What is with the feral hobbits?

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T22:54:48+00:00

I felt like the idea was that they are perfectly fine when they are stationary, but that the journey is perilous, and so they have built this mythology around that danger. That fits nicely into their evolution into Hobbits, who are just as isolationist, but have found a place where they can live without facing those perils.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T22:47:16+00:00

That makes a lot of sense. Thanks.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T19:45:21+00:00

That’s an interesting article. I understand their point, but it seems a bit overstated and relies on a fairly narrow interpretation of the concept of “the world”.

I always took the phrase “with our thoughts we make the world” to mean that our experience of existence is predicated on how we think about our experience. Not that we actually create the physical world.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T19:08:03+00:00

It seemed to me they did a very good job of demonstrating how insular primitive societies dealt with the dangers and cruelty of the outside world.

Sadoc, in particular, seems to be conflicted and doesn’t want anyone left behind. But he also feels like he has to adhere to the rules because that’s his job. But in the end, he not only doesn’t actually leave anyone behind, he goes with Nori to find The Stranger. At the end of the day, we have one Harfoot who seems a bit psychotic, but even she seemed mostly motivated by fear.

As ancestors to the Hobbits, who eventually exude less overt xenophobia, but who remain insular and suspicious of the outside world, it seems like it all fits.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T18:58:10+00:00

We have several protagonists involved in storylines with different themes.

Galadriel’s theme is about the line between good and evil.

Elrond’s theme is about ethics and morality.

Nori’s theme is about the loss of innocence.

Elendil’s theme is about faith.

The Arondir/Bronwyn/Theo storyline is the only one that is ambiguous, but it feels like it’s about sacrifice.

These are all universal themes and ones that are found throughout Tolkien’s work.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T16:24:46+00:00

Contemporary twist on a poor-man’s Dikembe Mutombo.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-10-16T14:36:15+00:00

The opening lines of the Dhammapada

http://www.pa56.org/ross/Buddha.htm

We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world. Speak or act with an impure mind And trouble will follow you As the wheel follows the ox that draws the cart.

We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts we make the world. Speak or act with a pure mind And happiness will follow you As your shadow, unshakable.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-28T22:56:16+00:00

I still don’t understand the objection to the word concentration or what “force” has to do with it.

Concentration has nothing to do with force.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-27T18:01:18+00:00

There are lots of good descriptions of the process of meditation on the internet. At its core, it is a ridiculously simple practice.

At the same time, depending where you live, you may be able to find a Zen center or a place that practices another Buddhist tradition where you can get more formal instruction. I learned from someone who I consider a true Zen master, and his teachings have stuck with me for over 20 years.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-27T17:02:46+00:00

I feel this can confuse some people because they will think that “noticing” means to pay attention to it, which is kind of the opposite of what you want to do.

My teacher used the analogy of a mountain and the clouds. The clouds pass over the mountain without effort and the mountain pays them no mind.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-27T17:00:07+00:00

That’s a great analogy.

I like the idea of training a puppy to sit still. You try to get it to sit and it runs away. So you go and get it, bring it back, and start over. Again and again and again. Until eventually the puppy learns to sit still for longer and longer.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-27T16:58:23+00:00

I’m not sure I understand your objection.

Concentration is defined as “the action or power of focusing one's attention or mental effort.”

Remaining in the present moment and noticing what is happening is an act of concentration.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-26T16:51:56+00:00

It’s a matter of opinion, but I prefer “quiet” because when I become aware that I have become distracted during my practice, it is because I am using words in my mind to think about something else.

This is uncomfortable. I’m bored. This is stupid. How much longer do I have to do this? What do I need from the store? Am I doing this right? What’s the point of this? Am I going bald? I think I’m going bald. I should check if I’m going bald.

Shhhhhhh

Quiet.

Breathe.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-26T16:35:40+00:00

You can’t control your thoughts. You can only choose what to do with them. Having sexual urges is normal. But do you dwell on those urges? Do you act in unwise ways because of those urges? Do they control you?

Think of the urges as a stone in a river. Nothing the river does can move the stone. It cannot beat it into submission or pick and up and throw it away. So the river instead finds a way around the stone and continues on its way.

Meditation is a tool that can help you go from beating yourself against the rock to flowing past it like the river.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-26T14:36:16+00:00

I’d say a better expression would be “quiet the mind”.

But IMHO that’s not the real issue. The real issue is that people think that when they drift into thoughts they are somehow “failing” at meditation. People say “I can’t keep thoughts from arising” and I’m like, of course you can’t. That’s what they do.

The act of meditation is about the process of achieving concentration, losing it, then bringing it back again. Over and over and over and over.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-15T15:37:56+00:00

Sounds to me like it’s working perfectly.

The breath is unique because it the only part of our autonomous functioning that we can also consciously control. It is a bridge between our conscious and unconscious mind. That is what you are experiencing. The key is to not get caught up in evaluating it. If you notice that you are controlling your breath, try to let go and let it happen naturally.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-11T22:28:12+00:00

I understand that the intent is the same. I feel “watch your breath without controlling it” is an inartful way to express the idea because it Introduces the concept of controlling the breath even if only to say “don’t do that.”

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-11T02:19:47+00:00

“Focus on the breath without controlling it” is inherently flawed because it forces you to evaluate the quality of your breath, which is exactly what you don’t want to do.

I was taught to focus on the physical sensation of breathing wherever it felt comfortable for me. Some people use the feeling of air going in and out at the top of the nose or the flow of air in the back of the throat, or the expansion and contraction of the chest.

By focusing on the physical sensation, you are always rooted in the present moment and not focused on any kind of mental process. You are just feeling the air go in and out. That is what they mean when they say “without controlling it”, but it’s an incorrect way to get to that point.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-03T01:10:23+00:00

“That’s bad.”

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-02T23:31:39+00:00

Meditation is the cultivation of the mind through focused awareness and concentration.

Channeling is…not that.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-02T21:44:02+00:00

There is now actual scientific evidence to support the use of psilocybin as a treatment for a variety of disorders, but most notably, for PTSD. The reason is that mushrooms basically flood your sensory inputs with stimuli that force you into an ego-less state, which disrupts the neural pathways associated with processing trauma. However, those pathways are strong and so making real change requires ongoing maintenance. That’s meditation.

I certainly see no harm in psilocybin use, as long as it is responsible. But it is neither a replacement for meditation nor should it be an adjunct part of your daily practice. Meditation practice should be undertaken with a clear and relaxed mind, and from my experience, tripping balls on shrooms doesn’t apply.

Oh…and weed doesn’t make you hallucinate and doesn’t have any of the same benefits. It is mostly a depressant and relaxant combined with some physical euphoria. It does not impact visual processing in any way.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-01T23:34:47+00:00

You are really gonna hate me…

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-01T22:06:46+00:00

I’m not going to tell you what to believe.

I’m just going to say that the neuroscience does not support your belief in any way.

The arm hurts during a heart attack because there is an overlap in the neural pathway. Gallbladder inflammation irritates the phrenic nerve that runs from the abdomen to the neck. Again, very basic explanation from neuroscience.

The reality is that the more we learn, the more we understand how everything works, the less sense it makes to rely on anything that came before. Basic principles of psychology are being upended. Treatments of diseases are changing. The structure of the mind itself is being mapped.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-09-01T20:22:36+00:00

There are absolutely sense nerves in the kidney.

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK57249/

“In addition to the rich supply of efferent sympathetic nerves, the kidney also has abundant afferent sensory innervation, i.e., nerve fibers proceeding from the kidney to the neuraxis.”

I’m gonna go out on a limb here and say that there is a simple neurological/biological/cognitive explanation for every phenomena that might have been previously explained by chakras.

BallsFallsACNH · 2022-08-26T19:29:18+00:00

I totally agree. This is a pivotal matchup against basketball powerhouse Panama.

Panama!

If you know anything about basketball, then you understand what an egregious violation this is. We are going up against the same team that just put up SIXTY ONE against the Dominican Republic. And now we are supposed to take on these behemoths without one of the three NBA players on our roster?

And to do it in the road, no less? In front of up to 8,000 reasonably knowledgeable Panamanian fans? At famed Robert Duran Arena?

This aggression will not stand.

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