PEACEThat which is non-energetic in all respects (for energy is not real), and can be likened to being eternally "at rest". Peace is not peacefulness; which can be contrived, chosen or enforced, or can be a temporal reflection of the influence from noticing one's ever-present awareness of...or awareness as peace, the one shared reality.

(ultimate) LOVE In a sense, love is not reality and in fact is unknown in reality...except that genuine unconditional love is evoked in thoughts, feelings and behaviors by the influence of peace; which peace is reality. When the resistance to love is lessened, or in other words when the message that the influence of peace is has had its effect or impact, love is more and more like peace in nature. When all resistance to this loving influence is gone, one could say that love is peace, there being no difference between them. That is not accurate however, because where peace is...nothing "else" is. At such an ultimate point in time, where the things of time transcend time, love, peace or reality are just meaningless words, for the reality that these are beyond the temporal meanings and appearances needs no word or label assignment, and has no boundaries, and thus no definition. Love is peacefully energetic and loses even that quieter energy as it sheds resistance to peace, whereas peace is non-energetic.

UNDERSTANDING Understanding in common usage, understanding is viewed similarly to the incorrect view of knowledge. In that view, knowledge is seen ultimately as a complete collection of information, and understanding is seen as the proper structuring of that knowledge. True knowledge and understanding are not information or structure. Knowledge has to do with knowing (and reality is all that can be "known"). Understanding is true non-informational knowledge, and is called understanding as somewhat of a metaphor for its foundational aspects in which the influence of reality impacts thinking, feeling and behaving in ways which create a solid basis for life in this world. Understanding then, is the same as love. (See main Understanding page)

FOUNDATION Foundation means the same thing as "understanding" with a little more metaphorical emphasis placed on imagery of that which holds up whatever is or has been created, founded, built, etc.

(true) JUDGMENT Judgment in common usage often refers to harsh or negative judgments against someone. It is also positive judgments thought to be "for" someone. Additionally, everything we think, see or relate to is created by various forms of this common judgment. True judgment is not judgment in that sense, but is reality itself. When all resistance to reality is relinquished, and all the energy pertaining to such resistance is gone as well, what is left is the default or that which is always present...reality itself. As such, reality is the "final judgment" which sets aside all other temporal, arbitrary and partial judgments. True judgment is reality, and yet needs no such label. (See main Judgment page)

(ultimate) GOD Usually, I would not list the term "God" as reality. However, when writing and expecting that some people who read these writings are of a religious background, and relate to that term as the ultimate power, it made sense to include it here as a synonym for reality. I've listed it as "ultimate God" to directly imply that it is that which is foundational and all-powerful. Despite that, when using the term "God" here, all-powerful does not mean "power over anything or anyone". Such control is not truly possible, despite all the temporal evidence we see indicating that it is the status quo. God as reality is peace, and thus all power anywhere because reality or peace (or "God") is all there is. Used here, other than references to the concept of God used in scriptures, etc., it does not refer to a deity or higher power, etc. Reality being the only power, such terms as higher power have no meaning. Terms such as deity imply a separate, special, sacred and especially holy entity above all other (separate) entities. None of that is true, even if the most amazing evidence were to be put forward, including visitations of deities, visions, voices, etc.

AWARENESS Awareness is self-knowledge, or simply knowledge or reality itself. There is nothing such as (real) awareness separate from reality. What we usually refer to as awareness is temporal awareness, which when contrasted to real awareness could be likened to an invented or pseudo-awareness...of the temporal world, which is an invented (created) or pseudo-reality.

MEANING Reality and meaning are the same thing. And yet, the way we view meaning, as (for instance) one meaning as opposed to many other meanings, is about illusions, or how we define separateness...which in reality, is not so. The "meanings" which we banter about in thought, are non-existent in reality...including those I put forward here. When knowledge is clearly and wholly known, it precludes partial and temporary meanings based on dividedness which is in denial of whole reality.

SPIRIT Although in common usage, both religious and secular, "spirit" has many meanings. In religion, it is usually put forward as meaning many separate spirits as entities. In such view or definition, we find references to evil spirits, a "Holy Spirit", etc. In reality, no such separated definitional differences exist. Spirit then, is one and only one spirit...our shared reality (however differentiated or plural it may seem when perception is created in mind and attempting to view spirit in terms of our dividedness ideation). Spirit then, is reality itself...with or without such a label. One could say then that spirit is alive, eternally alive, and not dead. But just what do these temporal ideas have to do with reality? In the temporal world, we think of that which is alive as being that which presents evidence of its living state as spontaneous change and movement...with respect to something else that is or is not considered to be alive...with respect to any "other" moment in time, etc. In reality, no such states, changes, movements or timeframes exist.

(ultimate) TRUTH In the same way in which love is not reality, and yet often arises as a reflection of reality...with a counterfeit love which is partial and conditional afoot in the temporal as well...so also, truth is not reality, but often arises as a reflection of reality. That is basically saying that love and truth are the same thing in the temporal world, and as these arise within and draw us toward non-resisted reality via its influence through them, they merge with reality. So one could say they are reality in that sense, and yet there is little point in saying this because there is simply that which here I'm calling reality or peace or a number of other things, and which needs none of those terms, as it has no definitional boundaries. Truth which is or could be called reality, is ultimate truth; whereas within our minds and concepts in the temporal world, truth is a variable and is often arbitrary in concept, whose only similarity to reality or ultimate truth is that the miracle embedded in these illusory appearances of the concepts called truth, points or nudges us toward willingness to look at reality and to accept its influence more fully.

INTENTION Intention is an odd thing, implying that which is intended, or a plan or purpose. In reality, there is nothing such as intending (as a variable), nor yet such a thing as a plan or purpose. We invent these terms and definitions in order to attempt to relate to reality, using these terms as vehicles of approach. Despite this, one could say that the influence of reality arising in mind and into this world as love and the one law of love, could be likened to intending for loving to be extant in the world. Intention stands somewhat at the cusp of, or imaginary (and thus temporal and non-existent) boundary between this illusory world and reality. From our world's viewpoint then, intention is reality, for it is the ultimate among our concepts, definitions and partial intentions, above which nothing else is perceived...and yet that reality which could be said to be intention itself is not perceived, but only "seen" or known as what it homogeneously is.

WILL Will and intention are the same thing. In common usage, will would be like that impetus which activates intention toward implementation or application or achievement, etc. As true intention is perceived more and more to be like reality, such activator or motivator aspects fade into intention, as intention also fades into reality. There is no litmus test to determine what is or is not reality. But it helps to realize that reality has no imagery or concepts or definitions...and thus reality is not "determined", but simply is so. Will and intention as perfected and faded into reality lose their definition and capability to be perceived as being determined or chosen, and simply are so...merged into oneness, and thus "is so" rather than "are so".

LAW Law is like love, will and intention, and is based in understanding from the influence of awareness of reality as peace. As such, there is but one law, which can be most easily understood as the one law of love. As all these terms, including love merge into reality, and their definitional appearances as separated concepts fade, we find that the one law is reality. In terms of influence in the world, it influences people toward a singular understanding, which when shared contributes to a more cohesive and cooperative, loving and nurturing world. In terms of what is sometimes regarded as salvation, atonement, or restoration, the one law of love is required. What this means is that one must pause and become more aware of their reality as peace, thus increasing their temporal awareness of love in the world around them, and assisting them to become messengers of it, sharing it in the world as a reflection of our shared reality beyond time and the world of illusions.

JUSTICE Much of society among mankind practices a tit for tat, vengeance behavior pattern which then is called justice, or in terms of the punishment of those deemed to be criminals (in a reward and punishment system) called a criminal justice system. This type thinking and acting out strong emotions en masse is an organized form of "civilized" mob rule, starting with various processes including democracy, and ending in punishment. Oddly, nothing could be further from "justice" than this. Justice and love are the same thing. One cannot be just or have justice in their life or world until they become willing to love their own self and others. While many attempt to "be more loving" in terms of what society calls "behaviors which are more loving", this falls far short of love...and thus also is not justice. In order for someone to love, it requires influence from noticing their awareness of our shared reality. This shifts one's attitude and creates a foundation of love, from which behaviors can arise with the proper foundation and motivation. Even if the exact same behaviors are chosen and implemented, such choices (while helpful) have the flip side inherent in all choices...that of embracing the entire set of any opposites pairs which choices embrace. So choosing so-called loving behaviors and implementing them, behind the scenes also chooses and embraces their opposite...and at some point these will give evidence of their presence. Love must arise from a foundation based on the reality of peace, in which no opposites are found or embraced. And only in genuine love and caring for "all" can justice be found. Justice is not blind, but instead is unconditional, for love is unconditional. Like love, justice waits, and brings its foundational influence to bear...and then any changes which arise from this are more real, more truly loving and caring, and ultimately just for all concerned. Then the phrase "...justice for all" truly makes sense, for justice then is not arbitrary and has no vengeance in it. One could imagine God (reality) as saying (figuratively), "Vengeance is mine...and I will repay all my children with unconditional love in pure, whole knowledge of their shared truth forever."

WHOLENESS Wholeness is reality. In order to be whole, that which is whole (which is all) is and must be indivisible...and must remain so. Wholeness and oneness are the same thing, for all that could be perceived as separate, multiple and alive are actually one...in perfect wholeness of being.

ALL or ALL-ENCOMPASSING All or all-encompassing is the same thing as wholeness or reality. That which is all, includes all that is real (which is only "one (boundless) infinite", and as such includes all that this reality can dream in its denial, howbeit only in dreams of imagery and idols like toys to be cast aside in favor of love, leading us like children toward peace or all, the shared reality. In Him (in All) we live, move and have being...which is to say that our illusions of life, motion and an abstract concept of beingness are included "with" reality, which is one and has no "real" descriptors or definitions or aspects per se.

ETERNITY Eternity is reality, is all, including all of what we perceive as time, but which actually exists wholly beyond or outside of the constraints of time (the perceptual mechanism of the framework in which time, space, matter and energy all interplay one with another, expressing denial as creation). Time, space, matter, energy, speed, measurement, dimensionality, etc., are not real, and yet they are dreamed via mental vexation into manifestation, and are thereby included in eternity, not as "part" of eternity (for eternity has no parts), but as a fleeting false imagery which is energetically pushed into vision...until whole vision is noticed or brought into remembrance, and that energy released. You can charge a battery, then use its release to accomplish things in the world. You can do this over and over, and gradually the battery loses some of its capacity and ability to maintain the charge. Eventually, the battery wears out, and cannot hold a charge anymore. This is somewhat of a metaphor or simile about how the cycle of denial (which creates our apparent bodies and this world) functions.

(the) INFINITE The Infinite is a term used to refer to eternity, with an emphasis on the concept of the unbounded (undefined or not bound) or unlimited (all-encompassing) nature of eternity or reality.

(literal) ONENESS Literal Oneness is oneness with an emphasis placed on our oneness as being literal, and not merely figurative. Our reality is literally one indivisible whole. Oneness and reality are the same thing, and as the awareness inherent in reality influences temporal awareness (or pseudo-awareness) through noticing, oneness is the guidance by that influence called love. From a temporal viewpoint, oneness influences or gives the message or vision of awareness, and love listens and implements that guidance in the world. All of these conceptual and experiential aspects of being human, when willingly accepting influence more and more, draw us up into reality's (the father's) embrace (figuratively), where the walls we've created and defined as barriers are let fall, and we know as we are known.

FORGIVENESS Forgiveness unveils the truth about forgiveness, that this is what we are...and therefore that forgiveness ("fore-giveness") is not an act we perform in tolerance after the fact of an undesired occurrence. After the fact acts of tolerance are not forgiveness, but are post-giveness. Post-giveness is a good tool because it helps open the heart, and it is when the heart is willingly opened that we afford ourselves the opportunity to embrace our reality as fore-giveness. But be clear that forgiveness must be restored in mind and realized as present BEFORE any undesired act occurs in order for it to be forgiveness. (see main Forgiveness page)

SHARED REALITY Shared reality is reality with an emphasis on the "in literal oneness" and "shared always" nature of reality. To perception's point of view, such sharing requires multiplicity and separateness, relationship and potential joining. In reality, we are one always. Sharing means that what we perceive as giving is also receiving. As these seemingly two acts merge into pure intent or will, they are noticed to be one and the same oneness and sharing. That which was never divided or separate can never join per se, and yet is in complete wholeness of sharing always.

DESIRE In reality, we as one know all, or omnisciently know our infinite self. Because our shared reality is unbounded, it is free, including freedom to (attempt to) deny. Because denial is not real, it is not known, and yet it is clear that we have this freedom to attempt to deny whole vision or to look at partiality...or something other than whole reality. Although denial and its children are not real, freedom as what we are is real. It could be likened to "potential" existing as unreal within the real. So denial is potential in a manner of speaking. The inclusion of all that freedom entails is required of wholeness in order to be whole, (for freedom from dividedness is what wholeness is in one way of looking at it).

The seeming existence (or seemingly potential existence) of unreal and not-literally-existing denial as a potential for exploration beyond wholeness is desire...desire to know the unknowable (as though it were an unknown reality aspect and yet knowable). Because denial and its children or imagery do not literally exist, it is not possible to "know" that which denial creates; therefore, it must be perceived in order for it to appear in vision...and by multifaceted vision, appear in experience. In other words, one cannot know and literally see that which isn't there, and yet they can dream its appearance.

This tiny thing called desire, almost as though it were an error or a mistake, is that which in reality offers purpose to reality or to being real. From a temporal, logical viewpoint, one might ask, "What good is it to be real and whole if one cannot do, think, feel or experience anything?" Of course, such a thought only appears inside the denial framework, but the question illustrates slightly that reality alone is not the satisfying thing we might think.

Desire, arising as vexation in mind, and by choice seemingly setting aside whole vision in favor of attempting to deny that vision to look upon partial or divided vision...gives purpose to reality, and beauty, and excitement, and exploration possibilities within the potential of freedom to attempt to deny (as well as giving pain and death, made more difficult when denial's conflict is exacerbated).

Without attempted denial creating our world, we would not be thinking, feeling or experiencing anything, for these require time, and a framework in which to experience...all of which are created by the vexation and energetic attempt to deny in order to see "less" (or dividedness) as though it were "more" than or beyond the whole. Much like the saying in mental health circles, "we want what we want, and we want it right now!"...even if we have to create it out of thin reality.

Denial and its children fly in the face of wholeness' vision, effectively seeming to set it aside, and yet our awareness of and as whole reality is there, and known, even though covered over by the overlays of denial, like a child holding their hands over their eyes and watching colored spots in the darkness. Just as the child knows it can remove its hands at any moment and see again, so also we know deep down that we can reopen our hearts to notice our existent awareness of whole reality and see wholly at any moment (despite the fact that we're very distracted because we're keeping our attention on our creation as much as possible). We have however, blocked this from spontaneously happening in order to enjoy our explorations of dividedness. These mental, mental-emotional, and imagery-clad blocks are like an overlapping weave or fabric...a veil if you will, (pseudo-)intentionally hiding whole reality so we can play out our illusory cycles. These are what is sometimes called blocks or barriers to love, or blocks to awareness.

Unfortunately, this hiding game gets out of hand by exacerbation of denial and its children, making such exploration painful and seeming more like a trap. Any continued course within denial's framework will eventually work out to completion of the denial cycles involved (i.e.-leading us "home" as it were). However, that can be and often is a very tough road.

     "Then said he unto the disciples, It is impossible but that offences will come: but woe unto him, through whom they come!" (yes, out of context) – Luke 17:1

Pausing and willingly looking toward or offering attention toward our reality, even though it seems to lie hidden behind the veil, begins to lessen the intensity of our denial exacerbation, eventually causing evidence to appear in the illusory world around us. So we have a solution, the culmination of which is balancing denial with influence from our awareness of reality. Then desire is no longer creating a raging beast, but a garden of delight instead. ACIM calls this the happy dream and speaks of God making the final step for us, and yet doesn't always make it clear that we are the creator called God...even stating that we are not (however, the "we are not creator" refers to "we, the limited temporal selves we seem to be"...those seemingly separate entities did not create, but are in fact the created...created by the all-encompassing reality we share, via desire and the attempt to deny whole vision through choosing).

     "And I, if I be lifted up [in the heart] from the earth [denial's creation idols], [I] will draw all men unto me."
(yes...that's the same "I" you refer to yourself with throughout the day)– John 12:32
( out of context...  gold in the ore...all men or mankind as shared oneness per Jesus' prayer — John 17:20-23   )

What if "all men" truly meant "all men", and not a Christianity Club of a select few so-called righteous people? What if...salvation, atonement and restoration was all ours unconditionally, without obtaining a special ticket or dispensation? Would that be cause for great joy and resolving conflict into peace? Yes...it would.

CHOICE Choice is the mechanism desire uses to create opposites pairs as a dream, and as such is mental vexation or that which creates energy...which divides light from dark, allowing definition, along with energy's "children", space and time in which to define matter (and more). Choice is denial because in reality, there is only one...the one reality, and therefore there are not two or more to choose between. Thus choice is the initial step of denial of whole vision of reality (which "is" reality), in order to see something other than indivisible whole reality...or in other words definable and defined opposites pairs as imagery objects, abstraction into thought and concept, and on and on, dividing more and more. Who did this initial choosing? The only one there is...which we've come to call God, but which is simply our shared reality. From a biblical consideration, in Genesis 1:1, it says that "In the beginning, God created...". Although many people tend to think of God as creating good, and mankind as bringing in evil according to the Garden of Eden story, Isaiah 45:7 suggests another view, "I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the Lord do all these things." The author of Isaiah uses a definition for peace other than the one I'm using on this site, in that case meaning something more along the lines of peacefulness and lack of war.

ILLUSION Illusion is thought of and commonly defined as various takes on things that report reality incorrectly, but those definitions are speaking of the world we regard as reality, to be the reality being misreported. As used on this site, "illusion" indicates anything that does not show knowledge of whole reality as what it is. Words written or spoken are never reality, and objects or actions in the world spoken of or observed are never reality. This is so because these change and are temporary in terms of form and of existence or appearance. Reality does not change and is not temporary. Illusion is always composed from opposites pairs appearing as though physical or mental and abstract, as generated by denial via choice. Basically everything I grew up thinking of as real, is not, and every concept, feeling and behavior and the judgments about these, both positive and negative, also are not real. These all have beginning and ending, unlike the one reality which lies just beyond perception's veil of illusions.

DREAM Dream, or more to the point, "the Dream" has to do with the universe, the world, the mental creations which report such a framework as though in time. To dream as an activity, is to create, regardless of whether creating something tangible to this world, or something mental and perhaps filled in with energetic imagery, feelings and responsiveness from objects or people in that dream which is dreamed. The Dream therefore, in all its parts, is illusion, and thus is also denial...and was generated by vexation of mind as attempted choice (often which attempts seem very much to have succeeded, for such is the depth of the deception involved in perception of the illusion of the Dream). ACIM refers to dreaming and to "the happy dream", all of which are illusion. The Bible refers to prophets having dreams and being instructed therein of coming events or of actions they were to take. Regardless of whether the things presented in these visions or dreams panned out seeming to be correct or not, they are still illusion. All dreams are illusion...and the world we believe we see, but only perceive, is a dream.

LACK Much of the rationale for actions we take in the world, revolve around ideation about lack...of knowledge, of information, of quality relationships, of wealth, of necessities in life, etc. Lack is a child of the vexation process in mind activated by choice. We perceive separateness or dividedness, and within the world framework where we perceive this, we judge those perceptions. We judge "for" and/or emphasize certain things (or so we think), and we judge "against" and/or deemphasize, or intensely emphasize "against" certain things. Despite our seeming to judge "for and against", either of these is "against whole vision of reality" the very tiniest split instant in which we choose to see these seemingly separate objects, people, etc., and secondly, as we continue the judgment process to judge them as good and evil, positive and negative, and so on. This polarized type thinking, which all thinking is in one degree and style or another, creates partiality, and via partiality, also creates disparity. Disparity in perception creates the opposites pair of abundance versus lack. Abundance of that which we partake of in the world is illusion. Lack of that which we partake of in the world is illusion. This applies whether our partaking is of things believed to be physical or non-physical, spiritual or secular, internal or external, etc...basically anything we partake of in terms of us perceiving that partaking, has the dual potential of that opposites pair. You cannot call for one without also calling for the other, for they are bound by the design of their creation to always be together, even though perception may report both or may report only one at a time.

A particular kind of the sense of lack is important to take note of. We do not need to concentrate on this and make a huge struggle out of it...we simply need to notice this particular sense of lack process going on in how we approach self-image and eternal whole vision (including the approach to what we've come to believe in as "God"). There are several parts to this kind of sense of lack:

• A sense that we individually (and/or collectively as humanity) are "less than"...anyone, including "God". We've been conditioned to believe in this, often as a sense of unworthiness or lesser worthiness than someone "above us".
• In conjunction with a sense of lesser worthiness, as we sift through doctrines and teachings in a religious context, we judge ourselves (and are judged by others) to be less than completely worthy and ready for...perfection, for heaven, for the very best and highest (according to perception's view of this).
• A sense that we lack knowledge, or adequate knowledge, or less knowledge than...anyone.

We are taught from a very young age that we should be modest and not speak highly of our own selves. Many are taught that they and all humanity are specifically less than God...carrying this further to include anyone who seems to have greater knowledge, greater expertise, greater authority, greater wealth, and so on.

Because of such a view, the majority of us base many of our decisions in life upon the words and opinions of writers called inspired and authoritative (receiving their authority from "God"), upon experts who specialize in various kinds of information (regarded incorrectly as knowledge), upon teachers and mainstream education and science, upon doctors, upon parents, upon political leaders, upon friends...and much of these words and opinions fail us, and yet we still follow them, often favored over our own thoughts, opinions, etc.

We are taught that anything which arises in mind that isn't from these allegedly time-tested, inspired, traditional, well-thought-of, authoritative and expert sources...is "just our imagination". Some such "imagination" results in people becoming considered to be geniuses, and rather than follow a similar inward path, we regard these people as special cases, and as one more category of people to look up to and regard as higher than us in some way.

Integral to this kind of sense of lack is distrust of self. Religions and sometimes other sources, including parents at times, contribute to exacerbation of this. When it comes to listening to our own self within, it is then "just our imagination" and nothing to consider important...after all, one cannot trust their imagination. Many of us have heard sayings like, "The first sign of insanity is talking to yourself...and perhaps that the second sign is answering yourself". On the surface that may sound funny, or perhaps we even think there is some truth in it, as we envision crazy people in an asylum who talk to imaginary people and hold conversations with them. It is important to realize however, that in this we've been seriously misled. Talking to yourself and listening to yourself is the single most healthy thing you can ever do...ever. Although what we've come to regard as our "self" is rather limited, being some sort of spirit ensconced in a body, it is here, within, that we can begin to encounter our shared reality, and as we learn how to listen and watch and discover what that reality offers to us, enhance our lives in immeasurable ways.

Lack...a perception which in many ways seems so real and so much the case for so many, many people. Lack...a perception which has been systematically conditioned into our thinking and feelings responses, very often in ways which are broadly institutionalized as religious thought systems, and as government leadership and laws, etc. We may find it unwise to resist such obviated lack, other than to try to improve our wealth and health a little...but...we can pause our energetic day-to-day doing and thought processing, regularly, a little at a time, daily...and allow whatever influence and impact as may come along in our lives over time as such influence and impact arise. Some people discover benefit from this in a short time, and some over a very long period (such as over decades), and some search around themselves for signs that this "is working"...and stop altogether because it seems silly or useless or pointless. Nevertheless, our unlimited "self", far beyond the limited perception of self and our self-image, is always there, is always our reality, and always cares for us according to our willingness to open ourselves to receive that care. One might call this "God", and another one might take an atheist point of view. Both of these and many others interfere however, for our reality is not these traditional thought patterns.

THOUGHTS Thoughts are pairs of opposites as patterns of illusion. Thoughts may appears as what we commonly think of as thoughts, or may also be a very large number of other forms such as images, physical objects, abstract imagery, concepts, feelings, emotions, senses, the body, the world, the universe, etc. Thoughts of the variety we think of as thoughts are imagery patterns, typically used in the process called thinking, in which these are organized into one or several queues and sequentially marched through the mind's pseudo-attention, and then are regarded as time, events in time, feelings experienced and so on...and yet only a subset of these are regarded as "thoughts" (even though they are).

BELIEFS Just as opposites pairs are patterned into thoughts and as imagery (together and the same illusion), these are patterned further into various higher level patterns, such as concepts. Then just as opposites pairs were created by judgment into opposites, and thoughts were patterned by judgment into concepts, so also concepts are patterned into beliefs. Beliefs may be temporary and fleeting, on an as needed basis, or may be lasting over what seems to us to be very long periods of time. Generally, beliefs which are lasting, have this lasting quality because they are interwoven with condensed thoughtforms called feelings. Feelings act as a locking mechanism, locking beliefs in place somewhat. Feelings are also patterned into emotions and unconscious responses, etc. These higher level feelings can lock beliefs in place to a greater degree. Emotions ramp up intensity when situations arise that are contrary to existing belief, a simple example being the belief that painful or non-painful experience will continue. Unconscious responses are largely automated visceral responses which act as triggers to both mental and emotional responses. These unconscious responses play a survival role in our lives, helping to memorize imagery patterns which indicate threat, or indicate a path to take to enhance and continue life and quality of life. Examples: When driving, if you notice your car is swerving slightly over the line into oncoming traffic, an unconscious warning response is triggered from recognition of that fact, long before conscious thought tries to tackle it. Such unconscious response can also trigger fear so intense and focused that a small sharp pain is felt in the chest, that says WARNING! WARNING! WARNING! forcing us to reprioritize our (pseudo-)attention. When entering a room and someone of the opposite (or preferred) sex is noticed, an internal radar-like system goes into play, scanning that vision imagery, shape symbols, motion, sound, smell, etc., triggering varying levels of unconscious thought patterns. This might result in a sudden urge to look longer, or evoke a bodily sexual response, or perhaps some other type reaction pattern geared toward persons of that gender. These responses can trigger higher level responses as noticable feelings, sexual and otherwise...sometimes also sudden, and sometimes not. Beliefs are at the core of such responses, even though that core of thoughtforms may not be something we would think of or identify as beliefs.

Following along the lines of patterns associated with both survival and quality of life enhancement, religious or "spiritual" beliefs, particular those actively and repetitively promoted or even hammered in from youth, have a particularly strong and sometimes visceral response pattern attached. Such response patterns may be a pattern of triggering thought and belief rumination, reinforcing memory clarity of the pattern, or may trigger feelings and emotions associated with the pattern. These patterns may arise from group discussions, outreach sharing, prayer, or resistance to sharing the messages related to the pattern...and thus the triggered response might take on varied styles of response depending on the preponderance of triggers. All of these styles could occur in a short period of a moment or so, as mild or strong responses. This is so because religions in particular, use a strong component of reward and punishment, often which includes intensified and emotionally exaggerated concepts such as eternal life, eternal damnation, reward and punishment imagery, and memorized rhetoric as doctrines, scriptures, songs, and other types of remembrances...such as perhaps visions, voices, healings, desperate emotions related to loss or potential loss of loved ones or people in general. These are related to survival and quality of life enhancement for oneself, but also plays heavily into a natural desire to share and help and to prevent the same imagery that frightens on one hand or calls one toward rewards on the other in an emotional form which resembles true empathy, but is not. Instead of being genuine empathy, even though the people involved are often quite sincere...feeling patterns within their own selves are driving the behavior, and their "empathy" is emotional in nature (which is what empathy is more commonly regarded as). True empathy has to do with noticing awareness of our shared reality, and relating to people according to that unchanging truth, rather than according to changing and often volatile feelings, or related thoughts and beliefs.

BELIEF SYSTEMS Belief systems are higher level structures of beliefs, often overlapping and interwoven in ways that cause each belief in the structure to support the other beliefs, helping to ensure the continuance and least amount of change to the belief system involved. An example of how a belief system works is given in the above glossary item on "Beliefs". Belief systems are by no means restricted to religious or spiritual however, and may have to do with patterns of procedures thought to be necessary to ensure individual or group survival. Such survival can be with regard to physical survival and avoidance of maiming or death, or can be about surviving the judgments involved in peer pressure, etc. There is a large body of belief systems which are regarded as secular, involving mores believed to be best for a variety of reasons, including a wide array of behaviors. Most often, these can be traced back to religious belief systems...and vice versa...or in other words, they are very interrelated. Religion has been used to guide and solidify societal behavior patterns, impacting governments and laws...and governments and laws have been used to realign, guide and restructure religion in order to accommodate newer, sometimes more compelling or realistic information and data than was extant during previous periods with their earlier beliefs within any given belief system variant. Belief systems can be on an individual basis, and in the final analysis, all belief systems are on an individual basis. However, groups come together and reach agreements, and then promote specific beliefs, as well as enforce them using reward and punishment, sometimes involving harsh penalties and death for violation of those agreements. Hierarchy arises quickly and deeply into the heart of such belief systems, such that certain groups or people within a believing population control what is believed, how such beliefs are applied as behavior, and what any changes or the rationalization for those changes will look like.

JUDGMENT (pseudo-judgment) Judgment, here called pseudo-judgment, is not true judgment (such as described on the main Judgment page). Pseudo-judgment can be any of a wide variety of judgments, often very arbitrary, although sometimes seeming pretty straight forward and stable. Light and dark are an example of an opposites pair, as pseudo-judgment. Judging someone's clothing or behavior to be pleasing, or ugly, or desirable, or distasteful are all pseudo-judgments, and usually are collages or structures of multiple pseudo-judgments. Pseudo-judgment is my own term used to differentiate between judgments such as these, and which we all regard as judgment of one form or another...and genuine judgment. Genuine or true judgment is our shared reality...the simple fact and (non-imagery) vision that we together are...without any pseudo-judgments applied in mind. Such additional, dividing-into-opposites-pairs judgments may accompany genuine judgment; however only the pseudo-judgments appear in thoughts. Genuine judgment does not "appear" or "disappear", but is constant, and is "known" in awareness as what it (reality) is. So if both are noticed at once, the "this world" or pseudo-judgments will occupy our thought processes, and the genuine judgment will be noticed in our awareness (not as thoughts or imagery...but instead as influence). We think, feel and behave according to pseudo-judgments and that process is influenced by genuine judgment. Genuine judgment is not about decisions or even about any specific behaviors thought to be good or better. The behaviors chosen might be the same in either case, but the more "influenced by awareness" behaviors will be based in a more consistent and solid foundation, contributing to edification along with any behaviors or events being applied and experienced.

PERCEPTION (pseudo-vision) Although many things could be said about perception, in general, perception has two aspects: 1.) Substitution of whole vision with seeming partial vision capability, an invented, created function, rather than natural "non-image-related" vision...or "knowing". The vision we consider seeing on a day to day basis is not this pseudo-vision per se, but uses pseudo-vision in order to see/perceive. Pseudo-vision includes both sights thought to be physical, and those more internal sights seen in thinking, dreaming, day-dreaming, visions, etc. Perception could also be said to include thinking and memory-based processes surrounding seeing as perception, as well as the objects, imagery or concepts perceived, etc. (See PERCEPTION (pseudo-attention/awareness) below)

PERCEPTION (pseudo-attention/awareness) Although many things could be said about perception, in general, perception has two aspects: 2.) In order for pseudo-vision (above) to be a substitute for whole vision, attention and awareness must be involved. However, attention and awareness (which are one), are whole and indivisible; therefore, pseudo-attention and pseudo-awareness are made in mind as invented, created functions which seem to be two aspects of vision, but which reflect the reality of whole vision which is actually one. When we think we're placing attention on objects within the creation, or within the world, we're playing out what seems to be a lifetime, we're utilizing pseudo-vision via pseudo-attention as a seeming causative factor leading to pseudo-awareness, a seeming effect of pseudo-attention...together resulting in pseudo-vision...regarded as vision. One cannot arbitrarily see or choose to see or not see the wholeness that is reality and thus is whole vision. Therefore substitute functions are created within denial's domain to accommodate believing in dividedness or separateness and duality in general. As we exacerbate this substitution, insisting again and again that this (pseudo-)vision is real as well as what it is directed toward as being reality, it seems more and more to be real and to be reality. When we think of reality, we think of mental or physical objects which have boundaries of one sort or another, and are thus defined or at least thought to be definable. The boundaries of objects are the boundaries defining imagery. The biblical instruction against graven images has to do with this imagery attention/worship as idolatry, even though not necessarily presented that way in those writings or intended as meaning by the authors of them. Our entire created world is a collage of idols, substituted for reality (thought of as "God"), in which world we offer our attention and proclaim our awareness and vision, declaring our determination of what is or isn't "reality". This arbitrary thought process and resultant fundamental denial-oriented belief system is tied together in mind by pseudo-vision as a support system of false witnesses (i.e.-evidence or "proof"). Despite our seemingly very successful putting the created world forward as real, and as our reality, deep down we do know without any doubt whatsoever, that we are real in an entirely different way...the way of wholeness. Salvation, atonement, restoration, and going "home" to "heaven" and similar concepts, all revolve around letting go of these falsehoods, and entering the humility of admitting and accepting and confessing that the truth of our actual reality is true. (See PERCEPTION (pseudo-vision) above)

INTENTION (pseudo-intention) The common understanding of intention is arbitrary choosing, perhaps with some identified motivation mixed in. "I intended to do this, but got this (other) result" is a common occurrence. This is pseudo-intention. Since intention and will are related (in our perceptual understanding), our self-image and world view suffer from the uncertainty of arbitrariness of intention, will and behavioral choices. This includes mental choices involving dilemmas about which beliefs to believe, or which authorities or experts to believe, etc. True intention however, is the same as true will...which is the same as our shared reality. As such, intention is constant and consistent...not in behavior (for true intention is not directly involved with the temporal activity called behavior), but in essence, being or presence (for ways of talking about our reality). Intention is will, and will is universally the same. Thus my true will and that which has been called "God's will" is exactly the same, with no difference whatsoever. Being and intention are the same thing. You are because you intend to be. You intend to be because intention is what you are. You are aware that you are because awareness is what you are as that intention. You know that you are because in being all that is, the awareness that you are knows all that is, and all that can ever be known. That knowledge is not information, is not arbitrary, does not change, and is the basis for and reality of peace, invulnerability, eternality...and for all this, arising via noticing true awareness, as love permeating our world and our lives. When we look at this from a view which stands off to one side and looks at "the world", it is perceived as love arising into the world. When we look at it as what we are, it is perceived as love arising within us as a guiding principle and presence. But in our reality itself, it doesn't look like or need to look like anything defined as good or this way or that way. What you are is what you are, and this is so forever. Because of this fact of constancy, indivisibility and changelessness, you are forever innocent. As we attempt to look beyond the blinders and barriers we've erected in our minds as belief systems and institutionalized conditioning, it can be hard to fathom ourselves as being 100% innocent. We've had the opposite drummed all around us throughout our entire lives in one form or another. Innocent and perfect are what we avoid calling ourselves or thinking of ourselves...because we've learned to disbelieve the truth. If we were to remember the truth, by offering our pseudo-attention toward reality (which is true attention and awareness), we would begin to remember and realize this truth...in spite of the evidence we may have accumulated saying otherwise. Our true intention is pure and whole, and without need to be modified. Our pseudo-intention presents intention to us that is divided and subject to choice. This intellectual error causes us to look at choice as a source of freedom. But actually, choice is the very thing which establishes dividedness and creation's duality as bondage of every nature, both internal and external. Pseudo-intention gives us this false vision, and true intention restores whole vision, correcting perception's misperception and beliefs.

FEELINGS Feelings are condensed thoughtforms, and as such, impact us with more intensity. Once automated patterns of feeling are established, these act as locks on beliefs as those beliefs interact with feelings-based emotions, which in turn express and involve themselves in the rumination of beliefs thought to be necessary to our survival in one or several aspects. In our perceptual approach to the world of duality we've created, we hold two things in high regard. One is thoughts and thinking, and the other is feelings and feeling. These are like two competing camps with one camp suggesting that one should get out of their feelings and be rational, and the other camp suggesting that one should get out of their head and feel something more real and authentic about themselves. Both have some validity in a temporal way, and sometimes balance between them is sought as a solution to conflict. However, the claims arising in both camps are erroneous. Our reality, and that which we should rely upon, is not thoughts and is not feelings. Thoughts and feelings are utilized in many forms to substitute experiencing of them and choosing between them for knowing our actual shared reality. To a large extent, this is unavoidable in this world...the world we live in. The natural primal denial which creates this world is part and parcel what this world is, and is about, and yet as this is exacerbated or made more intense by rumination or by resistance, it becomes exaggerated conflict. In exaggerated conflict, we find these two camps' voices becoming louder and louder, each demanding to be heard and given the right to reign. It is a dichotomy in which there is no correct choice. Going with thoughts can be very problematic, despite its benefits, and going with feelings can also be very problematic, despite is galvanizing aspects. Balancing of these "IS" important; however, if we balance them by arbitary choices, the resulting direction is lacking edification and thus proper motivation. Therefore, it is necessary to pause, and to allow awareness of our shared reality to be noticed...and to allow the influence (love) arising from that inner presence and resource (peace) to govern our moment to moment decisions.

BEHAVIORS Behaviors are perceived activities within the illusory world. In reality, there is no behavior per se. No one is doing anything and nothing is happening. As soon as the attempt to deny rises up from desire, it creates the temporal realm in which any such behaviors or happenings could appear to occur. Outer physical behaviors, inner physical behaviors, mental behaviors, thinking, feeling and perceiving of any kind are all behaviors. Behavior is an illusion, and yet the illlusion of behavior with its miracle aspect built into it, provides the path of availability of willingness as an aspect of intuition. Willingness, opens the door to perceiving greater influence from noticed awareness of reality. Knowing reality is already the case always, whether one notices this influence from it or not. Knowing is not a behavior for it is entirely outside of time and the illusory framework of the world and its thinking processes. Similarly, thinking...which is a behavior, does not and cannot "know" anything. There is but one thing to know...and that is the shared reality of self and all, and that isn't actually a "thing". Choices of behaviors may be noticed to shift as influence of awareness is perceived to increase due to willingness to look toward and upon reality. Still, behaviors are illusions, and as such are not a consistent reliable indicator. Although one could say that shifts of behavior, feelings, thinking and attitude are a reflection of influence from noticing awareness of reality, this is not literally true. Nothing in the illusory world is literally true, but only partially true to the degree in which it nudges the mind to consider increasing willingness to look upon reality. Illusion (along with its built-in miracle) only has one purpose, that of facilitating and accommodating restoration and atonement, and even that purpose is illusion as are the perceived restorative processes accommodated by it.

SEXUALITY (broader sense) When we think of sexuality, we usually think of sexual interaction between bodies and corresponding emotions, etc. But before any such activity occurs, people have sexuality, in terms of sexual feelings and urges, curiosities, and so forth, as well as in terms of things not thought of as sexual at all. When choice arises as denial, creating the illusion of this world, universe and everything pertaining to its framework, function and sensation...as perception, these are established specifically as opposites pairs. As imagery of opposites arise in mind from vexation of mind in vision, various subsitutions are made in mind, in order to see (perceive) two or more instead of one whole. These opposites are sexuality at its core level, and the substitutions made as illusions supporting these opposites is sexuality in a broad general sense...all of which is extant before overt sexual behavior, identified sexual feelings, etc. In a sense, simply by existing in this illusory world, we are sexual entities, separated in appearance, bound by definitional boundaries, and in various ways longing to remove that perceived dividedness by joining, by uniting, by relationships of all sorts (including but not limited to those of a specifically sexual nature). In religious and spiritual thought systems, we involve ourselves in the pursuit of purification, readying oneself in terms of worthiness, for the purpose of going home or returning to "God", or some form of heaven, or restoration of what was lost (allegedly from "the Fall", and yet more to the point, from participation in "good and evil"...or the illusory dream of this world itself). People recognize sexuality and sexual acts as important, but all too often seem to have little understanding of what sexuality is at its core, and what it means to us or why it is important. People tend to follow whatever they're taught about it, and form behavior patterns accordingly, even when they disbelieve the rhetoric about those sexual behavioral choices. Pausing and willingly noticing our existent and already whole awareness of our shared reality, among other things, gradually helps us to understand what our sexuality is, what it is for, and how it is related to freedom (or our reality). Traditionally, sexuality and sexual behaviors, at times even including how we think about sex, is controlled by the teachings of our traditions, by our religious or spiritual ideation, and by governmental cooperation with these, including the passing of laws putting some pretty strong controls on sexual behaviors, using threat of punishment to rob people's autonomous natural desires away, and replace the behaviors which would have been forthcoming, with those which fit the agreed plan and tradition. This is unfortunate, especially considering the extremes to which this has been taken over long periods of time. But it is what it is in terms of society's handling of it, and it is requisite to keep this in mind when looking at sexual freedom in human behavior.

RELIGION Religions are systems devised to control human behavior. They use perceived fear and perceived love in a way which pushes people in one direction (away from natural sexual behavior for instance), and in another direction at the same time (toward conceptual objects called love or loving). The fear versus love is then associated with and emotionally attached to beliefs about "God" or a "higher power", involving alleged authority which lies entirely above and beyond the control or capability of the people, intentionally exacerbating fear of punishment and exaggerated adoration of divinity and things thought to be sacred, locking the desired beliefs and corresponding behavior patterns in place. In other words, controlling people in huge ways, and laying off to "God" the responsibility for the controlling of masses of people by small groups or individuals.

People who are involved in religion, by manipulation of their emotions using time-honored techniques related to survival-related fears, adhere to the teachings put forward. If they step outside of those teachings, they often form other modified teachings to follow and then still follow religious teachings...because they've come to believe that this is what they "should" do, and that this is critical to their eternal survival. After indoctrination in religion, people are less apt to consider that they are not eternally "at stake" as taught, are less apt to believe that they are as valuable as they would otherwise have believed, and more apt to pass those teachings along to their children and friends in order to "save" them from the feared outcome...and to some extent "offer and provide" for them the loving benefit that they conceptualize and in some ways may even experience (according to their interpretation by feelings and events around them). The indoctrination of children is truly unfortunate, robbing children of much of their autonomy and self-esteem at high value levels before they even have a chance to discover and ponder these things on their own. Parents do this out of a sense of love and duty, and yet this is not loving their children, and the duty they perceive themselves as having is falsified and exaggerated beyond what their natural parental responsibility and natural desire toward their children would otherwise have been. Even people who are not involved in religions, live in and raise their children in society which is deeply affected by religions, and thus still adopt much of the same morality and ideas about right and wrong as those who are involved in religion. Masses of people are led down this broad path in many forms to their detriment, and yet people often just don't see that this is so, primarily because of the teachings and conditioning inside and outside of religion, which make them think along lines agreeable to control by religion and not agreeable to autonomy. Autonomy is taught against in many ways, varying in degree from generation to generation. Art and music was controlled by religious ideation for quite some time, where it was expected that artists and musicians (and song writers) would write in ways compatible with religious thought, with severe penalties attached for those who attempted to be original or creative. Dictionaries of language were often created by people steeped in religious thought, causing the definitions people come to believe in to follow the lines of religious thought as well in many ways. Military thought is supported by and actually arose out of religious thought, often bringing war on people who did not believe in the required way, or who had resources desired by those in charge of religions.

People go to church and think loving thoughts toward one another and the world, and choose to ignore the horrible paths their religious forebears followed, and which in many ways are still followed today. Wars are intentionally caused by exacerbating religious and traditional thought. Races of people are intentionally exterminated for profit. People are put in systems of prisons devised by people involved in religions, going way back in time. So people may have all the positive thinking they wish about any particular religion, but if they will take the time to study the history of the religion they believe in, they will find more than just a little dirty laundry. They will find horrendous abuses of people over and over again, throughout the ancient and modern world. Oddly, even after being apprised of such information, people often just set it aside and ignore it, and pretend it is just isolated cases of people in the religion who were not sincere. Truly, truly unfortunate to wear colored glasses so dark that society stumbles day in and day out, having no true and faithful guide because religious ideation has been substituted for influence from noticing awarness of our shared reality.

CULTURE Culture has many facets; however a prominent one is creating behavior patterns which are either fun or believed necessary in terms of religious thought, or both. So culture supports religions in big ways and is controlled by religions. Religions have sought to conquer and eliminate cultures who were not compatible with their teachings and beliefs.

TRADITION Traditions are much like culture and yet often have appearance included which is more secular than culture. The memorization and habitualization...and ritualization of behavior patterns is tradition...somewhat overlapping with culture. One could say that in many ways, culture and traditions are the same thing. One thing that traditions do is to establish norms...which inevitably follow along the lines of thought taught in the prevailing religion.

NORMS A norm is a behavior pattern which is statistically prevalent to some arbitrary standard of frequency across a population. There are many norms, and people who live according to them are considered "normal" by society. When they do not do this, society puts pressure on them to return to the norms established. Many of the norms are based in religious thought. Even those which attempt to present according to more secular or scientific thought are often strongly influenced by religious thought. Gigantic amounts of wealth and influence in terms of politics and in terms of military might are pushed as forms of coercion upon people by religious thought, and such behavior as applying fear manipulation also becomes a norm. Stigma are attached to those who fail to adhere to norms, and labels touted as identifers of people who are evil or scum or bottom feeders are attached along with such stigma. Demonization of this type itself is a norm, where people demonize those in disagreement, as well as anyone they want to control, proceeding on to ostracization, criminalization, incarceration, and so on...as well as rewarding people in certain ways for behaving in keeping with the norms extant.

ADULTERY Adultery is often thought of in terms of sexual acts outside of marriage by someone who is married. In religious or spiritual circles, adultery is also thought of as turning away from God and "whoring" after idols or "other gods", etc. A strong "population control metaphor" is in play. People who go out on their spouse, especially women (from the patriarchical point of view) are whores and whoremongers, terms devised and given very bad connotations with punishments attached to keep people in line. There may at times be very good reasons for needing to deal with so-called infidelity and its fall-out; however, this is not an appropriate way to cope with such needs. The strong labeling and stigma attached to such behavior has also been used toward people who were not adhering to the religious beliefs of the day, again with strong penalties attached.

Both of these practices are lacking in genuine understanding or compassion. Both are aimed at controlling people, rather than achieving that which is best for all concerned. In order to achieve that which is best, one must first know what is best. On an intellectual basis, this is not possible, for as soon as we write down such procedural best practices, we have set them in concrete so to speak, and removed them from the living dynamic in the now moment which is required for "best" to be found in any situation, from moment to moment, on a daily basis.

To discover the "best" in order to have it in play, one must pause and allow the influence of that which is whole and perfect. As that influence arises and thereby converts to its temporal substitute created in that very moment, it is most suited to guide behavior...providing not only "best" behavior, but also providing "best" foundation and therefore motivation for that behavior.

Adultery is seeking other than this now moment influence in our lives as our first reliance. In so doing, we are effectively turning away from that which is "best" toward anything else. It is because of the refusal of now moment edification that such a choice becomes aberrant and needing of correction. The term adultery is not needed, as also terms such as whore and whoremonger are not needed. However, they are strong reminders that correction is needed. Without understanding of what is needed and why, these terms are just negative forces in our world, and have no genuine positive aspect. Adultery, since it needs correction, has one and only one remedy...pausing to allow first reliance to be developed toward that inner resource of influence arising from our reality. The edification from this is what is needed, and it is needed at all times. One participating in sexual activity either in or out of marriage is not what determines the factor of adultery. One can behave either way and it not be adultery. Conversely, one can behave either way and have it be adultery. It has to do with the foundation beneath the behavior, and may be noted as evidenced by other behavior...such as genuinely caring (or not), allowing autonomy of another (or not), etc.

IDOLATRY Idolatry is very similar to adultery, with a focus upon that which we seek after instead of our inner resource of influence from our shared reality. Everything in and as the illusory world, including our bodies, thoughts, feelings and believed in purposes, are idols. Things such as behaviors touted as tenets of faith are typically idols rather than what they purport to be. Rather than literally being "tenets of faith", they are "tenets of belief" masquerading as being related to faith. Faith is that which is faithful within us...that inner resource of influence from awareness. Belief is arbitrarily decided concepts and behavior patterns promoted in a belief system, and put forward as though these were the definers of "faith", but nothing could be further from the truth about them. Faith is not found in objects and behaviors within this illusory world. All that is proposed as faith but which exists or happens in time, or in this world, are idols...not faith. Seeking after these, or guiding our lives by these as first reliance is idolatry. One need not setup a figurine and do specific praise and obeisance toward it in order to participate in idolatry. When we look upon our own blood as the source of our lives, this is idolatry. Idols are all around us, and it is inevitable that we will worship them (give attention to them), but we can always pause and allow influence to arise from awareness of reality, to take the first seat at the table before we take these idol objects to enjoy...such as our food, such as sexual activity, such as a beautiful drive in the mountains, etc. If our idol objects are placed first, we are following them. If that which arises from reality (God) is placed first, we are following reality's lead. One leads us by still waters of peacefulness founded in peace itself, and one leads us to land in the ditch with a broken wheel, a broken and painful injury, and sorrow at not having the remedy close in mind and heart. Therefore it is wise to be diligent (until it becomes a simple habit) to keep in remembrance that which actually is the source of our lives. Idols are on every hand in this world, and yet they are a garden of delight when kept in their proper place. There is no order in this world (which is real, for reality has no order per se), and yet there is an order in how we approach this world and everything in it...and that order is...US...the reality of us. The idols of the world are very distracting, so remaining in touch with our reality can be daunting...unless we are involved in such remembrance on an ongoing basis, not allowing it to fade away or our foot to slip.

MORES and MORALS Mores and morals are norms of behavior set in place according to whatever is believed to be best practices or required practices among people at any given time and place. Although these apply to all sorts of human endeavor, one of the more common denotations that comes to mind when we speak of morals, is that of morals pertaining to sexual behavior. Of course there are many more. In all cases of morals or mores, these norms need the preface of pausing and noticing existent awareness of our shared reality, rather than just a written or oral tradition. Without this living dynamic, morals are very often not all that moral. Military thought systems show us how "morality" gets reshuffled like a deck of cards, putting the Ace of Spades on top, and throughout the deck. Note: The ace of spades has variously been used as a symbol of the highest card or that which trumps all, as a symbol for good fortune or prosperity, and as a death symbol. In the Vietnam War, soldiers could obtain decks of cards which were entirely made up of the ace of spades. In order for morality to be of true benefit, it must be guided and tempered by inner remembrance, causing it to be well-founded and moral dynamically in the now moment. Rote rules of morality can never suffice for this.

GOOD and EVIL We've been taught that good and evil are sets of behaviors which are, perhaps by religious requirement, best, beneficial, helpful...versus...worst, detrimental, and hindering in nature. There is some temporal truth in this; however, "good and evil" has to do with far more than this. Reality is not good and evil, but is what it irrevocably is. Reality's existence is whole and undivided, and thus non-conflicted; which fact equates to there not being any evil in it. So to say that reality (or "God") is all good, or loving, is fairly accurate, although words cannot convey precisely what reality is. The principle of "good and evil" arises in mind as anything that denies or speaks of other than this single, good reality that we are. The creation then, with its light and dark, wet and dry, living and non-living, blessedness and woe, is entirely a system and structure built of these opposites pairs, the epitome of which could be said to be "good and evil". To live within the boundaries of the appearances of these opposites pairs in any form, is to partake of "good and evil". Such partaking, in the biblical story, often referred to as that which brought evil into the world, it is worth noting that the alleged record (the story) says that both good and evil were caused...not just evil. Since good was already in the world, it is worth considering that the good involved in "good and evil" is a false good, and is bound to evil as its other half so to speak. So as we chase good and shun evil, we simultaneously chase evil and shun good, for these are bound for as long as the time alloted for the cycle of their existence in appearances in and as this world and all pertaining to it. Because this is the case, much of what we would desire to see happening as the result of our chasing good and shunning evil, is destroyed by our activity. In order for this to happen less, we need to imbue our activity with guidance from the influence of noticing awareness of our shared reality. As we do this, influence from that which is "only good" is passed on to the opposites pairs we are involved with, depolarizing them somewhat, and allowing the miracle of noticing genuine good to establish itself as the foundation of the appearances involved (to whatever degree our willingness and remembrance allowed). Miracles (arising from genuine good) do happen, but cannot happen if we are unwilling to become in and remain in remembrance of our reality.

(the) CREATION The Creation is the world and its framework, created by choice as judgment, in which the whole vision of reality was substituted with perception of dividedness and separation. This is laid out symbolically in the Bible in the early portion of the book of Genesis. Rather than the literal story many people have come to believe in, if one takes a moment to examine the passage involved, they will find example after example of dividedness being established. This is then followed by a distinct separation between God and mankind. The entire story is "the Creation", rather than only being the part where it talks about stars, planets, animals and birds coming into being along with mankind. The Creation, and "denial of reality" (or denial of God) are the same thing. It is the creation of illusion, or that which appears, but appears as different than, other than, and separated from "God" or reality. No one can ever be separated in this way, except in perception or appearances, or partial or split vision. Were this "good and evil", "light and dark" overlay to be set aside, along with the time and objects appearing with them, vision would default back to seeing wholly that indivisible reality we are. In fact, such whole vision is still the case, since real vision is eternal and is reality itself. So substitutions have been energetically made by continuing vexation of mind to create imagery. Imagery is defined by its boundaries, both external an internal...and it is imagery which makes up our thoughts, feelings, bodies, world and so on. Imagery is denial, for the separate-appearing nature defined by its boundaries flies in the face of whole vision of that only reality...which cannot be divided. So it is illusion, set in place in very delusional ways, in order to make what is not so to appear to be real. On the surface, this seems like an error or a bad thing. But actually, it is how reality EX-presses itself as creation. Without such denial, creation would not exist, and you and I would not be doing anything at all, nor would we have any purpose for existing in the first place.

HAPPINESS Happiness is the temporal substitute for joy. Joy is not a feeling in terms of what we think of as feelings. Happiness is a subset of feelings which we like and prefer, and yet which can be stopped and replaced by other feelings such as pain and fear which we do not like or prefer. Joy on the other hand, is eternal and never changes. The height of happiness could be said to be bliss or blissful, and can entail intensely adored feelings...with a counterpart of fatal and extremely painful or abhorred feelings. Joy is not intense, nor is it the variable called feelings. Joy is not one feeling or thing among many, but is the only reality there is, and is also peace, attention, awareness, knowledge, and fitting to many descriptors and yet bound by none of them.

KINDNESS Kindness is a subset of behaviors believed to be particularly worthy of being desirable to receive or to give. Kindness is part of an opposites pair with cruelness or cruelty at the other end of the spectrum. As such, kindness is temporary, and often turns sour. Still, the behaviors associated with kindness are worth adding to one's habitual way of behaving toward people. In order for kindness to become genuinely loving, it must be chosen as the result of influence from awareness of our shared reality. If kindness is merely performance of behaviors thought of as helpful and kind, it becomes rote and loses much of its truly helpful nature. On the surface, it may seem that kindness is kindness, but when we consider that it brings its opposite of cruelty along, hidden in the wings so to speak, it behooves us to bring influence into play in order to give a proper foundation and motivation to kindness. Sincerity in giving the behaviors of kindness is not enough by itself.

HOPE Hope is often revered as a mainstay necessary for moving forward toward good things, keeping depression and failure at bay, and giving us a reason to continue to live and keep going in the face of sometimes horrible odds. Although there is truth in this to some extent, it is shown here as somewhat synonymous with denial because hope directly implies that it could go either way...toward what is hoped for or against it. More importantly, hope states that there is "lack" and that such lack needs fulfilling...which is that toward which hope is directed. In a sense, hope functions like an opposite to genuine certainty. Ordinary temporal certainty is usually a matter of strong belief, masquerading as certainty. Genuine certainty is based in knowledge...such as certainty toward invulnerability because certainty and invulnerability are the same reality. Hope is always uncertain, but trying hard to put on a happy, certain face. Hoping for the best is then substituted for expecting the best, when "expecting the best" is based in knowledge as reality, rather than belief. There is nothing "wrong" with hope exactly, but it is worth noting that hope is always in need of fulfillment. Reality is not hopeful, but is sure. We do not need hope, but instead need edification, or being fed (in our temporal state) by influence from noticing our existent awareness of our whole, shared reality of peace. This influence arises into the temporal world as love. Love we need and are edified by. Hope we do not need, for it is a substitute for looking toward reality and obtaining the edification of love we do actually need on a moment to moment basis in our lives. I would not suggest to anyone that they should give up hope. Instead, I would suggest that they get understanding by discovering the truth within about their reality...for in that understanding and edification, they will find they no longer need hope, and would gradually allow love to replace it.