Is the availability of individualism crippling?

During an interview I was asked this question.
I ask you as well, y’all are kinna my favorite people in the world ...so I ask you ...

Is the availability of individualism in Jediism crippling?
The question was “ as wide and free as it is then[jedi ism] , isn’t that crippling to a lot of people who don’t understand it as such? “

What do you think? With all the availability of paths and possibility’s and balances and options - that pure human potential - can it be crippling as well as freeing? Do we as modern day Jeddist combat or even talk about such a thing? Does it even exist? As TM s here in the Temple - do we train our future Knights to be aware of things like this ? I do remember doing a lesson on the paradox of choice. I kinna wish we could all do it together ....
Maybe this is it ... but like this... smiley face
Too free ? Not enough structure - to open ? What ya think?
Pastor Carlos

This is indeed an interesting paradox. Most of us have a unique blend of ideas that make our individual Jediism work.

The best way I can word what the discussion could go like is this: "Do not let your individualism become tunnel vision which leads revisionism." In essence we are a very open set of ideas that allow many of us to practice in our own way but as we look at our path we cannot lose sight of other's journeys. By keeping sight of others we keep strong the bond that is built upon shared Jeddist ideas. Should we lose that bond between brother and sisters then it matters very little what we call ourselves because we will just rewrite our ideas to fit a narrative instead of using our ideas to face the reality.

Just some thoughts, much Love,
Kobos

Most of us have a unique blend of ideas that make our individual Jediism work.


And it works !
I’m gunna take a few minutes to stop right here.

Tim you pump me up! Your my Shia Le Beouf some days man!

I think we have a very broad doctrine that encompasses a lot of ideals, but each is pretty well laid out. Our Order has strong foundations, and as long as that doctrine remains the cornerstone of our practice then it will keep us strong. I find weakness in most religious or faith based practices comes from a lack of conviction, people who want to subscribe to a belief system but refuse in one way or another to uphold the practices and beliefs of that system. Jediism, in my opinion, can be foundational to one's beliefs or supplemental to additional practices. Again, as long as the teachings of our doctrine are held true I believe we can find strength in the Order. That being said, I can understand why others may question that strength, especially when our homestead is a virtual one that allows all kinds of foot traffic, and early Jedi are turned off or discouraged by an excess of verbiage by guests who don't necessarily subscribe to our beliefs. I guess I see it as a test of remaining true to yourself in spite of what others think or say, which ultimately is part of what it means to follow this path.

Tmattos93 wrote: I think we have a very broad doctrine that encompasses a lot of ideals, but each is pretty well laid out. Our Order has strong foundations, and as long as that doctrine remains the cornerstone of our practice then it will keep us strong. I find weakness in most religious or faith based practices comes from a lack of conviction, people who want to subscribe to a belief system but refuse in one way or another to uphold the practices and beliefs of that system. Jediism, in my opinion, can be foundational to one's beliefs or supplemental to additional practices. Again, as long as the teachings of our doctrine are held true I believe we can find strength in the Order. That being said, I can understand why others may question that strength, especially when our homestead is a virtual one that allows all kinds of foot traffic, and early Jedi are turned off or discouraged by an excess of verbiage by guests who don't necessarily subscribe to our beliefs. I guess I see it as a test of remaining true to yourself in spite of what others think or say, which ultimately is part of what it means to follow this path.

That’s the thing too - our doctrine is so applicable too. Any one can do it and is already prolly doing it too but in a different name or light. I know when I first started down my Jeddistic path I realized for my self - I had already been a Jeddist. Modern day Jeddism is always changing. We as Jeddist live in the change. Part of our path is to deal with that very thing - change - because in reality it’s called life. How do you life? Smiley face. What flavor do you take it ? Serve it ? What’s your nitch in things? You as a human have that right to have your own answers for that ... but it can be easy to get lost in that search. The forever wonder ... always in that state... not wrong but eventually ... you find things out. Seek and you will find. I think that’s kinna our idea here is to seek - to look - to research and share - that’s the idea. One of many. That’s a hard thing to teach too. How to teach a path that’s purely individual yet for everyone. In my Yoda voice : Big job we have

Ps ...
thank you for that
“That being said, I can understand why others may question that strength, especially when our homestead is a virtual one that allows all kinds of foot traffic, and early Jedi are turned off or discouraged by an excess of verbiage by guests who don't necessarily subscribe to our beliefs. I guess I see it as a test of remaining true to yourself in spite of what others think or say, which ultimately is part of what it means to follow this path.”
Tmattos93

Ima quote you in my own meditation journal !

I feel as children of the west, we’ve become accustomed to “religion” as having clearly defined characteristics and rules.

So when you encounter a place like this, which is unlike most brands of religion people are used to, it can be confusing.

Furthermore, it is often when one is in a bad place (falling out of a previous religion, existential crisis, etc) that one finds this Temple. And it can be overwhelming to tell someone asking for directions: “I don’t know, you tell me” (insert Chow from Hangover gif).

I wouldn’t say it’s crippling, however. It is overwhelming, but not crippling.

Viewed not as a belief system to define spirit, but guidelines to refine application of spirit..... then it should dramatically loosen that pressure to conform to something, far away from crippling IMO. If viewed (wrongly IMO) as a rigd dogmatic belief, then it could lead to doubting the validity of ones identity as Jedi by not having any parameters by virtue of its individualism.

This is why often pipe up pointing out the doctrine is better seen as an organizational doctrine in a religious group, rather then a religious doctrine in a religious group. That then might also serve to highlite the other distinctions which make Jediism seem attractive to people who feel disenfranchised from mainstream religions.

The argument might then be, what makes Jedi distinct.... and it's probably that one has a belief in the Force AND that the doctrine happens to represents some things which support that belief. So people can have different types of belief about what the Force is, but so long as it doesn't conflict with the spirit of the doctrine. Spirit of doctrine being that larger unsaid nuance of reality which can only be hinted t by the relevant medium (block of text in this case). Further to that I think part of being a Jedi for me is the continued effort to connect more with the Force, as any belief I might have must always be actively gaurded from delusional aspects... for it needs to be about working better with reality, not worse.

For me, it's only my level of effort which can be crippling, because it enables a deeper level of effort, but control of that is my responsibility.

To live up to the colour of arrogance some so love to paint me with, allow me to quote from an upcoming treatise on Jediism I happen to be writing:

No doubt a faction of Jedi can be gathered who enjoy their path's mysteries, understanding them generally as open questions and flexibilities where they might see other religions attempting at giving fixed dogmatic answers. Jediism contrasts with them then in that it has - or is at any rate perceived to have - a philosophical character. It ought arguably not be overlooked that while definitive answers may not be something philosophical investigations are known to yield often, to call journeying even a vast sea of questions is not a fruitless trek. For although the land of answers may never show on the horizon, it is nevertheless by the winds of reason that the philosopher travels, and he who elects instead to float with no sail nor paddle nor any knowledge of the stars is destined to stay in place at best and doomed at worst to never know if they had covered any distance.

While some may insist that Jediism does not instruct us to pick any path at all, nevertheless we casually, unthinkingly speak of it as a path, as a journey. In my opinion that implies some direction, and some progression, even if a destination is not given. It can really depend on the presentation of the position just how much patience and respect I am able to muster for one who chooses to come to a halt and grow no more out of their own volition (and it wouldn't be too much on the best of days either) but to speak of a point of view as though it were a field of view, of a standpoint as though it were a journey, I think is unfair. I don't think Jediism invites our encourages that either. But, at the same time, I don't think it is particularly Jedi-like to bend under any stress, to give to every pressure. It is not dogmatic to pick a direction an move. Flexibility is like keeping your ship in one piece. If you burn your sails before catching any breeze, you'll never trace a path at all, and if you break your rudder once you set them, you'll never change course again and are stuck hoping that the wind won't stop you sometime soon.

Individualism is a great thing, and arguably essential if we want to have choice/free will/accountability for our actions.

I think the biggest problem with individualism is in how others interpret it and how they relate it to themselves and the world around them.

In the early IP lessons, Campbell talks of 'thous and its'. Things that are separate from each other. That's the issue with the interpretation of individualism, seeing things as 'other' from oneself. I am 'Me' and everyone/everything else is 'other'.

Jediism asks us to view things at an individual level, but also at a universal level. They are massively different scales upon which to reflect and I think many people struggle to reconcile the two.

The way I like to think of it is that Human Beings in the Universe, are like Stem Cells in the Womb. Its not the best analogy but its early in the morning and I'm tired, so stick with me.

Stem Cells can 'change' ie follow different 'paths' to become all sorts of different types of individual cells that eventually contribute to one 'person'. Just like we are a bunch of individuals who can go about doing and believing all kinds of crazy things, but we ultimately contribute to one 'universe'.

We don't think of cells as being 'other' to the one 'person' that they make up, and similarly we are not 'other' to the 'universe' that we make up.

However, I imagine that if we were each one 'cell' and looked around a saw a whole bunch of 'other' cells, the idea that we infact contributed to one 'person' would be a difficult concept to grasp.

We mostly grow up in societies that teach you are 'You', one contained single unit, separate to everything else around you. And that metaphor works really well at a localised interpersonal level in terms of teaching us how to fit into society and live are daily lives, but once you move up the scale to the universal level, you have to view things from a different perspective and thats a really hard thing to do.

I think one our biggest failing at the minute not just at ToTJO, or the Jedi Community, but as society as a whole, is that we don't teach people how to view things (or at least attempt to comprehend things) from a perspective outside of their own body.