not dealing with the "world"
 

if one is barely in the world and not of it, and they seldom have to deal with the duality of the world, then imo that does not make for a very strong case when it comes to non-duality.

***

Even so, we may get opportunities to laugh
At our gaffes
When we falter
Within the linear time continuum altar. :biggrin:

***

:smile::tongue: :smile:

Of course, there are also those who have dealt with the duality of the world, can see the total stupidity and farce of it all (control and dominate through exclusion and not inclusion) and so the choice is made to be "not in/of the world" because it does not cater to one's eclectic spiritual tastes and lifestyle...but I am a dualist anyway (and not ashamed to admit that).

what dharma is stupid and a farce when it comes to dealing with duality?

...granted some have paid their worldly dues and then become renunciate's.

A story...

It was Christmas morning and I was awoken by the sound of my niece and nephew opening their presents, while my brother reached under the tree to grab more...and more...and more...it was obvious that thousands of dollars were spent on totally spoiling the two.

In the process of reaching under the tree and grabbing presents, my brother dislodged a bauble from the tree and it broke and smashed...unfortunately, it was the bauble that my sister-in-law got made on the very first Christmas after her mother had passed away.

My sister-in-law came in screaming, crying, yelling...abusing my brother for "destroying her precious memories" and I was totally...completely...absolutely flabbergasted!

I mean, their whole house resembles a mausoleum to 'dead relatives'! I cannot get this...everything you touch has "sentimental value" as if they constantly need all of those things around them to 'remember the body' of someone...I just could not get this...not at all...and I just sat there, shaking my head, while my brother was prostrating at his wife's feet saying "forgive me!...I screwed up!...I am such a terrible person..." and I started puking in my mouth.

To which, my sister-in-law said "I don't give a s***! you are buying me another one...EXACTLY the same, so I can keep the memory of my mother alive" (as if she really needed one glass bauble in a house full of macabre memorabilia).

For the whole day, I was trying to put this into a concept that I could get...because I was definitely NOT getting what was happening around me.

I likened it to myself having pictures and statues of the Hindu Gods to pray to in my bedroom....so I could get THAT much.

What I noticed the difference was, is that if somebody accidentally knocked over my Shiva statue and broke it, I WOULDN'T CARE! for I know that God is NOT the statue and I only use it to remind myself about giving more attention to Him...but I don't NEED it...I only make a conscious decision to HAVE it.

So what I was left with is "how can the memory of a person be cheapened by so many sentimental 'nick nacks?"

Until I realised that all of this was to show OTHERS how much respect she was paying the memory of her mother and not REALLY having any personal respect herself...or else, where was the speech acknowledging her dead parents before Christmas dinner? IT NEVER HAPPENED!

Thing is, the whole WORLD has a totally different set of values to what I have as an individual...and that is why I am a recluse...because of stuff like the above happening on a constant basis and I don't understand what the hell is going on, because I cannot see "superficial things" like others can.

How many people who say they "believe in Dharma" actually apply it to the letter according to the Vedas?

How many more simply are Adharmic anyway? yeah, basically, the whole world IS!

So one cannot use the argument of Dharma in the face of Adharma, when it ONLY makes a difference to the one who follows the Dharma and nobody else.

That is the whole argument here...and I choose my words very carefully so they cannot be misread, misconstrued or twisted to suit an agenda.

is the cup half empty or half full?

how many apply parts of dharma on the way...billions obviously,

and who or what is Spirit working with, those billions obviously.

Both!

And its half emptiness and half fullness are the SAME thing.

We should see things from different angles, and that those different perspectives complete a larger view of a unified phenomenon.

Neither!

The cup is simply what it is.

Whatever is in the cup is simply what it is.

If we talk about the cup being half empty or half full then we are comparing whatever is in the cup to an idea of what might be in the cup. But whatever is in the cup is already complete and perfect.

Peace.