The Christian thing usually comes with a side of guilt and shame. I will take the kindness of a literal stranger over "charity". I agree.

“Look to science and the wisdom of others who have experienced similar challenges before us to help ourselves when we can and accept help when we can't.”

My sentiments exactly!

Perfectly written. It is the way I live and it is so nice to know others do as well.

Those are all escapes. Not bad in moderation though.

@ClareCK Just the alcohol and drugs in moderation. Religion is an escape too.

@Sticks48 which is why I escaped relgion. Haha

Yeah, suffering is just a part of life and we all do at times. It isn't a moral judgement as religion would have us believe.

I couldn't handle 1 day being forced into subservient worship.

This is the essence of all traditional religious wisdom. If you employ it, you are practicing religion in the generic sense.

“Be Here Now.”

@skado I think that the phrase ‘be here now’ needs some qualification. In the first instance it is impossible to be anywhere else, if anyone thinks otherwise, kindly show me. For most if not all of us, our mind/imagination usually momentarily hovers between some past event and some as yet unknown future event throughout the day while time’s arrow moves continually forward.

@ASTRALMAX
Of course it is meant mentally rather than physically. And yes, having a wandering mind is our natural state. This is why practice is required. Regardless of time’s forward movement, we can learn how to keep our attention focused on the ever-present “now” rather than on the future or the past.

@ASTRALMAX I agree, as the term be present, be in the moment, or any derivation thereof, implies humans can shut off thinking and memories and regrets and more. An entire mental health field exists precisely because we struggle to do this, which is seen in depression, anxiety, and pain. If we could all just turn that off, there wouldn't be prescription medication, therapy, addiction and struggle.

I dislike any axioms posing as universal panaceas or vague ambiguous language. One example is manifest. That word is bullshit and abused now for financial gain. As if people can manifest shit. Like you deserve what you think. Victims of crimes sure don't manifest those and little ones being hurt didn't manifest that, it's like saying it's god's will. Same ludicrous idea.

We all cannot avoid suffering in our lives, in fact it helps stimulate personal growth by being uncomfortable. This forced toxic positivity and be in control narrative are myth sold to people from the self-help industry.

Fact is life is scary, hard and requires struggle and support. That's a brutal truth. We are always connected to our pasts and worrying about the future, and it's called human nature.

@ClareCK The mantras of the self help industry whether it be use of the words like manifest, affirmation or visualise are all bullshit promulgated by those who have made a lot of money out of public gullibility. Essentially they are no different from any religious belief and no different from declassifying documents by merely thinking about it.

Whatever happened in our lives cannot be erased from our memories and it is foolish to attempt to erase it, over time it may come to be viewed differently as our feelings about it begin to change of their own accord without forcing the matter. Telling someone to forget what happened or get over it resolves nothing.

@ASTRALMAX The past is our learning experience, our history. And. "Those who do not learn from history, are doomed to repeat its mistakes. " Aplies as much to the person as to the nation state.

@ASTRALMAX oh wow, so yes. I am sick of The Secret crap and manifest this and meditate. Lol.

I always wonder to about cultural stealing Americans do as if someone else's culture is "othered" as superior because it's different. It's bizarre.

Obsession with Eastern rituals and philosophy by White people is weird to me too. I know sometimes we as Americans lack community and culture but other making others religion, beliefs, practices and culture a type of "rejuvination" or spa activity seems terrible to me.

Like the term "yoga pants" as I lift weights and most people in the gym wear sweats and tanks and all of a sudden guys think all women wear these tight uncomfortable leggings and call them yoga pants. Isn't that offensive? Yoga pants are not those in reality.

I think these buzzwords and self help jargon blatantly steal from other countries identities and beliefs way too much and try to rebrand and sell them.

I also mistrust people who use verbosity to sound more intelligent than the conversation requires. I endured years of that insufferable shit at grad school.

Why can't some American ever realize strength they seek is within?

We do not need to borrow other people's lives and beliefs to endure or heal or relax.

I am not saying adopting another country's rituals is bad per say, but not necessary if you have inner strength.

We don't need to use fancy jargon and loan words from other cultures to promote healing and recovery from life's bullshit is all.

Self help is literally loaded with it.

@ClareCK The desire for something different, some kind of spiritual/religious practice probably gave rise to the importation of eastern religions. As you well know, difference is both desired by some and rejected by others, the ‘far in’ people and the ‘far out’ people often clash.

Yoga pants merely accentuate an individual’s lower body shape and as to whether or not they are comfortable to wear, I do not know but am sure that they will catch the male eye in a yoga class.

I agree with your statement on verbosity which reminds me of George Orwell’s words: “Simplify your English and you are of all the follies or orthodoxy. Whenever you say something stupid, its stupidity will be obvious, even to yourself” “The great enemy of clear language is insincerity. When there is a gap between one's real and one's declared aims, one turns, as it were, instinctively to long words and exhausted idioms, like a cuttlefish squirting out ink”. George Orwell.

Those who are verbose usually have nothing to contribute​ other than a futile attempt to impress some imagined others. You will certainly find a measure of verbosity on this site, plenty of buzzwords and parroted concepts.

“Why can't some American ever realize strength they seek is within?” Perhaps they might gain some benefit from reading Ralph Waldo Emerson, especially, the essay on Self Reliance. No doubt you well know that there are a variety of factors at work here.

Some people continually look for something different and often what they thought of as being different turns out to be the same bullshit repackaged with a new ribbon.

@ASTRALMAX you just quoted my favorite author. Emerson. Good for you! Yeah, I am over people pushing anything on me. I was just in the gym and the person working there said have a blessed day! At the gym! Hahaha I was shocked. Usually it's see you tomorrow or hope you had a great workout. Nope. Blessed day.again.

I wonder if anyone thinks for a second if the person they are talking to is even religious? Nope. Just a baseline assumption with most people that if they believe something, everyone must. It's wild!

As for bs repackaged, so yes. Any guru, coach or whatever title foisted upon us by some charlatan come lately, always invokes 70s terms, eastern relgioons or vague indisernable notions of business jargon for "success". It is exhausting.

I liked what Elizabeth Taylor said,

"You just do it. You force yourself to get up. You force yourself to put one foot in front of the other, and Godamn it, you refuse to let it get to you. You cry. You curse. Then you go about the business of living. That's how I've done it. There's no other way."

So fucking true! Say whatever you have to to get out of bed and go to work or whatever lousy "have to" errand or task you gotta do, but it us within YOU and all of us to kick your own ass to do it.

Yes. This.

Every single thing done to me including violence, was done in the name of a Christian God. So glad I reject that moral shield from my life and all those who seek its defective powers to truly be evil in a non religious sense of the word.

@ClareCK I am frequently stunned to hear Christians denounce atheists as immoral when it's obvious how Christianity fosters hatred and violence at every opportunity. While I certainly don't believe in the Christian notion of evil, 'evil' is the perfect word to describe Christianity. Christianity poisons the minds and hearts of Christians and everyone suffers for it.

I enjoy riding my bike through trails and woods to not think so much. Nature is great sometimes but other times the vibe of a busy city and being a part of life and music and events helps me lose myself much more. Some people swear by meditation, but exercise and moving like a shark work for me and always will. I overthink, so meditation is hell for people like me. Some of us need action to become "free" of mental dwelling places.

@ClareCK Everybody's different. I'm kind of a misanthrope, so busy cities just irritate me despite all the cultural opportunity. I do understand about the movement and exercise, though. I tried meditation as well, but all it ended up being was an opportunity to observe my "monkey mind" jumping all over the place. However, I found some movement-based activities much better for remaining in the moment. The aikido class I took, for example, involved tai chi, and one time, while in the middle of this movement series, I realized my mind was entirely focused (though, with that realization, the focus was broken). Scuba diving had a similar effect.

@DharmaBum50 why do men always say they hate the city and are hermits? This is a common post on all websites I comment on. Is this a growing trend?

People can be tedious and exhausting that I get. Cities can be loud and crowded too. But nature gets old just as fast. Booooring.

I like both equally but sitting around in nature makes death feel closer and like civilization is decaying.

I love modern conveniences! Getting glammed up to hit the town and have drinks and shoot pool or go to a show or theater. I also like being on college campuses to have intelligent conversations. Even if I audit a class.

I think when anyone starts becoming a hermit, that may be an opportunity to get out more and reconnect with others.

I think men need to make more friends too. We women are all about connecting to others.

Yes, lifestyles are a choice, I respect that, but meditating in nature for a type A is a prison sentence. I need to be where the action is baby! Haha

I am like a shark, I stop moving I die.

Let the trees cover the dead. Just my opinion.

Although, I do love trees.

I think people assume you have to be a hermit in nature to reconnect to life, but I can do just that in heels while on the dance floor too!