WhatIsEmptiness

Dr. Frankenstein was showing me around his mansion. It was a bright and airy place. But here and there, in various storage areas, the stale odor of decay was strong and unmistakable. The good doctor's wife approached us. "Adam, would you and your guest like some refreshments?" (Contrary to the popular Shelley fictionalization his real name is "Adam" not "Victor.") "Yes, indeed, dear Eve. And won't you join us?" "Of course. In a moment, darling," she replied. At this juncture of our tour we approached a closet from which emanated that now familiar unholy stench. As he opened the door the doctor said, "Please allow me to show you the creatu

Some weeks ago I stumbled upon the early Leonard Cohen song "Sisters of Mercy." I especially like this excerpt from the lyrics (but the music and singing are also lovely):Oh I hope you run into them, you who've been travelling so long. Yes you who must leave everything that you cannot control. It begins with your family, but soon it comes 'round to your soul. Well I've been where you're hanging, I think I can see how you're pinned: When you're not feeling holy, your loneliness says that you've sinned. If I were permitted to touch these lines with my editorial pen, I would be severely tempted to substitute the word wholly for Leonard's holy.

People like to say, "A leopard can't change its spots." Although maybe, with a lot of difficult and complicated work, it can. But what if the "leopard" simply realizes its true nature? It really never was a leopard in the first place!

To see through the division  as seeker vs. sage,  as student vs. master,  as unskilled vs. adept,  as mundane vs. timeless,  as crude vs. sublime,  as petty vs. great,  as wrong vs. right,  as despicable vs. worthy,  as I am this vs. I should be that,  as other vs. self, ... To see essentially (but not non-essentially) through all that time/thought manufactures realize that you need take no steps toward anything you can conceive.

I downloaded my augmented reality app when I was very young. I can't remember exactly when. But I do know I couldn't hold my mobile device by myself. And I needed some help from grown-ups to make it work. My augmented reality app was programmed long ago by some very smart coders. And it's sooo useful. It always tells me exactly what to think and feel as I go through the day. The handy icons warn me of threats and danger so I can fear and try to avoid them. And it automatically starts the cascade of anger I need to deal with them if I can't. Looking at the information projected on-screen I instantly know what I like and who my friends are s

If I'm a camera, set me on video mode—  Frame dissolving into frame. But if shooting JPEG (or even RAW), remove the distorting lens—  Let the exposure be w/o optics.  And w/o desire to touch up in Photoshop. If I'm a bike, keep me always moving, unbound—  W/o anticipating or lingering. Free, unrouted—  Let the wheel steer itself.

At peace when...    fearful thoughts are allowed to be without ownership    prideful thoughts are allowed to be without ownership    desirous thoughts are allowed to be without ownership    lonely, longing thoughts are allowed to be without ownership    judgmental thoughts are allowed to be without ownership    random, surreal thoughts are allowed to be without ownership At peace when...    thoughts that I should have done or said things differently are allowed to be without ownership    thoughts that I will do or say things differently are allowed to be without ownership At peace when...    thoughts that I should be at peace are a

Why in the world should life be just—or unjust—    rather than just what it is? Copyright ©2015 by WhatIsEmptiness. All rights reserved.

When words percolate    like coffee brewing    on a lazy Saturday morning No rush to work—or anywhere,    relaxing at the kitchen table,    sipping a cup, enjoying a smoke The stained liquid, driven    upward to the basket,    falls through the grounds Richer each cycle,    it gently murmurs    on a lazy Saturday morning Copyright ©2015 by WhatIsEmptiness. All rights reserved.

Trying to find God with the egoic self is like trying to eat spaghetti with a spoon. In either situation you make a lot of effort but receive no nourishment. Neither utensil is appropriate for its respective task. You could do much better by abandoning your chosen implement entirely in either scenario—although, in the first one you can succeed only by abandoning it (and seeing that you are That which you seek). And, oh my! How very much more easy—after just a few attempts!—it can be to realize this in the second case than in the first. * Please read the comment thread below started by Lamarin for important corrections and