<p>Yay! I don’t believe in “karma”, either. :]</p>
<p>Oh, lol, 2-3 books for the whole TASP gang is cool; buying 2-3 copies of each Harry Potter book though, is a little excessive, lol. -_-;;</p>
<p>And gosh, you guys are all so musical! I can’t do anything related to the performing arts pretty much - you should have seen my extremely sad tableau show for my required drama class. ARGH.</p>
<p>Does anyone know how to play the zither by any chance?</p>
<p>Yeah…I’m not quite hardcore like that, Mintie.</p>
<p>And dae, I say karma is a curse BECAUSE I believe in it. Do you realize how terrible of a thing it is to believe that everything will work out in the end? (That’s how I see it - I’m quite selfish and seem to think that the world revolves around me.)</p>
<p>How would that be a curse? :S It’ll be awesome if the world works like that. XD</p>
<p>Haha, okay I’ll explain:</p>
<p>I believe that everything will work out in the end.</p>
<p>Thus I have extremely high hopes. Whenever something bad happens, I reassure myself that it happened for a reason and I look for that reason (and find it every time, no matter how ridiculous).</p>
<p>But then something terrible happened this year that I could find no explanation for. Ellen and I didn’t get editor-in-chief together. I can still find no reason for it. I even named the application "If Ellen and I don’t make editor in chief together I will doubt the existence of a higher presence (aka fate/karma). </p>
<p>This makes me question whether or not karma exists. I want it to, more than anything. I apply it to my life in practically every way.</p>
<p>Anyhow, what REALLY makes it a curse is college. In my option, working out for the best means me getting a full tuition/full ride to some college (meaning I genuinely believed it would happen, even though I know the chances of me actually getting one are very very slim). But after the whole Ellen incident, I fear for what may happen.</p>
<p>So now I constantly question my life and wonder if things really will work out for the better. Because it’s awfully selfish of me to think that MY life will be perfect (which is essentially what I believe -_-). Isn’t that terrible?</p>
<p>lol, no it’s not. </p>
<p>I have a similar philosophy. Regarding your friend Ellen, it may just be that you don’t know the whole story. For example what I deem to be unfair or unbelievable may just be justice or fairness working itself out in ways that I have no way of knowing because I don’t know everything about the context. (Not suggesting though, that Ellen didn’t deserve to be editor-in-chief too!)</p>
<p>Disappointments happen, and so I can understand why it’s hard to hope. I feel foolish sometimes too, thinking that somehow <em>my</em> life will be fair if I have properly conducted myself - a philosophy that perhaps is delusional, but I hope it is right at the same time. </p>
<p>lol, I hope we’re both right - I hope things do work out for the best. ;)</p>
<p>I know, and I’ve tried to convince myself as such, but in the end I STILL feel like she deserves it 23429763823 more times than me. Not that I don’t work my butt off for journalism, but because I feel that…I’m more lucky in life than she is, does that make sense? Like I’ve gotten practically everything I’ve wanted in life, so it’s like…her turn to get something.</p>
<p>I don’t know, it’s all so confusing. And I really hope college turns out for the best, and TASP, and everything. (HAHA before TASP decisions I would constantly tell myself, you obsess so much over TASP there is no way that fate/God could possibly be cruel enough to NOT give it to you…that’s how I would reassure myself 
and it spurred me to post more on this forum so that I could show fate just how obsessed I was)</p>
<p>Living would be a lot harder for me without karma. I personally don’t think of karma along what the lines of true karma (which I guess wouldn’t make it karma), but to me it’s not so much the intention or action that determines what kind of karma you get. Firstly, my understanding of traditional karma is that one can attract good karma simply by not purposefully doing something to receive bad karma. However, that method of viewing karma doesn’t really explain why sometimes good things happen to bad people and vice-versa. I always thought of karma as simply part of a cycle, which remedies that puzzle somewhat. There are times of sudden influxes in good karma, and others of bad karma, depending on the energy of the universe, which affects everything in the universe (we are entering (or have already entered) hippy-land, please keep your hands and feet within the rainbow at all times). For example, let’s say the world decides to have a day of peace and love, all of that good karma swells and the after effects bring even the odd vile pre-The Christmas Carol Ebenezer Scrooge some good karma. Therefore, it’s like we’re living in a solution at dynamic equilibrium with both good karma and bad karma being converted and transferred at a somewhat equal rate. But when there is a surge in good intentions, the good karma after effects sometimes get randomly distributed to people that didn’t deserve them. The same goes for bad karma and good people. In that sense, karma becomes less perfect (I helped a million old ladies, therefore I’m winning the lottery tomorrow!) and simply boils down to a game of statistics. Think, however, of the massive profits if one could predict karma and capitalize on the cycles! </p>
<p>This also kind of relates to whether or not you believe in luck… I do, I truly do think that there are times when statistics are stacked in my favor and times when they are not, with fairly even spans of no good/bad luck in between. In this sense, luck and karma become representative of the same idea. </p>
<p>Back to the notion of ‘living would be a lot harder without karma’–Ellen is right, karma is essentially denial. But I find that denial isn’t always a bad thing, especially when it comes to things that humans simply don’t have control over. Then again, who knows what we have/will have control over really, and then you start getting really philosophical (man I can’t wait for TASP). </p>
<p>Nevertheless, I like to think of karma as a somewhat true model of our universe because I idealistically like to believe that, as tako said, everything will work out in the end. I don’t feel like I’m putting myself in a box by believing in karma, and heck, it’s enough to allow me to live a relatively calm life (it takes a lot to get me worked up about something). If karma isn’t true, and our world just works completely at random with people receiving undeserved opportunities or punishments, I’m not quite sure if I’m ready to face that reality… or better yet, want to.</p>
<p>EDIT: I need to learn how to post faster, you guys post at like 5 times my pace! Tako I totally understand and I agree with what Mintie said. And don’t put yourself down, you really can’t know exactly what she wants and maybe this IS for the better (maybe your friend will realize how much she loves layout (is that the position she ended up getting? or am I hallucinating again?) and chooses that as her career, and ends up being extremely successful). I still believe that everything will work out in the end, and I think that for all people. It isn’t so much that life will be perfect, but more along the lines that life will be balanced. Who knows, with this logic, Donald Trump is either a really good person or has some serious personal issues that don’t get splattered over tabloid covers… (Not that I wish that upon him, I’m just following through with the logic…)(or maybe he has already capitalized on karma cycle prediction! oh those economists!!!). Just hope for the best (especially with college applications right before summer) because there is little you can actually do beyond what you are already doing to get that full-ride.</p>
<p>Oh yeah, Ellen loves layout, but editor in chief gets MORE layout, believe it or not. Because she oversees pages, but never really gets a page to herself (though she WILL end up doing many pages simply because other people lack the skill/ability) while editor in chief gets to do front page.</p>
<p>And I do tell myself that there is a reason for it; however, for now it’s still quite devastating. </p>
<p>And you know, that’s an interesting point that believing in karma may be deceiving oneself of reality. Perhaps it is. I hope not. Is anybody here religious?</p>
<p>Sometimes I wonder if there is a God. It’s somewhat reassuring to believe in one, I’m sure, and I do, to some degree. But then I question what his reasons are for putting things like starvation and poverty on the world, and what entitles me to live such a privileged life compared to somebody in say, Africa. Like, why was I chosen to be one of the “elite” few?</p>
<p>I don’t know; I want to believe in a God but there are so many things that force me to question His existence. I try to think of theories, but honestly they make no sense.</p>
<p>Like the whole - well without bad, there would be no good! theory. I think that’s ridiculous, why can’t we just have a world of good? And if man is indeed being punished for his sin, well, why the poor starving orphans in Somalia and not me? Why? Is it just a lottery, and I got lucky?</p>
<p>So many questions -_-</p>
<p>
wow that is so naive
and ■■■■■■■■</p>
<p><em>reads the last few posts</em>
and DEAR GOD i am so damn glad i didnt get into TASP
<em>sigh of relief</em></p>
<p>Why is everyone so deep on here… Deeper than a glacial rift.</p>
<p>I think your last post you wrote Tako is interesting and sort of ironic because Mintie just facebook’d me regarding the same sort of thing.
Today I was at church to practice for this girl’s quince on Saturday. And as I sat there I wondered, if you believe in god and have faith in him… That means he has faith in you, right? So why is it necessary for things to be so meticulous and ornate in a church. We say he accepts you as you are, so why do we keep fronting. But then I kept thinking, its the institution that gives us the faith and power, because would people believe in god had the churches never formed (im talking way back now). After all god is the intangible and is that what makes people so fond of him. He sent Jesus to be amongst us and that was the tangible, but if he was one of us would people be so enthralled (thinks of bad song “What if God Was One Of Us”)-- after all he would just be another person with power (and we all know what power does to real people). Its sort of like kids being captivated by fairytales because it is something and somewhere they have never been before.</p>
<p>I don’t even know what I am saying now because religion is such a complex issue.</p>
<p>But IMO the way the church works is because there is God, and that god is a common god amongst people and when people have something in common they can be united. And when people are united and in a congregation, it’s the energy that flows between the people that makes religion so appealing to us. Obviously this isn’t the only reason why religion has been so sustainable but I believe that is the underlining principle.</p>
<p>^Nate, SEE THINGS DO WORKED OUT FOR THE BETTER!!!LOL!</p>
<p>Corey, I wrote about this in my topic essay! It brings up a lot of interesting ideas and its awesome for discussion. Too bad its 11:20 and I still havent started my chemistry review sheet discussion, or homework, or discussion, or homework or lengthened sleep. Thats a toug zzz</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I believe in God. I can’t say that I’m “religious” in the ritualistic, fanatic church-attending sense, but I believe in God. </p>
<p>When I was younger it used to be more of a fleeting whim, a plaything almost, like one of those “imaginary friends” children get so intrigued by. I was entranced, as C.S. Lewis put it, by the mythical aspect of it all–of a Creator beyond my comprehension, larger than life and infinitely inscrutable. Like some huge jigsaw puzzle. Perhaps that was part of it: I wanted to understand, and to put my faith in an incomprehensible Being was mystifying and therefore exciting. I loved rationality and logic, and Christianity just…wasn’t very rational or logical.</p>
<p>Finally though, after some self-seeking and God-chasing, I realized, all of a sudden, that this “God” I had so naively and flippantly believed in as a child really did exist. I can’t say when exactly I came to this conclusion, or even why I felt such a strong conviction about it; but I did. And I think life has been, for me, more meaningful–more beautiful, perhaps–because of it. </p>
<p>Anyways, I think you’re right, Corey, in that the church works because there is a God–and why this “common thread” of belief can be able to sustain it through the centuries. I am puzzled by and disappointed with the degree of hierarchy and formality that permeates church walls today. What’s spiritual, I think, should rarely have to be ornate. Sadly, this ritualistic attitude is all too common; Christianity has been reduced to a list of rules, while the faith itself has been sucked dry… </p>
<p>But even had the Church not existed, I’m convinced I still would have believed in God. I can’t explain why; I suppose there is something intrinsic in us that points to our Maker, some sort of invisible thread; and this thing, this soul-like substance, is what lies at the heart of who we are. I mean, that sounds obscenely trite, but I really do believe it. I really do believe in miracles, in Heaven and Hell, in free will, in the eternal goodness and perfect justice of God despite the reality of evil, in divine providence and absolute truth and all of that. </p>
<p>I dunno. I guess I’m just an idealist at heart. And I don’t really want to delve too deeply into all the spiritual points/justification for my belief, because that’ll probably require decades of introspection–and my mind just doesn’t function like that for so long! Though this it’ll come up at TASP, I bet…which will definitely make for an interesting discussion! :)</p>
<p>“You predicted your own grades? wow”</p>
<p>Just based on this year’s grades, the level of difficulty of the classes I’m taking, and my skill levels. big deal, gosh.</p>
<p>daenerys, 
</p>
<p>No way. I am shocked. That entire post was pretty much a reflection of my belief in terms of religion (except the Hell part - I just CAN’T find a rational way to justify eternal agony for any amount of sin). </p>
<p>I can’t explain rationally why I believe in God, either. I know there are many, many counter-arguments to the existence of a benevolent and omnipotent being, but at the same time, I can’t deny that existance. It really didn’t take a big leap of faith for me to believe in God - it was easy, in fact. The irony, or the elegance, lies in the fact that I cannot possibly convince another human being of the existance of God in the way that God has convinced me.</p>
<p>whoa, uber, are you '07?</p>
<p>No, he’s going to our TASP, isn’t he?</p>
<p>And if Heaven and Hell exist, does that mean that we are responsible for each and every one of our actions and a “Judgement Day” will come one day? Or are you judged upon your death?</p>
<p>So say a mother has a miscarriage. That child was alive but has essentially done nothing in his life. Who is to say if he goes to heaven or hell? What is he judged upon?</p>
<p>Why do some people die so early, while others live so long? Is that a lottery system, just totally random? Does God/fate/karma/whatever higher being have a reason for every death or is it more of a, I’ll just let things be, kind of thing?</p>
<p>If God/a higher being truly does exist, then do each and every one of our actions affect our lives now? If I do something bad, will something bad happen to me to punish me? Or do our actions now not affect our current life, but simply decide whether we enter heaven and hell (if they do exist). Then, do good deeds and bad deeds cancel each other out? (And how do you judge the “goodness” or “badness” of a deed?)</p>
<p>Does this mean we’ll live for all of eternity? How do heaven and hell fit everybody who’s ever died? Does this mean, potentially we could meet Thomas Jefferson or Kurt Vonnegut? Can we meet anybody?</p>
<p>Okay, I know religious debates are terrible things, but just wondering what you guys thought because I wonder about these things at times.</p>
<p>Darn! Why did we have to start such a good discussion now! I have to leave in like 10 minutes and won’t have access to a computer until about Sunday.</p>
<p>Okay so really quickly, I personally don’t believe in heaven or hell or judgement, but I do believe in a greater being. However, that being isn’t personified as a person or a creature in my mind, it’s more like a force or an energy within the universe (like the big bang, that burst of energy is sort of what I think of as God and its movement and concentration within our universe is ‘God’s will’/miracles/karma/luck/etc.). I think once we die, we become part of that force again, so like our carcasses, our energy/mind/etc. is also recycled. This I have come to realize is quite similar to Buddhist/Hindu beliefs of the working of our universe and that is one of the reasons I feel a closer connection to those beliefs (more Buddhism than Hinduism, however). In any case, I think everyone agrees on the existence of some sort of God, the creative force within the universe, whether you give it a white beard and a son named Jesus, or call it chance and evolution. We all exist because of something, and that something in essence is the common factor of all faiths, the creator. I wish I had more time to talk about the good/bad judgment stuff (although I think most of it can be derived from my previous comments) but I have to run. Have fun discussing… this is like pre-TASP TASP! </p>
<p>P.S. Daen, I totally understand that instinctual belief in God. I’m not quite sure about how you imagine God but I think the common ground is quite firm. To be honest, I haven’t given the idea of heaven and hell much thought, it’s always been a cartoon-y image in my head of a river of chocolate with green grass and harps in the background, and a fiery deluge in the middle of some lost canyon. DARN I HAVE TO GO! Good luck/karma/whatever call it to everyone writing SAT’s tomorrow (and if you don’t believe in luck, tough luck)!</p>
<p>oh, good luck with SATs/SATiis tomorrow, guys! i should probably study for math iic… ugh.</p>
<p>and i swear i’ll read all this religion/philophy/karma talk later but UBER, are you '07? does the name of your school have a common greek character in the beginning?</p>