Caustic Ramblings

I very seldom remember my dreams. And if I do, it's usually only fragments of them. I very rarely feel like I have much of any control over my dreams and the ones I can remember seem rather random to the point where I don't bother trying to decipher whatever symbolism might be contained within. Recently though I've had flashbacks of dreams that seem to occur on repeat, yet I never really remember them. The one thing I do remember is "flying" in them. The precise motion would be me pushing downward on the air with my hands and a levitation effect results from those movements. Really, the motions are very similar to what I would do if I was swimming underwater and wanted to ascend to the surface. But anyway, this "flying" conjures up a thought of deep familiarity, though I can really make sense of it beyond that.

Last night though I had what I'm very sure was a lucid dream. I was suddenly in my old house and it was vivid and extremely detailed. And right I was I was fully cognizant of the fact I was in a dream. As I was walking down the stairs I was touching and feeling the wooden hand-railing and the spindles. It felt so real! I could feel the pressure and fiction of grasping material objects. This place felt as real as any other place, despite my full awareness I was in a dream. Now, this lucid dream was not one that I willed myself into (I'm not sure I even know how to do that); rather, I just happened to end up there, for whatever reason. As I got to the bottom of the stairs, I suddenly remembered my old levitation maneuver. "Hmm, let me try this out," I thought to myself. Then I was slowly floating my way back up the stairs. When I got to the top the scenery changed and there was a wall in front of me that was definitely not part of my old house. Then the lucid dream suddenly ended and I was no longer there.

Was this a brief lesson of sorts? I have no idea. But I did come out of this with an immediate intuitive grasp of how the astral plane is just as real the material. Now, this doesn't mean I'm going to make an effort to go astral travelling; such an endeavor seems entirely foolish unless there is a very specific, spiritually-affirming reason to do so. I also realize it's a big wilderness of unknowns and the sort of dangers and pitfalls that comes along with that sort of territory. But overall I think this topic might be something very safe to explore in meditation.

As someone who is constantly juggling around ideas in his head (often to excess), I should know this quite well. Namely, that ideas alone are not worth the paper I could print them out on, if I was so inclined.

Ideas are cheap; everyone has them; they are seemingly-abundant as drops of water in the ocean. And unfortunately, many fall into the delusion that might suggest their own random ideas are somehow more unique or insightful than the next guy's idea.

In reality, if an idea cannot be brought into some form of practical manifestation then the idea alone is little more than a fleeting moment of mental chatter (refer back to the ocean allegory above). In other words, we could say that most "ideas" are quite mundane. And by that, it seems sensible that common cognitive traffic is more-often-than-not, a distraction from whatever the pertinent task-at-hand might be on a given day. More than a few spiritual teachers have used the imagery of 1000 monkeys flailing around a tiny room as an analogy for how the mundane human mind conducts itself. Indeed, frantic mental chatter does seem comparable to that sort of crude comparison.

How about those intensively-creative people who always seem to be bouncing vivid and interesting ideas around in their heads? Well, we could say that the ones we end up hearing about are people who earn the title known as artist for a good reason. A true art, if we're to be true to the core concept behind this word, is a complex skill process; there is quite a long chain of progressive steps whereby a raw idea or impression gets transmuted into a finished product that other sentient beings perceive at least some degree of value in. In other words for an idea to be of value, the finished product which is inspired by the root idea must either have some practical use for others, or it should elicit some degree of enjoyment (or any other sort of memorable emotional effect), with many bonus points accrued if the final product question is a reflection of Natural Law and thus conveys the timeless qualities of Truth and Beauty. Even if the artistic product is mediocre, there's still a detail refinement process required for that product to see the light of day. In other words, E for Effort.

An idea followed through to its productive end is what differentiates the listless "dude on a couch" who can merely talk a good game (if even) from the person who actually brings their ideas to fruition. Let's face it, no one likes the "idea guy" or that stereotypical "knowitall." Such gadflies and naggers tend to be the sort of people who do nothing but talk. They're quite adept at jabbing critiquing other people's work, and they may even have some vivid fantasies of their own with regard to hypothetical works-in-progress that will be ostensibly-superior to that of what they're so diligently critiquing. In all likelihood though, the perennial critic is unable to bring their own ideas into tangible manifestation and thus they lash out at the creations of others. Basically, this is a good example of psychological projection at play; one that is fueled our favorite vice known as envy.

The "idea guy" is the one at workplace meetings who acts like he or she can run their work group or division better than their boss. While of course this is always within the realm of possibilities, the more likely reality is that the chronic complainer is acting out of insecurity and might feel entitled to liberty of zooming from point A to Z without going through all the intermediate steps first. In response, the boss who is firm and in control (and unrestrained by political correctness, if the repeat complainant happens to check off one or more victim boxes) will simply tell the nagger to put up or shut up. In the end, it's the person with skin in the game and a track record of proven results who gets consulted for advice and expertise. The Law of Reciprocity demands that respect must be earned. So then how does that person who has lots of ideas but can't get anything done get treated? Well, anyone who happens to be reading this should be able to easily use their imagination on this one.

We can zoom this concept out to the macro scale and look back on various cults and ideologies (probably started by idea guys) which have emerged over many unfolding centuries that have centered themselves around the idea that humans are somehow owed the privilege of instantly progressing from the miserable and drudgerous material realm all the way to some idyllic abode of perfect ideals; 0-60 in three seconds flat, so to speak. The painful and boring process of getting from A to Z is just downright malevolent, sadistic, or evil, as the ensuing logical chain of thought along these lines might end up suggesting. At least the process of renouncing this evil, fallen world requires a modicum of effort and perseverance. But merely pledging allegiance to the correct world-denying cult? Well, not so much. Anyway, I digress much. But yes, life is certainly a struggle for the person who lives in their head all day and can't be bothered to use their hands.

Finally, to say that I myself am not guilty of any of the problems I outline above, would be an act of gross hypocrisy. By that, let this post be officially known as a personal journal entry. And if anyone reading this can resonate with anything above, and thus make some use of these ideas, then I've already jumpstarted own redemption arc.

Well, not entirely. But what has been gradually sinking in (in probably in a way-too-slow manner) is the idea that I must sever tied with almost the entirety of social media; this is something that has consumed far too much of my own time, energy and essence over the past way-too-many years. So many tasty lures have sucked me into that realm. Namely (but not limited to),

(1) my need (more like, attachment) to interact with people who share my own intellectual interests, tastes, and sensibilities;

(2) my tendency to mindlessly pursue the guilty pleasure of arguing with people (of course from the safety of my keyboard) on topics relevant to said interests, despite the outcome almost always being fruitless and emotionally-exhausting for both me and probably the digital persona I am interacting with;

(3) the attachment of being "plugged in"to everything relevant to said interests happening everywhere internet-based, which itself is an affliction that too many of us tech-saavy people are now suffering in varying degrees.

I don't even want to contemplate the long term psychological and neurological effects of these bad habits. But luckily there is an easy first step in addressing this and that is the simple act of acknowledgement. I imagine I will be making a series of follow-up progress reports on this anticipated discovery and remediation process. Social media itself is a fascinating enough topic and I will surely be exploring the many aspects of its effects on people and society.

In the meantime, a separation from big-tech social media is the first order of business.