the woman in jerusalem

A woman in Jerusalem asked me did I think it was possible for a single human to create the principles and ideals to discipline (in the spirit of right livelihood) themselves? She asked this after learning that, not having been a part of a formal religion at any point in my life (which is perhaps the strangest identity marker a person can have in that land), I had developed a set of working principles to live by from my parents, my work places, the education I have sought out, my peers, and my experiences. On the one hand, I wanted to yell at her, "YES!" (I was feeling a bit vulnerable during that trip). Shouldn't we let other people and our earthly and spiritual experiences be what informs us, what we learn about life from, what tells us what matters? Listening to our intuition, having a discipline that evolves from the self, is subject to change, and isn't simply dictated by an outside force? I'm very inspired by the work and way of life of many peers who follow this openness to be changed.

But I also understood what she meant. It is hard to create self-discipline without an accountability group, for sure, and especially when you are always questioning the mantras. And then today I was thinking again about how our beliefs are so conditioned by our experiences (which are limited, of course) and by those of the folks who are around us. And then too, how often we create beliefs to match what we WANT to be true- or maybe better said, we interpret experiences, even filter our experiences, to match beliefs we are comfortable with. Kind of amazing, and scary. Sometimes I think we do this temporarily for healthy reasons- to cope with and titrate past trauma, for instance. But ultimately we need to open our hearts to a clearer seeing. All this to say that darn lady pushed ME out of my comfort zone and engaging duality may be the only tenant I'm sure of again. I actually find this really funny at present. And if anything it confirms that multiple truths can stand together. I'm writing as an invitation for your open thoughts and perspectives! (Anyone who'd like to reply, and as long as it's speech that is about you and your experience personally, and comes from a place of cultural and religious humility.)