Thoughts on Intentional Communities?

[Woolmer]

This is not something I have found posted here before. I am curious what the people of Nexus think of IC's.

I am also curious how many of the members here live in their daily life. Are you well embedded into general society and its systems, or are/have you swayed away from it? How do you suppose people should be living?

I am trying to understand where I would like to progress in my life. I am a very young member compared to most who probably frequent this site. Is it not so that what every person wants is to not suffer? Why then do we choose (if we do in fact choose) to live in certain manners that make this harder to achieve?

 

[Tomtegubbe]

I'm in my mid thirties and only recently I have come to agree that there is no getting around it: finding your own place in the world is a tough job. It's worth the work though and giving in to resentment is not the way to go.

Finding your way requires building skills, honing your discernment and practicing courage. You need to be pure of heart, but also take an active role in your own life and decisions.

If I get lost in contemplating what is wrong and unjust in the human world I get out to the woods and contemplate how the nature works instead. There is no justice or injustice, but everything works together. You need to stand your ground as a plant or an animal, but once you have the skills and find your spot, you can enjoy the ride. One day you will be too weak to go on and then it's your time to make way for someone else, but there's no need to worry about that in advance.

I have a profession which allows me to take time for myself and in which I can practice my ideals. Getting to this point however has required a lot of work and some luck too. But some things are worth striving for.

 

[Voidmatrix]

I'm in my mid thirties and only recently I have come to agree that there is no getting around it: finding your own place in the world is a tough job. It's worth the work though and giving in to resentment is not the way to go.

Finding your way requires building skills, honing your discernment and practicing courage. You need to be pure of heart, but also take an active role in your own life and decisions.

If I get lost in contemplating what is wrong and unjust in the human world I get out to the woods and contemplate how the nature works instead. There is no justice or injustice, but everything works together. You need to stand your ground as a plant or an animal, but once you have the skills and find your spot, you can enjoy the ride. One day you will be too weak to go on and then it's your time to make way for someone else, but there's no need to worry about that in advance.

I have a profession which allows me to take time for myself and in which I can practice my ideals. Getting to this point however has required a lot of work and some luck too. But some things are worth striving for.

Some great wisdom here.

I'm in my early thirties and am still trying to figure out what my "place" is. It takes time, perseverance, patience, discipline and resilience. And even with that it may take time.

One other thing, the Buddha said "life is suffering." There may be no escaping it. Just adaptation and stoic acceptance will ameliorate sufferings effects.

One love

 

[Woolmer]

Love and appreciate the replies so far!

I'm in my mid thirties and only recently I have come to agree that there is no getting around it: finding your own place in the world is a tough job. It's worth the work though and giving in to resentment is not the way to go.

Why do you suppose it is worth it to try and exist in general society? You seem to be very focused on How to exist in the world (for which I mean, society) but I'd like to know why? Also, why do you say giving in to resentment is not the way to go? Do you suppose that IC's exist due to resentment towards the world?

The Buddha said "life is suffering." There may be no escaping it.

It is interesting to me that you wrote this but failed to mention that the Buddha also said we can end suffering. Outside of Buddhist context, so many people say life is inherently suffering so you just need to sort of deal with it and find your place. Do you not suppose suffering can be ended?

 

[dragonrider]

Whether you like it or not, you are part of something bigger that is called mankind.

Being part of mankind means being part of a society, but there are many different forms of society all over the world. From very small isolated societies in the rainforests of south america, to very large industrialized societies like modern china.

There is good and bad in each of those societies. But they are not all equally good or bad. Some societies are very brutal and oppressive, like north korea or eritrea.
Others pollute the planet, like western society.

But societies are not fixed. They evolve, as a result of the actions of it's members.
So they can become better or worse.

One of these members is you. You are just a tiny part of it, but a part of it still.

You can be a part of it to a greater or ablesser extent. But it is very hard to completely isolate yourself from it.

And a question you could ask yourself is whether those who supposedly reject society are realy, fully rejecting it, or whether they are just reaping the fruits provided by the capitalist system like everybody else on a daily base, with no real intention or desire to ever stop doing so, but just pretending to be better than everybody else.

I think looking at the sacrifices that those people are actually making and not the sacrifices they keep saying they would make, will answer that question.

 

[Voidmatrix]

The Buddha said "life is suffering." There may be no escaping it.

It is interesting to me that you wrote this but failed to mention that the Buddha also said we can end suffering. Outside of Buddhist context, so many people say life is inherently suffering so you just need to sort of deal with it and find your place. Do you not suppose suffering can be ended?

Perhaps, I did not word it well enough since I'm not Buddhist, but have an interest in it. Like other philosophies and forms of thought, it just a paradigm to me. The "ending" of suffering I tried to highlight by referring to stoicism and acceptance. Can one be said to really be suffering if they've truly come to terms with and accepted said suffering? In the Buddhist tradition relative to the Four Noble Truths, the first states life is suffering. The second states said suffering stems from desire and attachment, which can be mitigated by cessation and letting go of said desires and attachments (which can be painful and cause suffering), and fourth, that the eightfold path is the route to end this. In my mind it aligns greatly with stoicism and acceptance.

Outside of that paradigm there are many philosophies that espouse how to end suffering and be happy, but it may very well be subjective what works for who. That said, only by suffering through the experiences of experimentation with different routes of life can one find what works for them to end their suffering. We all have different attachments and desires outside of what's necessary to survive.

One love

 

[Tomtegubbe]

Love and appreciate the replies so far!

I'm in my mid thirties and only recently I have come to agree that there is no getting around it: finding your own place in the world is a tough job. It's worth the work though and giving in to resentment is not the way to go.

Why do you suppose it is worth it to try and exist in general society? You seem to be very focused on How to exist in the world (for which I mean, society) but I'd like to know why? Also, why do you say giving in to resentment is not the way to go? Do you suppose that IC's exist due to resentment towards the world?

Jesus says that even though his followers are in this world they are not of this world. I think this applies to anyone on the spiritual path regardless of religion. Society is the terrain humans live on. Hate it or love it, you can't get rid of it. So it's best to find a way to minimize the anxiety it causes. It's not easy, but it's doable.

I live in an urban area that is surrounded by woods and waters. In recent years the wild animals have become more tame and I encounter almost everyday deers and foxes etc if I go just for a short walk. They don't really care about what we humans do but they have found a way to coexist and we have given them the space to live among us. I like to think my relationship with the society in similar terms. I try to find a peaceful mode of living with people and political and economical structures around me even though they often feel alien.

I have spent very much energy trying to fight the society in my mind. I have followed politics very closely and been constantly angry about bad decisions they make. Everytime I see consumerism has destroyed something old and beautiful in name of economical gain I feel sad. I have however come to realize that this is not a good way to spend my energy. Things are the way they are and my job is to find the spots where I can live according to my own nature, like those foxes and deers living just around the corner.

If you dedicate your life to oppose something, it will end up oppressing you in your own soul.

Good luck