If we are commited to an honest process of self examination we might have discovered that somewhere in our recent past we have held to rigid notions of certainty about the correctness of our views and along with that possibly a reluctance to consider alternatives and a tendency to believe that any intelligent person who has thought things through would agree with one’s own opinions. In our lack of openness there might exist a tendency to prefer more simplistic conceptual views of the world that are not too complex or intellectually demanding. We might attatch and defer to our beliefs, not caring or able to find the time to indulge in a more honest and open exploration.
I have come to realize the benefits of doubting and questioning, that it can be very helpful in coming to deeper realizations . Questionig how our perception and belief relate to and comfuse truth, especially if we have not reflected on and/or investigated how the mind operates or influences our ideas and perceptions? What. is involved in moving to a more comprehensive, honest alnd intimate way of looking at things, and in becoming comfortable with exploring more diverse ideas and how can we foster more openess to knowing through direct experience?
Humans need to know or at least to hold some explanation or belief for things. There is fear nvolved in not knowing. We seem to become quite attatched to our experience as we have come to formulate and conceptualize it. Is there something of us that has a need to grasp on to a belief for the sake of simply believing that we know and how much does that belief interfere with and determine how we experience the world is and how much does that grasping and need to know block an openess to experience the truth of what we are.
It’s tricky because we need to have some view of things on which to base our decisions about how we will act in any particular situation, and yet we need to be open to being persuaded of the limitations of that view of things. Too much openness and we become completely passive, but too little openness and we end up persisting with actions that are against our own best interest.
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Yes Definitely. I am thinking these days that it is about conscious awareness and choice. To choose when to be open and to be aware when we are not. At the time that we are closed that is not so easy. But when we are awake we can see the truth of what has occurred in our closed state. Something like that. I’m talking right now from a fragmented consciousness so I am aware that I will not be able to experience the whole from that place. It’s subtle.
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