Moving Through the Values of the Moment

The Art of Giving is a seven essay series, from Scott Walter of Great River Institute. This is essay 2.

Appreciation and Gratitude have values and are necessary; the problem with these values is when we get stuck in them. We need a way to move to a more or less valuable version of our reasoning.

MOVING THROUGH THE VALUES OF THE MOMENT - Scott Walter, Sensei

We can begin to practice in any moment we choose to better understand our reasons and reasoning through these principles. When we focus our practice to become balanced between Appreciation and Gratitude, we have an opportunity to Respect the current Value of our reason and reasoning; we can position ourselves in our givings to recognize both the values of the matter and the spiritual values relating to our reason. Now, as I have pointed out before, both Appreciation and Gratitude have values and are necessary; the problem with these values is when we get stuck in them. Then we need a way to move to a more or less valuable version of our reasoning. Which way we choose to go depends on the situation, but typically, people are so off balance in their ability to recognize where they are in the changing values in a reason or reasoning, they tend to lose sight of their reasons and give in to a lower reason or value in matter, or they may be unable to effect their reasons in matter at all, getting frustrated and having no way to bridge the gap.

Appreciation and Gratitude provide movement through the reasoning of the moment by going outward or inward or both. Now this is important to understand, because when you move in any way at all, the movement itself happens because you are actually moving through changes in value and when you do this, your understanding opens and closes accordingly.

The Value of a particular position determines the nature of the reasoning itself. Each Value is a point in the current of life’s reason. The current value in a given moment is the location in the current. You can move more outwardly through an increase in Appreciation and more inwardly through an increase in Gratitude, and you may find the reasoning to be more appropriate, in some particular way, in one way more than the another. There are times when you may even need to expand in both directions. But if you go outward, the value of the reason changes along with your movement, and if you go inward the value of your reason changes in that way to some extent.

This marks our relationship, from one moment to the next, to the Current of life. We can improve that relationship through the values we give and our forgiveness is a direct measurement of that.

As you move through the values of the current moment, it changes your understanding and the relative meaning of your reason. If you live and give without coordination in the Principles of Respect, Appreciation, Gratitude and Value, you tend to get lost in the changing values because you don’t know how to Respect the various values in reasoning.

You may feel threatened by some forms of deeper reasoning and cannot see how those values relate to you. You may be angered, because you do not have the coordination to understand how and why certain things can happen. How we reason the many and various values in the current of life is what defines our relationship to Everything.

People that dwell in understanding show gratitude for understanding and they look for ways to grow, or appreciate, that in their worlds. They Respect the Value of higher understanding and celebrate its unfoldment. They can always find some way to be more understanding.

People that dwell in anger can always find something to substantiate their reasons for being angry. They look into matter and Appreciate, or build the values of what makes them angry. Then they show their Gratitude by centering more on the source of their anger. They want Respect and they feel the higher Value is missing. And relatively speaking, it is, because if they Truly went further inward with their reasoning, they would get past the Values of anger to a more positive forgiving understanding. But they stop the inward movement and hold religiously to what makes them most upset. It’s no wonder they are angry.

Now, back to our spiritual/matter connection point. Any point or value can be viewed for its spirit/matter relationship. And now that we have discussed how dwelling on inward and outward values can change the nature of our reason, we can see that there is an opportunity to stand on the spiritual/matter witness point at any position in the current moment if we coordinate the principles to do it. Being far out somewhere in negative matter does not yield the same values as being in the same spiritual/matter witness point in the far in positive sense. The relative values of these two points can be very different (one witness point being more outward and the other more inward), but the commonality that is shared is when the percentages of Gratitude and Appreciation are the same.

The Values can be very different, but when we learn to coordinate ourselves between Appreciation and Gratitude with a Respect for the current Value, we can begin to discover the Truer Spiritual Values and the effects of matter on these Values.

Remember, we can also expand our relationship, in the current moment with these principles, where the distance outward and inward in our command of the moment is broadening; and when we do, we are able to witness even deeper spiritual truths while engaging in even deeper matter.

With practice, we can improve our understanding of our reasons for being, and we can give them more successfully to the matters in our lives, while growing our spiritual/matter values inwardly to the point that this model of humanity was created to dwell in relationship with.

Our practice is happening whether we recognize it or not. The quality of that practice is our concern here.

When we decide we want to become more spiritually aware and active, it means we want to move more into those values that are on the spiritual side of our current reasoning. We do this by being more forgiving, for-giving, of the values that the deeper spiritual position is about. If we cannot actually live in the giving of those values, we will not be at one with those more spiritual ideals. It’s our choice, and if we know how to move, we can continue to choose what we want to be more about; and as we do, our reasons for being will reflect that difference.

Be forgiving. When you hold a grudge, you are held to the value of that negative position. You cannot truly move more inward while holding tight to more outward values. Grow your reasons in positive ways, don’t get lost in matter and in negatives. Show Gratitude when you see the positives showing through. Respect that Value and Appreciate a way to practice and center on the more positive…and when you see another more positive showing through your practice, show Gratitude again and Respect the Value of that deeper positive. This is how we move in the current toward the source of what is positive.

Scott Walter, Sensei
July 24, 2009

Introduction to The Art of Giving 
© 2009 by Great River Institute

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Source: Museum Syndicate, c. 1931

This essay is presented by Little Creek Monastery’s Center for Eternal Awareness where achieving a higher perspective is always helpful.