Sádé Budhlall
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LITERARY & VISUAL ARTIST
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- May 09, 12
What is the Philosophy of the mind? Are our mental processes, cognitive functioning, reasoning, mental properties, mental events and overall consciousness in any relation to the brain? or is the brain and the mind two separate entities?Artist~ Marina Petro, Saratoga Springs, NY USA
Think about free-will and the self. Humanistic theorists believe that identity consists of three parts: I, me and You. Psychoanalyst Sigmund Freud, presented to the world his famous theory of the Id, Ego and Super Ego, indirectly suggesting that not only the brain and the mind are separate in their functioning, but the mind consists of multiple thresholds.
From a spiritual perspective, many people are likely to feel that the mind is to the brain as soul is to the body. Like the soul, we cannot measure the mind, nor can we see it, therefore, suggesting that they are in fact abstracted from one another is a difficult theory to prove. Geneticist Francis Crick in his book, "The Astonishing Hypothesis" addressed human consciousness and allotted human behavior and emotions to atoms, molecules, ions, nerve cells, neurons and glial cells in the brain. He has stated that the mind is indeed the brain causing much controversy with his biological approach: "You, your joys and your sorrows, your memories and your ambitions, your sense of personal identity and free will, are in fact no more than the behaviour of a vast assembly of nerve cells and their associated molecules".
What do you think? Unlike Epiphenomenalism, the Dual Aspect Theory which suggests that the brain is like a coin- with two sides (Roger Sperry) seems to be a lot more efficacious. Sperry states that one side of the brain is responsible for biological functioning/ physical reactions, and the other is responsible for our cognitive functions.
Science has very little or no place to accommodate metaphysical consciousness and metaphysical awareness in its principles simply because, there is no standardized test, formulated lab, technological device to prove that such things exist. The question however, that is proposed to everyone, is the question which asks us, "Why does scientific proof get to define truth, if some truth is incapable of being scientifically understood?"
Take the following:
An Atheist Professor of Philosophy was speaking to his Class on the problem Science has with God, the Almighty. He asked one of his new Christian students to stand.
Professor: You are a Christian, aren't you, son?
Student: Yes, sir.
Professor: So, you believe in God?
Student: Absolutely, sir.
Professor: Is God good?
Student: Sure.
Professor: My brother died of cancer, even though he prayed to God to heal him. Most of us would attempt to help others who are ill. But God didn't. How is God good, then? Hmm?
(Student was silent)
Professor: You can't answer, can you? Let's start again, young fella. Is God good?
Student: Yes.
Professor: Is Satan good?
Student: No.
Professor: Where does Satan come from?
Student: From.. God.
Professor: That's right. Tell me son, is there evil in this world?
Student: Yes.
Professor: Evil is everywhere, isn't it? And God did make everything. Correct?
Student: Yes.
Professor: So who created evil?
(Student didn't answer)
Professor: Is there sickness? Immortality? Hatred? Ugliness? All these terrible things exist in the world, don't they?
Student: Yes, sir.
Professor: So, who created them?
(Student had no answer)
Professor: Science says you have 5 senses you use to identify and observe the world around you. Tell me, son.. have you ever seen God?
Student: No, sir.
Professor: Tell us if you have ever heard your God.
Student: No, sir.
Professor: Have you ever felt your God, tasted your God, smelt your God? Have you ever had any sensory perception of God, for that matter?
Student: No, sir. I'm afraid I haven't.
Professor: Yet you still believe in Him?
Student: Yes.
Professor: According to empirical, testable, demonstrable protocol, Science says your God doesn't exist. What do you say to that, son?
Student: Nothing. I only have my Faith.
Professor: Yes, Faith. And that is the problem Science has.
Student: Professor, is there such a thing as Heat?
Professor: Yes.
Student: And is there such a thing as Cold?
Professor: Yes.
Student: No, sir, there isn't.
(The Lecture Theater became very quiet with this turn of events)
Student: Sir, you can have lots of heat, even more heat, superheat, mega heat, white heat, a little heat or no heat. But we don't have anything called cold. We can hit 458 Degrees below Zero which is no heat, but we can't go any further after that. There is no such thing as cold. Cold is only a word we use to describe the absence of Heat. We cannot measure cold. Heat is energy. Cold is not the opposite of heat, sir, just the absence of it.
(There was a pon-drop silence in the Lecture Theatre)
Student: What about darkness, Professor? Is there such a thing as darkness?
Professor: Yes. What is night if there isn't darkness?
Student: You're wrong again, sir. Darkness is the absence of something. You can have Low Light, Normal Light, Bright Light, Flashing Light... But if you have No Light constantly, you have nothing and it's called Darkness, isn't it? In reality, darkness isn't. If it is, You would be able to make darkness darker, wouldn't you?
Professor: So what is the point you are making, young man?
Student: Sir, my point is, your Philosophical Premise is flawed.
Professor: Flawed? Can you explain how?
Student: Sir, you are working on the Premise of Duality. You argue there is Life and then there is Death, a good God and a bad God. You are viewing the concept of God as something finite, something we can measure. Sir, Science can't even explain a thought. It uses electricity and magnetism, but has never seen, much less fully understood either one. To view death as the opposite of life is to be ignorant of the fact that death cannot exist as a substantive thing. Death is not the opposite of life, just the absence of it. Now tell me, Professor, do you teach your students that they evolved from a monkey?
Professor: If you are referring to the Natural Evolutionary Process, yes of course, I do.
Student: Have you ever observed Evolution with your own eyes, sir?
(The professor shook his head with a smile, beginning to realize where the argument was going)
Student: Since no one has ever observed the Process of Evolution at work and cannot even prove that this process is an on-going endeavor, are you not teaching your opinion, sir? Are you not a Scientist but a Preacher?
(The class was in uproar)
Student: Is there anyone in the class who has ever seen the Professor's brain?
(The class broke out into laughter)
Student: Is there anyone here who has ever heard the Professor's brain, felt it, touched or smelt it? .. No one appears to have done so. So, according to the established Rules of Empirical, Stable and Demonstrable Protocol, Science says that you have no brain, sir. With all due respect, sir, how do we then trust your lectures?
(The room was silent. The Professor stared at the student, his face unfathomable)
Professor: I guess you'll have to take them on Faith, son.
Student: That is it, sir.. exactly! The link between man and God is Faith. That is all that keeps things alive and moving!
That student was Albert Einstein.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean Writer, Blogger, HSP Clairsentient and Visual Artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - May 04, 12
"When I'm trusting and being myself... everything in my life reflects this by falling into place easily, often miraculously." -Shakti GawainPainting: Fine Art Gallery
Creative Visualization is the art of attracting self fulfillment and success through mind power. My life is generally filled with synchronicity and it is through powerful thought process that we can transform our dreams into universal manifestations using this mental technique that attracts power, love, prosperity and overall achievement.
The task in Creative Visualization, is doing it right. Think for a moment about tricking the mind. How is it possible to alter your mind with fiction when your mind, in fact, knows the truth? Creative Visualization is ultimate mind control. To master your mind, is to become super human!
Creative Visualization is like day dreaming. Vividly placing a mental picture of something you'd like to achieve, in your head. Focusing on that specific thing- a car, home, job, perhaps love- and attracting its manifestation into your life. There are many people who do this without being aware that they are, and there are many successful people who practice it, attracting happiness and accomplishments into their lives by visualizing goals that they have already accomplished. It's like a personal "magic genie!"
How does Creative Visualization work?
Your thoughts are endowed with great power. Your thoughts are the fundamental tool that molds your life through your decisions. If your thoughts are powerful enough to imprint into your subconscious, it changes your mindset causing you to unconsciously act in particular ways to actually make your dreams come true. In other words, it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. By changing the way we think and our schema, we change our reality.
Change your reality.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - May 03, 12
Painting by Rachel Peterson
The answers to our questions always lie inward because the soul is pure and crafted in perfection. In detachment from body consciousness you arrive at the very source of your natural being. It is only in that state that you are able to fully evaluate the troubled ego and begin to make amends.
I tend to stay away from discussing heavy psychical subjects on my blog, but if you have any questions concerning the subject, particularly relating to you on a personal level contact me via twitter @sadegabrielle and let your spirit be at peace. - Apr 25, 12
There has never been a doubt in my mind that everything happens for a reason. Life has a way of distorting it's reality from time to time and in the depths of our despair it is relatively easy to become pessimistic and doubtful; To over analyze and evaluate every negative possibility of our present situation. The irony of the matter is, sometimes our very own obstacles and mistakes are our crowns of glory. For it is through defeating tedious and tumultuous obstacles one is able to become a victor. If the task is simple, how can we find grandeur in our accomplishments? Our accomplishments will mean nothing. The harder the trials we overcome, the higher the significance of our successes. Life is about manipulating our obstacles and using them at our own advantage. It's not about the cards we are dealt. It's about how we play the game. ^_~
- Apr 22, 12
For centuries man has fought to come up with countless numbers of ways to survive and meet his basic needs. After billions of years of evolution, the modern day man still cannot shake the undeniable truth that primitive behavior is rooted into the core of his very being. The act of "abnormal" behavior is not inclusive and does not discriminate against any one person. As a matter of fact, the only question concerning man's unconscious desires and his liability to engage in what society calls "primitive", "inhumane" or "anti-social" behavior is the varying determining factors that is attributed to each human being.
In spite of our rooted instinctual, carnal and violent nature as homo sapiens, human beings are born with the ability to reason and think logically because of the brain. For many years we have sought religion, philosophy and science as well as doctrines, conventions and collective belief systems to somewhat guide us into the confines of what we consider to be or what we are told to be a normal functioning society. In the process of doing so, however, men have used their religious, social, political and philosophical beliefs to structure and re form society creating narrow boarders and tall walls, obscuring the lines between freedom and oppression. There clearly needs to be a new foundation of a new age of philosophy without stripping away the sentimental and deeply rooted beliefs systems from mankind. Or is it, that those belief systems are what have caused the moral destruction of many social systems today? Something to think about.
Several ancient Asian religions believe that time, space and matter are the foundations of a life lived with faith, love and for the good of mankind. Western Science can carry us to the depths of the beginnings of human civilization, creating theories that these ancient doctrines have already shown. In other words, science can only carry us so far. Science and philosophy is useless if they cannot bring about positive revolution.
The exigent drive to attaining perfection and acceptance is contained deep into the nature of man, however, in spite of the spectrum of belief systems and scientific approaches, self-actualization is only attainable through tolerance, peace and love; Ironically, from which the savage, primitive man was born.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12I have developed a theory called the "Collective-Denial" theory (or so to speak). It states that every human being, form various biased but partially true perceptions on others based on ethnicity, socio-economic class, sexuality and religion, which help us explain and predict the behavior of others. However, in fear of persecution and embarrassment, we deny that such perceptions exist.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12
In one of my earlier blog entries, I cited a House for Mr Biswas as one of the oldest, most tattered books on my bookshelf. In addition to that statement I am putting forward, "A Night to Remember" by Walter Lord. It belonged to my dad and is almost 59 years old.
My father, who is a sea man and deep sea diver, had a diverse collection of books with genres ranging from Philosophy, Documentary, History, Oceanology and Religion. A Night to Remember was one of them and as an only child I spent most of my days finding and salvaging old books and reading them. I was eight when I read Walter Lord's documentary of the last hours of the passengers on the ill fated ship Titanic. I was so fascinated, engrossed and captivated by the ship, that I experienced countless of sleepless nights as I envisioned in great detail, what it must have been like to be aboard on that ship. I had also inherited my father's love for the sea and pleaded with him, on many occasions to "find" the Titanic on his deep sea adventures and bring me two things: A mermaid, and treasures from Titanic's grave site. Such requests were compensated with other artifacts found on other sunken ships during his expeditions. Among them, some miniature, rusted oxygen tanks found in a sunken hospital ship, some sea weed and plants, hand mirrors, hair brushes, and other oceanic treasures.My fascination with Titanic led me to learn of the ship's structure, classes, events and passengers by the age of twelve. By that time, I was able to describe the happenings of Titanic from the start of her voyage to not only when her stern was plunged below sea surface at 2:20 am, but when the bow hit the sea floor at 13 mph at 2:29 and when her stern hit the ocean floor at 2:59 at 4 mph. I had also become fascinated with her sister ships, the RMS Olympic and HMHS Britanic, the ship RMS Carpathia who came to the rescue of passengers and the nearby ship, SS Californian who took their radios off for the night, and who could have possibly helped the doomed Titanic in her last hours. I've spent many months digging up every article of research and archive that I could have possible gotten my hands on. Of course living in a developing country where institutions have very little to zero interest in / resources on the subject creates many limitations, however, I have always researched as far as technology, available resources and my comprehensive abilities were willing to take me.My knowledge of these events are largely to attributed to Walter Lord's book, which is beautifully written, precise and well structured. In my honest opinion, A Night to Remember gave the real, raw and true account of the Titanic in ways James Cameron couldn't . Don't get me wrong, I appreciate Cameron's genius and I am huge fan of him particularly of his deep sea explorations and great contributions to the study of Oceanology and the Titanic through his explorations on which he has invested great amount of his time, effort, passion and money. With the exception of his remarkable film making skills for the sinking of the Titanic (on which I have done countless number of research and watched a number of documentaries) I was not a fan of the movie's love theme. It even upsets me that so-called "Titanic fans" have become suddenly interested in the Titanic because it was placed on Hollywood's platform.Anyone who is a true Titanic fan (meaning the ship) and anyone who has ever been interested in the subject must contend with sideways glances from people who assume your curiosity was piqued by Kate Winslet gazing at Leonardo DiCaprio with her big doe eyes. Besides, it was Cameron himself who once said "This movie is a fictitious love story, not a Titanic documentary". As a matter of fact, true fans of the Titanic are the people who have seen and are in a favor of Roy Baker's 1958 film adaptation of Walter Lord's "A Night to Remember" as it is the only film that gives an accurate account of the events of the Titanic and remains praised as the definitive Titanic movie for it's historical, factual and social realism. This is not to say that Cameron's Titanic was entirely irredeemable. Indeed, there are many parts of the film where you can feel Cameron's great historical knowledge, but set the movie aside. As a Titanic fanatic, I can confidently advise that you really only need three books to understand the subject: Robert Ballard's The Discovery of the Titanic; Don Lynch and Ken Marschall's Titanic: An Illustrated History; and the greatest of them all, Walter Lord's A Night To Remember.Lord interviewed many of the survivors, crew members and relatives of survivors. He studied the Titanic's blueprints, builder's specifications and cargo manifests and also reviewed much of the testimony given at investigations undertaken in London and Washington. What I liked best about this book is Lord's critical analysis of how class structure in the early 20th century played a part in every aspect of society and in the end determined who would live and die on Titanic."And it was the end of the class distinction in filling the boats. The White Star Line always denied anything of the kind - and the investigators back them up- yet there's overwhelming evidence that the steerage took a beating:....""...The statistics suggest who they were-the Titanic's casualty list included 4 of 143 First Class Women (three by choice)...15 of 95 Second Class Women... and 81 of 179 Third Class Women....only 23 out of 76 steerage children were saved...."And how the tragedy of Titanic would have changed the world :"Overriding everything else, the Titanic also marked the end of a general feeling of confidence. Until then men felt they had found the answer to a steady, orderly, civilized life....For 100 years technology had steadily improved.....The Titanic woke them up. Never again would they be quite so sure of themselves....Here was the "unsinkable ship" - perhaps man's greatest engineering achievement - going down the first time it sailed."Titanic was the ship of dreams. She most certainly is in my dreams. Perhaps one day through a miracle she will be my reality.My copy of Walter Lord's book. More than 50 years old. - Apr 22, 12
Do you know what causes the most conflicts in our personal and social lives? our egos. Our egos are our own worst enemies that dwell inside of us while suffering from Attention Deficit Syndrome. Picture any scenario that involves a feud with a loved one or friend. What is the first thing we say?
"You make me mad", "You don't listen", "You drive me crazy" You, you. you!"
Do they really?
Re-think that again.
I've frequently heard this sentence many times in my life from many people : "I don't understand my (boyfriend, girlfriend, wife, child...) he/she does not and will not listen to me."
Me: "You don't understand him because he wont listen to you?"
Person: "That's what I said..."
Me: (long pause....) "Ohh...ok....but, I thought that if you wanted to understand someone, you have to listen to them?"
(Long pause)
The truth of the matter is, no one gets you upset. You choose to be upset. No one gets you angry, you choose to be angry. I want you to sit down, right now, and get angry for no reason. Go ahead try it. Are you angry yet? No? Ok, now I want you to sit quietly and become peaceful. It's a breeze isn't it? That's because peacefulness is our natural state of being and anger is a vice that is unnatural. Anger does not belong in the body. When people tell you "It's normal to be angry" guess what? it's not. It is not because as a vice, anger belongs to the element of body consciousness. When you are body conscious the ego is in control. When the ego is in control the ego must be fed;- "I want this", "I want acceptance", "I want to be acknowledged", "I want to be loved", "I must take revenge", "I must have this right now". The root of all vices and addictions lie within the ego. The soul conscious human being, however, is content. The soul is. The soul needs nothing. It is eternal. It is perfection. It is vice-free. It does not require or need the love of another. It is self-loving and self-nurturing, so that it can nurture others. Soul conscious people are those who love unconditionally. Without condition. Body consciousnesses involves the ego and thus, "loves" with condition; "I will love you if.....", "I will forgive you if......", "I will like you if you......"
What exactly is the ego? and how do we identify it?
The ego is the voice in our head that tells us "I am hurt, I am hungry, I need this and I want that" The ego always wants to be noticed and defended. And in addition to that, the ego involves vanity and superficial, materialistic and profane pleasures. People who are self-centered, vain and materialistically centered cannot be soul conscious at the same time. Soul consciousness involves complete humility and unconditional acceptance of self and the people around us. Is it possible to be 100% soul conscious? No. Only the likes of Gandhi and Mother Theresa have perhaps achieved that state of purity. And of course Christ himself. The human body cannot maintain pure soul consciousness because the soul lives in the body. And while it dwells there there, body consciousness is vital for human survival. However, soul consciousness can be temporarily achieved by going within your self and identifying as "soul". That process is called meditation. The threshold in which you remain as a soul conscious being can be lengthened over a period of time with deep meditation and inner reflection. However, as soon as you return to this physical world, you become body conscious once again, and so it is important that we take the time to revisit that place within ourselves from time to time.
How does the ego affect our day to day lives? When faced with conflicts, our egos are immediately hurt depending on our centers and conscious or subconscious insecurities. For example, Tom does not make Jane angry when he comes home late from work. Jane chooses to become angry because her ego has the strong need for security as she is emotionally centered. The ego is the voice in our head that paranoids us with pessimistic possibilities. The ego and intuition are two different elements. The ego defends self. Intuition protects self. So what does Jane do? She defends her ego instead of defending/ protecting their relationship. They fight.
How many times do we do this? Honestly. Everyday. It is a quick process that acts as a reflex because we have been conditioned to blame others for the way we feel. When you realize that you have the ultimate power and control over your emotions you will start to notice that the mishaps in life do not faze you as it used to. You will assume control and responsibility for your actions. You will love unconditionally and find yourself in healthier, long lasting, equally rewarding relationships. You will generally be a happier, healthier person. How does the man who has lost everything, still have the ability to smile? Because he no longer values what the average, body conscious human being values.
Remember that you do not have a soul. You are a soul. You just have a body to live in for the time being.
Om Shanti.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12
It's amusing to see people crazed over beliefs of the existence of the Illuminati and its links to masonic bodies and organizations. Pop culture seems to be the pertinent fire in fueling those arguments and has sadly done nothing but increase the propaganda with celebrities using alleged masonic and Illuminati symbols suggesting that they are a part of masonic, Illuminati and "devil" cults in order to gain more popularity.
The Illuminati's existence is no realer than the tooth fairy and it is quite absurd that people absorb these bits of false information that they find on the internet without valid proof of anything. Joining the bandwagon of Illuminati indoctrination can make one seem foolish and ignorant.
The Illuminati has in the past used masonic elements and structures to gain membership which proved unsuccessful. They have never been and never will be recognized as a masonic organization. Furthermore, they haven’t existed in centuries.
A few differences from the structure of the Illuminati to that of Freemasonry, is that the Illuminati was political and largely atheistic whereas freemasonry requires :- Non political activities/discourse
- All members must believe in a higher power
Again, the Illuminati has never been a recognized/regular masonic order and was in no way affiliated with masonry. They were banned and haven’t existed in centuries. Conspiracists want society to believe otherwise, however, the facts they use are often so heavily convoluted, invalid, narrow minded and hate filled that they hardly deserve the attention that they get.
About those masonic hand signals and symbols:
Freemasons use handshakes only to prove their membership when visiting other lodges. They do not use them in public nor would they have any reason to. It is an ancient method of providing validation (utilized by ancient trade guilds). And for all of those posting pictures of famous people allegedly making masonic hand signs, many of those are common gestures that only vaguely resemble masonic ones and does not imply, since anyone can read about masonic hand signs, including conspiracy theorists, that they are, in fact, masons.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12
Because life is so confusing yet enticing and still manages to inspire me in ways I cannot explain, I must inquire this: In the essence of all things questionable, we find ourselves at a loss between what's right for us and what's wrong.
Truth is, there is no wrong to be done when it is affiliated with good intentions. To learn and make mistakes is better than making no mistakes to learn nothing new from. Get it?
So, if ever in the crossfire of life you find yourself lost, confused, or helpless always remember that wherever you go, your heart will lead the way. Open your mind as wide as the sky and soon your soul wll begin to reflect the scene.
If at any time you have a thought, turn it into an idea. Fantasize and meditate the idea into passion, and react; then, you can create something spectacular. I have done this countless of times when my heart couldn't give me thoughts to create and idea from.
The point of my rambling brain drain is this, my friends.... If ever a time you find yourself wondering way too much and getting lost and confused with your own thoughts, act on them. Do not question your impulses. Feel something beautiful for the world around you and you will find something beautiful within yourself. Trust me, it works.
And hey, if you got a second to pull over and take a look at the clouds, do so, because they can teach you things. Make you see what the bigger picture is, irregardless of its neverending transformation. The clouds, like us, are like metamorphisizing floating puddles of life that can take your thrill for imagination and your will for transcendelism to different elements, and I'm sure they'd be happy to have your company :)
But remember...there are people who love you and care for you here on Earth so please, when you go, be sure to come back home.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Mar 30, 12I was walking along this road that was bent and twisted into a vicarious unraveled knots of thread
As I stepped foot- one after the next, on the graveled earth beneath me.Fate walked behind me.Behind me?Looking back into a time warp of complexity of which I had departedI wept for her. Dauntingly wallowing in deep waters of my despair.Ascending from the soles of my feet to the crown of my head was swarm of butterfliesOnce en-caged, now free to roam the violent, turbulent waves of my blood."How much", Fate said, "Will you bequeath to me?""Nothing" I answered,"You are as unreal as remote disparity.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12There is no one lonelier or more unhappy than a person who does not know the pure joy of creating a life for himself or herself.To be human is not merely to stand erect and manifest intelligence or knowledge.To be human in the full sense of the word is to lead a creative life.The struggle to create new life from within is a truly wonderful thing. There is found the brilliant wisdom that guides and directs the workings of reason, the light of insight that penetrates the farthest reaches of the universe; the undaunted will to see justice done that meets and challenges all the assaults of evil, the spirit of unbounded care that embraces all who suffer.When these are fused with that energy of compassion that pours forth from the deepest sources of cosmic life, an ecstatic rhythm arises to color the lives of all people.
- Apr 22, 12
People often spend a lot of time and energy invested in blaming themselves not only for the things they cannot change, but the things they should not blame themselves for, to begin with. Even I have done that. Many, many times. The reasons are not beyond me. As a matter of fact I can pin point all of them.
Human acceptance is a fundamental necessity according to Maslow's Hierarchy of Needs. We are social beings and at the very core of our existence is our desire for companionship and acceptance whether we consciously realize it or not, as Aristotle once said, "He who is unable to live in society, or who has no need because he is sufficient for himself, must be either a beast or a god". After physiological and safety needs are fulfilled, the third layer of human needs are social and involve feelings of belongingness. In searching for that sense of acceptance in others you're going to find yourself disappointed by the very fact that people, in exercising their right to form their own opinions and perceptions of others, may not be very keen on doing so.
In belonging to a sector of "minorities" based on my sexuality I can testify to that and I would be lying if I said that it does not affect me at times, particularly when my acceptance to certain people is more important than others.
More Important.
In reflecting on my own needs and wants and the things that I think will make me content is the final question as to why certain things are so important to me. Why is it important for me to be accepted, not so much by my intimate circle of family and friends but by the generalized precinct of society which includes individuals who are not even close to me. People whose opinions on my self should not even matter. I can write a good collection of lengthy, detailed paragraphs to explain this but I can explain this in one sentence :
Only value the opinions of those who respect you and those whom you respect.
And let me add;- The opinions of those whom you respect should compliment the opinions of whose who respect you.
Let me "say" it again and repeat after me: The opinions of those whom you respect should compliment the opinions of whose who respect you.
That sentence is by far much more important than the first. In other words, If you place high value on the opinions of a certain individual, make sure that they also place a high value on yours as well.
The value that I place on people's opinions is not always reciprocated. And that awareness helps me to change my mindset towards certain things. It's not that I would not ever respect the opinions and ideas and view points of others. Because respect is a human right. However, the value that I place on the sentiments of people about myself, needs to be evaluated.
We as human beings are born with the ability to think, perceive, discriminate, identify with, convict, and process information about the world that we see and we have the right to make judgments and choose to either associate or disassociate ourselves with certain factors which include people, things, places, social situations, culture and political dynamics. In processing information and making choices I too can consciously choose to care or not care about the opinions of others and so should you, who are reading this.
No one thing defines you. No mistake defines you. No one opinion defines you. No matter who you are, what sexuality, ethnicity, race, cultural background or environment you belong to, you still get to ultimately choose what gets to define you and what doesn't. In exercising that power you are able to retract the bias that people form towards you by letting their definitions of you, define themselves instead. In other words, the people who judge others are in fact doing nothing but judging their own selves.
The key to acceptance is in accepting yourself and surrounding yourself with people who appreciate and love you for who you are. To some people I am beautiful. To others not so much. To others, not at all. In this lifetime I have been many things; That girl, that lesbian, she, Sádé, someone's this, someone's that, not someone's this, not someone's that, that girl who does this, that girl who did that.
To me, I am going to allow myself to be vain, for one moment and admit that I am an extraordinary, passionate, loud mouthed Intellectual woman. And I am destined to achieve great things.
Now, who are you?
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12I cannot comprehend the people who lack inspiration and drive to see beyond the layers of their own skin. How can the world not mesmerize you, or grip you by the lapels and shake you, in some way? Throughout life I have made so many self discoveries outside the confines of my finite self. I have escaped to places I never thought existed through an artist's painting, or a writer's sentences. I have been held in celestial trances by melodious sounds and visited eras of time that once was. I have been held by my own will in an ultimate, lucid state of captivation by the seas that I dream upon, the mountains I seek to climb, the hearts that hold me, the body that sustains me. To live an inspired life is to become limitless in the vast space of this magnificent Universe. We are all born artists. We must live to be inspired so that we can create the things we seldom thought humanly possible. I only yearn to explore, lose and rediscover myself in the wonders of this earth so that I can broaden my perception of the world around me. To be in awe of your existence and to feel intoxicating, mind-blowing, moving, overpowering, spine-tingling and stimulating by it, is to immerse yourself in the sublime art of life and self mastery. Cultivate creative aggression in your blood and think, analyze, reason, explore, dream, get lost and discover.
- Apr 22, 12
In light of CNC3's "In depth" Report about homosexuality and homosexuals living in Trinidad and Tobago let me first say that I am so angry and actually pissed at the deficiency of this program.
First of all, not only was it biased, prejudice and failed to represent the LGBTQ community in a realistic, positive manner, but it threw the community ten steps backward more than it already is by creating a very negative, inaccurate image of the already struggling minority.
Why do that? Today I am questioning the criteria, motives, judgments and stand point of CNC3, because all I can come up with, after viewing that defective series, is that the producers of that TV Station want the the progress of the LGBTQ community to remain stagnated. There can be no other reason, because if any organization, media house or institution is in favor for equality, lack of ignorance, and a vibrant, harmonious, diverse society, it would definitely not approach such a controversial topic as homosexuality, in that manner.
Why is it, that in tackling HIV/ AIDS awareness and breaking down stereotypes associated with such, we create a number of campaigns with positive slogans shouting for equal job opportunities for HIV victims and the end to their discrimination by trying to associate them with positive perceptions such as "People with HIV are also lawyers, judges, teachers, etc etc" but when it comes to the gay community we see a program that are interviewing "an ex- gay woman", closeted gay man and religious leaders who are not only down right disrespectful but ignorant and disgustingly biased based on their personal religious beliefs towards a group of people who are in fact segregated in their own country because of who they love. I guess the equal rights of citizens depend on a religious book, regardless of the citizens' religious preferences or beliefs. It is absurd trying to imagine a gay person who happens to be an atheist, not afforded the same freedom and equal rights as a his fellowmen because the law of the land says that according to the Bible, he is an abomination.
Tell me, CNC3, of all the talented, successful, incredibly elite gay people who hold high, respectable positions (which, let me tell you, there are many) to interview, that was your choice? Interview me. Let me sit down and tell you what it is like to be a gay woman in Trinidad and Tobgao. I guarantee you the interview would most likely be over in twenty minutes because all you would realize is that I am quite boring. That there is absolutely nothing alien, foreign or different about my life compared to that of a heterosexual woman except for the fact that I DO NOT HAVE EQUAL RIGHTS LIKE SHE HAS. That's it. We lead normal lives. We have normal relationships. We contribute to the economy of our country. We pay taxes. But then again, what homophobic person will want to be shown that? They don't want to be told that the very people they abuse and look down upon are in fact equal to them if not higher? (based on profession and status). No. How dare you tell heterosexual people that gay people are made of the same genetic compositions as them. That our attraction is as natural as theirs. Our relationships are just as important and valuable as their marriages.
How the wider society see the normalcy of our sexuality and lifestyle depends on the content of your program. You, CNC3, just as any other media house, have the power to influence that. And you have failed terribly.
The reason why we are alienated from the rest of society is that society fails to see us as what they would consider "normal human beings". Society fails to acknowledge the fact that our love is no less than heterosexual love and heterosexual commitment. It's a sad mindset, really. And what is even more sad is that it is a mindset belonging to that of supposedly "Godly" religious leaders. It that same mindset that caused over 20,000 homosexuals and Jews to be killed in concentration camps in Germany. It is that same mindset that caused the African slave trade. This notion that when you de-individualize and de-humanize a particular group of people, it easy to segregate them and even hate them because you can no longer associate those people like human beings, like yourself.
If you had any intentions of changing the perception of the gay minority in this struggling country, or even accurately informing society of what it means to be gay, you, CNC3, have done nothing but damage to the point of little return. All you have done was enforce bigotry and the already contemptuous beliefs of the large percentage of homophobic people living in Trinidad and Tobago.
The reason why there are so many gay web series and international reality shows such as The real L word, for example is because in changing stereotypes and discrimination due to ignorance, lack of education and fear and confusion, there is that extreme importance to show the world that "Hey, it's really not that different. These people are just like me. They have normal lives, real problems, real relationships. Just like I do."
Being gay is just a tiny fraction of who I am and here you have a local television program that is responsible for the distribution of accurate knowledge and information, unjustifiably presenting the gay community in this dark, negative, sinister manner.
The heterosexual community is also struggling with STD's and Prostitution. AIDS discriminates against no one. And for the record, let me say this: It is not possible to choose to be gay. No one chooses a lifestyle of great struggle and torment. I did not wake up and decide to be gay any more than a heterosexual person woke up and decided to be straight. To that "Hasbian" that CNC3 interviewed : You are either foolishly suppressing your homosexuality or you were never gay in the first place, either one makes you incredibly deficient and you are an embarrassment.
This Television program ineptly and carelessly did a run down presentation on a very sensitive, struggling group of citizens in the most inaccurate manner and left a trail of dust and destruction for them to twirl around in because gay people sure as hell don't have any legal protection and support from our government. Bravo CNC3.
Stay out of our closets. Unless you can properly represent our culture, who we are, what we do, and what we as human beings rightly deserve; Don't bring us out.
You are not welcome.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12Old books. I Love them. I love their smell from which I swear I can tell their age. Who doesn't like old, timeworn, and tattered books? The kind that have fancy covers, embossed covers, or leather covers....the kind that have "deckle" edges, also called feather edges, where the pages aren't machine-cut for uniformity....One of the best, romantic gifts I have ever received is an old volume of collected poems, given to me by my wonderful girlfriend. The most tattered book I own is a House for Mr Biswas by VS. Naipaul. It actually belongs to my mother for the past twenty five years and I first read it when I was twelve. The cover has a huge crease from being crushed under the pillow after I fell asleep while reading it and the pages are becoming loose from the spine cover. Because of the curious and perplexed stares I get while reading it in public, I have tried to make it a little more presentable by re-covering it with fancy gift paper. Getting a newer edition is just not an option as this copy holds too many long years of sentimental value and I also insist in carrying it along with me on long trips away from home so it has occurred to me to ask my girlfriend to put a copy of it on her iPad.
- Mar 21, 12
The epitome of my life is in after all my journeys, going back to where I first started and knowing that place for the first time. It is in seeing my reflection- yet seeing myself for the first time. It is in yearning to find and loose myself in another human being's eyes. It is in experiencing the Ourobrous of soul birth and rebirth over and over again...for eternity..
Last night I was studying. The windows were wide open to allow the breeze to cool the room. Suddenly, out of no where strong winds blew in, scattering all my neatly stacked papers everywhere. Disordered papers were strewn all over and around my room and as I frantically tried in vain to collect them, another stack would blow away. Finally, after a minute or two, I realised that all I needed to do was take a few seconds to close the windows. In the midst of the chaos in our lives, all we need is inner space, to close the door- and open our minds.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Mar 21, 12"Do not speak. Sit with me and let the the truth form between us, on the silence."
Sometimes I find myself in the middle of chaos and stress. With my eyes closed and my index fingers rubbing against my temples, I could feel the noise cluttering in my brain. Pounding with violent vibrations and my own reserve instinctively fighting back. It's like my mind is shouting "Quiet!" while my brain is frantically trying to find ways to cope, adapt and fight the stress.
Many times when faced with disorder our first instinct is to find the answers and quickly put things back together again; Because the way things were is what we are used to. We mold ourselves into certain identities, we create physical, emotional and social comfort zones so that we feel safe and a sense of belonging. We adapt to the situations we are in for long periods of time and we stay within the walls that we wearily built so that "nothing bad will happen to us". When something threatens our comfort zone it causes a sudden imbalance in our life and our first resolve is to fight it so that we can quickly assemble the broken pieces back together again and feel safe once again. Human beings are always trying to figure things out. We are curious and we are constantly trying to solve life's equations. We sometimes find ourselves doing everything but accepting. When things don't go our way, in a biological sense, we just search for that essential element in our life that can fill the void of the unknown; happiness that we cannot find on our own, and must find in a certain catalytic source such as drugs, sex, anger, vices.
In dealing with stressful elements in our everyday lives, sometimes there is no answer. Other times, in order to find the answer you need to simply do nothing but withdraw. Just go within yourself and sit in that sphere for as long as you'd like and experience a state of stillness. This state can be experienced anywhere- in the middle of a loud, crowded room, or at home in your abode. It is important to ever so often to revisit that state of serenity. Your soul always has the answers. No matter what the dilemma. The challenge however, is in quieting the mind.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle - Apr 22, 12
Of course we've all read countless articles on dealing with writer's block and coming up with good blog ideas. If you are struggling and fumbling with the first two sentences of your blog post that always ends up in the drafts section this is for you:
Become a better writer:- Write
- Write some more
- Write even more
- Write when you have nothing to write about
- Write when you do have something write about
- Write when you are bored
- Wake up in the middle of the night and write
- Write every single day
- Write and keep writing.
That's it. Pretty simple. You see, writing is pro-active. It's a creative action. It is action influenced by words. It is pro active artistry. You cannot stop writing. Don't ever stop writing for a long period of time because what happens is that your creativity remains in your mind but you will have trouble expressing it/ putting it into action. In writing you are exercising and continuously expanding your mind and vocabulary. Writing is an expression of yourself and so, you mustn't be afraid to write exactly how your mind is forming the words. By not focusing too much on making the perfect dramatically sentence you allow yourself to venture into a unique flow of literary expression. There was a girl in a writing class that I had in college last year and she was so eloquent and perfection-oriented that when the class was asked to write a paper she would spend forty five minutes in trying to construct the perfect grammatical sentence and the next fifteen minutes of the exam agitated, anxious and frustrated. Whereas someone else would be busily writing away a two page essay paper, perhaps with a lot of grammatical errors and fair choice of words, but contained a vast amount of creativity and ideas and expression. So practice. And be yourself. Write things that you are passionate about rather than what you think people may want to read. It is always better to have a short post executing passion, than a lengthy post lacking passion. Also, a big mistake of mine was trying my hand at blogging, but posting a lot more pictures than words which defied the entire purpose of my blog to begin with. In training myself to become a lot more expressive I am not going to post as many pictures as I used to, so that I will be forced to execute elaborate descriptions without the help of visual images.
Great writers are have great grammar. Challenge yourself to write old fashionably using pen and paper on occasion. Without spell check it improves your language and writing skills and helps you naturally acquire an expansive vocabulary. However, don't be afraid to make mistakes ever so often. Content and creativity is always key in prose.
About the Author: Sádé Gabrielle Budhlall is a Caribbean writer, blogger and visual artist. Get more updates from her twitter @sadegabrielle
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