Cash on Sunday

I do not go to church. I used to go to church on a regular basis but that all changed several years ago. Now I have a group of people that I meet with and we discuss lts and lots of things ranging from the philosophical to the religious to the political to the scientific and all points in between. And as far as I am concerned that is good enough for me right now. I really only even miss one thing from the actual process of church and that is the worship music aspect of it. I realize that it is because of that I often find myself on what has always been considered a church day, like Sunday, I find myself listening to Johnny Cash. He is really the only performer who does some gospel now and then that I can really stand. So since it is a Sunday, lets listen to a little Johnny Cash.

Johnny Cash - Lead Me Gently Home Father

One of the many things that I like about Johnny was his transparency in terms of both his faith and his failing in life. I like that he was unafraid to sing both gospel songs as well as just plain secular songs in general.

Johnny Cash - The Ballad of Ira Hayes

He sang Americana classics as well as took modern rock songs and redefined their sound and their power. His final 5 albums the American Recordings series are just plain amazing and I have been able to listen to them again and again.

Johnny Cash - (Ghost) Riders in the Sky

It wasn't just his lyrics it was also the tone of his baritone and bass voice as well as that memorable chugging sound of the guitar. There is something about the whole package that appeals so much to me and often, for me, listening to him can make a bad day better.

Johnny Cash - I Will Rock and Roll With You

His music inspired so many modern day performers that I just do not have time to mention them all and without his legacy I really do think that modern day music would not be what it is today.

Johnny Cash - Personal Jesus

This version of the Depeche Mode song is amazing and one of my personal favorites. It also speak to me on a personal level. I know that when one talks about matters of faith it is easy to get caught up in the vocabulary of the faith and religion but for me this song is far bigger then that.

Johnny Cash - All Over Again

He also sang some great love songs. There was for sure a sappy side to his work but that is because I think he really was a romantic.

Johnny Cash - Dark As A Dungeon

Even his songs that are cautionary tales are still excellent to listen too.

I hope that I was able to give you some music of Johnny's that  you hadn't heard before. I leave you with this. I am working toward a "Satisfied Mind" and I hope I find it one day.

Johnny Cash - Satisfied Mind

Also remember this -

Johnny Cash liked cake. But, can you blame him? Cake is good. 

What does detachment mean?

I am not a Buddhist, I have never claimed to be one. What I am is more of a seeker with interest in all kinds of things both philosophical and political. Sometimes these things cross over each other and other times they do not. I was raised in a Protestant Christian home and while my beliefs still tend to be in that direction I am sure that a good portion of what I do and think is not typical of what I think of as the usual Protestant. I also am well aware that my thoughts on religious and political issues are just as biased as other people and  while I like to think that I can be logical and practical about things I am sure that I have emotional blind spots like everyone else does. That is just called being human. I just want to make that clear. I do not have all the answers and I am not claiming too.

Oh! You Pretty Things - David Bowie

I would say that my basic belief system has undergone a wholesale seachange in the last five years or so, probably closer to the last three years. This started for me post my divorce. The upheaval from that led to me seriously looking for some level of peace and calm in my life. Some safe harbor from the storm of emotion that was spinning all around me. I was not getting this from my Protestant Christian life. I am not attacking that. I am just acknowledging that it was not helping me. I would also venture to say that my problems were probably more with the structure of church as an institution then it was with the idea of a personal level of faith.

Perfect Day - Lou Reed

So in that regard I do not think my faith has changed but I think that my idea of "worship" or "Church" has changed and I am finding the majority of peace and calm in the daily deep breathing and meditation that I do. But while I have enjoyed those things and I feel that they have been very beneficial in helping me achieve daily peace of mind. I read something today that I am having a hard time processing in terms of how I look to live my life and how I want to be thought of and how I want other people to think of me. The thought is below.

"There is nothing lacking in you, and you yourself are no different from the Buddha.  There is no way of achieving Buddhahood other then letting your mind be free to itself. You should not contemplate nor should you purify your mind. Let there be no craving and hatred, and have no anxiety or fear. Be boundless and absolutely free from all conditions. Be free to go in any direction you like. Do not act to do good, nor to pursue evil. Whether you walk or stay, sit or lie down, and whatever you see happen to you, all are the wonderful activity of the Great Enlightened One. It is all joy, free from anxiety-it is called Buddha" 

                    --- FA-Jung, The St Francis of Zen (594 - 657)

Southhampton Dock - Roger Waters


That whole idea leaves me so torn. The main part is that because I want to do good. I like to be good to people and I like for them to be good to me. So what does that mean for how I live my life if I stop doing that? Do I just start aimlessly floating? I do not think so but I feel like I am not grasping something. It feels like I am on the verge of clarity but it is floating just beyond my reach and Zen being what it is if I strive for it I will surely be unable to grasp it. I realize that clarity and understanding must come to me on my own but what that paragraph is asking of me seems impossible. My end desire is to achieve total calm but the cost of total calm is complete detachment from everything I care about then why would I want to do that?

Modern Love - David Bowie

2-26-2010 (Friday) The Birthday of Johnny Cash

1932-2003

I was going to write today about Johnny Cash and what his music means to me. But as I sit here listening to his music on Johnny Cash Radio
I am feeling myself slightly overwhelmed. I am really unable to put into words what it means what he mean. I realize he was a musician and just a man. He was a man, much like I am a man. But he was a man who fought his demons his whole life. He never presented himself as anything more then that. He also warts and all was a believer and he never shied away from that. One last album is getting released this week American VI: Ain't No Grave please check it out.

In closing I am going to leave you with his version of 'Hurt'




I MISS YOU

Jan 18, 2010 (MLK Jr Day)

Faith is taking the first step even when you don't see the whole staircase.
Martin Luther King, Jr.

Good Morning folks, I hope you are all well today and had a nice weekend. I posted the quote above since today is MLK day and I am hoping to do something on the blog each day there is some sort of honoring of some one in America or maybe the world I am not sure. So most of the time I imagine it taking the shape of me posting a quote and then maybe a few thoughts about that quote but sometimes it may just be the quote. I am not fully committed either way yet.

That being said I do find today's quote pretty interesting to me on a purely personal level. I have been struggling with what faith means for a long time. I really feel that any thinking person has to struggle with this issue now and then. Even more so if you are at all religious in nature. The amount of mystery that goes with believing in a higher power makes faith a huge issue. At least I think it does. I would love to have the sheer confidence of the true believer or the sheer confidence of the hard core atheist.

I instead fall somewhere in the middle of the two camps and shift back and forth depending on the books I have read or where my emotions are, are any given time. I do not think this is a good thing or makes me better in some way or another then any body else it just is. Sometimes even when I can see the whole staircase I have a hard time believing it is real. So I am not sure what that actually means.

I am also not actually sure where I was going with this today. So I think I will stop there. Perhaps I will expand on this theme at a later date I am not sure. Anyway I hope you all have a good day and I hope to hear from you soon.