How did knowing God change you?

[sthitapragya]

What changed in real life after you found God?

Before you discovered God you chopped wood and washed your dishes. After you discovered God you chopped wood and washed your dishes.

Is discovering God the same as knowing God?

I dont think so, but the doc would know better.

[sthitapragya]

....none of you KNOW God.

Of course we don't. So you tell us what changed after you knew god that made you think it was worth it.

[sthitapragya]

....none of you KNOW God.

Is there a reason your statement uses the word "you" rather than "us"?

Of course. I know, i've yet to meet even a priest that knows.

Well, there are few guys who claim to know him here. But they are conspicuous by their absence.

[sthitapragya]

You are really demonstrating your ignorance of Zen, "Those who know, don't say, those who say, don't know ". - (Zen saying.)

Entertaining, no?

Ah he is back. Reflex claims to know God. But he has been avoiding the op so far.

[Reflex]

Becoming an atheist led to an interest in science and philosophy. Becoming socially isolated led to a reduction in anger. Becoming old led to an acceptance of both physical reality and death. All of this has been slowly and simultaneously happening to me which has resulted in a real and consistent peace of mind. I now see myself as an observer of life and the human condition rather than a participant in it. The detachment lets
me understand that I am just passing through and while nothing truly matters in the grand scheme of things one still needs something to do to
pass the time. And while this is nihilism it is a positive type. Since one gets to choose what meaning to give ones own life [ mine is knowledge acquisition ] instead of it being decided for one by someone else. And that is it with regard to what happened to me after I stopped believing

Sheesh. That would give me reason to put a loaded gun in my mouth and pull the trigger.

[sthitapragya]

Becoming an atheist led to an interest in science and philosophy. Becoming socially isolated led to a reduction in anger. Becoming old led to an acceptance of both physical reality and death. All of this has been slowly and simultaneously happening to me which has resulted in a real and consistent peace of mind. I now see myself as an observer of life and the human condition rather than a participant in it. The detachment lets
me understand that I am just passing through and while nothing truly matters in the grand scheme of things one still needs something to do to
pass the time. And while this is nihilism it is a positive type. Since one gets to choose what meaning to give ones own life [ mine is knowledge acquisition ] instead of it being decided for one by someone else. And that is it with regard to what happened to me after I stopped believing

Sheesh. That would give me reason to put a loaded gun in my mouth and pull the trigger.

You still have to tell us how knowing God changed you. We think it made you supercilious and you got some serious rage issues too. Your dislike for everyone including yourself has increased as have your insecurities and ED. would you agree with this assessment?

[thedoc]

Well, there are few guys who claim to know him here. But they are conspicuous by their absence.

Hey! I'm right here ya know.

[thedoc]

Becoming an atheist led to an interest in science and philosophy.

Becoming socially isolated led to a reduction in anger.

Becoming old led to an acceptance of both physical reality and death.

All of this has been slowly and simultaneously happening to me which has resulted in a real and consistent peace of mind. I now see myself as an observer of life and the human condition rather than a participant in it. The detachment lets me understand that I am just passing through and while nothing truly matters in the grand scheme of things one still needs something to do to pass the time. And while this is nihilism it is a positive type. Since one gets to choose what meaning to give ones own life [ mine is knowledge acquisition ] instead of it being decided for one by someone else. And that is it with regard to what happened to me after I stopped believing

Becoming an atheist is not a prerequisite to doing science or philosophy, there are plenty of religious people who have done both.

Non contact with the rest of humanity will certainly reduce the incidence of anger.

Actually becoming old by itself will not always give this insight, having some condition that is deadly certainly helps, grandchildren help even more.

Peace of mind is more a matter of attitude than the result of the above situations. One can decide to be at piece with the world in spite of what the world throws at you. I to have tried to acquire knowledge, but only that which interests me, so my daughter often tells me that I am the repository of a lot of useless information. In all this I don't believe that being an atheist is necessary for this to be part of who I am.

[Lacewing]

All of this has been slowly and simultaneously happening to me which has resulted in a real and consistent peace of mind.

I very much relate to both of your last two posts. To find freedom for one's state of mind feels unlike anything else I have known. Acceptance and letting go. No drugs... no god... all is naturally connected and flowing. A wonderous and fulfilling way to pass through this space, demanding nothing of it.

[Reflex]

Did it make you a better person? Calmer? More at peace? Did it give you the ability to love all mankind? Did it make you healthier? Did it make you richer? Did it improve your relationships with people? Did it take away your anger? Did it take away your anxieties? Did you develop skills? Did it make you more focused? Did it give you extra strength? More tenacity? Did it take away your frustrations? Do people respond better to you now? Did it make you more attractive to people? Did you get promotions you did not expect? Did it make you more successful? Does food taste better now? Does music mean more to you now? Do you appreciate your fellow men and women more now? Do you think of all men as being equal now?

What changed in real life after you found God?

What would you expect to change in real life?

How could I know? Its God. There must be something special that happens.

Why? Is God something apart from your true self?

[sthitapragya]

Why? Is God something apart from your true self?

I have no idea what you think God is. There are too many of you, each with a different version of Him. I don't believe in Him. But if knowing Him did not change anything, what's the big deal in knowing Him? Nothing changes. There is no difference between you knowing God and me not knowing God.

[Reflex]

Why? Is God something apart from your true self?

I have no idea what you think God is. There are too many of you, each with a different version of Him. I don't believe in Him. But if knowing Him did not change anything, what's the big deal in knowing Him? Nothing changes. There is no difference between you knowing God and me not knowing God.

Everything changes, yet nothing changes: ecstasy, then the laundry.

I wasn't kidding in my response to what surreptitious57 wrote.

Of course there are different conceptions of God. It's stupid to think it can be otherwise.

[sthitapragya]

Everything changes, yet nothing changes: ecstasy, then the laundry.

I wasn't kidding in my response to what surreptitious57 wrote.

Of course there are different conceptions of God. It's stupid to think it can be otherwise.

Well, if nothing changes, I can do without everything changing. However, I don't understand why you think there should be different conceptions of God even if there is only one of Him.

[Reflex]

Everything changes, yet nothing changes: ecstasy, then the laundry.

I wasn't kidding in my response to what surreptitious57 wrote.

Of course there are different conceptions of God. It's stupid to think it can be otherwise.

Well, if nothing changes, I can do without everything changing. However, I don't understand why you think there should be different conceptions of God even if there is only one of Him.

Are you telling me you never considered what the relationship between the infinite and the finite must entail?

[sthitapragya]

Everything changes, yet nothing changes: ecstasy, then the laundry.

I wasn't kidding in my response to what surreptitious57 wrote.

Of course there are different conceptions of God. It's stupid to think it can be otherwise.

Well, if nothing changes, I can do without everything changing. However, I don't understand why you think there should be different conceptions of God even if there is only one of Him.

Are you telling me you never considered what the relationship between the infinite and the finite must entail?

Nope. Why should I? As you guys seem to suggest, other than the fact that you considered the relationship, nothing changed. You didn't gain anything other than some knowledge which could very well be a figment of ancient people's imaginations passed down from generation to generation.

If there was anything to be gained by it, I might consider it. But you guys have not provided me with anything to go by.

Also I am not drawn to profound sounding statements. And that seems to be the one thing all these considerations teach in bucketfuls.

And how can there be any relationship between the infinite and the finite? First of all, Infinite what? and finite what? Infinite could be numbers and finite could be armadillos. Is there a relationship there?

You have to be more clear than "infinite and finite."