One of the main functions of religion is the binding function, the pulling together of communities into tight, uniformly believing groups. That gives survival value, over those who do not bind closely or those who prefer to be solitary. The best way to do it is to have some common mythology, a common set of rites and rituals, which are regarded as being ordained by the gods.

says Biologist and Writer Edward O. Wilson in an interview from the series in Grist God & the Environment. I mentioned him in a recent blog entry after hearing a bit of another interview on the radio. In Grist, he also says

We need to seek to live harmoniously together. Through time, religion will evolve. If you look back through the history of various Christian and Judeo denominations, you find that although there's always a group of hard-liners, there's a trend toward relaxing the posture of superiority, the bonds of dogmatic belief.

I would probably enjoy his book since I relate to the way he talks about religion and faith.

Cope is keenly interested in examining the way our concepts of enlightenment tend to stir up craving and clinging. "I don't find it helpful to crave some exalted, altered state," he says, "but prefer to practice every day in ways that create moments of freedom. To keep it really simple."

Cope measures his progress on the path by how well his practice attenuates greed, hatred, and delusion--the three defilements in Buddhism that are reflected in the five kleshas of the yoga tradition: ignorance, egotism, attraction, aversion, and clinging to life. "You can always ask yourself, "Is this softening my clinging, craving, and holding on? Is it softening hatred and delusion? If it's not, you've probably gone off track somewhere." from The Search for Enlightenment By Colleen Morton Busch in Yoga Journal

I seem to be examining Christianity in a new way; using teachings from another faith traditions to bring out the best that Christianity has to offer. An example is the non-clinging that Jesus taught getting lost in the eagerness to make disciples. Christians are not encouraged enough to ask, "Is this softening my clinging, craving, and holding on? Is it softening hatred and delusion? What a difference it might make to realize when we have "probably gone off track somewhere."

In the yogic view, we all hold within our bodies emotions and misguided thoughts that keep us from reaching samadhi, defined by some as "conscious enlightenment." Any sense of unease or dis-ease in the body keeps us from reaching and experiencing this state. Asanas are one path to blissful contentment, working to bring us closer by focusing our minds and releasing any emotional or inner tension in our bodies. Emotions in Motion, By Donna Raskin in Yoga Journal

This article made me think about keeping this spiritual journal. The desire or at least finally getting around to it may have come from my yoga practice. I looked to see if I ever explained what I was doing here. As I look back, I noticed that I just started reflecting; often on items from the archives of Yoga Journal.

There is also a lot of NPR; I have to admit to being a junkie. My commute is less than a half an hour and I usually listen to the news on NPR. Recently I have sometimes felt that I need the silence and have to overcome my news junkie desires. I hear Obi-Wan Kenobi saying, "Trust the force, Luke" and I obey by reaching for the radio and turning it off.

I liked the idea of an electronic journal as errors and vague musings can be corrected and improved. It can also be searched and previous entries can be referenced in the current entry with a hyperlink.

I decided to change the name of my blog today. I liked Peripatetic, One who walks about; a pedestrian; an itinerant but there already is a blog on blogspot with that name and URL. I will see how I like the new title. My current URL is only a problem if one drops the e on aire.