Spirituality for Living

Comfort is both a good thing, and perhaps one of our greatest evils also. We tend to neglect our instincts with comfort. We mistake comfort for ease, and we can be totally at ease but not comfortable. In that case, people tend to just suffer the stress to keep the ease.

Comfort has two domains: the stasis threshold, which is the “rest” phase, and the growth threshold. People tend to neglect the growth threshold, and this does throw the stasis threshold out of wack. You rest, but you aren’t recharged.

The comfort of the routine, even when it’s a stressful routine? Yes, stasis can lead to a psychic and even biological toxicity.

Ah, this is why they say ‘a change is as good as a rest’. Yes, though perhaps said without the explanation so it’s missing some impact, but basically it’s true. Rest can fail miserably to be restful, and the atrophy from being rest obsessed can lead both to psychological dis-ease and physical pain.  Many of the chronic pains people complain of are exactly that. The brain is an amazing critter, very obedient, but it has its own nature, and it will express this despite your permission or withdrawal. If it can’t have change, it will change you, and it will obey you even if you are wrong about yourself or life, because it by itself is unconcerned with ideas like truth. It’s an organ and just wants to function in its “healthy” rhythm.

It is influenced by Mind? Yes, it is. The brain is a sense organ.

Healthy rhythm for the brain is change? Stimulation, which slacks off with excessive rest. You can see it very clearly with people who are put in sensory isolation chambers. The scientific community just says the brain is fabricating things to make up for its lack of stimulation. My experience is actually contrary to that. Cut off from sensory stimuli, the brain turns to its primary life support in self preservation and starts tapping the mind. This is what happens in meditation. With the sharp turn down in stimuli the brain goes to its “heart”, and the mind surfaces more in its awareness.

So, how do the growth threshold and rest threshold interact? How do they relate? Well, both are actually stress. Trying to relax is stress, but it’s “eustress” or physical change that feeds well being. Beyond the rest threshold it becomes “distress” or change that negatively impacts function. Excessive rest leads to atrophy, and distresses the body and mind. It‘s the same with the growth threshold.

The stress of trying to relax is hard on us? Yes, while change/simulation within the growth threshold is “eustress” or feeds our well being.

Aren’t you relaxing yet?…Why not?…No stress there, ! You have the picture perfectly. Often times the stress in trying to relax is because the growth/rest cycle is imbalanced. You are “holding your breath”. You may be trying to rest when your being is telling you you need change, or trying to change when your being is telling you you need rest, but it’s an internal cycle. Externally dictated demands that run counter to this cycle are distress.

We get stuck. Stress from routine, so we force ourselves into stress to rest and it all just compounds. Yes, like trying to exhale when you feel you can’t breath, or not exhaling when your lungs burn from holding the breath.

You have 15 minutes to relax. You better hurry and get started. Indeed, it’s pretty psycho how people think of rest let alone their views of change. But we can reclaim our awareness of our own cycle, and thus enhance our own capacity to adapt.

I think I’m one of the psycho’s, but in this world who isn’t? Yes, it’s a very common derangement of the consensus human view.

To not deny you’re psycho is one of the least psychotic things you can do. I fully agree. In Bushido, to give the warrior the strength to confront death as he must, they teach that he is already dead. So he should enjoy what he experiences without concern for preserving it. I find the same is true of sanity.

Effective one on one, but it really contributes to attrition rates. Yes, and the philosophy did need to evolve. It has, but not in any clearly stated way.

I’m reminded of being in the Caribbean. The observation of how relaxed it was. No schedules. People just saying it starts when it starts. It took a few days to get over the shock. Some places and cultures (they are synonymous) never really departed from the natural rest/growth rhythm.

Unfortunately the ‘modern world’ we’ve made is encroaching on them to ‘compete’. Yes, so it’s more important now than perhaps ever before to address this issue.

Your thoughts are welcome. Be well friends.

Travis Saunders
Dragon Intuitive
~science,mysticism,spirituality~

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