If You Do Good Things To Benefit Others It Is Good For You. If You Do Harmful Actions Against Others
“If you do good things to benefit others it is good for you. If you do harmful actions against others it is bad for you.”
— Tai Situ Rinpoche
Screw reward and punishment. What an absolutely lame reason to do good. Here's a novel idea. How about doing good things to benefit others simply because it is the right thing to do. I mean, if you don't literally jump at an opportunity to do something good when you know it's the right thing to do...then aren't you doing bad? ~ Trabue Gentry
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The Reality of Our Senses
If a tree falls in a forest and no one is around to hear it, does it make a sound? The answer to this question, originally posed in 1710 by philosopher George Berkeley, is, quite simply, no. Why? Because sound is nothing more than vibrations captured by the ear which sends an electrical representation of these vibrations to the brain for interpretation. A tree falling in the forest does create vibrations but if there is no one around to capture and processes these vibrations then there is no sound.
So, is what we hear an accurate representation of the vibrations? Again, the answer is no. What we experience as sound cannot be compared to the original sound the source makes since the source can’t make sound. Only hearing equipped animals can make sound through the process described earlier. So, what is it that we hear? Sound is an experience created by the brain to represent certain physical activities that create vibrations i.e. the drawing of a bow across the strings of an instrument, air being forced out of the lungs across the vocal cords of a crying baby and, yes, a tree falling in the forest.
So, all the time we believe there is sound all around us, we are wrong. In actuality, there are vibrations all around us being captured by the ear and interpreted by the brain to create what we experience as sound, a representation of the activity that created the vibrations. Simply put, vibrations are all round us but sound, quite literally, is all in our head.
All of our senses work in the same way that our hearing works as far as representing something outside of our brain. Our bodies are covered w sensory receptors which send representations of these receptions or “data input” to the brain for interpretation. Without these sensors we would not be able to see the person next to us. We would not be able to hear, smell, taste or feel them. For all intents and purposes, we would be completely isolated. We would not be able to experience anything in our physical reality.
All this goes to demonstrate that we are, in reality, isolated. How is that, you might ask. Because everything we experience in our world is a mere representation of the real thing. When we look at something, what we see, what we experience is only a representation of what we are looking in the very same way that a picture of a person on a magazine cover is a representation of the person, not the person their self. Since this rule applies to all our senses, we are truly isolated, in every sense, from the real world; from everything and everyone. Ironically, we are separated from the physical world by the very thing that provides us w our only link to this reality: Our brain. ~ Trabue Gentry
Sometime back I was asked about my anxiety and depression in one of the groups on Facebook. This was my response. Please keep in mind that this was a quick response to a question in a casual environment. Therefore, my writing skills were not at their optimum.
My mother was severely schizophrenic and I had a sadistic father. Being in this inhospitable environment for such a long time caused me to experience a complete breakdown in 1972. I was diagnosed w Schizoid Personality Disorder, a condition resulting from being raised in a schizophrenic environment, and the doctors started shoving pills in me. They had me on everything imaginable including anti-psychotics and Thorazine. But alcohol was the only thing that worked so I drank day and night for eight years.
Though I hated every minute of it, the time I spent drinking was advantageous in that it slowed my brain down and allowed me to examine what was causing my anxiety and to then develop my own coping mechanisms. Unfortunately, the emotional bliss I felt after quitting was short lived. After about six months I met a girl that would prove to be the biggest stressor in my life which would last 27 years. So, back again I went into the depths of anxiety and depression but I managed w out the aid of pills or alcohol.
In 1977 I experienced a temporary bout of unmanageable anxiety and the doctors convinced me that Xanax was safe and non-addicting. It was neither. Though I didn't abuse it I was addicted to it for 25 years until they switched me to Clonazepam about two years ago, part of the world wide moratorium on Xanax.
Anxiety has pretty much ruled my life. It has taken so many opportunities away from me and robbed me of my dignity. It’s so embarrassing when you have to tell someone you can’t travel or that you have to take a bottle of water with you wherever you go because you can’t swallow w out something to drink or why you are afraid to take drugs. The panic attacks are completely immobilizing and you’re afraid to go any place for fear of having one while you’re out. The insomnia deprives you of sleep and leaves you constantly exhausted. The obsessive compulsive behavior drives you batty when you have to check something three times before you are “somewhat” satisfied. The associated physiological symptoms such as migraines, rapid heart beat, hives, dysphasia, dyspnea, nausea and IBS, to name just a few, can be debilitating, painful and inconvenient as hell. The resulting depression is equally debilitating when you’re reticent to go to bed because you’re afraid to be alone w your thoughts, you can’t sleep, can’t drag yourself out of bed, are constantly exhausted, morose all the time, you become immobilized and can’t do anything.
This is just a smattering of things that the anxiety ridden person experiences; that I have experience since I was 19 and still experience. It’s amazing that anyone w these detriments can function at all much less be friendly and keep a positive attitude. I get so tired of people who don’t understand. They are so impatient and often so cruel.
The best advise I can give to anyone who has debilitating anxiety is to try to identify whatever is causing your anxiety and, at all reasonable costs, remove it from your experience. The key to doing this is just to be real w yourself. Whatever you do, don’t allow negative people into your experience. Don’t mess w drugs if you can avoid it. It can be a great temporary fix but the short and long term fallout will only make your anxiety worse. Just avoid negative experiences as much as you possibly can.
This last line was in my response to the group but it applies to everyone, young and old, male and female. Anxiety and depression are not age or gender blind. Don't suffer alone.
If anyone ever needs to talk about their anxiety or depression I’ll be glad to listen and help in whatever way I can. Just remember, I know what you’re going through. I care about you. You are loved. ~ Trabue Gentry
dear Trabue, thank you for helping me, i really appreciate your kindness, which will never be forgotten'', your, N
You're more than welcome, my good friend. ~ Trabue