Monday, April 30, 2007

What is "PRAYER"?

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful...the Best Knower.

"What is PRAYER?" This question was asked in another forum.

I will give my perspective as a Member of the Nation of Islam, from more of an "esoteric" view than an "exoteric" one.

We believe that Allah (God) has always been, is now, and always will be Manifested through the Form of the Human Being. We believe that the "Person" of the First God, the Originator, is no longer present among us; but that His IDEA, Intelligence, Wisdom and Spirit are passed down from Generation to Generation, so that there is always One among the People of our Planet who is the Representative and Carrier of the Idea and Will of the Originator. This One is always referred to as the Supreme Being. This is the One Whose Mind is the "Nexus" for the Universal Intelligence, so that His Mind is one with, and has power over the Laws of Creation.

We believe that Being Came to North America in the Person of Master Fard Muhammad, and chose Black People in America as His People for the purpose of using them (us) to bring about the Kingdom of God on earth, as it is written in the Bible that "the stone(people) that the Builders(of civilization) rejected, the same has become the headstone of the corner."

We also believe, as we have been taught by the Hon. Elijah Muhammad, that Master Fard Muhammad has actually "Perfected" the Wisdom of the Originator; which means that He is greater in wisdom and power than the Originator. He is the One Who has "closed the Circle", so to speak. When the Circle is "closed", Eternity begins.

Now, that means that we believe that He - Master Fard Muhammad - is the Supreme of "Supreme Beings", and therefore we "pray" to Him.

However, I remember once hearing that the Hon. Elijah Muhammad was once asked if Master Fard Muhammad "Prays". The Hon. Elijah Muhammad answered, "Yes".

Now, this certainly presented a sort of a puzzle..lol.

"IF Master Fard Muhammad is the SUPREME Being, then WHY does HE Pray? And WHO does He pray TO, especially if HE is the Supreme One?"

Well, the Hon. Louis Farrakhan once said, regarding this, that Master Fard Muhammad prays "in rememberance of Him Who Originated the Heavens and the Earth."

Not "TO" the Originator...but "In rememberance of" the Originator.

So that got me to Thinking...

"Perhaps prayer for the student(neophyte) is not the same as Prayer for the Master."

It is my understanding that Children need a focal point, a Teacher, to Guide them. If I am in a Math Class and run into a Problem I don't have the answer to, I don't call on "Mathematics". I call on the Teacher...the one who has the answers to my questions.

However, the Master's Aim is to make Masters out of the Students, so that they Grow to the point where they draw from the Same Source as HE does, therefore negating the need for any more "Masters"; for if ALL are Masters, then All are Guided by the Same Universal, or Divine Intelligence, which is the Root of our Being.

So...then it appears to me, in this context, that "prayer" is the Alignment (or RE-Alignment) of one's Consciousness and Intention with the Divine Will, or Universal Intention; or the IDEA of the Originator. But for most of us, we need a focal point (Master) to Guide us into our own Mastery, after which we rely on the Master within.

Please consider the following, from the Hon. Louis Farrakhan:

"Master Fard Muhammad is the Conduit through Whom the Message from the Lord of the worlds came to us. He is Alive and has Absolute Power to bring His Will into fruition because His Will is in complete harmony with the Eternal Will of the Originator of the Heavens and the Earth.

"If Master Fard Muhammad is so Powerful, why does He pray? He would not have such Power if He did not pray. Through His prayer, He draws from the Power and Creation of The Originator at the point of its origination."

Worthy of the deepest consideration...

RM

Some Thoughts on "Depression"

Salaam (Peace) to all.

It seems to me, from my experience and study, that Depression has 4 main causes:

1) The perceived inability to make happen what one wants to make happen,

2) The perceived inability to prevent from happening what one doesn't want to happen,

3) The perceived inability to stop or change what IS happening,

4) The awareness that something "has happened" that one could not, or did not, prevent from happening.

Essentially, it is the feeling that one is incapable of effectively dealing with the challenges of life that makes one feel "de-pressed", meaning "pressed down" or "held down" by the circumstances of life.

Much of the time, it is the result of MISUNDERSTANDING... ...misunderstanding of events, actions, words, etc. When our FUNDAMENTAL ASSUMPTIONS about Life are based on flawed information, or "false data", then the result can be anything from "unrealistic expectations" to "low self-esteem".

What is "false data"?

Mathematically speaking, "false data" could be any data which, when acted upon, brings about a "false" conclusion.

The different types of "false data" could be classified as follows:
1) Data that is completely false.
2) Data that is partly true and partly false.
3) Data that is true, but incomplete.
4) Data that is true and complete, but misunderstood because of previously accepted "false data".

Like any computer, the Brain/Mind's answers to problems can be only as good as the information it has to work with. The more "true" the information being used to draw a conclusion, the more rational or "correct" the conclusion will be.

The Bible Teaches that "Greater is He that is in you, than he that is in the world." The Idea here is that the Essence and Spirit and Power of God is in EACH of us; but unless that Essence, Spirit and Power are Cultivated by the acquisition and application of proper Knowledge, then the "Greatness" of God within us will be "held down" by the circumstances of Life.

When a Divine Being perceives that He or She is UNABLE to manifest His or Her own Divinity and Power, that Being is without sufficient Knowledge of Self, and the result is...Depression.

Depression can be remedied with the Proper Knowledge...the Knowledge of Self.

RM

Saturday, April 28, 2007

Are YOU Being Affected by an Anti-Social (Suppressive) Personality?

Salaam (Peace) to all.

It should be noted that we may all occasionally demonstrate anti-social "tendencies", and this does not make one, necessarily, and anti-social "person". However, where the personality consistently demonstrates more than one or two of these "tendencies", it may be a sign of the need for corrective action.

Here are some indicators:

The anti-social (suppressive) personality...

...likes to use general terms like "everyone knows..." or, "you know what they say", to try to justify their ill feelings or bias against an individual, group, organization or project.

...deals mainly in bad news and invalidation of others.

...alters, for the worse, information he or she is given to pass on.

...does not respond to treatment, reform or psychotherapy.

...is normally surrounded by people who are crippled by his/her negativity (when he/she is present).

...habitually selects the wrong target; blames everything or everyone except the actual cause.

...cannot finish a cycle of action; is laden with a host of unfinished projects.

...does not accept responsibility for his/her wrongs or violations. It's always "somebody else's fault", or it "just happened".

...supports only destructive groups and attacks - even if only verbally - any betterment group.

...supports only destructive groups and attacks any activity aimed at self-improvement.

...cannot stomach sincerely helping others, but will easily feign help to get a chance to do harm.

...has no real respect for the property of others, and seeks to invalidate the success of others.


HOW TO KNOW if you are being affected by an Anti-Social Personality (ASP) or Suppressive Personality (SP):

The person (or persons) affected by an ASP/SP will usually be on an "emotional roller coaster", doing well (active) when the suppressive influence is absent, and doing badly (passive) when the suppressive influence is present.

There are two basic ways a person can be ill affected by an ASP/SP:
1) He/She is associated with, or connected to, an ASP/SP in his/her present time environment; either in the vicinity of, or in communication with.
2) He/She is having a PAST suppression "restimulated" by someone or something in his/her present time environment.

If you find yourself doing "great" some days, and then, for no apparent reason feeling "down in the dumps" or "anxious" about something; it could be that you are connected to a suppressive person or environment, or you are connected to persons or environments which closely resemble past incidents of suppression and they are restimulating your reaction to those past incidents.

What should one who is affected by an ASP/SP do?

In short, it only requires a few steps:
A) DISCOVER who or what is having a suppresive effect on you.
B) CONFRONT the fact that you are experiencing suppression.
C) HANDLE the situation by direct (but respectful) Communication, designed to inform the possible ASP/SP of the suppressive effect(s) he/she is having on you (they may be unaware).

If that does not work, then possibly the best thing to do is to...
D) DISCONNECT from the person(s) or environment that is having a suppressive effect on you.

In the Case of one who is having a "past suppression" restimulated by present time circumstances, one could disconnect as well; but the root solution would be to get resolution/closure on the Past suppression, and that will make one's present time situation more bearable.

I realize some of these terms may sound "semi-clinical", but don't let that throw you. Just focus on the Ideas/Principles given, and they can do wonders!

RM

Thursday, April 26, 2007

The AKON-troversy...

Ok...I've gotta say this...

YES...AKON should be ashamed of himself!

...but so should that "Preacher's Daughter". AKON can always claim he didn't know she was underaged...it ain't like "HE" was checkin ID's at the door.

But SHE knew she was underaged...and she didn't look to me like she was resisting at all...with her legs all up in the air...wrapped around his waist.

Who forced this girl to go to a club that her Father forbid her from going to?

Who forced this girl to lie about her age to get into the club?

Who forced this girl to find her way to the stage and participate in a "dance contest"?

Who forced this girl to lay on her back, raise her legs and spread them for him to simulate sex with her?

Who forced her?

Yes...what AKON did was inexcusable and savage...but she was a willing participant.

If we're gonna flog ONE...we need to flog the OTHER. Justice is fair and impartial.

What say you?

RM

Sunday, April 22, 2007

Are YOU a "Worker of Iniquity" ?

In the Name of Allah - the Beneficent, the Merciful:

Matthew 7
22 Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works?
23 And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity.

WORK(ER):
–noun
1. exertion or effort directed to produce or accomplish something; labor; toil.
2. something on which exertion or labor is expended; a task or undertaking: The students finished their work in class.
3. productive or operative activity.

INIQUITY:
[Origin: 1300–50; ME < L iniquitas "unevenness, unfairness", equiv. to iniqu(us) "uneven", unfair (in- in-3 + -iquus, comb. form of aequus even, equal) + -itas -ity]
[c.1300, from O.Fr. iniquite, from L. iniquitatem (nom. iniquitas) "unequalness, injustice," noun of quality from iniquus "unjust, unequal," from {in- (not) + æquus (just, equal)}]

Since a "worker" is one who "exerts effort directed to produce or accomplish something",

And...

Since "iniquity" is essentially "inequality" or "injustice",

Then...

A "worker of iniquity" would be one who "exerts effort" directed to produce or accomplish "inequality" between one entity and another.


In Mathematics, "inequalities" are represented by the symbols...

"<" (less than),

and

">" (greater than).

What Jesus was saying of this class of "Christians" who would be present in the Last Day, is that he would not even recognize them as being of him, because they were not working from his Spirit. They were doing "many wonderful works", but they were doing it from the attitude that they were "greater than" those who were not of their particular order or group. They "worked" to produce or accomplish the idea that they were "greater than" those whom their Master told them to be "servants" of. They created in their minds and "unjust" attitude that they were "better than"...or..."better off than" everyone else, and, because they were operating from an attitude of "injustice" and "inequality", they could only deal with the people unjustly.

"If you're not one of us, then you're "less than" us." ...Workers of Iniquity.

Basically, what it boils down to is "self-righteousness", which is rooted in ignorance...because if they REALLY understood the Message of their Master, they would come to the people as "Servants" and not as "Judges". They tell everyone "Judge not, lest ye be judged"...while they inwardly judge those who don't believe as they do.

No wonder Jesus said, "This people draweth nigh unto me with their lips, but their hearts are far removed from me."

How grieved he must be to see those who claim his name, demonstrating such "iniquity" in thought, word and deed. No wonder it is said that Judgement will begin in the House of God.

All that being said, now go back and replace the name "Jesus" with every other prophet who has a modern-day following, and the same applies.

It is precisely the attitude that "I am better" which makes us "lesser".

Beware.

RM

Tuesday, April 17, 2007

"I and My Father are One"

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful...the Best Knower.

It is a widely held and scientifically supported view that "living things retain the effects of their experiences." The effect of an experience is, in essence, a change from a previous state. This is true for cells as well as organisms.

Take "Cell A", for example...it is indeed a "living thing". As such it has intelligence and is affected by its environment (experience). The experiences of the Cell are recorded, and the effects are retained and then passed on to the next generation of cells so that "Cell B" (the descendant of Cell A) contains all that Cell A contained at the time of the "birth" of Cell B.

This suggests that Cell B begins its existence with the benefit of Cell A's experience in its genetic makeup. Then Cell B lives out its life, having experiences of its own, and retaining the effects of those experiences; so that by the time Cell B reproduces itself, it possesses the cumulative effects of the experiences of Cell A and itself, and passes that "data" on to its progeny, Cell C. "Cell C" then lives its life, retains the effects of its experiences, combined with the inherited cumulative data from the experiences of Cells A and B, and then passes that information on to its progeny, Cell D, who now possesses the data from the cumulative experience of Cells A, B and C. And the process continues on into infinity...

The Hon. Elijah Muhammad taught us that the Originator began as an Atom of Life, trillions of years ago, turning in the darkness; and that Atom kept growing, turning and evolving in the darkness until it produced a Form for Itself through which It could effectively Express itself.

What kind of "experiences" did that Atom of Life encounter? What Lessons were Learned over those trillions of years of Self-Development? What information was recorded in its genetic makeup that was passed on to His Progeny? How many generations of Experience and Information have been added to that genetic "database" from that time to now, where YOU and I are now Living?

WHO ARE WE, REALLY???

And HOW is our Cumulative Genetic Make-Up affected by the EXPERIENCE of Studying the Teachings (IDEA) of Master Fard Muhammad, as given to us by the Hon. Elijah Muhammad?

And...HOW is this relevant to the Science of Mating???

Just something to think about.

RM

Saturday, April 07, 2007

Oh REALLY??? Can you PROVE it???

Salaam (Peace) to all.

The problem with most religious people, regardless of what religion they belong to, is that they insult the Intelligence of the people by telling them to "believe", or accept as true, that which they themselves do not even understand and cannot Explain...and that is why so many people turn away from "religion", because the proponents of religion are usually ill-informed and superstitious, and the Mind demands Truthful, Mathematical answers to legitimate questions.

The Bible teaches us to "prove all things". Does that include the Bible, itself? Does that include the doctrine of "Christianity"? What is the process or standard by which we "prove" the Truth of the Bible, or the Qur'an, or any other Text?

What is the process or standard by which we "prove" the accuracy of our UNDERSTANDING of these texts?

If you hand me a book, and tell me "this is the Truth and your salvation", my first words to you would be, "PROVE it". How would you begin the PROCESS of "Proving" to me that what you are offering to me is "The Truth"? Would you begin with an ASSUMPTION that the Book is true, and make that ASSUMPTION the basis of your position? Or, would you introduce me to a Universal, Observable, Unchangeable Standard by which the Book you are presenting to me could be measured?

Something to Think on...

RM

Friday, April 06, 2007

Is It Wrong to JUDGE???

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful...the Best Knower.

[1] Judge not, that ye be not judged.
[2] For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again.

John 7
24 Judge not according to the appearance, but judge righteous judgment.

Online Etymology Dictionary
judge (v.)
1225, "to form an opinion about," from Anglo-Fr. juger, from O.Fr. jugier "to judge," from L. judicare "to judge," from judicem (nom. judex) "to judge,"
a compound of jus "right, law" + root of dicere "to say" (see diction).
The O.E. word was deman (see doom). Meaning "to try and pronounce sentence upon (someone) in a court" is from c.1290. The noun is from 1303. In Hebrew history, it refers to a war leader vested with temporary power (e.g. Book of Judges), from L. judex being used to translate Heb. shophet

Given both scriptures and the etymology, I think that the point here is that we must be VERY CAREFUL HOW we judge, because once we make a "judgment", we concretize that judgment as a basis for how we interact with, treat or respond to the object of our judgement from that point, forward.

This is dangerous because most people do not see deeply enough INTO the person, thing or event under consideration to render a "true" judgment; and since the word "Judge" basically means to "speak rightly" or "speak truth", we have to strive to resist the temptation to "speak" on that which we do not have a full knowledge of.

Another meaning of the word "judge" is "to evaluate"..."to determine or assess the value of". This is another dangerous area, because, although it is a natural function of the human brain/mind, too many times people are hurt and even killed because someone else made an improper "evaluation" of themselves or another, based on something said or done that was not fully understood.

I don't think it is realistic to suggest that people "not judge". I think a better approach is to emphasise the need to exercise great care and caution in the process of forming judgments.

Now, in the matter of Religion...if God, Himself makes a Judgment and then pronounces His Judgment among the people, then the people have a Right and a Duty to use His Judgment as a Basis for their judgments. We must uphold that which God upholds, and we must reject that which God rejects. HOWEVER, we still must exercise the greatest care and caution in doing so, because we want to make sure that our MOTIVATION for acting on God's Judgement is the same as GOD's Motivation for rendering the Judgment. If we act on God's Judgment from a spirit of "self-righteousness", then we have corrupted God's Righteous Judgement by seeking to make it our own, using God's Name as the "justification".

For example:

Saint Sam understands that it is against God's Will to _____ . Saint Sam therefore does not _____ . However, when Saint Sam comes upon Sinner Sue who DOES _____ , then Saint Sam forms a judgment in his mind about Sinner Sue that causes him to see her as less than himself. This only proves that Saint Sam doesn't really understand God's Purpose for rendering His Judgement regarding _____ . Nor does Saint Sam understand God's Love for both him AND Sinner Sue.

If Saint Sam really understood God's MOTIVE for the Judgement regarding _____ , then, when he came across Sinner Sue he would have done whatever he could to HELP Sinner Sue to come up out of _____ , knowing that SHE is no different from HE, except that she has a need to be helped in the area of _____ .

More on this later, God Willing, from the Beautiful book, "Closing the Gap: Inner-Views of the Heart, Mind and Soul of the Honorable Minister Louis Farrakhan."

RM