Category: Journal

Musings

3.8.15

– Erotic hypnosis

– TuneUp Utilities for Windows 8
Root Android
Jailbreak iOs

– “WOW! Then WHY is it that many of those people who claim to believe in the Resurrection are such cowards & hypocrites??”
“He/she who has really tasted Jesus would know that JESUS is greater (or even OTHER) than what he/she has tasted!”
It is more important that He knows us than us knowing Him (on that Day, that’s the only thing that will matter) – ONLY the LORD knows those who are his! There are those who claim to know Him, but are not known by Him. And there are those who say they don’t know Him, but are known by Him!

– Worldly morality
Vs.
Spiritual ethics

– Oooh Cydia!  😉

– Reverse engineering!

– Graphic novels @ LibGen
Comics for adults!

– Distinguish:
Faithfulness/belonging/love
&
Exclusivity/possessiveness/control

4.8.15

– Today, the greatest threat to (Christian) spirituality doesn’t come from sexual expression, doctrinal heterodoxy or religious pluralism, but from technological tyranny, social conformity and financial fetishism!

– From a Christianity focused on biblical literalism, sexual moralism, sentimental piety, obsession with miracles, naive evangelism, etc. to a Gospel emphasizing robust theology, embodied witness, ethical rigor, sacramental existence, creative destruction, etc.!

– Boko Haram, ISIS & Taliban

– peremptory
Brusquely imperious

– ‘Vanishing point’

– Demonstrable competence

– What does spirituality have to do with professionalism?

– Biddable heads

– craven

– Are nepotism & cronyism different?

– IITs, IIMs & IISc’s

– Micromanagement

– Politics as entertainment
Entertainment as politics

– Islamophobia

– ‘Calling the bluff’, or ‘caught napping’?

– Gigi Hadid

– Do you have any close friends of the opposite sex, apart from your spouse?

– Conscious dreaming & unconscious living

– Most people are just sleep-walking through life!

– “Society of the Spectacle” – Guy Debord
“The concrete construction of momentary ambiances of life and their transformation into a superior passional quality.”
“a moment of life concretely and deliberately constructed by the collective organization of a unitary ambiance and a game of events”.
“The experimental direction of situationist activity consisted of setting up temporary environments favorable to the fulfillment of true and authentic human desires in response.”
WOW! Could the SFG meeting be such a “situation” to confront & engage the Spectacle?

– “What is cinema?” – Andre Bazin
Confronting the dream-reality with the real-dream!

– dungarees

– Lettrism/creatism

– On random learning day, study something that is within your core areas, and one other thing that is outside of that field.

5.8.15

– Distinguish:
Rule of life
&
Things to do
Apps – use calendar/organizer for the former & Wunderlist for the latter.

– I am not saying an Indian should never live abroad, but only that brain-drain is an ethical problem that needs serious consideration,
I am not saying that (total) Pacifism is the only Christian option, but only that violence is an ethical problem that needs serious consideration,
I am not saying that one should never work in the private for-profit or financial sector, but only that capitalist/corporate slavery is an ethical problem that needs serious consideration,
Etc……

– “This Embrace” by Kirtana
WOW! (Christian) mystical music

– A Christian definition of being biblical,
& a biblical definition of being Christian.

– I am not a romantic, I am a Romanticist!

– Are ‘reflexive’ & ‘reflective’, synonyms or antonyms?!

– Mystical ~ transcendent ~ supernatural ~ spiritual ~ exotic ~ erotic ~ occult ~ forbidden!

– Although I believe in the value & importance of what I am doing, I also realize that this ministry is not (suitable or necessary) for everyone. But I would say that it is so for most people…

7.8.15

– “Now the ears of my ears awake,
And the eyes of my eyes are opened.”
Listening to (all) ambient sounds intently – from Muzak to music!
Spiritual revival through sensual awakening…
It should be “ear of my ears” & “eye of my eyes”.
Senses –> mind –> spirit
Spirit > mind > senses

– Movies:
“Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation” (okay)
Why was the rating on Roger Ebert website so high (perfect!)??
I know that Hunt never ages, but Cruise definitely does!
Once again, the hero is rescued by the heroine!
If Ilsa & Ethan got married, would they be like “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”? Why did they not show them kissing even once, even though there was obviously a sexual tension/romantic connection?
For each character in the movie, what is the ultimate/supreme value?
Why is the movie named “Rogue Nation”?

– Sexuality:
What distinguishes the adolescent from the (single) adult?

– Can two (or more) things be both overlapping & incompatible?

– There can be many (good) keywords, but there can be only one (correct) password!

– adynaton

– It is quite bright tonight, but where is the moon??

– Pet that tree!

10.8.15

– Dream:
It’s an emergency – I am driving Tauseef (my school classmate who is now a doctor) to the hospital, because he has had a heart-attack. His ?wife is also with us…

– Movies:
“Sex @ 25 frames per second” (Documentary)
Sex & cinema (in the West, especially the U.S.A) – by Playboy

11.8.15

– My birthday!
New Year’s day (Jan. 1) – review & make resolutions for renewal.
Birthdays – celebrate yourself! 🙂 this is no time for self-examination & improvement.
Just lose all inhibitions, & indulge your desires……
Do nothing & sleep, if that’s what you feel like.
Let your loved ones pamper you.

12.8.15

– Went on a shopping binge today (using birthday gifts)!
I surprise myself…

– It is usually better to spend more money and buy a few good (not necessarily the best) quality products, instead of buying many cheap ones.

13.8.15

– I am going to restart my pursuit of the perfect body!

– Intensity is inversely proportional to boredom!
Just increase (both) the extremes…

– The easy yoke – the responsibility to make sure that you stay (truly & fully) free!
Desire – the freedom to say NO, and the freedom to say YES!

– A (brand of) Christianity that annuls the Cross!

– It is negative to consider something neutral as positive. Right?

– “I suspect you would never intend this, but this is what happens. When you attempt to live by…”
– BDSM – dear Lord, NOT everyone is a submissive at heart!
Can we switch the roles (at least for a while), please? 😉

– Readings:
“Back to square one: And God said… ” – Eugene Peterson @ SPU

– Distinguish:
Being realistic
&
Being practical
Being faithful
&
Being reasonable

– omerta

Scribbles

26.7.15

– testy
Ill-humor

– “Never was anything great achieved without danger.” – Niccolo Machiavelli

– The hidden face of GOD
The dark side of the moon

– “Life as literature”
Religion as metaphor

– Has the iPad changed your life?
Not just.
Has the Internet changed your life?
Definitely!

– Saussure – What does Theology have to do with Linguistics??

– I want my life & work to “constitute a critical point of departure” in contemporary (Indian) Christianity!

– Philosophers of being

– Distinguish:
Philology
Linguistics
& Semiotics
Literature –> language –> signs

– Haggai Institute vision:
Present the Gospel, to all peoples, in the power of the Holy Spirit, with cultural relevance.

– Equip people to become more effective witnesses & train other leaders.

– What could be a robust, nuanced & faithful view of evangelism for a Liberal Christian (like me)?

– Corporate training
&
Christian seminars

– “Sharing Christ”

– Chief Learning Officer
Leadership & innovation

– International faculty

– Exponentiation
Influence squared!

– Missionary compounds
Schools, hospitals & churches

– Qualified, dedicated & gathered Christian professionals

– Understanding impact
What is Mission?

– Preaching to the choir – occasional necessity

– Inward transformation

– Influencers

– “Career as carrier of the Gospel”

– Go where there is more darkness, & try being the light there, instead of running to only the bright places!

– Leverage & catalysis
Less effort, more impact – work smart!

– The law of the crowd
Vs.
The power of the few
There is nothing that a small group of committed, passionate & qualified persons can accomplish.

– “The tipping point”
The stickiness factor – the memorability of the educational content
The importance of context

– Statistical probability & strategic planning

– From religious conversion to disciple-making

– Secular conversation in the context of friendly relationship, as the opening for connecting to Christ.

– The 3 kinds of people – connectors (social), mavens (information) & salesmen (charisma & persuasion)

– Becoming a trustworthy source for those close to you…

– Rep, Haggai, RZIM, etc.

– President, vice-president, secretary & treasurer

– Alumni association

– Training camp > leadership seminar

– The natural
Vs.
The conventional

– https://vimeo.com/42870687

– Movies:
“Un Samayal Arayil” (“In Your Kitchen” – Tamil) Okay
Heart ~ kitchen – so, what’s cooking??
I hate the youth in this film!
It could have been a much better movie if it was more focused on the main story.

27.6.15

– Sports NGO

– bullion

– Setbacks, distractions & fatigue

– “Community is a discipline, bro!”

– Watch Animal Planet & NatGeo Wild

– Moving from correspondence to coherence

– A specialist of the interstices!
E.g. Study Philosophy of Religion WITHOUT building a strong base in Philosophy & Religious Studies. Learn the basics of these 2 subjects as needed, in the course of traversing the space between them, or their overlapping area!

– The mysticism of everyday life!

– The Free University of Amsterdam

– Rollicking relaxation!

– “I don’t need a friend who changes when I change, and who nods when I nod;
my shadow does that much better.” (Plutarch)

– A cultural/national identity crisis!

– How ‘productive’ is stability when compared to a revolution?

28.7.15

– President A.P.J. Abdul Kalam (1931 – 2015)
Let us commemorate him every year on October 15th, his birthday!
A life well lived is NOT a tragedy when it comes to an end, because great persons never die…
Jai Hind.

– Why do we celebrate someone’s birthday even after they die??
NOT for all people!

– How could a celibate person be a sexual revolutionary?!

– Did Sachin Tendulkar deserve the Bharat Ratna?
Yes.

– Why did Abdul Kalam contribute to the development of an Indian nuclear weapon??
Is that a blemish on his character cum career?

– What does patriotism have to do with Christianity?

– sputter

– The power of scouting

– “The test of courage comes when we are in the minority. The test of tolerance comes when we are in the majority.” – Ralph W. Sockman, American clergyman (1889-1970)

– Screen capture

– Message boards, threads, online forums

– aver

– Television movies

– Freedom, equality & fraternity
Vs.
Comfort, security & sustainability

– Readings:
“Why Politics Can’t Be Freed From Religion?” – Ivan Strenski (Intro.)

– “Commodified knowledges”

– “Confession, Obedience, and Subjectivity: Michel Foucault’s Unpublished Lectures On the Government of the Living” – Jean-Michel Landry
‘The genealogy of obedience’!

– The disruptive spirit
Vs.
Disciplinary appropriation

– “The political history of truth”

– Isn’t the whole history of religion/Christianity, one long attempt to “regularize, normalize, & disciplinarize” GOD/Christ?

– Distinguish:
Structuralism
&
Foundationalism

– “Only one man ever understood me, and he didn’t understand me” – G. W. F. Hegel

– “There is but one truly serious philosophical problem, and that is suicide” – Albert Camus

– Distinguish:
Atheism
&
Negative theology

– Readings:
“Jeremy Carrette-Foucault and Religion – Spiritual Corporality and Political Spirituality” (Intro.)

– If I am (to call myself) a Christian, then the very meaning of “Christian” or even “religion” needs to be destabilized/subverted!

– “It is hard for me to classify a form of research like my own within (conventional categories)…”

– The Human Sciences

– “Character and Anal Eroticism” – Frued
Orderliness, parsimony and obstinacy
WOW! Sounds familiar…

– Analytical philosophy > binary logic

– corporeality

– The body politic
Sexual politics
Cultural politics

– Radical theatre

– technoculture

– The performative turn

– Technologies of self

– Politics, erotics, ethics and poetics

– Queer – what’s the difference between the T & I in LGBTI?

– Question as critique!

– The incarnation-crucifixion-ascension
&
The spirit/concept-flesh/practice conflict

– Sub-textual concerns

– Performance Studies

– Materialist ethics of care

– Disability and difference

– Autoethnography

– “Polyamory” (reality TV show) – Season 1 – Episode 1
Jealousy, possessiveness, insecurity, dependence, attachment, manipulation, coercion, deception, etc.
NO MORE!

29.7.15

– “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.” – Margaret Mead (American cultural anthropologist & TV personality – 1901-1978)

– http://www.npr.org/2014/04/25/301825600/are-we-asking-too-much-of-our-spouses

– “The Book of Vice”
https://getpocket.com/a/read/207804423

– https://getpocket.com/a/read/996069015

– “Collision” by The David Crowder Band
Awesome!

– Ungodly ~ helpless

– New Age:
Fritjof Capra
Thomas Kuhn
David Spangler

– NRM – New Religious Movements

– “Discovering God: The Origins of the Great Religions and the Evolution of Belief” – Rodney Stark

30.7.15

– Restart learning new hymns (with tune) on fasting days…!

– Hymns:
“Jesus, thy boundless love to me” – And (this) hope does not disappoint, because the love (of God)…
“Ask ye what great thing I know?” – “Who is life in life to me? Who the death of death will be? Jesus Christ, the Crucified!”
I resolved to know nothing while I was with you, except Christianity (the spirit,word & body of Jesus with, in, among and through us) crucified-and-resurrected!
“Lord of all being” – Sovereignty, as the all-sustaining power (without whom nothing can exist), rather than the absolute ruler of all (under whose control all things must submit)!

– Duet (game) – as I repeatedly practice, trying to clear a stage, and fail, do I also realize that each time I attempt to succeed, I am progressing toward victory (irrespective of how far I get in each attempt)?!

– “And so my year’s record is finished. Thanks to all those friends who from time to time have sent their messages of kindly recognition and fellow-feeling. Peace to all such as may have been vexed in spirit by any utterance the pages have repeated. They will doubtless forget for the moment the differences in the hues of truth we look at through our human prisms, and join in singing (inwardly) this hymn to the Source of the light we all need to lead us and the warmth which can make us all brothers.” – Oliver Holmes

– Why did Jesus (or Socrates) not write anything himself??
Now we have only a Matthaian/Markan/Lukan/Johannine version of Jesus (& a Platonic interpretation/portrayal of Socrates)…
Maybe that’s the whole point!  🙂
The autobiographical element (of the author) in all biographies!
GOD never intended to give us the Bible that the fundamentalists (Christian pharisees) wanted.
Even the Jewish pharisees were not as superficial, simplistic & stubborn as these guys today!

– streamlining

– impresario

– Dedicatory preface

– Biblical exegesis to support papal authority…!

– Is biblicism/bibliolatory a (thoroughly) biblical doctrine?

– Popular (millenarian) interpretations

– Age of Aquarius – third millennium

– New Age –> Next Age!

– Can there ever be a totally neutral, & therefore universally authoritative, interpretation??

– Can scholarship also be appreciative, without losing its critical edge?

– Spinozism

– Voltaire & Goethe were contemporaries!
Do you know how to pronounce these names?

– grandiloquent

– tegument

– Eastern Orthodoxy –> Catholicism –> Protestantism –> Liberalism –> Post-modern theology!

– Critical as the opposite of presumptive.

– Distinguish:
Ancient mythology
&
Enlightenment Romanticism

– Biblical tradition and Christian revelation
What does cultural anthropology have to do with biblical theology?
Ecclesiastical politics and historical theology

– The Bible as classical literature & Judaism as an ancient, Middle-Eastern religion

– Institutional interdict

– The Documentary Hypothesis

– Hexateuch

– Historical reconstruction

– The prophetic school

– Deutero-Isaiah

31.7.15

– “Take a chance while you still have the choice. ”
Remember you’re NOT immortal… so live NOW!

– Is there a difference between religiosity & spirituality?

– If I can’t freely be myself with you, then are you really my ‘friend’??
The more we are apart, the more we like each other.
Is this love?

– The celibate, the chaste and the addict
Is there a fourth category?!

1.8.15

– You can’t be the same (idiot) as long as you are with him, and you can’t leave him to live by yourself.
So, you have no choice, but to grow up, & become free! Is this good or bad news??

– Who is Guangzhi (or Chuang Tzu)?
Is or was??

– Nietzsche as psychoanalyst!

– Pilgrimage & veneration as spiritual disciplines

– metastable

– Maybe GOD is (mostly) an introvert!
Passive-aggressive??

– The democratization of (biblical) interpretation, NOT privatization!

– “The mark of an educated mind is to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.”

– “Change nothing, so that everything is different.”

– “The question that plagues my mind: Is grace enough??” – Hopesfall

– “Bury my eyes, Into this life…!” – Luti-kriss

– “Too much (money) ain’t enough (money).”

– “Everybody dies, but not everybody lives.”

– “Everyone is an entrepreneur.”

– “The good person can be happy in doing what he wants, because what he wants is good, not only for others, but also for himself.”

– “In order to come to your senses, you have to go out of your mind.”

– “Who is my neighbor?”

– “Smile, breathe, & go slowly.”

– “It’s a beautiful day, Don’t let it get away!”

– “A lion doesn’t concern himself with the opinions of the sheep”

– “Only by admitting what we are can we get what we want.”

– “Everything has its wonders, even darkness & silence…”

– “Death is the ultimate solitary experience, and the absolute rebuff to our childish beliefs that someone ‘out there’ will save us.”

– “The greatest horror is to die old, with unlived life left in our bodies.”

– “The leader conquers his/her context, the manager adapts to it.”

– Do you have the guts to have your own definition of ‘success’, & the integrity to pursue it?

– It is more important to let GOD find you than to seek him, It is more important to let GOD love you than to please him, It is more important to let GOD serve you than to obey him.

– “I don’t know whether I will ever believe in God, but Jesus is definitely my kind of guy.”

– “It is unreasonable for people who have religious knowledge not to withstand pain.”

– “Attention to experience is the basis of discernment, and therefore of progress in life.”

– “If we allow our lives to pass by without meditation, we will never find that assurance that we think we have.” – Joseph Hall

– “I have benefited greatly from these pages and know that I have learned things that I am not aware of yet.” – Terry Delaney

– “There is no such thing in this universe as a worthless human being.” – David Burns

– “It is only through deep reflection (along with insight & imagination) that we can escape (being bound by) our past. Without this, there can be no genuine vision which answers a call from the future.” – John Ehrenfeld

– “But if we expect something, how can it move us?” – from Duet (mobile game)

– “Never build your emotional life on the weaknesses of others.” – George Santayana

– The purpose of (this) life is (learning) to suffer well!

– “Man’s greatness comes from knowing that he is wretched.” – Blaise Pascal

– “What people call ‘reality’ is merely an effect of either power, or habit.” – Don Cupitt

– “Just because I know better doesn’t mean I can make (things) better.” – Richa Kulkarni

– “People will surprise you – do yourself a favour, let them.” – Richa Kulkarni

– “Try to see the world through your critic’s eyes.” – David Burns

– “The real solution (to inter-personal conflict) is to put an end to your own absurd inner harangue.” – David Burns

– “There are ways to face & deal with your own pain, in a way that is NOT cowardly, & NOT blind to the larger evils in your world.”

– “Ordinary life is full of grief & miracles.”

– “I am rarely looking for anything in particular. I am usually looking for everything in particular.”

– “Inside each book is the hope of a new way of seeing the world; each one is a potential adventure.”

– “Leap over your shadow”

– “Why do you have to go & make things so complicated?
I see the way you’re acting like you’re somebody else,
Makes me frustrated.
Life’s like this – you fall, you crawl, you break, you take what you get & you turn it into honesty. Promise me I’m never gonna find you faking,
No no no!”

– “You better lose yourself in the music – the moment – you own it,
You better never let it go go!
You only get one shot, Do not miss your chance to blow.
This opportunity comes once in a lifetime!”

– “Philosophy is the activity by which a human being participates consciously & critically in reality, & orients him/her-self within it.”

– “What is a nation?”

– Liberated – called out as individuals & gathered together as an alternative community – to enjoy life, confront evil & overcome death!

– “The divine is not a distinct object/person, but the depth-dimension of all things real.”

– “Truth, like gold, is to be obtained, not by growing it, but by washing away from it all that is not gold.”

– “Never trust a GOD over 33”

– “When we say that GOD is sovereign, what we mean is not that nothing happens without GOD’s intention, but that nothing happens that can finally defeat him.”

– Do you wear helmet to protect your head or your wallet?

– memorandum

– From reacting (controlled by the situation & my emotions) by blaming the other for my anger & blowing my top, to responding (with calm deliberateness from my higher self) soberly & firmly by taking responsibility for myself & creatively dealing with the challenge…

– Rooting & jail-breaking
Firmware
Hacking theology?!
Using Samsung Note 1 now ~ pouring new wine into old wineskin!

– Include fiction & poetry in random learning days

2.8.15

– The question is NOT “What the Bible says?”, but “What are WE doing with what the Bible says?”!
Yes, that is what it meant to be a Christian in Jesus’ time, but what does it mean to be a Christian today??
Yes, that is what Jesus said & did there, but what would he say & do here??

– “And thou most kind and gentle death,
Waiting to hush our latest breath,
O praise him! Alleluiah!”

– Yes, He reigns, but does He do it “from above”?

– How many mutual friends do you both have?

– “His breath in my nostrils”

– “O sing to the LORD a new song,
Sing to the LORD all the earth…
Then shall all the trees of the wood shout for joy,
For he comes, for he comes to judge the peoples.”
Earth > peoples!

– How do you keep passion/zeal from becoming lust/violence? If you don’t have this struggle, something is seriously wrong with you!

– Distinguish:
Persecution
&
Preaching
😉

– Scam, spam & scum

– What to believe, & whom to follow?

– Out of the One, many (creation),
And out of the many, One (redemption)!
The Way –> the ways,
& The ways –> the Way

– Relationship with GOD ~ Immersed & oriented in Reality.

– Revelation – interpretation is inescapable!

– Divine encounter –> conversion –> commission

– No transformation, no testimony

– Paul (Gal. 1:17-18) – 3 years in the desert, & 2 weeks with Peter!

– Would I like to be your mentee??
Huh!?

– “Have thine own way, Lord,
Mould me & make me after thy will…”
Eucharist – I take & eat the One who is “waiting yielded & still”, to be digested by me, & thereby to transform my very being!
No assimilation, no metamorphosis – so theologize!

– From soul-winning to Kingdom-seeking!

– The Bible when read alone, without any other theological resources, would still be explosive, if it was released from captivity to the local church & Christian TV interpretation (Evangelical/Charismatic)!
Each individual could still hold the Bible & the newspaper in each hand.
Eliminating all these fucking middle-men (so-called leaders/teachers) who try to domesticate Scripture for their own narrow & outmoded agenda would be enough for church revival!

Movies:
“Waking Life” (Hit!)
WOW… Dream & reality, subjectivity & objectivity, present-future & past-present, corporality & spirituality, mortality & infinity……
“Knots” (okay)
She is trying to liberate them, but they don’t seem to get it… At least they don’t crucify her!

Words

17.7.15

– Cricket – batsmen are not expected to bowl, so why are bowlers expected to bat??

– Two sides of the coin (of Buddhism?):
Negative – life is suffering
Positive – suffering is life!

– The travails of the rich – are they more or less serious than the struggles of the poor?
Spiritual/psychological health are no less important (to being human) than physical/material survival!

– Maybe it is vain/futile to attempt to arrive at an ideal routine that will eliminate both stagnation & chaos…

– Highly civilized monsters!
E.g. The Nazis

– The Trinity – Christian polytheism

– GOD > theism/monotheism

– To the child, everything is simple. To the expert, everything is complex.
To the young, everything is wonderful. To the old, everything is boring.

– Short-term freedom & long-term slavery
Vs.
Short-term slavery & long-term freedom
Short-term freedom & long-term freedom
Vs.
Short-term slavery & long-term slavery
What I am trying to say is, not all things that make you feel free now are ultimately enslaving & not all things that make you feel bound now are ultimately liberating!

– Wisdom as anti-knowledge & super-knowledge!
Wisdom as first-hand knowledge

– Is an Internet connection essential for spiritual growth, or is it the greatest hindrance to it?

– The freedom to restrain
&
The discipline to perform
The tyranny of desire!

– Study less, learn more!

– Is there bliss that lies on the other side of ignorance?
Can knowledge & innocence go together?

– Achieving more, by doing less.

– There is a (small) part of me that is wholly in agreement with my worst critics!

– Please describe to me the world that you inhabit.
Can I try living in it for a while?
What is it like to be you?

– “Nothing can satisfy me” is a more godly statement than “I am easily satisfied”!
Distinguish:
Satisfaction & Contentment
Livelihood & lifestyle
A grand simplicity & a simple grandeur

– Sometimes, the only way to reach your goal is by moving in the opposite direction!

– If I go to sleep tonight, & don’t wake up tomorrow morning, I would be happy!
Does that mean I am not fully alive (yet)?

– If less (up to a certain extent) is more, then is more (beyond a certain extent) also less?

– Wretched are the poor in spirit, for they shall never know their real abjection!

– The Humanities
Vs.
The Spiritualities

– Shopping apps for women
Porn apps for men
Gaming apps for kids
Social apps for the elderly

– To the great(est?) Indian newspaper (The Hindu):
“SHAME :-
Stop printing & publishing full front-page advertisements, you fools!”

– What is the opposite of ‘shine’??

– Work – cultivate (the world), create (value) & serve (society)

– All genuine ministry is team-work!

– “The old saying ‘Don’t just think/talk, DO something!’ is one of the most stupid things one can say, even measured by the low standards of common sense.”
A defence of Philosophy must in turn be philosophical!
The necessity of contemplation, for development… What is the use of moving fast, when you are moving in the wrong direction? Conversely, what is the point of knowing the right direction, if you’re not gonna move in it?

– virtuosi

– Distinguish:
Stipulations
&
Speculations

– Personality-type & life-philosophy

– “Erroneous zones”  😉

– Maladaptive emotions
Orthopathy – the proper response to gross injustice &/or violence is ANGER!
Moral emotions

– It is better to be magnanimous than to be ‘non-judgmental’!

– I have become more mature now, but I still find it almost impossible to not blow up when someone (especially close family) needles me!

– Schmuck
Yiddish
yarmulke

– Is studying Spirituality helping you live (more) spiritually??

18.7.15

– How can something “feel right, or feel good”??
It can only feel nice!
And you can only believe something is good or think something is right.

– Dream:
I (along with Salome) am watching a home video of Kiruba, Vinolia, Manoharan mama, Prema atthai & fly. in the U.S…

– Even on random learning days, stick (close) to your core areas.

– Get good content-curation apps to get the best out of the Net, tailored to your interests!

19.7.15

– GOD – can the same person be both your king & your friend?

– The only way for us to recognize the sovereignty of GOD (or seek his Kingdom), is by fully establishing human freedom (& universal welfare) on this planet!

– Infantile religion & the glorification of childishness…
My GOD
Vs.
My problems

– Psalm 104:3-4 – divine inspiration for technological breakthroughs?!

– “Lord, please continue to speak to us even through this act of giving toward the ministry.”

– The vocation of being human (individual) as an eternal (divine) responsibility!

– Christ:
You know who I am ~ you believe in me

– The paradoxical demonization & idolatry of the flesh (safety, comfort & pleasure), by the contemporary church!

– Spiritual power as the ability to refuse to bend the knee before brute force/violent authorities!

– No learnING, no knowledge

– To be good is to value truth supremely, and (therefore) live beautifully.

– The Father ~ the Good

– “Howcome you are breaking this rule?”
“I am just doing, what the man who healed me, told me to do!”

– Law > rule(s)

– Can you wholeheartedly accept whatever has been given to you (the power, work, words, people, name), & do your very best (under GOD) with it?

– The Heaven under the earth!

– What does ministry (spiritual work) have to do with money (financial resources)?

– “The Devil is in the detail”
“GOD is in the detail”

– If Jesus of Nazareth was (IS) the greatest scandal, then how can “not being a stumbling block to anyone” be a central Christian ethic?!

– Movies:
“American Sniper” (super!)
Compare with “Hurt Locker”
The relational strain caused by divergence of basic values – I can identify with that!
Higher cause (Chris) vs. Family (wife) vs. Self-preservation (the younger brother)
Isn’t this the story of (almost) every couple, & even the battle within each individual – Anima vs. Animus?
A sheep-dog loves other sheep-dogs even more than all the sheep! What’s so great about loving one’s own clan/herd – nothing more than animal instinct??

“Avengers: Age of Ultron” (flop)
A post-human future!?
Is GOD more like Ultron or Vision?
Does Jesus’ resurrection show that Man is immortal?
Wit + will + team-work makes anything possible, because of Grace (the benevolent Sovereign)!
The Cross (crucifixion as glorification) – is there a fine line between salvation & extinction??

20.7.15

– Dream:
I am stranded on a highway, & struggling to catch a bus to Theni…

– Facebook – I friend those who send me request, but I follow no one!
Actually, I joined to just share my blog posts to a wider audience…  😉

– No spiritual warfare, without physical discipline & cultural criticism!

– Marital self-counseling:
1. You must look at each other primarily as individuals, before you see the other as ‘my spouse’.
2. Whenever anyone asks something sensitive, or comments critically about one, refer them directly to the other, & refuse to answer for them.
3. Promise that you will always love the other, & you value the relationship very highly. So the other doesn’t have to feel insecure & anxious about the status of the partnership.

– On Sundays, send to my inner circle:
“Have a super Sabbath, folks!”

– People are naturally sexy, they become prudish only when immersed in a moralistic culture!

– Which is more important:
Biblical or secular study?
Study or journaling?
Corporate worship or private prayer?
Physical exercise or socializing?
All (usually) equally important!?

21.7.15

– It is truly awesome that such great stuff is offered free, & also shocking that so few avail of them! Just like the Gospel……

– Do you have an alternate (private/secret) cyber-avatar?
I do!

– “New England oppression of dissenters embarrassed Congregationalists before their brethren in England, who were themselves oppressed by the established Church of England…”
Oooh!

– Religious identity and economic dynamics

– Check out the “50 Shades of Grey” collection @ 500px ISO!  😉

– Theory, from the Greek theoria, which means “a viewing” or “spectacle”

– Duet is also a brain-game, although it is not explicitly labeled so!
The (artificial and simplistic) dichotomy between all entertainment and education must be destroyed, but without completely losing the useful distinguishing features of either category…

– Primary, secondary, tertiary, quaternary texts

– I must not separately blog/post (the link for) any article I have not read fully.
I can just put the link along with my other journal entries (within one blog post)…

– Reverse fantasy

– My anger is definitely disproportionately greater than what the provocation warrants…

– The home as a gymnasium!

– Can anyone guess how much pain lies behind this “cute-couple photo”??

22.7.15

– Don’t hate pain.
Don’t fear pain.
Pain is bad, there is nothing good in it as such, but there is great value in learning to mature, by enduring it!

– How good a Christian can you be, without any understanding of Judaism?

– Distinguish:
Chronological age
&
Psychological maturity
When an adult and a child are in an intimate relationship, the adult is responsible to help the child (slowly) become fully adult.
But meanwhile, the adult must learn to be a parent!
This transition will (always!) require the input of a third-party.

– Starvation –> cannibalism!
Maintaining humanity under brutal conditions requires supernatural/divine power…

– GOD vs. The temple!

– Annual feasts – the Sabbath as the weekly festival!

– “The virgin daughter of Zion, in the winepress of the LORD”!
“Her foes have become her masters”  😦

– Nakedness:
Impudence (private seduction) –> judgment (public stripping) –> shame (social & psychological distress)!

– Readings:
“Theory for Religious Studies” – Timothy Beal et al (Intro. & Chapter 1)
WOW!

– Sins of the leaders –> suffering of the masses –> downfall of the nation

– Lamentations 3:21,24; 5:21-22

– “GOD’s appeal for Judah’s forgiveness”
Huh??!

– My misery is ultimately due to my own sin, therefore the way out of despair always goes through repentance!

– Linking biblical interpretation & church history

– The palace, the cathedral & the university, all swallowed up by the MARKET!  ;-(

– glosses
reader

Distinguish:
Compilation
&
Digest

– brazen (v.)

– Compare & contrast:
“Sentences” (Peter Lombard)
&
“Pensees” (Blaise Pascal)

– Topical (biblical) commentaries –> systematic theology!

– Relating Philosophy & Philology in biblical theology!
Cultural history & literature

– Transitional figures, works & events

– From Reformation biblical criticism to Evangelical biblicism – how?!
Protestant rationalism & pragmatism, Catholic pietism & Evangelical fideism
Scientific (linguistic – original language study) literary criticism (not rabid fundamentalism) –> challenging church authority!

– The proper response to rationalism is romanticism, not fundamentalism!

– Critical editions of interlinear texts

– The custodians of purity – conservation of tradition

– Christian kabbalists!
Spiritual synthesis

– Why & how did immersion in classical literature produce a humanistic culture?

– There are continuities even in radical revolutions!

– Catholics – love
Protestant Evangelicals – faith
Protestant Liberals – hope
Orthodox – joy
Eastern religions – peace

– Christian communities and their respective scriptural canons

– Tensions:
Old Testament & New Testament
Scripture & Church
Israel & Kingdom
Faith & Reason

– John Calvin was a lawyer!

– Privacy, decency & reputation

– What do you gain, & what do you lose, by submitting completely to the authority of a great spiritual master?

– How strong is your will?
How large is your heart?
How sharp is your mind?
How fine is your body?

23.7.15

– What does death have to do with humour??

– Dream:
I am jogging, & the crocodile from the nearby marsh jumps out & starts to chase me…!

– Stop beating around the bush, &……?

– Blogging: When posting videos, use YouTube, & then add a link on WordPress.

– “At the ultimate point, beyond which you can go no further,
You get to where there are no rules, no standards,
To where thought can accept Impartiality,
To where effect of action ceases,
Doubt is washed away, belief has no obstacle.”
— Seng-tsan

– “With all thy soul fear the Lord, and reverence his priests.”
— Ecclesiasticus 7: 31

– “From Brahma to a blade of grass all things are my Gurus.”
— Kaula Tantric Precept

– Household chores for spiritual growth?!

– What does it mean to be “poor in spirit”?

Click to access I_Say_Unto_You_Volume1.pdf

– scatterbrain

– Windows 8 – search works (better) when indexing is disabled!

– I must overcome the compulsion to keep downloading unlimited resources, if I am to find the time to actually read anything substantial!

– What does Freud/psychoanalysis/illusion have to do with Marxism/ideology??

– Theory – critical, cultural and literary

– When feasting, don’t diet.
When relaxing, don’t be careful.

– “Head over to 500px Prime and get creative with your search terms”…
And add to your lightbox!

– “Daybreak: Thoughts on the Prejudices of Morality”

–  “… his unpublished notes are extraordinary in both volume and interest, and indispensable to a full understanding of his life & work.”

24.7.15

– “Charm offensive”
Soft power

– “Political economy originated in moral philosophy”!

– mock-serious

– Gag order

– Technological, political, economic, religious (versions of) utopia
Heavenly visions, or recipes for disaster??

– deadbeat
self-starter

– whizzbangery

– How much of your thoughts, or for that matter your motor movements, are under your conscious control??

– The human, falling to being sub-human, in the attempt to become super-human!

– “Incisive lucidity” & “astounding brevity”

– Over-interpretation –> under-appreciation

– Our capacity for vicarious experience is truly astounding!
How can we make the most of it in our desire to fully realize our humanity?

– Walking the emotional (& relational) tight-walk! Be nimble.

– “There is no such thing as information overload. There is only filter failure.’’ – Clay Shirkey (Internet scholar)

– Christian suicide-squad!

– Do you wear helmet to protect your brain or your wallet??

– Insurance ~ assurance
Your tendency to monetize absolutely everything, including physical health, is very very dangerous!

– “Tetelestai!”
Amen.

– Y:
Pope Francis is essential following for any Christian today (on Twitter)! 👍
We must beware of letting our emphasis on Grace, making us insensitive to (our drive to discern & resist) evil in all its diverse & subtle forms!
Moving from moralism to ethicality ☝
@X: How & why did we first end up working here?? (refer the posted image “Apolitical spirituality”)
I think we should first be Kingdom-seekers, only then can we even consider becoming soul-winners!
Is spending (more than) 80% of one’s time & energy, just to earn money, to meet the (not-so-basic) needs of oneself & one’s family, to have a respectable social position, to gain self-worth by fitting into an impersonal labour market, “effective witness”??
Evangelism today is NOT about rescuing immortal souls from the fires of an eternal Hell, it is about converting bond-slaves of the mechanical World into free children of the Kingdom of the human GOD!
HALLELUJAH 🙏
@Z: Yes, my Saviour LIVES & Christ is ENOUGH, therefore I am FREE – I don’t have to capitulate to the pressures of the MARKETPLACE, by selling my soul to save my skin!
X:
@Y: question ketkurathu romba easy bro 😉 Answer panrathu thaan romba kastam.
Also not an easy topic to discuss over texting.  Will talk in person.
Y:
Doing work that contributes to the eternal Kingdom, by integrating one’s faith & job is the only way to witness to THIS (crucified & resurrected) Messiah!
Everything else is just hypocritical sham
Aah… There is a time for discussion, & then there is also a time for DECISION!
X:
Mahane… nee over ah question ketkura… over ah question keeta … nee maatum than group la irrupa at last  😜🔫
Y:
I believe it is possible, & some people are called, to be “witnesses” (MARTYRS!), in the corridors of wealth & fame (corporate, government, business, etc.), but the crucial question is, “Is that for ME??”
Yes I am here now, but HOW & WHY did I end up doing this?? It is NOT enough to just to ask how I can make the most of what I already have – the enemy of the best is the good.
Q:
“Potu thaaku. Bathil SOLLRA KELVI ILLA IDHU. Valzkai la dhan Bathil solanumla. Vittittu varanumla nets boatu ellam. Kingdom kulla enga nuzhaiyradhu. Paaka kooda mudiyaadhu Illa….enaane theriyaama disciple nu solikraaanunga. Gnaayitru kilame naduvla oru naal God s time…. Rest of.time is self time slaving under Egypt s Pharoah working for his pyramid projects…. Ha ha ha ha earning 2 3 lakhs… Then saying we are born again also. Where is the Kingdom ferment which gets up each morning for a whole day every day to the seeking of THY KINGDOM COME? ?? ?????”
Y:
“Mahane… nee over ah question ketkura… over ah question keeta … nee maatum than group la irrupa at last  😜🔫”
– Idha engayo kaettamaadhiri irukkae!??
The ancient Christians were persecuted & martyred, NOT because they were “trying their level best” to be “effective witnesses & win souls” from within the given (taken for granted, unquestionable) context of the Roman Empire, but because they challenged the very legitimacy & authority of that Power!
What are the Principalities that we are Called to fearlessly challenge today?? ROME is long dead……
What would Jesus plunder – today? Here? Now? In me? Among us?????
All these great, seemingly immutable/eternal, structures & systems we see around (& within) us are ultimately doomed, damned, f***ed!
AMEN. ✋
PEACE to all who jump off the ship of fools!
SHALOM ✌
@Z: The Christian GOD is non-violent, but he is NOT a pacifist!
The LORD of hosts – the original Jihadist 👊
The Lamb is at war – let all the superpowers beware!
And let all the peoples of the earth rejoice!

– Idolatry, illusion & ideology

– Attended Chennai International Queer Film Festival today.
WOW! What an inspiring experience 🙂

– Movies:
Nachtelle (Bright Night – German)
Psychoanalysis + sexuality + love – a heady mix indeed!
Recollection, repetition & resolution
Knowing the self, by embracing the Other!
Last scene – the old is passing away, & the new is coming to pass – can you take it?

25.7.15

– Studied silence

– YouTube personality

– Shipwreck dives

– GOD, I thank you for my privilege to live in this great city of Chennai (in spite of its many shortcomings)!
So many cultural & spiritual festivals, & that too for free…

– I prefer “GOD” to Lord!
I am a devotee, not a slave.

– “Love the life you live. Live the life you love.” – Bob Marley

– Is your moral existence going with, or against, the (metaphysical) grain of the universe (the character of GOD)?
“…the long arc that bends toward justice” (Martin Luther King Jr.)!

– “I was raw.
I matured.
Now I burn.”
Lust + discipline = passion!
Whoever said ageing is cooling down??

– I love Nietzsche!