Tuesday 2.25 p.m.
I went to the funeral of a very nice man today, the best friend of my brother in law. He was only fifty. Handed the black spot in February. The best memory I have of this guy was having a chin wag with him about faith. He was a devout Catholic.
Of course, in the Disbelieving Congregation me and the spam robot are not interested in having faith in anything. We believe in less things than anyone we know. We believe in disbelieving things. Or in ignorance. Or in the illusory nature of reality.
But I have no problem with people being religious and having faith as long as their religion makes them better people. I'm sure having a strong catholic faith was a big help to the boy when he was handed the black spot, and afterwards.
From The Autobiography of a Yogi, it seems that yogis think that God is knowable, so you don't need faith. What you need is to get God realisation.
I'm very suspicious of faith, but I'm embarrassed by devotion. A lot of hindus are into this Divine Mother stuff and grovelling away there devotedly, and I don't like that. It's not a path that suits my disposition.
Buddhists don't talk about God, and they don't have a creator, but they talk about Mind. In English it's translated as Mind anyway. If you get rid of the deus ex machina aspect and the creator bit, God and Mind don't seem to be very different. Each is without qualification or defining characteristics. And some people talk about Self realisation. This isn't any different from God Realisation.
I haven't had anything like the religious experiences of Paramahansa Yogananda, but I have seen a higher self. This is not to say that I believe in it. And I'm not saying it's there. I saying I've seen it, that's all. This is nothing like as good as having a strong faith in God. When I was a kid, I had a very strong belief in God and that was much better.
When Yogananda got God realisation, he didn't know that's what it was. I think he was expecting to see somebody.
10 comments:
I say!
One word - prunes!
Help to keep you regular. What could be better than that?
MM III
One assumes there was a free bar.
I'm sorry for the loss of your friend. I hope his faith brought him comfort.
Because it doesn't matter what path we are on, as long as our path leads in the direction we need to go.
I don't believe in gods in any form.
Albert? No bar. Oh, no! Hotboy
I say!
Hereabouts, for the locals, it is important to attend funerals, and to also give a generous donation to the survivors. Some have suggested that having some brew available for attendees helps to loosen their grip on their purses, but that is perhaps a bit callous.
Then, when one pops off oneself, one can expect a good attendance from those who remember one's own attendances at previous wakes, and a consequential good donation for one's survivors.
In the absence of support from the state, this becomes quite important.
MM III
Mingin'! Always nice to hear about what they do in the bongo bongo. Sounds like you've got to give money for the beer! Outrageous! Tell them to come and die here since the beer is free! Hotboy
I say!
And did you do this, after the wake?
MM III
Mingin'! Some people will believe anything. This is obviously the locals ripping off the the bricks to build something for themselves elsewhere. Why didn't the polis opne fire then? Hotboy
I say!
In the distant future, after your ownn demise, do you expect the same thing will happenn to your own hut?
MM III
Mingin'! I'll be cremated in the hut. Who says you can't take it with you? Hotboy
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