The Gospel of Thomas

Well the article is basically just a bunch of things that Jesus has said. On of my favorite things he said is "if you bring forth what is inside you, what you bring forth will save you. If you don't bring forth what is inside you, what you don't bring forth will destroy you." I found it very thoughtful. He is saying that if you do not explore yourself and that if you are not yourself then it kills you. Not literally, but its more of an emotion thing. Keeping things inside of you is very difficult and tend to slowly eat away at people until they snap. It is important for people to figure out who they are at an early age and stick to themselves. He also says something along the line of how people who choose solitude are more likely to find heaven. I think that is because people who choose solitude do not have the temptations of other peoples influences. Other people can strongly influence your choices if you let them, and therefore people who have chosen a life of solitude only have their own temptations.

Hui-hai

This reading was very long, and rather confusing. I really liked that it was in question ans answer format though. I thought that made it much more understandable. When they say that "reality is perceived through your own body" I was a bit confused. I guess it is just saying that reality is grasped different from person to person and that peoples views of reality are different rightly so. What is real for one person my not be everyones version of life and truth. Even people of the same family, or the same group of any kind may different views on life. The Dharmapada Sutra says"to establish ourselves amid perfect emptiness in a single flash is the existence of wisdom." It seems almost like he is saying that amid the emptiness something amazing like wisdom can be created just by you being there and existing. Its pretty cool if you really think about it. If just your existence can make such a huge impact upon anything at all.

Pa-chang

Even though this passage was really short it was also very powerful. I liked how it talks about when you get that awakened feeling you realize that it came from within you. People look all over, but wont find it untill they look inside themselves which is often the hardest place to go. People do not want to reflect upon themselves. It also says the original mind was perfect, people just dont realize this. The understanding is very rare, and thats what people are looking for even though it is within themselves that they will find it. Self reflection is just very difficult. People often see things that they do not want to even though they know its there.

The Diamond Sutra

This reading did not make quite as much sense to me as the others.It is hard to talk about something that is "ungraspable and inexpressible." I think that it has to be something like how people just know when they know. When people talk about find the right one for them they always say I just knew. It is something you can not convey to others. "The mind should be kept independent of any thoughts that arise within it." I think this is supose to be the meditative state. You seperate your body and mind. To be truely at peace, or in the trace of meditation this seperation is necessary. It is not something that you can show others, it just is. Many people do not understand how this could be possible until they experience it for them selves. There is no such thing as perfect wisdom, I think being wise is just observing and looking outside yourself for answers. It is also not being worried about finding all the answers.

The Buddah

I found this reading very interesting. I think my favorite parts tend to be either the beginning or end. I liked teh very last sentence where he says "hold to the truth within yourself, as to the only truth". If you believe in something then you should believe in it fully, and you shouldnt let others change your beliefs. You need t0 be proud of what you believe in. It is true to you. The passage about the raft also makes good points. I like how it points out that you should use things while you need them, but then let others have it. The man no longer needed the raft after he crossed the river, so it was smart of him to leave it behind for others to use. The Buddah is a very smart man, and his comment about everyone being Buddahs really made me think. He is saying that everything you need is right in front of you all you have to do is see it. People try too hard. They work to earn things they do not need, and sometimes it is right there.

Philo

"God loves to give, and freely bestows good on all people, even the imperfect..." No one is perfect so if God only gave gifts to the "perfect" people then he would never bestow gifts upon anyone. I think that sometimes people just dont realize what great gifts they are being given. Things such as children are some of the greatest gifts, yet some people view them as a curse. I think that all of the readings this week were pretty deep. They all had a strong message. They also seem to have a lot of life lessons hidden in them as well. You just have to pay attention to your life, and to what you are doing. If you think about how things will affect you before you do them then life would be much simpler, but people tend to just react. They dont think first.

The Bible

My favorite line from this entire reading was one of the last ones. "God has made everything beautiful in its time, and has put eternity in our heart." It just sounds so good and happy. I like how it says beautiful in its time, because everything isnt classically beautiful. It all depends on your perception. And to say God put eternity in our heart is just a cool statement. It makes me think about eternal love. This entire reading seemed full of profound statements such as "Love your neighbor as yourself" and "you have hidden the truth in darkness; through this mystery you teach me wisdom." The first one has an obvious message. Its the same thng we have been taught since we were children, that you should treat other people the way that you would like them to treat you. The other one isnt quite as obvious, but it is basically saying that people hide the truth even from themselves especially when they are ashamed of it, but that they learn from their mistakes.