Actually, screw that question, because the answers are so varied and will leave us scattered all over the place.
I believe we’ll find more common ground by going to the other side.
What DON’T you like about people you DON’T like?
That they talk about themselves?
That they are opinionated?
That they are selfish?
That they can’t wait for you to finish talking so they can say their bit?
That they know what’s best for you?
I’m gonna go out on a limb here and claim that a common denominator for most of our gripes with people we find ourselves not getting along with is this: they have an agenda.
They are self-absorbed, opinionated, inconsiderate, impatient, know-it-alls, fill in the blank because they have an agenda.
Why do we like the wise old grandma or grandpa?
I don’t know about you, but I liked it because they just sat there.
Agenda-free.
What do we like about TRUE spiritual people, who take the “you do you, I do me”-approach when engaging in worldly matters and who resolve conflict with an authentic and respectful “let’s agree to disagree” shrug?
Agenda-free.
Now, of course, in order to not just “point the finger at all the idiots out there” and simply not like the other person because THEIR agenda differs from ours (and risk becoming like one of the candidates on either side of a presidential debate) we need to recognize when WE have an agenda.
Because when we do, and cause friction because of that, we are just guilty of the same thing.
Do you sometimes behave like a presidential candidate?
Do you catch yourself doing any of the things you DON’T like in others?
If you ever find yourself disappointing yourself with a Trump-like behavior, how about looking at WHY you need to say whatever you say?
What’s causing you to have an agenda?
Why do you need to convince the person that you are right?
Why do you need that person to agree with you?
What is it IN YOU that needs that person to fill in the blank?
And when you keep digging, and keep following the breadcrumbs, and finally get to a cave that looks a bit dark and scary - but also oddly alluring, because you suspect therein lies the key to your suffering…well…you might consider looking into psychedelics…
“The cave you fear to enter holds the treasure you seek.” - Joseph Campbell
(I think this is the magic of magic mushrooms. It meets you where YOU are, with NO agenda. It greets you and takes you by the hand, and helps you listen to you, and helps you HEAR you.
This is why it was so dangerous to society back in the 60’s. How to control people - keep them plugged into the matrix - if they find a way to listen to THEMSELVES and start questioning the agenda of the establishment..?)
”If you have no agenda, then you are totally free to respond to the needs of others.”
(comment made by Swami Tadatmananda in today’s Bhagavad Gita class, minute 39:52 https://youtu.be/koZ_WAl_MkQ?si=1R-AmOoTaBG8DCvS, if you are weird enough to be interested in this sort of thing… 🙂)
(Psychedelic therapy in Sweden)
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