The Fall

Posted by Paul Reynolds on Jul 13, 2023 in Blog, Inspired Readings, Video & Audio, Western Insight | Comments Off on The Fall

and some further explanation from Eisenstein –
……One more dimension of meaning to my short film, The Fall.

The choice that it represents isn’t only a choice made before lifetimes. It is an ongoing choice, day to day, moment to moment, about how to engage the world.

One way to engage (or really, not engage) is to stay in whatever temporary comfort realm one can manage with distractions, entertainment, addiction. Yet none of these can be permanent, and even the most sublime experiences of immersion in nature or lovemaking cannot be prolonged beyond their right span. At some point, the awareness grows that we are on the brink of a pit, that right beneath us, just a shift of attention away, is a world that begs our service. To rest, to recharge, is important in order to render that service well, but when the batteries are full, restlessness will seize even the most indolent among us. So, the choice to attempt a permanent disengagement from the world to abide in its pleasurable precincts is futile.

A second way to engage is with a heavy spirit of duty, overcoming by force of will a reluctance to enter the fray, carrying a subtle distaste for the lower realms. It comes from a false sense of superiority, and leads as well to a partiality of engagement. One stays half in, half out, never fully committing to embodiment.

The film portrays a third choice. The luminous beings plunge into the pit — all the way in. And they do so in peace, in joy, in serenity. They do not feel sorry for themselves as they take the plunge. They meet their mission gladly.

I will confess — I didn’t actually make this film for you. I made it for me. I’m the one who has so often hung back from life, stayed timidly a little bit above the fray. I’m the one who often engages life joylessly, with too heavy a sense of duty. I’m the one who, sometimes, sees people with ungenerous eyes blind to the truth that they here on the same mission I am.

As I enter more deeply into the “fray” of a political campaign, I hope to do so as the people in the film do — fully, but not as a fighter, not to become a creature of the Pit. I will watch this film from time to time to help me stay serene in the knowledge of what I and all others are really here for. May this film help you, as it has helped me, to see with generous eyes and speak with generous words that summon what is seen into manifestation.

Posted by | Paul Reynolds

“Not Christian or Jew or Muslim, not Hindu, Buddhist, Sufi, or Zen. Not any religion or cultural system…..” - Rumi

For over 30 years Paul Reynolds has collected and shared inspiration from a wide variety of sources. Embracing the philosophy that at the core of all these expressions is the reminder that we are loved and supported every moment. This unending stream of inspiration, imagination and wisdom is posted via his weekly ‘Living the Question Blog’, which has become ‘home’ for those discoveries. If you would like to receive the readings and share them with those you feel will benefit, please fill out the ‘Subscribe’ form to the right and Paul’s selections will come to your email every Friday.