Tag: knowledge

Wisdom’s Seven Pillars – Pillar #2 Peace –

“Wisdom has built her house, she has carved out her seven pillars:” Proverbs 9:1. The aim of this series is to present a non-cliche, non-religious point of view of wisdom. I do subscribe to some religious interpretations of the subjects addressed, but wish to here, only point out the common understanding of the principles.  

“If you want to make peace with your enemy, you have to work with your enemy. Then he becomes your partner.”
– Nelson Mandela

“If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten we belong to each other”
Pillar #2 Peace 

Wisdom will always seek a way to bring peace within myself and with others. Peace with myself always precedes peace with others. It’s imperative that I find a place of calmness, centered in myself and quiet in my thoughts and from that haven I influence my relationships  looking for ways to get along with my enemy, my friend, my spouse, and my nation. Haste has no room in this pursuit. Anger will rise tempting me to act impulsively but I must resist every urge to act quickly. Calmness, confidence, and quietness will be the lighthouses that guide me through the dire straights of relationships. Taking a deep breath, calming my emotions and raging thoughts, I find the peace that’s born from mother Wisdom.

Leap Of Faith –

“The foolish ask many questions the wise cannot answer” – Oscar Wilde
“Of the making of books there is no end, and much study leads to exhaustion.” 

 

Questions are a sign of intelligence and creativity but they can lead to an endless, tortuous circle of reasoning. Why did that tragedy happen to me? Is God male or female? Will I know people after I die? These inquiries can exhaust my mental and emotional energy, leaving me with no strength to push through the day at hand. Questioning my beliefs, my existence, my experience, is necessary, but I must lay down these pursuits and find a place of peaceful existence should my questions go unanswered. What follows is a leap of faith that eventually brings sense of well-being to my life. There I have to understand that I don’t understand, admit my finite power of mind, lay down my notepad, my calculator, my psychoanalysis, and find the peace that will guide me though the dark valley of the unknown.
 
Also published on Broowaha
First published in Opinionsofeye.com
12122011 

Thou shalt not – Yes you should! –

“I get up and pace the room, as if I can leave my guilt behind me. But it tracks me as I walk, an ugly shadow made by myself.” – Rosamund Lupton, Sister
*
Damn the guilt

Thou shalt not. When I went to church, that’s what I heard. Being a young man and given to many troubles, I struggled with my love for God while bearing the guilt of “thou shalt not”. Looking at the rigorous laws imposed on me by religion, I saw a weakness in their application.

Thou shalt not Lie. Really? I’ll lie till my tongue twists in my head to save you from harm. A man breaks into your house, your wife and kids hide, he asks you, “Where are they?”. OK religious man, you who impose on me your guilt ridden laws, speak up! Tell that man where your family is so he can kill them, or do worse. I laugh at your law now, you should lie!
Thou shalt not kill. Really? Do you know that your freedom to worship rests on the blood of many honorable and/or religious men who laid their lives on the line and killed to give you the choice to intellectually subject me to your guilt ridden standards. You should kill to protect your family, your nation, your freedom. I can go on and show that for every “thou shalt not” there is a circumstance in life that dictates you should.
 
Double standard? No, I see a higher standard. Wisdom is skillfully applied knowledge, knowing the rule isn’t good enough for practice of the same. Obviously we shouldn’t live on lies, killing people at whim. Here is wisdom, for every spiritual principle, “thou shalt not lie”, “thou shalt not kill”, there lies a spiritual application. If you maintain your hardened religious attitude and refuse to consider that every application of knowledge requires wisdom, guilt and confusion will be your companions for life. Taking the general principles of honesty and respect for life, I spiritually apply them. I‘m at a loss for the answers to this dilemma, however, know that I’ll lie to keep you safe, and I’ll kill to protect my friends, family, and nation. Understand the inherent weakness of rules and consider the full course of your beliefs before imposing them on me.

02152012

Wisdom’s Seven Pillars – Pillar #5 Mercy –

“Wisdom has built her house, she has carved out her seven pillars:” Proverbs 9:1. The aim of this series is to present a non-cliche, non-religious point of view of wisdom. I do subscribe to some religious interpretations of the subjects addressed, but wish to here, only point out the common understanding of the principles.”
Pillar #5 – Mercy
 
“compassionate or kindly forbearance shown toward an offender,an enemy,or otherperson inone’s power” – Dictionary.com
 
“I have always found that mercy bears richer fruits than strict justice.”
– Abraham Lincoln
 
Mercy is crucial to wisdom, allowing it to function by bringing constructive resistance to the force of knowledge. It directs the power of wisdom to accomplish its highest objective, that of bringing and nurturing life. Without it, wisdom may be a cruel master, harsh and unrelenting. Religion, philosophy, intellectualism, and government, followed without mercy will surely end in violence and the destruction of the individual. I yield to the powers that be, hoping for mercy as I address my issues, learning that, as I expect it, and it is necessary for my growth, so I should express it in my dealings with others. There is no greater power than wisdom applied to a life with mercy as it’s arms to lift, to teach, to heal, and to encourage.
*

03062012

11 Things I Wish My Daughter To Know – Wisdom for my daughters –

Athena, Goddess Of Wisdom
1)  Hold your head high, you’re beautiful, every day, all the time. When a man asks you to change your appearance to be acceptable to him, walk away and be yourself. Develop your character inside. Beauty is deeper than an outward appearance.
2)  Respect yourself. In all you do and say, be a woman of class and honor. You will not get respect until you respect yourself.
3)  Follow your dreams, never let a relationship, whether it be friendship, or love, rob you of what you dream.
4)  Be independent, make sure of your own finances, health, and career. Always have a way of escape – financially, physically, and emotionally.
5)  Beware when you find yourself rescuing a man, whether financially or emotionally. They will use your motherly instincts to manipulate you and guilt to force your hand to provide for them.
6)  Every gift has a price, you may not see it at first, but it’s there. Don’t take lavish gifts from men, they will pressure you with it. Earn what you want on your own.
7)  When a man hits you, he WILL hit you again. You need to leave right away or know that you will get beat in the future. He will not change, you will suffer at his hand. There are no exceptions to this rule.
8)  Listen to your heart, when you feel something is wrong, something is. These are your gifts, empathy and insight.
9)  Precipitating a crisis to keep a man from leaving is a grave error. Getting pregnant, getting “sick”, using his secrets to threaten him, these will all backfire on you.
10)  Pick the things you will and won’t deal with. Every man will have some quality that will drive you crazy, a fault that may or may not be forgivable. Choose what faults you will or won’t deal with BEFORE you’re in a relationship and stick to your decision.
11)  Do not cheat on your man, this can lead to great violence toward you and injury to your self esteem. There is never a happy ending to this, if he cheats with you he’ll cheat on you. If you’re not satisfied with your man, leave. This can save your life.

These things will help keep you safe and happy, and will prevent your dad from having to kill someone…

Love you girls,
Pops

Related Posts:
11 Things I Wish My Son To Know
11 Things Observed In the Betrayal Of My Friend

Also published in Broowaha 

 12152011 

Never Forget Me

“I am enough of an artist to draw freely upon my imagination. Imagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination encircles the world.”
– Albert Einstein
 

fairies-mermaids-and-unicorns
Explore my world, many facets of reality
Explore my world, many inspired moments
Open my palace of imagination
Open my spontaneity of creation
Experience my ride in the heights
Experience my flow of movement
A sound will bring me to you
A breeze will bring me to you

You will never forget me

07012011

The Strength Sapping Power of Sex

“Do not give your strength to women, nor your ways to that which destroys kings.” 
– Hebrew proverb

“Do you not know how uncontrolled and unreliable the average human being is in all that concerns sexual life?” –  Sigmund Freud

 

This wisdom extends to women as well. Exchange the word “women” to “men” in the previous quote and follow my line of thought. With my energy being limited, like all of my resources, I must allocate it with economy. Pursuing the opposite sex with abandon can open black holes that will swallow my impetus quickly, leaving me lacking the necessary resources to handle my responsibilities and weakening my resolve to improve myself. Relationships take work, and in this case, the amount of time, energy, and money expended to chase the opposite sex is more than most care to admit. Those obvious and quantifiable things are of small consequence compared to the drama and headaches brought into lives as a result of that pursuit. Is this what I want for my life? Will this pursuit of pleasure allow me to pass anything on to this world, this generation, or generations beyond? These costs are generally ignored at the beginning of that long slippery slope of pursuit.

     There are those throughout history, mighty, rich and powerful people, who ignoring this wisdom, fell victim to the opposite sex, experiencing the ruin of reputation, finances, and power. Certain men, listed among those unfortunate, had women, even hundreds of women, and yet were never satisfied and would constantly put themselves at risk to go after the elusive “one”. Women are not exempt, examples being recorded of women giving their households, honor, bodies, and even their life chasing down a man. Nations, tribes, families, friendships have all suffered under the harsh sentence of spiritual, physical, and financial bankruptcy given by the lustful exuberant overlooking of this well documented lesson. Here is wisdom: the obtaining of sexual or flirtatious conquests is a loaded gun that can bleed my resources and eventually maim my ability to succeed. I’m guilty of ignoring this wisdom, like so many, but I hope to count the cost, and approach the future of my relationships with an eye toward the end. 

Also published in Broowaha 
12192011

Seven Faults Of Foolishness – Fault #3 A Multitude of Words

Fault #3 – A Multitude of Words

“When words are scarce they are seldom spent in vain.”
– William Shakespeare

“The water in a vessel is sparkling; the water in the sea is dark. The small truth has words which are clear; the great truth has great silence.”
– Rabindranath Tagore

‘When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, but he who restrains his lips is wise.’ – Proverbs 10:19
There is a babble of words in the mouth of the foolish not unlike a dripping on a rainy afternoon; endlessly flowing, each word declaring its presence noisily. Not knowing the end of their desire for admiration and a delight in showing their knowledge, the fool will not put an end to his conversation. I’ve seen it, from my own mouth, where speaking, I said to much, to the wrong people, and a peaceful situation became inflamed with the babbling brook of a foolish tongue. Not only the number of words, but the timing, revealing secrets of those around, gossiping without concern, throwing fuel on the fires of contention. Nothing is sacred in the foolish discussions engaged and promoted.
Finding the foolish in a crowd is easy. Look for the one talking endlessly, with jokes pouring out and gossip spewing forth. This person will “know” everything or most certainly have an opinion that they will share vehemently on any subject, professing their endless knowledge of all subjects. Turning easy conversation into platforms of self aggrandization, the audience shake their heads, the fool not noticing the tide of acceptance turning against him. Contention will certainly surround this person.
Holding the tongue is difficult, success in it determined by long periods of self discipline, and a constant vigilance against the errors of it in common conversation, which things the fool is concerned with.

Wisdom’s Seven Pillars – Pillar #6 Easily Entreated

“Wisdom has built her house, she has carved out her seven pillars:” Proverbs 9:1. The aim of this series is to present a non-cliche, non-religious point of view of wisdom. I do subscribe to some religious interpretations of the subjects addressed, but wish to here, only point out the common understanding of the principles.”
Pillar #6 Easily Entreated

“In all debates, let Truth be thy aim, not Victory.”
“ ‘Tis the glory of a man to vail to truth; as it is the mark of a good nature to be easily entreated.”


Wisdom is friendly to questions and petitions, entertaining them easily. Being available to answer questions and grant petitions, facilitates the growth of wisdom. I must be willing to accept that I may be wrong, in both my knowledge and/or the application of it. Entrenched ways or knowledge that refuse to entertain oppositions and petitions limits my understanding. Though the questions are tedious, though the petitions are continuous, I must apply myself to them, willingly and easily. Allowing questions to my beliefs, working my through my limited understanding, achieves the purest and simplest knowledge applicable to life’s challenges. Without being approachable and entertaining questions, wisdom will be corrupted by egocentric desires, my will overriding the greater good, and create a religion of Me.

Combined History – Her reflections on the past.

“The moment there is suspicion about a person’s motives, everything he does becomes tainted.” – Mahatma Gandhi
bing

The following is an entry from one of my favorite bloggers, Descending Ascension. She presents a raw and uncensored woman’s point of view of a relationship. My favorite line: “For me the thread is very short, but of darker tint. The tint isn’t determined by experience but sentiment and things which taint.” Enjoy…


History of love.

What is love?
Scratch that.
That’s too broad and too narrow to cover right now,
So then,
Let’s talk history.
Your history and mine.
When we decided to be together, our history melted into one intangible net of experience.
Yours and mine and ours.

All those girls, those women, they are a part of me too. I begin to know them in intimate ways, even if they are in the past.
I’m only sorry to say your thread of past is longer than mine.
More women, more girls.
For me the thread is very short,
But of darker tint.
The tint isn’t determined by experience but sentiment and things which taint.
I wear your history wound 5 times around my wrist, while you wear mine upon your pinky.
I ask you questions, you reluctantly answer.
You say nothing, and ask little of me.
Yet you begin to have doubts, and become confused with the physical nature of our intimacy.
I know my questions are biting.
I know my remarks are heart breaking.
Does it break your heart that so shyly I ask to know the truth?
Is your soul pulled at whenever I am patient with your flaws and when I accept them? 
When I let them sting on my cuts, but still love you?
Does it make you love me more?
Am I a consolation prize, second best to your first?
To the special one in your heart?
So it must be, that she too holds a place in my heart, because, remember, your history is also mine.
I wear her around my shoulders while you wrestle with mine.
My history.
My unrequited love.
Is this my patience or unwitting masochism in which I subject myself to heart break and pain so that I don’t feel it by chance or at the hands of vicious lovers?
We seem to have a very odd relationship.
I can never take her away, nor can I ever replace her, just like you will never be him.
I guess the questions we should be asking ourselves are “If we could, would we?”
“If they did, would we?”
Would you take her?
Would I go to him?
Only then can we define ourselves.
What we are.
Yes or no.
Maybe you’ll know my answer someday.
Maybe never.
Just as I will know yours.
-R.S.L.S

Published in her blog: DescendingAscension