Tuesday 10 April 2012

Missing God

Someone wrote on facebook a while ago:  "I miss God sometimes."


How poignant.


How utterly does that sum up people's yearning for meaning and hope; redemption and communion?


When it's obvious that there is only this, it's obvious that there's no God - (some might say there is only God, but not I, I shan't say that) - then there's nothing to pray to.  And if there's nothing to pray to, there's no point in praying, which means you have to face up to reality, this, just exactly as it is.  


You can hope.  You can.  But there's no guarantee, no provable method.  No fail-safe incantation.


Oh, and for the word 'God' insert any of the following: The Divine, The Universe, Love, Kharma, Spirit, Fate, Destiny, Consciousness, Being, The Secret, The Afterlife, Heaven, Hell, Gaia, Pan, Fairies, Angels, Zeuss, Thor, Satan, Santa Claus (or insert your own version out of an inexhaustible list).


You may be thinking - but I know there's kharma/god/fate/whatever, and you'll cite what appears to be proof.  For example, "I asked the universe to show me what to do and to guide me on the best path and I was offered that dream job last year."  Or you may even be able to put a positive spin on not getting the job you want, by saying "Well, I wanted the glamorous, high-paid job, but got offered the admin job for a charity, which really was God's way of showing me a much more meaningful way of earning my living."  But just as you may come up with evidence for a 'dream-giver', however it may be justified after the fact, someone else can come up with evidence that the universe/god/fate doesn't deliver what they wanted. And I think that if you ask most people, you'll be given evidence that seems to indicate that they don't get what they want more often than not!


For every person who meets their dream partner, there'll be another who's just gone through a bitter and messy divorce, for every person who's just lost 4 stone, toned up and is the shining picture of health there's another who's been diagnosed with agonizing, untreatable cancer. I'm not saying that there's an exact balance of so-called good versus so-called bad, but yeah, you get the picture, I hope.


It's an interesting story isn't it?


In other words - there are no guarantees.  


None. (oh, except death and taxes, and some people even argue against death... so that leaves taxes... damn.)


So, where does that leave us?


It leaves us with just this.  With not even a guarantee about WHAT it is.  Because just as someone will call something 'green', there will be someone else who swears blind that it's 'blue'.  We don't even agree on the labels.


And of course, THIS, includes all the labels as well. It includes ALL the stories. About God, and heaven and hell, and fairies, and Santa Claus, and manifesting, and hoping for something other than this, and ignoring this, and believing in all the stories, and seeing that if something needs to be believed and can also be unbelieved, then it can't be true. And seeing that there's no such thing as truth. And seeing that this is a story too. That everything we say is a story. Including the story that everything is a story.





Which means (but don't take my word for it) that if it's all stories, then there's no failsafe method for making it anything other than what it is - whatever it is.


What and how do you feel about that?  Is it a relief to be free of belief?  If all the stories are seen AS stories, is it liberating to accept that this is all there is? Or do you sometimes miss being able to wish on a star with a hope that your dreams might come true?


I'd be interested to hear your thoughts, if you've the inclination to share them.



12 comments:

  1. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  2. I do miss the days when I thought everything happened for a reason, and that there was a grand scheme. Alas... no. Ignorance truly is bliss. I think I've referenced Cypher, from The Matrix, many, many times before, but sometimes I wish I could be reinserted into the dream, and not remember a damned thing about this.

    But... this is all there is, and I can no more wish for ingorant bliss than I can for winning the lottery. Now, just live the best I can... get on with life because THIS is it. Must live it to the fullest.

    Good to see your post, Viv! Don't miss this mess at all, though.

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    1. Hey, Mike. And there's the rub: As you say: "Must live it to the fullest."

      When you stop believing and hoping, you can get on with really living, instead of believing the stories that there is going to be something better, some day.

      Personally, I find it a relief in lots of ways - to be free of all the bullshit, or to at least be able to see that it IS bullshit! Doesn't mean you can't enjoy the story-telling and the day-dreaming, but now it's obvious that it's just a story.

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  3. Hmmm. Interesting. Anonymous.

    I deleted that post a while ago. Seems like it made an impression on you, though.

    I can't even remember the words in it. How come you can?

    What I love the most is that you're so polite about asking me to kill myself. It's a very civilised request. You may have had a very proper upbringing.

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  5. What I don't understand is that people refuse to believe in evolution - despite the obvious similarities between us and primates - yet are quite happy to take with a pinch of salt the idea of one bloke with malignant narcissism, floating around on a cloud somewhere, creating all of existence.
    Hmmm.

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  6. When I was young I used to watch Walt Disney Hour, which always began with "When you wish upon a star.." and it was magical. Today I watched a family walk off and a young girl leapt for joy, kicking her heels in the air for no reason at all.

    It would be nice to regain that even if it Wasn't true.

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  7. It would be, and perhaps one way is in seeing through all the stories and beliefs or by becoming so disenchanted with them that we see them for what they are, so that what is left is just enjoyment of life. I saw a young man running down the road the other day, leaping and grinning like a madman - running just for the sheer pleasure of it. It was great to watch. I bet it felt even better.

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  8. I like the idea of young man, leaping and grinning like a madman. Quite hard to do in London, but I may pluck up the courage one-day and sing selections from Oklahoma at the top of my voice during the rush hour.

    I did however hum to myself quite loudly parts of the opening movement of Elgar's Cello Concerto,when I was tramping over the Malvern Hills last June.

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