yes, bluegrass is some kind of country western music :D


otherwise, generally it is a weed:

Blue Lyme Grass - Elymus arenarius 'Glaucus'
Ht: 1' - 3' Full Sun - Perennial
Soil: rained Soil
One of the bluest grasses. Grows to 3' and begins to weep creating a beautiful blue mound. This ornamental grass spreads by underground rhizomes.

http://www.entomology.cornell.edu/Extension/Woodys/CUGroundCoverSite/images/leymus.jpg

and also see:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/turf/publications/bluegrass.html

A wise man once said

Do not accept anything on mere hearsay (i.e. thinking that
thus we have heard for a long time)

Do not accept anything by mere tradition (i.e. thinking
that it has thus been handed down: through many
generations)

Do not accept anything on account of rumors (i.e. believing
what others say without investigation)

Do not accept anything just because it accords with your
scriptures

Do not accept anything by mere supposition

Do not accept anything by mere inference

Do not accept anything by merely considering the appearances

Do not accept anything merely because it agrees with your
preconceived notions

Do not accept anything merely because it seems acceptable
(i.e. should be accepted)

Do not accept anything thinking that the ascetic is respected;
by us (and therefore it is right to accept his word)

But after observation and analysis, when you find that anything
agrees with and is conducive to the good and benefit of one and
all, then accept and abide by it.

So CG, You would have us follow you through that very same hole The White Rabbit and Alice proceeded earlier where everything is topsy turvy and reality is not what it seems. Does not the fact that you have struggle with your philosophy/beliefs for over fourty years give you cause for concern. Perhaps what you endeavour is not possible. Perhaps, there is no spirituality, merely neurons firing away in our brains that happens to give rise to these fanciful notions about gods which we feed incessantly every Sunday for some, to abate our insecurities about death

Oparietal, I don't want you to think I am ignoring you. Intuitively, what you write/say sounds convincing and often makes sense, but you still hold onto a concept of life after death. You still believe in spirits (dijins or whatever). You dismissed the bible as an adulterated book which should not be trusted as a source of truth or spritual food, but you continuously quote from its passages to support your points. On some days you are very rational, but on other days it is as if someone other than you are posting. :confused:

So CG, You would have us follow you through that very same hole The White Rabbit and Alice proceeded earlier where everything is topsy turvy and reality is not what it seems.
No! You must go where your nature takes you. But is reality always what it seems? Is Alice and the White Rabbit nonsense? http://www.sabian.org/alice1mj.htm

Does not the fact that you have struggle with your philosophy/beliefs for over fourty years give you cause for concern.
My struggles were more in the beginning that now. That is not a surprise.When one enters anything new it is a struggle.

Perhaps what you endeavour is not possible.
Endeavoring to do something hard and worth while.

Perhaps, there is no spirituality, merely neurons firing away in our brains that happens to give rise to these fanciful notions about gods
This is also possible, but not likely.

which we feed incessantly every Sunday for some, to abate our insecurities about death
First of all we don't meet every Sunday and as for insecurities about death, the Buddhist is the least likely to have such insecurities

yes, bluegrass is some kind of country western music :D


otherwise, generally it is a weed:

Blue Lyme Grass - Elymus arenarius 'Glaucus'
Ht: 1' - 3' Full Sun - Perennial
Soil: rained Soil
One of the bluest grasses. Grows to 3' and begins to weep creating a beautiful blue mound. This ornamental grass spreads by underground rhizomes.

http://www.entomology.cornell.edu/Extension/Woodys/CUGroundCoverSite/images/leymus.jpg

and also see:
http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/plantanswers/turf/publications/bluegrass.html

But it is still a grass!

McKnown, D. (Ph.D), (1996 August), A sermon on the mount: Freethough Today wrote "You have heard that it was said by them of old time that there is a spiritual world, that there are spiritual people, spiritual knowledge, spiritual beliefs, and spiritual acts, but I say unto you that there is no spiritual world as such nor does the world of matter/energy in space/time have any objective spiritual dimension. What is called the spiritual is an illusion, but an illusion that feigns reality expertly.
Whatever "spiritual" may mean metaphorically, at base it refers to ethereal entities having minds and dispositions that, among other tasks, aid or afflict human beings. These presumed entities, it must be remembered, inhabit a kingdom ruled over by a supreme, and supremely good spirit, who dwells on high. Nor should it be forgotten that in Christian mythology, the king of good spirits is, for a time at least, resisted by the prince of evil spirits, of demons and imps that inhabit what might be called the infernosphere (sic) but that infest our world as well, causing evil, sickness, disease, and death. But, if all such "spirit-entities," good and bad alike, are fictitious, what distinguishes the spiritual person from the non-spiritual person, spiritual knowledge from non-spiritual knowledge, spiritual belief from non-spiritual belief, and spiritual action from non-spiritual action? The answers are deceptively simple.

The spiritual person, unlike the unspiritual person, is a dualist who not only interacts with the physical world, as we all do, but also interacts through vivid imagination with a particular "spirit world." When such imaginings are idiosyncratic, they are transparently eccentric or even mad, but when the imaginings and make-believe at issue are collective, are handed down by tradition authoritatively, are accepted by many (if not most) people, and are reinforced by hope and fear, such imaginings are opaque to the imaginer(s) and appear to be as real as anything in the physical world.

"Spiritual knowledge" is a misnomer. Nobody knows anything about "spirit-entities" as defined above, because so far we have discerned nothing to know. Moreover, when one claims to know something about sacred objects or theology all one knows is what somebody else believes or thinks. Believing in or thinking about sacred objects or theology cannot guarantee objective knowledge about the topic(s) at issue. Spiritual belief, though not a misnomer, is, nonetheless, not what most people take it to be. It is simply belief in this, that, or the other insofar as what is believed in is inextricably linked, in the believer's mind, to the so-called spirit world. By this token, unspiritual belief is belief in any this, that, or the other, devoid of all reference to spirits and divorced from their alleged activities.

Spiritual actions must be divided into two, the ethical and the cultic. Respecting the former, an instance of promise keeping or of truth telling will appear to the ethical, but unspiritual, person to be morally right, but to the spiritual person, both morally and spiritually right, because the act at issue will be seen in light of what the "sovereign spirit" wants done. To continue, conspicuous service to one's country or bravery in its defense will be viewed by the unspiritual person as simply patriotic, to the spiritual person as both patriotic and spiritual, because it is what the "king of spirits" expects. Further, whereas enjoyment of aesthetic experiences will be simply that and no more to the unspiritual person, these will be both aesthetic and spiritual to the spiritual person, because the "king of spirits" will be seen as having given us beauty to enjoy in nature, art, and music. Finally, moments of deep feeling, of, for example, inspiration, joy, or exaltation will be just that and no more to the unspiritual person, but to the spiritual person these will be both profoundly emotional and spiritual, because they will be seen as infusions of divine grace from the "sovereign spirit."

Respecting cultic actions, the difference between the unspiritual and the spiritual could not be greater. The former do not bend the knee, bowing and scraping, before any unseen presence, ask no favors, in Jesus' name, of the alleged king of spirits, do not suffer themselves to be submerged in water or have it sprinkled or poured upon their heads to effect a metaphysical change, participate in no acts of ritual cannibalism, and engage in no other magical practices. The former do any or all of these routinely -- and even more".

McKnown, D. (Ph.D), (1996 August), A sermon on the mount: Freethough Today wrote "You have heard that it was said by them of old time that there is a spiritual world, that there are spiritual people, spiritual knowledge, spiritual beliefs, and spiritual acts, but I say unto you that there is no spiritual world as such nor does the world of matter/energy in space/time have any objective spiritual dimension. What is called the spiritual is an illusion, but an illusion that feigns reality expertly.
Whatever "spiritual" may mean metaphorically, at base it refers to ethereal entities having minds and dispositions that, among other tasks, aid or afflict human beings. These presumed entities, it must be remembered, inhabit a kingdom ruled over by a supreme, and supremely good spirit, who dwells on high. Nor should it be forgotten that in Christian mythology, the king of good spirits is, for a time at least, resisted by the prince of evil spirits, of demons and imps that inhabit what might be called the infernosphere (sic) but that infest our world as well, causing evil, sickness, disease, and death. But, if all such "spirit-entities," good and bad alike, are fictitious, what distinguishes the spiritual person from the non-spiritual person, spiritual knowledge from non-spiritual knowledge, spiritual belief from non-spiritual belief, and spiritual action from non-spiritual action? The answers are deceptively simple.

The spiritual person, unlike the unspiritual person, is a dualist who not only interacts with the physical world, as we all do, but also interacts through vivid imagination with a particular "spirit world." When such imaginings are idiosyncratic, they are transparently eccentric or even mad, but when the imaginings and make-believe at issue are collective, are handed down by tradition authoritatively, are accepted by many (if not most) people, and are reinforced by hope and fear, such imaginings are opaque to the imaginer(s) and appear to be as real as anything in the physical world.

"Spiritual knowledge" is a misnomer. Nobody knows anything about "spirit-entities" as defined above, because so far we have discerned nothing to know. Moreover, when one claims to know something about sacred objects or theology all one knows is what somebody else believes or thinks. Believing in or thinking about sacred objects or theology cannot guarantee objective knowledge about the topic(s) at issue. Spiritual belief, though not a misnomer, is, nonetheless, not what most people take it to be. It is simply belief in this, that, or the other insofar as what is believed in is inextricably linked, in the believer's mind, to the so-called spirit world. By this token, unspiritual belief is belief in any this, that, or the other, devoid of all reference to spirits and divorced from their alleged activities.

Spiritual actions must be divided into two, the ethical and the cultic. Respecting the former, an instance of promise keeping or of truth telling will appear to the ethical, but unspiritual, person to be morally right, but to the spiritual person, both morally and spiritually right, because the act at issue will be seen in light of what the "sovereign spirit" wants done. To continue, conspicuous service to one's country or bravery in its defense will be viewed by the unspiritual person as simply patriotic, to the spiritual person as both patriotic and spiritual, because it is what the "king of spirits" expects. Further, whereas enjoyment of aesthetic experiences will be simply that and no more to the unspiritual person, these will be both aesthetic and spiritual to the spiritual person, because the "king of spirits" will be seen as having given us beauty to enjoy in nature, art, and music. Finally, moments of deep feeling, of, for example, inspiration, joy, or exaltation will be just that and no more to the unspiritual person, but to the spiritual person these will be both profoundly emotional and spiritual, because they will be seen as infusions of divine grace from the "sovereign spirit."

Respecting cultic actions, the difference between the unspiritual and the spiritual could not be greater. The former do not bend the knee, bowing and scraping, before any unseen presence, ask no favors, in Jesus' name, of the alleged king of spirits, do not suffer themselves to be submerged in water or have it sprinkled or poured upon their heads to effect a metaphysical change, participate in no acts of ritual cannibalism, and engage in no other magical practices. The former do any or all of these routinely -- and even more".

McKnown, D. (Ph.D), seems to believe that there is no belief and he believes that strongly. That is his privilege to do so. Good for him that he "sticks by his guns!" I hope he allows the same right to believers in Spiritual matters because when all is said and done only death will show who is right. I hope his non-belief, belief, gives him as much comfort as Spiritual belief gives to believers! :cheers:

Oparietal, I don't want you to think I am ignoring you. Intuitively, what you write/say sounds convincing and often makes sense, but you still hold onto a concept of life after death. You still believe in spirits (dijins or whatever). You dismissed the bible as an adulterated book which should not be trusted as a source of truth or spritual food, but you continuously quote from its passages to support your points. On some days you are very rational, but on other days it is as if someone other than you are posting. :confused:


LMAO. Agreed. Whole-heartedly. Come now Truthseeker. Are we not able to cite Sesame Street as a valid source as to the number that comes before "5" and after "3"?
This was one of the first things I posted on the site.
There are no rational human beings. Find me one.

There are truths within the Bible along with misrepresentations as well.
A maker of knives can make all the knives he/she wants with the intentions of the knives being used as tools, but can he/she GUARANTEE that the knives will be used as tools? No.
The same with the Bible. Tool or weapon? Many people go around saying it is ONLY a tool, few are willing to admit that it IS and can be a weapon.

Allow me to put it to you then:
When a professed clique of people with a evident history of using said "intended tool" as a weapon present themselves before you (and others) and use it to wrest the very right to live from others, will you trust in the professed "intention" or the evident "ammunition?"
I've learned that I have the capability to find many options, to react to this scenario. Not just an EITHER/OR of the two proffered.

Touching spirits, I know what I have experienced. I have all the proof I need. What substantiates itself as truth/proof for you will be different. The most I can do, with MY spirit is offer reconsideration.

If I told you that you were not 'finished', would you chuckle or be offended? Suppose I can find the scientific research to support my claim in this?
It is said that the human brain does not fully develop to it's average functional capacity until about the age of 30.
And I am 25. So for me to inquire of you, and for you to inquire of me, when neither of us are "fully developed" solves and satisfies what?
So why do we do it?
Might I say again, a related term for "pooling info" is called REsources. Why do we call it REsources? Have we in mind and body existed before? Or perhaps, there was a pre-existing source that we draw upon when we convene...
Which leads me to speak concerning life after death: Forgive me again if I am incorrect, but it seems you subscribe to the 'notion of certainty' that Death marks the end of life? For me, death is an objective (positive/negative and every variation in between) segment of life, like sleep and excretement.
Does Birth mark the beginning of Life for you?



True, and that "something else" cannot be reached with words
I'm not sure if I can explain this clearly, but you have to understand that
Mankind has this pattern...We cannot universally explain it.
Oh, I agree. I'm not trying to "reach on/for anyone else's behalf" per se...moreso trying to convey or allude. I'm an artist...I draw upon that which is to be reached, to illustrate that it exists.
At best I can only provide "second-hand goods" for consideration.

P.S. If I remember correctly, the Bible says to lean not unto your own understanding.

Then why submit yourself to something that can not be understood through rational means; has no foundation to build upon, as far as I am concern, is full of ambiguity and only serve to divide us as humans? If the Tao that you understand is probably not the true Toa, why seek the Tao only to find he/it is probably not the true Tao also. It seems all superfluos to me. I think we could spend our time in more useful pursuits, other than trying to comprehend a transient, difficult to understand belief system.

Don't know if this would shed some light, but I read something very long ago (can't recall by whom) which makes sense to me and it goes like this: "Worldly knowledge must be understood to be believed, but divine knowledge must be believed to be understood"

Seems that CG touched on this to some extent. One thing CG said about people who are trained in religion being discouraged to go by their instinct surprised me. If a person studies the Bible seriously, or perhaps any religious book, and develops his spirit man, I would think he would be so rooted and grounded in love and holiness that he would obey the promptings of his spirit man very quickly, and/or instinctively!

[Ps. I have been off the site for 9 days as my computer was in the shop under repairs].

Glad you are back! Nine days to fix your computer? They were not hurrying were they? :)

One thing CG said about people who are trained in religion being discouraged to go by their instinct surprised me.

Can you point out the place where I said that?

9 days ... next time give me a shout ..

rory

Glad you are back! Nine days to fix your computer? They were not hurrying were they? :)



Can you point out the place where I said that?

CG, check the ending part of post# 201 where you are discussing a posting of Parietal.

Yes, my machine went bad Feb 3. It would boot up perfectly, but after the bootup, the monitor screen would go black and there was absolutely nothing on it. The little overlapping piece of plastic on a floppy disk got caught up in the floppy drive. I wrote these things down and carried the mach in to the place I bought it, early Feb 4. I think the main problem was the tech who worked on it could hardly speak english and when I talked to him on the phone seems we could not understand each other. [it was also found out that my motherboard was bad]. Finally got mach back Feb 11 and still could not get on the net, till last night a tech from Cable Bahamas walked me through how to get my IP address back and thank heavens I was able to again access the net.

Rory, If I had known you do that type of work, would have been glad to give you the job!

CG, check the ending part of post# 201 where you are discussing a posting of Parietal.

Yes, my machine went bad Feb 3. It would boot up perfectly, but after the bootup, the monitor screen would go black and there was absolutely nothing on it. The little overlapping piece of plastic on a floppy disk got caught up in the floppy drive. I wrote these things down and carried the mach in to the place I bought it, early Feb 4. I think the main problem was the tech who worked on it could hardly speak english and when I talked to him on the phone seems we could not understand each other. [it was also found out that my motherboard was bad]. Finally got mach back Feb 11 and still could not get on the net, till last night a tech from Cable Bahamas walked me through how to get my IP address back and thank heavens I was able to again access the net.

Rory, If I had known you do that type of work, would have been glad to give you the job!


no prob, email me if you ever have any questions .. I just do it for people I know, friends, security clients, and family.

I generally pick up the machine and have it ready by the next day as I do it at night, if it requires hardware that can take longer .. a couple days, as i dont sell hardware but buy local or away depends on the client, the hardware, and their budget. (did you know you can get a new PC Tower from Miami for less than $300 - factory refurbished 2.4-2.8 ghz - its what Im using)

rory

Don't know if this would shed some light, but I read something very long ago (can't recall by whom) which makes sense to me and it goes like this: "Worldly knowledge must be understood to be believed, but divine knowledge must be believed to be understood"

Seems that CG touched on this to some extent. One thing CG said about people who are trained in religion being discouraged to go by their instinct surprised me. If a person studies the Bible seriously, or perhaps any religious book, and develops his spirit man, I would think he would be so rooted and grounded in love and holiness that he would obey the promptings of his spirit man very quickly, and/or instinctively!

[Ps. I have been off the site for 9 days as my computer was in the shop under repairs].

I am using my old desktop a pentium II as my laptop had water spilled on it.