Paranoia, Anxiety, Rituals (Distortions)

Paranoia induces anxiety. Paranoia is a distortion. The Distortion creates paranoia. Seeing is a distortion. Meaning we all see differently. Though within a spectrum. Animals/humans are paranoid or at least can be. Maybe paranoia is universal?

To look is to see possibilities, to gauge where you are. You also gauge your understanding. The answer or cues are based on knowledge. Or are they based on distortions of knowledge? Distortions then are thought acting with sight? It isn’t just the mentally ill who have this issue. Of seeing things that are not there. Of coming to a distorted conclusion.

As far as paranoia is concerned, I try to leverage it against my anxiety and create a ritual. In passing we all have rituals. Though are they healthy rituals? Rituals have been human beings answer to everything for all time. Like a cat that grooms before sleep. A ritual sends us into another state. It could be watching TV or looking at your Facebook feed.

My answer for me now is Qi cultivation. If fifty percent is belief then I am halfway there. The ritual is in a way creating a healthy distortion. Or at least it should be. The exercises are thousands of years old. A way to deal with the human condition. A set of movements. Some rituals die out once they come in contact with another culture. They could also become a heritage. Practitioners are a minority. Though thousands do them. We all have a ritual based on something. Does your ritual help you cope? Is it sustainable?

If humanity were plunged into darkness would your ritual survive? Is it better to go with a ritual that has a lineage? Are some rituals beyond cultural boundaries? Do they benefit humanity? Maybe our rituals are worth considering. How do we deal with our bodies and our minds?