Re: [FairfieldLife] What would a cool spiritual teaching be like?

[Bhairitu noozg...@sbcglobal.net [FairfieldLife]]

As I've said many a time: it should be like learning to play a musical 
instrument.  You go to a master of the instrument to learn how to play 
it. You don't practice, you don't learn.  And you might learn from 
another teacher to learn a different style or approach.

On 06/20/2014 03:11 AM, TurquoiseBee turquoi...@yahoo.com 
[FairfieldLife] wrote:
Work for the week finished, I thought I'd sit in this canalside cafe 
and rap a bit about some of the attributes I think would be refreshing 
to find in a spiritual trip. It's NOT that I'm looking for one, you 
understand. It's just that it struck me as a fun idea to write about 
some of the things I'd *like* to find, as opposed to what I often *do* 
find.

* It's free. That is, all teaching is either supported by the people 
doing it, or by donations that are actually donations. No one would 
ever be pressured to contribute, whether it be for talks, or 
instruction. People who are trying to lay a spiritual trip on others 
should pay their audiences for the privilege, not vice-versa.

* It's fun. This is one of the most important criteria I would look 
for in a spiritual trip. If the people participating in it don't look 
like they're having FUN, what possible interest could it have for me? 
The very concept of FUN should be respected as what it is -- an 
indicator that you're doing something right, spiritually.

* Teachers as fellow travelers. Your teacher or teacher can be your 
friend or fellow seeker. There is no sense of distance between teacher 
and student. You hang out together and talk freely to each other, as 
equals. No ranks, no hierarchy -- either stated or encouraged 
wordlessly by the way that students interact with the teacher or 
teachers. No hierarchy for the students, either -- no "belt rankings" 
that allow them to think they're on a higher level than others around 
them.

* No sacrosanct dogma. Oh, of course the trip can have theories about 
How The World Works, and present them. But IMO these theories should 
be presented *as* theories, not truth, or no-God forbid, Truth.

* Everything is fair game for questions. The students have the right 
to challenge anything the teacher or teachers say. Anything. No saying 
is "holy" in the sense that it becomes "sacred" and thus exempt from 
questioning. No claim has the right to be accepted if someone asks for 
it to be documented.

* No cult roles or sex roles. The students should not be encouraged 
(verbally or nonverbally) to act a certain way or dress a certain way. 
One of the coolest things ever said about the Rama students came from 
the staff of the Bodhi Tree Bookstore in L.A. They'd seen 
*everything*, because the seekers from every tradition ever known all 
came to buy books at their store. And they'd grown adept at "nailing" 
which path any customer followed, just by watching them. It became a 
kind of game for them, and they rarely missed. The only students they 
couldn't "nail" were the folks who studied with Rama, because they 
were all different. In a similar vein, there should ideally be no 
perceived status associated with one's sex -- men and women should be 
treated pretty much the same.

* No restrictions on thinking or action. No "Thou shalt not see other 
teachers." See who you bloody want. No "Thou shalt not read Off The 
Program books." There should be no "program" to be off of. People 
should be encouraged to treat their curiosity about other spiritual 
teachers or teachings as what it is -- a desire to learn more.

* Parties. Really. Too many spiritual trips have gatherings that can 
only be described as SERIOUS. They're gathering to meditate together, 
or chant together, or hear a dharma talk together, or have a 
"celebration" that isn't one. My ideal spiritual trip would be more 
like the better days of the Rama trip -- we'd go out to movies, to 
dinner, to places of power, and to discos. We'd actually (Buck, look 
away) DANCE. And we'd have actual parties, at which the only spiritual 
objective was to have FUN. It gives more of a community feeling to the 
community.

* Road Trips. Every so often, the entire group would just Get The Fuck 
Out Of Dodge, and take their act on the road. It could be a day trip 
to a nearby place of worship or power, or longer trips overnight to 
cool places. Taking the group consciousness out of its normal (and 
thus ignored) environment can do wonders for sparking spiritual 
experience.

* No shakti myths. Even if the teacher or teachers have some phwam! 
and can shift other people's states of attention and get them high, 
IMO this ability is better presented as a form of recognition rather 
than a form of transmission. If the teacher is able to say, "Look, I 
understand that you're getting high from all this, but it's not me 
doing it. It's the universe. You're just recognizing what is always 
already present because it may be a little more lively in me," that 
teacher might not be as likely to fall prey to the pitfalls of ego, 
and the students might not be as likely to attribute their spiritual 
progress to outside agencies.

* No sex hangups. A student is welcome whether their sexual preference 
runs to men, women, multiples of both of the former, or toasters. 
Nobody snoops on anybody else's sexual behavior because 1) that's 
their business, and 2) theoretically everyone is busy enough with 
their own sexual behavior that they don't have time to dwell on anyone 
else's. That said, actual crimes like child molestation and sexual 
harassment and rape are right out. So too, in almost every case, is 
teacher-student sex, unless there is a genuine commitment (for more 
than the night or the month) present.

* Writing assignments. This is another trait I very much liked about 
the Rama trip. He was an English professor, after all, and he knew the 
value of writing out one's ideas and experiences to gain clarity on 
them. He suggested that everyone keep a Spiritual Journal, and I think 
that's a good idea. He also suggested that students try to write down 
any particularly powerful spiritual experience, and in the day or two 
after it happened, because if you wait longer the experience will have 
faded. There is MUCH to be learned from doing this. If you do it well, 
going back and reading those stories again can zap you right back into 
the state of attention you wore when you orginally experienced it.

* A reverence for art. Not just looking at it or listening to it -- 
creating it.

* Friends. You should be able to count on your fellow students, and 
your teachers. If you come to them in distress, and wondering how to 
deal with a minor stumble on the spiritual path, will they help you 
hide the body? :-) More seriously, will they help you find the help 
you actually need?

* Doubt should be seen as positive, not negative. Faith is for those 
who are willing to settle for "easy answers." Curiosity is for those 
who keep looking for other answers, and even other questions.

* Willingness to change. I always liked the Dalai Lama's take on 
Buddhism, which (paraphrased) went something like, "If a fundamental 
tenet of Buddhism turns out to be wrong, we should abandon it and 
embrace the truth." Similarly, if the teachers' or the students' 
original path turns out to be unworkable, they should be free to 
change it into something that works.

These are just a few thoughts that occurred to me today, in the 
moment, in this cafe. If others have other thoughts on the subject, 
please feel free to contribute them.