Solace of the Solitary

Adam Kelly...I completely respect your point of view some peopleare fact people, others trust their feelings. I am more a feelings person. I can't explain my spirituality and I am not saying wikipedia is the most reliable source of information (it was dead on for me in this casebut hey). As you stated the notion is extremely subjective.And becausethe notion is so subjective we can't debating eachothers faith in what we believe.Belief is something that an individual has come to know as honest and true..we can't debate and have a winning side whenwe are debating who someone is at the core.

And sometime when you feel it, it is there. When my fiance passed (unexpectedly, wasn't sick, didn't have a dangerous job) The night he passed I felt him embrace me (yes i'mserious), I started cryinginstantly, I knewsomething happened to him..Called his phone called hisfriends..The next dayI found out he passed that night.I am not sharing this personal experience because I want you to believe ingod orsouls or whatever...I mean I don't even know what that was...I am sharing this because sometimes when you feel it, sometimes when its something you can't explain, even though you can't explain it now or have facts to back it up doesnt also mean itsnot true or wrong.I am a feelings person may not always be right but may not always be wrong. Kinda like facts they are facts until someone proves anerror in the evidence. Irespect that you are so passionate about your beliefs and know who you are. OneLove!

Adam Kelly said:

Ashley, I really wish you could issue some "facts". I'm all about the evidence, but I can respect that you do not want to get into a debate. I'm finished talking about this matter anyway.Baba was right when he said there is no changing the minds of those who do not want to see. It works equally well both ways.

SE, I looked up the story and, by all means, it appears to be a rumour. There are no proper sites that mention it. By proper sites, I mean ones that dont have stories of bigfoot etc. Evolution is a fact, gravity is a fact, that living things die is a fact, but long hair giving you special powers is pure fabrication. There is no basis for the belief in reality. Very vague reports on unreliable sites do not warrant belief.

B-Bomb, with all respect, I feel that they do accept that some people just dont believe. I accept that they do believe in this, but Im just voicing my views. There is no argument, only debate.

As I said previously, spirituality surely has metaphysical connotations (wikipedia isnt the most reliable source of information). The notion is extremely subjective. If only there was some objective way to measure it, I might believe.

In the words of Thom Yorke Just cause you feel it, doesnt mean its there.

Thats all folks! Take care.

updated by @ashley-marz: 07/22/15 06:04:28AM

Your post is truly touching, Ashley, and makes good sense.

Rags, that you consider that a good point (from SE) is actuallymind boggling. Can you not see howbigoted, and frankly ridiculous, it is ? Its like saying that all Chinese people, for example, are stupid because they eat more rice. And furthering the stupidity by saying it is because the rice sucks away their life energy (or something equally as preposterous).

And, there is no fear or anxiety in my world view. I know only what can be known. I cannot say that I know something that I merely believe. I just cant bring myself to say it because I know how fallible the human mind and brain is (Im a psychologist), and how susceptible we are to hallucination (an example of which I have already outlined).

Here is my world view. We are animals. We are all members of the Great Ape family, which is derived from somewhere in Africa. We are all connected to each other via our genes, and in our case we also share experiences (due to our interaction). We are just as connected to each other, and the world, while down a mine or up a mountain. Due to our conscious experience being produced by our brain, which, just like the rest of us, was imperfectly shaped by evolution, we are prone to subjective error. For example, what we perceive as hot and cold does not shed light on what temperature really is, as it is actually movement on the atomic level. We hurl around a giant nuclear reactor, and that in turn revolves around a supermassive black hole, which is contained within the web of dark matter that spreads throughout our universe. Now, these are just examples of what can be known. Why not focus on something a majestic as that? The sheer enormity of it is mind-blowing, and we have only just begun to scratch the surface. Only objective measurement and reasoning has helped us to unravel the mysteries of space-time. There is no real need for subjectivity. It gets us nowhere.

Ashley, I am very sorry to hear about your fianc. And, although there are a number of points which could be made, I will not push any further on that subject with you, due to the deeply personal and painful nature of the topic. I will, however, relay my experience with death to you. Three years ago, my grandmother way dying. We knew she was on her way out, and actually we were surprised she had not gone days earlier. Everybody was gathered in the house as she began showing signs of nearing death. After hours of blatant suffering she started to rattle (a really horrible sound, like phlegm stuck in her throat that she did not have the energy to clear). An hour of this noise ensued, which got worse and worse, when she opened her eyes. The fear written on her face is something that I will never forget. Her body was shutting down and we all wished that she would pass quickly. She opened her eyes one last time and I held her hand as she died. We felt no spirit leave, nothing of that manner. Her body shut down and could no longer sustain activity in her brain. Once the brain is dead, the person you once knew is no longer there. All the underlying structure is there, but the firing of neurons has stopped, thus erasing all of her memories, her personality and all that we loved about her. We are left with only memories of her, which one day will pass with us.

This is in no way meant to detract from your experience. It just happens to be mine.

Adam, I'm sorry for the loss of your grandmother.

I have lost many loved ones in my life, especially during the recent decade. Interestingly, my experience of being in the presence of loved ones as they passed was quite different from the one you've described. I saw tremendous peace and beauty on the faces of those who had just died. In some cases, the peace was extremely powerful.

Perhaps we perceive death as we perceive life, who knows. "I think, therefore I am....."

I don't feel spiritual, but I definitely feel like I don't give a fuck. I used to do my hair and care if it was a mess and now I feel prettier I actually enjoy my smile and my personality not how my hair looks. No bandwagon here as a stylist I wanted to experiment with my hair see what it can do what it does on its own. Its not just a hairstyle Hun because before its a "dread" its a shitfest rats nest I honestly think, and no offense to anyone, the rush, the twist and rip, the back comb its kinda bogus and strange but like these comments to each his own. I weeded out a lot of people over hair its really strange and that in itself is "spiritual" because you really need to find inner peace. You seem to be very opinionated it seems you yourself need to have a "spiritual" moment. Relax sit back and enjoy how different beautiful creative and time consuming your hair has been. It takes months to see a change years to know what your going for. I see it you just raised a child on your scalp some people 10 15 years. Me a. Few weeks and it seems everyone's changed but me. you're all great people and we all have different views. We're human. Enjoy life. <3

Im young and i dont know much but I think that if one person has their belief and they stick to that, who's to say there isn't more out there? Just because people believe in one thing doesnt mean they have to think that everyone elses beliefs are Wrong. There's many things that humans haven't discovered yet. So many galaxies that us as humans can't even reach. What I'm saying is I'm open minded to anything and just because I have my personal beliefs doesn't necessarily mean that's the ONLY right one. Adam, you have your beliefs, and all of us here respect that. As you should respect what all the people on here believe. Whether you think it right or not.

Gettin' deep dreadies, reallll deep on this one!

I believe Adam's beliefs are rational. Pun intended as well. And now, a warning: for some reason my phone wasn't letting me type correctly so forgive the multitude of errors you're about to read over.Adam, it is very interesting to hear your side of things. I don't hear any fear in your posts. That's because I mostly read with my eyes but I also didn't see any fear either. I myself am mostly prone to taking a spiritual (dare I say even superstitious??) route in life yet I can't help but factor in the science of matters., ultimately I am a Christian (Roman Catholic/EasternOrthodox, lol, I'm at conflict at the moment) but the Catholic church has a healthy(er?) respect for sciecne anymore... Kind of ironic when you consider how many people were excommunicated, tortured, and killed back in the day. for their pursuits of knowledge... Anywaaaaay, continuing......I kind of picked up on their respect for science. It is my belief there is a duality to everything. Science can explain the natural phenomena that occur all around us but what about the supernatural or even the unknown? That is where my spirituality steps in. Until I can see it proven by science, I will believe it may have a mystic origin. It is a beautiful example of God's mysterious power and the infinite beauty of his creation. But that's the beauty of science... Once it answers one question, then we can ask and pursue better ones! There will remain many mystical levels to things even when answers are uncovered by man, imo.Haha, and then of course if one doesn't believe in the supernatural, well, then that takes care of that! And of course, what is yesterday's supernatural but today's natural? Lightning was thrown by the gods (Zeus if I remember correctly?? Eek, I've forgotten!) if you asked the Greeks way back when. Now it's just a lame channel of ions moving between the cloud and ground or what have you... Super lame compared to gods raining them downe,, lol.Anyway, now that I've divulged bits of my mixrd up life philosophies, here's my opinion on my locks.... For me, they're not spiritual. Because spiritual forfor me wouldean bringing me closer to God. Spiritua is nature - His creation, church, participating in the hHoly mMysteries, and letting God's will be done through me. I do a piss poor job at those things, lol, not gonna lie. I fail everyday. So will my hair bring me closer to God? No, but they couldbe usrd as a tool to bettering my spirituality, for sure! Anything that removes one from an aspect of worldliness is a powerful means of helping one get closer to God.Its just like dressing modestly. imo, it is a noble thing to do because it will effectivelyiisate one from the world at points in time. It also spares one from indecency and possibly from lustful thoughts by others. But it isn't on a spiritual level to me.Just wanted to throw in my two cents! Idk if my thoughts are inline with my religion or not... Hopefully I'm just dabbling in heterodoxy. But It's very interesting to hear the different beliefs held by my fellow dreadies. I have to get off here though. This weird typing thing that the website is doing is driving me bonkers. I hate leaving typos in my posts but when I try to backspace sometimes it deletes letters like two lines above this??? Meh, signing off, lol. Much love...

Oh me oh my! I forgot praying as a spiritual tool, lol. I had to add that. And there was another thing but my sleepy meds are kicking in... Pretty soon I'll be speaking in tongues if I don't go. Goodnight.

Spirituality is in the eye of the beholder. We are ALL very spiritual beings, just most have not woken up to this yet. You can find spirituality in anything and everything. Everything and anything is all the same. Energy. Part of the universe. One. I cannot say for sure but it sounds like you may have spiritual blinders on still and just need the right moment to awaken to it all. <3 Of course some will never awaken or at least not in this lifetime. And that is OK that is their journey. Dreadlocks don't have to be and are not going to be spiritual for everyone. But for some they may be very or just one small part of their spirituality as a whole.

Adam Kelly said:

"What's spiritual about a totem pole?" Nothing for the average person. For the Native American, however, it has cultural significance.

" Totem poles would not necessarily tell a story so much as it would serve to document stories and histories familiar to community members or particular family or clan members." - http://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/home/culture/totem-poles.html

Other than this it is just a dead tree, which has been carved and painted. In the same manner, the bible is just an old story book.

Dreads have cultural significance to the raised in the rastafari religion. Most of us come to them later in life. As such, we are exempt from this significance. Of course, people may tend to place their own meaning to them. However, I have the distinct feeling that there is abandwagonthat many seem all too willing to jump on. If there were no other posts or indications of spirituality associated with dreading, I'm fairly certain that there would not be so many people reporting spiritual experiences.

I'm a reductionist. As far as I'm concerned, we are not more than the sum of our parts. There may some who do feel that dreads are spiritual, but I'm certain that the human need for acceptance and integration into the social group plays a far greater role in the majority of the spiritual reports.