family of spiritualists
By cyclistmike On October 27, 2015
The spirituality we have in life shows through individuals in different ways. Faiths and denominations and religions all have differences. They also have similarities. This is something monumental. We human beings have differences, but they are generally subtle when compared to our similarities. However we tend to overlook similarities selfishly and trend towards finding why we are unique amongst the masses. We like thinking we are special, that our spirituality is special, different and often refrain from comparative studies because deep down we’re not so secure with out own inherent speciality! I however don’t think we have much to gain from looking at multiple faiths and practices. We have nothing to lose, and stand only to gain insight, valuable insight that can help no only us but those we love deeply.
Religion is a starting point, and can also act as a path. Now some religions offer more literal path’s to follow. I believe this is an excellent thing. It is solid and grounded and gives us territory to relate to, psychologically thinking. So wherever we are is our start point. Now I’m Buddhist and proud of my Buddhism, I’m delighted in the challenges and obstacles I have overcome and continue to overcome in my aspiration to be my very own Buddha. This is my journey. Now as I am proud of my Buddhism I am also proud of where I have come. I was raised very well in Christianity, and cannot thank the principles of Christianity enough. I am forever indebted. Indeed talking now from a Buddhist perspective, I am slightly envious of the Christian tradition, and am inspired by all of the devoted and practicing Christians I have met. I have certainly meet more devoted Christians than I have met devoted Buddhists!
Recently it has become quite cool and quite hip to be Buddhist, and it has become likewise cool to meditate. Of these two things one strikes me as much more important. This is the practice. The practice of meditation is much more important than the decorations, facade or robe we wear. The practice and the inspiration we exercise in following the path to Enlightenment, is the way we honor the teachings of those who have suffered in order for our pitiful selves to know bliss! This certainly could be said of any faith or denomination. However recently as aforementioned, Buddhism has become cool, and we seem to be remodeling our psychological landscapes to reflect it’s appeal. This as a Buddhist is exciting, and also frustrating. As I have said, I have met more faithful, practicing Christians than practicing Buddhists (or non-denominational spiritualists for that matter). The problem seems to be the cool factor.
Just like remodeling an old house there is excitement, and an increase in positive thought patterns as we contemplate what our nice new kitchen and granite counter-tops will look like. We imagine briefly and secretly, that this will solve all of our problems, and for a while we are so invested, so intoxicated by the remodeling process all of our other problems seem minute, and far less troublesome. The process goes smoothly and we are left with a shiny new house and kitchen. We float on the joy and novelty for a short while then we become conditioned to the changes and we may find ourselves thinking that nothing has changed at all!
So maybe psychologically speaking we should hold of on renovations. It could be quite troublesome, and once a person has started, its certainly not possible to reinstall an old already torn our kitchen! Either way sometimes remodeling is necessary and sometimes its not, although in both cases it stirs the mind, above all we should not get into the habit of remodeling just because we’re bored with the way things are!
I believe that we are in a wave of remodeling, speaking in a psychological manner about faith. For some of us the old ways weren’t working, and we haven’t quite decided what to do next, however we have redecorated our landscape. Us Buddhists and Yogi’s have given up getting the Cross tattooed on our chests, and we have instead inscribed the symbol for ‘Omm’ on our fore-arms, and backs. It could be said that we are remodeling ourselves and our generation!
Tattoos are painful though! Maybe we should think twice about the symbols we are working with. Most importantly are we practicing what they mean? If we are simply using the symbols for cool points we are not honoring the reality the symbol is pointing at. For Buddhists it is very simple, we have a path towards enlightenment, and if we wish to live beyond the appearance of Spiritual symbols, we have a very concrete way.
However to commit to one path is quite boring, and leaves much behind. It’s like the decision making process or remodeling a kitchen or bath, except we are so busy with life we don’t even realize we’re in the middle of not making a decision. We like flirting with all the options, and just like a young couple looking at kitchen plans, we get excited about novel ideas. However we totally jump the gun. Somehow we have come across magical ideas and we are trying to apply Tantric and Enlightened principles to our everyday life! We are taking lessons concentrated through 100’s of years of study and we assume we know exactly what the past master meant! There is a tendency in new aged spirituality to become lost in the excitement and novelty.
This is like giving the makers of the Model-T a schema to make nuclear power, without being warned about the consequence of mistake. Now our own personal lives, it’s not likely we will stumble on any teaching so authentic we blow ourselves up, but we risk wasting our lives away slowly. We risk wasting a precious human birth.
{This seems to be a safety mechanism in Christianity, that there are miracles, such as Jesus rising from the dead, but they only happen after intense suffering. The important point here is that the individual who ‘gets’ miracles has to be willing to suffer immensely in the name of doing what’s right. i.e. Crucifixion}
At any point we could stop for a minute. We can look around and see the ground we’re on, the house we live in, and we can be ok with it. We could pick up the nearest broom and sweep our our house. We might be in the middle of renovations, we could still sweep the sawdust out. Perhaps we haven’t started any renovations, we could still clean up. We can be proud of our home, we don’t need change to feel proud of ourselves of how our parents struggled, and untold individuals before them worked to get us here, we are their hard work in the flesh. We can afford to have a positive attitude. At any point we can clean up.
For Buddhists this means meditation. We in particular cannot afford to rest assured in our newly renovated accommodations. There is no salvation without practice. We need to practice, we should honor the symbols we have hanging on our walls, be they Christian or Buddhist. There is no need for us to jump to Enlightenment, this is why we have a path in Buddhism. As we learn to relate to the path, we are guided towards enlightenment. This is born out of our own intention and within our practice of meditation.
This is what I would like to offer to those Christians I know and dearly love. There is no need for renovation. We can enjoy where we are and save the trouble and turmoil of change. There is nothing impeding keeping our beliefs and beginning a practice of meditation. Likewise there is nothing impeding us from relating to the path towards enlightenment. Although the symbol of the Buddha is very simple, and quite powerful in its enlightened depiction of a man sitting and not doing anything, I believe one could substitute Jesus Christ as the apex or achievement, and simultaneously study what the Buddhists describe as the path towards Enlightenment. The more simple and still we keep things the better. Big change causes big thought patterns, small shifts are much smarter. Wherever we are we can afford to love ourselves and each other. This is the starting point, and this is what meditation is all about. We are brave enough to love ourselves and intelligent enough not to be complacent about it.