Prolifically Raw: Looking for the Keys to the Modern Man??

Sunday, September 02, 2007

Looking for the Keys to the Modern Man??

I have been, for many years.

I have lived with them, been fathered by several, loved them, hated them, married them, left them and crawled back on my hands and knees to them. Men are important. I know this. Men are a problem. I know this too. Men make wars, not women. Period. Men rape; each other and us. This is clear. Men have all the power and money. Men run the world.

And, I have a man inside of me, I also mother a son. So (for me) it is damn important to understand men.

So I ask and I search and I question and finally, FINALLY, I read this and knew I had the answer to my questions about men.

This passage is long and wordy but that is entirely appropriate since the modern man, with his shield of the intellect, likes his theories and the associated dissections necessary to arrive at his theories. Be patient and read carefully for is the story of what is happening in the men we cannot understand and yet try to love despite our confusion. It comes from the forward of a book titled The 100,000 Songs of Milarepa, published by Shambala:

If the average modern man is asked what he is living for, and what is the aim of his striving, he will probably tell you, with some embarrassment, he lives �to enjoy life,� �to support his family,� �to achieve something meaningful and worthwhile.� But in reality, we are all aware that no one seems to know exactly what he is living for. If he broods over the things surrounding him and the kind of world he is living in, he will soon become skeptical about the relevance of raising these questions. He cannot help but ask honestly, �Can we really know the right answers, do we have any choice over these matters, and after all, what difference will it make?�

In spite of the unavoidable resignation and bewilderment the modern man feels, sooner or later he finds himself compelled to choose between two alternatives: he can either turn to religion with blind faith and hope, or turn to the world and �make the best of it.� It is certain that men choose the former, not always because they are convinced of the truth of religion, but rather because doubt and despair have made their lives unbearable. On the other hand, they choose the latter, not because they have proved the untruth of religion, but because, in all likelihood, their spirits are deadened by pessimism and indifference. One fact, however, remains clear: in both cases the choice is made under the coercion of pain, sorrow, or despair.

It is common knowledge that an awareness of impending peril stirs men to act and to strive, than a awakening to man�s limitations and helplessness in the face of the Universe, inspires him to pursue the �beyond� and the eternal. Thus both heaven and earth, Nirvana and Samsara, owe their births to human sufferings and despair. A thoughtful man must ask: �Is it really advantageous to lead a life without any suffering? Are not misfortune and grief prerequisites for spiritual awakening? From the ultimate viewpoint, are we, the sophisticated �men-of-abundant-knowledge-and-possession,� truly better off than the �men-of-ignorance-and-scarcity� of olden times?� Let us think twice before we give an affirmative answer to these questions. Let us also ponder on some further ones: �is it not true that science and technology, at their best, can alleviate but not eliminate the sufferings of men? Can plastic surgery, or the �face-lift,� really make a miserable old woman happy? Does it really matter much whether or not we can defer our entrance into the grave or ten or fifteen year beyond schedule?� Many ingenious devices have been invented to conceal the unpleasant facts of life, and many gadgets have been created to gratify men�s insatiable desires; but in the final analysis, what else have these contrivances brought us save their contributions to a fool�s paradise for men to live in? Science, as one wise man has said, �makes major contributions to minor needs.� Religion, whether or not it comes up with anything, at least is at work on the things that are truly important.

Deluded by material achievement and comforts, the majority of modem men are deprived of the opportunity and privileges of leading a rich spiritual life as their forefathers once did.

There you have it. My translation: ALMOST ALL MODERN MEN ARE HOPELESSLY LOST! Their minds make it more so. Their questions and their theories...ditto!

Women do not, nor should we concern ourselves with these heady worries for long. In fact, writing this passage is as exhausting as being around a man who is in this place of questioning and inaction, in his own life.

I have learned first hand that women do not have to steep themselves in these long winded conversations that lead to more entanglement and sorrow. We have the instantaneous power to go directly to Truth with a capital T because our embodiment that, despite our attempted denial, call on us once a month and more so when we have children. Our bodies, Ladies, save us from the hell that men live in. And, hell is made by men and mind. Look around at our world and what we have to give our children and ourselves.

What is the answer?

I believe the man who can ask these questions and then forsake mental gymnastics all together, is the man of the future. The man who can set aside his intellect, dive deeply into ancient learning and come to terms with his internal feminine (verses projecting it on a woman, be it daughter, wife, mother or porn model) is the one to watch. These mythic men are out there, I�ve actually met one or two�they are quite delightful.

How do we help these men get on this path? That is the rub�we cannot. They must arrive at this place themselves. Our only choice is to put ourselves at the center of our lives, find what makes us joyful and happy and live accordingly. Women are not the problem. We must simply leave men to find their own way, with us or without us. Once a woman finds her true center, which is not and never will be in revolving around a man, all will be right again.