Thank-you for this invitation to view a weaving of the threads of beliefs into a fabric of our lives. This metaphor offers such a rich potential for new opportunities. I am curious how moments emerge in our relationships when we need to wrap the fabric tightly around us and other times when we can loosen our grip, and even gaze upon the space between the threads to imagine and create new patterns. How much would you consider this space between threads as space for imagination?
How beautifully put Glenn! And yes, the spaces between are ripe for imaginings. I believe the gaps in between are where we find the sacred. I wrote about this not so long ago
Thank-you for sending me the link Julia. In response to your text, I recall how the Japanese have a word for the gap, or space between, calling it the 'Ma'. As you may already understand, although we seem naturally drawn to notice form, when we re-train our eyes to look for the 'Ma' new patterns can emerge that were previously unnoticeable. Bayo Akomalafe describes how light shines through the cracks, and for me, all these ideas invite a richness from not-knowing, imagination, the sacred, the relationship and liminal spaces that may require a posture of slowing down for greater sensorial encountering. I appreciate how although we cannot fully describe a(ny)thing, we can take time to understand more and explore our dynamic relationship with things - noticing the 'Ma'.
The new statement will comprise the skepticisms, as well as the faiths of society, and out of unbeliefs a creed shall be formed. For, skepticisms are not gratuitous or lawless, but are limitations of the affirmative statement, and the new philosophy must take them in, and make affirmations outside of them, just as much as must include the oldest beliefs.
Beautiful post Julia, and I too so enjoy weaving threads with you and appreciate your thread (s). I was just reading your earlier comment where you used the word unravel and that got me too thinking about “ravelling” and wondering what kind of process ravelling is. I wonder if ravelling and unravelling are both important, as the knots we tie perhaps happened during some exploratory ravelling that were the best we could do at the time.
absolutely! I love this. Ravelling is a knitting term, isn't it? We knit our lives together as best we can, with our beliefs and our connections, to form something beautiful and often with lumps and bumps and dropped stitches included :-) xxx
...and sometimes dropped stitches and lumps aren’t appreciated too much because straight rows are the aesthetic du jour. I’m grateful to live at a time where people are interested in the knots and gaps as interesting in themselves. Perhaps when we notice and value them more they get to take their place with their evenly stitched cousins.
All beliefs must be re-examined. Do you see that the ones you decide to examine, while they may be on the surface the ones that you "believe" no longer serve you, are actually the ones your ego (for lack of a better word) can afford to release. The ones that you decide are too important -- that they still serve you -- that the "are who you are" -- those are the ones that are probably embedded lies. Re-examine ALL your beliefs if you're actually looking for liberation into authentic self-ness.
yes I agree with you - we use beliefs to navigate this world and our relationships with one another, but ultimately our authentic self-ness exists beyond belief. What's fascinating to me is that we don't tend to re-examine willingly - it's only when a pain point brings a belief - as you say, to 'the surface' - that we finally place our attention onto it. Above all we do well to hold ourselves in self-compassion when examining ourselves in this way. It's hard work to unravel oneself and to find our own truths, in a world which doesn't encourage it.
Thank-you for this invitation to view a weaving of the threads of beliefs into a fabric of our lives. This metaphor offers such a rich potential for new opportunities. I am curious how moments emerge in our relationships when we need to wrap the fabric tightly around us and other times when we can loosen our grip, and even gaze upon the space between the threads to imagine and create new patterns. How much would you consider this space between threads as space for imagination?
How beautifully put Glenn! And yes, the spaces between are ripe for imaginings. I believe the gaps in between are where we find the sacred. I wrote about this not so long ago
https://juliamacintosh.substack.com/p/mind-the-gap
xxx
Thank-you for sending me the link Julia. In response to your text, I recall how the Japanese have a word for the gap, or space between, calling it the 'Ma'. As you may already understand, although we seem naturally drawn to notice form, when we re-train our eyes to look for the 'Ma' new patterns can emerge that were previously unnoticeable. Bayo Akomalafe describes how light shines through the cracks, and for me, all these ideas invite a richness from not-knowing, imagination, the sacred, the relationship and liminal spaces that may require a posture of slowing down for greater sensorial encountering. I appreciate how although we cannot fully describe a(ny)thing, we can take time to understand more and explore our dynamic relationship with things - noticing the 'Ma'.
The new statement will comprise the skepticisms, as well as the faiths of society, and out of unbeliefs a creed shall be formed. For, skepticisms are not gratuitous or lawless, but are limitations of the affirmative statement, and the new philosophy must take them in, and make affirmations outside of them, just as much as must include the oldest beliefs.
Ralph Waldo Emerson
Beautiful post Julia, and I too so enjoy weaving threads with you and appreciate your thread (s). I was just reading your earlier comment where you used the word unravel and that got me too thinking about “ravelling” and wondering what kind of process ravelling is. I wonder if ravelling and unravelling are both important, as the knots we tie perhaps happened during some exploratory ravelling that were the best we could do at the time.
absolutely! I love this. Ravelling is a knitting term, isn't it? We knit our lives together as best we can, with our beliefs and our connections, to form something beautiful and often with lumps and bumps and dropped stitches included :-) xxx
...and sometimes dropped stitches and lumps aren’t appreciated too much because straight rows are the aesthetic du jour. I’m grateful to live at a time where people are interested in the knots and gaps as interesting in themselves. Perhaps when we notice and value them more they get to take their place with their evenly stitched cousins.
All beliefs must be re-examined. Do you see that the ones you decide to examine, while they may be on the surface the ones that you "believe" no longer serve you, are actually the ones your ego (for lack of a better word) can afford to release. The ones that you decide are too important -- that they still serve you -- that the "are who you are" -- those are the ones that are probably embedded lies. Re-examine ALL your beliefs if you're actually looking for liberation into authentic self-ness.
hi Connie
yes I agree with you - we use beliefs to navigate this world and our relationships with one another, but ultimately our authentic self-ness exists beyond belief. What's fascinating to me is that we don't tend to re-examine willingly - it's only when a pain point brings a belief - as you say, to 'the surface' - that we finally place our attention onto it. Above all we do well to hold ourselves in self-compassion when examining ourselves in this way. It's hard work to unravel oneself and to find our own truths, in a world which doesn't encourage it.