04-06 - The Reason That Manifests Itself

                               “The Reason that Manifests Itself”

I was driving home this past Sunday from the church where I volunteer a little time each month in its youth religious education program. Listening to National Public Radio I popped mid-way into a 1951 recording of Margaret Mead reading her "This I Believe" essay. For those of you who have not read or heard it, here is the link:  
http://www.thisibelieve.org/dsp_ShowEssay.php?uid=16809&topessays=25&&start= . It is a hopeful affirmation of the equality and potentiality of all people, regardless of socio-economics, race, and religion (and I'm sure even avatar shape, if Margaret had been aware of such things).

   During my assigned scribe period this month, the "Sacred Art in a Virtual World" Exhibit Grand
   Opening occurred in SL. The exhibit was a topic mentioned throughout many of the sessions, and
   after walking through the exhibit myself, I can't think of a better framework that demonstrates this
   idea of human potentiality; unless, of course, it is the potentiality that is evident in a very real way
   by what we are doing here, and those of us who "play" at it.

The Bridging of the Gap
A false name and an editable appearance make for an easy way to hide behind, or perhaps rather within, an SL avatar. Yet striking in all of the logs this month was the amount of sharing of what is "RL" - "real life", between participants; illnesses, building inspection approvals, goodbyes, love, communication intent, and reflection. What allows us to bridge the virtual gap? Trust? Commitment? Sharing? Non-judgement? Play?

An act deserving of quiet respect and appreciation.
A veteran Play as Being Guardian made special efforts to bid farewell to a fairly regular attendee of PaB sessions who had announced her departure from SL. He'd invited friends, expecting her to arrive for the send-off:

"I invited her tonight as I was hoping [she] would be here... she had said she was leaving SL so I was hoping to gather old friends for an appropriate send off. Others were waiting in the wings... but no [name]", he said.

"Well, I hope [she] is happy nonetheless", replied another.

"I think we all do", said the veteran. "It's that kind of group... and I'm not sure why."

"Well, friendships seem to be available here on a pretty diverse basis", said the second. "Some close, some not, but friendly all the same."

"Indeed", said the veteran. "Very little confrontational discussion here, if any. Don't know how a group like this could have possibly assembled itself like this if it was the goal."

[For more click here: http://playasbeing.wik.is/Chat_Logs/2009/02/2009.02.04_19%3a00_-_of_Pina_Colada_and_Dreams ]

Gathered in love, hands together, smiling
"There was one morning that people who were gathered here were all so strongly within love that I needed to keep my hands that way for a long time," said one guardian, about how in Real Life his hands were in benediction (or gassho, or namaste) due to what was being said in SL.

"Smiling now," replied the second one, "really remarkable that a group discussion can generate that level of response :)".

"Feel need to do that in RL also now", said the first.

Later, the Guardian on Duty gave a wonderfully succinct PaB elevator speech: "We all meet here to discuss our experiences, to create a shared vocabulary and an experiential library of sorts. Many (many) times, it's about communicating those things in a way that the people you're with get your intent, get where you're coming from which is in the best case an open honest place."

[for more click here: http://playasbeing.wik.is/Chat_Logs/2009/02/2009.02.05_07%3a00_-_Speaking_Plainly ]

Wisdom and the Un-wisdom that comes with ?
How open or closed we are depends perhaps more with what we've unlearned than what we've learned:

"One was more open to many things when one was younger, I find :)."

"Yes its funny how we protect ourselves."

"But actually having said that it is only half true. For other things I was much less open, tightly closed in fact."

"Hummm?"

"Insisting on facts and the observance of theory, rather than the perception of reality."

[For more click here: http://playasbeing.wik.is/Chat_Logs/2009/02/2009.02.05_07%3a00_-_Speaking_Plainly ]

Cosmic Religiosity
In clicking around the "This I Believe" tab on the NPR.org website later Sunday night, I found a very appropriate essay by Einstein: 

"The most beautiful thing we can experience is the mysterious — the knowledge of the existence of something unfathomable to us, the manifestation of the most profound reason coupled with the most brilliant beauty..."

As I walked through the Hall of Appearance and viewed example after example of human expression for that which cannot be fully expressed, I thought that it is not that which is being expressed that matters at all, is the act of expressing itself; a sort of self-sacrifice, reaching potentiality through losing oneself in this Sacred Art.

   "...I am satisfied with the mystery of life’s eternity and with the awareness of — and glimpse into   
    the marvelous construction of the existing world together with the steadfast determination to 
    comprehend a portion, be it ever so tiny, of the reason that manifests itself in nature. This is the
    basis of cosmic religiosity, and it appears to me that the most important function of art and science
    is to awaken this feeling among the receptive and keep it alive."

(Scribe's note: This period saw a session with an empty log, and 6 others not posted in time for inclusion.)