metonymy4u

Can we truly say that we value freedom of expression in this country? Separation of church and state? when Fox news- the infomercial branch of the fundamentalist Christian party (aka the GOP)- publicly attacks a scholar-not for the substance of his work-but for daring to speak about “their” prophet?

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Emotional vulnerability is a series of experiences that involve having more emotions than the average person. It’s not just that we are more sensitive, but that our emotions are actually incredibly painful and last a really long time! On top of that, the world, because it often doesn’t understand the nature of emotional pain, tries to tell us that our emotions aren’t real, aren’t realistic, and shouldn’t be the way they are. So we spend much of our lives trying to live down our emotional experiences, shut them off, ignore them or banish them from existence. This of course just makes the situation worse. The good news is that one smart, brave, kind and generous woman, Dr. Marsha Linehan, figured out what was happening to her and all of us with similar experiences, and found a path to recovery. As for a severely burned child, the road is long and difficult. But long before the end is reached, a new way of life is discovered– involving the understanding, and the cessation, of suffering. Also like a severe burn, at times there is just too much damage to the body for some people to ultimately recover from. Even with all her skill, Marsha herself has met people who were not ultimately able to recover, despite their best efforts. And we know they were doing their best at all times! What this means is that, in addition to helping those who have been burned, we also need to work twice as hard to prevent the injuries in the first place. And thankfully, in extending this work to teens and families, clinicians have already seen courses diverted that most certainly would have ended in needless pain. There is no doubt whatsoever that what we have learned in the past 20 years has changed the official view of severe emotional suffering, and thereby changed the world. Can you just imagine what the next 20 years will bring?

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What can I do today, to decrease suffering?

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I found myself wondering tonight what it might be like to be a non-violent parent? To grow up with non-violent parents? In a non-violent world?

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The cultivation of wisdom is, I think, not difficult to articulate. The basic idea is just this: pay attention, and ask yourself whether what you are doing right now is a path to suffering, or not? In other words, be aware. Do more of the effective and less of the ineffective. All other instructions are just embellishments of this one simple notion. So really, wisdom is not intellectually very difficult. It is, however, physically very difficult to realize. And that’s why I think we need all those embellishments.

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Will we ever understand the love of animals or the life of the planet? I learned more about acceptance from watching a grove of trees than all the words of my species ever contained. Their equanimity is astonishing. Every day I see a tall pine that has stood in our garden since as far as I can remember. I suspect it will go on standing there long after all my memories are dead and buried beneath it.

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If no one speaks, won’t the world continue just the same? True, I am a skeptic, about words. But not about the world.

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I can think of no very effective way to understand the laws of psychology, without also understanding the laws of physics.

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It seems to me that there is no better opportunity to observe humanity’s ignorance of the laws of physics than on a packed commuter train.

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in order to influence the ending of suffering, i believe must actively understand the causes and conditions of suffering.

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