Spiritual Materialism
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I was looking through Dharma Dan's list of recommended books (http://www.interactivebuddha.com/booklist.html) and found something which I think is worth sharing on this forum.
Source: http://www.sacred-texts.com/bud/tib/cutting.htm -- Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism by Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche
Excerpt from URL:
Spiritual Materialism
We have come here to learn about spirituality. I trust the
genuine quality of this search but we must question its nature. The
problem is that ego can convert anything to its own use, even
spirituality. Ego is constantly attempting to acquire and apply the
teachings of spirituality for its own benefit. The teachings are
treated as an external thing, external to "me," a philosophy which
we try to imitate. We do not actually want to identify with or
become the teachings. So if our teacher speaks of renunciation of
ego, we attempt to mimic renunciation of ego. We go through the
motions, make the appropriate gestures, but we really do not want to
sacrifice any part of our way of life. We become skillful actors,
and while playing deaf and dumb to the real meaning of the
teachings, we find some comfort in pretending to follow the path.
Whenever we begin to feel any discrepancy or conflict
between our actions and the teachings, we immediately interpret the
situation in such a way that the conflict is smoothed over. The
interpreter is ego in the role of spiritual advisor. The situation
is like that of a country where church and state are separate. If
the policy of the state is foreign to the teachings of the church,
then the automatic reaction of the king is to go to the head of the
church, his spiritual advisor, and ask his blessing. The head of
the church then works out some justification and gives the policy
his blessing under the pretense that the king is the protector of
the faith. In an individual's mind, it works out very neatly that
way, ego being both king and head of the church.
This rationalization of the spiritual path and one's actions
must be cut through if true spirituality is to be realized.
However, such rationalizing is not easy to deal with because
everything is seen through the filter of ego's philosophy and logic,
making all appear neat, precise and very logical. We attempt to
find a self-justifying answer for every question. In order to
reassure ourselves, we work to fit into our intellectual scheme
every aspect of our lives which might be confusing. And our effort
is so serious and solemn, so straight-forward and sincere, that it
is very difficult to be suspicious of it. We always trust the
"integrity" of our spiritual advisor.
It does not matter what we use to achieve
self-justification: the wisdom of sacred books, diagrams or charts,
mathematical calculations, esoteric formulae, fundamentalists
religion, depth psychology, or any other mechanism. Whenever we
begin to evaluate, deciding that we should or should not do this or
that, then we have already associated our practice or our knowledge
with categories, one pitted against the other, and that is spiritual
materialism, the false spirituality of our spiritual advisor.
Whenever we a have a dualistic notion such as, "I am doing this
because I want to achieve a particular state of consciousness, a
particular state of being," the automatically we separate ourselves
from the reality of what we are.
If we ask ourselves, "What is wrong with evaluating, with
taking sides?", the answer is that, when we formulate a secondary
judgment, "I should be doing this and should avoid doing that," then
we have achieved a level of complication which takes us a long way
from the basic simplicity of what we are. The simplicity of
meditation means just experiencing the ape instinct of ego. If
anything more than this is laid onto our psychology, then it becomes
a very heavy, thick mask, a suit of armor.
It is important to see that the main point of any spiritual
practice is to step out of the bureaucracy of ego. This means
stepping out of ego's constant desire for a higher, more spiritual,
more transcendental version of knowledge, religion, virtue,
judgment, comfort or whatever it is that a particular ego is
seeking. One must step out of spiritual materialism. If we do not
step out of spiritual materialism, if we in fact practice it, then
we may eventually find ourselves possessed of a huge collection of
spiritual paths. We may feel these spiritual collections to be very
precious. We have studied so much. We may have studied Western
philosophy or Oriental philosophy, practiced yoga or perhaps studied
under dozens of great masters. We have achieved and we have
learned. We believe that we have accumulated a hoard of knowledge.
And yet, having gone through all this, there is still something to
give up. It is extremely mysterious! How could this happen?
Impossible! But unfortunately it is so. Our vast collections of
knowledge and experience are just part of ego's display, part of the
grandiose quality of ego. We display them to the world and, in so
doing, reassure ourselves that we exist, safe and secure, as
"spiritual" people.
But we have simply created a shop, an antique shop. We
could be specializing in oriental antiques or medieval Christian
antiques or antiques from some other civilization or time, but we
are, nonetheless, running a shop. Before we filled our shop with so
many things the room was beautiful: whitewashed walls and a very
simple floor with a bright lamp burning in the ceiling. There was
one object of art in the middle of the room and it was beautiful.
Everyone who came appreciated its beauty, including ourselves.
But we were not satisfied and we thought, "Since this one
object makes my room so beautiful, if I get more antiques, my room
will be even more beautiful." So we began to collect, and the end
result was chaos.
We searched the world over for beautiful objects - India,
Japan, many different countries. And each time we found an antique,
because we were dealing with only one object at a time, we saw it as
beautiful and thought it would be beautiful in our shop. But when
we brought the object home and put it there, it became just another
addition to our junky collection. The beauty of the object did not
radiate out any more, because it was surrounded by so many other
beautiful things. It did not mean anything anymore. Instead of a
room full of beautiful antiques we created a junk shop!
Proper shopping does not entail collecting a lot of
information or beauty, but it involves fully appreciating each
individual object. This is very important. If you really
appreciate an object of beauty, then you completely identify with it
and forget yourself. It is like seeing a very interesting,
fascinating movie and forgetting that you are the audience. At that
moment there is no world; your whole being is that scene of that
movie. It is that kind of identification, complete involvement with
one thing. Did we actually taste it and chew it and swallow it
properly, that one object of beauty, that one spiritual teaching?
Or did we merely regard it as a part of our vast and growing
collection? -
I place so much emphasis on this point because I know that
all of us have come to the teachings and practice of meditation not
to make a lot of money, but because we genuinely want to learn, want
to develop ourselves. But if we regard knowledge as an antique, as
"ancient wisdom" to be collected, then we are on the wrong path.
As far as the lineage of teachers is concerned, knowledge is
not handed down like an antique. Rather, one teacher experiences
the truth of the teachings, and he hands it down as inspiration to
his student. That inspiration awakens the student, as his teacher
was awakened before him. Then the student hands down the teachings
to another student and so the process goes. The teachings are
always up to date. They are not "ancient wisdom," an old legend.
The teachings are not passed along as information, handed down as a
grandfather tells traditional folk tales to his grandchildren. It
does not work that way. It is real experience.
There is a saying in the Tibetan scriptures: "Knowledge
must be burned, hammered and beaten like pure gold. Then one can
wear it as an ornament." So when you receive spiritual instruction
from the hands of another, you do not take it uncritically, but you
burn it, you hammer it, you beat it, until the bright, dignified
color of gold appears. Then you craft it into an ornament, whatever
design you like, and you put it on. Therefore, dharma is applicable
to every age, to every person; it has a living quality. It is not
enough to imitate your master or guru; you are not trying to become
a replica of your teacher. The teachings are an individual persona
experience, right down to the present holder of the doctrine.
Perhaps many of my readers are familiar with the stories of
Naropa and Tilopa and Marpa and Milarepa and Gampopa and the other
teachers of the Kagy� lineage. It was a living experience for them,
and it is a living experience for the present holders of the
lineage. Only the details of their life-situations are different.
The teachings have the quality of warm, fresh baked bread; the bread
is still warm and hot and fresh. Each baker must apply the general
knowledge of how to make bread to his particular dough and oven.
Then he must personally experience the freshness of this bread and
must cut if fresh and eat it warm. He must make the teachings his
own and then must practice them. It is a very living process.
There is no deception in terms of collecting knowledge. We must
work with our individual experiences. When we become confused, we
cannot turn back to our collection of knowledge and try to find some
confirmation or consolation: "The teacher and the whole teaching is
on my side." The spiritual path does not go that way. It is a
lonely, individual path.
Q. Do you think spiritual materialism is a particularly
American problem?
A. Whenever teachings come to a country from abroad, the
problem of spiritual materialism is intensified. At the moment
America is, without any doubt, fertile ground ready for the
teachings. And because America is so fertile, seeking spirituality,
it is possible for America to inspire charlatans. Charlatans would
not choose to be charlatans unless they were inspired to do so.
Otherwise, they would be bank robbers or bandits, inasmuch as they
want to make money and become famous. Because America is looking so
hard for spirituality, religion becomes any easy way to make money
and acquire fame. So we see charlatans in the role of student,
chela, as well as in the role of guru. I think America at this
particular time is a very interesting ground.
Q. Have you accepted any spiritual master as a guru, any
particular living spiritual master?
A. At present there is no one. I left my gurus and teachers
behind in Tibet, physically, but the teachings stay with me and
continue.
Q. So who are you following, more or less?
A. Situations are the voice of my guru, the presence of my guru.
Q. After Shakyamuni Buddha attained enlightenment, was there
some trace of ego left in him so that he could carry on his
teachings?
A. The teaching just happened. He did not have the desire to
teach or not to teach. He spent seven weeks sitting under the shade
of a tree and walking along the bank of a river. Then someone just
happened along and he began to speak. One has no choice; you are
there, an open person. Then the situation presents itself and
teaching happens. That is what is called "Buddha activity."
Q. It is difficult not to become acquisitive about
spirituality. Is this desire for acquisitions something that is
shed along the way?
A. You should let the first impulse die down. Your first
impulse toward spirituality might put you into some particular
spiritual scene; but if you work with that impulse, then the impulse
gradually dies down and at some stage becomes tedious, monotonous.
This is a useful message. You see, it is essential to relate to
yourself, to your own experience, really. If one does not relate to
oneself, then the spiritual path becomes dangerous, becomes purely
external entertainment, rather than an organic personal experience.
Q. If you decide to seek your way out of ignorance, you can
almost definitely assume that anything you do that feels good will
be beneficial to the ego and actually blocking the path. Anything
that seems right to you will be wrong, anything that doesn't turn
you upside-down will bury you. Is there any way out of this?
A. If you perform some act which is seemingly right, it does
not mean that it is wrong, for the very reason that wrong and right
are out of the picture altogether. You are not working on any side,
neither the "good" side nor the "bad" side, but you are working with
the totality of the whole, beyond "this" and "that." I would say
there is complete action. There is no partial act, but whatever we
do in connection with good and bad seems to be a partial act.
Q. If you are feeling very confused and trying to work your way
out of the confusion, it would seem that you are trying too hard.
But if you do not try at all, then are we to understand that we are
fooling ourselves?
A. Yes, but that does not mean that one has to live by the
extremes of trying too hard or not trying at all. One has to work
with a kind of "middle way," a complete state of "being as you are.
" We could describe this with a lot of words, but one really has to
do it. If you really start living the middle way, then you will see
it, you will find it. You must allow yourself to trust yourself, to
trust in your own intelligence. We are tremendous people, we have
tremendous things in us. We simply have to let ourselves be.
External aid cannot help. If you are not willing to let yourself
grow, then you fall into the self-destructive process of confusion.
It is self-destruction rather than destruction by someone else.
That is why it is effective; because it is self-destruction. -
Q. What is faith? Is it useful?
A. Faith could be simple-minded, trusting, blind faith, or it
could be definite confidence which cannot be destroyed. Blind faith
has no inspiration. It is very naive. It is not creative, though
not exactly destructive. It is not creative because your faith and
yourself have never made any connection, any communication. You
just blindly accepted the whole belief, very naively.
In the case of faith as confidence, there is a living reason
to be confident. You do not expect that there will be a
prefabricated solution mysteriously presented to you. You work with
existing situations without fear, without any doubt about involving
yourself. This approach is extremely creative and positive. If you
have definite confidence, you are so sure of yourself that you do
not have to check yourself. It is absolute confidence, real
understanding of what is going on now, therefore you do not hesitate
to follow other paths or deal in whatever way is necessary with each
new situation.
Q. What guides you on the path?
A. Actually, there does not seem to be any particular
guidance. In fact, if someone is guiding you, that is suspicious,
because you are relying on something external. Being fully what you
are in yourself becomes guidance, but not in the sense of vanguard,
because you do not have a guide to follow. You do not have to
follow someone's tail, but you sail along. In other words, the
guide does not walk ahead of you, but walks with you.
Q. Could you say something more about the way in which
meditation short-circuits the protective mechanisms of the ego?
A. The protective mechanism of ego involves checking oneself,
which is an unnecessary kind of self-observance. Meditation is not
based on meditating on a particular subject by checking oneself; but
meditation is complete identification with whatever techniques you
are employing. Therefore there will be no effort to secure oneself
in the practice of meditation.
Q. I seem to be living in a spiritual junkyard. How can I make
it into a simple room with one beautiful object?
A. In order to develop an appreciation of you collection you
have to start with one item. One has to find a stepping stone, a
source of inspiration. Perhaps you would not have to go through the
rest of the items in your collection if you studied just one piece
of material. That one piece of material could be a sign-post that
you managed to confiscate in New York City, it could be as
insignificant as that. But one must start with one thing, see its
simplicity, the rugged quality of this piece of junk or this
beautiful antique. If we could manage to start with just one thing,
then that would be the equivalent of having one object in an empty
room. I think it is a question of finding a stepping stone.
Because we have so many possessions in our collection, a large part
of the problem is that we do not know where to begin. One has to
allow one's instinct to determine which will be the first thing to
pick up.
Q. Why do you think that people are so protective of their
egos? Why is it so hard to let go of one's ego?
A. People are afraid of emptiness of space, or the absence of
company, the absence of a shadow. It could be a terrifying
experience to have no one to relate to, nothing to relate with. The
idea of it can be extremely frightening, though not the real
experience. It is generally a fear of space, a fear that we will
not be able to anchor ourselves to any solid ground, that we will
lose our identity as a fixed and solid and definite thing. This
could be very threatening. -
I will have to say ,chongyam trungpa rinpoche is rather a controversial person
becos he have many girlfriend while he is in US.
but his teaching is rather alrite
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so much like me
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Yes, a crazy wisdom master. But definitely enlightened.Originally posted by bohiruci:I will have to say ,chongyam trungpa rinpoche is rather a controversial person
becos he have many girlfriend while he is in US.
but his teaching is rather alrite -
It is good to bring egoic behaviors into conscious view... and then gradually dissolve these habits.Originally posted by Eric Cartman:so much like me -
Spellcheck, it's egoistic.Originally posted by An Eternal Now:It is good to bring egoic behaviors into conscious view... and then gradually dissolve these habits.