“Thought can never capture the movement of life, it is much too slow.” -U.G. Krishnamurti
Chapter 1 Introduction
The truth is simple and here it is:
We have no idea what came before our life and we have no idea what will come after. Not religion and not science can inform you. We will never know while we are living if there is or is not God. It may be that I am merely a flash of light between two periods of eternal darkness.
Any serious contemplation of God inevitably leads us to wonder about the meaning of life. I am offering an answer in one short sentence that will end your futile search for meaning. Everything you think and do is merely justification for this:
Reality is now and it happens.
That’s it. Everything else you are thinking is merely baseless reasons flooding your mind in an attempt to reject this simple statement. You are insisting there has to be more. There is not.
Chapter 2 My Religion
Philosophers and theologians have been debating the existence of God throughout human history and the issue is still not settled with no end in sight. Who am I to have the arrogance to decide which view is correct?
The description of my religion is two words that are a daily challenge to live by. The words are “Don’t Believe.” Many immediately assume these words mean don’t believe in God. Of course Don’t Believe also means to not believe in not believing. In other words I don’t believe there is a God and I don’t believe there is not a God.
Don’t believe in the Bible, the Koran, the Buddhist precepts, Atheism or any other moral code.
“Don’t Believe” is true of everything, not just God. Whatever you decide to believe, the opposite belief is also true. Don’t believe the sun will rise tomorrow. Don’t believe the sun will not rise tomorrow.
Daily practice of this “religion” will lead to only one thing. You will be forced to live in the present. You will only do what comes to you spontaneously.
Your every action is an accumulation of genetics, history, civilization, culture, environment, past experience, knowledge, skills, and the reality of your present situation. You can’t help it. You have no choice so stop pretending you do.
Chapter 3 The Path
“Everything is energy and that is all there is to it. …This is not philosophy. This is physics.” -Albert Einstein.
“The meaning of life is just to be alive. It is so plain and so obvious and so simple. And yet, everybody rushes around in a great panic as if it were necessary to achieve something beyond themselves.” -Alan Watts
There is no past and there is no future beyond the electronic impulses in your mind.
Reality is not the presence of things. It’s the presence of experience.
There is no “you” there. You are not a separate body. You skin is not the boundary that defines inside and outside. There is no existence inside without everything outside. This makes your being the center of the Universe, the window where the Universe sees itself.
The idea that you are an independent being going around making choices is absurd. You are a Being. That”s it. You happen in the same way a tree happens. You grow and evolve in the only way you can. The tree is treeing. The human is being.
We have no control over our thoughts. They come into our consciousness through no act of will. When a thought enters your mind you can do only one thing and that is the thing you do.
The idea that you believe something and that belief is what dictates your action is an illusion. It implies choice and you ain’t got any.
I am aware that I am offering an idea that is absurd on its face. When we are confronted with multiple thoughts we infer having a choice. In reality there is always only one path to take and that is the path you took.
Being our thoughts is not the same as acting on our thoughts. They are separate non choices. Two alternative thoughts in your mind is not the same as two actions. You can only take one action.
Chapter 4 The End of Philosophy and Religion
Philosophy and religion, like nature, evolves, just like a tree grows. Precepts and doctrines change to conform to present day culture. One example clearly illustrates this point. Religious authority was the original organizing principle of a moral society. Early Christian morality was shaped by the Old Testament where God was the absolute ruler who governed his monarchical Kingdom. A good Christian was a God fearing Christian.
Today’s Christianity is based on the New Testament and you can dispense with the Bible by simply living your life by the example set by Jesus when he lived his. Christians call this ‘filled with the holy spirit’.
People in modern society have internalized morality and the dictates of authoritarian religion have outlived their usefulness.
Political ideologies have evolved to the point where govenment and rule of law are the foundation for civil behavior, not religion.
The practice of not believing renders philosophy and religion irrelevant. Both are rooted in the past and the future. They tell a story about where we came from and what we hope will happen when we die. But now we know that the past, for all intents and purposes, is a figment of our imagination and the future is a mere statement of who we are not, but want to be.
Both Eastern and Western religions are equally flawed. They both look to the future and promise salvation. They are both striving to help you be something and somewhere you’re not.
Chapter 5 How to Practice “Don’t Believe”
“I am enough. Who I am is enough. What I do is enough. What I have is enough.” –Unknown.
“All I can guarantee you is that as long as you are searching for happiness, you will remain unhappy.” -U.G. Krishnamurti
Its easy to not believe for 5 seconds. Much more difficult for a minute. And very difficult for more than 5 minutes. Meditation is a useful way to practice not believing; however it has a significant limitation. Sooner or later you will realize that you are meditating for a reason, in order to achieve something. Your self-imposed discipline to meditate actually takes you out of the present. It makes no difference if that something you are trying to achieve is nirvana, peace of mind, enlightenment, or nothing. In all cases you are striving for a future goal. You are believing there is something else that you must have or be.
A better practice is to meditate while you are engaging in the activities of daily living. Replace all the silly and irrelevant judgements, arguments, doubts, regrets, wishful thinking, fantasies, fears, desires, and rationalizations that stream through your head practically every minute of the day. Replace these things with the practice of Don’t Believe.
Be aware of your constant, internal thought process as you do the only one thing you can do at any moment. And what is the only thing you can do? It’s the thought or thing you are doing. Its not about what you can do but more about what not to do, but even more importantly, it’s about not trying to do or achieve anything. Most of the time, most of us are mostly removed from present reality.
I am asking you to make a change that is not a change. Quit changing. Quit wishing. Quit hoping. Quit believing.
No one achieves perfect Don’t Believe practice. I hate colloquialisms but I’m using one because I can’t think of a better way to state my point. It is what it is. End of story.
This is not the end of my book. It’s the begining, an assemblige of ideas trying to hang together. It will only be complete when I have refined my thoughts from all the reactions and suggestions I receive from you, my readers who are the source of my inspiration.
I rely solely on the inspired geniuses who have thought deeply about life, death, and God throughout history. This is a synthesis of their thoughts.
My guiding lights:
Jesus Christ
Alan Watts
U.G. Krishnamurti
J. Krishnamurti
Sigmund Freud
Charlotte Joko Beck
Carlos Casteneda
Meister Eckhart
Thich Nhat Hanh
Carl Jung
D. R. Suzuki
Friedrich Nietzsche
Eckhart Tolle
Wilhelm Reich
Alexander Lowen
Reinhold Neibuhr
Alex Vilumsons
Paul Tillich
Marshall Mcluhan
R. D. Laing
Gov. Jerry Brown
Norman O. Brown
John Lennon
Karl Marx
Albert Einstein
Grandmother Roberta Shaw
Dictated and edited exclusively on a Samsung Galaxy S8+ using Samsung Notes and Google Voice.
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