“The sharp edge of a razor is difficult to pass over.
“Thus, the wise say that the path to Salvation is difficult.”
—Katha Upanishad
I thought I’d share some more personal or private thoughts pertaining to religion, or the lack thereof…
I often think that being a human being is wondrous. But it is also a nightmare (the sufferings that we endure—the losses and the heartaches that drive us to beat our chest—demand a reason for it all). And we humans have dug deep, unearthing ideas of the meaning of life.
My mother, at times, laments she didn’t raise us with religion. She was raised under the wings of Catholicism. It’s a religion reliant on the priesthood, rituals, and the teachings of Jesus. Within the rituals, my mother learned the power of prayer and found solace in a deep connection to God, something I can’t and won’t underestimate.
However, I’m grateful beyond words that I’m free of dogma, free of the oppression of spirit’s raw exploration. I find myself living in an untamed expanse of mind, swimming in the great Pacific like a wild mermaid, eyes ablaze.
On the other hand, the untamed mind—this wild ocean—is fraught with peril, anxiety, and uncertainty.
Religious Certainty
Many people have come to be cloaked in religion by a passing down from parent to child in a continual skipping stone across the waters of time. Others come to religion on their own, finding rest and peace. I admire the aplomb and serenity the religious faithful sometimes have. It is a blessed island plopped into the untamed perilous oceans the mind can be.
I often ponder, with a sting of envy, this serenity of religious certainty. But I don’t trust it. To me, spiritual certitude is smug. It binds the mind, saddles the wild horse, and blinds the mermaid’s flight through waters.
I prefer to discover how to ride my horse bareback, without the saddle of religion or the reins of other's opinions, the wind playing with my hair, flying over lands as the sun warms my skin, my eyes casting forward maybe to meet the wild mermaid’s gaze.
Tamed Waters
Ironically, I received my bachelor of arts degree in world religions. And maybe, even more ironically, I keep returning to the Buddha’s teachings. I suppose that I still desire shoes to walk these spiritual landscapes, shoes I that didn’t make. I am steadfast in belief that listening to those who came before us, and to those with us now who demonstrate real wisdom, is vital to find one’s seat on one’s horse. Eventually, we may not need those shoes, although we still may choose to wear them: Not needing others’ teachings, but still choosing them, is quite powerful.
And that brings me to the idea that every religion that I studied, and still study, offers wisdom, touches on compassion, on service, and on our relationship with Source. So, I am not anti-religion. I am well aware of its gifts. For instance:
Religion can offer a framework for ethics
Religion can be a refuge from those perils and anxieties of the wild mind
The religious experience offers a way to tame the mind so we can still the horse in order to climb aboard and navigate life with clarity and peace
I Prefer The Wilds
My worry is that religion, my Buddhist practice included, so easily tames the wild and free out of us. Yet religion can raise us up, can make us mindful, can soothe us. It can also soothe us into a lullaby, putting us asleep to the power of our free will and beautiful piercing wisdom, often times hard won through courage, faith, and compassion.
It doesn’t escape me that the discipline of religious practice can free us, but as I just insinuated above, it can also imprison us if reliant on its dogma. I shudder at the idea of being imprisoned by dogma, for everything wonder-filled, every intense experience of love, every magical moment I’ve ever been privileged to experience, has always come from the fertile grounds of freedom without boundaries.
Discovering how to navigate the oceans of our wild, free, creative minds can be the most difficult path, full of real world anxiety, discombobulation, and frustration. In truth, I’ve found thus far, it’s not really “me” in the individual sense, finding how to harness my mind, or merge with Source.
🔸It’s “me” stepping aside to allow Source to move through.
🔸It’s finding The Razor’s Edge.
🔸It is, as Jesus said: “With man, this is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.”
🔸It’s courage of spirit.
🔸It’s faith in one’s worth.
🔸And, if I may be bold, it’s at times the most glorious awe-inspiring ride through the awakening soul.
Sending light and love 🧜🏽♀️
Renee
Untamed Mind of No Religion