Spontaneity: How-To

May 25, 2019 Open Religion No Comments

The main thing: not putting visible stuff in the way. Letting all ‘stuff in the way’ be invisible, transparent. Then, of course, it is the other way.

[Please read first: “Spontaneity”]

It doesn’t satisfy ‘one who wants.’

If this is you, then please try to make your wanting transparent. This is precisely the way to be spontaneous: there may still be ‘wanting’ but in the other way.

Not this way. This way, the wanting stops you from being spontaneous. You’re only making yourself – and others – believe in such.

So: how-to?

You have to tend to it. Spontaneity is different from ‘just doing anything you want.’ The ‘just’ in the latter makes the wanting not yours. Others make you want. Advertising. Organizations. The play of the powerful even in long bygone ages…

Many things except you.

You have to tend to it

like a fire.

Spontaneity burns.

Don’t let it burn you like wildfire. At the other side, you really have to let it burn. It burns at its own pace. Try to control the burning itself and you’ve lost it.

You can give it more or less fuel, but give it too little fuel and you’ve lost it.

Spontaneity is not an easy fire.

You have to tend to it

by giving it your attention.

OK. Another uneasy term: deep attention.

Not putting superficial stuff in the way is an exercise. By doing it, you become better. Then you can exercise better. It’s a familiar principle. So, starting small is a good idea… or so it seems.

Progressing little by little does have the disadvantage that every little hurdle may seem big. Note that we are dealing with ego-stuff. In such a domain, ‘little’ and ‘big’ are easily confounded.

Looking at the fire

you can see what it needs. Give it a bit of what it needs. You can experiment in many ways. Always try to do it seriously. It’s a game and it’s not a game.

Give it a bit of what it needs. Then see how it reacts. Try to ‘understand’ why it does so. An intellectual understanding is not bad if it doesn’t withhold you, again, by itself.

A meditative understanding may help a lot [see: “Meditation = Being Friendly”]. That is what for instance Buddhist monks do and call it meditation. At least some of them. Some meditate for many years.

Which is laudable.

Doing it for an hour, doing it for five minutes is also laudable.

The aim is to do it all the time.

Leave a Reply

Related Posts

Jesus was a Humanist

Jesus’ teachings, if ever He lived and as recorded in the Gospels, emphasize Compassion, tolerance, and care for the oppressed, the poor, and the marginalized. Also, He was a steadfast advocate for peace and understanding, values that are central to humanism. From a deeper perspective From a deeper perspective, Jesus’ emphasis on inner transformation and Read the full article…

Sea of Faith

It’s an excellent idea, all religions coming together in a sea of faith. For someone outside of any organized religion, this may feel like coming home for oneself and everyone else. It didn’t work out in the past. On several occasions, in places as remote from each other as the Netherlands and India, attempts have Read the full article…

The Core of the New Testament

Whether historically relevant or not, the Catholic New Testament has many layers, but at its heart lies a single core: radical love in all sincerity. Jesus embodied this love, and his message is inseparable from his presence. This blog explores how that love flows as Compassion, bridges faith and humanism, resists politicization, and even resonates Read the full article…

Translate »