“Can the art of dying stand a chance without the art of living?” Thank you for all your beautiful words about living well. I’m not afraid to die, but I do want to learn to live well and die well. Keep teaching my dear sister.
Hi Diane! Thanks for your readership and comments! It buoys me more than you know. I am glad to stay connected with you!
You are constantly learning to live well. We, the willing ones, are always learning shift accordingly.
Can you believe it has almost been a year since I met you at our Vipassana course? I am so grateful because I feel it truly cleared the pus from my brain so well. Cleared enough garbage to make room for clarity perhaps.
The day our class ended, I committed to keep learning and keep cleaning clogged pathways. It's time for another course soon!
Indeed, we are inflamed with violence. And the common justification is "they started it." Don't they see that if we dissolve our attention towards survival, the threat disappears as well? There is even a hunger not just for desire but for violence too. We continue to run away from what we fear, yet it continues to grow.
Thank you for this piece, a great reminder of the power of our attention. Just subscribed!
Thank you for this lovely comment and for subscribing!
It's not me writing but my heart. Or maybe that is the true me. Who even knows?
I agree with you 100% re our addiction to violence. I knew a lot of violence growing up and made many choices that perpetuated the familiarity. It is so remarkable and horrible that our subconscious works that way. We are not even aware that the violence neurons of our brains have been constantly fed garbage.
The blame game is such sandbox mentality. Our attention is fixated on pointing fingers. Not being able to understand our shared humanity and not being able to lay down our arms is such a marker of the depth of our sickness and the root rot of our human condition.
Deep and real thoughts that should be a pathway for sustained health and pursuit of happiness from within our souls. Sadly our world is digressing further and further away from this and you are on of the few that has her heels dug in and is gauging a parallel bilat pathway through this chaos. It is nice to see.
Thanks, Kevin! It does seem like I am digging my heels. I like to say I am grounding.
The world is in despair and discontinuity. Our response will make or break us. Let it be a catalyst for us to trust that our instincts will lead the new way. They are buried though so first need excavation and connection.
Thanks for reading and commenting! Congrats on your recent transition! I am proud of you. Now time for you and Rose to visit garden!
Wonderful and refreshing, and with so many good reminders! Funny that you mention you're not afraid of death. I'm actually quite excited to find out what's on "the other side," though I don't say it often because I'm afraid it'll come across as morbid.
Your comment about the "religion of violence" also really struck a cord with me. The language I use is "myth of redemptive violence," borrowing from Walter Wink's critique of oppressive power systems. The girls and I were discussing this concept just today actually.
And what you wrote about "pretas" reminds me very much of what Pema Chödrön has written about "shenpa," which I presume has similar/related conceptual roots given her Tibetan Buddhist background.
Thanks Jake for the as always insightful comments. I was obsessed with Emily Dickinson as a kid and everyone thought (and still thinks) me terribly morbid. There is an app called "We Croak" that you can download on your phone. I love it. It gives many great quotes/reminders of how fleeting life is. When I tell people about it, of course they think I am crazy. People are crippled by their fear of death. I think that only when we understand our mortality can we fully feel alive.
I find the hypocrisy of religion so unsettling. Most of the patients I witness on deathbeds are "Christian." I often think to myself well isn't this the time your religion should be pulling you through? Why are you so scared if you are so religious? Perplexing.
I don't know Walter Wink but I just love that your lovely kids get to learn so much from observing you. It brings us all hope.
I love Pema. She said one of my favorite quotes: “Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.”
Thanks Nessa! I was just thinking today about embodied writing about medical heartbreak. I think I'm going to take it easy on myself this week and continue on with my in depth profile, but this concept of allowing my heartbreak to course through my body instead of that dark closet in my mind. Also thinking about who holds our broken hearts for us and mulling over Josefina Sanders recent writing about strong people's needs.
Thanks for the comment, Amy! I did not even know embodied writing was a thing until I fell onto it and then understood what was happening. Writing with all senses is healing. Writing with all senses about heartbreak and bereavement helps!
I now know how my body plays a role in my pain and I allow for daily attention and detoxification.
I do not know Josefina Sanders but I always love a good reference.
Talk to you soon! I hope your initiation of your rest is going well despite with wild cosmos.
“Can the art of dying stand a chance without the art of living?” Thank you for all your beautiful words about living well. I’m not afraid to die, but I do want to learn to live well and die well. Keep teaching my dear sister.
Hi Diane! Thanks for your readership and comments! It buoys me more than you know. I am glad to stay connected with you!
You are constantly learning to live well. We, the willing ones, are always learning shift accordingly.
Can you believe it has almost been a year since I met you at our Vipassana course? I am so grateful because I feel it truly cleared the pus from my brain so well. Cleared enough garbage to make room for clarity perhaps.
The day our class ended, I committed to keep learning and keep cleaning clogged pathways. It's time for another course soon!
I love your writing style, Dr. Nessa.
Indeed, we are inflamed with violence. And the common justification is "they started it." Don't they see that if we dissolve our attention towards survival, the threat disappears as well? There is even a hunger not just for desire but for violence too. We continue to run away from what we fear, yet it continues to grow.
Thank you for this piece, a great reminder of the power of our attention. Just subscribed!
Thank you for this lovely comment and for subscribing!
It's not me writing but my heart. Or maybe that is the true me. Who even knows?
I agree with you 100% re our addiction to violence. I knew a lot of violence growing up and made many choices that perpetuated the familiarity. It is so remarkable and horrible that our subconscious works that way. We are not even aware that the violence neurons of our brains have been constantly fed garbage.
The blame game is such sandbox mentality. Our attention is fixated on pointing fingers. Not being able to understand our shared humanity and not being able to lay down our arms is such a marker of the depth of our sickness and the root rot of our human condition.
Deep and real thoughts that should be a pathway for sustained health and pursuit of happiness from within our souls. Sadly our world is digressing further and further away from this and you are on of the few that has her heels dug in and is gauging a parallel bilat pathway through this chaos. It is nice to see.
Thanks, Kevin! It does seem like I am digging my heels. I like to say I am grounding.
The world is in despair and discontinuity. Our response will make or break us. Let it be a catalyst for us to trust that our instincts will lead the new way. They are buried though so first need excavation and connection.
Thanks for reading and commenting! Congrats on your recent transition! I am proud of you. Now time for you and Rose to visit garden!
Wonderful and refreshing, and with so many good reminders! Funny that you mention you're not afraid of death. I'm actually quite excited to find out what's on "the other side," though I don't say it often because I'm afraid it'll come across as morbid.
Your comment about the "religion of violence" also really struck a cord with me. The language I use is "myth of redemptive violence," borrowing from Walter Wink's critique of oppressive power systems. The girls and I were discussing this concept just today actually.
And what you wrote about "pretas" reminds me very much of what Pema Chödrön has written about "shenpa," which I presume has similar/related conceptual roots given her Tibetan Buddhist background.
Thank you, as always!
Thanks Jake for the as always insightful comments. I was obsessed with Emily Dickinson as a kid and everyone thought (and still thinks) me terribly morbid. There is an app called "We Croak" that you can download on your phone. I love it. It gives many great quotes/reminders of how fleeting life is. When I tell people about it, of course they think I am crazy. People are crippled by their fear of death. I think that only when we understand our mortality can we fully feel alive.
I find the hypocrisy of religion so unsettling. Most of the patients I witness on deathbeds are "Christian." I often think to myself well isn't this the time your religion should be pulling you through? Why are you so scared if you are so religious? Perplexing.
I don't know Walter Wink but I just love that your lovely kids get to learn so much from observing you. It brings us all hope.
I love Pema. She said one of my favorite quotes: “Only when we know our own darkness well can we be present with the darkness of others. Compassion becomes real when we recognize our shared humanity.”
Thanks Nessa! I was just thinking today about embodied writing about medical heartbreak. I think I'm going to take it easy on myself this week and continue on with my in depth profile, but this concept of allowing my heartbreak to course through my body instead of that dark closet in my mind. Also thinking about who holds our broken hearts for us and mulling over Josefina Sanders recent writing about strong people's needs.
Thanks for the comment, Amy! I did not even know embodied writing was a thing until I fell onto it and then understood what was happening. Writing with all senses is healing. Writing with all senses about heartbreak and bereavement helps!
I now know how my body plays a role in my pain and I allow for daily attention and detoxification.
I do not know Josefina Sanders but I always love a good reference.
Talk to you soon! I hope your initiation of your rest is going well despite with wild cosmos.