Lights of Love wrote on Feb 13th, 2008 at 12:18pm:Hi Roger,
I look forward to Don’s thoughts as well.
From my perspective, guru is simply a name or label that means a teacher who is deserving of reverence. Are we not all teachers? Do we not all deserve respect if for no other reason than the fact each of us is a spark of the divine? Does a name really describe an entire person or thing? Is any one of us without fear that hides behind the separated ego?
Much has been said lately regarding certain people labeled as guru or whatever and
when I see posts like this that questions someone else’s personal integrity my heart goes out to that person because they have yet to understand the true nature of who we really are and the divinity that is within all that there is. I’m also reminded of Jesus’ words in regard to judgment of another such as the adulterous woman when he said to let the one who is without sin cast the first stone and they all walked away… no one condemned her.
Love, Kathy
Kathy, perhaps there is a difference between emotionally centered "judgment" and stating a perception from a more mental level?
You talk about Jesus for example, and his words about judgment. Well, Jesus didn't say we cannot discriminate or even speak critically about others actions or what they teach. His own actions and example, support the latter.
He himself, spoke quite critically in relation to the Pharisees and Sadducee's, and said things like that they were hypocrites, a generation of vipers, and that there teachings and ways of being were akin to 'white washed tombs' and that they brought others to death and not to life. Pretty strong words weren't they?
Yet, when he said these things, he was not coming from a place of emotionally centered judgment. He did not hold negative feelings towards them, despite his outer critical words. Even while he spoke critically, he saw and knew them to be beautiful children of God and other selves. But that did not mean he somehow didn't see spiritual "error".
He seemed to confront them because he believed that their teachings and ways of being were severely limiting the potential spiritual growth of themselves and the common folk, who looked up too and overly listened to these false teachers because they were a kind of "authority" then.
Not much different than some folks today speaking out against corrupt Priests or Guru's for example.
I can honestly say that when i speak critically about a person who sets themselves up as a teacher of spiritual truth but is one who leads others to ways of unSourceness and unPUL by their example and/or teachings, that i'm not feeling any negative feelings to them as a person, i'm not emotionally judging them. As individuals, i could care less how they lives their lives, it's when others start getting manipulated and harmed that i speak up.
These folks have been shown time and time again to exert a wide and powerful influence on many, who look up to them because they project the image of being "enLightened", and simple psychology shows that if you repeat something enough, those not fully centered and individualized may eventually start to believe you.
For an example, if you knew someone in a family was molesting a little child, but the family itself didn't know, would it be unloving to try to make that family aware that one of its members was doing this?
Or would it not be more loving to speak up in hopes that it would stop it from happening? You don't have to dislike the person who is doing this, to speak critically and in a discriminating manner about what they are doing that is harmful to others. It is not "judgment" to dislike the behavior or the facilitation of harm to others, it is judgment to dislike the person doing the behavior or who is facilitating.
Btw, one of the things you said in the above quote, that i made bold and italicized, well it could be construed of as judgment too, couldn't it? You basically said, when you cut out the subtle, flowery words, that people who speak out critically in regards to those who set themselves up as teachers of spiritual truth, that those who speak critically can only be coming from a judgmental space and don't have a clue about real PUL and thus aren't truly spiritual in nature.
Not only does this contradict Jesus's own life and example--a source you even referenced (how ironic that), it is putting self and self's perceptions of others on quite a high, absolute horse.
When one speaks against a particular behavior or way of being, and then does it themselves, what is a person supposed to think--particularly those who the message seems to be for? So, just because you didn't actually name names and directly say stuff to the people you were referencing too, that makes it "spiritual" and wise somehow? To me, it's an indication of unconsciousness to self and self's own unregenerated tendencies, perhaps points to a need to look wise and spiritual to others.
Personally, i do not care what others think of me, especially not if i come across as "spiritual" or not, and that is why i'm so blunt and direct about how i really think and feel. This world could really use more honest expression, more directness and honesty--it's one of the positive traits of Yang energy, as opposed to the negative trait of over polarized Yin energy which is subtly manipulative and which indirectly tries to put down others (and is good at getting away with it because of its subtly and master of innuendo). One doesn't have to be a major ahole to try to authentically communicate what one really thinks and feels, it's like anything there is a balance.
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