Donkey stories

[stardustpilgrim]

My teacher sent me off with a donkey, to find my true self. Eventually, I discovered, what I was looking for was the donkey he sent me off on.

You don't want to rob another of discovery.

[stardustpilgrim]

“But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will reward you” (Matthew 6:3-4 ESV).

Jesus was a very smart dude, intelligent and knowledgeable. You can take it or leave it, but I think Jesus knew about the right and left hemispheres of the brain. And this is exactly what he had in mind when he said this. Our left brain deals with particulars, in time, in space, is the small mind. The right brain is wholistic, Big Mind. The left hemisphere is generally the home of the self-as-conditioning, the false self (among other things). The right brain is nonlocal, is access to the Whole. (See My Stroke of Insight, Jill Bolte-Taylor). In another place he said we can't put new wine into old wineskins, as they will break, spilling the wine. So new wine has to be put into new wineskins. The old wine is the left brain. The new wine is the right brain. Right-brain-stuff cannot be put into the left brain, the left brain hasn't the capacity, it will "burst". In life, sometimes we use our left brain, sometimes we use our right brain, right tool for the right job means everything. Left brain, "nothing". Right brain, "SOME". Both are needed like a bird needs two wings.

This is pretty interesting.

reminds me of what zen buddhists call the Big Mind. Most of us, most of the time, live in our Small Mind. If you’re worried, stressed, anxious, uptight, angry, being needlessly aggressive or competitive, that’s your Small Mind doing what it thinks it needs to do to keep you alive. I say ‘what it thinks’ because when you look back at the sum total of time your Small Mind spends worrying about things, you can be fairly sure that 90% wasn’t worth worrying about, and the other 10% wasn’t improved by worrying about it anyway. Your small mind is about you. What you need. What you want. Your survival in this big bad world.

The Big Mind is all about We and all about Us. It understands that the world is made up of 7 billion interdependent human beings and that in anything but the short term acting selfishly for your own interests alone doesn’t get us very far. And because the Big Mind understands the interconnectedness of all things,

[stardustpilgrim]

“Or consider a story in the Jewish Talmud left out of the Book of Genesis. (It is in doubtful accord with the account of the fruit, the Tree of Knowledge, the Fall, and the expulsion from Eden.) In The Garden, God tells Eve and Adam that He has intentionally left the Universe unfinished. It is the responsibility of humans, over countless generations, to participate with God in a "glorious" experiment - the "completing of the Creation."
The burden of such a responsibility is heavy, especially on so weak and imperfect a species as ours, one with so unhappy a history. Nothing remotely like "completion" can be attempted without vastly more knowledge than we have today. But, perhaps, if our very existence is at stake, we will find ourselves able to rise to this supreme challenge.”
Carl Sagan, Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space

[stardustpilgrim]

This guy was the real deal. Haven't watched this yet, watching KC vs BB. Posting so I won't loose it.

[stardustpilgrim]

The older I get, the more I've come to appreciate the folks I've met along the way, who have added to my life in wonderful ways. Back in 1968-1969 I was doing a TV show in London, England. There was a swami from India being interviewed, and it was kind of difficult because instead of speaking, he would write on a small chalkboard.
After the TV show was done filming, people gathered around him asking questions on the meaning of life etc. My girl friend, Caroly and I asked him if he knew of any good Indian restaurant nearby. "Finally! A good question" he wrote. And directed us to a place I went to for years afterwards. Gaylord on Mortimor Street. It was great! It's been closed for over 5 years now.



It must have been in 1968, as it must have been Meher Baba (I checked, he died January 31, 1969). Story by Arlo Guthrie.

[stardustpilgrim]

Jul 30, 2024 4:52:30 GMT -5 featherlamp said:

Previous post was terrible. Looking outside of things, there is comfort knowing that we can fail. Not always the end of the world when this happens. I have been conditioned to be negative. What did I learn today? There is a greater strength than my own. I can think manic thoughts and call them loving. Looking differntly at familiar patterns, I may not be able to keep all of my thoughts, but that doesn't mean they didn't happen.

My sister is 3 years older than me. We had a bookshelf over the TV. She had about ten books from some kind of book club. When I was very young I remember looking up and couldn't wait until I could read Alice In Wonderland. But when I was old enough to, I didn't. There was another book by George McDonald. Probably about 45 years later I learned he was the major influence on CS Lewis and JRR Tolkien. I didn't read any of those books, I liked biographies better, non-fiction. What I learned later is: That was then, this is now, doesn't do a lot of good to do What if? "You can't go back and change the beginning, but you can start where you are and change the ending." CS Lewis
It's sometimes not so easy to recognize you've gone down a rabbit-hole.

[melvin]

What is a donkey story?

AI: One popular donkey story that imparts a valuable lesson is "The Donkey in the Well." In this tale, a donkey accidentally falls into a well, and its owner is faced with a difficult decision. The owner contemplates whether to save the donkey or bury it alive as the well had dried up, and it would be too costly and time-consuming to try to rescue the donkey.

After much thought, the owner decides to fill the well with dirt, intending to bury the donkey to end its suffering. As the dirt starts to fill the well, the donkey realizes what is happening and begins to cry out loudly in fear and desperation.

However, instead of succumbing to despair, the donkey has an ingenious idea. With every shovel of dirt that falls into the well, the donkey shakes it off and takes a step up. Slowly but steadily, the donkey rises higher and higher as the well fills up.

Eventually, the donkey reaches the top of the well and steps out to freedom, astonishing its owner and proving that even in the face of seemingly insurmountable challenges, perseverance, resilience, and ingenuity can lead to unexpected solutions and triumph over adversity.

This story serves as a powerful reminder of the importance of resilience, determination, and thinking creatively in navigating life's obstacles and challenges. Just like the donkey in the well, we can find strength and courage within ourselves to rise above difficulties and emerge stronger on the other side.

[melvin]

Sept 10, 2024 3:46:34 GMT -5 featherlamp said:

So you mean to tell me that AI wrote that donkey ash-shaking cigarette butt to the top of the well survival piece? Okay. So the donkey had a pack of cigarettes in his font left shirt pocket. The owner wants the donkey to die from cancer. He throws the donkey a lighter and tells him to smoke up. The donkey smokes up, depositing ashes into the well little by little. "Hey bub, you got a cigarette." The owner throws the donkey another pack of cigarettes. This goes on and on smoking and smoking for like twenty hours. So many ashes are deposited into the well that eventually the donkey is able to climb out of the well to freedom. There is a security camera near by. The donkey ash cigarette butt shaking donkey ass cigarette shaking donkey video goes viral.

And what is the moral of this story? Sometimes a cigarette butt is dangerous. Sometimes a cigarette butt can save the donkey's life.

Funny donkey story you got here. The well is a metaphor for the donkey/smoking dude's lung. So, this donkey/dude who has lung cancer fills his lungs with two packs of cigarettes/day. Until one day, to the surprise of his donkey/doctor who advised the donkey/smoking dude not to stop smoking was shocked and surprise to know the lung cancer disappeared after a chest xray was taken. He asked his donkey/ smoking dude how he did it. The latter said he simply, sincerely chanted a maha mantra given to him by this dude/melvin. 😁

[melvin]

Sept 10, 2024 5:39:19 GMT -5 featherlamp said:

If I were editing, I would keep both adaptions.
Not necessary to choose one or the other.
I like the doctor's office montage.
And then the maha mantra is a nice touch.

Thanks, featherlamp, for the acknowledgment. I really appreciate it.