Online Class Begins September 27th

5 Responses to Online Class Begins September 27th

1. loiss says:

   October 3, 2009 at 8:35 am

   I noticed that the choice to explore or taste something tantalizing — mentally– I guess — gives me great relief, as if the self or non-self, mainly — that’s inviting or calling me– has been suffering in silence and just waiting to get out. The habit to ignore that ‘voice’, being, experience is old and automatic. The minute I let go of it, I feel as if I’m lifting off. And that allures me, makes me giddy.

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2. michaelg says:

   October 1, 2009 at 8:02 am

   The two practices for this week (asking who is doing, and saying “No” to the doing) have a paradoxical feel. The first reveals that there is mostly no need for a self to control what is happening and that the presence of a controlling self is often not visible. The second that there may be an entity who doesn’t appreciate being thwarted. Meanwhile, if no self arises into prominence during the normal activities of the day (for instance, writing this sentence feels more like dancing to the music of the wind than to “my” individual mind), is the self still always there, like a slumbering king who is ready at any moment to awaken if her right to rule is called into question? Like life in a dictatorship where many freedoms have been eliminated, but ordinary life continues? — Michael

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3. Jack says:

   September 30, 2009 at 12:27 pm

   One of the valuable parts of this exercise is that we can carry it out so easily at every moment, since we are always ‘doing’ something. All we have to do is decide to ask the question.

   Of course, then the question arises: who decides whether to ask the question.

   It strikes me that this line of questions ties in to the other practice for this week: saying ‘no’ to the self’s desires. Because the self, for the most part, seems to be the one that does not want to bother to ask questions; the one that questions make uncomfortable. Asking a question about the self is already saying ‘no’ to the self.

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4. Karin says:

   September 30, 2009 at 11:57 am

   So is my observation too: a lot of activities are running “automatically” and I often wondered who was telling me to do so, who is the chief. There seem to be many chiefs, even when I ask who is formulating the words, who is deciding? I found a strong connection to the role I inhabit in a situation and of course to the emotional setting.

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5. rogerg says:

   September 29, 2009 at 9:23 pm

   Regarding the question “Who is doing?” from Last Sunday’s conversation,
   I tried to observe some of my actions at work. Regarding physical activities
   that I “know by heart”, it seems that my chest and hands are “doing” on
   their own. My motivation includes the wish to make my workplace run
   like a well-oiled machine. The question “Who is formulating the words I
   speak?” requires reflection in a less familiar area. So many things come
   into play: my present mood, my wish to direct the course of the present
   situation, my reactions to events and my emotions, etc.

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