All things considered, you will reach Level Three…

CONSIDER ATTRACTION

In the beginning, there was attraction. Things attract each other because they like to be closer to some things than to others. These inherent preferences are the root of all change in the universe. Because of attraction, new things emerge.

You see: Sometimes like attracts like and sometimes opposite attracts opposite. When opposites attract, you’ve got a pair, a couple. That pair is now another unit and the process starts again.

The pair, the new unit, can attract an opposite or a like, or it can just drift along. When like attracts like, it can end there, like an oxygen molecule made up of two oxygen atoms, or it can continue to attract like, like a carbon atom. When things continue to attract like, bigger and more complex things get created.

CONSIDER SELF-REPLICATION

Sometimes a thing will attract enough of just the right stuff that a copy of itself is produced. This is self-replication. Self-replication is one of the most powerful forces in the universe because of exponential growth. One becomes two, two become four, four become eight, and soon the universe is full of things.

Now, sometimes a self-replicating thing makes a copy of itself with a mistake in it. The thing with a mistake will either be better, worse, or the same at making copies of itself. If it’s better, there will soon be more copies of the new thing than the old thing in the universe. The only way for new things to get created is by a complex series of mistakes that turn out to be better after all.

CONSIDER THE EVOLUTION OF HOMO-SAPIENS

We are self-replicating things. We are the result of a billion years worth of mistakes that turned out to be better after all. Yay for us!

CONSIDER COMMUNICATION

One big mistake that turned out to be better after all was that, of all the animals, we alone can communicate complicated ideas. We can tell stories. We can share recipes. We can make complicated plans. Even dolphins and whales can’t do these things, we think.

CONSIDER THE EXCHANGE OF IDEAS

These ideas that we communicate are called memes. Memes are a kind of thing. Memes live in our minds.

CONSIDER MEMETICS

Like all things, memes have inherent preferences; they fit better with certain things and they repel certain other things. Some memes naturally fit better in people’s minds; some memes naturally fit better with other memes.

When a group of memes fit well together and pull the strings of someone’s mouth and vocal cords so that they pass them on to others, a new, self-replicating thing gets created. This new thing is called a memeplex. Again we can see the power of self-replication in this: One person tells two, two tell four, four tell eight, and pretty soon the whole universe is full of people sharing the memeplex.

Sometimes even a self-replicating memeplex makes a mistake in copying itself (murphy’s law!). The memeplex with a mistake in it will either be better, worse, or the same at making copies of itself. We can see the pattern: If it’s better soon there will be more copies of the new memeplex than the old in the universe. The only way for a new idea to gain acceptance is by a series of copying mistakes that turn out to be better after all.

CONSIDER HUMAN SYSTEMS IN TERMS OF MEMETICS

All our belief systems, religions, and governments are the result of a series of mistakes that turned out to be better at making copies of themselves after all.

CONSIDER FILTERING AND THE TRANSFORMATION OF IDEAS

Every new idea we think of immediately becomes transformed by copying mistakes that change it into something that is better at making copies of itself after all. A key part of the idea may be sacrificed to something better for copying. The only control we have over the spread of our ideas is in making them as resistant to copying mistakes as possible.

CONSIDER BABIES AS MEME SPONGES

When we are born, our mind is courted by meme after meme after meme, all the result of thousands of years of practice (on the part of the memes), practice at getting themselves copied into fresh new minds.

This is Level 1: We have our instincts, born of millions of years of our genes and bodies striving to make copies of themselves — soon our minds become filled with memes and eventually we may develop a map of life that mostly makes sense. So we start with our instincts, a body, and a developing memeplex.

As we grow, we learn to speak a language that we believe expresses anything we want to say. We use geometric and physical concepts that we believe explain anything we encounter. We know stories and myths that we believe relate to all of life’s trials and tribulations. This is Level 2: Our inherited trajectory. We have our roadmap, born of thousands of years of the memes in our minds striving to make copies of themselves.

CONSIDER THE UNHINDERED MIND

Each of us has a purpose here. When the memes are quiet, it is possible to feel when we are on purpose and when we are off purpose. Conversely, when memes run the show, it is the purpose of the memes that gets served.

CONSIDER THE POWER OF META-COGNITION

Once we realize that there are millions of memes battling inside our mind, there arises the possibility of influencing the outcome of that battle. Until we realize it, there is no possibility. The battle can be influenced in three ways. First, by noticing the memes. Second, by detaching from them. Third, by obtaining clarity of purpose. When these three steps are achieved, we can begin to select our memes consciously. We select memes that keep us on purpose. This is Level 3: Conscious Selection for a Purpose.

CONSIDER DETACHING FROM THE DISEMPOWERING MEMES

A purpose is not a goal. A purpose does not feel like guilt, shame, or vengeance. Guilt, shame, and vengeance are emotions used by memes to gain mastery over your life. By choosing memes consciously, we can eliminate the control that memes have over those emotions. A purpose feels fulfilling, satisfying, joyful, and powerful.

CONSIDER WHAT YOU SHARE

A purpose mostly has to do with other people. A purpose must inherently be fulfilled by spreading hardy, beneficial memes. Every time we speak, write, create, or act we are spreading memes. To fulfill our purpose we must be conscious of which memes we are spreading. Life is largely composed of conversations. Conversations are composed of memes.

In Level 1, we are unaware of this.

In Level 2, we see the world as a solid, understandable body to be interacted with.

In Level 3, we see the world as a canvas to be painted, an instrument to be played, or a block of marble to be sculpted by us for our purpose.

We choose to do this for good or for evil. If we choose good, good is returned to us in unexpected ways. If we choose evil, evil is returned. Either way, it looks like the way we choose is the way of the world.

CONSIDER STARTING WITH YOUR VISION

In Level 1, we do not understand the world and consequently fear it.

In Level 2, we replace the fear with understanding. The price of understanding is limits. Our approximate models of the universe are never completely accurate, never useful in all situations.

In Level 3, we start with a vision of what we want to create. From there we choose our models.

Sometimes a chosen model may seem insane to the other inhabitants of the little patch of space-time we happen to occupy. No matter. Men with a vision of goodwill have often looked insane in times of mistrust and scarcity.

But in Level 3, we realize that the universe is not a maze to be navigated; it is a baby to be brought up. When we give it love, clarity, and opportunity, we raise a child universe to be a joyful, giving, and successful adult universe. It is only by starting in this 3rd level of consciousness, by starting with our vision, that we have the opportunity to sculpt our little patch of space-time as we see fit.

*This meme shamelessly sculpted out of memecentral.com/level3.
**May it spread far and wide.

Thank you Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and of course Alan Watts, for this epic short film.

It is a film that touches on: Evolution, the nature of intelligence and the self, and the hoax of our modern success-centered lives.

It is a video meant to put us in our places, and also ask us to evaluate what we have built for ourselves.

Is this what I wanted to be doing?
Am I missing out?
What is my focus?

And hopefully we can, with honest answers, begin to shift our trajectory or maybe just dance a little more in life; have some fun, eat drink and be merry, that’s where I see the value in this film.

“If there is magic on this planet, it is contained in water.” – Loren Eisley

Water is a metaphor for both power and humility, bending around obstacles, seeking the path of least resistance. Water always seeks to lower itself below all else, flowing downhill to appease gravity. It this way it gains power from humility. Water is thus the prime example of wu-wei in nature.

The best human equivalent of this is a person that acts along the path of least resistance, applying wu-wei, not forcing his or her will upon the world. We as individuals can also draw great power from humility by training our minds and bodies.

When I tried Aikido my second year of college, I could see the power in moving with the forces of the universe, instead of pushing against them. Here we see Steven Seagal applying the wu-wei type principles inherent in Aikido to subdue his multiple attackers. To me his demonstration of non-doing is very effective.

Quotes by Morihei Ueshiba, founder of Aikido:

“If your opponent tries to pull you, let him pull. Don’t pull against him; pull in unison with him.”

“Though surrounded by many enemies, view them as a single foe and so fight on.”

Quotes by Alan Watts on Water & Wu-Wei:

“Wu-wei is the lifestyle of a person who follows the Tao and should be understood first of all as a form of intelligence — that of being aware of the principles, structures and tendencies of the human activity and of the natural phenomena so well that you could use a minimum amount of energy when you have to deal with them.”

“To have faith is to trust yourself to the water. When you swim you don’t grab hold of the water, because if you do you will sink and drown. Instead you relax, and float.”

“The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and join the dance.”

Cute creatures rockin’ Wu-Wei the only way they know how… Watch and learn.

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Buddha Seal

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Turtle Strut

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Double Chin, no make that Triple...

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Jaw Use

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Tanning Turtle

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Sun Salutation

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Sasquatchin'

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Amphibian-on-Alert

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Turtle Train

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Ninja Fox

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Mohawk Rockin'

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Lover's Plea -- "Don't leave me..."

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Hot Chick

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Honey Huntin'

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Head Scratch

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Frightened Froggy

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Meeting of the Goats

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Face Wash

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Evening Yawn

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

Wu-Wei Sprawled-Out Squirrel

Go Wu-Wei, Enter and Become the Tao.

That is all for now… Until we reach 7% that is.
From: www.ellf.ru
Photographer: Sean Crane

Bruce Lee

Accomplished Martial Artist and Athlete:

Just consider some of the things that no one else had ever done before. Until he came along that is:

• Lee performed 50 reps of one-arm chin-ups.
• Lee could take in one arm a 75 lb barbell from a standing position with the barbell held flush against his chest and slowly stick his arms out locking them, holding the barbell there for 20 seconds.
• Lee could thrust his fingers through unopened (steel) cans of Coca-Cola.
• Lee could break wooden boards 6 inches (15 cm) thick.

He developed his own unique and effective fighting style, known as Jeet Kune Do, which is still taught today. It is meant to be the style of no style and exist outside of the limits of traditional martial arts. He used it against many an opponent. Here’s just one of his many amazing fight stories:

In 1962, Lee knocked out Uechi, a Japanese black belt, in 11 seconds in a full-contact match in Seattle. The time keeper had this to say: “The karate man arrived in his gi, complete with black belt, while Bruce showed up in his street clothes and simply took off his shoes. The fight lasted exactly 11 seconds–I know because I was the time keeper—and Bruce had hit the guy something like 15 times and kicked him once. I thought he’d killed him.” The fight ended by Bruce knocking Uechi the length of the gymnasium. (source:wikipedia)

Here’s his famous one inch punch, with some bonus athletic feats at the start.

To be this amazing of an athlete and competitor, it’s no wonder he was also a nutrition expert of sorts. He ate 4 to 5 meals spread out during the day, ate tons of fruit and vegetables (usually fresh, raw, or juiced), and avoided processed foods, starches, dairy, and anything else that would slow him down. He was all for the competitive edge, and this included his training too. He would run sprints, long distance, and varied pace routines everyday, rock the abs while watching TV, weight train, flex and stretch to the max, jump rope, and practice, practice, practice his art.

The Mind of the Dragon:

Bruce was known to have a library of over 2,500 books. His personal eclectic philosophy combined elements Taoism, Buddhism, Jiddu Krishnamurti-school, and many others. He claimed no belief in god but professed a spiritual and superbly well-demonstrated meditative and focused life. His ideas were one with his every movement, and his every movement apparently followed from his beliefs. A few quotes serve to give us a glimpse into the mind of the dragon, may he rest in peace:

“Be formless… shapeless, like water. If you put water into a cup, it becomes the cup. You put water into a bottle; it becomes the bottle. You put it into a teapot; it becomes the teapot. Water can flow, or it can crash. Be water, my friend…”

“All kind of knowledge, eventually becomes self knowledge”

“As you think, so shall you become.”

“To know oneself is to study oneself in action with another person.”

“Do not deny the classical approach, simply as a reaction, or you will have created another pattern and trapped yourself there.”

“Always be yourself, express yourself, have faith in yourself, do not go out and look for a successful personality and duplicate it.”

That dragon sure knew how to thrive… Indeed, he was also an actor and family man, and was named one of the 100 most influential people of the 20th century by Time Magazine!

Yes, I know corrosivity is not a word as far as you’ve heard. It is a novel combination of corrosive and acidity to me. Because I didn’t want to write ‘an ocean of acidity’ — it’s not right, not P.C., err, I mean it’s not P.H.! (Gee…) Simply equip and tip in a ton of tums to neutralize the acidic H-2-O blip; not the right video-clip. So, corrosivity it is…

And let’s get it clear: I’m here not to neutralize the seas by puffin’ calcium into the breeze. Creating a ton of anything is hard work for me, being a crab astrologically. So, what to do in a corrosive ocean? What’s the potion?

I see my buddy Pisces afloat and adrift, aloft and aloof in a fantasy of idea thrift. I know not to follow so as not to get lost. And I also can’t abandon my aqueous ship there, boss. The depths being so well-equipped to my elusive style of image-shift.

And a playful warping of the story verbosely is not the essence of this poetic trip. So I digress — unless… No. The real question is not how to rhyme this session, but how to stay solid in a corrosive ocean where you know-not-what-means-stolid.

When you live underwater, the world is heavy. Ideas are tempting but can drag you down fishy rabbit-holes quick. Mystery and deception, image and self-defense protection not a problem for the clawed-crawling-shelled-crusty creatures like me-myself and a few other watery-signed-types on the shelf. But with an ocean of emotive ideas at my finger-claw-tips, and the schools of benign-looking hook-hidden pips, the challenge remains to open-shell with the proper currents and down comrades at my hip.

Open too much and pure-essence is leaked.
Too little and neurotic claws begin to auto-collapse on the allied-peeps.

So, to flow or to swim is the question to let sink in. To roll in the under-tow or no?

And the best way for us, these crustaceans, not-to-crack, is to never let this very question stab us in the back.