December 18, 2007 at 9:35 pm ·
As we draw to a close of another calendar year, there are prolific messages for us to reflect and ponder the year that’s passed, and anticipate what we will create in the year to come.
We can beat ourselves up for the card unsent, the presents unbought, the myriad of “stuff” incomplete, or we can simply welcome the chance to pause, take a breath, and know that where we are right now is exactly perfect! So, if you haven’t received my card yet, don’t hold your breath - I didn’t send any. If you haven’t received my “me-mail” about all the exciting things I’ve accomplished this year, don’t blame your internet provider - I didn’t write one!
What you can be certain of is that I am holding each of you in my thoughts as I reflect on all the people who made 2007 memorable and special. There are so many things to celebrate, to acknowledge and to be thankful for.
I trust that 2007 has been all you planned and you are filled with excitement, enthusiasm, inspiration and joy as we prepare to welcome a brand new year.
My wish for you is prosperity - such a rich and delicious word.
What does prosperity mean for you?
May it manifest for you in 2008.
Filed under Communication, Musings/p
December 16, 2007 at 9:19 pm ·
I just love the way H B Gelatt thinks - and presents his ideas. He often puts into words just what I’m thinking, and he generously gave me permission to reproduce this thought-provoking article:
Beware of Your Dogma - by H B Gelatt
The truth is that we cannot avoid uncertainty. This not-knowing is part of the adventure. It is also what makes us afraid. Pema Chodron
Niels Bohr, one of the founding fathers of quantum physics, tells a story about a young student attending three lectures by a very famous rabbi. The student said the first lecture was very good — he understood everything. The second lecture was much better — the student didn’t understand it but the rabbi understood everything. The third lecture was the best of all — it was so good that even the rabbi didn’t understand it. Bohr tells this story because he says he never understood quantum physics, even though he helped create it.
I think this story illustrates that what we are learning about the world nowadays is “so good” that nobody really understands it all. This is the certainty of uncertainty. In fact here is the opinion of the “new sciences:” Reality may not be structured in any way the human mind objectively discern.
This article is part of my Process of Illumination, creating a collective worldview that is open and inclusive. The basic premise is that uncertainty is certain and the illumination strategy is: Beware of your dogma. I probably should say that I don’t really understand everything I am writing about in this article. But I will say that I am certainly uncertain.
Say Hello and Goodbye to Your Dogma
Absolute certainty is dogma. I believe dogma is a major deterrent to growth, development and learning … and to a collective worldview that is open and inclusive. However, as Swami Beyondananda puts it: Dogma is truly man’s best friend. This is because certainty feels so good … yet you can’t grow clinging to the status quo.
However, there seems to be an emerging collective worldview that acknowledges the uncertainty of our reality and the reality of uncertainty. This comes from Niels Bohr’s and Werner Heisenberg’s quantum physics, and from the cybernetics, and constructionist work of Gregory Bateson and Heinz von Foerster, among others. And from some of the “old” eastern philosophies. Yet some of us, at times, still reject the possibility of uncertainty.
If you are certain about the security of your current job or certain that your country will always protect your freedom, it might be dangerous because you may not pay attention to signs that your job is becoming obsolete or that your personal freedom is being restricted. Are there someareas of your personal life where you are so comfortable with knowing for sure that you might be unable to “see” beyond your sureness? The answer is probably yes. Recognizing it and its dangers is the beginning of illumination.
Years ago Emile Chartier warned us, Nothing is more dangerous than an idea, when it is the only one you have. Today I would say that nothing is more dangerous that a dogmatic belief, no matter how many you have. Get acquainted with your dogma and then say goodbye. Mark Twain points out a problem with such sureness. It ain’t what you don’t know that gets you in trouble; it’s what you know for sure that ain’t so. How do you live without certainty? Here are two suggested illumination methods. Read the rest of this entry »
Filed under Leadership, Communication, Different Thinking, Guest contributors/p
As we draw to a close of another calendar year, there are prolific messages for us to reflect and ponder the year that’s passed, and anticipate what we will create in the year to come.
