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Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

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Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#301

Post by unixhero »

I am a practicing Agnostic. I slide towards nihilism ever so often, but see its pit of despair and pull myself out of it. Going back to being an agnostic; Hopefully there's something out there. Hopefully.

You know what I wish school hadn't spent the first 9 years of my curriculum teaching protestant christianity, or any religion for that matter. I cannot even imagine the power of teaching kids motivational and spiritual improvement classes instead of wasting my time on religion. Well that never happened, and I've picked up spiritual improvement and motivational stuff later in life. There's still time to make corrections on the trajectory. But when is apogee?

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#302

Post by deathofsocrates »

Atheism. downright non-believer. Grew up by a deist family. they were not really religious. I do remember hearing praying every now and then from my childhood but it was not something that's reflected to me as important part of life. Later on met lots of religious people but did not find them interesting. After learning more about science and technology, the unresolved facts started to disturb me while I was still young. Later in life started being interested in philosophy and learned that i need to learn more about the things that i disagree. hence end up reading most of the holy books, found them close to reading LOTR. My thoughts on spiritual practice? Religion is required for most of the people because it is a meditation and a safe bay for the minds that are unable to bear the hard facts in this universe. I find it very stupid and inefficient for humanity to spend so much resources on it but I do not disrespect the religious community except the extremists and the people who's life's meaning is religion. I also believe that the majority of people are belong to a religion because they don't want to be seen as an outsider or due to their social state or job etc. Or probably because it's been an important part of their family. because it is very hard to unsee the cruel world and fool yourself with religion. "Science is the most reliable guide for civilization, for life, for success in the world. Searching a guide other than the science is meaning carelessness, ignorance and heresy."

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#303

Post by davidbiehl »

i was raised in the church of jesus christ of latter day saints (aka the mormon church) at some point in my adult life, the stress and anxiety of being a “practicing” member of the church led to the point where i couldn’t attend sacrament meetings without a panic attack. i have stopped participating and have found that my quality of life has improved.

i’m not sure what my belief system is, but i think about death a lot… and in an odd way it helps me appreciate life right now. the thought of an afterlife freaks me out. i want to believe that death is the end. the scarcity of time reminds me how valuable my friends and family are, reminds me to be generous to others, and helps me to live in the moment.

i believe in karma and have found that when i help others in their time of need that it circles back around when i am in need.

in my experience, organized religion overcomplicates things.

let’s be excellent to each other.

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#305

Post by dstroot »

sam0x17 wrote: post #233

100% atheism. Was raised some kind of protestant I forget which one, and derived tremendous spiritual and psychological relief when I realized all of that was absolute nonsense at the age of 9. I knew I was gay at the time and wouldn't come out until I was 18 or so, but my life just got a lot easier when I removed religion completely. I also recall discovering increased moral agency -- as a Christian I had been taugh…

I read quite a bit about Stoicism - an ancient Greek school of philosophy founded at Athens by Zeno of Citium. The school taught that virtue, the highest good, is based on knowledge; the wise live in harmony with the divine Reason (also identified with Fate and Providence) that governs nature, and are indifferent to the vicissitudes of fortune and to pleasure and pain.

The Stoics elaborated a detailed taxonomy of virtue, dividing virtue into four main types: wisdom, justice, courage, and moderation.

Many may not view this as “spiritual” as it does not address “spirits” but rather personal empowerment.

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#306

Post by calebm »

I was raised as a preachers' kid in the ultra-conservative Church of Christ Christian denomination, and I thought we were the only ones that had the truth and everyone else was going to hell. But I wondered why God doesn't show himself. Fast-forward to 2 decades of searching later, and I now hold a panentheistic - we are living in God, we are all part of God, and we are all tuning into the truth. I see God everywhere I look, and I hear God speak (both by positive and negative contrast) everywhere and in everything. I lean towards the idea that "all is as it should be, but not as it should stay". Perfection is not a static destination - we are tuning into God like the Fibonacci sequence tunes into the Golden Ratio. Christ is the Universe/Art/Word, the Father is the Artist/Speaker, and the Spirit is the Artistic reason. I think we're all going to heaven, and it bothers me when people say Daddy is going to throw a bunch of people in an eternal torture chamber - that's not my Dad.

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#307

Post by eatYourFood »

kirse wrote: post #299
pg_1234 wrote: post #282

Earlier quoted context omitted.

+100% ... well, straight here ... but I was 7 when I realised that religion was not only bullshit but actually dangerous as it represents a way for people to justify reprehensible acts by putting the importance of pandering to the alleged whims of a "supreme" being above any rational standard of decency and morality.

as it represents a way for people to justify reprehensible acts And in that view, it also represents a way for people to "justify" incredible acts of grace, mercy, and kindness to fellow man. At least in the US, the broad majority of charities and social work organizations that care for others' many needs (both internal and external to this country) have some sort of religious background. Even further, religious free…

I worked with a pastor in the Philippines doing charity work a number of years ago, he outright said that his good deeds were all to spread and grow the religion, not because doing good deeds is a good thing to do. I did not like that one bit but it’s hard to argue against given these Filipinos really did need food parcels.

The Japanese mafia also give out charity to get people onside. Putin used to drive around rural regions handing out cash too.

In the UK, Jehovas witnesses come round to your house after the death of a loved one and they give you all kinds of nice messages and charity.

Growing a religion (or a movement) through bribery is an ancient practice.

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#308

Post by eatYourFood »

kirse wrote: post #299
pg_1234 wrote: post #282

Earlier quoted context omitted.

+100% ... well, straight here ... but I was 7 when I realised that religion was not only bullshit but actually dangerous as it represents a way for people to justify reprehensible acts by putting the importance of pandering to the alleged whims of a "supreme" being above any rational standard of decency and morality.

as it represents a way for people to justify reprehensible acts And in that view, it also represents a way for people to "justify" incredible acts of grace, mercy, and kindness to fellow man. At least in the US, the broad majority of charities and social work organizations that care for others' many needs (both internal and external to this country) have some sort of religious background. Even further, religious free…

I worked with a pastor in the Philippines doing charity work a number of years ago, he outright said that his good deeds were all to spread and grow the religion, not because doing good deeds is a good thing to do. I did not like that one bit but it’s hard to argue against given these Filipinos really did need food parcels.

The Japanese mafia also give out charity to get people inside. Putin used to drive around rural regions handing out cash too.

Re: Ask HN: What is your spiritual practice?

#310

Post by fjabre »

sam0x17 wrote: post #233

100% atheism. Was raised some kind of protestant I forget which one, and derived tremendous spiritual and psychological relief when I realized all of that was absolute nonsense at the age of 9. I knew I was gay at the time and wouldn't come out until I was 18 or so, but my life just got a lot easier when I removed religion completely. I also recall discovering increased moral agency -- as a Christian I had been taugh…

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