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Came across this Alen Watts piece the other day whilst mucking about in cyberspace and its gold, regardless if you "believe", use it as a metaphor or just a interesting story to pass along.....
"God also likes to play hide-and-seek, but because there is nothing
outside God, he has no one but himself to play with. But he gets over
this difficulty by pretending that he is not himself. This is his way of
hiding from himself. He pretends that he is you and I and all the people
in the world, all the animals, all the plants, all the rocks, and all the
stars. In this way he has strange and wonderful adventures, some of
which are terrible and frightening. But these are just like bad dreams,
for when he wakes up they will disappear.
"Now when God plays hide and pretends that he is you and I, he does
it so well that it takes him a long time to remember where and how he
hid himself. But that's the whole fun of it—just what he wanted to do.
He doesn't want to find himself too quickly, for that would spoil the
game. That is why it is so difficult for you and me to find out that we
are God in disguise, pretending not to be himself. But when the game
has gone on long enough, all of us will wake up, stop pretending, and
remember that we are all one single Self—the God who is all that there
is and who lives for ever and ever.
here is a bit more for those who feel so inclined
www.wedietorememberwhatwelivetoforget.com
"God also likes to play hide-and-seek, but because there is nothing
outside God, he has no one but himself to play with. But he gets over
this difficulty by pretending that he is not himself. This is his way of
hiding from himself. He pretends that he is you and I and all the people
in the world, all the animals, all the plants, all the rocks, and all the
stars. In this way he has strange and wonderful adventures, some of
which are terrible and frightening. But these are just like bad dreams,
for when he wakes up they will disappear.
"Now when God plays hide and pretends that he is you and I, he does
it so well that it takes him a long time to remember where and how he
hid himself. But that's the whole fun of it—just what he wanted to do.
He doesn't want to find himself too quickly, for that would spoil the
game. That is why it is so difficult for you and me to find out that we
are God in disguise, pretending not to be himself. But when the game
has gone on long enough, all of us will wake up, stop pretending, and
remember that we are all one single Self—the God who is all that there
is and who lives for ever and ever.
here is a bit more for those who feel so inclined
www.wedietorememberwhatwelivetoforget.com
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 2:00 PMI like that. But imagine it as a high-stakes poker game: There are spectators, and there are you, the other players, and God in disguise.
You have a few chips, maybe a whole pile. God's pile may alternately be small or medium or large.
But he never loses. The casino knows him and loves him. He secretly funds it. He just wants to entertain you,
see how you face risk. Try your best to beat him.
Now, see how your limited supply of chips could never equal God's (no reference to any specific religion needed)?
He's the man playing the game. But really, even within this metaphor, is God is there in person, what is everything surrounding you, Him, and everything else you see?
Always some larger portion of the picture to look at.
Humanity has long perceived God as an individual, often human, thereby to empathize with us. It is not exactly so. Not at all.
But a portion of it. What we can see, our limited minds. Don't get trapped there. -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 2:01 PM"One single Self": sorry, that doesn't happen. Believe me, you don't want that.
A shared sense of the human community I'll accept, but to join or merge completely with all others...
No. -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 2:02 PMThink about the elements here on this planet you would never want to "merge" with...
enuff said? -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 2:17 PM<<" but to join or merge completely with all others... No.">>
perhaps you have just not had this direct experience yet... others have, Yes. -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 2:35 PMSomething always remains separate. I just detailed that.
There are a lot of evil people on this planet. Would you want to be part of them?
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 3:24 PMlook into the term "the oceanic experience", there is a very good explanation in the book "TIHKAL" (chapter 10: places in the mind pg. 174), also "participation mystique" is another description of this same state of being...
some times you are just handed this "gift of grace"........ it can be a bit unnerving at first, best you just enjoy the ride..... ; ) -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 4:01 PMYou're gonna have to find me. Hide-and-seek, remember?
And you might have to give up a few things in the process. -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 6:09 PMhe he.... we always did enjoy a good game of play... -
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This is the maximum depth. Additional responses will not be threaded.
Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 6:14 PMI hope you know how to navigate those infinite extra-planar dimensions beyond 3-dimensional existence.
Each additional dimension perpendicular to all those previous, as the geometers say.
There is no "we" here. Or if there is, it is minus "i". That still leaves you plenty of friends to play with.
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Re: hide-and-seek
Tue, June 16, 2009 - 6:16 PM"the oceanic experience"
You be Water, I'll be Fire. And Air also. I'll hover over you, out of reach. -
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Re: hide-and-seek
Wed, June 17, 2009 - 9:10 PMits up to you to find yourself my good man, no illusions, you know, the real me, cant you see.... the real meeeeeeeeeee!!!!!!!!!
www.youtube.com/watch
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