Why should i do all this here, why should i join?

hello everybody. probably there has been a discussion like this often but seems to be time for it again
i really apprechiate all your opinions, from fresh guest to knight.

why should one join the temple alltogether?

what is it for? i mean someone could learn all that knowledge alone and be the person he wants to be without an online forum. the only reason i could see is having some online friends with the same interest.

it seems that not that many people are active and there is not that much to "do". seems that a lot of people have their own viewpoint on what a jedi is and what the force is and some of that even seems bad/"sith" to me. (i know noone will be excluded, but is it helpful to have a satanist participate in christian community? wont he be disturbing the atmosphere of a "temple")

i cant see coorperation. no goal. it's not like we would meet up and change something. we dont have a "temple". (i know the temple is within us, but to call this forum temple doesnt make sense to me)

i was guided by "the force" before the temple of the jedi order as well. its not necessary to be a member to follow "the path of a jedi" i can teach other people outside of the forum as well, without having an apprentice here.

i m struggeling with myself why i should invest that time. i mean i have my own journal in a book. i watched and read lot of those recources and learned about all his knowledge in the past 5 years already. why should i redo it and write an extra journal here just for a rank?

this is not meant in a bad way, i just want to understand your reasoning and have a healty discussion (i know that my wordening sounds pretty harsh. but i think it has to be said in that way.)

Heut wrote: hello everybody. probably there has been a discussion like this often but seems to be time for it again
i really apprechiate all your opinions, from fresh guest to knight.

why should one join the temple alltogether?

what is it for? i mean someone could learn all that knowledge alone and be the person he wants to be without an online forum. the only reason i could see is having some online friends with the same interest.

it seems that not that many people are active and there is not that much to "do". seems that a lot of people have their own viewpoint on what a jedi is and what the force is and some of that even seems bad/"sith" to me. (i know noone will be excluded, but is it helpful to have a satanist participate in christian community? wont he be disturbing the atmosphere of a "temple")

i cant see coorperation. no goal. it's not like we would meet up and change something. we dont have a "temple". (i know the temple is within us, but to call this forum temple doesnt make sense to me)

i was guided by "the force" before the temple of the jedi order as well. its not necessary to be a member to follow "the path of a jedi" i can teach other people outside of the forum as well, without having an apprentice here.

i m struggeling with myself why i should invest that time. i mean i have my own journal in a book. i watched and read lot of those recources and learned about all his knowledge in the past 5 years already. why should i redo it and write an extra journal here just for a rank?

this is not meant in a bad way, i just want to understand your reasoning and have a healty discussion (i know that my wordening sounds pretty harsh. but i think it has to be said in that way.)

A lot of temple aspects are not visible and yet visible; a bond with other Jedi cannot be seen till one spends more time with other Jedi in some way. The relationships in the temple are many layered, and complex indeed. '''Having personal goals'' thingy, is a question I ask myself often.

I do not know if I have a goal, but I do realize that goals can be either achieved and then you have it and you can ''put it in a box to look at it'', or it can be a goal to be used as a tool for some other purpose.. I like to see the 'goal' of the temple as something that is alive, and is with us in our (individual) ways of existence.
I think that a lot of Jedi have goals of their own, and that the temple is a way find guidance and company on the path to that goal.
If I say that, could it be that the goal of the temple is to aid Jedi? Or would it mean that the temple is a platform for Jedi to do their part in individual aid and friendship? Could it be both? Could it be unknown? I like this fog because it gives us room to be and see things individual. :blush:

What is time in this context? Is it solid together? Some Jedi like to visit every now and then, to leave, and to return. To make it fit into their lives. You can infest massive amounts of time into the temple, but you do not have to if you do not want to. I myself like to spend time here to develop myself, and to spend time with others.

Rank is optional, journals are optional, and resources are optional. The only thing that is required is yourself. There are many ways to be Jedi at the temple, to learn, and to do some study. Of course some things need to be recorded some way.. and I guess that it would be very difficult to do it without a journal.. Redoing study is a continuation of effort, something that cannot be redone. When one looks back over his shoulder, and sees the differences of results by redoing it, is a study of its own self understanding.

Not sure if my opinion helped.. but please do not take it as a truth, nor will I.

~

Any of us can read the books. We can write our own journals at home and we can teach our friends and neighbors. There is value in this, for sure.

But, for me it is about connection. One of my core understandings of the nature of the Force is that we are all connected. Everything is connected.

To merely check boxes for rank is not what we do here. We do not merely strap a rank bar on your jacket. This Temple is a place to explore, argue, debate, study, discuss, accept, reject, fail, get back up, and succeed. It is an opportunity to practice Jediism, not just read about it.

EDIT: To add, if you are questioning whether you should invest the time, that is likely your answer. Trust your instinct. But if you actually invested the time, maybe you would think differently. There's only one way to find out.

Thanks Heut - I can't recall having seen a post like this before! Apologies, I don't normally respond like this, but you have a lot of questions

1. With your studies I'm sure you are aware of the concepts of, and the benefits of, congregation or sangha. This Temple is the same.

2. There is co-operation, a huge amount. Even in the welcome PM you received

3. We do meet-up. Look up the off-line activities thread in the forum index.

4. This Temple is a hub for our community. Our Temples are also the worlds we each live in, as well as within us.

5. There are many viewpoints. We are like those afflicted with blindness describing different parts of an elephant - to use a Jainist parable: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blind_men_and_an_elephant

6. It is not necessary for anyone to join - most here would agree.

7. 'You' seem to have a very narrow definition of 'you' - for someone well acquainted with the ways of The Force Likewise, if you are ultimately concerned with what 'you' can gain, rather than what 'you' can offer then I'm not surprised this place seems confusing, and a little redundant!

8. There are Sith here, it is fairly obvious who they are, and they don't disturb the atmosphere. There wouldn't be much point in a forum if we all agreed :laugh:

9. If you don't want to re-write your journals why not photograph the entries and post them here? We don't encourage journal keeping for the attainment of rank - that would be like putting the cart before the horse!

Hope that helps!

Pull a single thread alone with little force and watch it break easily. Bind that thread with many others to form a rope and watch how it becomes much more than it was. Can you think of all the reasons why?

You're exactly right, Heut. Go do something useful with your time. Actually make a difference at something. Build something. This place is about acceptance, stagnation. Go be an ocean.

This place is not for everyone.

And even if it fits you at some point, it might not at some other.

This place is something different for every person.

For some, community, learning, growing.

And for others, stagnation, escapism.

Whatever you do, be authentic. Striving to change yourself for the sake of fitting in is the most useless thing you could do.

We're not here to convince you to join the Temple or to follow the Jedi Path.

Each one of us joined for a different reason. If you had a reason to initially join, then that's probably your reason to stay and invest your time to study and participate.

It's not wise to make a judgement about this place and its purpose when you cannot see the whole of the organization. As a guest, you're not privy to several levels of the Temple that can be seen by Members, Initiates, Apprentices, Knights and the Council/Clergy. Just because you cannot see the actions/cooperation in the Temple, doesn't mean its not there. There is a lot you don't see as a Guest.

If you don't think this Temple would be of value to you, that's okay - you don't have to stay. If you DO want to stay, listen to your own judgement, and do it for your own reasons. Your decision can't come from anybody but yourself.

I love coming in here and reading the thoughts of the fellow Jedi. I have not officially joined yet, but the inspiration and discussions of this place makes my day. At this point, this is all I want or need.


Willow

I joined because the people here are true to the cause. I can come in here with a bad attitude and they will tell me straight to my face I have a bad attitude... no ban, no BS, just a swift kick in the ass. I can come here and show some love and get dog-piled back. I can go all rainbow family and find another jedi doing the same. You get the idea. It's a family, it's a friendship, it's a community. Join... or don't. We all have different reasons. I'm going on 4 years now at TOTJO and still haven't finished the initiate program. I plan to, it's just that I am so busy along the way on tangents and exploring life. One thing leads to another and here you can go places that you may not have thought about.