Heaven and Golf (and other pursuits)

[smashdn]

Had the unfortunate opportunity to sit through a funeral yesterday.  Preacher was doing his best to lift spirits and let us all know how beautiful heaven was going to be (Though he admittedly couldn't summon the words to adequately describe it.  Not sure if it was entirely a conceptual problem or a vocabulary problem but resulted in same.)  He went on about how there would be no pain.  No suffering.  And I got to thinking, about golf.

 

Without pain how am I going to know and appreciate when I have hit my iron shot thin?  Without suffering how am I going to appreciate a hole in one when it finally comes or when I finally break par?  Will their be some adverse conditions (wind, rain, cold, hardpan and divots) that I get to be tested by?  Getting blocked out behind a tree or tested with a blind approach is a good thing in small doses and when deserved.

 

I got thinking about other heavenly things as he kept lining them out.  If there are many mansions, there is no doubt going to be some "mansion envy" no matter how much ivory and gold they are adorned with.  And frankly, ivory and gold seems a little garish to me.  If I genuinely enjoy mowing my grass and having a nice lawn, is that on the table?  Some would call that work, and I guess it is, but it is an enjoyable bit of toil.

 

If all my needs are taken care of, will I get to hunt and fish?  Will I appreciate them both if I never hunger?  I don't think I want it to be easy.  A little hardship is necessary for there to be sport right?

 

So many questions.  

Edited October 24, 2022 by smashdn

[jordan2240]

Ah, one could ponder religious concepts until death, but as we aren't to discuss religion on here, I'll merely add this - I think golf has a lot better chance of existing in hell than it does in heaven.

Edited October 25, 2022 by jordan2240
Grammar

[bscinstnct]

If you think about it

 

Heaven should be a huge party of eternal debauchery you can indulge in without guilt!

 

And Hell, to those who lived for a life of evil and sin, would be chaste world of boredom. 
 

; )

[me05501]

I could probably get into heaven but I would really miss my friends and family. 

[OnTheBag]

I've had the great fortune of traveling the globe and meeting wonderful people from all parts of it.  As I approach the end of my journey, questions like this inevitably pop into my head more often than before.  What is on the other side?  What set of criteria determine the next step?  Are we destined for a simple return to the dust from which we came?

 

All those questions are too deep for an old, dumb caddy.  But I find comfort in knowing that whatever is on the other side, I have been blessed on this side.  Great friends.  Great family.  So many great days in the sun.  Maybe those fleeting days of contentment are what heaven really is after all.

 

Hit 'em straight boys......unless you intend for them to be crooked.   

[smashdn]

What got me, and it was probably due to the occasion, was how down on earthly life he was.  I myself am kind of fond of it and having fun.  A goodly deal of what he was making out to be so much better really didn't sound all that appealing.

[me05501]

24 minutes ago, smashdn said:

What got me, and it was probably due to the occasion, was how down on earthly life he was.  I myself am kind of fond of it and having fun.  A goodly deal of what he was making out to be so much better really didn't sound all that appealing.

 

Those guys tend to live in a bubble and get pretty out of touch IMO. A lot of the personal interactions they do get to have involve seeing people near death, counseling families who have lost a loved one, or providing marriage counseling. It also seems like ministers get used to being lied to constantly which probably sucks. But they do get that little Clergy sign for their dashboard so their parking situation is always primo.

 

There's nothing like a funeral where the minister wasn't close to the family or the deceased. They tend to go for broke and it's rarely not awkward. 

[Petethreeput]

Depending on your construct, is religion a spiritual thing or is it a way for the powerful to exert certain behaviors from the masses while they get fleeced, knowing when it ends it will be better "for eternity?"  And as it pertains to golf, I need the bad to recognize the good, and I agree with the above poster, there is a much better chance golf is in hell and not heaven.

[straightshot7]

You're thinking of heaven with your earthly mind. Your perspective and mind will be different in heaven.

But there will be new adventures. It's not just doing nothing for eternity. 

[smashdn]

15 hours ago, straightshot7 said:

You're thinking of heaven with your earthly mind. Your perspective and mind will be different in heaven.

But there will be new adventures. It's not just doing nothing for eternity. 

 

Supposin there are no consequences there are things I'd like to try.  Not illegal or immoral stuff just things that I haven't done.  Sky-diving, bull-riding, time share, trying out one of those Teeter hang-ups.

[bladehunter]

Think of pain as the one concrete  truth on earth.   Pain is the path  to a lot of good things.  Pain is the only true constant.  It’s is the condition we all live in.  Some won’t admit that.  But it doesn’t stop it from being true if you examine.  Just like you describe the pain of a bad shot.  It’s the bumpers that keep us on a road to worthwhile goals. 
 

it’s my belief that a world with no pain is a world with no abject truth.  And that’s an untenable world .  Which is why I believe that for this instance you were listening to a man speaking in his limited understanding.   Well meaning I’m sure.  But maybe a better thing to say would be ******a wonderful place with no perception of negativity or sorrow over pain  ,  instead the constant realization that pain brings with it information on how to mitigate its very existence, and to prepare you for dealing with its next inevitable iteration.  *****

 

our idea of pain is negative.  Because we tend to wallow in its symptoms instead of picking out the pieces of knowledge it brings.  I’m absolutely guilty of this.   Wallow 3-4 days and then snap out of it , and take the knowledge and move ahead.    Maybe our impulse of wallowing is removed …. That is my hope.  

[Murphy76]

2 hours ago, bladehunter said:

Think of pain as the one concrete  truth on earth.   Pain is the path  to a lot of good things.  Pain is the only true constant.  It’s is the condition we all live in.  Some won’t admit that.  But it doesn’t stop it from being true if you examine.  Just like you describe the pain of a bad shot.  It’s the bumpers that keep us on a road to worthwhile goals. 
 

it’s my belief that a world with no pain is a world with no abject truth.  And that’s an untenable world .  Which is why I believe that for this instance you were listening to a man speaking in his limited understanding.   Well meaning I’m sure.  But maybe a better thing to say would be ******a wonderful place with no perception of negativity or sorrow over pain  ,  instead the constant realization that pain brings with it information on how to mitigate its very existence, and to prepare you for dealing with its next inevitable iteration.  *****

 

our idea of pain is negative.  Because we tend to wallow in its symptoms instead of picking out the pieces of knowledge it brings.  I’m absolutely guilty of this.   Wallow 3-4 days and then snap out of it , and take the knowledge and move ahead.    Maybe our impulse of wallowing is removed …. That is my hope.  

 

I smell a buddhist.  Tennant numero uno:  Life is suffering.

 

[bladehunter]

3 hours ago, Murphy76 said:

 

I smell a buddhist.  Tennant numero uno:  Life is suffering.

 

😂.  Nope.  But I am aware of the similarity. 
 

that doesn’t make it untrue though …. It’s part of being a human.  You pick up your suffering and carry it.  And struggle to be better. To get better. You learn how from the struggle you are carrying.   
 

i guess the shortest way to sum it up is this.  I’m constantly surprised that we don’t all quit , or rip each other apart in some fiery explosion of retribution for all that’s endured. It doesn’t happen.  Never has  on the scale I’m meaning.  Because most instinctively know that pain and suffering is the truth.  It just is.  Everyone you know will die.  Yet we get up and go to work in the morning anyway.  Why is that ?  Because the consequences of not is worse.  
 

So back around to the OPs question.  It’s a good one. I of course don’t KNOW.  But I think it comes down to how much we dissect the word.  If we cut away the emotional reaction only  and call that pain , leaving only  the learning as a positive.  maybe there is none in that sense.  .
 

I doubt the good parts are left off ( learning from pain ) , 

Unless it’s a total knowledge download which would negate the need for learning.  In which case we don’t have the capacity now to really imagine that.  If we did ; we’d have it all now already.  .  

Edited November 2, 2022 by bladehunter

[Wooley12]

Just my opinion formed by a combination of being "groomed" 😉   in Catholic grammar school, my dad who saw 100's die up close in WWII("We all gotta go sometime")  and an old movie about Billy Graham. Here's how I see it.  Remember how much you missed the warm uterus where you felt safe, secure and absolutely free from worry? We can't and yet we were there. That's how much you'll miss life after you die.  Interesting thread btw. 

 

 

 

[smashdn]

Do you need worry to appreciate enjoyment?

[bladehunter]

On 11/3/2022 at 10:33 AM, smashdn said:

Do you need worry to appreciate enjoyment?

I don’t know about worry. But I do believe that you can’t truly experience enjoyment unless you struggled to get to it.  
 

worry is absent action.  Each ounce of DO - erases 10 pounces of worry.  
 

a wise man once said “ git up git out and git something.  “ 

Edited November 11, 2022 by bladehunter

[nitram]

On 10/24/2022 at 12:04 PM, smashdn said:

Had the unfortunate opportunity to sit through a funeral yesterday.  Preacher was doing his best to lift spirits and let us all know how beautiful heaven was going to be (Though he admittedly couldn't summon the words to adequately describe it.  Not sure if it was entirely a conceptual problem or a vocabulary problem but resulted in same.)  He went on about how there would be no pain.  No suffering.  And I got to thinking, about golf.

 

Without pain how am I going to know and appreciate when I have hit my iron shot thin?  Without suffering how am I going to appreciate a hole in one when it finally comes or when I finally break par?  Will their be some adverse conditions (wind, rain, cold, hardpan and divots) that I get to be tested by?  Getting blocked out behind a tree or tested with a blind approach is a good thing in small doses and when deserved.

 

I got thinking about other heavenly things as he kept lining them out.  If there are many mansions, there is no doubt going to be some "mansion envy" no matter how much ivory and gold they are adorned with.  And frankly, ivory and gold seems a little garish to me.  If I genuinely enjoy mowing my grass and having a nice lawn, is that on the table?  Some would call that work, and I guess it is, but it is an enjoyable bit of toil.

 

If all my needs are taken care of, will I get to hunt and fish?  Will I appreciate them both if I never hunger?  I don't think I want it to be easy.  A little hardship is necessary for there to be sport right?

 

So many questions.  

There is another alternative . . .

[bscinstnct]

5 hours ago, bladehunter said:

I don’t know about worry. But I do believe that you can’t truly experience enjoyment unless you struggled to get to it.  
 

worry is absent action.  Each ounce of DO - erases 10 pounces of worry.  
 

a wise man once said “ git up git out and git something.  “ 

 

I came up with a way of thinking years ago and often remind myself of it,

 

Plan, Do, Relax

 

Meaning, if you’re not planning or doing…relax. Notice what is absent? Worrying. If you’re worried about something then plan or do something to change it. Otherwise, just relax. 
 

As far as Buddhism, it’s far more complex than, “life if suffering”.

 

Buddhism categorizes “suffering”.  One type of suffering that we see prevalent in society today. Craving, wanting, our state of mind attached to desires that we think will make us “whole”, but provide just a moment of satisfaction. 
 

The goal is a state of mind that is at peace exclusive of the the roller coaster of life. Not that we should not have goals and aspire to achieve. More so to exclude much of the angst and anger caused by things that are actually meaningless.

 

State of mind can often be just that. For example, I can be totally angry and stressed about business at 6pm. But then do a nice cardio workout and have total peace of mind within a hour. Nothing has changed with what’s happening in my life….except my state of mind. 
 

 

 

 

Edited November 11, 2022 by bscinstnct