Hopkins's Arrow

redrider63 said:The fishermen just sit there hoping for a bite, bickering over who has the better nets, the sharper hooks, or the premium bait, all while spinning those classic fisherman's tall tales...

Meanwhile, old Fisher walks right past them... and nobody even notices him, let alone hears him...
The old Fisherman doesn't even need to fish anymore; the fish practically jump right into his bare hands...

So, what's the deal with the old man and the sea? 😬

There’s one thing I’ve realized in my somewhat unspiritual life—not everything that happens to us is deeply meaningful. Some things (sentences, people) just drift into our lives and pass through... they have no purpose, they're just incidental. They're like some damn decoration in a restaurant—the meal is what matters, not the flower vase on the table.
What I notice on this forum, especially with certain talkers, is that people give just as much attention to the vase as they do to the food, even though the vase isn't actually important.
It’s honestly exhausting trying to follow these posts where people take one insignificant word and use it to draw massive conclusions about someone's entire character.
If we embraced the idea that not everything in life carries a profound meaning, would the whole belief system this place is built on just crumble? We can try to find patterns in nature, the universe, or human behavior... but even a tiny anomaly is enough to remind us that there are no absolute rules. Life is beautiful precisely because it lacks a rigid script.
Everything I’m reading here feels like a desperate need for control and constant justification.
Look, I’m not a spiritual person, so just take this as a layman's perspective—just an outsider's impression.

Life holds its beauty precisely because it exists above the reach of mere rules...

What matters, matters; and what doesn't matter? Well, that simply doesn't matter...

the vet said:copperowl2,

aren't you forgetting that old Gnostic wisdom...?!

[Do not give what is holy to dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turning to tear you. (Mattea VII 6)]

Cheers!

Let the dogs have their bones to gnaw on; those for whom the meat was actually intended will recognize it when they see it.
If you take a closer look, you’ll notice quite a few of these dogs are absolutely lunging at those bones.
And then you have people telling them, "Don't bother, you're just wasting your breath, don't read that, just move on!", yet they persist, charging ahead just to expose more of their own hidden, messy frescoes with every word they scribble.
They can't touch the actual meat; they’d love to sink their teeth into it, but it remains entirely out of their reach.
So why should I care? These dogs can do nothing more than bark.
And really, why does a dog bark?
Is it perhaps just trying to protect its little territory?
😂

Fishing and the constant complaints from the docks—LIVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

🙂 🙂 🙂
😂😂

Karen Sanchez19 said:Fishing and fishing complaints LIVE !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

🙂 🙂 🙂
😂😂

🤣

masterblaster said:Look, I'm really not exactly the spiritual type,

And you think the people bragging about it actually are? 🤣
They aren't even close... 😁

masterblaster said:Look, I’m no philosopher or anything, so just take this as some random person's outsider perspective.

Shame on you, you heathen! You really need to wake up and face reality. Maybe if you slogged through four circles of hell and finally grasped the five and a half ultimate truths, you'd have something worth saying...
😁 😉
Get a grip, or you're gonna get it!
😲 😁

Anyway...
🙂 ☕

Herpes... seriously, maybe dial it back on the bourbon a bit.🙂 🙂

The most profound damage we suffer comes either from those who mirror our own flaws or from the women we choose to turn away.
There simply aren't enough words to quantify the sheer malice harbored by those whose desires we refuse to satisfy—especially when they’ve spent their entire lives being catered to.
If anyone truly wants to discover what their sycophants actually think of them, perhaps they should stop dancing to whatever tune those people are playing.
All those sweet, hollow compliments will instantly evaporate, replaced by nothing but bitterness, resentment, and cheap, low blows.
After all, someone who lives only for the win absolutely loathes the idea of losing; they will fight tooth and nail against the simple reality that every victory carries the seed of an eventual defeat.

The affection a person offers is often little more than lust; there is no sincerity or clarity there, just the murky currents of instinct pushing toward a specific goal.
When those demands go unmet, this version of love instantly morphs into its polar opposite.
In truth, it was never love to begin with.
It was merely naked, ego-driven LUST, perversely using noble emotions as a tool to feed its own primal urges.
Hatred in the heart reveals itself most clearly during moments of confrontation.
To reject a predatory, lustful pursuit—to realize that beneath a songbird's melody lies the cackle of a scavenger feeding on remains—is to trigger a deep-seated hatred, effectively inviting a hell of insults, irrational accusations, and endless hostility.

There is a profound, almost transcendent sort of luck found in being able to step back and observe that scavenging hyena lurking within our own souls. It is a vital realization to recognize that this creature—this scavenger—is not, in any true sense, our actual self. We cannot hope to suppress it, because attempting to stifle that instinct is nothing more than futile repression. That hyena will remain exactly what it is until the day it dies; there is no "fixing" it, no moral engineering that can fundamentally alter its nature. Perhaps the only way to deal with such a thing is to starve it out. We hasten its demise by refusing to feed it, ensuring it withers away simply by watching it intently without ever once participating in its twisted, predatory games.

Then we move on to examining the observer who is doing the observing—continuing this inward spiral until the act of observation and the object being observed eventually merge into one single, seamless entity... or so I’d like to think.

It isn't nearly as difficult to deal with an adversary who is openly snarling like a rabid hyena. No, the real danger lies when that same hyena starts acting polite—when she’s smiling at you, playing the part of the charming entertainer, and feeding our egos just enough to make us feel important. That’s when you're truly in trouble. It’s the laughter of the hyena that really gets you. 😁

Just look at how those elite little gnostic brothers pat each other on the back and feed into each other's egos... 😁
It’s honestly kind of adorable. 😍

copperowl2 said:The people who can truly wreck you are either those who are mirrors of your own flaws, or perhaps the women you decide to turn away.
There aren't enough words to describe the sheer malice of someone whose desires you refuse to satisfy—especially if they’ve spent their whole lives getting exactly what they want.
If you ever want to find out what people actually think of you—instead of just listening to the sycophants who flatter you—stop dancing to their tune.
All those sweet compliments will vanish in an instant, replaced by bitterness, pure hatred, and cheap shots.
Because the type of person obsessed with winning absolutely loathes losing; they'll fight tooth and nail against the simple reality that every victory eventually invites a defeat.

The "love" most people offer is nothing more than lust; there's no honesty or clarity in it, just the murky waters of primal instinct pushing toward a goal.
When someone's whims aren't met, this version of love instantly morphs into its polar opposite.
In truth, it was never love to begin with.
It was just naked, ego-driven LUST, cleverly and perversely weaponizing noble emotions just to feed its own animalistic needs.
Hatred reveals itself the moment a person is forced to face who they really are.
To reject a predatory, lustful pursuit—to realize that beneath a songbird's melody hides the scream of a scavenger looking for a carcass—is to trigger a deep-seated resentment. It's an invitation to a hell of insults, irrational accusations, and endless hostility.

I don't know. I'm not afraid of lust. I'm afraid of the people who are afraid of it.
Because when you suppress pleasure (mistaking it for weakness), you just end up becoming arrogant (thinking you've conquered a flaw that's actually still there).

masterblaster said:Because if you ignore pleasure—thinking it's some kind of weakness—you just end up becoming arrogant, thinking you've somehow conquered your own humanity.

🤣 😲 👍

masterblaster said:because if you ignore pleasure—under the delusion that it’s a weakness—you simply end up becoming arrogant, convinced that you’ve somehow conquered a flaw.

You’re talking nonsense, girl, pure nonsense!
It is quite evident that your mental maturity hasn't fully ripened yet, and that you haven't truly become a woman in the complete sense of the word; perhaps try revisiting this statement in ten years, at which point you might actually find yourself laughable.
We are going to enjoy ourselves wherever we please and with whomever we choose.
Canceling someone might just be a matter of having a weak stomach on the part of the one doing the canceling, backed by perfectly valid reasons, rather than some (truly idiotic) conviction that physical pleasure is an inherent sign of weakness.

Everything you write here is really just a reflection of yourselves!
Isn't it fascinating to observe how you all attempt to think using other people's minds?
How you project your own sycophancy and your own ways of groveling onto everyone else around you.
But then again, that is entirely your own problem!

As for the hyena, she is intimately familiar with the song of the birds.
While her every whim is being satisfied, she chirps out expressions of pure contentment, but the moment you turn your back, or the second you stop catering to her desires, the hyena begins to show her teeth.
That is when a person's true opinion of someone finally surfaces.
Until that point, it was all just acting, a pretense, nothing more than a mask.
We tend to think well of those who are useful to us, less so when they aren't, and most harshly of all when they refuse to provide their services.

copperowl2 said:Girl, you are absolutely tripping!
It’s pretty obvious you haven't quite grown up yet or found your footing in the real world. Honestly, come back and read this in ten years—you’re going to laugh at how ridiculous you sound right now.
...

Yeah, Dad. 🙄 😁

copperowl2 said:...

Everything you’re posting here is just a reflection of yourselves!
It’s honestly pretty fascinating watching you all try to project your own logic onto everyone else.
You take your own desperate attempts at sucking up to people and your constant butt-kissing, then act like it’s how the whole world works.
But honestly? That’s strictly your own issue. ....

Does that rule apply to you too? 😁

I’ve been scrolling through this thread, and it’s got me thinking...
Human nature is just built that way—unpredictable, shifting, and constantly in motion. Any attempt to force Chaos into some kind of orderly box is probably just a temporary fix. It feels to me like all this "suffering" we talk about so much, and the constant struggle to escape it, actually stems from our minds trying too hard to find a foothold. We try to anchor ourselves, to become consistent, to build a mental model or a framework to live by. But since that goes against our core essence, we eventually snap under the pressure. All those suppressed emotions, thoughts, and desires just burst out in twisted, sometimes even terrifying ways.
So, what can we actually do about it? Honestly, the only thing I see is trying to observe our own nature moment by moment—as best as we can, given our limitations—without being so violent toward ourselves. Just moving through it slowly without forcing a mold. That’s my take, anyway. If anyone has a better idea, I’m all ears. 🙂
On a side note, I have to be honest: all this talk about the "True Self," the "soul," the "Divine spark," the "Absolute," or "enlightenment"—stuff I’ve never experienced firsthand and honestly don't know how to reach—just doesn't land for me. They're interesting concepts to play with intellectually, sure, and I can choose to believe them if I want, but I can't hold onto a belief for very long (and it's getting harder to do so as I get older) without direct, personal evidence. Even if someone, somewhere, once had a profound experience like that, it doesn't mean anything to me because I haven't lived it. The more I dwell on it, the more it feels like these ideas about finding some hidden "Truth" that will eventually make everything perfect are just another trick of the mind. It’s just another way we try to find a solid foundation that isn't there. We convince ourselves it’s tucked away in some parallel dimension, buried deep inside us, or waiting for us in some imaginary future, just to avoid facing the fact that there is no external or internal anchor to grab onto. 😢

We can only attempt to follow our own nature moment by moment, to the best of our ability and through the methods we know, slowly transcending our own limitations without resorting to self-inflicted violence. I see no other way.

No one in this world can truly do anything else... you put it beautifully... we simply aren't capable of
living out our true nature. Truth, God, Knowledge—these are all merely tools and means to help us achieve it,
to actually live it. But what exactly is this nature that we struggle to embody? Are we constantly in contact with it? Is who we are right now a reflection of that essence? Why are we unable to live as our truest selves? Where does this feeling originate, and when do you recognize it? When was it at its loudest and most visceral in your life? These are the questions that draw you closer to what you call "your nature." There are those who have already encountered their true nature—the very thing you desire to live, yet lack the knowledge to fully grasp... they have understood it more deeply than we have, leaving markers along the path to guide us toward our own discovery...
Truth isn't something hidden away, nor is it revealed in a single flash; truth is something you come to know, something you uncover by living it, by walking the path... by becoming everything for that inner nature, as you say...
Ideas are nothing more than seeds. Some will take root within you and sprout into shoots, some even into great trees with sprawling canopies, always evolving into something larger and fuller than the initial thought itself. Others will fail to germinate entirely, depending entirely upon your own maturity and capacity to receive, just as it depends on the inherent strength of the ideas themselves. Those you are ready to embrace will strike roots in you; you will nourish them, and you will grow alongside them. The others? They will belong to someone else. Every person possesses their own unique symbols, their own ideas that resonate with their specific being... not every seed is suited for every soil, and not every soil is meant for every seed. In much the same way, some ideas exist solely to lead you toward a new idea, and who knows how far that journey might go... eventually, there will come a time when words that currently leave you unmoved—words that hold no weight—will be felt more tangibly than
the physical reality you see before your eyes. Only then will you look back at how you felt just a few years ago, perhaps feeling disconnected from yourself, and you will smile at the memory...
All models must eventually fracture under the sheer weight of existence, which perpetually burdens the intellect with a load heavier than the mind itself, releasing a fullness within a person that no rigid model can contain or accept—it can only be embraced through life itself, emerging from within...
Thus, there are living words and dead words. You will always feel the living words with a singular power, a power born from the raw experience of
life...

Human nature is what it is—fickle, unstable, and constantly shifting. Any attempt to impose order upon Chaos will ultimately be nothing more than a fleeting, temporary fix.

Chaos is actually an illusion...

Or perhaps Chaos itself is the true order. Now, the physicists will surely come for my head for saying that.😁 😁

I don't see any other way.

That’s because you’re EXPECTING change, when there really isn't anything to expect here..

Krinka said:All we can really do is try to live authentically, moment by moment, to the best of our ability. It’s about slowly outgrowing our own limitations without being so hard on ourselves along the way.

But here's the thing: the "observer" doing the following is just as much a part of that shifting nature. If they weren't, they wouldn't just vanish every time we fall into a deep sleep!
😲
So, where does that leave us?