--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "authfriend" <jstein@...> wrote: > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Xenophaneros Anartaxius" <anartaxius@> > wrote: > <snip> >> What is the authority underlying this quiz that would make it >> reliable? Why for example, should I come to you for this >> knowledge? It seems to be implied that, as the apparent author >> of this quiz, you are the one to arbitrate the issue. It is >> just my sense, that if I wanted to know about reality, you >> would be about the last person I would consult in this matter. > > You failed to notice that this is a self-scoring quiz. > Just the questions have been supplied, no answers. The > only arbitrator is the person taking the quiz. > > The implicit first question on the quiz is, "Do I want > to determine how sincere I am about knowing reality?" > > You appear to have answered that one, at least.
I know exactly how sincere I am about knowing reality. I do not need a test for this. And specifically I do not need Robin, though interacting with him is interesting, to say the least. Whether the questions are completely germane to the issue at hand is what I am questioning. Many of the questions are very good indeed, but this test looks like the hand of Robin. Suppose a dozen different spiritual teachers made up a test such as this. Which ones would be authoritative and how would one decide which test was best? The way question is asked can skew the result even if one is taking a self test. As Robin seems to set himself up as having the qualifications to arbitrate the issue of reality, those qualifications may be questioned. He does not seem to have any doubt in his own mind. Many others have expressed rather extreme doubts about his sincerity, knowledge, and objective. Robin does have a unique take on the concept reality. For me he expresses it in a manner that makes me very suspicious. I think emptybill put it most succinctly. The first time I took the test, I scored about where Ann scored. I took it again, and my score dropped, after re-evaluating some of my answers. A number of the items simply have no relevance for me, so I entered '0' for those. And there were a few 2s. Here is my test for spiritual growth. This is an essay test with just one question, the only precondition being that before taking the test, one has to have embarked on a spiritual journey: How different is life now compared to your memory of how it was before you started on the journey? The only problem with this test is you need to find someone who can grade the test. Grading is pass/fail. As for Robin's test, I would be interested in the criterion used to generate each question. And how did you do on the test Judy? In his absence I gave Barry 100% by taking the test for him. I feel Barry is more spiritually advanced than Robin, and if I had to pick him or Robin as a teacher, Barry would be the better choice because he does not care who I am, and would not put up with spiritual nonsense from me. That does not mean he would be the best teacher for me, just more useful than Robin. At any time in one's life, a teacher, a book, a movie, any experience that moves you along even if that source is just a tenth fraction more 'advanced' than you, it does the job. A great master, if such exist certainly would be useful if one can be found, but as long as progress is made anything will do. In the end progress is illusory but that is the cosmic joke. The punch line of spirituality takes longer to get than any other joke in the universe, at least as far as humans are concerned. The butt of the joke is personal ontology.
