and spiritual difficulties which the life of man raises, and it will not do to go behind this plain language and thought and wrest them to the service of our fancy. But there is this much of truth in the view, that the setting of the doctrine though not symbolical, is certainly typical...

According to Vivekananda, "If one reads this one Shloka — one gets all the merits of reading the entire Gita; for in this one Shloka lies imbedded the whole Message of the Gita.^[55]

क्लैब्यं मा स्म गमः पार्थ नैतत्त्वय्युपपद्यते । क्षुद्रं हृदयदौर्बल्यं त्यक्त्वोत्तिष्ठ परंतप॥
Translation: Do not yield to unmanliness, O son of Prithâ. It does not become you. Shake off this base faint-heartedness and arise, O scorcher of enemies! (2.3)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhagavad_Gita

Edited January 25, 2013 by White Wolf Running On Air

[Vanir Thunder Dojo Tan]

You hear a lot on forums like this people talking about what's wrong with the world, or how to change the world for the better.

 

Personally I think all we can and "should" do is live our inner virtue to the fullest ... not for the purpose of changing or achieving anything, but simply because it is the natural thing to do.

 

What do you think ??

 

 

 

Virtue - all - reality

[Flolfolil]

okay dude, i'm not a psychopath or totally apathetic. If i saw my friend getting their ass kicked, would i jump in and fight? Absolutely yes. If i saw a random person getting their ass kicked and i was absolutely sure it was just a stranger robbing someone and not someone getting revenge for some thing? Yes i would jump in it that situation if i felt it were in my ability to win a fight for them

 

i will not however donate to crisis centers and start crusades against violence or patrol the streets looking for a fight

 

Will i throw trash on the ground myself? No, of course not. Will i go around every day picking up other peoples' trash? NOPE. Because i know that caring about the environment is a change that has to come from within and the trash will just be there the next day.

 

i think the concept of doing good deeds to gain merit is rooted in fantasy. i don't believe in karma in the way that it can be eliminated. Sure, i believe in every action has a reaction but i don't think that reaction will be delayed for years in most situations or carry with you to the next life.

 

There is a huge difference between being reactionary and living on the edge of your seat on an adrenaline rush waiting for some shit to happen. i believe that if you live like that, you attract that kind of energy. Because i don't live like that i never attract situations like that, in my observation anyways.

[eye_of_the_storm]

Edited January 24, 2013 by White Wolf Running On Air

[Vmarco]

 

 

 

Interesting. So, have you read The Secret of Light?

http://archive.org/details/WalterRussellTheSecretOfLight

 

The Wachowski's did,...from I've been told.

Edited January 24, 2013 by Vmarco

[Vanir Thunder Dojo Tan]

infinite fractalized, beams of eternity, shards and occlusion forever perpetuated, each and all with infinite organizations, reorganizations, forms, reforms, and all manner of change...

[Sanzon]

Thank you Stigweard, I was just stirring the pot for fun, but your explanation here of wei wu wei & ziran is awesome, and so ideal. I am new to Taoism, so am here to learn, & going to ponder on this today.

 

I come from a background of social activism, and changing the world is definitely on my agenda. Social movements in history have shown that the world can be changed from ground level upwards, people power, versus the personal disempowerment I feel as a consequence of "blaming the system" as I held in my youth, and did nothing to improve it. This path has had me meet with some wonderfully gifted & spiritually well developed people. People who put their spirituality into action. Don't get me wrong, my ego gets a boost and is in the drivers seat for most of my actions & motivation, but the spirit is getting exercised along the way, and pats my ego on the back like a parent has been pleased when welcoming home the child who has been let out to play, acknowledging it is just a child. Yes, it has brought suffering upon me, and I welcome that, as it is trials for growth, and my efforts have helped alleviate the suffering of others.

 

There is a point I would like to make here. Alot of the focus on Hindu & Buddhist philosophy is based on the idea that enlightenment is the goal, and reincarnation is a bad thing, and that one must clear themselves of karma to progress spiritually. Even Abrahamic religion frowns upon the material over the spiritual. there is little focus on embracing embodiment, of embracing our human life, humanness & being human. Embracing life is also about embracing karma, and given any other skill worth learning, even with our current level of unelightenment, one can develop this skill through practice, being brave enough to make mistakes, learn that lesson, and move on from them. I do not see karma as negative personal spiritual luggage alone, but as a law in action, to embrace, and to set positive wheels in motion rather than dwell on the past & the negative. Like energy cultivation, getting a good flow of clean fresh water will clear out the stagnation & the muck. Positive cause & effect, both internally & within the world around us, and the people living within it.

 

There is every reason to change the world, and affect others karmically. And to do this, one has to be happy enough to get their hands dirty at times.

 

Lots of generalizations here, but I hope the illustrations get my general point across.

Edited January 24, 2013 by Sanzon

[GrandmasterP]

Be like water....

 

etc.....

[eye_of_the_storm]

Interesting. So, have you read The Secret of Light?

http://archive.org/details/WalterRussellTheSecretOfLight

 

The Wachowski's did,...from I've been told.

 

Hello V.

 

I have not...// opened the link then... seems promising, do you recommend?

 

 

[gendao]

Another vital bottleneck for green power is the actual batteries themselves:

How the 200-year-old battery is holding back 21st century technology

 

In 2006 and 2007, more than 46 million cellphone batteries and 10 million laptop batteries - all lithium ion - were recalled because of the risk of overheating, short-circuiting and exploding. Additional safety features have been installed since then on lithium ion batteries used in consumer electronics.

 

A123, a maker of lithium ion batteries for electric cars, went bankrupt last year because of poor demand and high costs after receiving a $249 million US federal grant.

 

Lithium ion batteries, which store more energy at a higher voltage and a lighter weight than earlier types, represent the most recent big jump in battery technology. And that took place nearly a quarter of a century ago.

 

"We need to leapfrog the engineering of making of batteries," said Lawrence Berkeley National Lab battery scientist Vince Battaglia. "We've got to find the next big thing." But none of the 10 experts who talked to The Associated Press said they know what that big thing will be yet, or when it will come. "If you crack it ... it'll change the world," said Carnegie Mellon University materials science professor Jay Whitacre.

 

Batteries are so crucial to a greener energy future that the Obama administration has spent more than $2 billion to jump-start the advanced battery industry, including setting up what some experts say is a mini-Manhattan Project for batteries.

 

To make the next breakthrough, researchers will have to master complex chemistry, expensive manufacturing, detailed engineering, a variety of different materials, lengthy testing, stringent safety standards and giant cost problems. It involves dealing with liquids and solids, metals and organic chemicals, and things that are in between, said Glenn Amatucci, director of the Energy Storage Research Group at Rutgers University.

 

"We're dealing with a system that you can imagine is almost alive. It's almost breathing," Amatucci said. "Trying to understand what's happening within these batteries is incredibly complex."

 

One reason the battery is the slowpoke of the high-tech highway is that it has conflicting functions. Its primary job is to store energy. But it's also supposed to discharge power, lots of it, quickly. Those two jobs are at odds with each other.

 

"If you want high storage, you can't get high power," said M. Stanley Whittingham, director of the Northeast Center for Chemical Energy Storage. "People are expecting more than what's possible."

 

On the commercial market, lithium ion batteries are generally ones small enough to fit into cellphones. But to power bigger items - from a Prius to a 787 - they get grouped together, increasing the juice they store and provide. That also increases the safety risk, experts say. The lithium ion battery that caught fire in a Boeing 787 weighed 63 pounds and was 19 inches long.

 

"You can't get around the fundamental thing is that lithium ion batteries are stuffed full of flammable liquid," Whitacre said.

 

Even one-in-a-million problems with lithium ion batteries can result in many fires because there are billions of them in use now, with dozens sometimes stacked together in a single device.

 

Experts say lithium ion batteries are more dangerous because their electrolyte, the liquid that allows ions to move between electrodes in the battery, is more flammable than the substance in older type batteries. Those older types include the lead-acid batteries in most cars and the nickel cadmium batteries that are often in video equipment and power tools.

 

"The big advances in battery technology happen rarely. It's been more than 200 years and we have maybe five different successful rechargeable batteries," said George Blomgren, a former senior technology researcher at Eveready and now a private battery consultant. "It's frustrating."

 

The lead-acid car battery "has been around for 150 years more or less," Whitacre said. "This is a remarkable testament to first how robust that chemistry is and how difficult change is."

 

Battery experts are split over what's next. Some think the lithium ion battery can be tinkered with to get major efficiency and storage improvements. Amatucci said he thinks we can get two to three times more energy out of future lithium ion batteries, while others said minor chemical changes can do even more.

 

But just as many engineers say the lithium ion battery has run its course.

 

"With the materials in the current lithium ion battery, we are definitely plateaued," Blomgren said. "We're waiting for something to come along that really does the job."

 

There are all sorts of new type batteries being worked on: lithium-air, lithium-sulfur, magnesium, sodium-ion.

"Right now it's a horse race," Blomgren said. "There's deficiencies in every technology that's out there. Each one of them requires a major solution."

Edited January 25, 2013 by vortex

[eye_of_the_storm]

Cold Fusion?

mini generators in every home?

in cars?

Edited January 25, 2013 by White Wolf Running On Air

[Stigweard]

Yeah, that came together for me about a year ago. Wei wu wei for people and ziran for everything else. Put the people in the "everything else" basket and what do you have? Tough place to get to though - I know that first hand.

In my Taiji practice I aspire for both as one

[Marblehead]

Did you hear about the guy who didn't know the difference between putty and custard MH?

 

Neither had he until his windows fell out.

 

I want to learn from the guy who has made mistakes, the ones who claim to be perfect aren't to be trusted.

Hehehe. And yes, there is a difference between water-base paint and oil-base paint. One should not be used in place of the other.

 

I have never claimed to be a master or expert at anything. I don't want others to be expecting perfection from me.

[Marblehead]

Another vital bottleneck for green power is the actual batteries themselves:

Yeah, I try to keep up to date regarding battery technology as I use many of them. No, I'm not ready to go lithium in large scale yet. But I think there is still promise in them if the heat problem can be resolved.

[Marblehead]

Cold Fusion?

 

mini generators in every home?

 

in cars?

I also periodically check on developments here. I have, for a very long time, felt that this is possible. The technology in this are is moving very slowly though.