Synchronicity

I watched Rosanne at 5:52 AM, and there's this episode on of Rosanne and Jackie going into this spa resort to try to get back in shape. After shunning yoga as "inhuman," they volunteer for past life regression therapy. It's so deliciously over-the-top, especially when you know how the series ends. People often go to extreme lengths to find answers to their questions of "Why?" It also makes me smile that the therapist's assistant's name is Yama. (यम is the God of Death, and is also a list rules of abstinence in traditional yoga. The attention to detail is great.)

People see what they want to see. "Perception is reality," so the adage goes. The pessimist's view of the half-empty glass leaves him feeling as ripped off as the optimist's half-full glass leaves him grateful. Another example is that seeing art is seeing through the artist's eyes. All artists leave a part of themselves in their work. I guess one could generalize this into "one's beliefs surround him." It happens all the time to me. Jung called it synchronicity. The Hindus (and Buddhists) call it karma. Others refer to "God's will" or "plan." Whatever it is, we have to understand has as much to do with our belief as it does in its existence.

Belief is important. It's a sort of testament of reliance on something. My good friend Josh referred to fear as a faith, as a belief in the existence of something, and that it poses a threat to you in some way. What's wrong with accepting the things that motivate us, and in turn seeing those motivators affecting other things?

Secularism doesn't really work according to this. If I choose a president who is of one religion, and I'm of a very different one, how can I be sure that the things he does are motivated not by his religion but by his position in office? I can't. When faced with problems, especially things like making hard decisions, we turn to our basic beliefs to guide us, regardless of what they may be. Even math is a belief. How many people do you know that look at statistics to make decisions? Now how many of you have insurance? I'm not suggesting it's the same. Of course, not all insurance agents give out plans solely on risk assessments, but it is a powerful factor. And while the president may be largely motivated by his responsibility to the people, he can't escape the entirely human quality that influences us all.

Once we can come to terms with this, and consciously make compromises with others, we can really progress. It's whimsical, but also useful, to think of people who put their own stuff up on the web and politely request donations as bhikshu's (भिक्षु, a beggar or mendicant; a characteristic aspect of the life of yogis and buddhists). I think donating to those who provide a service to a community is a great idea, and yes, I do believe that Randall Monroe provides a service to my community.

This is a time where we can reprioritize our goals and values, especially with regard to the internet and technology. We can choose to reward those who we deem are worthy of reward.

A friend of mine was in a car accident, and in lieu of suing the drunk driver, he's trying to meet with him whenever he can. He wants to talk to him and get to know him. The guy's got it bad from the other victims, so more money's only going to do so much. And, since my friend got lucky, he's trying to show some compassion. And, while my friend's motivations may come from his religious beliefs, there's nothing that says it's not entirely impractical as well. How many times have you wished you caught a break? How many times has someone not forgiven you because of a lesson you needed to learn that you already learned the hard way? There's a very practical result to applying the golden rule, one that even a particular insurance company has made light of with its commercials.

The way I see it, even if we had the authority to punish, sometimes punishing just doesn't work. Sometimes, you have to give people a break so that they can be motivated enough to do things for themselves, to make it worthwhile. This is one belief that I have seen before buying into.

Your beliefs color your vision, but sometimes it's your vision that changes your beliefs. That's the beauty of it, it works both ways.