One of my favorite stories tells of a great teacher who once visited a hermit who lived alone on an island. The great teacher rowed across the water and met with the hermit who was waiting for him on the shore. The great teacher was invited to have tea with the hermit. While having tea, the hermit began chanting the one and only mantra he knew and had been meditating on for many years.
At one point, the great teacher stopped the hermit in the middle of his chant. He pointed out to the hermit that he was pronouncing his mantra wrong. He informed the hermit that if he was able to correct the mistake, he might be able to make great strides in his practice, lamenting that the hermit might have been further along in his practice if only he'd pronounced it correctly in the first place.
The hermit was extremely grateful for the great teacher having corrected his mistake. He recited the mantra again with the great teacher correcting him until he got it right. The two eventually finished their tea and the great teacher excused himself. He returned to his boat and bid the hermit farewell as he set off for the mainland feeling he'd successfully imparted his great wisdom on the hermit.
As he rowed toward the mainland, the great teacher suddenly looked up to see the hermit running across the top of the water to meet his boat. The hermit stopped at his boat with a big smile. He apologized for taking more of the great teacher's time as he stood on the surface of the water next to the floating boat. He then asked the great teacher one more time what the correct pronunciation of his mantra was, adding that he wanted to make sure he got it right so as to make the best of his future practice.
Dumbfounded, the great teacher recited the proper pronunciation. The hermit then thanked the great teacher with a low bow before playfully skipping back across the top of the water to the shore, turning and waving to the still awestruck man in the boat.
My point is, this practice is yours and the only way it's going to work is if it means something to you at a core level. Use your 'great teacher'; your guru as a sign post, as a resource. Beyond that, YOU are the only one who can feel what you truly feel and think the thoughts you think. It's your journey. It's your quest. It's you who is the savior of your soul. You are the guardian of your true spirit, the light within.
There are a great many people who see the world in a multitude of ways and you are one of them. No one see's the world the way you do. What sets you apart from your 'teacher'? You do. An insight is an insight and does not need to come from anywhere but within you. I submit to you that if you successfully open your own consciousness to be aware of goings-on outside of your selfish bubble, teachers can be found in many more places than a church or monastery.
The benefit of you tailoring your practice to your own feelings and inspirations (an extension of your spirit's will) is that there are no rules for you to follow. There are no precepts, but the ones you decide to follow. Well, no rules except one. If it makes you happy, if it puts you in touch with joy, if it keeps you in a world where there's no difference between tears of joy and tears of sorrow then keep doing it...
This man is a good resource. His name is Thich Nhat Hanh. He wrote a book that I once read called 'No Death, No Fear'. He sees life in a unique way and I found the video below to be a perfect example of that.
Enjoy!
No comments:
Post a Comment