Shades of Gray

So many people look to fix intangible things on the outside vs. on the inside. If they were to look within, they’ll see that it's a power-struggle of "My Way vs. Your Way". Often times these intangibles are relationships with other people be they personal intimate, romantic, work-related, etc; each person is all-too-often personally vested in and polarized to their own position along with holding onto their own expectations of themselves as well as the other person / people involved. If they just let go and just be, then everything in life is much easier. All you can control and decide for is yourself.

There are an infinite variety of variables and situations I could pose as an example(s), but which answer(s) are right for YOU as an individual and for YOU as part of a couple/owner/employee/sibling/parent/etc ? Do the answers for one situation (say as an individual) mix and mesh or not with the others (such as part of a couple/owner/employee/sibling/parent/etc)?

Ask not to change without, but change within instead.

Ask not for the answer to what is perceived as a problem, but instead ask that the path may be clear.

It's about changing you own perspective and perception. It’s about the change within.

Sometimes to illustrate the point, I’ll ask someone ... "How many sides does a coin have?" and often times the answer given is “two”, which is a very valid and true answer from that viewpoint and perspective.

From my own viewpoint and perspective, my answer is that It depends on what you call a "side". I view most, but not all coins as having 3 sides….. The Obverse, the Reverse, and the Side. A dime from the US would have more sides than say a nickel would because all of the ridges/edges on the dime that the nickel lacks. Now when you're talking other countries...... well, you can see the variables and thus there is more than one answer.

See.... it's about changing the perspective.

Only perceiving two sides of a coin is, in my opinion, the same as only seeing answers (and coins) as two-sided and/or black and white. When you look at things from other viewpoints, they become less two-sided, less black and white, and more about a wide range of varying shades of gray.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Rich, Broke, Poor, Wealthy - The Nuances

I'm a huge Wordsmith. I love the various nuances of words and their meanings.....

To see if you understand where I'm coming from, see if you can explain what I mean by this statement below:

I have been broke, but I've never been poor.
I am not rich, but I am wealthy.
There are those who are broke and poor, broke and wealthy, rich and poor, and rich and wealthy.

What do these words mean as I mean them?

Rich
Broke
Poor
Wealthy

What are your thoughts? Comment on this post and I'll approve them so they show up here.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Freedom

I, like I'm sure many others have, thought about and considered the question: "What is Freedom and what does it mean to me?" Like so many things, it's a philosophical subject with many answers, all of which transcends mere meaning as put in the latest dictionary. I can only speak from my own point-of-view and what freedom means to me. To you, to my next door neighbor, to the stranger down the street or even beyond that, freedom may have anywhere from a slightly to completely different meaning. Be that as it may, agree with me or not, (in part or in whole), this is my interpretation of freedom is and what it means to me.

Freedom is personal responsibility
Freedom is not the right to say or do whatever you want without personal responsibility, being held accountable, or avoiding any consequences.

Freedom is the ability to think and do whatever we may choose, but to be held accountable and responsible for our thoughts, words, actions and deeds on all levels, personal, societal, global, and universal, along with any and all consequences thereof, see and unseen, acknowledged and unacknowledged which is freedom.

Freedom is responsibility, not the lack of it. It is responsibility to one's self, one's family, ones' community, one's society, one's world and one's universe; as all affects the All. The free person is responsible with their thoughts. words, actions and deeds, as these are things of power; and the power of freedom is responsibility. Bound together, these things cannot be undone, they cannot be separated, for when one is separated from their responsibility, one is no longer free, but enslaved. Freedom is anything but free, and so few people truly understand that. They think freedom is earned on the battlefield and wars over land and country; but I say the greatest war has still not been won. It is the war within. It is the war of our shadow selves, of humanity, or our lack of it. As a species, there are things that are right and wrong based on societal rules and expectations; but as species, a family on this planet which is but one small piece of a much larger albeit unseen universe; we have have a responsibility to ourselves, our species, and to the universe at large to not allow things such as as we do to this world, ourselves and each other, indeed to the All.

We are free to drop a pebble in the pond, but lest we be fools, we should know that the action of tossing the pebble into the pond affected not only the water into which it was thrown and passed through, but also the rock itself, the air through which it passed, the land from which it came, the ripples it caused, the pond or lake bed in which it settled, the sediment in which it displaced and albeit minutiae, the ecosystem and indeed all life on Earth is affected, seen and unseen, known and unknown, et al.

Freedom is the authority over ourselves. It is the responsibility in the microcosm and the macrocosm, in, for and of the All.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Why I'm Still Here

I wrote the following in response to someone who is currently going through their own battle with cancer; and I thought I'd share my words here as well. After writing it on the fly, it reallt reflects why I'm still here in my currently incarnated state of being. I wrote it this way, no edits, no drafts, one pass and off into the Internet ethers my words were posted.

So here we go......

At age 34 in 2001, I was diagnosed with Malignant Melanoma. Most skin cancers are not deadly unless left untreated. They simply remove them and life goes on, that's it. Most skin cancer deaths are caused by Melanoma; and of the 4 types, Nodular, (of course the type I had), is the most invasive and the most deadly because it grows DOWN vs OUT. There are also 2 scales by which they measure the tumor, Clarks is one, and Breslow is the other. One measures depth, one measures width. I was a Clarks Level 5 and a Breslow Level 4, the highest on both scales.

the tumor was 9mm deep (half in inch) in the left-lateral side of my scalp. Chemotherapy and Radiation do not work on it. It would have been better to have another form of cancer where those methods DO have some sort of viable affect, but on Melanoma, they do not. It's all a guessing game of trial and error. they did surgery and said they got it all, which they did. I had a great Oncologist, who is also a Surgeon. (He did the usual College > Medical School > Internship) to become a doctor, but then he went BACK again to become what is he is today; so he's got a total of 21 years in just in schooling and internship. he's both an Oncologist and a Surgeon, which most people are not both. Suffice it to say, he had a LARGE part of my staying here......

However..........

Within 15 minutes of getting the news, I made a conscious decision to live or die (from this incarnation anyway). Death, like birth, is not a begining nor an end, but instead is only merely a gate of transition through which we all must pass.

From whence ye came, so shall ye return; the only difference between is, what did you learn?
What did you teach and who did you reach?

You see....we enter this World with nothing, but it is up to us if we leave it the same way we came into it, or if we leave it with everything that matters... love, family, friends, memories and experiences, all the intangible things that really matter. The things that matter cannot be held within your hands, but only within your soul, within your heart of who and what we really are. It is within this essence of pure being, and of being, that we simply are.

I did not leave this realm, this incarnation, because it is not my time, I am not ready, and I have too much to do here yet in the service of others. I firmly believe that while my surgery and medical care was needed, and while many sent love, prayers and healing energy my way; it is this spark of divine conscious decision to stay or to leave which made the difference.

It's been 9 years. I'm 43 and still here.

Nick, I don't know you in this incarnate state, but I know we are one. I know the greatest force, indeed The Source of All That Is, is Love. I send you this Love not from my human mind, not from my incarnate state of being, but from the being of my true self, our true self. As I have survived this cancer in my incarnate state, as I send this Love to you, I pray that your journey be long and your path be clear. You will both learn lessons and teach them. Knowing what I know now, I would never undo my experiences, for they helped define me who I am today, as your experience will help you define yourself. I'll close with my email signature, as it says it very well, I think....

Manifest your reality.

So shall you perceive it, so shall it be.

The only limitations you have are the ones you believe in and place on yourself; because who you are is who you choose to be.

Do not let others define you, nor should you define anyone else. Instead, define yourself and live honestly. Others will see you as you really are.

What you believe is a possibility.
What you choose is a destiny.

Transcending Labels (and other things too)

We’ve all identified people, places, things and ourselves with labels (which for the purpose of common communication) are used to define who, what, where, how, what we/they/it does, etc about whatever the subject is. We need these labels like we need any other word for the sake of common communication; but we must be careful that we do not become attached to labels (or anything else in this realm and/or incarnated existence) because as some traditions teach; attachment leads to suffering whereas detachment leads to true freedom. Attachment is one of the tools used by the egoic mind, which is constantly living in a state of past and future, but never the present moment. The egoic mind uses this tool for its own self-survival instinct which suppresses our true self from shining through. It keeps us in self-bondage, and we are both the one bound and the one doing the binding of our true self. The egoic mind is like an errant child, untamed and unfiltered, out of control; but we can control it. Observe it. Minimize it. When we become the observer, we are detached from this egoic mind and we are silent within. This quieting of the mind lets the soul feel and hear our connection to The Source and All That Is. We are always connected, we’re just not always aware of it. At times, there will be an “Ah Ha!!” moment which will break through the egoic mind, but it quickly grasps hold again and shakes us back into its submission. We have a taste of freedom, but we never realize what it is until we escape the egoic mind’s control enough to become the observer.

To become the observer and detach from the egoic mind, we must minimize the effect the egoic mind has on us. To do that, we must detach ourselves from the people, places and things within this incarnated existence / realm in which we walk. This isn’t to say that we don’t care about people, places and things, but rather that we lessen our personal vestment in them and our rigid polarization to them. We don’t let labels with emotional attachment, but only as a mere tool of communication. To see an example of this, talk about toasters with someone. I doubt they are going to rant and rave or show much personal vestment or polarization to one toaster vs another; but now talk about politics, sex, religion, sports, the economy, abortion, or any one of the other big hot button topics, and you’ll soon see these emotional attachments, personal vestments and polarizations in people. These are part of the egoic mind and have been the cause of much suffering for All. I admit, in the past, I too was like that. I too was guilty of falling prey to the tricks of the egoic mind; but now I can discuss any subject without attachment to it. Sure these things matter, limited as they may be, because they only really matter within the context of the game, this incarnated life, the great dream, the Maya illusion. Owning Board Walk matters too within the context of the game of Monopoly too; but does it REALLY matter in the larger picture of your life? No. Not really. The same is true with these other subjects of politics, sports, sex, religion, or anything else that you or others may be personally vested and polarized to. When you move beyond the veil to the other side, will it matter? Does it really matter to your true self? YOU, the real YOU, is not your body, nor is it even the human persona within it. YOU are not your egoic mind either. YOU are so much more than that.

It’s nice to have things, people, places, labels saying that “I am this” or “I do that”; but realize that these are merely all part of the illusion of this realm. In short, as the old saying goes… “Don’t sweat the small stuff. It’s all small stuff.” You enter this realm with nothing, speaking of material wealth, friends, etc. You will hopefully leave this realm’s incarnated life with everything that matters… love. That’s all that matters is Love and Life (not the incarnated life, but the much larger Life that you are.) If you must have an attachment to something; then let it be an attachment to Love and that larger Life which we are.

Remember…. Don’t sweat the small stuff.

Copyright © 2010 Rev. Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Manifesting Prosperity

What is prosperity? I believe one possible answer to that question is: "wealth."
This isn't a simple answer, because some answers inevitably lead to more questions. In this case, the answer of "wealth" causes the next question to be asked: "What is wealth?" It is from my perspective that prosperity and wealth go hand in hand; therefore I must address both questions to truly answer: "What is prosperity?"
This is no one true answer or single perspective to the questions of "What is prosperity?" or "What is wealth?" Everyone has his or her own uniquely subjective viewpoint on what these terms mean.
I don't view prosperity and wealth from the mundane, materialistic definitions of them, as material things are only temporary and may be lost as easily as they are gained. I see them from a spiritual viewpoint.
Material things are important only in the way in which we use them while we are in this realm of existence; which is finite and temporary at best. Material resources may make you rich from a mundane world perspective, but they have nothing to do with spiritual wealth, which comes from within -- it's who you are, not what you have. It is through our own intent and actions that our true wealth is either increased or decreased.
Do you leave a legacy of love?
Did you make the world a better or worse place for you having been in it?
Did you grow or stagnate as an individual?
Did you expand your knowledge?
Did you expand your love?
Did you move out of your comfort zone(s) in some way?
Did you take more than you gave or vice versa?
Who are YOU?
I've met a lot of materially rich people who aren't wealthy at all. Whether they earned it, were born into it or however they acquired material riches, in the end, they are just like anyone else, for they too will transition past the thin veil, leaving it all behind. When he passes, will people say, "Yeah, he had a Mercedes and paid his bills on time, had a ton of cash in the bank?" Or will they say she "was a wonderful soul who was so blessed and gave so freely of herself to others" and be remembered for who she was? True wealth comes from within, and it is from here that true giving and receiving takes place. The more we truly give of ourselves, the more we get back and the wealthier we become within.
As for prosperity, the more inner wealth we have, the more prosperous we'll be as we give freely of ourselves. Giving of ourselves is the most valuable asset we have; and the effects will be felt by everyone around us -- family, friends, co-workers and all the various lives we touch. Indeed, we'll be very prosperous.
Self-assessment is a key lifelong practice that's part of the path to inner wealth. We must know our own true intent, for it is the beginning of all we think, say, do -- and it affects All That Is. You must make your own way on your own path, and intent is the beginning.
We enter this world with nothing, but we leave with everything of who we are. Do not value the weight of your wallet. Instead, value the weight of your soul.
Copyright © 2007 Ron Schreiner. All Rights Reserved

The Fire God

In China, there’s a man by the name of He Tieheng (nicknamed "The Fire God") who says he uses a technique called Qigong to channel his brainwaves to cook food in his hands. He has performed these demonstrations in front of as many as 7,000 people before; and according to one witness, Mei Lee, (who was at once such demonstration in Guangzhou, China), Mei Lee said that “Afterwards he had black soot on his hands where the fish was singed.”

He Tieheng has stated that “The power of the mind is able to conquer natural forces”; and he seems rather adept at demonstrating it to thousands of people at a time. I believe that I agree with He that the mind is able to conquer natural forces because thought is energy and learning to focus that energy will allow you to be able to work with it better than you could work with it without such focus. While Qigong is merely the system he uses to help him focus his energy, it’s certainly not the only method that one may use to move massive amounts of focused energy; but it’s the one that works for him. I think it’s wonderful that He can provide such inspiration for others and to show them such possibilities; but it’s also my hope that He uses his ability responsibly in other ways as well to benefit humankind.

To access such abilities, to have such focus and be able to move energy in ways that most people do not, these are all wonderful things; but we all move energy every second of every day. Are we doing so responsibly? What energies are we sending out to others and receiving ourselves? What realities are we creating and manifesting, (albeit unknowingly so by most people) each and every day? If we are to act responsibility, we must also think responsibly and act responsibly in all of our thoughts, actions and deeds. We may not be cooking fish with our bare hands such as He is, but are we frying our own lives and the lives of others by the energies we project and receive? Are we acting in the best interest of our perceived individual selves or are we acting in the best interest of the All, the whole of everyone and everything with what type of energy we are sending and receiving? That’s some food for thought.

Copyright © 2009 Rev. Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

I Write Like.....

Just a short blurb of a post about "I Write Like..." ( http://iwl.me/ ) which is a website where you can paste text into it to be analyzed and compared to well-known authors. Just for fun, I took some of my complete articles/blog posts and put them into that site for comparison. Here's what it came up with. What do you think?

Article: Naked with a knife
Like this author: David Foster Wallace

Article: Why I switched from Windows to Linux as my operating system of choice
Like this author: Cory Doctorow

Article: Avatar
Like this author: H. P. Lovecraft

Article: 5 Steps of Insanity
Like this author: William Shakespeare

Article: Success is a Failed Failure
Like this author: Arthur C. Clarke

Article: Playing Monopoly
Like this author: Margaret Atwood

I'm not sure how accurate that website is, but at least (according to it), I appear in good company. Ah well. I don't take such things seriously, but it's was fun at least. Always remember to have fun in life, and to have it often.

The Hidden Spirituality of Men

I read this article and wanted to post it here to share with you. I like the message it sends, and although I have not read the book, from what I've read (and posted) below, it seems like something worthy investigating.

The spiritual lives of men are, for many, concealed, repressed or forgotten. In an exclusive extract from his new book, Matthew Fox argues that men can rediscover their true selves by embracing the role of noble warrior.

I know of a renowned scientist who has a large sweat lodge in his backyard where he and his wife do regular sweats led by Native Americans. They even know the ancient songs in the Lakota language. But no one at the university where he works is aware of his spiritual practise. It’s hidden from them. His is one of the best-kept secrets of our culture: Many men are profoundly spiritual and care deeply about their spiritual lives.

What’s no secret is that men today are in trouble. And these troubles affect everyone. The warring of our species continues, from Iraq to Sri Lanka, from Lebanon to Somalia; the U.S. government sells more weaponry worldwide than even entertainment. Meanwhile, global warming is a global warning: a warning that we’re not doing well as a species and as a planet. One out of four mammal species is dying out.

In fact, young men are also disappearing. In Baltimore, Maryland, in the shadow of America’s capital, 76 percent of young black men aren’t graduating from high school. It’s no secret that failed education frequently leads to incarceration, and as a result, more young black men are in prison than in college in the U.S. For many inner-city youth, it’s cooler and more manly to go to jail than to get a degree.

For years I’ve been writing as a male feminist—indeed that was the No. 1 objection to my theology voiced by the chief inquisitor general of our day, Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI), when he expelled me from the Dominican Order, saying I was a “feminist theologian.” But what I’m saying now is in no way a denial of my previous work; rather it’s a logical extension of it. Women have been recovering their stories and their archetypes. Where are the men in the awakening our species needs so badly? Where is the healthy masculine in men and in women?

Our culture has latched onto images of God as male and then defined for us what male means. Male means winning (being No. 1 in sports, business, politics, academia), going to war (“kill or be killed”), being rational, not emotional (“boys don’t cry”) and embracing homophobia (fear of male affection). Male means domination, lording over others—whether nature, one’s own body, women or others.

Thomas Berry, a Catholic priest of the Passionist Order and an eco-theologian, talks about the need for “The Great Work.” What is this Great Work? It’s “the task of moving modern industrial civilization from its present devastating influence on the Earth to a more benign mode of presence.” Such a great work will require great spirits, real warriors, and it will require steering our moral outrage and our powers of competition in more positive directions.

The Great Work is “not a role that we have chosen. It is a role given to us, beyond any consultation with ourselves. ... We are, as it were, thrown into existence with a challenge and a role that is beyond any personal choice. The nobility of our lives, however, depends upon the manner in which we come to understand and fulfill our assigned role.” Noble warriors are called for. The archetype of the spiritual warrior helps to answer in a constructive way some important issues: What to do with male aggression and competition? How to steer both in healthy directions?

Aggression is in all of us. Whether you’re athlete or preacher, businessperson or taxi driver, aggression will emerge. It’s easy to identify the negative ways it expresses itself: as war, as conquest (whether in business or sex), as passivity (aggression turned against oneself: “I can’t do that...”), as selfish competition (“I can’t win unless you lose”) and more. But what are the healthy ways to engage it? How to turn aggression into nobility, to use Berry’s term?

To me, the key is understanding the distinction between a warrior and a soldier. A Vietnam veteran who volunteered to go to war at 17 described this eloquently: “When I was in the army, I was a soldier. I was a puppet doing whatever anybody told me to do, even if it meant going against what my heart told me was right. I didn’t know nothing about being a warrior until I hit the streets and marched alongside my brothers for something I really believed in. When I found something I believed in, a higher power found me.” He quit being a soldier and became a warrior when he followed his soul’s orders, not his officer’s; in his case, this meant protesting war and going to jail for it. The late Buddhist meditation master Chögyam Trungpa talks about the “sad and tender heart of the warrior.” The warrior is in touch with his heart—the joy, the sadness, the expansiveness of it.

However, not everyone understands this distinction. I believe the confusion of soldier and warrior feeds militarism and the reptilian brain. It’s also an expression of homophobia, since I suspect heterosexism is behind much of the continued ignorance and fear of the real meaning of warriorhood. The warrior, unlike the soldier, is a lover. The warrior is so much in touch with his heart that he can give it to the world. The warrior loves not only his nearest kin and mate but also the world and God. The warrior relates to God as a lover.

How different is this from right-wing depictions of God as judge and not lover? This view of God leads to the distortions of masculinity. The confusion of warrior and soldier feeds unhealthy relationships, with God, self and society. It feeds empire-building, and the builders of empire would like nothing more than to enlist young men who believe soldiering equals warriorhood. We can’t afford this ignorance any longer. Nothing could be further from the truth.

If the warrior is different from the soldier, there must be distinct ways by which the warrior develops his or her strength. If the warrior is the mystic in action, then let’s try the following four steps on for size. They derive from the mystical/prophetic or mystical/warrior journey in the creation spirituality tradition.

   1. The Via Positiva. This is the way of celebrating life, of seeing the world with its beauty and goodness, its grace and generosity—and being open to seeing more. This is the way of reverence, respect and gratitude. It’s the way of original blessing, whereby we live out the truth that the universe and life itself, for all the struggle and pain they dispense, have birthed us as individuals and communities with what we need for happiness and for sharing joy.

   2. The Via Negativa. The Via Negativa goes into the darkness, the wounds, the pain and silence and solitude of existence to find what we have to learn there. It’s a way of letting go and letting be, of emptying and being emptied, of moving beyond judgment and beyond control, and learning to breathe, to sit, to be still, to dwell in silence, to taste nothingness without flinching and, ultimately, to focus. It’s the way of grieving. Without grief we can’t move on to the next stage, one of giving birth. The ancient German theologian, Meister Eckhart von Hochheim, calls the process of letting go “eternal.” The warrior faces death and, because he or she has, loves life more passionately.

   3. The Via Creativa. Having fallen in love with life often (Via Positiva) and having been emptied and learned to let go and let be numerous times (Via Negativa), the spiritual warrior is ready to give birth. Creativity is the weapon, the sword, of the spiritual warrior—who is mother as well as father, and who digs deep into a wellspring of wildness that provides the energy for new life, connections, images and moral imagination by which to change things in a deep, not superficial, way. The true warrior is a co-creator, a worker with Spirit, a worker for Spirit. The warrior’s hands are the hands of Spirit at work; the warrior’s mind is seized by Spirit precisely in the work of creativity. As 13th century Catholic philosopher and theologian St. Thomas Aquinas put it, “The same Spirit that hovered over the waters at the beginning of creation hovers over the mind of the artist at work.” Every warrior is an artist at work for the people that they might live.

   4. The Via Transformativa. Claims to artistry and to creativity and to co-creation need to be tested. The Spirit requires discernment and evaluation. The primary test for claims of spirit work is that of justice and compassion. Does the work I’m doing pass the justice test? Does it fill gaps between haves and have-nots or make the chasm deeper? Does it contribute to healing and empowerment of the powerless or re-establish the privileges of the few at the expense of the many?

The prophets always speak on behalf of justice; they’re attuned to injustice, which they feel like a kick in the gut. Injustice arouses the passion of anger and the prophet/warrior is in touch with his or her anger and passions. But instead of just responding in a reptilian brain action-reaction mode, the prophet uses the anger as fuel to fire effective and creative ways to enact justice and healing. And the authentic warrior remains humble, or close to the Earth (humus, from which “humility” is derived, means “Earth” in Latin), and aware that he or she is only an instrument of the work of Spirit. Not a messiah. A prophet is a weak and needy human being like everyone else, fully capable of evil and mistakes. And needy also for the Via Positiva to be a regular part of one’s spiritual practise, a need for filling up and refreshing in the cool waters of peace and joy that life’s small moments can bring. Nevertheless, in all of this the warrior/prophet remains fierce for justice and compassion to happen.

We can see that the warrior not only undergoes these four stages in ever-deepening ways but becomes them. Look and see. Look at the warrior in yourself as you practise these ways and become them.

Often, to be a warrior, we must let go of our privileged status in life, no matter how hard won. Putting aside the cloaks of accomplishment, one goes into darkness alone and vulnerable. Nothing guarantees that at the other end one will emerge as the same person or fit to play the same roles in society ever again. Friends and relationships, achievements and titles, salaries and retirement plans may all be left aside.

The warrior knows about death, doesn’t deny mortality but carries it like a shield, a guard by which to defend self and others. Knowing our mortality urges us to live fully and defend what’s beautiful now, not tomorrow. The warrior doesn’t wait to live, doesn’t put off living and loving and defending and creating for another day.

Having learned to let go, the warrior doesn’t harbour resentments or become motivated by revenge to chase after others. Forgiveness, another word for letting go, is learned drip by drip, day by day, not as an act of altruism but as a necessary cleansing of the past, so we can live and function effectively in the now. The soul doesn’t grow into its potential fullness when it harbours past hurt and turns it over and over. That’s the way to grow bitterness, not soul. The warrior is committed to growing the heart and soul, not to freezing it in the puny size it was yesterday or in years past.

The warrior also becomes the artist and creative being, expressing the creativity and aesthetic bias for beauty that the universe demands in all of its actions. The warrior bears ongoing evolution on his or her back, becoming an instrument for evolution, an agent for change and transformation, for the creativity and healing that bring about that evolution. Evolution isn’t accomplished at the expense of the past but brings the past along, folds it into the new forms, the struggling new seeds of plants or beings, ideas or movements, structures or languages that are yearning to be born.

The warrior serves. This service isn’t coerced, as with a slave, but offered. Service is love of strangers. The warrior finds ways to love the stranger. The warrior gives and gives generously. And he gives to himself as well as to the greater community the gifts of love of life (Via Positiva), of stillness and letting go (Via Negativa), of creativity (Via Creativa) and of justice and compassion (Via Transformativa).

The spiritual warrior uses anger and aggression, containing it at the same time. Anger becomes moral outrage within his heart, fueling actions. However, these actions aren’t violent, aggressive or deadly. The spiritual warrior seeks to change others and so his decision-making is rational and compassionate, in service of results, not just a discharge for personal anger.

We men have been allowing others, including corporations, the media and politicians, to define our manhood for long enough. It’s time for us to take our manhood back. And we must do this before it’s too late—before excessive yang energy (which is fire) literally burns the Earth up. The history of the distorted masculine goes back thousands of years to around 4500 BCE with the overthrow of matriarchy and the triumph of patriarchy. This led to what Riane Eisler, University of California in Los Angeles professor and president of the Center for Partnership Studies, calls “the dominator trance,” which reveals itself in empire-building and witch-burning, in inquisitions and crusades, in banishing the goddess and Divine Feminine, in making a scapegoat of pleasure and sexuality and in a modern philosophy that promised to “torture Mother Earth for her secrets,” to quote Francis Bacon. The male soul has been profoundly wounded by this history—as has the female soul. Today, the stakes for finding a Sacred Marriage of the Divine Feminine and the Sacred Masculine have never been higher. Our survival hangs in the balance.

When a healthy masculinity returns, both men and women will rejoice. So too will animals, plants and generations not yet born. We’ll not only be lovers but also the beloved. We’ll rediscover friendship and the value of alliances over hostilities. Beauty will return. The Goddess will return. We’ll find God within ourselves and within creation. Life will become a celebration more than an unending struggle.

Ultimately, men aren’t “problems to be solved,” but deep, impenetrable mysteries. Each one of us carries many stories, many ancestors and many archetypes in often-hidden places. We’re diverse. There’s no single “man problem.” Our unique DNA assures us that each of us came through this long, 14-billion-year journey with our own tales to tell and work to do. We’re wondrous and surprising and full of creativity. And we’re evolving still. We’re green and blue, warrior and hunter, father and son, husband and lover, spiritual and sensual, free and bound. That’s the adventure of it.

Time isn’t on our side. But our ancestors are. They and creation itself are cheering for us to make the right decision. To be real men to ourselves and generations to come.

It’s time for men to grow up spiritually. As a species, we can no longer be stuck in our adolescence. We need to explore ancient wisdom and deep teachings about the spiritual life of men, and how we touch it and how it touches us. If it’s true that the spiritual life of men is, for many, hidden or concealed, buried or covered up, repressed or forgotten, secret even from ourselves, then great things might follow if we dare to unbury and open up, reveal and unveil, uncover and herald, and speak out loud.

Matthew Fox is an Episcopal priest, theologian and author of numerous books on creation spirituality. This article is excerpted from The Hidden Spirituality of Men: Ten Metaphors to Awaken the Sacred Masculine, published in October by New World Library.

I'm Baaaaaaack!!!!

WOW!! My last post was on April 11th, 2010 and now here we are all these months later now. Sorry about that everyone. I've been busy because the vast majority of my time has been taken up by building a new house since September 2009. Digging started in January 2010 with the house being completed in June 2010 and the final move-in on July 17th, 2010. For the next few months, I'll be unpacking and settling it, but now that the craziness is over (for the most part), hopefully I can get back to writing once again as time allows, but I always work on writing in quality vs in quantity, although having both is ideal. I am my own worst critical and perpetual dictatorial editor, chopping my own words without abandon with a passionate furry.

So for now, a short note just to let everyone know where I've been and what I've been up to. I really need to take a vacation. Anyone have any suggestions?

I luv you man (I need beer)

“I luv you man (I need beer)” said the man's cardboard sign which he held at the edge of an off-ramp.

I didn't judge him or try to fit him into a society-created stereotype of “homeless”; I simply saw a person, another aspect of the same part of the whole, who just like me is one his own journey. What caught my attention was not his appearance, not the fact that he was on that corner, or not even any assumptions of who he may be; but rather what struck me was his honesty. There are people, homeless or not, rich or not, healthy or not, all income ranges, all occupations, all religions, all paths, anywhere and everywhere, who are not honest. Here, now, on this corner, was a simple truth of honesty. I rolled down my window, told the man I appreciated his honesty, and gave him $10 for his beer. It's my hope that Dino (the name he gave me) used it for food, shelter, or whatever else he needs. How many people drove by him, never even giving neither him or that simple truth a single thought? How many people who drove by him may have observed the man; but not the simple truth?

Life is simple. Truth is simple. Many times we look for things only to not find them even when they are right in front of our face. We look for the big things, missing the little things. We look for the tidal waves, ignoring the fact that even such a large thing is made up of little droplets of water. Even those drops of water are made up of atoms, molecules, and like everything else, share the same foundation of etheric energy in All That Is. All things big are made of all things small. While this energy is the smallest of things; it is also the largest. We miss both things because we have vision with blinders on that we do not see the entire spectrum. It is the same with the man on the off-ramp. Often times people have blinders on because of their egoic mind, beliefs, perceptions, and so on. When we remove the egoic mind, when we remove these filters, these blinders, we begin to see what has been before us all along. We notice things like this simple truth of honesty, of the simple truth of our connectedness to All. What things were in motion in order to that man to be there, for me to be there, and what things came from that brief meeting? One thing that comes to mind is this article, as this came from that meeting. Your reading of it also came from that meeting. Did he tell others? Did it make him smile? Was he nicer to someone else because of what transpired between us? I don't know.

You may change someone's entire life with a word, a smile, an opening of the door for someone, the smallest of things is the biggest of things. It's the inner-woven web of the inter-connectedness of everything and everyone. It's challenging to try and comprehend such a vastness as this, but even if we catch a glimpse of it, perhaps that's enough to open doors within ourselves, to begin to take off the blinders and see the simple things, the simple truths, the simple complexity of the spiral dance. Dino's honesty inspired me to write this article, which I turn hope inspires you. We may never know who we touch and how; or even how far our influence reaches other people and in what ways; but I know this simple truth that all are one and all are connected.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Fear and Letting Go

The title-track from the same-named 1969 John Denver album "Rhymes and Reasons"; with its simple yet elegant message is as poignant and relevant today as it is when it was written all of those years ago.

These lines from the first stanza seem to eloquently summarize the very state of being for many in the World today… “Fear that is within you now; It seems to never end; And the dreams that have escaped you; And the hope that you’ve forgotten.”

Fear is the antithesis of Love; for it is the nemesis of the soul’s freedom and that which binds the holder of that fear, turning them into both prison and prison guard of their own self-created prison to which they are bound. The holder of Fear holds the key to their own freedom; and that key is to just let go.

Let go of the egoic mind, of judgments, of perceived realities and personal vestments in such things. Live in the present moment of now. When you realize that you can live in such presence in the present moment of now; that is inserting the key in the lock. When you turn that key and actually live in the present moment of now, you release yourself from the egoic mind and personal vestments, accepting what is by letting go and living in true freedom.

Just as the song and its message are simple, do not confuse this with to mean that either is simplistic. This message, albeit very old, is so simple that it all-too-often appears to be very complex when in fact when the very nature of it is the exact opposite. We can see evidence of this all around you where people have all sorts of systems (usually in the form of some religion) where they try and find a path to freedom, to enlightenment, to connection and communion with the Source of All That Is. People often times look to these complex external systems with their Exoteric design versus Esoteric. While Exoteric is external, Esoteric is internal. (For further details on the two different positions, see the link at the bottom of this article)

Rhymes and Reasons (3:17)

So you speak to me of sadness
And the coming of the winter
Fear that is within you now
It seems to never end
And the dreams that have escaped you
And the hope that you’ve forgotten
You tell me that you need me now
You want to be my friend

And you wonder where we’re going
Where’s the rhyme and where’s the reason
And it’s you who cannot accept
It is here we must begin
To seek the wisdom of the children
And the graceful way of flowers in the wind

For the children and the flowers
Are my sisters and my brothers
Their laughter and their loveliness
Could clear a cloudy day

Like the music of the mountains
And the colours of the rainbow
They’re a promise of the future
And a blessing for today
Though the cities start to crumble
And the towers fall around us
The sun is slowly fading
And it’s colder than the sea

It is written from the desert
To the mountains they shall lead us
By the hand and by the heart
They will comfort you and me
In their innocence and trusting
They will teach us to be free

For the children and the flowers
Are my sisters and my brothers
Their laughter and their loveliness
Could clear a cloudy day

And the song that I am singing
Is a prayer to non believers
Come and stand beside us
We can find a better way

Words and music by John Denver
“Rhymes and Reasons” are © Cherry Lane Music Pubg Co Inc

For further information on the meanings of Exoteric versus Esoteric, please visit: http://www.kheper.net/topics/esotericism/esoteric_and_exoteric.htm

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Naked with a knife

If you were naked with a knife and dropped off a deserted island that had every natural resource you needed for survival, would you survive?

Would you know how to even begin?

Chances are you start out foraging for the basic necessities of survival such as clothes, food, potable water and shelter. You may start with a very simple shelter, like inside a cave or other natural covering; maybe build a lean-to out of branches, leaves and grass, but what about the next level? What about creating containers for items, a sturdier shelter, a steady supply of various foods and water for all seasons (including food preservation and storage), or dealing with basic hygienic care, sanitation and the like? Would you know how to do that as well?

There’s also basic medical concerns to consider as well.

What are the natural anti-virals and antibiotics?

Would you know which vegetation, seeds, plants, flowers, etc are poisonous to eat, touch, mix with other things? Would you know how to prepare food, like meat from the hunt? (or even how to hunt, trap and prepare the meat?) Even if you do know all that you need to survive on the mundane level in this incarnated life; is that all there is to life? I don’t believe so. Life is much deeper than that. While incarnated life is part of life, it is not life itself. It is the blade of grass not knowing is it part of the lawn, which is attached to the Earth, which spins around the Sun, which revolves around the solar system, around the galaxy, and so on to larger and larger… but at its core, it is energy, the smallest and largest of All. This is the ultimate paradox because the largest is the smallest; and the smallest is the largest, one in the same.

Going back to societal survival in our incarnated life; contrary to popular belief, many things that we consider for “survival” are really luxuries, or at least allow us to “survive” in our current society. Getting along without the Internet, computer skills and a computer, a cell phone, email or other technologies is possible even in this society; but to do so is very limiting if you are trying to get (or stay) employed. Maybe people think they must be on every social network 24/7/365 and that everyone must know exactly what they are doing at all times (and they must know what everyone else is doing too!!); but this is simply not the case. We have so many things are we “want” (and some we only really “need”) to survive in our society; but at a much deeper level; they do not contribute to our basic human incarnation’s survival overall. In fact, many things these very same things detract from it rather than add to it. We lose quality for quantity. The things we need for basic human survival haven’t changed in thousands of years. They are still food, water, shelter, clothing, companionship, and so forth. We perceive things, such as we need this or that thing, or we create something like “time”; which even though it’s a creation of the egoic mind, there still never seems to be enough of it. We create both the perception of time as well as the lack of it. This is insanity. We create the perception of scarcity vs. one of abundance because like “time”, this too is a tool used by the egoic mind to control us and help facilitate its own survival.

We often unknowingly and unconsciously live in the past or one of many perceived-probable futures; but ignore the present moment of the Now. Our technology lets us tweet around the globe in an instant, yet these connections which lack depth and substance are like many things we create in this modern world that do not last, like buildings, cars, electronics, etc; because they’re superficial at best; detrimental to ourselves, society and All That Is, at worst.

As we create a more fractured life, seeking to connect with what we perceive as “lost” (peace, love, serenity, happiness), we’re like the dog chasing it’s own tail and wondering where it went at the same time while spinning faster and faster. This too is a self-created perception of insanity from the egoic mind. If the mind spins, we cannot think. There is an incessant rambling within us from the egoic mind of all-too-often repetitive thoughts which are nothing more than incessant lists, worries, things to do, and so forth. This is the tyrant of the egoic mind playing another one of its tricks to keep us from our own true nature. The egoic mind is insanity; and to be sane, is to be free from it. When we are free from it, we will “find” what we thought was “lost”. It is not lost. WE are lost. We are too busy looking externally verses internally. If you know the key to the lock is within you, why do you seek it elsewhere/? This is insanity. You are both your own prisoner and guard; and this too is insane. True mental health is to be free from the insanity, the incessant inner-chatter, the repetitive controlling nature of the egoic mind. To live otherwise, is sickness. This is true insanity. If you know you are sick, and you realize you can be healthy be taking a pill, would you not do it? To not cure yourself is insane. In this example, the pill is choice, the symptom is unconsciousness, and the sickness is insanity, and the cause is the egoic mind. The egoic mind is the virus of the being. It is poison to your essence and it limits your realization of your connectedness to All and One.

On the island, you may have all you need to survive in this realm, this incarnated life, and you play the game of Monopoly (aka incarnated life) very well; but do you realize that your egoic mind is playing it’s own game within that game of Monopoly; and that you’re a pawn in it?

Mankind is said to have evolved, but I often think that in so many ways it has devolved. As paraphrase Einstein; “Clearly, our technology has exceeded our humanity.” Many technological things have been created, yet many things of thousands of years ago, we cannot re-create. While technological knowledge and skills matter; they do so only within the context of the Monopoly game. These things of which we concern ourselves are the by-products, the distractions, the comforts and curses of incarnate existence; and while they are part of what we perceive as incarnate life, they are not life itself. We are life. Possessions are creations of the egoic mind; as all is energy.

We cannot truly obtain anything because we are already everything.

We cannot obtain what we are, only let go of the egoic mind so we may remember and realize our own natural state of being One. Let go of what you are and remember who you are. When we knowingly observe ourselves playing the game and become divested in identification with it through our egoic mind; we lose our false sense of identity and realize our natural state of being because the false self dies. This is true Death, Life, and rebirth. When the egoic mind dies, suffering dies because what is left is acceptance of what is, the present moment of Now. To be born again is to be free of the egoic mind and its insanity. Consciousness and choice is the crucifixion and death of the egoic mind; while freedom from this mind state is rebirth. This is what it means to be born again. This is true freedom. Free to be.

We are life; and life is about to transition. When our focus in the present moment of Now, when we let go and surrender to simply being; when we strip ourselves of “things”, and when we lose the egoic mind, what is left is our true self.

Unburden yourself of society, walk in it, but do not carry its weight within you.

Unburden yourself of the egoic mind, stripping away the clothing and masks which the egoic mind wears to cover your natural being. While you may wear clothing on your body to cover it, do not wear the coverings of the egoic mind on your soul. Your soul should be naked and free of such bondage; regardless of what your body is wearing or not.

Be blessed and be free.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

7 Years and Thousands of Tears

Today is Feb 20th, 2010. 7 years and thousands of tears later, we are 100 lifetimes ago from Feb 20th, 2003 when The Station nightclub in West Warwick RI burned down, injuring and killing many.... I ask this: Have we learned?

Have laws changed for the better? Fire codes updates? To be honest, I don't know if they have or haven't; and laws can really only do so much. Laws cannot stop fires, murder, or any other crime be it intentional or otherwise; but these things are not what I'm asking about if we have learned. There are many scenarios, many situations in life, and indeed many tragedies, but have we learned?

I do not mean to offend anyone or by any means minimize this tragedy, the victims of it be they survivors or not; nor do I mean any disrespect to the families, the memories, or the extended victims of this tragic event; but I must still ask: Have we learned yet? Have we learned about the greatest tragedy of all: The loss of our humanity. Have we learned yet?

Have we? Have you?

Do we remember?

Are we more kind?

Have we changed as individuals? As a society? In what way?

Do we live in the moment of Now, fully conscious, awake and aware that all is temporal?

There is nothing we may say or do to bring our loved ones back; and again, I do not mean to minimize or offend anyone or anything with my words; but we can honor the victims, their families, honor ourselves, and honor life itself by living in the present moment of Now. We can live in fear, in pain, in bitterness, in sorrow, or we can choose to live in joy, in happiness, and in love, in honor of these these things. I mourn the tragedy of the fire, the loss of human life; but I rejoice in life itself and the undying nature of it. I know that life itself and all within it go on; and so do we because we do not HAVE life, we ARE life.

While our loves ones are merely just beyond the veil of our perception of this realm, they are not lost to us unless we become lost in our loss and no longer live life, but merely exist. For that is the loss of our humanity, the tragedy of our soul, and the one true death.

7 years and thousands of tears, still I remember and I cry. Humanity reborn.

Author's Note: I was Jack Russell's Tour Manager on his solo tour right before the Great White reunion; so I knew the band and Dan the TM on the fateful tour. Part of me died that night, and it took me a few years after that night, but I eventually left the music business forever. A part of my soul, my heart, died that night. For a long time, I held blame and judgment on parties involved, but no more. Blame serves no one and harms All.

May you find peace within.

Ron

Earth Day 2010 - A Day 40 years In The Making

April 22, 2010 is the 40th anniversary of Earth Day. Chance is constant in life; but we create and direct change by doing so in our own lives. If we choose to live greener, if we choose to use fewer resources; then we will change our world within and our world without. The more individuals choose to walk this path, the greater the effect will be from the collective effort of energy spent in conservation of ourselves, the world within and the world without.

The first step is to choose to live as part of nature instead of thinking ourselves above it and above any responsibility for our thoughts and actions; from there we will think and act accordingly, knowingly, and willingly. The World is all around us and within us; we’re as much a part of it as it is a part of us, inter-connected part and whole. Since the industrial revolution, we have shifted down a path that has increased ever-present destruction and chaos, even though we have had many “improvements” and “advances” in life, at what cost are these obtained? We are killing the Mother on which we all live our incarnated life; and we’ve let this go on for far too long. If humankind continues on this path of destruction, we’ll become more of a parasite to the Eath than we already are. Humankind used to live in harmony with nature and understand our part of the greater whole, but this has long been forgotten. While it’s not lost to us, as there are those people who do have concern for the welfare of All, who do act accordingly in nature and as part of it, many no longer do, or never have. The minority of people who share this insight on the welfare of the Earth and All; they must become the majority if we are to survive ourselves. We hold the keys to our own imprisonment or our own freedom. The keys to our own salvation or our own destruction.

The world as we know is one in great peril; but it needn’t be that way. We each have the power within ourselves to make a real difference to create and manifest change. We are on the precipice of our existence. The last 100 years have wrought much damage and ravaged the Earth. She, Gaia the Earth, Mother, she will survive without us; but we will not survive without the Earth, the place which we call home. Let this day, and every day, be a place from which we may grow, like a child in the womb. Let us give life to the Earth and each other; no death, not destruction. As Gandhi said, “you must be the change that you wish to see in the world. “ Be that change.

Earth Day 2010 is to remind us; but every day we can see all that is around us if we just open our hearts, our minds, and our eyes. Let your eyes, allow your soul to see, your heart to feel, your ears to hear; and may all of these things inspire you to change.

http://www.earthday.net/

Some things we can do...

Consumption

    * Avoid buying newly manufactured things, instead buy second hand or make our own.

    * Avoid large chain stores and supermarkets.

    * Buy things from small and local businesses.

    * Favour worker cooperatives over corporations.

    * Wherever possible buy direct from producers.

    * Support local currencies.

    * Trade or give gifts in preference to using money.

Communities

    * Smile at people and meet their eyes.

    * Give open-minded/hearted time to those people around us.

    * Organize rotating work parties and skill-sharing events.

    * Organize parties and celebrations (eg. a dinner party where everyone brings a  
       homemade dish or a children's party where each parent organizes a game)

    * Vision together the future of our communities and make it happen by a combination of
       negotiations with local councils and direct action. (If you think that unused roadside
       could make a good veg garden then get some friends together and just go ahead and
       do it)

Food And Land

    * Propagate and plant edible perennial plants wherever possible on any available land.

    * Learn how to grow food and save seeds.

    * Set up personal and community food growing.

    * Stick to seasonal, local and organic foods.

    * Eat meat in moderation.

    * Have a go at making bread, preserving food, making cheese, brewing etc.

    * Enjoy cooking and eating good food. Treat our food with reverence.

    * Learn what wild plants grow in our areas and learn how to use them for food and
       medicine.

    * Protect and encourage biodiversity and wild areas (eg. a small wild patch at the bottom
       of your garden could be a haven for birds and small animals).

    * Make a pond.

Energy

    * Use wood (biomass) for heating. Install wood burners. Take firewood from the waste
       stream and plant local or personal firewood supplies. In a climate like Britain's, short
       rotation coppice crops such as willow can be fully productive in 3 years and a 30 x 50m
       area can heat an efficient family house.

    * Heat water with wood and solar energy. (A solar water heater can easily be made from
       scrap materials in a day or two.)

    * Use renewable electricity. Switch mains connections to suppliers who only deal in
       renewable energy.

    * Set up and use local or personal energy production systems. Small scale hydroelectric
       systems in particular offer simply maintained systems with high and reliable returns for
       the amount of invested energy.

    * Practice basic woodwork, metalwork etc to make and repair basic items and tools.

    * Compost food and human waste to build soil fertility and reduce energy demands of
       waste disposal.

Lifestyle

    * Withdraw investment from houses. Move to a cheaper home or make our own (most
       cheaply done without permission).

    * Work less.

    * This will free up time and energy to develop sustainable ways of living as well as
       removing support from destructive systems.

    * Do not take employment from organizations which are unsustainable or who's actions
       are not benefiting the world.

    * Maximise our autonomy from state and corporate control structures.

    * Move from urban to rural areas and start working some land.

Consideration

    * Consider what elements of our world and society are of greatest value to us (air, water,
       food supplies, medicines...?)

    * Consider what elements /service / products we could happily do without (war, this
       year's fashion, more DVDs, a bigger car...?)

    * Be aware that the more we have of the latter, the more we threaten the former.

    * Whenever we spend money or play an active role in society, take time to consider the
       consequences of our actions. (Buying a tank of fuel supports the violent occupation of
       the middle east, buying cheap clothes supports sweatshops and child labor, buying
       from transnational corporations funds the extraction of capital from poorer countries
       and the erosion of human rights)

    * Consider our modern world from the point of view of our ancesters.

    * Count our blessings.

    * Appreciate the beauty and fragility of life, human and otherwise.

    * Make time to appreciate and congratulate ourselves - we are all amazing and powerful
       beings.

    * Smile, laugh, love and dream. Be present and don't worry.

Pay It Backwards: An Act Of Coffee Kindness - by Arthur Rosenfeld

We need more people like this in the World and more stories like this being told by the media.

Pay It Backwards: An Act Of Coffee Kindness
by Arthur Rosenfeld

Just before Christmas of 2007, almost exactly a year ago, I steered into a Starbucks drive-thru line for a cup of tea on my way to teach a morning tai chi lesson. There were a few cars in line, and I got in behind them. When my turn came I gave my order at the billboard menu and moved up as far as I could while waiting patiently for the cars in front of me to get through the cashier line. While the South Florida weather would probably would have felt tropical to much of the rest of the country, I was a bit chilled and was looking forward to my hot drink.

The fellow in the SUV behind me reached the menu. Dissatisfied with the alignment between his mouth and the microphone, he laid on his horn, leaned out his window, yelled an insult and exhorted me to move up. There was nowhere to go. I was in a line, and mere inches separated my car from the one in front of me. Indignant at rudeness, I felt my temper come up, and because I am a pure and enlightened being who entertains nothing but positive thoughts, I reached for the door handle with the intention popping out of the car, taking a few steps, reaching into his open window, and sending him to the dentist for a holiday visit.

I'll show you what happens to rude and impatient people, I thought. I'll teach you that a martial artist is waiting in every car around you with the express mission of settling the world down into just the fair, quiet, and patient place they think it should be. Running that tape in my head, my ire grew even further. Testosterone and adrenaline flooded my body and in a few seconds I had transformed from the peaceful, content, slightly thirsty writer/teacher to a raving lunatic. My heartbeat was up, my hands were clammy, my muscles were tense, and the whole world had constricted down to the tiny business of completing my hostile mission.

Then I glanced in the mirror. The face of the impatient driver behind me was florid and twisted with anger and hate. I refocused my eyes and noticed that my own face didn't look much different. Whatever plague had taken him had penetrated the steel and glass of my car to infect me too, robbing me of my much-vaunted equilibrium, my peace, my balance, my equanimity--precisely that thing that my beloved tai chi training, and the Chinese philosophy behind it prizes most highly.

I teach my students that it is best not to lose that balance--wuji in Chinese--through meditation, breathing, and tai chi training, but when you do, you can use any of three "doors" to get it back. Door number one is meeting force with force: I could go ahead and start a fight. Door number two is yielding: I could kowtow on the concrete, admit to being an idiot, and beg the other driver's forgiveness. The best option, however, is door number three. That door is different every time. The trick is to figure out what that is.
The car in front of me moved off and I pulled up to pay. "I'd like to buy the coffee for the guy behind me," I said.

The barista looked at me in surprise. "But he's a jerk!"
"Just having a bad day, " I said. "Happens to the best of us."
"A random act of kindness, eh?"

I shook my head, thinking how I could explain door number three to her before the guy rammed my bumper with his. "Not really. I'm not doing it for him; I'm doing it for me. I was mad right back at him, but now that I'm doing this I feel much better."

I had only a $10 bill in my wallet, and I handed it over. She checked her order screen. "He has ordered breakfast for five people. It's a lot more than ten dollars."

That gave me pause. I'd already regain my wuji. Did I really need to go through with more? I took out my credit card and handed it over.
She searched my face. "You're sure?"
"Do it," I said.

After I'd signed the charge slip, I drove away without a backward glance. I had found my door number three, was finished with the act, and indeed was already forgetting about it. I didn't want to meet the guy on the road, either to hear thanks or more yelling, so I took a circuitous root to my lesson, avoiding the main highway.

Six hours later, I returned home to find my answering machine full of messages from the Starbucks manager, and from a reporter for NBC news. They had me using my credit card information. Apparently the guy behind me had continued my act of giving and the person behind him had done the same, and on and on. No doubt encouraged by the store manager, the chain was intact well into the afternoon. NBC covered the story. You can see view it here:



Consciousness

The news spread around the world. Within 24 hours I had received calls and e-mails from as far away as Australia. The key point, of course, is that I had performed a random act of consciousness rather than a random act of kindness. I'd nearly lost my cool, had retrieved it, and done something good for myself and someone else in the process.

In a sense, you can think of this as self-centered, but in a good way. Keeping your cool, maintaining your wuji is just like putting your own oxygen mask on in a damaged airplane before helping those around you. If you pass out, you can't help anyone. If you lose your temper, you are of no good to the world. Cool, calm and collected you are ready and willing to participate in the world.
Violent crimes and burglaries are up this holiday season. The financial crisis is creating anxiety, depression, desperation and anger. Spread the word about wuji. Do your best to control your own feelings before acting rashly. Think twice before doing or saying something you'll regret. Random acts of consciousness are perhaps even more contagious than random acts of kindness. Raise your level of view, dig deep for perspective, and help make this a more peaceful holiday season for everyone.

Why I switched from Windows to Linux as my operating system of choice

For those of you who know me, I’m hybrid person, being very analytical and technical via the left-brain and very creative, intuitive via the right-brain; so this article probably won’t come as any surprise to you. This blog is about spirituality, connectedness to all, esoteric and metaphysical subjects; but for this article, some of those things still apply even though I’m writing about a technical subject for once: Why I switched from Windows to Linux as my operating system of choice on my home computers.

I’m sure you may (or may not) have heard or read about Linux and all of it’s good and bad points from someone you know or from an article somewhere; and while many of those points are valid in whole or in part; I’m not going to go into a technical breakdown and analysis of them here. I’ll lightly touch on them, bringing out the basics for anyone not aware of them, and I invite you to research Linux further and make up your own mind about it. Realize that not everything you read about any given subject is the absolute truth or even accurate for anyone but the writer, so take everything written or said, with a grain of salt. This includes what I say and write as well. Everything is opinion, and this is mine. So let’s get on with it already, shall we?

As the title of this article states: “Why I switched from Windows to Linux as my operating system of choice on my home computers”, so why did I switch?

Well, the sort description is simply this: I got tried of always having to maintain, troubleshoot and fix my Windows operating system on my computer. There is also nothing that I want or need to do on my computer that requires me to use Windows. I can create, print, edit and save all sorts of documents and images on my computer just fine in Linux. I can email, surf the web, and even play games, all just fine in safer and more secure environment over which I have both the ability and the capability of total control over my PC’s software and hardware. Those are the primary technical reasons for my switch over from Windows to Linux; but there are also some philosophical reasons as well.

Trusted Computing, Digital Rights Management (DRM) and Free Software

I strongly disagree with Trusted Computing, which is where PC manufactures instruct your PC’s hardware to operate in certain ways vs. how you want it to operate. Without getting overly technical, that’s the crux of it. Again, I suggest you research anything that strikes your interest in this article.

Another area of contention for me is DRM, or Digital Rights Management. If I legally purchased a CD or DVD of music or video, I should be able to use that on any computer I own as well as make one backup of it in case the original gets damaged or lost. I do not condone software and/or video piracy, but this is yet another reason why I choose Linux over Windows because while there are some commercial software programs for Linux, the vast majority of them are 100% free…just like Linux itself is free. For any program offered for Windows, there is a free alternative that is available in Linux. You may like a certain Windows program (or need it), and it may run just fine in WINE (a Linux-based program that lets you run some Windows programs in Linux)

Vendor-Lock-In

There also isn’t the vendor-lock-in like with Microsoft/Windows and Apple, Inc/Mac OS X. Take for example music which I previously mentioned… if you are using iTunes with an iPod, you’re locked into that system by Apple, Inc because you can’t just transfer your music to any mp3 player and your music catalog is locked-in to iTunes and Apple, Inc, be it with our without an iPod. This is merely but one small example of vendor-lock-in, and something I encourage everyone to avoid at all costs. There are other portable music players out there, some of which will even play other file types other than mp3, wma, etc. These file types, mp3, wma, avi, mpeg, and many others, are what is known as “proprietary” file types. This means that the creators of those file types can determine what, where, and how those file types are used. Maybe one day you won’t be able to play mp3s on a certain brand of portable music player because the creators of it want you to only use THEIR file type, thus making it so your music files will only play on THEIR portable music player. I prefer to use open file types, meaning, files that will work anywhere, on any system, any music player, computer, etc. When things are open and free like this, they offer not only a way to avoid vendor-lock-in, but extreme portability so you can use your files, be in documents, images, music, wherever and whenever you want to, how you want to, and when you want to. It’s your data, so should you control it and say how it’s used? The same is true for your music player or computer… you own it, so why shouldn’t you have the final say on things when it comes to using it? If you have vendor-lock-in and proprietary systems, it controls you instead of you controlling it. If you have free and open systems, then you are without those (and other) limitations as well.

While a regular PC running Windows will give you more options as far as what to which software and hardware you can use with it verses a Macintosh, (which is even more restive than a Windows-based PC because it uses very proprietary software and hardware), a Windows-based PC is nowhere near as free as a PC running an free and open system like Linux. If you want to use a Mac for doing high-end video, audio or graphics creation and editing, I recommend Macs for that; just as I recommend a Windows-based for heavy duty gaming because of Windows’ excellence in that area.

(Yes, Linux can do gaming in some ways better than Windows: but Windows-based PCs doing more gaming in general than Linux-based PCs do, but this isn’t because Linux *CAN’T* do gaming, but rather that Windows-based systems are what the vast majority of game manufacturers write games for.)

In Conclusion

It’s all a matter of choice; but the choices you make should always be informed ones. I encourage you to do the proper research and look at not just both sides of the coin, but the edge, the 3rd side of it as well. Look at all of the good and the bad, the positive and the negative, the pluses and the minuses of using any particular system be it a car, TV or a computer operating system like Windows, Mac OS X or Linux; and then choose what best suites your needs.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Avatar

This past weekend I went out to see the movie “Avatar”; and while the movie is well-written, performed, and popular at the moment; it is my hope that people will recognize this movie for what it is: a vehicle for a very old message. This message not only needs to be heard, understood, and adhered to; but the viewer should also realize that the message is implemented everywhere in life; even if it is a message that many people all too-often fail to see, acknowledge, and live by.

There have been many voices of many messengers who have all said this same message, albeit by using different wording; the message does not change even if the wording of it does. Humankind needs to not only hear this message, but abide by it as well.

The message is clear and simple. It is this:

We are One.

We are inter-connected to the whole, yet not the whole itself.

We are not separate from The Source and All That Is, but part of it.

Every thing every where, and every one, is connected. Everything we think, say and do affects all within the All That Is and The Source from which it came.

Until we not only acknowledge this and live by it, humankind will not evolve in ways that benefit not only humankind, but All That Is and The Source.

In the movie “Avatar”, there were human being scientists called “drivers” who controlled created bodies made in the likeness of the Na’vi people so that the scientists better understand and communicate with the Na’vi (the native people of the planet, Pandora). Sadly, this goal was not a humanitarian one, but instead was merely a tool of corporate greed as a way to fulfill their ultimate goal to relocate the Na’vi off of the land so the scientists (and military) could mine some precious materials, the bulk deposit of which was under a sacred tree of the Na’vi people.

The look of the Na’vi was a lot like the Native Americans of this land, and just as familiar was what was done to them in the name of a mineral. Here on Earth, we did it for gold. The parallels between this fictional story and American history was quite obvious; but what isn’t so obvious, is the fact that just as the Na’vi bodies (or “Avatars”) were used to infiltrate the native people of Pandora to communicate with them, this movie is also an “avatar” because the writer(s) of it are trying to communicate with us...the people of Earth, to infiltrate our consciousness via this movie/tool to help wake us up. Be it in the movie’s world or on this Earth; the message is the same, and it applies both places. The Na’vi knew and felt their connection to everything, everyone, and everywhere, but do we? Do you? It is not only knowledge and awareness of this simple message of Oneness and inter-connectivity that matters; but more importantly it is the conscious feeling and living of it that matters. If we know this only in our hearts and not in our hearts, then we are certainly lost to ourself.

We as a whole need to wake up and not only hear the message, but abide by it in how humankind lives life. We need to let go our the ego and the false illusion of individuality, know and feel our inter connectedness to The Source and All That Is. The human persona (which contains Ego,) is the filter through which we exist in and perceive this realm, including our incarnate existence. When we are consciously aware of these things, we can choose to lessen their influence in our life. It’s all choice.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

5 Steps of Insanity

True power comes from and is within, not over. Anything else that is part of the Maya illusion can be easily stripped away because it is "power-over" vs "power-within", but that doesn't mean that it is often removed. All too often in this realm, we choose to be ego-driven and believe in our individuality vs as part of the collective whole.

When we operate from such a viewpoint, (which often times we do,) it causes suffering, and it often times (but not always and in every case) operates something like this:

First, we want to achieve a goal.

- This is a start. We want to accomplish something. Good.

Second, we think that we discovered that we're all different instead of all being the same.


- We are all different aspects of the same whole. Ego is the the belief in the illusion that we are all individuals, separate, not merely aspects of the whole collective of One. Yes, this is on a metaphysical level, but this World, this Realm, is all part of the Grand Illusion of the Maya, so while we may be "individuals" within the context of this Realm, this is our own projection and perception that we are choosing to believe in.

...and that we need some rules to organize our work.

- We need a common method of operating. We don't need "rules", per se, but we do need to all agree on some basic common things to achieve the task, which may be achieved in many different ways... So what is really needed isn't "rules", but rather a common agreement on the tools and the methodology to be used to complete the tasks at hand and achieve the common goal of the whole. The problem is that the human ego has it's own agenda and a perception of individuality, thus "I" want it done "my" way and it really becomes more about power-over vs power-within once again.

In a way, it's fundamentalism at it's core. regardless of what someone is being fundamental about, their fundamentalism transcends what they are supposedly being fundamental about. Instead, fundamentalism takes on a life of it's own for the sake of itself. Fundamentalism becomes a tool of the ego, the lower-self, vs. the higher-true-self of the soul, the being of light that we are.

Third, we make the rules really complicated to fit every corner case.

-- That's the ego, the human person, power-over vs power-within, etc. It's really just more of the same where humankind chooses to be its' own worst enemy instead of being it's own best friend; which is something that I will never understand. This really also ties into the whole human need to file, organize, compartmentalize, label and structure everything and everyone into a neat little boxed description as we see and understand it through our projected perception of individuality. It is yet another tool of the ego, fulfilling it's own selfish desire to not only survive, but to thrive, and all at our soul's expense.

Fourth, we completely forget the goal of those rules and we apply them blindly for the sake of it

-- This is more of the same ego, power-over vs. power-within combined with more of the fundamentalism. It's not really about the subject of "X", it's about the fact that you didn't follow "The Rules". YOU didn't stay within the lines, YOU didn't do as you were told and YOU didn't toe the line, etc. It's never ME, no, it's YOU - it's all YOU. Again, all of this is more ego, more power-over vs. power-within, more of the same things that plague humankind because it chooses to create them. It's all the same thing really.

Fifth, we punish or kill those who don't follow the rules, "OUR Rules", as strictly as we do. Even if "WE" do not follow them, that doesn't matter. The point is that "YOU" did not follow them - and now you must pay for the treacherous dog that you are.


-- Of course!! "They" didn't follow "Our" rules. Again, ego, power-over vs. power-within, more of the same I've mentioned before here. this is where radicalism, fundamentalism, and many other "-isms" come into play here.

So, we have described the problem, so now what is the solution?

Let go.

That's it.

Just let go and be in the present moment of the now. Focus your attention on yourself from the observational point-of-view. Look at yourself from outside of yourself. When (not if) you choose to do this, you will experience clarity and understanding. Right now you may be thinking "How do I step outside of myself and observe myself? Astrally project or something? I don't get it. What the heck is he talking about?" The anwser is: Something like that. It's not so much about leaving the physical body behind, so much as it is about leaving the ego behind. Having the true self, your soul, your body of light, the true YOU, step outside of your human persona, the ego, and observe from that pure soul viewpoint.

Don't just intellectually know something in your head, instead, know it in your heart. Human mundane logic does not apply to metaphysical / esoteric matters because the human mind is too limited and the ego is too self-centered on it's own selfish survival mechanisms. To have the ego die is to be born again. Do this, and your life in this realm will never be the same again.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved

Success is a Failed Failure

Our legacy isn’t how much money we had, or how nice of house we had, or any other materialistic item or goal. Certainly these things make life comfortable and we all want to attain them, but they should not be the reason for or the center of our life.

If we want to be truly successful in life, then we must look beyond just dollars and material things. Too many people treat success as a destination rather than how and why we journey in life.

Success is not attainable through one action or goal, but rather through a series of them that make up our life. It is how and why we live life using our time, experience, lessons, trials, errors, gains, losses, people, places, everything else we experience in life long the way.

Success is a failed failure. It is trying until you get it right, never giving up, but learning from your mistakes and applying that knowledge wisely to the present. It is a life of learning and growing, changing, ever persevering onward and attaining smaller goals along the way of your journey. These smaller goals are important stepping-stones along the way to larger goals. The funny thing is, once you reach a larger goal, you will look back at all the smaller goals you have achieved and see how they all fit together and allowed you to attain the “bigger” goal you are at. You will also learn to appreciate and cherish those smaller goal stepping-stones much more fondness than you think.

Nothing is guaranteed in life, except the only way to truly fail, is to not try at all.

Copyright © 2010 Ron Schreiner All Rights Reserved