The Force?

[LosingMyReligion]

I'll preface this by stating that I have zero belief in Gods, particularly the all too human personalities that control our fates(i.e. Jesus, Zeus, Isis, and etc). I'm 100% sure that those concepts do not exist.

However, I've always sort of believed in the "energy Field" that is talked about in Star Wars(and various other ideas regarding those themes). "The force," the energy field that encompasses everything, from the universe to a grain of sand. I don't believe in punishment for "right" and "wrong"(i.e. divine reprisal)but Karma is something that I take very seriously. I think it is the universe's way of balancing itself out. I guess you could say that I look at the entire universe as "God," if that makes any sense whatsoever.

I know that "The force" is something from a series of movies, but I think the concept if very plausible.

 

So, does anyone else believe in energy and Karma? My belief is that once we die we sorta just go back being energy and just get recycled(reincarnation). To me it doesn't have to be about a sentient being weaving everything together, just the natural flow of energy.

[Jun]

I'll preface this by stating that I have zero belief in Gods, particularly the all too human personalities that control our fates(i.e. Jesus, Zeus, Isis, and etc). I'm 100% sure that those concepts do not exist.

However, I've always sort of believed in the "energy Field" that is talked about in Star Wars(and various other ideas regarding those themes). "The force," the energy field that encompasses everything, from the universe to a grain of sand. I don't believe in punishment for "right" and "wrong"(i.e. divine reprisal)but Karma is something that I take very seriously. I think it is the universe's way of balancing itself out. I guess you could say that I look at the entire universe as "God," if that makes any sense whatsoever.

I know that "The force" is something from a series of movies, but I think the concept if very plausible.

 

So, does anyone else believe in energy and Karma? My belief is that once we die we sorta just go back being energy and just get recycled(reincarnation). To me it doesn't have to be about a sentient being weaving everything together, just the natural flow of energy.

 

"The Force" is Lucas' rendering of the Asian belief in ki/chi/prana.

 

Can I ask, what do you understand karma to mean? How do you believe it works?

[Dhampir]

I don't believe in punishment for "right" and "wrong"(i.e. divine reprisal)but Karma is something that I take very seriously. I think it is the universe's way of balancing itself out. I guess you could say that I look at the entire universe as "God," if that makes any sense whatsoever.

Honestly? I say Karma is whack, a bunch of coincidences that occasionally lead to someone getting their comeuppance for misdeeds, just as much as when bad shit happens to good people and good shit to bad.

 

Think about it: this world, and all the probably few dozen worlds that might house life intelligent enough to consider the ramifications of its actions, are but atomic specks in a universe so vast we still can't comprehend it. The universe doesn't give a FUCK about the sub atomic sub specks that dwell therein who think they're great enough to get it's attention, just because they're smarter than everything else around them, and it would be arrogance to think that any imbalances we can commit currently would be severe enough that it would effect the universe in a way that would require correction.

 

I have to say that though karma is krap, I think since energy permeates all that is (that sounded more mystic than I meant it to sound), that it's certainly possible to think energy can be manipulated by consciousness, perhaps even directed toward specific ends by our minds, although admittedly I don't believe in it as much as I once did. As to reincarnation, I don't necessarily believe in it, but I do think it can happen. That's not to say I believe in life after death, in fact I believe there's not one, but am open to be surprised. Reincarnation, if it exists, doesn't, to my mind at least, require a soul, or even some continuous energy transfer.

 

Way I see it, since our consciousness is a unique arrangement of energy, it is possible that that arrangement may arise again once it ceases it's current state.

[Jun]

I don't believe in punishment for "right" and "wrong"(i.e. divine reprisal)but Karma is something that I take very seriously. I think it is the universe's way of balancing itself out. I guess you could say that I look at the entire universe as "God," if that makes any sense whatsoever.

Honestly? I say Karma is whack, a bunch of coincidences that occasionally lead to someone getting their comeuppance for misdeeds, just as much as when bad shit happens to good people and good shit to bad.

 

Think about it: this world, and all the probably few dozen worlds that might house life intelligent enough to consider the ramifications of its actions, are but atomic specks in a universe so vast we still can't comprehend it. The universe doesn't give a FUCK about the sub atomic sub specks that dwell therein who think they're great enough to get it's attention, just because they're smarter than everything else around them, and it would be arrogance to think that any imbalances we can commit currently would be severe enough that it would effect the universe in a way that would require correction.

 

I have to say that though karma is krap, I think since energy permeates all that is (that sounded more mystic than I meant it to sound), that it's certainly possible to think energy can be manipulated by consciousness, perhaps even directed toward specific ends by our minds, although admittedly I don't believe in it as much as I once did. As to reincarnation, I don't necessarily believe in it, but I do think it can happen. That's not to say I believe in life after death, in fact I believe there's not one, but am open to be surprised. Reincarnation, if it exists, doesn't, to my mind at least, require a soul, or even some continuous energy transfer.

 

Way I see it, since our consciousness is a unique arrangement of energy, it is possible that that arrangement may arise again once it ceases it's current state.

 

In understanding karma, (in the Buddhist sense, not the Hindu sense) it is necessary to understand what karma is not.

 

* karma is not the belief that everything is a result of acts in previous lives.

* karma is not the belief that all is the result of creation by a supreme being.

* karma is not predestination.

* karma is not the belief that everything arises without a cause.

* karma is not someone getting their comeuppance for misdeeds done in the past - karma is not a universal justice system.

 

The word karma simply means "action." Karma is a process. Karma is neither predestination nor determination imposed on us. We are the architects of our karma. Karma has nothing to do with right and wrong, good and bad. In the language of science karma is acknowledged as being the law of cause and effect.

 

In the eyes of most non-Buddhists karma functions like fate, an unexplicable, unchangeable force coming out of our past, for which we are somehow vaguely responsible and powerless to fight. That's not karma at all. I've often heard people sigh, "Oh, that's just my karma" when bad things strike and they see no alternative to resigned acceptance.

 

The fatalism inplicit in these types of statements is one reason why so many people are repelled by the concept of karma. "He's poor, must be bad karma." "She lost her job, it's because of her bad karma." These misconceptions come from the fact that Buddhism and the concept of karma came to the West at the same time as Hinduism. Hinduism sees karma as linear, with actions from the past influencing the present, and present actions influencing the future. As a result there is no room for free will within Hindu beliefs. It is this karma that gets confused with the Buddhist notion of karma.

 

Karma in the Buddhist sense is simply "reaping what you sew." Our actions determine our lives, it's that simple. There's nothing mystical or magical about it, and it certainly has nothing to do with "past lives" or "future lives." Karma also has no effect on anyone else, or anything else but you.

 

As for reincarnation - that again is a Hindu belief (and Jainism too). Buddhists do not believe in reincarnation. There is no concept of a transmigrating soul that moves from body to body as in the Hindu religion.

[Dhampir]

Karma in the Buddhist sense is simply "reaping what you sew." Our actions determine our lives, it's that simple. There's nothing mystical or magical about it, and it certainly has nothing to do with "past lives" or "future lives." Karma also has no effect on anyone else, or anything else but you.

Really? Man, it seems like a lot of Buddhist concepts are just common sense ideas. As it happens, I was referring to LMR's statement of the universe balancing itself out. I was not referring to the universe as a conscious entity, nor was my comment about energies referring to the concept of karma in any way.

As for reincarnation - that again is a Hindu belief (and Jainism too). Buddhists do not believe in reincarnation. There is no concept of a transmigrating soul that moves from body to body as in the Hindu religion.

As I said, I don't necessarily believe in reincarnation in any fashion, and I don't believe in a soul per se, but I don't entirely discount the idea of non-transcendental reincarnation. That is, reincarnation that requires neither a soul nor a continuous existence of some energy in a sustained form, or even any sort of energy transfer from one existence to the next.

[Jun]

Karma in the Buddhist sense is simply "reaping what you sew." Our actions determine our lives, it's that simple. There's nothing mystical or magical about it, and it certainly has nothing to do with "past lives" or "future lives." Karma also has no effect on anyone else, or anything else but you.

Really? Man, it seems like a lot of Buddhist concepts are just common sense ideas. As it happens, I was referring to LMR's statement of the universe balancing itself out. I was not referring to the universe as a conscious entity, nor was my comment about energies referring to the concept of karma in any way.

As for reincarnation - that again is a Hindu belief (and Jainism too). Buddhists do not believe in reincarnation. There is no concept of a transmigrating soul that moves from body to body as in the Hindu religion.

As I said, I don't necessarily believe in reincarnation in any fashion, and I don't believe in a soul per se, but I don't entirely discount the idea of non-transcendental reincarnation. That is, reincarnation that requires neither a soul nor a continuous existence of some energy in a sustained form, or even any sort of energy transfer from one existence to the next.

 

 

Yes, Buddhism is simply just common sense ideas. So what is so special about buddhism then, you might ask. Well nothing, nothing at all. The common sense ideas of Buddhism evolved from the Buddha trying to get people to give up their superstitious religious ways. Sound familiar?

 

Buddhism started out as a simple way to find happpiness through our own actions and give up superstitious beliefs. As with almost everything else however it eventually picked up the very religious ideas it was designed to rid us of!

 

Non-transcendental reincarnation is what the Buddha termed "rebirth." It is rebirth that gets confused by non-Buddhists as reincarnation.

[The Sage Nabooru]

I remember once reading that there is no such thing as "karma" as it's popularly defined - that sort of giant cosmic justice system whereby one cheats at cards and later on gets bitten in the ass by a donkey. What is "karma" is simply the natural outcome of what we do.

 

If you kill someone, the natural outcome of that is that you will be sought out and prosecuted by those who consider it an offense. If you are devious enough to escape this at the very least you will spend the rest of your life on your toes, dreading the ever-present possibility of being discovered, and altering every single aspect of your life to prevent it, to the point of that life almost not being worth living anymore. (If I spend all my time in constant thought and planning over how to avoid capture, how can I enjoy it, really?) That can be a hell in itself. This isn't karma forcing its inevitable revenge upon you; rather, it's simply the perfectly natural outcome of your own actions.

 

If one is an asshole, one will have no friends. If one is greedy, one will never have enough to satify oneself. If one is haughty, one will be held in low esteem. If one mistreats his family, they will hate him, and not be there when he needs them. Karma has nothing to do with any of this, and it is both a spiritual and a practical truth. (In fact, IMO, there's no such thing as seperation between the two; the so-called supernatural is perfectly natural, and the spiritual is not some far-off vague anti-everything concept that needs to be held in awe but the very life that imbues us every day. But that is a topic not being discussed here.)

 

As for the Force, I believe in it. I also believe that we humans, being a relatively young civilization, have not yet quite mastered or even really explored its potential. We haven't had the time.

[Islington]

Can I ask, what do you understand karma to mean? How do you believe it works?

 

I was about to ask the same question and I thank you to put your definition in such simple words.

 

Yes, Buddhism is simply just common sense ideas. [...] The common sense ideas of Buddhism evolved from the Buddha trying to get people to give up their superstitious religious ways. Sound familiar?

 

Non-transcendental reincarnation is what the Buddha termed "rebirth." It is rebirth that gets confused by non-Buddhists as reincarnation.

 

Yes, it sounds familiar but I thougth Buddhism (or was ist Zen-Buddhism) a little more complicated...

But, hey, I can live with that!

Seriously, I have to follow your links to that site about Buddhism. Have to learn more about this.

 

And about the difference between reincarnation and rebirth. Could you please explain?

 

I remember once reading that there is no such thing as "karma" as it's popularly defined - that sort of giant cosmic justice system whereby one cheats at cards and later on gets bitten in the ass by a donkey. What is "karma" is simply the natural outcome of what we do.

 

[...]

 

Karma has nothing to do with any of this, and it is both a spiritual and a practical truth. (In fact, IMO, there's no such thing as seperation between the two; the so-called supernatural is perfectly natural, and the spiritual is not some far-off vague anti-everything concept that needs to be held in awe but the very life that imbues us every day. But that is a topic not being discussed here.)

 

As for the Force, I believe in it. I also believe that we humans, being a relatively young civilization, have not yet quite mastered or even really explored its potential. We haven't had the time.

 

I believe in: What you do to others comes back thrice. But as far as I understand, in the same way as you do. (And three is just my magic number) If it comes back through the one it was done to or if it takes an other way makes no difference to me.

 

There is magic all around us, you could say (refered to what you said about natural and supernatural). I would like to discuss that. (if only to see, that we do agree about that)

 

And about the Force? If I believe in the powers Druids had, I could name the thing behind it Force. Or Magic or what ever. I am not quiet sure how to define that... And if it is important to me. We can interact with each other so we are connectet in some way. I think that is all I need to know for the moment.

[BlueGiant]

Could you be referring to something more like the Tao, a way that things tend to flow?

[Ouroboros]

Chi?

 

Bless you.

[Legion]

I totally believe in the force.

 

The force is equal to the mass times the acceleration. F=ma.

[Jun]

And about the difference between reincarnation and rebirth. Could you please explain?

 

Reincarnation requires that there be a "soul" to migrate. Buddhists do not believe in a "soul." Buddhists do not believe therefore in reincarnation. (Except Tibetan Buddhists who have added their own beliefs to what the Buddha taught)

 

In explaining rebirth an analogy of playing pool is the best I can think of. When you send one ball across the table to hit another, the first ball strikes the second and the second is then sent on it's way. There is no physical transference, only that of energy. The force of the first ball striking the second is what causes the second to begin it's motion. This is like rebirth. There is no physical transference or transmigration. This is what religious Buddhists believe, and what the Buddha accepted.

 

This belief in rebirth is based entirely on speculation. Speculation leads us far from the Buddha's atheistic teachings. These metaphysical views can neither be proven nor disproven and so they have no real importance in the practice of Buddhism.

 

Buddhism concerns itself entirely with the nature of existential experience. The idea of rebirth is not to be believed but simply considered as a possibility. It has been said that one cannot be Buddhist if one doesn't believe in rebirth - that's poppycock! Ancient Indian metaphysical theories aren't important to the practice of Buddhism. The Buddha never emphasised these things but merely accepted that these were the types of things being discussed and considered when he was teaching. If we follow the Buddha's injunction not to accept things blindly, then all these mystical metaphysical ideas can't stand in the way of forming our own understanding.

 

Anyhow, right NOW is more important than worrying about a possible rebirth or afterlife.

 

And, may the Force be with you.

[LosingMyReligion]

I don't believe in punishment for "right" and "wrong"(i.e. divine reprisal)but Karma is something that I take very seriously. I think it is the universe's way of balancing itself out. I guess you could say that I look at the entire universe as "God," if that makes any sense whatsoever.

Honestly? I say Karma is whack, a bunch of coincidences that occasionally lead to someone getting their comeuppance for misdeeds, just as much as when bad shit happens to good people and good shit to bad.

 

Think about it: this world, and all the probably few dozen worlds that might house life intelligent enough to consider the ramifications of its actions, are but atomic specks in a universe so vast we still can't comprehend it. The universe doesn't give a FUCK about the sub atomic sub specks that dwell therein who think they're great enough to get it's attention, just because they're smarter than everything else around them, and it would be arrogance to think that any imbalances we can commit currently would be severe enough that it would effect the universe in a way that would require correction.

 

I have to say that though karma is krap, I think since energy permeates all that is (that sounded more mystic than I meant it to sound), that it's certainly possible to think energy can be manipulated by consciousness, perhaps even directed toward specific ends by our minds, although admittedly I don't believe in it as much as I once did. As to reincarnation, I don't necessarily believe in it, but I do think it can happen. That's not to say I believe in life after death, in fact I believe there's not one, but am open to be surprised. Reincarnation, if it exists, doesn't, to my mind at least, require a soul, or even some continuous energy transfer.

 

Way I see it, since our consciousness is a unique arrangement of energy, it is possible that that arrangement may arise again once it ceases it's current state.

 

In understanding karma, (in the Buddhist sense, not the Hindu sense) it is necessary to understand what karma is not.

 

* karma is not the belief that everything is a result of acts in previous lives.

* karma is not the belief that all is the result of creation by a supreme being.

* karma is not predestination.

* karma is not the belief that everything arises without a cause.

* karma is not someone getting their comeuppance for misdeeds done in the past - karma is not a universal justice system.

 

The word karma simply means "action." Karma is a process. Karma is neither predestination nor determination imposed on us. We are the architects of our karma. Karma has nothing to do with right and wrong, good and bad. In the language of science karma is acknowledged as being the law of cause and effect.

 

In the eyes of most non-Buddhists karma functions like fate, an unexplicable, unchangeable force coming out of our past, for which we are somehow vaguely responsible and powerless to fight. That's not karma at all. I've often heard people sigh, "Oh, that's just my karma" when bad things strike and they see no alternative to resigned acceptance.

 

The fatalism inplicit in these types of statements is one reason why so many people are repelled by the concept of karma. "He's poor, must be bad karma." "She lost her job, it's because of her bad karma." These misconceptions come from the fact that Buddhism and the concept of karma came to the West at the same time as Hinduism. Hinduism sees karma as linear, with actions from the past influencing the present, and present actions influencing the future. As a result there is no room for free will within Hindu beliefs. It is this karma that gets confused with the Buddhist notion of karma.

 

Karma in the Buddhist sense is simply "reaping what you sew." Our actions determine our lives, it's that simple. There's nothing mystical or magical about it, and it certainly has nothing to do with "past lives" or "future lives." Karma also has no effect on anyone else, or anything else but you.

 

As for reincarnation - that again is a Hindu belief (and Jainism too). Buddhists do not believe in reincarnation. There is no concept of a transmigrating soul that moves from body to body as in the Hindu religion.

 

 

See, I believe in the Buddhist perspective of Karma. For every action there is a reaction. If I slap a person the face I expect to be slapped back, and vice versa. My belief is that if you send negative energy into the universe that same negativity will comeback to you. In my opinion it is just balance. True, bad things do happen to good people. However, in the end, from what I've learned positivity does triumph in the end. So, yeah, I follow along the lines of the Buddhist methodology in regards to Karma. The Hindu way just seems like cruel and unusual punishment.

[LosingMyReligion]

Karma in the Buddhist sense is simply "reaping what you sew." Our actions determine our lives, it's that simple. There's nothing mystical or magical about it, and it certainly has nothing to do with "past lives" or "future lives." Karma also has no effect on anyone else, or anything else but you.

Really? Man, it seems like a lot of Buddhist concepts are just common sense ideas. As it happens, I was referring to LMR's statement of the universe balancing itself out. I was not referring to the universe as a conscious entity, nor was my comment about energies referring to the concept of karma in any way.

As for reincarnation - that again is a Hindu belief (and Jainism too). Buddhists do not believe in reincarnation. There is no concept of a transmigrating soul that moves from body to body as in the Hindu religion.

As I said, I don't necessarily believe in reincarnation in any fashion, and I don't believe in a soul per se, but I don't entirely discount the idea of non-transcendental reincarnation. That is, reincarnation that requires neither a soul nor a continuous existence of some energy in a sustained form, or even any sort of energy transfer from one existence to the next.

 

 

Yes, Buddhism is simply just common sense ideas. So what is so special about buddhism then, you might ask. Well nothing, nothing at all. The common sense ideas of Buddhism evolved from the Buddha trying to get people to give up their superstitious religious ways. Sound familiar?

 

Buddhism started out as a simple way to find happpiness through our own actions and give up superstitious beliefs. As with almost everything else however it eventually picked up the very religious ideas it was designed to rid us of!

 

Non-transcendental reincarnation is what the Buddha termed "rebirth." It is rebirth that gets confused by non-Buddhists as reincarnation.

 

Hmmm, maybe Buddhism might be the philosophy for me. However, I still think the universe, in and of itself, is a living, breathing, non sentient entity, neither kind nor cruel. Everything from small specks of star dust to Giraffes are apart of it, in my opinion. The only other ideology that sorta correlates with my feelings is Taoism.

 

As for "reincarnation" I don't believe in the concept of the "soul" so much as I do the tangible concept of energy. The saying is, "Energy cannot be created nor destroyed. It just changes form..." I do believe in transformation after you die. Perhaps our essence becomes apart of the greater energy again, only to be recycled as something else(my idea of reincarnation).

 

I personally believe that past life regressions are poppycock. Everyone is always the Queen of Egypt and never a galley whore on a pirate ship. But the idea of transformation intrigues me.

 

Basically, while I do believe in the buddhists concepts of practical living for happiness I still like the idea of "The Force" too.

[HuaiDan]

Yes, Buddhism is simply just common sense ideas. So what is so special about buddhism then, you might ask. Well nothing, nothing at all. The common sense ideas of Buddhism evolved from the Buddha trying to get people to give up their superstitious religious ways. Sound familiar?

 

And very ironic, considering how much buddhism has melded with the ancient chinese pagan religions and become so religion-ified and ritualized here in China. It's just a base religion here to most, and one not taken very seriously by most either. Most chinese will claim to be buddhist, and go to the temple and burn incense and such, but I have met very few who can name even the four basic tenets of buddhism. Go outside the city into the countryside, or talk to the more traditional chinese, and their concept of buddhism is almost entirely ancient pagan chinese, consisting of a handful of major dieties and several minor dieties.

[perianwalsh]

http://www.uncoverthenet.com/quotes/dir/552/1.php

 

I believe the force to...althought it may be different from the asianic ones,may the force be with you,always

[Jun]

Yes, Buddhism is simply just common sense ideas. So what is so special about buddhism then, you might ask. Well nothing, nothing at all. The common sense ideas of Buddhism evolved from the Buddha trying to get people to give up their superstitious religious ways. Sound familiar?

 

And very ironic, considering how much buddhism has melded with the ancient chinese pagan religions and become so religion-ified and ritualized here in China. It's just a base religion here to most, and one not taken very seriously by most either. Most chinese will claim to be buddhist, and go to the temple and burn incense and such, but I have met very few who can name even the four basic tenets of buddhism. Go outside the city into the countryside, or talk to the more traditional chinese, and their concept of buddhism is almost entirely ancient pagan chinese, consisting of a handful of major dieties and several minor dieties.

 

 

So true, so true.

[Grandpa Harley]

The Dharma of Star Wars

 

http://blogs.starwars.com/dharmaofstarwars

[Jun]

I might add, to the Chinese in Oz Buddhism is nothing more than a money making venture.

[Dhampir]

My belief is that if you send negative energy into the universe that same negativity will comeback to you.

This is what I took exception to the first time. The Buddhist idea of Karma is actually an idea that didn't really need any conceptualizing-- if you do some bad shit, the likelihood that bad shit happens to you increases by a slightly greater margin over time than if you don't. And if you keep doing bad shit, and nothing happens and you die, you're dead and that's that. There's nothing of balance or "negative energy" in it. EDIT: It never balances out, which is why bad shit happens to good people. We can only hope to provide balance consciously, and even that rarely happens.END EDIT Nothing about our actions (currently) could possibly dis-balance the universe in such a way as to require balancing, even if the universe is a living entity. Consider what makes our actions positive or negative. Nothing! We just see it that way. Other animals do the same things we do, and are not even remotely bothered by the ramifications outside of their immediate effects.

 

I personally believe that past life regressions are poppycock. Everyone is always the Queen of Egypt and never a galley whore on a pirate ship. But the idea of transformation intrigues me.

Isn't that always the case? "I was Cleopatra in my last life" as if a. You weren't anyone else between then and your current life as a perfume spritzer at the local mall, with 8 kids on welfare in a desert podunk so unheard of that it might actually not be a part of the country, and b. The guy who told you you were Cleopatra, with past life regression, or palm reading, or old fashioned sorcerer scrying or whatever, was any more right about you than the other 30,000 women (and 180 men) who were told the same thing.

[Grandpa Harley]

The more you keep pissing people off, the more likely that one day you'll hit one who will take you down hard. Also, the more 'bad' crap you do, the more time you'll spend looking over your shoulder. Even people who 'get away with it' always have the lurking fear that, sometime, chickens will come home to roost. Unless you're delusional, such as a sociopath who thinks they're invulnerable, that sort life is blighted... even if the expected pay back never comes, you're still waiting for the hammer to fall... and that ain't living, it's existence...

[The Sage Nabooru]

There is magic all around us, you could say (refered to what you said about natural and supernatural). I would like to discuss that. (if only to see, that we do agree about that)

 

The fact that I am alive is a miracle. That fact that a plant seed containing a finite amount of cells that can actually reproduce themselves in perfect replication, with really no "extra" material to do so, and then that one seed can reproduce itself so productively as to not simply create a bigger seed but a far more complex organism, that all those cells somehow know what to do and develop into seperate parts in the flowering of nature - so perfectly ordinary and yet so perfectly miraculous.

 

That our bodies have developed a way of circulating oxygen through the body and re-filling those blood cells with fresh oxygen, the entirety of the human body, with its joints and tendons working in perfect harmony, evolving and refining over time to meet new needs and circumstances - miraculous. That I can take sticks and, through friction, create the phenomenon of fire, which can both warm and cook and burn and destroy - miraculous. Animals - miraculous. Bedsheets (cotton, which can be spun, which we weave into cloth, and use to warm ourselves) - miraculous. Pots and pans. Waving a hand. Even if it doesn't have a backstory - I don't know the precise formulation and creation of the hand sanitizer on my desk, for example - it's still miraculous. Yes, it's entirely regular, ordinary, and natural. But the fact is that all that we consider regular, ordinary, and natural is miraculous.

 

That's the Force. It's both the power of consciousness and the consciousness itself.

[Grandpa Harley]

I'd prefer the word 'wondrous' in its literal sense of 'thing of wonder' rather than 'miraculous'... but that's me being a monstrous pedant...

[Jun]

My belief is that if you send negative energy into the universe that same negativity will comeback to you.

This is what I took exception to the first time. The Buddhist idea of Karma is actually an idea that didn't really need any conceptualizing-- if you do some bad shit, the likelihood that bad shit happens to you increases by a slightly greater margin over time than if you don't. And if you keep doing bad shit, and nothing happens and you die, you're dead and that's that. There's nothing of balance or "negative energy" in it. EDIT: It never balances out, which is why bad shit happens to good people. We can only hope to provide balance consciously, and even that rarely happens.END EDIT Nothing about our actions (currently) could possibly dis-balance the universe in such a way as to require balancing, even if the universe is a living entity. Consider what makes our actions positive or negative. Nothing! We just see it that way. Other animals do the same things we do, and are not even remotely bothered by the ramifications outside of their immediate effects.

 

Agreed. What could possibly constitute negative energy or positive energy? Energy is simply energy. Dhampir has hit it right on the head - highlighted part.

 

There is magic all around us.......

 

Really? Where can I find some? What is "magic?"

[Grandpa Harley]

According to Arthur C. Clarke, it's that thing from which any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from...