I was reading another advisor’s blog this morning and was truly inspired by the question that she asked.  What is our purpose?  Thank you to Wiccan Princess for making me think first thing in the morning.  It gave me something to do on the way to the in-laws ;-)

I always try to look at things from a perspective that has nothing to do with me, much like climbing up the rickety ladder of a water tower to see everything in a town spread out below. Looking at a situation from the eyes of others or all eyes, if possible, changes forever how you see it from your own eyes.  Isn’t this the reason artists paint and writers write and rappers rap and photographers snap pics, to share a perspective?  I take it as my personal obligation to examine as much as possible in this life that originates outside of my being.  I’m not a fixed entity; I am flexible; I am dynamic.  I do not reject the ideas of others for I deem any product of the human mind as worthy of exploration.  If one is willing to go there.    

So what is our purpose, asks Brenda (aka Wiccan Princess.)  As humans and as living beings, I think we are simply here to have an experience.  It’s rather simple, actually, this understanding of Purpose.  My research professor and I, years ago, talked about god as the ultimate understanding of the High Dynamics of pure chaos.  That enlightenment is basically being able to climb high enough above it all to be able to look upon it and see and understand it all.  Yet at the same time, to be able to step next to every particle of detail and understand how it all fits into the bigger picture.  But then, you would expect such a discussion from a physicist and a mathematician., that god is not an entity or being but rather the final stage of The Experience.  And that, of course, is merely one possibility.  Certainly only one theory he and I have thrown out for discussion. 

Outside of any reference to god or a higher power, I openly accept that we are each here for our own personal experience.  Just like we have the right to post whatever blog we want to in bright red text with a Puritanical reference, we have the right to make this experience whatever we want.  For many that experience incorporates love.  It does for me, certainly.  However I do not think love is THE point of an individual experience and I do not think love is a given.  Love is an aspiration; it is a goal; it is an effort.  Some achieve it rather effortlessly during their individual experience, others must work for it.  And yet some others out there may never move towards it at all. 

Yet our individual experiences build upon one another, becoming interdependent and entwined, collectively becoming the Human Experience.  Friction occurs when an individual experience comes into contact with other individual experiences.  Removing or reducing that friction is a choice but NOT an obligation (IMHO.)  Transforming that friction into love is one option.  So then Love is embracing another's human experience and allowing your own experience to be influenced by it.  I think when we resist the influence of another’s experience, or the Human Experience as a whole, the result is what we call hatred or anger.  Interesting, because resistance does not keep one from being influenced by others Experiences, it merely increases the negative influences of friction.

In one of these blogs I read where someone attempted to lecture that there is no judgment in spirituality, yet that same person was open to the idea of spirituality being uniquely defined for each individual experience.  So many people see judgment some how as a negative, when in fact, our life’s breath relies on judgment.  We assess ourselves and others through judgment.  Some of these judgments result in resisting the influence of another’s individual experience. Some judgments embrace the influence of others.  Regardless, it is judgment.  It is neither positive nor negative, but both.  We use judgment in defining ourselves.  It is essential to digesting our individual experiences.  I am not worried about those who condemn judgment, but I feel they are misunderstanding it.     

My Power Equation is stated simply as “Define yourself + know your limits.”  There is a distinct power that comes from defining one’s Self, for you cannot define what you do not understand.  When you know your personal limits you have a road map of internal obstacles.  Beyond this, it is up to all individuals to decide what to do with the map, whether it is avoidance, navigation, or challenge of these limits.  Some limits are physical barriers, some mental, some emotional.  We can let them hinder our experience, or we can push past them into new experiences.  This is a choice we make whether or not we are conscious of it.  I have a childhood friend who was paralyzed after a gymnastics accident at the age of ten.  Let me tell you, that girl overcame her physical limits and returned to gymnastics.  Truly amazing and she has redefined not only her life experience but the life experience of those around her.  I'm honored to know such a person.  Not everyone trusts in themselves enough to push beyond their own limits. 

Some people are unable to break through emotional barriers, which can be as crippling as physical limits.  Those who do not try to overcome the limits of their own life experience often reject the influence of those experiences that seem contrary to their beliefs.  I suppose if you are not willing to change or evolve, it is critical that you refuse those who are different from you, to prevent them impacting your life experience.  But ultimately beliefs and belief systems are nothing more than a person finding a way to justify their limits.  Just because others of similar mindsets take up a defense or share the stance, just because communities and entire societies form under the same belief systems, does not make them correct.  It is still only one possibility.  If you cannot imagine anything beyond your own limits and you reject the ideas and voices of others, then how can you move past it?  These people most likely will never comprehend anything but what lies inside of what they have already experienced.

What is our purpose?  I encourage you to read Wiccan Princess’s blog and comment your thoughts on this question there.  I do not wish to detract from her blog, but rather, thank her for the inspiration.  I do welcome comments here but I wish that responses be limited to commentary on what I have put in writing here.  You need not agree with a word I’ve said, but I will delete nasty comments, pedantic BS, and anything that *I* decide is incendiary.  I will also delete those comments where individuals hide their true identity.  They know who they are and I’ve played enough games with them.  What I respect and appreciate is careful thought, personal beliefs, open expression, honest opposition, and intriguing perspectives.  I ask that the drama amongst advisors be checked at the door prior to entering comments on my blog.  I am not trying to win a popularity contest but I respect each person who reads what I have to say, so please, respect my wishes as well.  

 

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