Re: Marolyn's letter to an abused devotee .......... (repost)
Re: Re: Marolyn's letter to an abused devotee .......... (repost) -- Inis Top of thread Post Reply Forum
Posted by:
roark ®

06/14/2017, 16:07:01
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Howdy,

Marolyn’s letter was written almost 12 years ago, and following her scary and
life-changing health event, so I’m not inclined to tear it apart piece by
piece as was my first impulse.  But suffice to say this from is a very
frightened person in a very weakened state, struggling to stay positive and
make sense of things, but at the same claiming her fullness with delight and
love.  It is sad to see how hook, line
and sinker her rationale is with respect to her dependence on the GMJ mythology
and catechism.  It also seems she is
trying to diffuse your (Inis’) anger, do damage control.

It is also sad to see how her neediness and narcissism disallows her ability to give
anything but lip service to a bad situation that she likely could help with.  I wonder if she has been able to shift some since then?

But the point I felt to elaborate on is her comment about not judging Knowledge by
those that don’t practice.  I usually
have heard that one should not judge GMJ by those who DO practice.  But at any rate, what if any, IS a standard
by which to evaluate the efficacy of any so-called spiritual practice (of lack thereof)?

And what good is a spiritual practice if it does not bring about better behavior?

So looking at the GMJ thing, there are certain governing principles involved, but it
seems to point at ‘love and peace’ as its central core values.  There is also listening to and being guided
by a 'teacher' (wink), meditation practice and such, but the path is based on a
deepening experience of peace and love, no? 
And it does not focus on life after death and ‘salvation’, but on one’s
experience while alive.

And peacefulness reduces neediness, and I'd say that feeling love expands one’s boundaries
beyond themselves and their self interest.

So if someone diligently practices Knowledge, it would seem they should be able to arrive
at a somewhat stabilized state of equanimity, especially after decades, no?  So what does someone that has arrived in the
embrace of love and peace look like?

The actions of those that are experiencing benevolent love and peace are not so mysterious to
discern.  It reads in how they treat
others and interact with the world around themselves: how they speak to the waiter, how considerate and polite they are, if
they can see past their own sense of need to help others, if they live without angst, if they can listen well
and courageously, if their attitudes are not based in fear and so on.  I am not saying that only those that have
cultivated a deeper sense of love/peace can be considerate and helpful and good,
but that certainly that someone who is truly peaceful/happy will be less needy,
allowing them to behave accordingly. 

“Be happy to make happy" seems to be a pretty good truism.  Can we help to make the lives of those close to us better if we ourselves are unhappy and struggling?  Obviously, it is tough.  And we know that when we are happy, it is much easier to spread it around.  I think it is a good thing to be able to discern someone else’s suffering.  It is a better thing to feel compassion for and empathize with that person.  It is a betterer thing to have the skill to really help that person.  And it is an even betterer thing to utilize those skills and really make the effort to help that person.

Spending a life trying to cling to a tenuous ‘experience’ that can only be apprehended
by trying to frame reality in the very narrow world of GMJ, darshan, 'mind' avoidance, breath awareness
and his ‘Knowledge’ is a deadening and fearful way to go through life.

I
mean, if that is the goal, to feel better through meditation, adhere to a religious
belief system than involves chasing GMJ around the world to have those few inspiring times at programs, be a member of the devotee club and ignore the overwhelming
body of evidence that there is something really goofed up in premieland, then
so be it I guess.  (and I guess also so be it about the
various and sundry, odious bastards in close proximity to GMJ that have cause so much grief to well-meaning folks)

But I still know a lot of still-practicing premies, and I am so not impressed.  I don’t care as much about mansions in Malibu
and shifting messaging as I do that whatever he is teaching just does not
fucking work well.  It is very, very
obvious.

Of course, this can probably be said about any ‘spiritual practice’.

No
big deal, likely preaching to the choir, but just sayin……...…..

M






Modified by roark at Wed, Jun 14, 2017, 16:14:25

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