The Little Thread Which Grew - the Apollo '73 to Everything But

[lkwdblds]

Nice post Ted!

If anything, LRH considered compassion a weakness. Scientology was there to help the "able" become more able. Then once organized scientology was strong enough, it could turn around and help the not-so able. That's how the policy reads; that's how the PR goes. Helping the able to be more able is a bastardization of Spencer's and Darwin's survival of the fittest concept/explanation.

Helping the able become more able "to help scientology" is how it should read. As for the less than able, the downstats, we have penances delineated in policy. There is no compassion in lower ethics conditions where ethics is reduced to a moral code and the individual is pretty much left on their own to apply or not.

I am not a student of Knowledgism. Maybe Roger can answer your question. What I can say for certain is that compassion is a positive attribute and Alan focused on processing the positives, not to the exclusion of negatives that might arise, but focusing on positives.

In his interview with Bill Moyer, Campbell stated, "The Buddhists speak of bodhisattva - the one who knows immortality, yet voluntarily enters into the field of fragmentation of time and participates willingly and joyfully in the sorrows of the world. And this means not only experiencing sorrows oneself but participating with compassion with the sorrow of others. Compassion is the awakening of the heart from bestial self-interest to humanity. The word 'compassion' means literally 'suffering with.'"

Comments and Questions
Paragraph #1 - I've read that DM considers kindness to others as "Case". I recall reading an incident where Rinder's wife delivered a still born baby or somesuch and Rinder wanted to take a day off and be with her and DM forcefully told him to knock off the "grief bullshit."

Still, I believed that LRH condoned compassion as long as it was done with purpose and Ethics presence and was done going "A to B" without any "Q and A". I thought that he would prefer a compassionate response from a senior to a junior to a viscious and harsh response as long as the senior obtained the sought after product from the junior. Perhaps I am wrong We know LRH's last words to Ken Urquhart were that he was "too much of a gentleman." Yvonne who was compassionate and got her products was unmocked by LRH as the 1970's wore on. Bob Harvey who was out to CCLA on a Flag Mission in 1971 to set up an ESTO (Establishment Officer) network was very compassionate. I participated in his program for 4 weeks and was having the time of my life when suddenly he was gone, never to be heard from again. The only thing I have heard on the internet that might explain this was that he was assigned to Elvis Presely to "reg" Elvis and get him into Scientology and that he botched that cycle. He was never heard from again.

Paragraphs #2 and #3 - I fully agree and have no comments.

Paragraph #4 - For the bodhisattva to return to ONLY endure suffereing with humanity would be somewhat unwise to me unless the bodhisattva can ease another's suffering or get the sufferer to see a lesson in why his suffering is occuring or somehow teach the sufferer a way out of the suffereing. Then again, perhaps suffering along with another is a sufficient reward for returning as there does seem to be value, spiritually, for a being to undergo some suffering especially in conjunction with another being. You know today's saying, "Brother, I feel your pain."

Done in this guise, the bodhisattva would be operating on a spiritual dynamic and would be accomplishing two ends; first, experiencing suffering himself which theoretically is of value to a being, i.e. sharing in the suffering of another, and second, assisting the sufferer himself towards achieving the state of bodhisattva. I am sure that LRH threw out these 2 options of Buddhism when he selected the portions of Buddhism which he wished to incorporate into Scientology.

One thing I believe we all can agree on is that LRH saw no value whatsoever in his experiencing the suffering of another. He wanted nothing to do with experiencing any suffering as far as I can see. In fact, by experiencing suffering, people would perceive him as less OT and that would not do when it came to marketing the OT Levels.
Lakey

 

[Ted]

Comments and Questions

Lakey, I see the comments. Where are the questions?

 

[lkwdblds]

2 Questions for Ted.

Lakey, I see the comments. Where are the questions?

Ted, Question 1 - When faced with a choice between a senior handling his junior with compassion and getting the product out of the junior or a senior handling the junior with yelling, threats and invalidation to get equal product out of the junior, are you saying that LRH would prefer the non compassionate handling?

Question 2 - On the bodhisattva experiencing pain along with a fellow human sufferer, is that sufficient for the bodhisattva to give up his state or should he also assist the sufferer to rid himslef of the pain. In short, is just suffering the pain sufficient to justify the act or is it a combination of both suffering the pain and learning something from the pain and possibly easing the pain which the bodhisattva is going for.
Lakey

 

[Ted]

Ted, Question 1 - When faced with a choice between a senior handling his junior with compassion and getting the product out of the junior or a senior handling the junior with yelling, threats and invalidation to get equal product out of the junior, are you saying that LRH would prefer the non compassionate handling?

Question 2 - On the bodhisattva experiencing pain along with a fellow human sufferer, is that sufficient for the bodhisattva to give up his state or should he also assist the sufferer to rid himslef of the pain. In short, is just suffering the pain sufficient to justify the act or is it a combination of both suffering the pain and learning something from the pain and possibly easing the pain which the bodhisattva is going for.
Lakey

1) LRH was an enigma. I believe the finest expression of who he was is found in the CMO network of his management tech because that gang was committed to interfacing with crew exactly as he would. They were an extension of LRH. As for the auditing tech, it is flawed. It was a vehicle to amass a personal fortune.

2) There are many expressions of bodhisattva easily found with Google. They all pretty much agree.

bodhisattva (Buddhism): An enlightened being who, out of compassion, forgoes nirvana in order to save others.

This page is more informative: http://buddhist-beliefs.suite101.com/article.cfm/what_is_a_bodhisattva_or_an_enlightened_being

 

[lkwdblds]

My report on the 4th of July party at Diana Class 8's home.

I was interviewed upon ariving by a Russian girl from Leningrad. When she found out I got in to C of S in 1970, this was a big deal so they went and got Diana Class 8 and she did a second video interview of me as well. Both interviews are supposed to be available on youtube in about a week. Also, many other visitors were videoed as well.

I took a seat next to Blue Spirit's wife and talked to her for a long time. I recently met Song Bird in person and she came by and said hello. A major event for me was finally meeting Carmelo Orchards face to face. We had a brief chat. Purple Haze joined Blue's wife and sat our table.

I reconnected with several people, Valerie Stansfield - I went to her home/office for about 3 years when I was a newly wed. I brought my wife and my 27 year old Son who was then 2 and 3. She remembered me and we had a nice chat. Lynn Fountain Campbell came by to say hi. She is one delightful person, there is always a big smile and a spirit of play type of look in her smiling eyes. What a pleasure to know her! She introduced me to a male friend of hers, JC, who is an electrician. If I stay in construction, he is an electrician and I will use him on our next job. I am thinking of closing down my remodeling business after 36 years because there is no business. I need to keep working and I decided what field I want to and can go into despite my age. That field is teaching Math and Physics at either the High School Level or I may be able to stretch it to Junior College level.

LAKEY IS OFFERING HIMSELF TO TEACH AT LEAST HIGH SCHOOL LEVEL MATH AND PHYSICS OR TUTOR THOSE SUBJECTS! I don't know if it is within ESMB rules to promote oneself for work but unless Emma makes me take it down, I am making this known.

Continuing to describe key events from my perspective, Mark Baker and a lady friend of his came by to say hello. I reconnected with my old buddy Buck Haegele. He and I both worked at Aerojet General together in 1971. We met and went to lunch together every day after we met and "talked shop" about Scientology. I think he is around 5 years older than me so he is no "spring chicken"! We also were buddies at ASHO in 1976 and 1977 always went together to lunch with a group of other guys. My former arch nemisis, Don Keeler showed up with his wife. He greeted Purple Haze sitting right next to me but did not recognize me. I did not speak up because I have called him a Suppressive Person in this thread in several places. I have since retracted that and finally was able to run out my charge on him, thanks to discussions with first Ted and then Roger B. I do not think he was a suppresive anymore. I thought about going back and editing that out of my text but to me that would be dishonest. I did believe he was an SP from 1971 to just a month or two ago and to totally change that would be dishonest. I believed he was SP for that long period of time, 1/2 a lifetime and only recently changed my opinion so it is dishonest to delete that from the record. I prefer to leave it in and now in present time to retract what I said about him. Oh yes, Tory was there and gave a speech and John Rafanelo, an old Class XII was also there and also gave a speech.

I met another ex who is a musician and had an enormous talk with him and Blue's wife about music. He said that Bach is like a mountain in music and more of today's music derives from Bach than from any other single composer. Then he said the greatest composer is Mozart. Whereas Bach is a mountain, Mozart is the Sun. Songbird a singer and musician also feels strongly that Mozart is the greatest composer and Blue's wife also love's Mozart's work. He is one of her favorites That made me feel so good to find several others who love classical music and who idolize Mozart.

Two of Songbird's friends set up some entertainment and started playing a duet of modern type folk music. The guy plays drums while his wife sings. She really has a world class voice. I met a women who was talking to Blue Spirit who is 50ish and has her own computer business. We had a very nice chat. I decided to leave at around 8:00 pm and got home about 8:30. The traffic was extremely light and the 20 mile distance is mostly freeway.

This was a great experience on the ex Scientology social circuit for me, by far the best of the 6 or 7 I have attended.
Lakey

 

[Ted]

Compassion

The Dalai Lama says:

"Compassion is like a sense of caring, of concern for others’ difficulties and pain. Not only family and friends, but all other people, even enemies. If we think only of ourselves and forget about other people, our minds occupy a very small area and even tiny problems appear very big. When you develop concern for others, your mind automatically widens; your own problems, even big ones, will not be so significant."

 

[lkwdblds]

Beautiful Message stated by the Dalai Lama!

The Dalai Lama says:

"Compassion is like a sense of caring, of concern for others’ difficulties and pain. Not only family and friends, but all other people, even enemies. If we think only of ourselves and forget about other people, our minds occupy a very small area and even tiny problems appear very big. When you develop concern for others, your mind automatically widens; your own problems, even big ones, will not be so significant."

Great words of wisdom stated by the Dalai Lama. When people here truths such as this, they tend to come alive more Three points I would like to make about this.

#1. It is a simple direct statement. Most if not all truths are like this. It is almost a litmus test for if something is a basic truth or not. Example - E=mc squared is short and direct. Somebody's PHD thesis is 100 pages of words and formulae which no one can really understand. The Einstein equation shines through as a truth.
#2. What the Dalai Lama states resonates strongly with virtually all people of good will from all schools of thought. That wisdom must be a fundamental purpose of life, to help other life forms. Try to put together an argument to debate the Dalai Lama's wisdom and you are likely to feel dirty and/or confused. Such an argument would probably not cause anyone to perk up or feel more alive.
#3. How people carry out the Dalai's wisdom is very very far from being uniform in beings and that contributes heavily in giving us a diverse world.

A Jehova's Witness who knocks on your door and drones on about one interpretation of Christianity with a bad, unschooled communication cycle can be extremely annoying. You finally have to shut the door in their face to get rid of them but when you close the door in their face, they believe that you have given away your only opportunity for salvation.

Same with a dedicated Scientologist who assigns people to the RPF. That person believes they are carrying out the wisdom stated by the Dalai Lama and so it goes.

The Dalai Lama's words are easily assimilable but big problems can arise in trying to deal with what one condiders are misguided efforts to act on that wisdom, carried out by others.
Lakey

 

[Ted]

Great words of wisdom stated by the Dalai Lama. When people here truths such as this, they tend to come alive more Three points I would like to make about this.

#1. It is a simple direct statement. Most if not all truths are like this. It is almost a litmus test for if something is a basic truth or not. Example - E=mc squared is short and direct. Somebody's PHD thesis is 100 pages of words and formulae which no one can really understand. The Einstein equation shines through as a truth.
#2. What the Dalai Lama states resonates strongly with virtually all people of good will from all schools of thought. That wisdom must be a fundamental purpose of life, to help other life forms. Try to put together an argument to debate the Dalai Lama's wisdom and you are likely to feel dirty and/or confused. Such an argument would probably not cause anyone to perk up or feel more alive.
#3. How people carry out the Dalai's wisdom is very very far from being uniform in beings and that contributes heavily in giving us a diverse world.

A Jehova's Witness who knocks on your door and drones on about one interpretation of Christianity with a bad, unschooled communication cycle can be extremely annoying. You finally have to shut the door in their face to get rid of them but when you close the door in their face, they believe that you have given away your only opportunity for salvation.

Same with a dedicated Scientologist who assigns people to the RPF. That person believes they are carrying out the wisdom stated by the Dalai Lama and so it goes.

The Dalai Lama's words are easily assimilable but big problems can arise in trying to deal with what one condiders are misguided efforts to act on that wisdom, carried out by others.
Lakey

There is nothing in the quote that says or implies "doing" anything to or for another. An RPF assignment is doing something to another. A muzzled auditing session on items that interest the pc is about as close as a person could get to doing something to/for another without it going all weird.

 

[lkwdblds]

Okay

There is nothing in the quote that says or implies "doing" anything to or for another. An RPF assignment is doing something to another. A muzzled auditing session on items that interest the pc is about as close as a person could get to doing something to/for another without it going all weird.

Okay, I read the quote over, it says caring for or being concerned for, that constitutes compassion.

Maybe the OT committee at Denver Org in 1975 were not idiots. I visited my brother and Goldstein at Denver Org in 1975. Carolyn, the head of their OT Committee would just sit at her desk in meditative contemplation. When she came out of her state, I asked her what was going on and she stated she was just postulating success for Scientology, a better world, etc. At lunch, a group of us talked it over and we all thought she was a nut job. We thought the OT Committee should DO something tangible and not just postulate.

Postulating is doing something so that would not be obeying the Dalai Lama's quote, right? I would think that once one cares and is concerned, the next step would be to offer help. I see that I am wrong there as to being a good Buddhist.

Limiting oneself to just caring and being concerned is a new concept to me. I am not ready to embrace it totally. It seems as if it is a great first step and the next step would be to do something. Since this assumption is not valid here, I am left at sea. I don't say its a bad concept and it may be a good concept but I just don't get it.
Lakey

 

[Leon]

Be the tuning fork and let the note sound. What can resonate will resonate, and there will be a bigger sound, even a more diverse one which will allow other sounds to resonate in harmony too. And so the original true sound will grow and spread and eventually bring all other sounds within it.

 

[Ogsonofgroo]

Hey Lakey, there is something to be said about unconditional giving/caring to/for people in the buddhist tradition (and yeah, not all buddhists are as pure of heart as their claimed convictions, nothing new there).

Sort of back to ships, I came across this vid today and it touched me, I don't rem finding it before> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bBLuHV_Kgk

 

[RogerB]

Expectations & Entitlements

As I said earlier, expectations and entitlements are profitable when directly addressed in processing/auditing. Two-way comm works best, that is, actual two-way comm, not the one-way comm of an auditing comm cycle.

Leon, Roger, thank you for the demo.

I am about to write something that might seem evaluative. It is not intended as such.

Leon appears to have certain expectations. From my bystander position these appear perfectly reasonable. Discourse on/within a discussion group is a reasonable expectation.

Roger appears to have entitlements. Whether self-assumed or assigned by another doesn't matter as the effect/affect is the same. As far as I am concerned Roger is entitled to his entitlements. He's done the work, walked the walk, etc.

Both parties, as I see it, are right, neither are wrong. So I am going, "WTF?"

Yes, Ted is correct. The subject of “expectations” is an important case area. I cracked it for Alan once, some years back and wrote some of it up on the old Prosperity List. It was an area of research he was stalled on, and on one of my visits I collided with the spiritual universe mass of it he’d built up. As I’ve already noted, I solo session every morning, and as I began my usual session that first morning after arriving at the ranch I collided with a “solidity in the air” . . . it turned out that the “item that resolved it” was expectation: and that was the item Alan had searched for and not found the day/evening before in his research session. I’ve never seen him smile so big as when we chatted about it later. He was radiant.

One of these days I’ll write up the tech observations on the subject, but not today.

Today I want to write about Ted’s WTF? in his last sentence above. Though it is to be noted he is switching between the words expectation and entitlement in the above, that’s not hugely important. Though they have different explicit meanings, they can often interchange.

Ted is correct: we are all entitled to our personal expectations and sense of entitlement. However he did not take his analysis above far enough to arrive at a resolution of his “WTF?”

A personal expectation and sense of entitlement is just that, personal. It does not translate to another and nor is it effective with another unless there is agreement on such; and any attempt to enforce one’s personal expectations and sense of entitlement upon another without agreement or in violation of another’s wish is abusive and indeed an overt (harmful) act.

Let’s look at some examples of this.

A young fellow takes a pretty young girl out on a date with the expectation of getting into her pants. Indeed, he thinks he is entitled to it since he spent all that money on her at dinner (and “everybody does it anyway” he thinks) etc. But the young lady gracefully declines his romantic overtures, and so he starts to enforce his wish and sense of entitlement and expectation. How many of you would agree he is already out of line for attempting to enforce his expectation? Or do any think he is “within his rights”?

Let’s go further; now, as part of his attempting to enforce his expectation he is calling the young lady names and ridiculing her for her wish and her not wanting to have the relationship with him he is insisting upon. Is he over the line only now that he is calling her names and ridiculing her, or did he cross the line of decency and good conduct when he first attempted to enforce his expectations over the top of her expectations and violate her wishes and sanctity?

Another example I witnessed between two folks negotiating over a price. I won’t bore you with the details, but both begun with an expectation of attaining a want (their best price) . . . but it was amazing to watch the buyer beginning to abuse and ridicule the seller for not acceding to his demanded lower price!

The above are examples of destructive, abusive conduct on the subject of expectations and senses of entitlement.

So, while it is perfectly fine to have one’s expectations and sense of entitlement, it is not OK to attempt to force them on others without their consent and certainly not OK to do so against their wishes. It is abusive and indeed at a spiritual level it is a criminal act.

And then to start ridiculing another and waging a make-wrong war against them because they have not or do not accede to your demands borders on psychotic . . . but then that’s all too common in the human realm to notice, I suppose.

Successful and harmonious relationships and games can only be played when based on agreements and consent. When either of these are missing or violated, the activity becomes abusive and destructive. And, so as to be precise here, games or relationships engaged in wherein agreements are missing rapidly descend into chaos and conflict and so are destructive to a Being even without any intent to destroy.

Bottom line: nobody has the right to attempt to enforce their wants, expectations or sense of entitlements on another against the other’s wish.

And in case you haven’t noticed, that’s the point I’ve been trying to politely convey in my communications as referred to by Ted above.

I think that’ll do on the above for today.

Here's some information that has been on my mind for some time. It comes from the field of music. I just went, "Ah, ha!" as it came together for me. I hope it answers a few questions for others as well:

This following paragraph from <http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-barbershop-quartet.htm> Emphasis is mine:

One of the most distinctive features of barbershop music is the ringing chord. The ringing chord is a unique vocal effect created when the four voices harmonize perfectly with each other, overlaying in such a way that the illusion of a fifth singer is created. The ringing chord can sound quite ethereal and it is very recognizable; most barbershop groups work hard to attain it, and are rightfully proud when they manage to achieve it.

If you want to plug in the third party law on that, you might see as I do, a third party can exist as and only as the byproduct of the two primary parties. So in applying hubtech which requires a WHO, an innocent party can and will often get hung.

I do feel and think that this illusion is an important awareness and it extends all across physical universe activities, possibly into spirit-world as well. So I am going to take a breather and let this process run a while.

Thank you.

Ted, I hope you enjoyed your cognition(s) to the max!

In this second part of your little ditty you also raise a key issue that, in my view, is in the realm of certain tech and “mechanical” factors.

One of the things that happens at the very top of the levels of spiritual interaction and relationships is indeed the co-creating and co-empowering of something akin to your above noted ringing chord.

Two (or more) spiritual Beings can come together in such a high level of harmony and coexistence that a new condition of existence for them comes into being. It is as though a “third element” of existence. It is neither of the individuals, and it exists as though separate to them but it is of them.

And it is at this level of game and relationship that one really needs to have one’s wits about them and get things right, otherwise the screw-ups and consequences can be truly immense.

I will also note, that in my observation, it is harmonics of the phenomena at this level that are the stuff of the physical universe.

Worth the pondering.

Rog

 

[afaceinthecrowd]

Ted…I like the “ringing chord” …I like it a lot.

Leon…I like the “tuning fork” …I like it a lot.

Rog…I like the “stuff of the physical universe” …I like it a lot.

Thanks fellas…great stuff...I like it all…I like yall a lot.

Methinks all Living is a Collaboration.

Face

 

[RogerB]

Ted…I like the “ringing chord” …I like it a lot.

Leon…I like the “tuning fork” …I like it a lot.

Rog…I like the “stuff of the physical universe” …I like it a lot.

Thanks fellas…great stuff...I like it all…I like yall a lot.

Methinks all Living is a collaboration.

Face

Well now Face, I think you have just sung the song of the harmony of the Universes with your little line above (in purple)... to wit: "Methinks all Living is a collaboration."

Sure as hell beats opponency, conflict and destruction.

Imagine what would occur if all truly collaborated.

Go to the head of the troops Mr. Face!

Rog

 

[EP - Ethics Particle]

"Bustin' a Chord"

Well now Face, I think you have just sung the song of the harmony of the Universes with your little line above (in purple)... to wit: "Methinks all Living is a collaboration."

Sure as hell beats opponency, conflict and destruction.

Imagine what would occur if all truly collaborated.

Go to the head of the troops Mr. Face!

Rog

It just struck me that there may be some who never heard a good Barbershop Quartet "Bust a Chord" - so here is a passing fair example where the overtones are palpable.

And rest assured that though I may not post much these days, I am singing my part! Just as many others are, I am sure.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1_Hh2KI6lpk

 

[FoTi]

Here's another one....one guy doing all 4 parts....I thought this was really beautiful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAv63gGtbEA&feature=player_embedded

 

[Ted]

Here's another one....one guy doing all 4 parts....I thought this was really beautiful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JAv63gGtbEA&feature=player_embedded

Very nice!

 

[EP - Ethics Particle]

Prima voce!

Here's another one....one guy doing all 4 parts....I thought this was really beautiful.

I'm puttin this guy on my "favorites" - thanks!

 

[lkwdblds]

Hey Lakey, there is something to be said about unconditional giving/caring to/for people in the buddhist tradition (and yeah, not all buddhists are as pure of heart as their claimed convictions, nothing new there).

Sort of back to ships, I came across this vid today and it touched me, I don't rem finding it before> http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4bBLuHV_Kgk

In your first sentence I believe that according to the Dalai Lama and Ted that unconditional giving is definitely out because giving is doing something. I do not know what caring to people means and as for caring for people that would permissable using one sense of the words "caring for", the sense which is similar to carrying about people. The other sense of the word caring for people, where you assist them by doing things for them such as a nurse would do in attending to the needs of a person, well that sense of caring for is definitely not allowed for in the Dalai Lama's comments.

I am not trying to be a nit picker but specifically based on what Ted was posting in reply to my post, using definitions precisely is imperative.
Lakey

 

[lkwdblds]

I am not fully on board with this type of concept.

Be the tuning fork and let the note sound. What can resonate will resonate, and there will be a bigger sound, even a more diverse one which will allow other sounds to resonate in harmony too. And so the original true sound will grow and spread and eventually bring all other sounds within it.

I think I get the gist of what you are saying. I don't totally buy into it. I can see now that when I was studying Buddhism in the late 60's, concepts such as this did not resonate well with me. I was looking at something more Western to buy into and jumped at Scientology after my opening lecture.

As a counter example to the tuning fork, I offer up the Australian inquiry into Scientology. Hundreds of Aussies had already sounded their tuning forks and an inquiry was launched and yet the leaders of ESMB, many of Aussie heritage were putting a lot of pressure on everyone on ESMB to send in their own stories as well. Talk about expectations and entitlements, it seemed that many Aussie ESMB members expected it of us to write our stories and get them in to help reinforce their own stories they had already sent in. I felt that I had to get my story in or else I would by a sleazy hypocrite.

I agreed with the Aussies such as Emma, Roger, Mate, Carmel and others that it was imperative that we non Aussies participate vigorously.

My point here is that dozens of voices had already rung their tuning forks and their notes sounded and there was a bigger more diverse sound emanating from Xenophon and the Aussie government as well as other exes. This was not sufficient in and of itself and a strong effort was made to encourage the rest of us to send in our stories as well. We were asked to put our shoulders to the grindstone and help make a maximum push. I agreed and persisted until my story did get sent in.

I believe what these committed Aussies did in pushing other ESMB members to get their stories in was the right thing to do. There is no way that the sounding of the note alone would have got me to write and submit my story, especially with my AOL email not being able to send to Australia, and I am sure this is true of dozens if not hundreds of others.

To really get something pushed through in THIS universe, an extra effort is usally demanded to seize an opportunity and actively promote others to join in and help. Sounding one's tuning fork is nice but is often not enough to get something pushed through in a timely manner. That is why I did not become a lifelong Buddhist after my introduction to this religion in the late 60's. I always retained a fondness in my heart and a soft spot there as well for Buddhism but it was not quite what I was looking for. Perhaps on a more sane Planet of in a saner Universe, it would be the perfect religion but on this planet it has always taken more than just sounding one's tuning fork to get anything worthwile accomplished.
Lakey