{"id":1993,"date":"2015-04-29T07:00:00","date_gmt":"2015-04-29T15:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/?p=1993"},"modified":"2015-05-01T07:01:12","modified_gmt":"2015-05-01T15:01:12","slug":"nibbling-at-the-ineffable-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/?p=1993","title":{"rendered":"Nibbling At the Ineffable"},"content":{"rendered":"

There are Hindu legend that use the word \u201ckalpa,\u201d which refers to the time it takes for a universe to form. So, alluding to this myth, I envision a tiny bird pecking at a granite mountain, getting a few molecules of that mountain. The meta-cosmos is the great universe that includes the 3-D cosmos plus the realms of mind. All this is far beyond the human capacity to describe, which is the meaning of \u201cineffable.\u201d I imagine that the cosmic Truths are like that mountain and that I\u2019m that bird: One peck, a few molecules of truth: nibbling at the ineffable. That\u2019s how it works.<\/p>\n

I don\u2019t presume to know; I\u2019m \u201capophatic.\u201d I don\u2019t think humans can know. It is enough to contemplate, to create a plausible hypothesis, to articulate a hunch. I know that it\u2019s bigger or deeper than words can suggest. So I contemplate.<\/p>\n

I use the affectation, \u201ccontemplateur.<\/em>\u201d I suspect that it\u2019s my dharma, my assigned task, by virtue of the gifts given me, and a measure of noblesse oblige, to contemplate, to some degree on this blog you are reading. <\/p>\n

Kings in ancient empires were given every luxury, every prerogative, but their duty was to govern well, and governing is no small responsibility. I am no king, but I am obliged in proportion to my good fortune to give back, and what I can give back is a unique gift that utilizes all my education, as physician, psychiatrist, student of many subjects, etc. I know well that my conclusions are far from final, but I do what I can. <\/p>\n

One of my favorite folk songs begins with \u201cWhen I first came to this land<\/a>…\u201d and a punch line is, \u201c…and I did what I could.\u201d For me, the land was that of knowledge rather than farmland, and I am doing what I can with what\u2019s been given to me. <\/p>\n

In addition to a list of good fortunes that I live with, I realize that what I\u2019ve been given many supports. Indeed, our level of civilization and peace is something I\u2019m very grateful for. My surroundings, the support of my wife, the stimulation of my friends, help me I\u2019m a philosopher of sorts, but I philosophically realize the limits of trying to rationally coordinate (to use Whitehead\u2019s phrase) the cosmos. There are too many variables that can not be coordinated using reason. It\u2019s more like music, humor, context, other non-linear variables. By non-linear I mean that you can\u2019t logically trace the path from A to B. Partly it takes a side trip to L with a touch of M (which to some is an edge of Hell with a touch of Hmmm and Yummm), partly it pops through with a jolt, an epiphany, so that somehow it all makes sense, no problem, yes. <\/p>\n

My dying thus transforms from THE ultimate tragedy\u2014i.e, what do you mean I\u2019m going to die, too??!!— to no big deal, when the great enterprise of God getting born into new levels of Becoming-ness is given priority. Then my epitaph will be, \u201cHe got to help.\u201d<\/p>\n

Brushing aside the latent grandiosity, there aren\u2019t that many contemplateurs around and it turns out that I\u2019ve assumed that identity. It\u2019s a construct: There is no such thing. And indeed, all identities are constructs. But never mind. I like it. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

There are Hindu legend that use the word \u201ckalpa,\u201d which refers to the time it takes for a universe to form. So, alluding to this myth, I envision a tiny bird pecking at a granite mountain, getting a few molecules of that mountain. The meta-cosmos is the great universe that includes the 3-D cosmos plus […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[24,13],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1993","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-autobiographical","category-spirituality-and-philosophy"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1993"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=1993"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1993\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1994,"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1993\/revisions\/1994"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=1993"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=1993"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blatner.com\/adam\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=1993"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}