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God’s hat – a theology joke

There were two tribes dwelling near each other. God decided to walk between them. But God wore a two colored hat. One side was red; the other side was blue. So when the two tribes discussed this visit by God, they ended up in argument. “God wore a blue hat. No! God wore a red [...]

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Blavatsky about the symbolism of the Christian Cross

One of my Dutch readers wondered after reading my piece about symbols, about the meaning of the Christian Cross according to H.P. Blavatsky. I thought I’d look it up. The closest I could find on the topic was Blavatsky on Crucifixion. She says there that: The cross itself, to which the whole man was attached, [...]

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What’s normal – about conditioning

Religion and social pressure are two sides of the same coin. Religion gives meaning to our lives, shapes our actions – which means that people who let their lives be shaped by other pressures than our own, are by definition strange. Hard to deal with. This comes out, in the USA, in people pretending they’re [...]

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Rudolf Steiner and theosophy – about local versus universal wisdom

I’ve been reading ‘Rudolf Steiner Erdenleben und Werken’ (aka: Rudolf Steiner‘s earth life and works) by G. Wachsmuth. It’s a good biography, though obviously written by someone who is a fierce devotee of Steiner. He tells Steiner’s story as Steiner might have wanted it told. For my purposes this is good: I want to know [...]

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Disadvantages to kindness…

Alright – that title is a bit over the top. The thing is, I’ve been pondering the difficulty of managing groups filled with people who all mean well (you’ll read why later on). Or rather – the majority means well, wants to be kind and all that. The disadvantage is… that unkind people can create [...]

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The difference between spiritual growth and personal development?

Michael asked me on my Dutch blog: What’s the difference between personal and spiritual growth anyhow? I think self knowledge is perhaps the only spiritual or personal growth there is, isn’t it? It’s a very good question. Depending on ones spiritual background, one can go into this very deeply, or just skimp the surface. Ken [...]

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Generosity and detachment – spiritual virtue no. 5

Generosity is, for once, a classic virtue. In Islam it’s called Zakat: the duty to give a percentage of your possessions to the poor. Generosity is linked to another classic virtue: detachment. In both Hinduism and Buddhism attachment to stuff, money and status is seen as a problem. Letting go of that in the form [...]

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Busy week ahead – Merry Christmas everybody :)

Hi all, I don’t think I’ll be blogging all that much this week. So I think I’ll just say Merry Christmas now, when I still have the time. We’ve got a big Christmas celebration coming up with my family (kids and grandkids of my one still alive grandmother) – since it’s in the town where [...]

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Those times when life forces rest on you…

Whether it’s illness, unemployment or some other reason – sometimes life forces us to sit still, think things through, relax – because there is just no other alternative. I don’t think anyone is ever grateful for unemployment or disease, but sometimes we can be grateful for their side effects: a chance to reevaluate life. One [...]

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World War 2 story of spiritual teachers – Interviewing my grandmother

My grandmother is living in a retirement home. She has trouble remembering the name of her eldest brother, and whether he still lives (he doesn’t). There are suggestions she might have Alzheimer’s disease. But when I asked her what spiritual teacher of the last century had inspired her most – the following conversation occurred (I’m [...]

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