Goodness and Deepermind

The List of Ideas

The truth is a complex business and here are many ideas, sources of information and inspiration.

As we reach a stage where we think for ourselves, we can re-examine what we have been taught. Re-examination allows us to unlearn and update our beliefs. By looking for truth and goodness independently, we avoid the mistakes of others. (The Toltec Way, Dr. Susan Gregg, 2000)
Many people use other people as their reference point, and do not think for themselves. As adults we have the freedom to choose.
Religions are based on goodness, but are not perfect. They are not to be swallowed whole. They are mixture of food for the soul and the confusions of sand.
Much of the Bible is profound and teaches goodness. Many of us as children have been taught that the Bible is the perfect word of God. Yet it references dung, flat earth, and often speaks of a mean God who kills babies who torments sinners forever. The mindless traditions keep it from being edited.
We should find the goodness in every religion and culture. Our job is to amplify this goodness, and ignore the rest.
By seeing what is right in the many belief systems, a common thread is revealed. This is the best material to find truth.
One of the common threads are the higher emotions. Every major religion has its music and this is the language of deepest inspiration.
We are spiritual beings, not mechanical machines. Machines do not experience, they are not conscious. Show me a happy atom.
We are primarily experiencers of the material universe. All what we know about the material universe comes through our senses, our nerves and our brain. This is second hand information. The higher feelings about goodness comes directly from the Source.
Science tries to verify our experiences through testing and is quite successful. Testing allows comparison between experiences. If you see a tree and I don't, then one of us is wrong.
There is no reason we cannot use science in our inner life. If we do something and it helps us, and we do it again and it helps us again, then we have proven that what ever we did is helpful to us. This is an inner experiment. There is a science of the mind and a science of the spirit.
It is not always that simple. At times we are confused, and uncertain. However, this is a necessary condition of growth. Growth requires its uncertainly period.
Testing what we learn to be true and good is extremely important. Is it good just for the moment, or it there a long term goodness connected with it?
Goodness and love seem to be built into us.
Goodness has a prospective. When animal eats another animal, what is good for one animal is not good for the other. But it is good overall, for that is the way of nature.
As we grow higher and higher, we come to a point where we touch the source of all goodness. As we get in touch with God, we see goodness from the highest viewpoint, the highest prospective. From this point of view, goodness is not relative.
There is a hierarchy of true information, a hierarchy of goodness, a mountain to climb.
Thus there are two references points, the material world defined by science, and the spiritual world defined by goodness.
Our thoughts appear in two ways, as the mechanics of brain functions, and as objects in the spiritual world. Like two computers linked together, both computers can work as one computer. If one computer locks up, the other computer locks up. Thus if the body gets sick, the soul is also sick. This is the answer to dualism.
As we think, the impression is written both in the brain and in the soul in a mysterious way.
Consciousness is not just an adjunct of brain processing. Consciousness can be viewed a self referencing substance, were the buck stops. It can be seen as a drop in the ocean of God. It is the observer of the material world. The brain somehow links to this upper dimension of the universe.
We become what we think. (As a Man Thinketh, James Allen, 1971)
Drugs such as alcohol, marijuana, nicotine, heroin, cocaine, caffeine and psycho-active drugs modify the workings of the brain and bring relief to millions. But the side effects are often poisonous. There are equivalents of these chemicals in the brain, God's psycho-active chemicals. (Essential Psychopharmacology, Stephen M. Stahl, 2000) [Disabling a warning light does not fix the problem]
Through chanting, mediation and mind control, one can get "high" and master their mind without the chemical side effects. Instead of getting high, be high. (Be Here Now, Baba Ram Dass, 1978)
If we choose to believe in certain "truths", we must also accept all consequences from the belief. If someone tries to teach you something, examine their motives. Learn about cults and their techniques before getting caught up in them.
Challenge glamour and illusion. Eliminate catastrophic thinking. (Learn to Power Think, Caterina Rando, 2001)
We need God. Without a spiritual reference we are lost. Assume that since God created us, He is extremely smart and wise. God does not play games. You may call God, nature, spirit or Jesus. It is the same. It is the meaning behind the words that count.
Being close to God there is great joy. (The Mind on Fire, Blaise Pascal, 1623), (Spirit Matters, Michael Lerner, 2000)
Like any complex system, the mind must be made up of paths and layers. The lower layers perform basic body functions and are instinctual. The lower levels are natural, but must be controlled by the higher levels. Sugar might taste good, but the higher layers know that too much is bad. Violence and sex are natural, but they are primitive circuits down in the lower brain and spinal cord.
The higher layers give us depth, truth, purpose, and long term joy. One can experience this by chanting. Do something meaningless over and over again. It is so boring. Then chant God's name or something associated with God. If this is done with sincerity, you will not be bored, but instead feel great bliss.
Simply, we have a built-in need to be good (some ignore this their own peril.) (Being Good, Master Hsing Yun, 1998) All actions and ideas must be referenced to a standard. [Physical instruments must be calibrated. Maps must have a reference direction and a reference point. Computers have machine language which is hardwired.]
Goodness is defined as all things that advance joy, love, health, understanding and creativity. Things that feel good deep inside are truly good. Beyond all things, everyone wants peace and joy. (The Third Force-Psychology of Abraham Maslow, Frank Goble, 1970), (Beyond Words, Swami Satchidananda, 1977). Specific examples of goodness is found in The Virtues Guide, Linda Kavelin Popov, (1995)
There is no such thing as evil. Evil is the absence of goodness. (Baha'i Faith: Some Answered Questions, Abdu'l-Baha, 1930). What seems evil, is the natural animal instincts at work. This is low consciousness, low level stuff. It takes a spiritual education to build the highest levels. But health and love are good animal traits and some high level thinking is "evil". The absence of goodness is ignorance, a feeling of being lost and having pain. "Evil" is based on short term pleasure and pain. Being bad leads to a very bouncy emotional life with sharp peaks and deep valleys.
Information must be truthful or it will not work. Be impeccable with your word. (One of... The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz, 1997)
We can study the brain to learn about the mind. The brain is physical. The mind is analogous to computer software and information flow. For example, information flows from the outer/physical world through the senses, through the brain to the true self. We can diagram the mind and emotions. (Mapping the Mind, Hunter B. Shirely, 1983) [body-mind problem, akin to computer parallel operations)
The brain functions through complex chemical neurotransmissions and memories. (Textbook: Biological Psychology, S. Marc Breedlove, 2007)
One of the ways the body grows is through natural selection. (Climbing Mount Improbable, Richard Dawkins, 1996)
Since we have a dual nature, the body and the soul have their own separate evolution.
The brain and the soul dance with each other. A healthy brain enhances the soul, and a goodly soul brings health to the brain/mind. It is like a computer and its operator. If the operator is skillful, the computer produces the desired results.
The mind can be viewed as the software aspect of the brain. The soul experiences the mind, and has its own counterpart that is not understood. Thus the mind does the processing, the thinking and this is witnessed and adsorbed by the soul. The soul produces the experience of being alive and knowing that it knows. The soul is not a physical thing. Not understood at this time, and experienced only some people, there is soul to soul communication that appears to resist scientific testing. Some just experience it.
The software of mind is divided into processes. One can view the mind as a squadron of simpletons. (The Evolution of Consciousness, Robert Ornstein, 1991)
The body has a mind, and the mind has an operator. The body is complex, but the brain cells cannot laugh, or know deeper thoughts. But when we laugh, brain cells operate. Brain cells are like circuits in a computer. They are as dumb as yeast cells. Brain cells are the body's interface to the mind. The mind is like software. But the purpose, motivation and higher understanding come from the chooser, the operator, the soul, the experiencer, that which is conscious. The consciousness is tightly linked to the brain, and if there is a problem with one, the other suffers. [Soul, Mind and Body are closely linked] Sweet Dreams: Philosophical Obstacles to a Science of Consciousness, Daniel C. Dennett, 2005
The interface between brain and consciousness is a matrix fiber woven of the body and the mind.
Words point to meanings and objects and are not the thing itself. The word "is" seems to make it so. (General Semantics: Kaiser Aluminum News III, Vol 23,3, Don Fabun, 1965)
The true self is our experiencer. I call this experiencer "our soul". Overall decisions are managed by the soul through emotional intelligence. (Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman, 1995)
The soul can reference the physical world and the spiritual world at the same time. Accept only one of the references, and we have materialism on one hand and superstition on the other. Probably each brain cell ultimately references both physical reality and spiritual reality. Thus we have science helping us in the physical world, and we conduct our lives by appealing to goodness.
We can experience and talk to God. (Ordinary Enlightenment, John C. Robinson, 2000)
To become a master, the soul must be on the path. (Be Here Now, Baba Ram Dass, 1978)
At each level in the brain/mind there is a frame. The frame defines what we believe to be true. Each frame creates an atmosphere, a personality for a particular layer and group of subjects.
The lowest level of the brain/mind is that of a brute and is concerned mainly about animal functions and archetypes. (Baha'i Faith: Some Answered Questions, Abdu'l-Baha, 1930) Archetypes (male, female, clown, helper, etc) are templates that nature provides. (More information: Archetypes, Dr. Anthony Stevens, 1982)
The higher level in the brain/mind witnesses and controls the lower level. Like a series of boxes piled on boxes, each box witnessing the box below.
As we mature, we reach higher levels, and can address the abstract with wisdom gathered from many sources. There are many stages of moral development.
God is everywhere and has created everything. Since we create, our consciousness, our soul is part of God. Science cannot understand consciousness, as consciousness is used while the study is attempted. It is like an eye trying to see itself without the aid of a mirror. (More information: The Science of Mind, Ernest Holmes, 1926, 1938)
Our very nature is that of creator. Creation is based on what we already know. We scan our memories for similar patterns and generalize.
Newness depends on randomness as well as memories. The brain picks up on thermal noise that all warm bodies create. Most random ideas are quickly discarded, but the remaining allow true creativity and uniqueness.
Truth is a complex affair. Nobody and no organization has all the truth. We find truth here, and there and it is our job to put it together. There is no absolute starting point, but some points are better than others. (Taming Your Mind, Ken Keyes Jr., 1975), (Knowledge of Time and Space, Tarhang Tulku, 1990)
There are two types of people: those who let others do their thinking, and those who use their inner guidance. It is a choice between control and higher freedom. (The Science of Mind, Ernest Holmes, 1926, 1938)
Other people, institutions and their beliefs are never perfect. Pick that which works for you. Don't make assumptions. (The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz, 1997), (Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, Chogyam Trungpa, 1973)
Earliest man lived in ignorance and constant fear. To preserve order, and reduce fear, leaders invented rituals and stories that produced unity and calmness. Insight and wisdom was interwoven with the prevailing rituals and stories. In this manner culture and religions were created. (This Believing World, Lewis Browne, 1926)
Incarnations, spells and curses have no power unless one believes in them.
Many people came to believe in a certain religion very strongly. For example, the Christian Bible is considered the word of God by many believers, yet it contains reference to sexual and bathroom activities. But within its pages also lie great goodness and inspiration. Contrast Ken's Guide to the Bible, a very critical review by Ken Smith, (1995) and much better The Hidden Power of the Bible, by Ernest Holmes, (2006).
Currently the most readable Bible is The Message, by Eugene H. Peterson (2002).
Many religions and bullies tend to instill guilt within people. Know that everyone lives in their own dream and what others say is only a projection of their dream. (The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz, 1997)
The past is gone. We have the power to release the power that memories have over us. We can will ourselves to be up all the time, and to feel the great joy of being alive. Much about the future we can control, but if we concentrate on the present we have a much better chance of controlling the future. When we worry about the future we are creating trouble before it happens if it happens at all. As Ram Dass says, Be Here Now (1978). The Power of Now, by Eckhart Tolle, (1999) goes into far more detail.
Always do your best! (One of ... The Four Agreements, Don Miguel Ruiz, 1997)