Godly Code

Q: In your last post, is there a reason why you made some of the lines of the Lord's Prayer, or some of the lines in the translation for atheists, in a larger font?

MM: There may be a reason, but it isn't mine. I tried to fix that in the hHtml code, but it all says that it is the same font size. So these lines are bigger in spite of - what looks to me to be - the correct Html Apple code.

God, or Steve Jobs, must have their reasons, but they are beyond me or my computing abilities.

"Lord's Prayer" For Atheists and Grand-Daughters

Q: My grandmother was a devout Catholic. I am an atheist. I love her so much, and miss her like crazy, but cannot be religious or pray as she would like me to, because it makes me feel like a hypocrite. It troubles me that I may be a disappointment to her that way. Is meditation equivalent to prayer?

MM: Meditation is basically wordless prayer unless you are doing a mantra meditation or certain Vipassana meditations. You can be sure that Jesus meditated a lot. Prayer is somewhat easier because it gives our minds direction and something to do "while meditating". It is the undisciplined, endless chatter of the mind, often negative or judgmental, that gets us into trouble.

Prayer and meditation are an attitude, too, or you could say they create an attitude. A turning away from the material world towards something "other than" oneself, or one's worldly concerns. It is important to turn inward regularly.

When the apostles asked Jesus how to pray he is said to have taught them the Lord's Prayer. No question your grandmother prayed this prayer regularly. You could connect with her through it. So let's take a look at how an atheist like you could use that prayer.

The first line which instantly causes trouble for non-believers, is:

"Our Father who art in heaven" -

We can think of "Father" as "where I come from, my source". "Mother" may be a better choice but before people understood where babies came from they thought men deposited tiny little babies in women's wombs. Christian Scientists pray to Father-Mother-God, for example.

If we simply think of "heaven" as "not the material world but the infinite and eternal vastness that is non-material and the source out of which everything arises and to which everything returns", you could rephrase that line as:

"Our infinite and eternal place of origin and destiny,

Which is not of this material world,"

"Hallowed by thy name"

"For which I have no name but infinite awe"

(if you don't have infinite awe yet, look at some Hubble telescope images, nature images, look at the stars at night, hold a baby, or go for a walk in nature... simply contemplate our amazing and awe inspiring existence)

"Thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven" -

"May it unfold in perfect harmony according to its nature, here, now, on earth, as it does in infinity and eternity"

"Give us this day our daily bread and forgive us our sins as we forgive those who have sinned against us"

"May we be well and whole and taken care of for today,

As we tend to others likewise in mutual compassion"

"And lead us not into temptation"

"Without distraction,"

"But deliver us from evil"

"And free from all that causes distraction"

"For thine is the kingdom and the glory and the power."

"For the formless source

In its infinite powerlessness,

Is the greatest power there is."

"Lord's Prayer" For Atheists and Grand-Daughters

Our infinite and eternal place of origin and destiny,

Which is not of this material world,

For which I have no name,

But infinite awe

May it unfold in perfect harmony according to its nature,

Here, now, on earth, as it does in infinity and eternity

May we be well and whole and taken care of for today,

As we tend to others, likewise, in mutual compassion

Without distraction,

And free from all that causes distraction

For the formless source

In its infinite powerlessness,

Is the greatest power there is.

Or, if you want to be personal and more efficient - in your case you could pray

Dear Grandma

Please keep me well, and whole,

And taken care of for today,

As I tend to others, likewise,

In mutual compassion.

Please keep me free from distraction

And the root cause of all distraction.

I believe in you and trust in you, always.

(Amen)

("Amen" is simply a sound like "Om" that unites and calms the body/mind, much like the sound "Mom" instinctively used by children)

There is great psychological benefit in making prayer personal to someone you associate with unconditional and total love, and who you either imagine or would trust to watch over you. It can be difficult to generate that emotional energy flow into "just" meditation. Therefore even atheists find gurus, scientists, musicians and other celebrities to be in love with and worship, the way people used to be in love with and worship God and saints.

Our brains seem to thrive on love, worship, trust, and humble surrender to the big picture. We also seem to benefit from holding an ideal/idol in our minds, but are being warned about idol worship. This is simply because idols fall short of perfection associated with God. God - if nothing else - is simply the idea of absolute perfection.

Once you become experienced in prayer and/or meditation - wordless prayer is the highest form of it - and distinctions between "believer" and "atheist", "insignificant me" and "most significant celebrity", or "I, me" and "You, God", simply disappear. You become still. You become One.

Character

Q: I have been meditating for years with good results regarding being able to calm my mind, but in day-to-day life I cannot get over feeling envious of others when they are wealthier, prettier or smarter than me...even when meditating I feel competitive about "who is the best meditator" in the teacher's eyes. How do I conquer this?

MM: Forget words like envious, greedy, etc. When you feel that way watch your body. You will notice that it is full of little tensions. Just like relaxing a clenched fist, simply relax that tension. In your case, let go of watching your mind and fully concentrate on body tensions and relaxation. That is all it is. The mind contributes to creating these tensions, but in some people the tension in the body is first and the mind fills in with "reasons". In your case, you need to relax your body.

Q: So it isn't an issue of character?

MM: In your case, no.

Q: But why do I feel like I have a bad character to be so easily moved to envy?

MM: Because you are of good character!

The End Of Human Suffering

Q: Is there ever going to be an end to human beings hurting each other?

MM: Yes. We'll need infinite patience. Now.

Computer Time Non-Spiritual?

Q: Is spending a lot of time on the computer non-spiritual?

MM: When it comes to leisure computer time, it depends on who your are talking to and on what you are writing or reading - just like life itself. What makes something spiritual or non-spiritual is whether it lifts yours or other's thoughts beyond the material to things like beauty, aesthetics, justice, harmony, love, peace, compassion, etc, etc ... infinity...eternity - and in the end - even silence. If you are doing "your work", other considerations also come into play. Work maybe very mundane and concerning non-spiritual things, but to do the work properly, on time and well is "kind and honest" to your co-workers, customers or employer.

In general, when it comes to computer time, ask yourself whether what you are doing is creative or consumptive? Observant or judgmental? Are you serious/obsessed or playful? Innocent or manipulative? Responsible or irresponsible? Run by fear and greed, or compassion and generosity. All these reflections will tell you whether anything you are doing, or not doing, in life, is spiritual (of your spirit) - or material. Not that all material considerations are "bad" and all spiritual considerations "good". Remember Buddha's Golden Middle Path is between the two. We live a material existence and need to tend to it.

Q: But even when I feel like being on the computer is "good", spiritually speaking, my wife makes me feel guilty that I am on it at all.

MM: Explain to her how it feeds your soul (if it does) to be on the computer, or how you need to be on it in order to not let people down at work in order to put a roof over her head if that is your situation, and see what she says.

The fear of the wife or husband can be close to the fear of death :-).

But - when death is understood - or when the wife or husband is understood - all will be well. The spouse wants attention, and so does death. If we don't pay attention to the wife, or the husband, or the children, or the friends - or the fact that life is precious and can be over at any moment for any of us - we will miss life, and we will miss growing in love.

Either you are spending too much time on the computer or you have a nagging wife. Most likely a little bit of both.

Remembering

Q: How come we can't remember past life times - if there even is such a thing?

MM: It is like not being able to remember what you were doing on October 23, at 10 o'clock in 1994. It doesn't matter now, although it may be the reason you are wearing a red shirt.

What needs to be remembered is our future, not our past. "Future" means our destiny. It is where we were before we were born. Our very past is our very future. Our destiny is where we came from. We become conscious of the source of your being.

There are only two paths. Both have infinite variety and combinations. There is the intellectual (scientific, atheist) path, and the emotional path (love, religion).

All paths are like boats you take across the river (life). They seem to be very important when you are on them, but ultimately have nothing directly to do with the destination (God, Enlightenment, Truth); and just before you step on the shore (Truth) you actually have to leave what took you there - the boat that gave safety, and direction. There is no point in staying on the boat once the shore has been reached.

That is the hard part for both the religious and the scientifically minded. Even close to the destination everyone seems to argue about who has the better boat. The whole world is arguing about the best boat - for getting to God, Truth, Enlightenment. This is nonsense. Even swimming will do. Even less - just floating will do. Boats can often be too much trouble.

Q: So is any thinking about Karma - even in terms of how to conduct oneself now for good karma in the future, pointless?

MM: It is OK to use it for "navigation". Navigation uses "points of references" to give some understanding about cause and effect, starting points and end points. It is only useful "along the way" but becomes useless the closer you get to the destination.

Harming Other Beings

Q: Are all things - like even rocks - beings? In terms of harming other beings - how can one possibly avoid harming other beings? Even just taking antibiotics would create bad karma.

MM: When we logically follow this notion of not harming another being the first thing is that we realize that our life depends on the many lives of others. The animals we may still be eating, the medications we depend on that have taken many lives, the ants we step on, the plants we eat, etc, etc.

The important thing is to grow one's awareness of how many beings must suffer for us to live, and then instead of feeling guilty to become deeply humble and grateful. The more our humility and gratitude grows, the less we will require, and the less harm we will cause. But it will never be zero.

As our awareness grows, even stones will reveal themselves to us as beings. And in the end - when the being-ness of all things is understood, as well as the interconnectedness and oneness of all things - who is there to harm or be harmed?