Philosophy: Simplify !

"He who does not love, does not know God, for God is love."
1 John 4:20

Philosophy from Greek: φιλοσοφία, philosophia, 'love of wisdom'

Philosophy is just a way one likes to think. Thinking is the hardest thing people can do and therefore often avoided. Out of the Mud the Lotus blossoms.

Freedom is your Birthright

"None are more hopelessly enslaved than those who falsely believe they are free." - Goethe

You were born free, yet most of us live in chains. Religions and ideologies (~isms) limit your freedom and shape your life according to their plans. Governments can't give you freedom, you are born free. Their job is to protect your freedom.

Who Controls Your Mind?

LUCK: Labouring Under Correct Knowledge
FEAR: False Evidence Appearing Real
Government: To govern the mind, mental control.
TV Programme: It's called programming for a reason.

If your mind would obey you, this morning did you tell it to create happiness or anxiety? Or did you listen to the news on TV or radio? If you do not control your mind, someone else will. It might be me while you're reading this. If you don't have a plan, you become part of someone else's plan.

Relative Truth

• I do not take it to be true
• I do not take it to be false
• I do not say it is true or false
• I do not say you're wrong
• I do not say you're right

It is both wrong and right, true and false at the same time, depending on your point of view. Such is the dilemma of relative truth. It is just the finger pointing.

India

Although I've never been to India (yet), most of my spiritual education and thinking comes from there. This ancient wisdom appealed to me as it not coercive, but simply inviting. It doesn't condemn or try to convert.

Beliefs: None

"Examine and experience yourself !"
~ Buddha Siddhartha Gautama

What little I know, I know. Everything else, all I can honestly say is: "I don't know." There is no belief. I do not subscribe or belong to any religion, dogma, or any belief system (BS).

There is a difference between acquired knowledge from outside and a "knowing" which comes from within. We tend to believe things which we don't know but wish to be true.

Believers and Seekers

In the West, people are told what to believe. Some people believe there is a god, others believe there is no god. Both are believers who try to fathom the unknowable. Much of what they believe is something which cannot be known. Therefore, most of it is imaginary.

To say it grammatically, most Abrahamic scriptures are written in the "declarative" form, telling you the way the author believes that truth is. Some texts are "imperative", like "You shall do..." or such, giving you commandments. If you do not obey, damnation and hellfire will be your punishment. Some religions even tell you, that you are born in sin, and need to be saved.

In the East are seekers on a quest for knowledge and wisdom, in search of "Mukti", freedom and liberation. They know that they may never grasp the whole truth, but seek for deeper understanding.

Their ancient texts and scriptures are "interrogative", they ask questions and invite exploration. Thus there is no need to fight fellow seekers, but walk together in the search of truth.

Conflicts

The downside is that beliefs often lead to conflicts among people. Some believe in a faith and "know" that it is the ultimate and only truth, while others have a different faith that they hold equally to be true. When their beliefs clash and only one can be true, conflicts and wars arise. Politicians and religious leaders use this to further their own objectives. That's one reason why I don't subscribe to any faith or religion.

Profit in the Prophets

Religions have long cashed in on the beliefs of their flock. By creating fear of hellfire and damnation for which they then offer the only salvation, they create loyal compliance and thus a consistant income stream.