I am who I am I am what I am I am why I am |

22 Apr Koan 30

Posted at 15:15h in I Am Time, Koan

We see "its" everywhere and rarely notice "is", though all there is is is. There are two types of vision, foveal and peripheral. Foveal vision is when our eyes focus and we mentally create static images of seemingly independent things ("its"). Peripheral vision is unfocused, where all things are one undifferentiable flow; the "is". The "is" is reality; an ambiguous flow of interdependent and everchanging things beyond description, other than that it is what it is whatever it is. While 99% of our visual field is peripheral vision, we think the illusions we create through foveal vision are reality....

22 Apr Koan 59

Posted at 10:15h in I Am Time, Koan

The mind easily convinces us of the illusion that we can square a circle. It's impossible to construct a square with the same area as a given circle. The space inside a circle is the product of multiplying the squared radius of the circle and π (pi) π is a transcendental number; an infinite, non-repeating decimal expansion. That means the knowable space inside a circle is imprecise. The space inside a square is precise. As an imprecise space cannot precisely fill a precise space, a circle cannot be squared. Transcendental numbers arise naturally in exponential growth and decay processes. They are used extensively in calculus, probability, and mathematical analysis. Transcendental is also the nature of the universe; infinite expansion and everchanging. The mind is a square and the universe is a circle. The mind convinces us of the illusion that we know the universe. Yet, the universe is transcendental. It cannot be precisely known....

21 Apr LSD Remembered

Posted at 10:15h in Framework, I Am Time, Observations

In college, I had three LSD psychedelic journeys of which I have distinct memories. One was of my wanting to eat my brain. I felt that my mind and body were a duality. If I ate my brain, my mind and my body would be one. The second was looking at a painting and seeing its colors dripping beyond its frame and onto the floor. The third was when I was wallowing naked in mud in the backyard of my parents' attached house in Brooklyn and saw myself holding onto Earth with dear life as it was spinning incredibly fast and I as afraid I would otherwise fall away from Earth and into endless space. Looking back now, the first journey was the recognition of the duality between our animal consciousness (the body) and divine consciousness (the mind) and our purpose in life which is to integrate the two as a whole. The second revealed that no thing is an independent thing, as it is our mind that creates the forms and shapes of things which are otherwise one interconnected and interdependent thing in the now. The third journey suggested that if we let go our self-identity (Earth life), we will be one with the universe....

21 Apr Koan 19

Posted at 10:15h in Koan

"Crow with no mouth" -- Ikkyu, 1394 - 1481 Can a crow with no mouth caw? Does a crow with no mouth have a craw? Is a crow with no mouth a crow? A crow with no mouth is a crow with no mouth; it is what it is whatever it is. Crows are exceptionally intelligent birds. They can solve complex problems, use tools, and even recognize human faces. They are also highly adaptable and thrive in various environments. They are keen observers and can consider alternative strategies to realizing their goals. Crows represent wisdom. “He who speaks does not know, he who knows does not speak.” -- Lao Tzu. As wisdom cannot be conveyed with words, a crow has no mouth....