I am enjoying writing and reading on Medium, and I have joined a publication on there called: 'Mystic Minds' that publishes articles on spirituality, and a story I wrote was published there today. I feel quite chuffed about it (-: My first article in a publication.
I know it will be a long journey, and I am only just starting really, but I feel like writing is what I am meant to be doing. I find writing cathartic.
I keep seeing pristine white feathers on the path in front of me everywhere I walk. People kept telling me to look out for signs after my Dad died. I didn't have clue what they were talking about. But I wonder if these white feathers are my Dad telling me I am going in the right direction with my writing, I don't know.
I feel my Dad's presence sometimes, it feels like he is with me. I miss him so much. I had another bout of tears earlier, and just now actually writing this wee article; but it is reassuring to know he is okay. I feel his support in the spirit world. And whenever I do something kind or generous I try to remember to dedicate it in his memory, and say a little prayer for him.
I feel blessed at the moment.
Personal Blogs
Dhamma isn't that popular, the vast majority of people don't want to get
enlightened, there are a few that do, but most don't. I have little passion for
writing about much else though, the world just doesn't interest me anymore. The
elephant in the room when it comes to worldly success is: Death.
One works hard for what?
In the end all that one has achieved gets taken away. Sometimes quite suddenly,
people can die unexpectedly both young and old. For me, death, is the most
pressing concern. It renders everything else meaningless.
The world also changes quite rapidly and things one worked hard to learn years
ago, are no longer relevant now, automation makes learning skills feel
pointless. The ups and downs of the economy mean banks and countries can go
bankrupt. Placing all your hopes in a career or finance is a risky bet, and in
the end the house always wins, Mara (death) takes all. Even our memories get
taken away from us, or change.
The only thing that I really like to write about is dhamma, and
connection. But even friendships don't last, these too are impermanent, friends
come and go. People change, relationships break. Placing all one's hopes in
connection is also a risky bet.
The only thing that feels like it is worth making effort for is the dhamma.
That's why I work so hard at practising it. For me it is the only thing that
matters now. Life is uncertain. But if I can get enlightened then I will have
found something secure, something that can't be taken away by Mara.
Death comes for all, and when it comes for me, I will take refuge in the
dhamma.
...
Decided to have a go at writing on Medium. Have joined it as a paid member, it costs a fiver a month.
I will of course continue to post stuff on here, just some articles will be exclusive to medium.
peace and love
May you all be safe, well, serene, and happy!
I don't use A.I. to write for me. I prefer my own style of writing, and doing things my way even if it isn't as tidy as a machine. I also don't feel comfortable with the idea of a machine doing my writing for me, it feels like an empty experience to do it that way. Also the way a machine writes is just not the same as a human, there's something missing. After many conversations with A.I. I am starting to be able to spot machine-generated writing on the Internet. But I am not judging anyone who does use it for writing, what people do is their business, their karma, I am not responsible for the actions of others. Although I will say using A.I. to cheat for assignments, is a poor use of A.I. because as much as anything the person who does cheat is actually cheating themselves in the end; they are not properly learning and absorbing the knowledge if they don't articulate a concept by putting it in their own words.
I am meditating less at the moment, mainly because I am back into the swing of studying again, but I do make myself sit at least once a day. I reflect on the four noble truths often, and study dhamma when I can. But I am not sure I will make it to full enlightenment in this lifetime, as that would involve becoming a Buddhist monk I think, and when I look at the lifestyle of a monk it just doesn't appeal to me anymore. It did at one time, but now I want to remain as a lay follower. Mainly because the world feels very dark at the moment and I think I can be more help to it as a Buddhist lay follower. There are advantages and disadvantages to both lay and monastic life.
I don't have to be a monastic though. One can get all the way to the third stage of enlightenment as a lay follower. The third stage of enlightenment is a very advanced state. It is when greed and aversion have been completely removed from the mind, and will never return or take root there again - but delusion still remains. This delusion is often labelled as the fetter of conceit, which doesn't mean arrogance or pride, it means the conceit: I am. Because there's still a trace of self there, like an after-taste, which brings with it a restlessness in the mind, not the intense restlessness of worldly anxiety or agitation, more a subtle movement of the mind still caught up with the craving for becoming and existence, although it is a refined unworldly state of existence that one craves for. Not the same kind of restless craving as someone worldly who is not enlightened.
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