jimwdollar

September, 2nd Week, 2022

Our conditions and circumstances fluctuate according to the times, which are always changing, so we have to be fluid and flexible in order to respond appropriately to each occasion as it arises. What is important changes with the times, and we have to change with them in order to maintain our balance and harmony, uponContinue reading “September, 2nd Week, 2022”

September 12-C, 2022

Happiness is a function of freedom. But. Freedom is not freedom to do whatever we want, but freedom to do what needs to be done, where, when, and how it needs to be done. Knowing and doing what needs to be done is the key to happiness, when it is done for the joy ofContinue reading “September 12-C, 2022”

September 12-B, 2022

The way to get what you want is to not want very much and to be happy with what you have. Unending wants conflict with one another, off-set one another, cancel each other out. We cannot have this that we want because it rules out that which we also want, and we set up anContinue reading “September 12-B, 2022”

September 12-A, 2022

Making the best of it means asking “How can I do better with what I have to work with and with what needs to be done?” We have to know what needs to be done, and we have to know what we have to work with. We can be wrong about what needs to beContinue reading “September 12-A, 2022”

September 11-D, 2022

Since we control neither life nor death, we should make the best of things as they are, and give ourselves fully to the time left for living. Being what the times call for and doing what is needed is a good way to live our life. What would we gain by not doing that? WhatContinue reading “September 11-D, 2022”

September 11-C, 2022

We cannot be in this moment here/now and be thinking about, engaged with, in, some other moment, past or future. To be here/now is to be here/now. Period. Empty of everything but what is happening here/now. How often are you ever there? For how long? How long can you be here/now? Before shifting over toContinue reading “September 11-C, 2022”

September 11-B, 2022

The freedom to do what needs to be done establishes individuals in the right to their own perceptions and convictions by making the individual the responsible party answering the question, “Who says so?” Who says what is right in each situation as it arises? “I DO!”, shouts everybody participating in the situation. And, there isContinue reading “September 11-B, 2022”

September 11-A, 2022

There are four classic texts of Taoism: The Lao-tzu (AKA The Tao Te Ching), The Chuang-tzu, The Wen-tzu, and the Lieh-tzu. These were all put together between 500 BCE and 400 CE. Somewhere within that period, the following was attributed to Lieh-tzu: “The sage Wen-tzu said, ‘Someone who knows how to withdraw when his workContinue reading “September 11-A, 2022”

September 10-C, 2022

Freedom is not the freedom to do as we please, but the freedom to do what needs to be done, moment to moment in each situation as it arises. Will we be in bondage to our desires, bound to do what pleases us? Or, will we be in bondage to what needs to be done?Continue reading “September 10-C, 2022”

September 10-B, 2022

Changing our mind is about being aware of our mind. Seeing our mind. Knowing our mind. Being mindful of our mind. Having our way has to go. We have to change our mind about the importance of having our way. We cannot change our mind without being aware of our mind, of our way, ofContinue reading “September 10-B, 2022”

September 10-A, 2022

It is crazy to have a will that is at cross-purposes with the way things are. Willing what cannot be willed, and being pissed about it not coming to fruition, is crazy. We walk amid crazy people every day. Blaming someone else for their difficulties. Getting drunk at night because things are the way theyContinue reading “September 10-A, 2022”

September 09-C, 2022

Numen, Numinous, Ineffable, Sublime, Mana, Brahman, Atman, Kami, Wonder, Awe… These are words for more than words can say. Heinrich Zimmer said, “The best things cannot be said, the second-best things are misunderstood (Because they are attempts to explain/say what cannot be said), and the third-best things are what we are left to talk aboutContinue reading “September 09-C, 2022”