Title: The Universe According to Raven (My Roommate)
Raven and I were having a strange discussion a couple of nights ago. I was talking to Raven about my job search and how much it was sucking ass. As usual, Raven tried to downplay it. Though I admit that his luck is much worse, it doesn't give him the right to pooh-pooh it outright.
But then he started saying some stuff that wasn't pure sunshine and kittens being injected directly up my ass via a firehose.
This is how karma and the universe works, according to Raven. I'll break it down to its most basic, and he even said he broke it down to the most basic he could tell me. But I think I can get the gist of it here.
There are three different things in life that all require a certain amout of balance, or give and take. The first is your standing in the afterlife, which means basically, are you nice enough to go to heaven or hell. The second is how you treat others. And the third is how you treat yourself physically and mentally.
Each of these three points has to have a certain amount of balance. There is more than one way of achieving this, but it involves a little give and take.
For example, if you want to be successful in your life. Say you want to have a successful business. You want money, cars, and a career that you enjoy.
Pick which of the three factors you have to sacrifice in order to get what you want. There are three choices. You can:
A). Morally bankrupt yourself, and lower the amount of good Karma towards what you wanted in your afterlife, but boost the other two.
B) Treat people like shit, lowering Karma you get from your dealings with other people in exchange for a high percentage of the other two.
C) Strain yourself to the breaking point physically and mentally, getting low Karma in that area while keeping the other two high.
You can only have two choices. Not all three.
The key rule to all this is that for every good action, a negative action is taken to keep balance, and vice versa. That's why assholes get rewards, and nice people get screwed. In order to get something you want, you have to sacrifice something. Your soul, your morality, your principals, other's perception of you, or your body. Take a pick. If you want something good, you must be prepared to get something bad in return.
And balance is restored.
Same can go for dating and mating. I can be a nice guy and not physically strain myself, but I could leave myself open to debauchery, and be successful. Or I can be a total asshole while not straining myself or breaking principals, or I can act like a fool and pour all my energies into attracting the girl without being a jerk or selling myself out. Make a choice, or none at all.
You can say "What if I want perfect balance?" Not sacrifice anything?
Sure, you can do that, but Raven explained to me that it leads to stagnation. Nothing gets achieved. Nothing is sacrificed. Nothing is gained. But at least you are safe.
I can safely say that in life, I am stagnating. I have nothing, and I am too afraid to sacrifice my principals, my chance at heaven (though I might have fubared that), or my physical and mental well being, or even the reputation I have for being a nice guy for a chance at success. I seriously considered the deal with the devil idea, because I feel desperate and forsaken anyways. But Raven kept me back on track, told me that's not my real goal if I was a Christian.
He played the Christ card on me. Dammit.
So, I have too choices if I want to keep my spirituality somewhat intact. I either treat people like total crap, backstab, run over, and cheat anybody available, treating those whom I cross as just another body to heap up on the hill that will get me closer to success, or I torture myself to the breaking point (and possibly beyond).
I have only one choice.
Succeed... or die trying.
When the time comes, guess what choice i'll make?
Raven and I were having a strange discussion a couple of nights ago. I was talking to Raven about my job search and how much it was sucking ass. As usual, Raven tried to downplay it. Though I admit that his luck is much worse, it doesn't give him the right to pooh-pooh it outright.
But then he started saying some stuff that wasn't pure sunshine and kittens being injected directly up my ass via a firehose.
This is how karma and the universe works, according to Raven. I'll break it down to its most basic, and he even said he broke it down to the most basic he could tell me. But I think I can get the gist of it here.
There are three different things in life that all require a certain amout of balance, or give and take. The first is your standing in the afterlife, which means basically, are you nice enough to go to heaven or hell. The second is how you treat others. And the third is how you treat yourself physically and mentally.
Each of these three points has to have a certain amount of balance. There is more than one way of achieving this, but it involves a little give and take.
For example, if you want to be successful in your life. Say you want to have a successful business. You want money, cars, and a career that you enjoy.
Pick which of the three factors you have to sacrifice in order to get what you want. There are three choices. You can:
A). Morally bankrupt yourself, and lower the amount of good Karma towards what you wanted in your afterlife, but boost the other two.
B) Treat people like shit, lowering Karma you get from your dealings with other people in exchange for a high percentage of the other two.
C) Strain yourself to the breaking point physically and mentally, getting low Karma in that area while keeping the other two high.
You can only have two choices. Not all three.
The key rule to all this is that for every good action, a negative action is taken to keep balance, and vice versa. That's why assholes get rewards, and nice people get screwed. In order to get something you want, you have to sacrifice something. Your soul, your morality, your principals, other's perception of you, or your body. Take a pick. If you want something good, you must be prepared to get something bad in return.
And balance is restored.
Same can go for dating and mating. I can be a nice guy and not physically strain myself, but I could leave myself open to debauchery, and be successful. Or I can be a total asshole while not straining myself or breaking principals, or I can act like a fool and pour all my energies into attracting the girl without being a jerk or selling myself out. Make a choice, or none at all.
You can say "What if I want perfect balance?" Not sacrifice anything?
Sure, you can do that, but Raven explained to me that it leads to stagnation. Nothing gets achieved. Nothing is sacrificed. Nothing is gained. But at least you are safe.
I can safely say that in life, I am stagnating. I have nothing, and I am too afraid to sacrifice my principals, my chance at heaven (though I might have fubared that), or my physical and mental well being, or even the reputation I have for being a nice guy for a chance at success. I seriously considered the deal with the devil idea, because I feel desperate and forsaken anyways. But Raven kept me back on track, told me that's not my real goal if I was a Christian.
He played the Christ card on me. Dammit.
So, I have too choices if I want to keep my spirituality somewhat intact. I either treat people like total crap, backstab, run over, and cheat anybody available, treating those whom I cross as just another body to heap up on the hill that will get me closer to success, or I torture myself to the breaking point (and possibly beyond).
I have only one choice.
Succeed... or die trying.
When the time comes, guess what choice i'll make?