Mechanical Advantage

[sdi]

Suppose you have a long rod, fixed at one end but freely swinging at the other. You wish to move the end of it some distance. If you grab the end and move it directly, you need to move your arm that distance to move the rod's end the same distance; but if you instead grab the rod in the middle, you only need to move your arm half as far to accomplish the same. This is because the rod, here, is acting as a lever; by grabbing it in the middle, you gain mechanical advantage, and can accomplish the same action with less effort.

Now, suppose you wish to make a change here in the material world, at the extremity of the cosmos. Is it better to make your efforts here, in the material? Or is it better to apply those same efforts partway "up" the cosmos in the world of spirit? ...

Spirituality is not and cannot be escapism, where one runs away from the world; rather, it is a means of embracing the world and attempting to engage with it more effectively. Heaven is not where you bliss out forever: it's where you see your hard work make more of a difference.

Comments

I don't mean to nitpick...

[next_migration]

It just comes naturally ... I don't mean to detract from your beautiful spiritual analogy, but in material terms, when you have a swinging rod fixed at one end, pushing it at the other end does mean you have to move your arm farther, but requires less force than pushing it closer to the fulcrum. Consider a swinging bar gate across a road: would you push it from the far end, or from near the hinge? The former requires a long but easy movement; the latter would require a much shorter movement but also much more strength and effort, making the extra steps worthwhile to avoid it ... at least if you are a scrawny person like me. I won't presume to suggest that there's a parallel to your analogy there!

Re: I don't mean to nitpick...

[sdi]

Fine, fine, my analogy was using a class 3 ("speed multiplying") lever rather than a class 2 ("force multiplying") lever, but you got the idea :)

Re: I don't mean to nitpick...

[sdi]

Though, if you do want to consider the spiritual parallel to the "greater effort for greater speed" analogy, it occurs to me that Lafcadio Hearn's got you covered...

Re: I don't mean to nitpick...

[next_migration]

You come up with so many amazing insights and references! Thanks very much for pointing this out; it is lovely (if also somewhat disturbing).