Tuesday, September 20, 2005

Influence

I took a break from work and played One Word, again. This time my word was "influence". These writings are not meant to be great. They're meant to get the mind off other things. When you write these things, you're not supposed to think, you're just supposed to write. Consider it to be a form of meditation.

Here is my paragraph on "influence":

"Many people have had influence on me in my life. From the very beginning, my parents were a major factor on who I would become. Then my school teachers, and later friends. Now my internet friends are a major influence on me. "

4 comments:

Anonymous said...

Due to the nature of this 'exercise', I'm not sure that you want, "comments" or responses but I can't resist.

In the search for 'enlightment' or the 'truth', it is helpful and necessary that we are clear about our claims, that they too are true.

Is it true that, or do you know for certain that your parents were a major factor on who you would become? That doesn't seem obvious...or your school teachers and friends for that matter.

It's alarming what we take to be, 'obvious givens', when in actual fact under closer observation what appears to be true may be a complete misconception.

It may sound very esoteric, but if you examine the statements from the viewpoit that we are all ONE, that changes our preconceived notions about TIME and CAUSE to such an extent that what you had assumed to be true, was in actual fact, an impossibility.

Is your mother actually separate from you and she from her mother? Is the hundred foot redwood tree
already in existence in the seed? and in the seed of the tree before her?

Anonymous said...

Hi anonymous,

Comments are always welcome on this blog. In fact, I hope you come back. :)

From this perpective, I can see it differently. If I (i) am not truly separate from everything, then everything influences me. The One is the greatest influence, and in fact, my Self influences my self.

Does this sound about right?

Anonymous said...

Well...if you are not sepatate from anything and everything is ONE, does time really exist, or might it be a very powerful illusion.

If the tree already exists in the seed, where is their space for influence. 'Influence' implies that there is such a thing as time. If you existed in your mother and she in her mother, have you not always been?

Anonymous said...

Good point, anonymous. I can see what you are saying. This is truly an intriguing concept. If I've always been, then there is no time, therefore no influence. Interesting. Kind of gives me chills.