sisterhood

writing outside of my experience- either a process of looking in at myself or not looking at myself. What is the ethic of how we treat each other. We keep looking at each other- the woman from groups, the woman who is my sister, my ex-roomate, the woman who hugs me who hates me, the woman who has faith in me, the woman who respects my work. I look back at the variety of experiences of me, experiencing them based on their perception of me. The concept from Buddhism that the perception they have of me and me of them is based on my own mindstate ought to tell me that what I see in them and they see in me is an illusion based on our perceptions, not the fundamental reality behind our dependent and temporary existence. In Christian thought the concept is how do we love God if we do not love each other? In Islam the concept is similar, if our existence is a series of veils over the fundamental reality of God that forms the base of all being, then disliking another person is similar to disliking God, and oneself- it is a function of our separation from the truth of God's tender care. So we keep trying to defend ourselves from the fear of other people's existence and hatred by lowering our moral standards, by relaxing our vigilance about our moral values, thinking that we will win more money, power, status, or even peace of mind and happiness. The truth is we cannot attain our goal as spiritual people by lowering our moral standards to protect ourselves from the vindictive spite of others. We have to raise our standards and strive for God, for Allah, for being without influxes and attachments. We have to seek God more diligently, and not be dragged into the illusions of the world because the illusion promises what it cannot provide.

Rom. 12:2 "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

Rom. 12:21 "Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."