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Spiritual Nonsense

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Rayn:
I love your Invocation, Daniel.  Here's something else I'd like to offer here because it deals again with unconditional love.  I first wrote it for the thread, "Would you have last 20 years?"

Love is a Force of Nature! 

     The depth of those words may be lost because of simplicity of the statement.  I believe that true love, the unconditional kind, when you surrender to it, when it takes hold of your entire being, isn't a choice as much as some people imagine.  The choice is in the surrender to it, but then we embody it and it becomes a part of us, it becomes flesh, blood, memory, emotions, mind.

   My experience of this love is that it isn't momentary; it isn't over in a few months or years, it last forever and if you know it, you know "a foretaste of heaven"... if there are such places in some afterlife. 

     Is that something a person can walk away from, not usually.  Is it something a person will do almost anything to keep?  Yes.  Jack and Ennis both knew it.

     Life is never just joy and pleasure; there's always some measure of suffering and discomfort one has to bear without a doubt and real love is one of the great mysteries of comfort, strength, power and pleasure that makes it worth the pain. 

     I identify with Jack strongly because I have been fortunate enough to have known real love in this life and I know what he was feeling.  It can happen to you at any time in life and, I say again, we don't have as much control or power over "it" as it has over us. 

     Twenty years for a taste of eternity every month or so?  Yeah, it's worth hanging out for that.  Had Jack not met with the untimely end that he did, he would have met Ennis in November.   I have little doubt of that... nor did Jack..."

Love,
Rayn

Daniel:

--- Quote from: Daniel on July 04, 2006, 10:48:34 am ---To continue to allow the spirits of Ennis and Jack to teach us their life lessons, let us devote ourselves to this simple ritual, which we do in remembrance of the pain that Ennis knew but was so loathe to release.

The Baking of the Pie:
I would not recommend going out to purchase an apple pie, but instead suggest that we make it from scratch. While engaged in this process of creation, we can devote our spirit to the messages of the film, thus creating a meditative practice.

Eating of the Pie:
Perhaps it would be best to do this with others who understand our devotions or by ourselves in privacy. Above all, if we feel the burning of tears, I do not feel we should hold them back or attempt to divert them in any way.

With a slice of pie on a plate in front of us, let us take a fork and pick at the pie until the apple filling is released. We then stir the apple filling. While we are stirring this filling, let us consider the many times that someone offered their loving awareness to us, and how we rejected it. As soon as we have these thoughts and feelings firmly in mind, let us take a slow and methodical bite of the apple filling, allowing it to dissolve in the mouth. Let us forgive ourselves for these moments and resolve to make it right again if we can. Then let us stir the apple filling on the plate again, considering the many times we offered our loving awarenesses toward others and how they rejected it: take a slow and methodical bite of the apple filling again, allowing it to dissolve in the mouth. Let us forgive those who have caused such pain in us, knowing that we have caused similar pain in others. Finally, let us perform this ritual one more time, focusing upon the many ways that love has been denied not by ourselves but by society. Let us send healing thoughts and prayers of repentance as we allow the third bite to dissolve in our mouths. Let us then eat the rest of the pie in silence, considering what beautiful moments the day has shown us or still has in store for us.

--- End quote ---

Well I have finally performed this ritual, at least in part. I didn't bake it from scratch, it was store-bought... *sigh*

I think I was fully in the moment though, cause it was one of the most emotionally difficult things for me to do, to look at, stir, and eat the pie. I really felt very anxious about the eating itself, and even when I did manage to get a piece in my mouth, I could feel tears rising to the surface. It was a true communion with Ennis's spirit, and allowed me a moment of peace to consider the sorrows of my life and how I can address them...

Daniel:
I am amazed by how many people on this board have connected with the film and somehow capture one essence or another of the spirit of the film. I think it is for that reason that I enjoy the Performance Thread so much. Everyone in it (including the original cast), has a deep connection with one of the characters from the film. They have some insight into what makes them tick, and what makes them unique as human beings. That is not an easy task. It is strange to see us embody these characteristics in our own life, but I think that these traits have always been there. We were waiting for some experience to bring them out of us, to allow us to feel free to be ourselves.

Every character, whether perceived as good or evil, has a part to play. Each part is necessary. Without one, the entire web melts in the breeze. In the film, and in life, we are attracted to the energies which drive us toward the destiny which makes the most sense for us. Whether this is providence or some other force within us, who can tell? The point is that the film does not create these experiences within us... It draws the experiences out into the open where they can be explored.

I am extremely thankful for the film which is Brokeback Mountain because of this fact. Its spiritual power is there in its capacity to connect with those who observe it and to add meaning and fulfillment to their own lives.

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