I was having a conversation with one of my clients earlier and it brought to mind the trials and tribulations of being who and what I am.
Don't get me wrong, I'm not complaining (much) but there are many things that one gets put before them. My sister used to call me a spiritual weigh-station in that people come in, get or do what they need to and then go about their merry way. Is this a problem, only when I allow myself to become attached and don't want them to go. In other cases, it's a major blessing that certain people come and go quickly, fortunately they are getting few and far between.
I guess my least favorite part is the fact that when I meet someone that I want to get to know (sometimes in a biblical sense) and while they like me, they end up viewing me as a brother, or worse, father confessor. Now it is actually quite a compliment that these people want to share their lives with me in sometimes intimate detail, I have to admit that at times I want to grab them by the throat and tell them, "I don't want to hear about your sins, I want to participate in them with you!" Can you see my occasional frustration?
The people who know me from my day to day life don't judge me in a particularly harsh way, but those who meet me as a teacher can be brutal. They expect someone to fulfill their idea of what a teacher is supposed to be and where many take on that mantel, I am NOT! I am human, I believe God gave me a body and put me into the world to enjoy the fruits of his creation (pardon the double entendre--snicker).
I have no interest in becoming a eunuch for the praise of students who may or not listen to what I say. I look at Jesus and wonder what he would think of being made into the idol of millions of Christians instead of being their ideal.
I view my life as a spiritual Johnny Appleseed in the idea that I plant seeds wherever I am and hope that at sometime in the future they will grow. Since few people stay around for long, that's about the best that I can do.
As of late, I have begun to notice that a few people are starting to return on occasion and that they want more than usual. This is probably a good thing and it will help me grow. Many don't admit it, but I find that when I have students, I learn as much as they do, from them.
For the most part, my life is really very good and I am beginning to feel like I can finally relax and take a breather for a bit and then start working on the next stage. What they will be, I haven't decided as of yet. If the past is any indication, it should be interesting and unique.
August 28, 2006
August 25, 2006
Race, Simple Minds & Who Benefits?
I was listening to Randi Rhodes on the radio a little while ago and she was going on about race baiting in American politics and government. She was ranting about how race is being pursued as a dividing factor and that the talking heads as well as the empowered politicians are using race to collect votes.
She had the right idea on part of it, racism is a way to make people feel better about themselves when they have done little to nothing to improve themselves. Race is such a simple thing to use to judge others as well as gender and in many cases sexual orientation and religion with their sometimes obvious accoutrements.
Why is it that we no longer teach our children to succeed and to find pride in their achievements. We are so busy teaching our children to be cogs in the machinery of society and what power we teach our children seems to be mainly in victimhood.
When people want to feel better about themselves and are not educated in how to improve themselves, eventually they will look for something obvious to use as a basis of judgment. Race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, marital status and the such are easy in many cases to use, especially when you don't know anyone fitting in group X.
Funny thing about it, is that while we spend so much of our time splitting ourselves into little groups and fight amongst ourselves, what's happening in the big picture?
The fact is, there is only one race on this planet, the human race. When we stop our silly infighting and start working together, we can get something done. So, why are we being lead to follow this simple mindedness? Who stands to benefit and what are they up to?
Remember that we are ALL children of God and the worst of us is just as valuable as the best and the best are no better from God's perspective than everyone else.
She had the right idea on part of it, racism is a way to make people feel better about themselves when they have done little to nothing to improve themselves. Race is such a simple thing to use to judge others as well as gender and in many cases sexual orientation and religion with their sometimes obvious accoutrements.
Why is it that we no longer teach our children to succeed and to find pride in their achievements. We are so busy teaching our children to be cogs in the machinery of society and what power we teach our children seems to be mainly in victimhood.
When people want to feel better about themselves and are not educated in how to improve themselves, eventually they will look for something obvious to use as a basis of judgment. Race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, marital status and the such are easy in many cases to use, especially when you don't know anyone fitting in group X.
Funny thing about it, is that while we spend so much of our time splitting ourselves into little groups and fight amongst ourselves, what's happening in the big picture?
The fact is, there is only one race on this planet, the human race. When we stop our silly infighting and start working together, we can get something done. So, why are we being lead to follow this simple mindedness? Who stands to benefit and what are they up to?
Remember that we are ALL children of God and the worst of us is just as valuable as the best and the best are no better from God's perspective than everyone else.
August 20, 2006
God, Man, Messiahs & Perverts
You ever look at the world and the people in it and wonder just how everything got so screwed up? How did man (to use the Genesis version) go from making the mistake of eating the forbidden fruit to teetering on the edge of self-annihilation?
In recent times, we in the United States hear a lot of rhetoric, both political and religious, about Fundamentalist Islamic Suicide Bombers. How do you create someone who not only thinks killing themselves is such a great idea that they plan it, but convince them that they are doing God's will?
I have read the Quran and while I don't consider myself to be an expert by any fancy of imagination, I can't see where it justifies this teaching. Sure, it talks about martyrdom and the blessings and after death benefits of it, but I don't see what is being taught to the young in parts of the Middle East in it.
A couple of years ago I read a translation of a service, given by I believe Yassar Arafat's Imam, where he started with a story of a young 14 year old boy walking up to him and proudly proclaiming that in 4 years, when he was old enough, he was going to be a martyr via bombing (implied). If that wasn't tragic enough, the Imam was actually proud of his youthful zeal and enthusiasm. So, for these people who wish to blow themselves up in the name of God as they understand Him, I have a question:
Yes, I have a serious issue with these Imams that teach the young, dissatisfied and vulnerable that suicide, even in the name of God, is a career choice. Martyrdom is something God puts before you and you choose to accept or not.
But, this isn't about being anti or pro anything, it's about how we messed it up.
When you look at the core messages of the Teachers who claim to have messages from God or a technique for finding God from within, people just can't help but twist it to their sick little definitions of God to the exclusion of all others.
I am not a particularly strong fan of organized traditional religion, though I do understand it's intent. You can have a body of teaching and many examples of it in action, but for it to pass from generation to generation, you need to give it a form that can be explained or experienced. The problem is that the form tends to become more important than the purpose. A friend told me a story that illustrates this.
We do the same things with our teachers as well, look at Jesus as an example. Jesus was a good Jewish boy brought up in a less than ideal side of town, but he was blessed with an insight into both people and God and he later spent the last 3 years of his life being hounded by those who wanted to ride his coattails and those who were threatened by the "new" teaching that he was giving, the miracles probably didn't help on either of these fronts.
So what happened to him? His followers turned him into a god and put him on a pedestal so high that most of his teachings became inaccessible to the common, mere mortal, people and to incur his displeasure was a sure ticket to everlasting punishment by his father. Strange that none of this is referenced anywhere in his teachings.
I had a discussion with someone a while back about the Gospel of John regarding this (OK, I've had this discussion on many occasions). I was saying that John is probably the most misquoted and misunderstood book since the need of the people to insert their own egos into the expressions of the teacher. For example, what I think of as the most misrepresented verse in the Bible, John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Now a little context here... Jesus and his disciples are in a room and are preparing for the last supper. Judas has just been given his charge to go quickly about his task and Peter has sworn his allegiance and been told he will betray Jesus three times before the cock crows. He then goes on to calm the disciples and tell them not to worry, that he goes to prepare a place for them and they may join him. Thomas asks where this might be, since (once again) the disciples do not understand what Jesus is talking about. Jesus' response is this verse, followed by "If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him."
This verse, John 14:6, is usually taken to be an egocentric statement of deity, but if that was the case, the following verse wouldn't be necessary.
I've always found that John was the disciple who got it. John is writing about the teachings of Jesus and seems to assume we are aware of the context. If you insert the ego that most people do, then Jesus is in direct opposition to most of the rest of the Gospels where he shows himself to be the most humble. What is happening here, as happens in other scriptures as well, is that Jesus has so aligned himself with God in the form of father that he speaks his teachings in the first person for the father. Jesus does this throughout the Gospel of John. In John, we have a definitive split between Jesus, the man, born of Mary and raised as a carpenter's son and Jesus, the Christ, who is aligned with the will of God.
How can one man be both without being crazy? One is the man, as we all are and the other is the will and spirit of the man aligned, not with his own ego but the will of the creator. This is what Jesus is pointing to us throughout his message, the Christ is within each of us and we are able to bring it into manifestation.
Some say that this is Gnosis, it is! Gnosis is just the idea that there is a knowledge that we must find, the truth of our creation, and that it is our responsibility to follow where that leads us which is eventually back to our souls and their direct relationship to God the Creator.
Sin, to miss the point, is exactly this. It's not the eating of the fruit in the Garden of Eden against the stated will of God, but what happens immediately after the eating, Adam and Eve forget their divine nature and become completely deluded by their bodies and the nakedness of them. They miss the point of what creation is actually about and become lost in the illusion of it.
So, the question becomes; if that's the case, why would this not be the teaching of the Church? You can't control people when you tell them they hold all the cards in the game and God just wants you to play them.
There is a very good historical example of this, reincarnation. Very early in the history of the Church, the idea of reincarnation is brought into question, many attribute this to Origen though there isn't a lot of evidence to support this. If this were as much of a cut and dried question as many state, this would have been quickly answered and been done with. This was actually debated for around 300 years before the official church policy was decreed. Now depending on whom you talk to, you get different reasons as to why the final removal of the idea was placed.
God gives man the truth through teachers and messiahs and we pervert it.
I find it amazing how in our expressed ignorance of the subject, of soul and spirit, we still insist on claiming exclusive knowledge of the correct path and way that God had intended from the beginning. I find that if I come to scripture and interpret it from the universally agreed point in all religions, that we are eternal spiritual entities who only inhabit these bodies temporarily, that the scripture all point in the same direction and have a universal teaching.
In recent times, we in the United States hear a lot of rhetoric, both political and religious, about Fundamentalist Islamic Suicide Bombers. How do you create someone who not only thinks killing themselves is such a great idea that they plan it, but convince them that they are doing God's will?
I have read the Quran and while I don't consider myself to be an expert by any fancy of imagination, I can't see where it justifies this teaching. Sure, it talks about martyrdom and the blessings and after death benefits of it, but I don't see what is being taught to the young in parts of the Middle East in it.
A couple of years ago I read a translation of a service, given by I believe Yassar Arafat's Imam, where he started with a story of a young 14 year old boy walking up to him and proudly proclaiming that in 4 years, when he was old enough, he was going to be a martyr via bombing (implied). If that wasn't tragic enough, the Imam was actually proud of his youthful zeal and enthusiasm. So, for these people who wish to blow themselves up in the name of God as they understand Him, I have a question:
- You made the choice to become a bomber
- You made the choice to strap the explosives to your body
- You made the choice of the location to do it in
- You made the choice of when to do it
- You made the choice of how to kill as many as you might
- Where is God in all this?
Yes, I have a serious issue with these Imams that teach the young, dissatisfied and vulnerable that suicide, even in the name of God, is a career choice. Martyrdom is something God puts before you and you choose to accept or not.
But, this isn't about being anti or pro anything, it's about how we messed it up.
When you look at the core messages of the Teachers who claim to have messages from God or a technique for finding God from within, people just can't help but twist it to their sick little definitions of God to the exclusion of all others.
I am not a particularly strong fan of organized traditional religion, though I do understand it's intent. You can have a body of teaching and many examples of it in action, but for it to pass from generation to generation, you need to give it a form that can be explained or experienced. The problem is that the form tends to become more important than the purpose. A friend told me a story that illustrates this.
The abbot at a Buddhist monastery, high in the mountains had recently received a large group of young men to start their education as monks. He noticed that while the young men were enthusiastic and devout in their subjects, they seemed to be lacking something. After thinking and meditating on it for a while, he realized that being young men, they needed companionship and friendship, so the abbot took it upon himself to acquire a small puppy, which he introduced to the young acolytes.Now this simple little story isn't much unto itself, but it illustrates a trend in religion throughout history. What starts out as a suggestion or an idea, after a while becomes tradition and then potentially ritual and cannot be changed by us mere mortals.
Life in the monastery became more satisfying for the young men and the puppy slowly grew in size and love for his new home. The only problem with the arrangement became obvious when the young dog started attempting to play with the students while they were in temple and practicing their meditations.
To solve the problem, a stake was planted in the courtyard near a tree and it became the practice to tie the pup during meditation times. Now at first the pup didn't really care for the idea, but in a short time it became habit and all was calm.
As time went on, monks left the monastery and new acolytes entered as well as teachers leaving and passing, including a few abbots. Eventually, the dog had become long of tooth and finally passed on. This threw the monastery into a near case of chaos, since it was apparent to all that a new dog must be acquired immediately, since everyone knows you can't meditate without a dog tied out front of the temple.
We do the same things with our teachers as well, look at Jesus as an example. Jesus was a good Jewish boy brought up in a less than ideal side of town, but he was blessed with an insight into both people and God and he later spent the last 3 years of his life being hounded by those who wanted to ride his coattails and those who were threatened by the "new" teaching that he was giving, the miracles probably didn't help on either of these fronts.
So what happened to him? His followers turned him into a god and put him on a pedestal so high that most of his teachings became inaccessible to the common, mere mortal, people and to incur his displeasure was a sure ticket to everlasting punishment by his father. Strange that none of this is referenced anywhere in his teachings.
I had a discussion with someone a while back about the Gospel of John regarding this (OK, I've had this discussion on many occasions). I was saying that John is probably the most misquoted and misunderstood book since the need of the people to insert their own egos into the expressions of the teacher. For example, what I think of as the most misrepresented verse in the Bible, John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."
Now a little context here... Jesus and his disciples are in a room and are preparing for the last supper. Judas has just been given his charge to go quickly about his task and Peter has sworn his allegiance and been told he will betray Jesus three times before the cock crows. He then goes on to calm the disciples and tell them not to worry, that he goes to prepare a place for them and they may join him. Thomas asks where this might be, since (once again) the disciples do not understand what Jesus is talking about. Jesus' response is this verse, followed by "If ye had known me, ye should have known my Father also: and from henceforth ye know him, and have seen him."
This verse, John 14:6, is usually taken to be an egocentric statement of deity, but if that was the case, the following verse wouldn't be necessary.
I've always found that John was the disciple who got it. John is writing about the teachings of Jesus and seems to assume we are aware of the context. If you insert the ego that most people do, then Jesus is in direct opposition to most of the rest of the Gospels where he shows himself to be the most humble. What is happening here, as happens in other scriptures as well, is that Jesus has so aligned himself with God in the form of father that he speaks his teachings in the first person for the father. Jesus does this throughout the Gospel of John. In John, we have a definitive split between Jesus, the man, born of Mary and raised as a carpenter's son and Jesus, the Christ, who is aligned with the will of God.
How can one man be both without being crazy? One is the man, as we all are and the other is the will and spirit of the man aligned, not with his own ego but the will of the creator. This is what Jesus is pointing to us throughout his message, the Christ is within each of us and we are able to bring it into manifestation.
Some say that this is Gnosis, it is! Gnosis is just the idea that there is a knowledge that we must find, the truth of our creation, and that it is our responsibility to follow where that leads us which is eventually back to our souls and their direct relationship to God the Creator.
Sin, to miss the point, is exactly this. It's not the eating of the fruit in the Garden of Eden against the stated will of God, but what happens immediately after the eating, Adam and Eve forget their divine nature and become completely deluded by their bodies and the nakedness of them. They miss the point of what creation is actually about and become lost in the illusion of it.
So, the question becomes; if that's the case, why would this not be the teaching of the Church? You can't control people when you tell them they hold all the cards in the game and God just wants you to play them.
There is a very good historical example of this, reincarnation. Very early in the history of the Church, the idea of reincarnation is brought into question, many attribute this to Origen though there isn't a lot of evidence to support this. If this were as much of a cut and dried question as many state, this would have been quickly answered and been done with. This was actually debated for around 300 years before the official church policy was decreed. Now depending on whom you talk to, you get different reasons as to why the final removal of the idea was placed.
- The church father's, knowing the vulnerability of man, removed the doctrine of reincarnation so people would not be tempted to misuse it and figure that since they have many lives, they can enjoy this lifetime and work the next. Of course the chances are, they would be doing this for many.
- If people knew that they had many lifetimes and that salvation wasn't decided in a short time, the church would be impotent. The ability to sell indulgences and claim to stand in the place of God on Earth would be laughably ridiculous and the ability to control would be naught.
God gives man the truth through teachers and messiahs and we pervert it.
I find it amazing how in our expressed ignorance of the subject, of soul and spirit, we still insist on claiming exclusive knowledge of the correct path and way that God had intended from the beginning. I find that if I come to scripture and interpret it from the universally agreed point in all religions, that we are eternal spiritual entities who only inhabit these bodies temporarily, that the scripture all point in the same direction and have a universal teaching.
August 10, 2006
Disclaimers Explained
I'm probably about to get myself into trouble with this entry and should just leave it alone, but a few people have asked me what's up with the "Disclaimers" in my sidebar.
It came from a couple of places. They break down as follows:
It came from a couple of places. They break down as follows:
- All views presented here are those of the presenter or commentator only.
A friend made it clear that I needed to make sure this was noted and where I still don't understand exactly why, I put it there. It seems to have something to do with certain legalities about comments and not being responsible for them. As far as the last half goes, I don't want to edit comments (and don't as a general rule) but anything that's just rude and offensive for no good reason may go the way of the Dodo Bird. - All original content posted by Spirit Geek is Copyright ©...
Where this is stated in the Blogger Terms of Service, the same friend once again (I would ignore him, but he is a lawyer. Hmmm). - The purpose of this blog...
The whole point of this is to create a record of the good and the bad on my journey through life. There is a certain amount of transparency that I am trying to afford in my life and this is a tool in that direction. I read and talk with many people who put themselves into the public spotlight and the vast majority carry dark secrets that they hide from the world (and in some cases themselves). I think that they do a disservice to both themselves and those who look up to them, as they don't get a complete picture of whom it is they think they are dealing with. So, here I show "The Good, the Bad and the Ugly" (OK, I do live in Los Angeles and have been called the "Hollywood Guru" for my uses of film references). - Those who know me in personally, in passing or more extensively, may find comments and discussions of conversations and ideas expressed on this site.
As part of the purpose stated above, I talk about many things in my life and those in it are likely to be made mention of, but I won't say who you are (unless you ok it). This came about due to a friend being concerned about a conversation we had and making reference to it here. The point of this site is the documentation of life lessons and insights and if the people in my life supply them, they will be mentioned here. For as the last line says (and yes, it's meant to be a bit snippy!)... - Though you only need worry about this if you should to say something of substance (directly or indirectly).
August 6, 2006
I'm Alive (or so they say)
Not much has been happening.
I'm still living in boxes since I get home from work and just want to pass out till I have to get up again. I try to get something done each day, but it's a bit slow.
I'm in the middle of a piece for the blog that I started just after the move did. I hope to get things back on track this week. (I spent nearly four hours trying to get a phone and DSL hooked up in the place and they won't be able to tell me if the order went through till Monday)
If I am finished after my next run (LAX to Brentwood), I might actually get my bedroom finished enough so that I can stop sleeping on the futon in the livingroom, not that it's been uncomfortable.
The 2nd bedroom will be the new meditation and study space (eventually) and the diningroom will be my office.
Once the seasons change and it gets a bit cooler, I look forward to actually trying the fireplace. Anyone want to join me? (snicker snicker).
Back to work...
I'm still living in boxes since I get home from work and just want to pass out till I have to get up again. I try to get something done each day, but it's a bit slow.
I'm in the middle of a piece for the blog that I started just after the move did. I hope to get things back on track this week. (I spent nearly four hours trying to get a phone and DSL hooked up in the place and they won't be able to tell me if the order went through till Monday)
If I am finished after my next run (LAX to Brentwood), I might actually get my bedroom finished enough so that I can stop sleeping on the futon in the livingroom, not that it's been uncomfortable.
The 2nd bedroom will be the new meditation and study space (eventually) and the diningroom will be my office.
Once the seasons change and it gets a bit cooler, I look forward to actually trying the fireplace. Anyone want to join me? (snicker snicker).
Back to work...
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