If You Could Avoid One Thing for Good, What Would It Be?

[Guest Bazooka Jesus]

Money problems, hands down.

1000€ unconditional basic income would be my idea of paradise.

[Kuba Powiertowski]

@Bazooka Jesus In some countries, the minimum social benefit is already quite close to this level. For many who use it, it makes little difference, just like winning the lottery. The euro would have to be the only currency in the world with a statically, i.e. artificially, assigned value, resistant to any speculation. All money in an ideal system should be a reflection of the value of real goods produced by people. Without it, it is a worthless piece of paper. That is, it only has calorific value. You can see this for yourself when you land far from civilization with a suitcase full of paper money in high denominations. Paradoxically, nowadays they are more and more often a story completely unrelated to any good, but a tool of power and control in itself. But keep your head up. We are already heading in the direction you want. Every citizen who scrupulously follows the regulations set by the authorities will soon receive his 1,000 Euro to enjoy the paradise he dreams of. Plus a monthly renewable prescription for a package of reimbursed psychedelics. All horrors, terror and violations of the fundamental rights of living beings that, God forbid, get through the censorship filter will be considered a divine dream in your divine mind. A slightly different version of love - because after all, it's just a story. I'm going too far here and I'm not referring directly to you. I have friends who express a similar view, which in my opinion is naive and utopian. And similar in tone to the so-called rebellious outsiders, minimalists who live apparently in opposition to the goods of civilization, but only de facto within it, which makes such a lifestyle possible.

Sometimes a little bit of seriousness is needed and that directly correspond to my case to see things as they are even If they are extremly inconvenient to me and my worldview.

[Galyna]

Ignorance.... 

[Yimpa]

35 minutes ago, Galyna said:

Ignorance.... 

Very tricky to avoid. In the beginning it’s necessary to avoid ignorance to protect ourselves, but after exhausting that you begin to love and accept ignorance.

Diverse perspectives would not be possible if not for ignorance. And we tend to take for granted the beauty of insights that emerge from inquiring into the “I don’t know” aspects of ourselves.

[Galyna]

48 minutes ago, Yimpa said:

In the beginning it’s necessary to avoid ignorance to protect ourselves

Protect from what?

[Schizophonia]

nothing

[Yimpa]

9 minutes ago, Galyna said:

Protect from what?

I would have it say ignorance. It’s truly a paradox. 

In the beginning it’s necessary to avoid ignorance to protect ourselves from ignorance.

Basically, it’s an avoidance of aspects of ourselves that we view as wrong. For example, if you associate religion with ignorance, you’ll do everything in your power to avoid anything associated with religion. 

With that said, we can go back full circle and ask a fundamental question from scratch, “What is ignorance?” 

[Breakingthewall]

40 minutes ago, Yimpa said:

What is ignorance?” 

Ignorance is looking for love outside of yourself, this makes you an idiot who lives limited, without understanding anything, doing things that you really don't like, empty of love towards yourself and towards others, an empty shell that is pure anxiety, since you look and live in the wrong direction. You could say that ignorance is a form of madness.

[PurpleTree]

Overthinking 

[Guest Bazooka Jesus]

13 hours ago, Yimpa said:

Very tricky to avoid. In the beginning it’s necessary to avoid ignorance to protect ourselves, but after exhausting that you begin to love and accept ignorance.

Diverse perspectives would not be possible if not for ignorance. And we tend to take for granted the beauty of insights that emerge from inquiring into the “I don’t know” aspects of ourselves.

Very well said.

It's impossible to put into words how utterly boring existence would be without a healthy dose of ignorance... in fact, the word "boring" doesn't even begin to do the unimaginable monotony of everlasting omniscience any justice. Which is of course exactly why we're ignorant!

To think that ignorance is somehow a mistake in God's design is sheer lunacy.

[Kuba Powiertowski]

Ignorance is fooling yourself by not seeing (understanding) things as they are. +2 is +2 not -2. Yes, it's all math, it's all integers set but difference is fundamental. Claiming that -2 is the same as +2 is the ignorance in its essence. Simple as that.

[Breakingthewall]

Fear.  the chain that slaves. 

[Carl-Richard]

I feel resistance towards the question. Merely forming the thought that I want to avoid something somehow feels like it creates a shadow dynamic in my mind, which means I will only have to expose myself more to that thing at some point to undo that split. I guess I did the philosopher thing of answering the question by deconstructing it  (or did I? Have I expressed that I wanted to avoid something, or have I merely avoided it? )

[Princess Arabia]

1 minute ago, Carl-Richard said:

I feel resistance towards the question. Merely forming the thought that I want to avoid something somehow feels like it creates a shadow dynamic in my mind, which means I will only have to expose myself more to that thing at some point to undo that split. I guess I did the philosopher thing of answering the question by deconstructing it  (or did I? Have I expressed that I wanted to avoid something, or have I merely avoided it? )

I like this answer.

😍

[Sincerity]

This question is really doing me wonders. I think I didn't convey well enough how powerful it is and how far You could go with it. You have the power to "avoid something out of existence" and your imagination is the only limit.

Yesterday it reminded me of my fear of losing my close ones. Imagine You could cheat death and never have to care about losing someone very precious to You, like your child or sister. It's easy to think You aren't scared or attached but see, this question is precisely to get the "ugly truth" out of You, your "lower feelings" which You are NOT aware of right now. If You could erase the possibility of serious harm/death of your child/sister/whoever, wouldn't You? If You had the option, IN PRACTICE?

It's an imagination exercise and it's really worth taking seriously. Intense focus is crucial here. Imagine so hard You forget about all else and don't hold yourself back from feeling.

Edited January 4 by Sincerity

[Sincerity]

Additional tip/note: this exercise can remind You of your love for reality.

You can become conscious of your personal reason why NOT to erase your suffering or the possibility of death to your child. Because then it wouldn't be REALITY. Do YOU care about reality? Maybe You do but don't even know it. 

(It's not truly reality as in direct experience but still, go with it...)

Edited January 4 by Sincerity

[Gabriel Joy]

Lack of energy. If I have energy, then I could do anything I set my mind to!

[UnbornTao]

Aversion (wanting to avoid) itself shows up as a struggle.

Edited January 4 by UnbornTao

[Yimpa]

Avoiding avoiding. In other words, meta avoiding.

Instead of allowing ourselves to feel into the source of avoidance, we tend to avoid it.

[Carl-Richard]

3 hours ago, Princess Arabia said:

I like this answer.

😍

I like that you like it 😊

 

2 hours ago, Sincerity said:

It's an imagination exercise and it's really worth taking seriously. Intense focus is crucial here. Imagine so hard You forget about all else and don't hold yourself back from feeling.

Fully committing to exercises is one of the best things you can do 😊