In Search of my Sangha

Let me introduce myself. I am Citizenzero, a writer, a healer, a philosopher and resident of Turtle Island.

Life has been a very long and interesting journey for me so far and I can't wait to see what tricks this thing called consciousness has in store for me next.

From a very early age I decided that life was an experiment to see what happens next and I proceeded along that path, opening doors, looking for truth, not much interested in accumulating too much junk along the way, either material or ideological.

I also never much listened to what other people said or believed preferring to find things out for myself. That's probably why most of the cultural conditioning I was exposed to as a child didn't stick. Of course, this is the so-called college of hard knocks on the path less traveled, but it is by far the more beautiful and interesting scenic route to life and it's the path consciousness decided to take this time.

To my dyslexic mind, nine to five always sounded like a prison sentence delivered by a judge. That's why I've worked many jobs both technical, scholarly, minimum wage, heavy labor and professional, but never really had a career. I call it depth of experience

Over the years I've cultivated a very fertile mind, (probably from all of the fertilizer I've dumped on it) and I'd like to share with you some of the truths I've discovered.

My ideas are inspirations that come from a realm my mind cannot truly fathom. I sometimes reread my writings and wonder where those ideas came from. It is a very strange feeling to be inspired by your own thoughts. I’m sure the writers among you know what I’m talking about.

I had a fairly normal upbringing, full of the challenges of life that many of us must face, but fortunately, no horror. I was raised on the edge of a very large city situated within the ancient boundaries of the Ipai/Kumeii nation on Turtle Island. I presently live in Nature within the bounds of the old Okanogan Nation.

Turtle Island is a very big place and I migrate like a duck to where it’s warm in the winter and cool in the summer without ever leaving it's shores.

Life’s trials and tribulations made me what I am today, a rather strange duck by most accounts.

I have mostly abandoned the Euro/American cultural ideals forced upon me and adopted my own worldview and moral code. From there I delved into the workings of the mind and experienced a profound awakening that propels me on my current path.

In all honesty, I will be the first to admit that while enlightened, (a relative term that means less burdened) I am not completely liberated. Ego is a constant companion and amusing tyrant.

When I was 20 I touched Nirvana, that distant shore where ego is forbidden to disembark. But I could not stay.

Because of this I sometimes think I am Bodhisattva, a soul qualified for liberation who instead walks the gauntlet of enlightenment to relay its waypoints to those who embark upon this same journey.

At other times I think I'm just a snack bar for mosquitoes.

As you read my posts you will get to know what I believe. My philosophy is simple and perhaps even repetitive. I propose only a few basic tenets to improve the world, but I think they are radical and of utmost importance.

At times my posts will feel political, but let me assure you politics is only a tool I use to spark critical thought. To me political correctness is oxymoronic. I welcome constructive criticism. I’m always open to new ideas.

I often anger people. I pull no punches. But reactionary comments will not win you anything on my blog. They will, however, give you pause to reflect back upon your own cultural conditioning allowing you to shed its constraints the way a growing lizard sheds its skin. I welcome them as well. Anger is just the proactive form of fear.

As I have grown in consciousness and experience, I have moved away from my contemporaries who have failed to evolve. I now feel that I am a stranger in a very strange land. Perhaps there is no one who believes what I believe, but perhaps there are many of you who feel the same as I do. It’s a very big world and Steemit is a world stage.

If you feel my thoughts resonate with your own, I welcome you to follow me, to vote and to comment. If your posts resonate with me, I will follow you, upvote, resteem and promote when possible, not to bestow coin per se, but to spread your ideas which are far more important than money.

In this way I hope to develop my Sangha, which is a Buddhist term for community of like-minded individuals. In this 21st century, at least in the materialistic West, family and tribe have waned in importance. It is a crime and a cultural shame that hurts society and the living mantle that blesses our planet. Though I will probably never meet any of you, I hope that we can become a family and perhaps even a tribe of sorts.

To be a part of a community that has common values is a very human longing. Humans are a herd species, and without our tribe we feel alone and forlorn. If my writings spark only one of you to begin thinking for himself or herself, then my efforts have borne nourishing fruit.

Let’s get to know each other and support each other and realize that we are not alone in this world forever perched on the brink of destruction. An enlightened community is a powerful force for good and together we can change the world for the better.

CZ