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From: japlady@casbah.acns.nwu.edu (Rebecca Radnor)
Newsgroups: soc.religion.eastern
Subject: Wisdom and Authority
Message-ID: <1991May6.192055.13637@nas.nasa.gov>
Date: 6 May 91 19:20:55 GMT
Sender: news@nas.nasa.gov
Organization: Northwestern University
Lines: 38
Approved: prabhu@amelia.nas.nasa.gov


Why do we accept authority?  In this country there are many teachers,
centers, etc, who/which offer advice for our spiritual good.  I'm sure they
can influence us for the better either through their words and/or actions;
many years if not decades of meditation, etc. no doubt produces a certain
level of insight into living.  I do not wish to question the wisdom of any
teacher, but I wonder what their insight has to do with our ignorance?  If
we must depend upon another in order to become more 'awake' or 'pure' is
this not another security blanket?  To learn how to meditate, or even speak
with those who have spent much 'time' being mindful can be beneficial, but
can we be aware of the difference between listening to someone and being
conditioned by him/her?  If we assume their wisdom i.e. project an image of
'enlightenment' upon them do we not do violence to them and ourselves?  And
if true listening is possible why must we listen to some and not to others?
Do you see the point?  Actual listening in which our stream of thoughts has
come to an end needs no authority.  A dog barking, a car passing, the
sounds of fingers upon a keyboard, all speak the dharma. Of course, the
question pops up, "how can we attain this 'listening?" Our minds love to
play these tricks-- just examine the question; have you not 'painted' the
picture of a self who will attain this listening at some future date?  If
only I could find the right teacher, or meditate long enough then I will
become wise. Authority says, "follw me, then you shall be delivered."  Is
this not the problem?  Isn't our automatic response to thought that we are
not aware of the cause of our confusion? Our conditioning locks us into a
pattern of thought--our prison-- and instead of examining this whole
process of conditioning we ask someone else for answers.  The stream of our
ignorance continues; the specific contents may change, e.g. from christian
to hindu etc.  but the pattern remains.  So the 'pattern' is the issue to
be investigated, which questions the very notion of authority, even the
authority of our own experiences.  Projecting the words of some famous guru
and projecting our own opinions, perspective etc. is the same thing. Even
(especially!) these words I am typing "must" be abandoned, or else
conditioning sets in-- more acurately non abandonment is conditioning. Can
we be open to the present moment no matter how painful or pleasurable? It's
the only "time" we have.

J. Cha c/o Japlady