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1
rice...
This is how my grandma still makes glue sometimes. Just crush some old rice (squish it), if you make the rice right (add correct amount of water, esp. if it's sticky rice to begin with) it makes nice glue. Not the best, but pretty good.
This is how my grandma still makes glue sometimes. Just crush some old rice (squish it), if you make the rice right (add correct amount of water, esp. if it's sticky rice to begin with) it makes nice glue. Not the best, but pretty good.
2
Spiritual Technology / Re: Buddhism discussion
« on: January 09, 2009, 08:24:16 PM »
Hmm good point willem.
As far as i see, there are two ways you can talk about the beliefs of a buddhist or what "buddhism" entails. There is for example, what we would ccalled institutionalised buddhism. And of course with that there are lots of politics, as with any other institution. And then there are those who have gone beyond institutions.
for example, when talking about "taoist", one can talk about a daoist from china, who is a part of a very large family based institutionilsed religion. But then, I am more than positive that any wise man, be it Jesus, Buddha, Lao-Tzu, ever had in mind an institutionalized religion. In fact if either of these people saw what people do in the name of the religion they started they would be spinning in their graves now.
I find it strange that Zen buddhist's would do terrible things to Daoists. The problem i think comes in here as my RS prof puts it "there is religion as is in the books, and scriptures, and then there is what you see around you today". Neither of the great men of Daoism, would ever have wanted to be worshipped. All they did was to pass on the wisdom of the older shaman-kings that lived in a time long before even them. Lao-Tzu for example in Dao de Ching, constantly makes refferences to the "olden days" of those kings, and even more so with chuang tzu. If one were to follow the wisdom of these men, Zen buddhism, as was "originally intended" is rather a beautiful amalgamation of Daoism and buddha's beliefs.
Not to say of course that Animism and Zen/DAoism are exclusive in any way. On the contrary, I am both an animist and a very hardy Zen Buddhist. I do not go to monastaries, or involve myself with buddhist insititutions, I believe them to be against buddha's teaching. I simply follow the teachings left behind by the Buddha, vedas, Chuang-Tzu and Lao-Tzu. I also believe none of these were the original source of these beliefs, nor are they exclisive in any way. They all in the end, in my mind, only point the way to a greater truth, as Lao-tzu said, one cannot speak of the Dao, or teach it, it has to be experianced, too me all these wise men are trying to talk about the exact same thing but do it differently, perhaps if I were to tell you of my understanding of things, even IF they WERE complete, it would probably differ from anyone elses, thats the wonder of reality, each experiances it differently, and yet it's the same reality. LIke i said, master Lao's beliefs are just a reworking of the practices and beliefs under which the old so called benovolant "shaman kings" operated a long time ago in china, at a time when the chinese still lived in tribes, back when the aboroginal tribes of america's were still young.
-Tj
As far as i see, there are two ways you can talk about the beliefs of a buddhist or what "buddhism" entails. There is for example, what we would ccalled institutionalised buddhism. And of course with that there are lots of politics, as with any other institution. And then there are those who have gone beyond institutions.
for example, when talking about "taoist", one can talk about a daoist from china, who is a part of a very large family based institutionilsed religion. But then, I am more than positive that any wise man, be it Jesus, Buddha, Lao-Tzu, ever had in mind an institutionalized religion. In fact if either of these people saw what people do in the name of the religion they started they would be spinning in their graves now.
I find it strange that Zen buddhist's would do terrible things to Daoists. The problem i think comes in here as my RS prof puts it "there is religion as is in the books, and scriptures, and then there is what you see around you today". Neither of the great men of Daoism, would ever have wanted to be worshipped. All they did was to pass on the wisdom of the older shaman-kings that lived in a time long before even them. Lao-Tzu for example in Dao de Ching, constantly makes refferences to the "olden days" of those kings, and even more so with chuang tzu. If one were to follow the wisdom of these men, Zen buddhism, as was "originally intended" is rather a beautiful amalgamation of Daoism and buddha's beliefs.
Not to say of course that Animism and Zen/DAoism are exclusive in any way. On the contrary, I am both an animist and a very hardy Zen Buddhist. I do not go to monastaries, or involve myself with buddhist insititutions, I believe them to be against buddha's teaching. I simply follow the teachings left behind by the Buddha, vedas, Chuang-Tzu and Lao-Tzu. I also believe none of these were the original source of these beliefs, nor are they exclisive in any way. They all in the end, in my mind, only point the way to a greater truth, as Lao-tzu said, one cannot speak of the Dao, or teach it, it has to be experianced, too me all these wise men are trying to talk about the exact same thing but do it differently, perhaps if I were to tell you of my understanding of things, even IF they WERE complete, it would probably differ from anyone elses, thats the wonder of reality, each experiances it differently, and yet it's the same reality. LIke i said, master Lao's beliefs are just a reworking of the practices and beliefs under which the old so called benovolant "shaman kings" operated a long time ago in china, at a time when the chinese still lived in tribes, back when the aboroginal tribes of america's were still young.
-Tj
3
Grief & Praise / Re: my life right now
« on: January 09, 2009, 12:35:28 AM »
Wow, i envy you guys. Perhaps ill tell you my story and it'll make some of you feel good.
After high school (2005), I decided to go to university for either CS or Physics, as they were something i was interested in. I tried both, and found that programming was fun only as a hobby, not when i had to sit for 16 hours a day programming for 4 days a week. So i went into physics. Now, since i was a child, the one thing i loved was to ask questions about how or why things are, which lead me to physics.
University life as it turns out was not something that was meant for me. Coupled with problems in the family front, i started to get extreme case of clinical depression (classic symptom for child of divorced parents i suppose). Of course at this point i was only 1 term in, i started to perform badly. Finally after 10 months (2 and 1/2 semesters), i managed to get to a competant doctor, and a diagnosis. Having shown it to the university, they did nothing, but excuse my bad grades of ONE semester. They then said I had to take a leave of 8 months and come back. The condition for my return was i HAD to take at least 3 science courses during the first 2 semesters back.
After a lot of thinking I decided, that there is no use continuing in a faculty whith which I have such a bad history. I then started taking arts courses, and found much to my amazement that not only was i good at philosophy (could be seen as the grandfather of physics i suppose), I loved every minute of it, it was refreshing. Unlike physics or CS where I like the course, but hated the work. I loved doing the work as well. I did really well, got 70's and 80's (thats A-'s and B+'s). The sad thing is, I slipped up once, one single day, resulting in 2 failures (2 midterms and 1 assignment due at the same day). The proffesor said without a legitimate excuse, she wasnt going to do anything. It was just a stomach ache, what else could i have said? My average as it would have it, went to a 69, 70 being what they needed me to score to get into the Arts program i want. For 1 measly percent, I now have nowhere to turn. I cannot by any means tell my mother, she'll literally kill herself. I cannot do anything drastic without telling her, she pays for a lot of my stuff!
This is where my hatred of civ, stems from. i am an epicurean by heart, I will do anything so long as it is not painful for me. I think that's the way people should live. Why must I force myself to go through 2 terms of german, 4 terms of phsycology and 2 terms of chemistry, for what? I'll never use it, I'll never need it, I hate those subjects, all they'll do is lower my average, which is what happened.
Perhaps, it is my fault for sticking to my epicurean ways, who knows. well, thats my story, I hope it made some of you feel better about yours.
-Tj
After high school (2005), I decided to go to university for either CS or Physics, as they were something i was interested in. I tried both, and found that programming was fun only as a hobby, not when i had to sit for 16 hours a day programming for 4 days a week. So i went into physics. Now, since i was a child, the one thing i loved was to ask questions about how or why things are, which lead me to physics.
University life as it turns out was not something that was meant for me. Coupled with problems in the family front, i started to get extreme case of clinical depression (classic symptom for child of divorced parents i suppose). Of course at this point i was only 1 term in, i started to perform badly. Finally after 10 months (2 and 1/2 semesters), i managed to get to a competant doctor, and a diagnosis. Having shown it to the university, they did nothing, but excuse my bad grades of ONE semester. They then said I had to take a leave of 8 months and come back. The condition for my return was i HAD to take at least 3 science courses during the first 2 semesters back.
After a lot of thinking I decided, that there is no use continuing in a faculty whith which I have such a bad history. I then started taking arts courses, and found much to my amazement that not only was i good at philosophy (could be seen as the grandfather of physics i suppose), I loved every minute of it, it was refreshing. Unlike physics or CS where I like the course, but hated the work. I loved doing the work as well. I did really well, got 70's and 80's (thats A-'s and B+'s). The sad thing is, I slipped up once, one single day, resulting in 2 failures (2 midterms and 1 assignment due at the same day). The proffesor said without a legitimate excuse, she wasnt going to do anything. It was just a stomach ache, what else could i have said? My average as it would have it, went to a 69, 70 being what they needed me to score to get into the Arts program i want. For 1 measly percent, I now have nowhere to turn. I cannot by any means tell my mother, she'll literally kill herself. I cannot do anything drastic without telling her, she pays for a lot of my stuff!
This is where my hatred of civ, stems from. i am an epicurean by heart, I will do anything so long as it is not painful for me. I think that's the way people should live. Why must I force myself to go through 2 terms of german, 4 terms of phsycology and 2 terms of chemistry, for what? I'll never use it, I'll never need it, I hate those subjects, all they'll do is lower my average, which is what happened.
Perhaps, it is my fault for sticking to my epicurean ways, who knows. well, thats my story, I hope it made some of you feel better about yours.
-Tj
4
Grief & Praise / Re: just be positive
« on: January 06, 2009, 08:10:45 PM »
Wow, haven't posted here in a long time. On to the topic.
I often come here in search of some acceptance as well as advice. To those of you who have expressed their frustration, i feel your "pain". I don't know much about buddhists, short of having accepted Zen as my spiritual path. But I would like to make 2 points here, one is, buddha never said to turn away from the world and desires and emotions etc. That would be ascetism, which is one of the reasons behind buddha search for truth (which resulted in him becoming a buddha of course). My culture is full of ascetics. Emotion is natural, anger, love, depression. All of that, the only way to deal with them is to remember that, that they are a part of nature, and should be allowed to run their course. Of course, it is natural to seek comfort in a time of sadness etc, thats all part of it.
Don't cut yourself off from everything, everything is there for a reason. Simply realise what TRUE happiness entail, (i.e. not to be found in money or material goods etc). The buddha himself actually lived a comfortable life, a very meager normal life (c.f: the original defenition of epicureanism).
The problem is, as an epicurean, its frustrating, the world humans have created requires you to discard rage, and always smile, never let it out, always be agressive etc. We have all experianced how fake people are in the modern world.
Anyways, I'll wrap this up b4 i ramble on.
-Tj
I often come here in search of some acceptance as well as advice. To those of you who have expressed their frustration, i feel your "pain". I don't know much about buddhists, short of having accepted Zen as my spiritual path. But I would like to make 2 points here, one is, buddha never said to turn away from the world and desires and emotions etc. That would be ascetism, which is one of the reasons behind buddha search for truth (which resulted in him becoming a buddha of course). My culture is full of ascetics. Emotion is natural, anger, love, depression. All of that, the only way to deal with them is to remember that, that they are a part of nature, and should be allowed to run their course. Of course, it is natural to seek comfort in a time of sadness etc, thats all part of it.
Don't cut yourself off from everything, everything is there for a reason. Simply realise what TRUE happiness entail, (i.e. not to be found in money or material goods etc). The buddha himself actually lived a comfortable life, a very meager normal life (c.f: the original defenition of epicureanism).
The problem is, as an epicurean, its frustrating, the world humans have created requires you to discard rage, and always smile, never let it out, always be agressive etc. We have all experianced how fake people are in the modern world.
Anyways, I'll wrap this up b4 i ramble on.
-Tj
5
Spiritual Technology / The world through my eyes...
« on: September 06, 2008, 02:18:38 PM »
First off mods, shift this into another board if its more appropriate there.
Ok so onto the topic at hand. This may sound wierd, but i see people different from what other see them. Of course there is no real way of knowing except comparing 2 or more ppl. For example my sister and a cousing of mine look very similar (physically), or so i am told (i dont see it ever). Our family members confuse them sometimes. But i dont see it, they are very different people (character wise). But i do see similarities in people, only when some part of who they are or how they behave etc matches. Like i know 2 friends of mine who are sort of egoists, they look nothing alike physically. I dont get them confused (cuz the similarities end there physically and otherwise), but i see them as so similar to each other, that i cud get em confused if i was sleepy or a little out of it. Mind you in the physical world they look nothing alike.
And this is not even with people i know (note when i say people i include trees, animals, other spirits etc, in this case anything i can see that has a spirit). Any thots? anyone have a similar way of seeing things?
Ok so onto the topic at hand. This may sound wierd, but i see people different from what other see them. Of course there is no real way of knowing except comparing 2 or more ppl. For example my sister and a cousing of mine look very similar (physically), or so i am told (i dont see it ever). Our family members confuse them sometimes. But i dont see it, they are very different people (character wise). But i do see similarities in people, only when some part of who they are or how they behave etc matches. Like i know 2 friends of mine who are sort of egoists, they look nothing alike physically. I dont get them confused (cuz the similarities end there physically and otherwise), but i see them as so similar to each other, that i cud get em confused if i was sleepy or a little out of it. Mind you in the physical world they look nothing alike.
And this is not even with people i know (note when i say people i include trees, animals, other spirits etc, in this case anything i can see that has a spirit). Any thots? anyone have a similar way of seeing things?
6
Rewilding Mind & Heart / Re: University
« on: July 28, 2008, 02:56:13 AM »Why does a rewilding person choose to go to university?
There are some things that I want to get done, now that I am here. Since I am born into this society, i need at least someone who can teach me primitive skills. NOt the basic ones, but theharder ones such as medical care etc. I lack those skills, at least its not enough to support myslef. Also I would very much like to get a group pf people if i were to leave society behind, its easier that way, since some of us have skills others dont etc.
And once i go i have no plan to return, so that would mean I like a lot of other people are waiting for the right girl as well. (Hint to all the girls on this forum :p)
-Tj
7
Fauna Food / Re: eating crow
« on: July 25, 2008, 03:20:26 AM »
Theres a nice little culture trivia i'd like to tell you guys.
In india we have these "roadside stalls" or small shops by the roadside set up serving stuff from tea and snacks right upto "biryani" (its rice cooked with vegetables, some meat and spices). You could have vegetarian biryani of course but mostly it has meat. The most common one is Chicken (known as chicken biryani of course).
Theres a common joke here that some people serve cheap biryani (you know 5 bucks a plate instead of 10), but it tastes kinda funny and the leg peices are all thinner. Caca (name for crow due to its cry) biryani is sometimes used as a metephor to describe bad biryani. This was played out in a movie i saw once, and the guy kept crowing for 2 days.
Anyways that being said, it is a true fact. These places serve "caca" birayani to the people who cannot afford the real stuff. Some say its bad, theres even the superstition about the "crowing", but i think its really due to the bacteria. Crow has a lot more junk sitting in there than regular bird does, so it may need to be cleaned a bit more. Or else you'd have to get used to the bacteria etc.
Then again i am told crows are believed in some parts of india to the ancestors. I have heard this in a lot of places. I do find it easier to communicate with them since they are one of the few birds that don't fear us that much, i mean i can go and almost touch one and not have it fly away.
In india we have these "roadside stalls" or small shops by the roadside set up serving stuff from tea and snacks right upto "biryani" (its rice cooked with vegetables, some meat and spices). You could have vegetarian biryani of course but mostly it has meat. The most common one is Chicken (known as chicken biryani of course).
Theres a common joke here that some people serve cheap biryani (you know 5 bucks a plate instead of 10), but it tastes kinda funny and the leg peices are all thinner. Caca (name for crow due to its cry) biryani is sometimes used as a metephor to describe bad biryani. This was played out in a movie i saw once, and the guy kept crowing for 2 days.
Anyways that being said, it is a true fact. These places serve "caca" birayani to the people who cannot afford the real stuff. Some say its bad, theres even the superstition about the "crowing", but i think its really due to the bacteria. Crow has a lot more junk sitting in there than regular bird does, so it may need to be cleaned a bit more. Or else you'd have to get used to the bacteria etc.
Then again i am told crows are believed in some parts of india to the ancestors. I have heard this in a lot of places. I do find it easier to communicate with them since they are one of the few birds that don't fear us that much, i mean i can go and almost touch one and not have it fly away.
8
Visions of the Rewilding Renaissance / Re: The Terrifying Future Scenario (if there's no collapse)
« on: July 21, 2008, 06:30:15 PM »
VERY interesting and scary topic.
I agree with the topic as well. You know when i talk to people about our current socio-economic crisis, rising gas prises, cost of living, more death and violence, mother nature has finally snapped (and lemme tell you i think she has IMMENSE AMOUNT of patience and it probably takes a lot to make her snap) and started to throw disasters our way. Most people say, "yea it's scary" or that the collapse of civ (which most intelligent ppl i have talked to agree with that it is slowly happening) scares them. You know what i really have nightmares about, If we go back to living a feral life, a life of hunter-gatherers, back to the "good" life, what would prevent us from - a few millenia from now - from making the SAME mistake we did that lead to our current way of living. It HAS happened before. What if years after civ collapse, what would prevent humaity from trying to again go back to technological advances, and soon to exactly where we are now?
-Tj
I agree with the topic as well. You know when i talk to people about our current socio-economic crisis, rising gas prises, cost of living, more death and violence, mother nature has finally snapped (and lemme tell you i think she has IMMENSE AMOUNT of patience and it probably takes a lot to make her snap) and started to throw disasters our way. Most people say, "yea it's scary" or that the collapse of civ (which most intelligent ppl i have talked to agree with that it is slowly happening) scares them. You know what i really have nightmares about, If we go back to living a feral life, a life of hunter-gatherers, back to the "good" life, what would prevent us from - a few millenia from now - from making the SAME mistake we did that lead to our current way of living. It HAS happened before. What if years after civ collapse, what would prevent humaity from trying to again go back to technological advances, and soon to exactly where we are now?
-Tj
9
Health, Healing & Movement / Re: Bare Feet
« on: July 06, 2008, 05:00:48 PM »
YAY BARE FEET....(sry had to say it).
Yea i jst love bare feet, always have always will. My parents seem to think it bad or smthg. I dont care tho. Back in india when i used to live in boarding school (Rishi Valley) the weather and climate was such and 400 acres of the land belonged to the school so barefeet was no problem. In fact a lot of poor people from around the area (in villages there) who worked at the school dint have good shoes or footwear, or have ANY footwear.
Altho i am starting to realise conscuiously the good of barefeet. It does allow for more feedback, and lets face it its fun.
Actually my feet are very nice for someone who never really pays any special attention to cleaning them, no blemishes, dry skin, athletes foot etc. In fact a lot of people compliment my feet (i know its wierd, i don't get it either but it cant be bad if someone says "hey u have nice feet").The only problem that i have EVER gotten on my feet are when i go running over 2 hours with shoes on. My poor feet are not used to taking such a beating in shoes. I have run on tar roads in 30 degrees for over 10K and nothing i cud complain about. I run my first marathon (in a western country thus i had to wear shoes) and my left foot is covered with blisteres and blood and puss etc. Shoes protect,... yea right!!
-Tj
Yea i jst love bare feet, always have always will. My parents seem to think it bad or smthg. I dont care tho. Back in india when i used to live in boarding school (Rishi Valley) the weather and climate was such and 400 acres of the land belonged to the school so barefeet was no problem. In fact a lot of poor people from around the area (in villages there) who worked at the school dint have good shoes or footwear, or have ANY footwear.
Altho i am starting to realise conscuiously the good of barefeet. It does allow for more feedback, and lets face it its fun.
Actually my feet are very nice for someone who never really pays any special attention to cleaning them, no blemishes, dry skin, athletes foot etc. In fact a lot of people compliment my feet (i know its wierd, i don't get it either but it cant be bad if someone says "hey u have nice feet").The only problem that i have EVER gotten on my feet are when i go running over 2 hours with shoes on. My poor feet are not used to taking such a beating in shoes. I have run on tar roads in 30 degrees for over 10K and nothing i cud complain about. I run my first marathon (in a western country thus i had to wear shoes) and my left foot is covered with blisteres and blood and puss etc. Shoes protect,... yea right!!
-Tj
10
Tracking & Awareness / Re: Wilderness Movement - Rewilding the Body
« on: July 06, 2008, 05:24:59 AM »
wow i din know that was called parkour. I find its generally something your body picks up once u start to climb trees etc. I used to watch monkeys climb for hours just to see how the do it, and try to imitate them, this type of movement also came in with kalariypayattu, a martial art i trained in some years ago.
Since I came to canada i have lost touch with that part of me. Although, it has helped me a lot. Thats probably the reason I can run so far (i am a long distance runner). Although i still needd lots of improvment lol. I can't explain it tho, watching the parkour reminds me of how a monkey moves very loose and confident. Like someone said Tai Chi is good for that. The movements are like the flowing of water. A lot of martial arts are, even athletic training. The main point here is shifting weight flawlessly, this is one thing only people who have practced can do, this helps move loosley and helps move fluidly etc.
But you have to have a flexible body for this, and yes a lot of muscles that you don't use in modern society gets used here. Best thing to do is to climb a tree, let ur instincts take over, they know what to do, and just enjoy the ride. Another thing is to trust ur body. A lot of those simple moves in parkour can be done with some practice, but if ur scared u can never do it. Like that one where the guy climbs the wall by using the one beside it and just running up the 2, u can't do it unless you let ur body take control and loosen up.
Also going barefoot helps a lot. I can't climb and jump around as much wiith shoes, cuz i don't trust their grips, my feet are natural and i trust them. Plus its easier to feel around where i am going
-Tj
Since I came to canada i have lost touch with that part of me. Although, it has helped me a lot. Thats probably the reason I can run so far (i am a long distance runner). Although i still needd lots of improvment lol. I can't explain it tho, watching the parkour reminds me of how a monkey moves very loose and confident. Like someone said Tai Chi is good for that. The movements are like the flowing of water. A lot of martial arts are, even athletic training. The main point here is shifting weight flawlessly, this is one thing only people who have practced can do, this helps move loosley and helps move fluidly etc.
But you have to have a flexible body for this, and yes a lot of muscles that you don't use in modern society gets used here. Best thing to do is to climb a tree, let ur instincts take over, they know what to do, and just enjoy the ride. Another thing is to trust ur body. A lot of those simple moves in parkour can be done with some practice, but if ur scared u can never do it. Like that one where the guy climbs the wall by using the one beside it and just running up the 2, u can't do it unless you let ur body take control and loosen up.
Also going barefoot helps a lot. I can't climb and jump around as much wiith shoes, cuz i don't trust their grips, my feet are natural and i trust them. Plus its easier to feel around where i am going
-Tj
11
Seasonal & Bioregion Strategies / Re: what climate/bioregion is your body adapted to?
« on: July 05, 2008, 04:20:33 PM »
Southern india to me. The exact location perhaps depends on where i spent most of my growing years; i.e. rishi valley. So hot dusty climate, with heavy monsoons etc. Come to think of it coming to canada was a BIG mistake that way.
-Tj
-Tj
12
Language & Oral Tradition / Re: The E-primitive Thought Experiment
« on: July 05, 2008, 02:35:14 PM »
I have been trying to change my language to reflect my beliefs for while now. Given the nature of my believes i say e-primitive is seems like a natural choice. negating the word to-be and all forms of it, and words of ownersip (which i see as going in the same direction) is something i can do with a bit of practice. But how do i get rid of pronouns. Given my nondualist believes, reducing pronoun use is something i would like. How do i do this on an everyday level?
See i used 'I' so many times here. I already don't use my or mine, or use it very rarely (as in only to describe things such as beliefs and emotions and likes etc). It's usually i got it, or i bought it or something (i.e. not my magazine, magazine that i got). This came naturally to me. But I and Me i can't do anything abt, any suggestions?
See i used 'I' so many times here. I already don't use my or mine, or use it very rarely (as in only to describe things such as beliefs and emotions and likes etc). It's usually i got it, or i bought it or something (i.e. not my magazine, magazine that i got). This came naturally to me. But I and Me i can't do anything abt, any suggestions?
13
Rewild Camps, Events & Meet-ups / Re: Trading Post
« on: July 05, 2008, 12:44:48 PM »
well I am new to the place i am living in. I used to live in Southern India, so this eco-zone is very new to me. In india i grew up knowing the plants and how to recognise common ones, but here its all new to me, plus the fact that its harder during winter (i.e. 7 months of the year). Wich reminds me if anyone can suggest a good source for learning about herbs around toronto or waterloo in Ontario lemme know. But if there is something anyone wud like from here (I live in Toronto and Waterloo ontario), either from the lake in TO or near waterloo lemme know, and also tell me what u use it for so it will be an educational experiance for me as well. If you DO need something that grows in india lemme know as well, i go there for vacation sometimes. I DO however need dogwood, i was told it is common in some parts of south/south eastern US (for the tooth of course), or perhaps an alternative u know works well for brushing. In india i used neem, but i dont feel like lugging bundles of neem unless i can help it. Thx. Also if someone lives around the area i am in, lemme know we can meet up and share ideas etc.
-Tj
ETA: Also i got a CD on shamanic drumming that came with a book, i can send u the tracks via email if ud like.
-Tj
ETA: Also i got a CD on shamanic drumming that came with a book, i can send u the tracks via email if ud like.
14
Grief & Praise / Re: Tenderness for wind and night
« on: July 05, 2008, 06:10:41 AM »
heh this is actually the first time i am seeing this topic lol. anyways ,that was beautiful. It made me see an old friend in new light, it truly did.
15
Spiritual Technology / Re: Shamanism or is it? need help
« on: June 22, 2008, 09:34:00 PM »
you know a lot of what you guys are saying makes perfect sense, and i have thought of before as well. I usually use the name as a foot in the door. I haven't gotten in yet, but the foot will help make sure the door is never closed. I think part of it is also shock value, but u must understand why. When heyvictor talked of his experiance with a certain label he used while explaining the path he follows. I know exactly what u mean. My reason for giving the shock is to show people "look this is not true, things are NOT what they seem". For me a label is a way of getting someones attention.
But you know what in the end of the day, ur right, language itself is human creation, and it's about as good as any other human creation, utterly useless for anything but a short time. But that's my point, language is a tool for understanding, its not a precise tool or a good one at that, but it gets my foot in the door.
Most of the time though I use labels such as "animism" or "shamanic" to save myself some time, in explanation. Instead of explaining what animism is when asked my veiw of the world, i simply say "i have an animistic view of the world". Most people have some idea what it means, so they say "o ok". Those who don't will say "i dont know what it means" and i will have to explain. For those who do not further question, they obviously don't care they just wanted a word. (like joey in friends says "well, i saw smthg i heard a word, i thot thats what it was!"), they don't care like joey in that scene, WHAT that word meant really, just that there is something there and it has some name. For those that DO ask further, I will explain further, I like sharing my beliefs with people.
In short...labels and names like other parts of language are just tools. I recognise that, whether or not i ever knew the word Daoism, does not change how i see the world, but said word has its own importance, as a tool.
For example to me there is no individualism or ownership. This is pretty oobvious from my behaviour in daily life, u'll notice it pretty quick, most people do. But i still use I and You. Just to make things easierr, cuz im lazy. At the end of the day it comes down to that, im lazy, if i can give someone a half an understanding with 2 words rather than a full one with half an hour of talking, i'd rather do option #1, and put in couple of words to ensure no grave misunderstandings. And also due to the fact that i generally suck at explaining things in a brief period of time, so i'd rather use labels that are defined by people, so they can go on their own understanding of the labels.
Although u know what i realised yesterday, most people i talk to abt this i end up explaining my beliefs from start to end and making them see for themselves what i believe in rather than leaving it with a couple of vague labels that will be interpreted wrong most of the time.
-Tj
But you know what in the end of the day, ur right, language itself is human creation, and it's about as good as any other human creation, utterly useless for anything but a short time. But that's my point, language is a tool for understanding, its not a precise tool or a good one at that, but it gets my foot in the door.
Most of the time though I use labels such as "animism" or "shamanic" to save myself some time, in explanation. Instead of explaining what animism is when asked my veiw of the world, i simply say "i have an animistic view of the world". Most people have some idea what it means, so they say "o ok". Those who don't will say "i dont know what it means" and i will have to explain. For those who do not further question, they obviously don't care they just wanted a word. (like joey in friends says "well, i saw smthg i heard a word, i thot thats what it was!"), they don't care like joey in that scene, WHAT that word meant really, just that there is something there and it has some name. For those that DO ask further, I will explain further, I like sharing my beliefs with people.
In short...labels and names like other parts of language are just tools. I recognise that, whether or not i ever knew the word Daoism, does not change how i see the world, but said word has its own importance, as a tool.
For example to me there is no individualism or ownership. This is pretty oobvious from my behaviour in daily life, u'll notice it pretty quick, most people do. But i still use I and You. Just to make things easierr, cuz im lazy. At the end of the day it comes down to that, im lazy, if i can give someone a half an understanding with 2 words rather than a full one with half an hour of talking, i'd rather do option #1, and put in couple of words to ensure no grave misunderstandings. And also due to the fact that i generally suck at explaining things in a brief period of time, so i'd rather use labels that are defined by people, so they can go on their own understanding of the labels.
Although u know what i realised yesterday, most people i talk to abt this i end up explaining my beliefs from start to end and making them see for themselves what i believe in rather than leaving it with a couple of vague labels that will be interpreted wrong most of the time.
-Tj