Friday, November 28, 2008

A Curious and Unfortunate Turning of Events.

When I posted the last two essays, parts one and two ‘an elementary primer’, I had a reason. I’ve had some serious pressures come down on me at times and overwhelm me so that I was unable to maintain my balance and direction. I liken it to being caught in one of those ocean formations where there are waves crossing in various directions which create a cauldron effect so that you are tossed in unpredictable directions and can’t get out. You find things like this among certain rock coves and other locations where incoming waves interact with varying shore depths and then interface with the rocks.

When this happens, I have found that there was something I could do that would draw to me the focus and strength that I needed to get above the conditions. I gave an example of that in both chapters and it was the same example. After a few days of practicing this I was able to meditate again and free myself from certain negative influences that I grabbed at or permitted in order to counteract the discomfort of what I was going through. The alternative is to let it play out and that can involve a lot of time and unpleasantness before the condition changes on its own.

I know there are people who read here, who find themselves in extremis at times and who may suffer more than they let on, given the state of the world at the moment. The scenario that I presented is a way of talking to the inner you while engaged in a ritual with the outer. It’s about talking to your subconscious and implanting positive seeds. It’s about communicating with the higher self/guardian angel and invoking an intuitional flow or a provocation of the subconscious by channeling ‘the’ above, through the conscious self to ‘the below’. It’s a practical application and it works.

The reason I am bringing this up is that I had a strange and unfortunate experience this week with an individual who represents a website that has reprinted my work for; I don’t know how long... a year or more, I think. In all that time there was never anything negative in the exchanges. In fact, it seemed as if the support was unconditional. Imagine my surprise when this individual confronted me over these two postings in a way that I would say was... well, you decide. I’m going to reprint some things that he said to me in emails. I will leave out any indentifying markers of any kind and since I would never name this person or the location where he works, I believe this is perfectly acceptable.

This was the preliminary offering-


“Dear Les,

I read your latest Visible Origami and thought I would communicate some of my thoughts to you. I am no authority, but please listen to what I have to say with an open mind. –I now have this sense that it is impossible to communicate anything that is essential by way of words –any words. Yours, mine or those of others. But I'll try anyway.

About contacting the divine: We ARE the divine. Consequently, no "contact" is at all possible. There's no distinction at all between appearance and essence. Some appearance/appearances are invisible to our ordinary senses, but these still are appearances and are still "at one with" essence. So the question is not: either appearances OR essence.

This also means that there is no mind that is not "connected to essence". Mind is Essence & Essence is Mind. There's no difference –they are not two things. They aren't even "one". No word can possibly express this. Silence is recommended.

This also means that there can be no method, much less one that can "work" ("guaranteed" or otherwise). I have stopped recommending books to people. No book will/can take you to where you want to be. You already ARE "there". Our problem is that we want to be somewhere else than where we think we are. -We don't even know where we are or what we are. The searching is the problem. Stop searching and there's no problem.

Les, there IS nothing but "Nature". There's no "place" to go to –we already are That. We are (what we see as) the dog poo on the pavement as well as the candle & the flame.

Like I said, silence is recommended. This is as close to a "method" that you'll ever get. I've already said too much. Thank you for hearing me out!”



For some reason I didn’t get the first letter so I wound up getting the first two at the same time and this was the second one-


“Dear Les,

You said: It requires repetition and focus but it works.

For what? Not for ultimate realization it doesn’t! -It may well have some mundane effect and in that sense it could be said to ”work”. But ultimate realization cannot be prepared for, there’s no way to it and there ARE no stages. This is not a ”perspective”. It’s FACT. Why do you keep talking about contacting the divine and sowing ever more confusion? Les, the divine cannot BE ”contacted”! If at all it were possible, the divine would contact you, not the other way around. Revelation springs to mind. However, true revelation is utterly unspeakable. We don’t know anything about it. -Round-and-round-and-round...You do want to help people get out from under their minds, don’t you? Then why do you do this, Les? What’s the use of these silly ”spriritual” games?

No doubt each perspective is a stage

Any ”perspective” would be an illusion, but neither dual nor non-dual is a ”stage”. (This would presuppose the existence of a person, but none such can be said to either exist or not exist.) –Dual/non-dual are just concepts and as such, just part of what is. Same goes for Christ and the Buddha. -Nor are they personal or impersonal. They are beyond that. (Jesus & Gauthama can be seen as ”personal” if we are so inclined.)

As far as what's ultimate and more real, all I can say is, I don't know.

Nor do I!! I cannot know. But I do believe that the ’I’ can, that the ’I’ IS knowledge. But then again, this is just a belief. When we know, we no longer need to believe. We know.



So... I sent back another explanation and I got this;


“Ok, Les, I'll send it again, hoping, now as yesterday, that my comment won't put you off in any way. My point of view is non-dual and the thoughts forwarded in your latest Origami are in the dual mode. –So the potential for misunderstandings are there...here goes:


Dear Les,

I read your latest Visible Origami and thought I would communicate some of my thoughts to you. I am no authority, but please listen to what I have to say with an open mind. –I now have this sense that it is impossible to communicate anything that is essential by way of words –any words. Yours, mine or those of others. But I'll try anyway.

About contacting the divine: We ARE the divine. Consequently, no "contact" is at all possible. There's no distinction at all between appearance and essence. Some appearance/appearances are invisible to our ordinary senses, but these still are appearances and are still "at one with" essence. So the question is not: either appearances OR essence.

This also means that there is no mind that is not "connected to essence". Mind is Essence & Essence is Mind. There's no difference –they are not two things. They aren't even "one". No word can possibly express this. Silence is recommended.

This also means that there can be no method, much less one that can "work" ("guaranteed" or otherwise). I have stopped recommending books to people. No book will/can take you to where you want to be. You already ARE "there". Our problem is that we want to be somewhere else than where we think we are. -We don't even know where we are or what we are. The searching is the problem. Stop searching and there's no problem.

Les, there IS nothing but "Nature". There's no "place" to go to –we already are That. We are (what we see as) the dog poo on the pavement as well as the candle & the flame.”



INSERT; I should say here that to this point this person was at pains to be polite in a formal way and I’ve only left these brief sentences out for the same reason I’ve left all of my responses out which is for the sake of brevity. The point of this is not to explore our back and forth communications but to get the readers take on what they think about what this person is saying to me. Is this person correct? Also, why would this person have reflexively reprinted everything that they received and which often contained very similar thoughts and also why would this person reprint anything from Smoking Mirrors (which was also posted as soon as received and never a negative word about any of it)? There’s a mystery here.


So it continues... I try to explain and then I get another letter.


“Thank you, Les, for your answer! I’m not sure we’re getting anywhere, however, so I guess this sequence is coming to a natural close. But let me just briefly say this:

the difference in perspective of a great many people who have achieved enlightenment by means 'other than' what you suggest is invalid.

I never implied this. There are as of this moment 6.6 billion perspectives But perspectives are based upon perceptions and perceptions are of the body, matter, ”this world”, whatever. But what we’re talking about here is BEYOND perception. So I’m not questioning the enlightenment of a great many people, as you say. Whatever people say, is part of THAT, part of WHAT IS. There’s nothing wrong with that. What I am saying (implying), what I’m driving at, is that there is NO CAUSAL LINK between people’s preparation and their enlightenment. We are UTTERLY helpless and there’s NOTHING WE can do, nothing whatever, to achieve / ”attain” enlightenment. To think that attainment is possible (”I” attained enlightenment), would be to presuppose the existence of a person. -Les, there ARE no persons. As for ”contacting” the divine, it simply is impossible for ”you” to do this. The divine ”contacts” you. -It either stays contained IN you, or it fills you completely, floods you utterly, fully and permanently and spills over into everything you think, see & do. If ”preparing oneself” has any meaning at all, it would not entail adding anything, but rather getting rid of something. But even then there’s no causal link. The divine is perfectly free and unscrutable and will not be prompted or goaded by the use of charms, formulas rituals or substances. -We are like I said utterly helpless and can only long for it, yearn or hope for it, while we continue our patient and compassionate work with our fellow beings, loving them, caring for them.

If you are unhappy with what I do then you shouldn't post it


I will not post the primer. I think you are well-intentioned but that you effectively are leading people ”astray” by what your saying in this primer (’astray’ is also part of ’what is’). -So I will not post it.

I'm in contact with something that is present and which over a long period of time has effectively guided me

I am in no position to comment upon this; I can only hope that it is a guidance that makes you feel blessed and loved and that it would make it ever more easy and natural for you to shower blessings and love on our fellow beings. You are holy, beautiful and worthy of being loved. -Unconditionally. As you are. WHATEVER that is. I hope you understand that by now. This is also what you would want to pass on to others, in fact, it is the ONLY thing you can pass on to the myriad beings. If a ”perspective” seems to help in this regard, then go with it. If not, drop it. I can’t think of more to say. All the best!”



And so, I replied, saying:


“It's not possible for me to comment about this with a person who is convinced they are right to the exclusion of all other input or viewpoints. I don't agree with what you are saying and neither do the masters whose work I respect.

My sites have the highest content of intelligent and spiritually aware people of anywhere I have seen on the internet and surely one of them would have said something before about my misleading them. I will make your communications to me the subject of my next posting so as to see what the readers think of your beliefs concerning me. Of course I will not mention any names or the like.

It appears you may have had some sort of an event in your mind that has done something to you because no one switches their positions so quickly, or you may have been threatened by someone concerning your publishing of my work. It's fine, I understand.

I am surprised to see such a totalitarian viewpoint in connection with spirituality and never suspected I would run into it with you. I wish you well and thank you for the time we interacted.

I'll be moving on.

Aloha and be well,”



So... I got this,


“Dear Les,

I am not a person. I am nothing in particular. All input is welcome. There should be no exclusion of anything. But all viewpoints are not of equal value. Some of them spring from confusion, others from clarity. I have not ”switched position” and I’m not aware of any ”event” in my mind, let’s say: recently. What I said to you comes from the deepest levels within me and was communicated to you with sincerity. There are no threats as far as I am aware of. None. I fully intend to continue posting your work, the Smoking Mirrors articles as well as the other ones. You are more than welcome, now as ever, to submit your work to me. I wish that you would continue doing so. Again, all the best!”



Well... I had decided in my last communication that I wasn’t going to send this person any more of my work and leave the situation be. I’ll explain about that at the end. So... then I got this,


Les,

I have noticed that you have posted a Smoking Mirrors article without sending word about it to me. -In view of the recent misunderstandings between us, I now wonder whether this was intentional on your part, or just more of the same technical (?) trouble that we’ve had lately. Please clarify.



So, I said this...


“I just thought I'd leave it be for the moment. My tendency is to back away from contention and conflict; unless I can't avoid it, such as in real life situations. It's not a reflection of any judgments on my part. I've always been inclined to do this. So... it's more of a normal reaction for me and shouldn't mean any more than that. It's reflex. I don't really want to go into it any deeper because I don't really know why anyway. It's just how I respond to certain things. I don't like having them on my mind because I probably don't understand them either.

You're free to repost anything you want, of course. And if it's that important then I'll send them along again.

Warm Regards,


visible”



And he replied;


“Well, Les, conflict (just like pain & fear) is a vital part of life and it’s difficult to see how we can grow and mature without it. I guess what’s important is how we deal with it, rather than avoiding it when it’s there. Resisting it, we are frozen in time and will not transcend it. Facing it, something good will come of it – we’ll remember who we truly are. We all struggle with this; I’m no better than the next guy.

By talking to you about leading people astray, I was trying to remind you of the great responsibility of teaching certain things to people, and implicitly of the dire karmic burden that will accrue when someone does this without being qualified to do it. In general terms, precious few are, and the safest option is to be silent and continue working on oneself.

Regarding ”contacting the divine”, you can be fairly sure that whatever you think you have gotten into contact with is not the divine. We human beings have an enormous potential for fooling ourselves and for settling for the lesser instead of aiming for the Highest, Which is completely beyond experiences, appearances and perceptions. The Masters have done their homework. Now it’s up to you, me & the rest of us to do this too. Devotion to any master will not save us. Nobody can save us. We have to go deep and be very, very serious. Substances, ”powers”, ”experiences”, fireworks & flashes are just childish games that most certainly will hold us back. I too have been dawdling & delaying on my way home and I am ashamed of myself because of all the precious time I’ve wasted. -Like I said, I’m no better than the next guy.

Let’s join, Les, in going deeper and being ever more serious and committed to the way home, gathering in the flock as we do so.”



And this person adds as a postscript that my work will be now turned over to someone else to post as he sees fit.

I’d already begun to feel that this person was being extremely presumptuous because this person doesn’t know me at all, except through my writings and, if he had been paying attention while reading them, then this person would have seen that I present things from a variety of perspectives to engage the reader in thought, to provoke response and possibly self-inquiry. Apparently, I’m not qualified for this and apparently I’ve never had any contact with God. I won’t analyze this but leave it to the reader to speculate on.

So... I basically told this person that I thought they were wrong and presumptuous and various things but I was growing exceedingly weary of the whole exchange. I’m not into endless dialectic and mind numbing exchanges about nuance and the like. I just state my piece and people can take it or leave it.

So... I got this...



“Les,

We are at the ”end of the road”. This is the last time you’ll hear from me. -Reading through your last answer, I wasn’t sure I even wanted to answer you. However, what I’ll say next is an effort to remind you of the kernel of sanity that still is in you so that you could get out of the insidious current of delusion that is holding you back. This will likely be in vain and the effort may be wasted on you.

When I said ”You are holy, beautiful and worthy of being loved. -Unconditionally.”, I wasn’t referring to the Pied Piper of Hamelin (that is your present, self-chosen identity & function), but to something else, of which you obviously are entirely unaware of. ”You” are severely deluded. You need to do something about this.

”You” said to me: ”you are the 'only' person out of thousands with whom I have communicated concerning the specific subject under discussion who has taken this position so I will go with the majority view on what I do.” –I may also be the only person ”out of thousands” who has told you that ”You are holy, beautiful and worthy of being loved. -Unconditionally.” Please remember this.”



Mercifully, this seems to be the end of it. As you can see, this is already going on for a long time here and I spared you my responses because they were pretty much along the lines of what you’ve read here for years. Otherwise we would be at about double the length of the whole affair.


Addendum;

For the last week I’ve been having a series of events that sort of funhouse mirror this. Yesterday I got a letter from another source who reposts my work at a very busy site; much busier than the one under discussion. He said, “I love it!” meaning the latest Smoking Mirrors... “but, I have serious problems with the no plane hitting the building.”

I’m thinking, “What?” because I didn’t say that and wouldn’t so I wrote back to clarify and got the reply that this person had misread what I’d said and he was sorry about that, he’d just gotten up etc.

Also I’ve gotten a couple of letters from readers saying that I shouldn’t be talking about certain things because they don’t exist... the implication was that only what we see and hear is real and this was in relation to my latest radio show. The problem here was that the person said that I said and mentioned things that weren’t. I wrote back to inform the person of this and then heard back that it was true that I hadn’t sent these things but that he was embellishing because I might have well been saying this or that because all these things are grouped together anyway... weird.

I’m thinking a particular planet came into conjunction or opposition with another and in my case the result was a flare-up of confusion about what I do which in all cases I wasn’t doing anyway. I’m not doing anything differently than I ever have. Also people are confusing one blog with another and not realizing that they are separate presentations.

Well... I’ll just go on as I always have. It makes no difference to me if someone reprints my work or not... but it is ‘my work’ not theirs and they don’t pay me and I didn’t solicit their attention... they came to me.

Why have I gone to the trouble of presenting this here today? It gives you the opportunity to let me know if you think I’ve been leading you astray, even as it begs the question of why you are coming along then? (grin)

I’ve said it so many ways but it isn’t always clear to everyone. I am doing this according to intuitional provocation. What I say comes out of it and I’m not inclined to argue about it or defend it. It gets said and the reader can take it or leave it. That’s that, that’s it. It’s free as well. Finally... I’m not leading anyone anywhere and I’ve been at pains to discourage those who are looking for someone to manage their life for them. I’ve had to do this at regular points over time and I always will.

In any case... this may prove entertaining or laborious (I apologize if it is the latter) but it should spark some interesting replies.

25 comments:

Anonymous said...

...THE PIED PIPER OF HAMELIN.
WEIRD, JUST THIS MORNING ON MY WAY TO WORK I WAS THINKING ABOUT A NAME FOR A NEW INSTRUMENTAL OF MINE RESPECTIVELY A NEW SONG IDEA.
GUESS WHAT ? "HAMELN" !!
JUST LIKE "DER RATTENFAENGER VON HAMELN"
IN EARNEST
MARTIN
THE FLAUTIST

Anonymous said...

les,
Having read through it i found it to be an extraordinary communication.
Not being involved at all, I think "stuff" was added that made it a battle instead of a discourse.
A teacher i once went to said don't bring anything forward not even from a minute ago.
I think this would be the best,in this case.
We all have to drop our baggage, maybe see this as an invitation.
With much love

su said...

Les,

I did not mean for my answer to be posted. it was just my feedback- which is worth nothing but its freeand i was moved to urge you to drop it.
and again love

Anonymous said...

"this may prove entertaining or laborious (I apologize if it is the latter) but it should spark some interesting replies."

The latter, sadly.

My first impression is that while your correspondent wasn't wrong, exactly, when he discussed the nondual nature of divinity and how you're already 'there' (aside from being pretty sure that you've made similar statements) is that he was engaging in philosophical hair-splitting for the purposes of ... what, exactly? Being difficult? Showing off how much more spiritually advanced he is? More charitably, he's legitimately concerned that you're leading us astray ... though if that's the case, then taken together with everything else he had to say about words being insufficient, etc., then ... why bother trying to correct you? We can hardly be led astray if we're already 'there', right?

The guy's picking fly shit out of pepper. Painstaking effort and at the end of it no one can tell the difference.

Anonymous said...

This is a “From the Hip” response as I have only read the article once—but will again.

In The 24 hours of Le Mans, the same vehicle is used but different drivers at staggered intervals--Different weather, track conditions, dark and light. You can watch it on TV, or you can watch it from the pits and it won’t compare to what it’s like to drive it.

I see at times that we are driving the same car, the make and model doesn’t matter. That we may only get a brief glimpse of each other during the 24 hours, doesn’t matter—I’m here to drive the car and trust that you will get it around the course in whatever manner you choose to drive it—a team effort--individually. The race isn’t in the winning. It’s in the competition and in the acceptance of skill-- concentrated and focused—all while wearing a smile and tossing beer cans out the window.

There are factory teams out there that get big bucks and have fancy stickers. I see visible as the guy who shows up with a pair of shorts and a Hawaiian shirt, maybe a pair of sandals, but probably barefoot. There are no sponsor labels and the vehicle has no stickers or official number—your name is only mentioned in a few programs, and misspelled at that—maybe a little outlaw mixed in—without the $500.00 sunglasses. Those who know you wouldn’t be surprised if at 23 hours you simply drove off the track and out away from the course to see the sunrise or sunset—

The person writing to you has just recently read a book—swallowed another pill hoping that this time they will be cured once and for all-- letting it overshadow everything else—any wisdom gained to this point. There is a false “humility” in their writing that, at least to me, is glaring—The guy who goes to church in a brand new suit, hair combed, Pepsodent smile—hands raised—for a while, until the anointing machine fails to spit out what is on their wish list—it will be another brand of soft drink every month. If the wind changes direction, so will they—flavor of the day. Dating a long legged blonde but horny for a short haired brunette—“My world would be perfect if only……..”

The divine essence/consciousness is there yet when the meeting comes, we tend to run the other way…it can be scary and uncomfortable on some level because the “feeling” is so alien to us—we’re not prepared to accept. We are simply not prepared for the energy flow—it’s shocking and strips us naked—some for the first time feel the total light and warmth of the sun—elated and calm--other are thinking that their dick or boobs are too small to be standing around naked and run for the bushes—

Some people don’t even give themselves a place to make the fire that brings warmth, light, and a dancing array of flowing colors and shapes--They buy a video or DVD of a fire and put it on their 102” flat screen—Doesn’t matter how many dvd’s you buy, it is a cold illusion and will never bring what the real thing can, and does—

People travel to other countries and stay insulated inside the Hilton compound and think that they have met the natives, and the natives love them because they are so friendly and bring them whatever they need—it comes with the package deal—but the package deal is a limited time offer. To vacation somewhere is temporary, and the commitment to live in an alien land can be daunting depending on how much stuff you take with you—Travel light.

This is in no way a slam on the person you are corresponding with—I see some of my own diary entries in some of what they say—The only levels of consciousness are simply the ones that we have not experienced yet—or experienced at a different “time” in our lives-or for brief or long periods of time at what we “gauge” to be different intensity levels—it’s still the same current, we just tend to insulate ourselves from it to varying degrees.

Go vertical, or stay horizontal. (Disclaimer: this is a metaphor )

How you describe the ocean will be different than how I do—But it is still the ocean, and words are one of the ways that directions can be given on how to get there—or better yet, how you got to your beach—we all watch the same sunset, just from different locations—

The “Pied Piper” comment was meant to be a cheap shot and a bitch-slap after the fake humility and civility wore off—don’t have a comment for that—let it stand on it’s own merit.

On a personal note, I am selling all of my possessions and bringing the Kool-Aid

See you soon OH GREAT WISE LEADER!!!!!!

Jj

Anonymous said...

Hello Les,

I have been following your blogs for a little over a year now (got connected to you through SOTT). I find you are like a "lighthouse" for me. I have started my awakening process one year after my father passed away back in Christmas 2005 with a startling dream.

Anyway, I don't usually talk much. I am more of a listener but felt an urge to comment on your latest post.

Early in my awakening process, I was introduced to Abraham from Esther Hicks fame. I tried to follow the teachings. Some of it made sense. Most of it didn't seem to work for me. In fact, the harder I tried, the more the left side of my head would "tingle". The more I read, the stronger the "tingle" until it actually made my head and eye have a spasm like reaction.

After a couple of months, I found Laura and the Cassiopaean's. Instantly I found a "home".

The point of this introductory rambling is that it would seem this individual you are speaking about maybe under the influence of an STS force (New Age type) judging from his quote "I'm in contact with something that is present and which over a long period of time has effectively guided me". This would seem to contradict his previous statement of "About contacting the divine: We ARE the divine. Consequently, no "contact" is at all possible." Then professes that "The searching is the problem. Stop searching and there's no problem." That was the alarm bell for me! In other words, we are slaves. We are well cared for so stop worrying and be happy.

So it would seem you touched a "nerve" that the individual found not to his liking. For me, that is a big time clue that you are on the right track in helping people who are seeking the truth.

I have started reading the book "Science of Mind" and practicing your personal request suggestion. I have noticed increased agitation in a part of my mind that seems unhappy with this course I stubbornly want to follow. Or maybe it's those blasted jet contrails, hehe.

Well, I think I rambled enough. Thank you so much Les for your insights that help us to think!

Bill B.

kikz said...

'By talking to you about leading people astray, I was trying to remind you of the great responsibility of teaching certain things to people, and implicitly of the dire karmic burden that will accrue when someone does this without being qualified to do it. In general terms, precious few are, and the safest option is to be silent...'

les,
i have so many half formed thoughts about this exchange... but for now, since you've asked... i'll share my first impressions...

mentally rolling it in entirety, two axioms surface.

paraphrased;
no man can show another the 'light' but can...show another (a) path to it.


hermes - "THE LIPS OF WISDOM ARE CLOSED, EXCEPT TO THE EARS OF UNDERSTANDING"


so...frm both these axioms, for whatever it may or may not be worth... i conclude

your expressed 'intent' of what you do here, is noble.

it conforms w/my acid test, dogma.

one of the wisest minds of any age (i've ever read) gives this advice:

"everyone is entirely free to reject and dissent from whatsoever herein may seem to him to be untrue or unsound. it is only required of him that he shall weigh what is taught, and give it fair hearing and unprejudiced judgment"

in the years i've been here w/you, i have never seen anything other than this exact sentiment expressed.


as to your correspondent's reminder, "...of the great responsibility of teaching certain things to people, and implicitly of the dire karmic burden that will accrue when someone does this without being qualified to do it. In general terms, precious few are, and the safest option is to be silent.'"....

this correspondent would seem at odds even w/his own stance;
"About contacting the divine: We ARE the divine. Consequently, no "contact" is at all possible."

as i' understood your many words inre the concept "contacting the divine" as metaphorical; meaning to bring one's awareness to the level that one acknowledges the 'divine w/in' this is perfectly reasonable.

the correspondent however enlightened he may be seems to have some limitations in his sense of the metaphorical in this instance, and others, for if as (he) supposes we are divine, how could elevating another's conscious level to acknowledge this innate divinty, accrue 'dire karmic burden'?

also, if we are divine, we are divine. only on the 'animal farm', are some more divine and qualified than others.

i won't even address the 'admonition of silence' issue, as hermes, for me, has the final word.

"THE LIPS OF WISDOM ARE CLOSED, EXCEPT TO THE EARS OF UNDERSTANDING"


love
k*

Visible said...

That's an interesting collection of responses. I should point out that this isn't the first time I heard that Pied Piper thing.

Bill B. that comment was actually from me but there are similar contradictions to be had.

Susana; I was dropping it right from about the second email and had tried to make it understood that this person was free to just pick what they liked in the future and I would step out of the loop entirely. I don't give it a moment's thought whether someone continues to proliferate me or not because it was never my intention to reach for ever wider exposure. I don't make any efforts in that regard and the sites that do this all picked up on me from another site which picked up my me originally because someone sent something in. I'm a firm believer in the phrase, "Whenever one door closes another one opens."

Basically I was more interested in the parallels happening at other points which indicated that either I was having a bad hair week or there was some static in the ethers. I did think, in fairness, that people should consider whether I am mis-leading them, even though I can't locate where.

jj, as usual turns the whole thing into an entertaining gonzo ride.

"Flyshit out of pepper is what I got. See, I do try to read carefully what someone says so that I can make adjustments should my radar come back after the mind has digested it and tell me to tack right, or left. The contradictions in the argument were what got me as well as the fact that I'm more inclined to a Ramana Maharshi outlook any way, in a personal sense but... dualist or non-dualist they all seem to write a lot regardless... certainly those interpreting the uninterpretable are compelled to use dualism to make their points.

I knew the direction this was going in and I toyed with the possibility of a "Yes dear, whatever you say dear." way of handling it but it would have been dishonest in it's own way.

Well... someone's at the door, I have to go see who or what that is.

nina said...

You are to reroute your entire learned perspective gained through the sum total of your unique experience, from reincarnation to the Now, for someone you never met who was never what they portrayed themselves to be and smacks you upside the head demanding you enjoy it?
As for your concerns, the trees, the grasses, even the FOG, the wetness of early winter all say thanks, we've been hoping to be addressed with such honorable acknowlegement.
Why do I come here, because you keep it real, it feels so good to be real.
Last week or more there were multiple confusions, it is likely still occuring. People tend to gloss while attempting to gather all the information in real time which only confuses them in an overload of half-comprehension.
When you put your cards on the table every day the way you do, you are bound to run into "capes" of resistance.
Of course, resistance can be something chemical, like Vicodin in which a person gets talky and irritable, knows they are being so but driven to convince the victim they know best, are not irritable, its not a drug, its truth. Uh huh.

Anonymous said...

Interesting choice of words re: "tack left or right". I used to teach sailing and was a "racer" of note at one time--also Captained boats professionally for many years.
Students would always ask "how long will it take me to learn to sail" to which i would respond "I can teach you 80% of the concepts of how things work in a day or two and get you sailing but it will take you the rest of your life to learn the rest.
You never stop learning because the circumstances and those you sail with, or even if you sail solo, are always changing. Depending on the vessel you have chosen for this leg of the journey can make a difference too.
Is the purpose to go faster than everyone else, or to enjoy the fact that you're sailing in all of its purity—depends on the individual I suppose—you can do both though.
Once you read the basics, the rest is the ride--the learning. Even the waters you sail in may have changed since the last chart update-you learn to trust your eyes and your experience.
Some people work at sailing, others are naturals at having the feel—the touch
Sometimes calm, sometimes dangerous, sometimes not another ship in sight--and sometimes-- therein lay the beauty of why you went sailing in the first place--just you, the wind, and the ocean.
Sometimes a safe harbor, sometimes weaving your way through shallow coral heads-- A microcosm of life--

Sometimes the best places to be are those not on the charts or the tourist maps--in waters most choose not to sail in for various reasons--But their reasons are not yours--


Thomas Paine writes in Age of Reason:
It is a fraud of the Christian system to call the sciences 'human inventions;' it is only the application of them that is human. Every science has for its basis a system of principles as fixed and unalterable as those by which the universe is regulated and governed. Man cannot make principles, he can only discover them.
For example: Every person who looks at an almanac sees an account when an eclipse will take place, and he sees also that it never fails to take place according to the account there given. This shows that man is acquainted with the laws by which the heavenly bodies move. But it would be something worse than ignorance, were any church on earth to say that those laws are a human invention.
It would also be ignorance, or something worse, to say that the scientific principles, by the aid of which man is enabled to calculate and foreknow when an eclipse will take place, are a human invention. Man cannot invent any thing that is eternal and immutable; and the scientific principles he employs for this purpose must, and are, of necessity, as eternal and immutable as the laws by which the heavenly bodies move, or they could not be used as they are to ascertain the time when, and the manner how, an eclipse will take place.
The scientific principles that man employs to obtain the foreknowledge of an eclipse, or of any thing else relating to the motion of the heavenly bodies, are contained chiefly in that part of science that is called trigonometry, or the properties of a triangle, which, when applied to the study of the heavenly bodies, is called astronomy; when applied to direct the course of a ship on the ocean, it is called navigation; when applied to the construction of figures drawn by a rule and compass, it is called geometry; when applied to the construction of plans of edifices, it is called architecture; when applied to the measurement of any portion of the surface of the earth, it is called land-surveying. In fine, it is the soul of science. It is an eternal truth: it contains the mathematical demonstration of which man speaks, and the extent of its uses are unknown.
It may be said, that man can make or draw a triangle, and therefore a triangle is a human invention.
But the triangle, when drawn, is no other than the image of the principle: it is a delineation to the eye, and from thence to the mind, of a principle that would otherwise be imperceptible. The triangle does not make the principle, any more than a candle taken into a room that was dark, makes the chairs and tables that before were invisible. All the properties of a triangle exist independently of the figure, and existed before any triangle was drawn or thought of by man. Man had no more to do in the formation of those properties or principles, than he had to do in making the laws by which the heavenly bodies move; and therefore the one must have the same divine origin as the other.
In the same manner as, it may be said, that man can make a triangle, so also, may it be said, he can make the mechanical instrument called a lever. But the principle by which the lever acts, is a thing distinct from the instrument, and would exist if the instrument did not; it attaches itself to the instrument after it is made; the instrument, therefore, can act no otherwise than it does act; neither can all the efforts of human invention make it act otherwise. That which, in all such cases, man calls the effect, is no other than the principle itself rendered perceptible to the senses.
What other “Principles” exist, waiting for us to notice them?
Read Age of Reason, and grow. If you have read it before, read it again.
It was my beginning.

Jj

Anonymous said...

I'd like to write some clever words and make myself sound all smart and all-knowing too, but my street level take is.........Godsend with a different costume.

Pied Piper? Hey, someone ASKED. You shared your experience and no one got hurt, and folks that come here don't seem to be the sort to hold you up as some sort of leader to be blindly followed, so I don't get the responsibility angle. You say go out and seek (if you are so inclined), they say "no need, we're already there." So who gets to determine what is "right" for someone else? Let me see your credentials, or just PROVE IT TO ME so I won't have to do it myself. Be my heated chairlift up the mountain, wouldja??? (sorry, snarky rules me today).

Delusional with only a kernel of sanity left? Mmmm, sure, but that could be said about most of us probably, depending on where the observer is standing and what they "know" to be true.

Everything was fine until it wasn't. A point of contention was found and the rest was tossed out, creating opposition and a sense of separation with some ego input tossed in to fuel it. Sounds like life in general.

There must be something in the air because my usually solid relationship just went completely batshit - for no good reason. Buttons are being pushed all around me, and some of the reactions are truly stunning, and pretty unsettling. Great care is needed or some real damage could result. The cause is very similar to what you are describing, and I want to take my ball and go home.

If you are the Pied Piper, when do you get pissed about not being paid and exact your revenge? Did you ask for compensation for any of this? The person writing this is either the deaf kid one or the lame one I guess, and should be thankful they have it all figured out and didn't get sucked in due to being unable to hear or too slow to catch the crowd. Good for them.

I'm sorry if I contributed to this in any way.

nina said...

Let me just lay something on you for a second, I feel so strongly about the value and insights coming out of your blogs, I don't go to places anymore that stopped linking to your blogs because it says to me that the relationship was not valuable to the webmaster. Which means the comments we make from our hearts are read as not valuable as well, as if we who habituate your site are some bizzare plague of corraled rats.

Anonymous said...

Dear Les Visible,
This article sent shivers down my spine, I found reading it a difficult task. I have had the misfortune/fortune of spending some time with someone who immediately sprang to mind when reading this post. I am assuming that they are not the kind of person to have a copy of 'Political Ponerology' on their bookshelf.
I sincerely hope that they do not interfere with you or your work.

Your work is having an unspeakable influence on my life.

Knowledge protects

Thankyou


Duncan

Anonymous said...

BUT some perhaps will say--Are we to have no word of God --no revelation? I answer yes. There is a Word of God; there is a revelation.

THE WORD OF GOD IS THE CREATION WE BEHOLD: And it is in this word, which no human invention can counterfeit or alter, that God speaketh universally to man.

Human language is local and changeable, and is therefore incapable of being used as the means of unchangeable and universal information. The idea that God sent Jesus Christ to publish, as they say, the glad tidings to all nations, from one end of the earth unto the other, is consistent only with the ignorance of those who know nothing of the extent of the world, and who believed, as those world-saviours believed, and continued to believe for several centuries, (and that in contradiction to the discoveries of philosophers and the experience of navigators,) that the earth was flat like a trencher; and that a man might walk to the end of it.

But how was Jesus Christ to make anything known to all nations? He could speak but one language, which was Hebrew; and there are in the world several hundred languages. Scarcely any two nations speak the same language, or understand each other; and as to translations, every man who knows anything of languages, knows that it is impossible to translate from one language into another, not only without losing a great part of the original, but frequently of mistaking the sense; and besides all this, the art of printing was wholly unknown at the time Christ lived.

It is always necessary that the means that are to accomplish any end be equal to the accomplishment of that end, or the end cannot be accomplished. It is in this that the difference between finite and infinite power and wisdom discovers itself. Man frequently fails in accomplishing his end, from a natural inability of the power to the purpose; and frequently from the want of wisdom to apply power properly. But it is impossible for infinite power and wisdom to fail as man faileth. The means it useth are always equal to the end: but human language, more especially as there is not an universal language, is incapable of being used as an universal means of unchangeable and uniform information; and therefore it is not the means that God useth in manifesting himself universally to man.

It is only in the CREATION that all our ideas and conceptions of a word of God can unite. The Creation speaketh an universal language, independently of human speech or human language, multiplied and various as they be. It is an ever existing original, which every man can read. It cannot be forged; it cannot be counterfeited; it cannot be lost; it cannot be altered; it cannot be suppressed. It does not depend upon the will of man whether it shall be published or not; it publishes itself from one end of the earth to the other. It preaches to all nations and to all worlds; and this word of God reveals to man all that is necessary for man to know of God.

Do we want to contemplate his power? We see it in the immensity of the creation. Do we want to contemplate his wisdom? We see it in the unchangeable order by which the incomprehensible Whole is governed. Do we want to contemplate his munificence? We see it in the abundance with which he fills the earth. Do we want to contemplate his mercy? We see it in his not withholding that abundance even from the unthankful. In fine, do we want to know what God is? Search not the book called the scripture, which any human hand might make, but the scripture called the Creation

Paine Rocks--
Do people just not want to believe that the connection is so simple--
Les, Pretty good company you are keeping but then a again, they wanted to tar and feather Paine as well--wonder if they called him the Pied Piper?

Jj

Visible said...

Wow. I need say no more, you know who you are- double entendre implied. Thank you for a whole lot of different things.

Bad storm last night and off the internet for about 18 hours so that is why the comments are so long coming.

Ben There said...

Les -

I've been following your work for as long as it's been here and never once have I felt "led astray" or misguided or lied to or misinformed or any other wording that we want to ascribe to it. Quite the contrary. You've consistently had the most eloquent and beautiful way of stating things that confirm what I had discovered intuitively (and previously never discussed with anyone). In addition to that, anything you say here can be confirmed in other works and the teachings of various masters and throughout (superficially) differing spiritual traditions.

The bottom line is there are many ways to say the same thing and you approach the thing from a multitude of creative and often ingenious angles. Not to be presumptous but I've always assumed your intent with using so many varied approaches has been due to the fact that what clicks with one reader might not click with the next but really, there's something for everyone.

This person you are corresponding with is overly attached to a particular tradition. True, words can never be the thing itself which is exactly why so many approaches/descriptions/pointers/signposts can all be valid. Words never capture the essence, no matter how gifted the writer.
Does the word "sex" tell us anything about what sex is, much less capture it's essence? Of course not. No need to be so attached to the wording here. What ties all of this together is personal experience, that is what we are all after.

Your correspondent is well intentioned but, as you say, is also a little totalitarian, which is really just a good indicator that he/she might do well to be less concerned with the signposts and more concerned with direct experience; at which point it becomes apparent that all signposts are equally inadequate and not really worth arguing about.

Sorry for rambling on and also for rushing through this like I had to. I'm zipping through the internet as duty is calling in other areas at the moment.

Happy Thanksgiving Visible and Visible readers!

Rabbit said...

It seems obvious to me that the guy is an ideologue. He has some sort of new age perspective of his own and is locked into it. He had problems with you poking his balloon with a sharp thing and for fear of having it burst, he set about trying to "convert you" as any true believer does when their delusion is challenged.

It is the same with Zionism, 9/11 and most of the subjects with which we deal. Cognitive dissonance drives people to weird and wonderful mental gymnastics and can make a smart man a dumbo. This is also why the similarity with regards people putting words in one's mouth, talking nonsense, avoidance and the strange contortions of denial.

Indeed the experiences you describe are no different to those I have had in debate with extremist Atheists on Youtube the last few days and also with Obama supporters. There even seemed to be a sudden spike in that sort of "getting the wrong end of the stick and running with it" kind of thing lately, so maybe as you say it is a planetary thing.

As for leading people astray, you don't attract the sort of people who are likely to be easily "LED" anywhere, would be my conclusion.

Anonymous said...

This is directed at no one in particular. The Truth of your (plural) being is not a 'New Age Perspective'. The Non-dual way of looking at life is not something new at all...it is mirrored in the writings of Taoists and others thousands of years ago. The unidentified (appropriate for what was being pointed to) writer perhaps was expressing a dualistic judgment to say that Les has been leading anyone astray. You cannot really understand to what (most of) his words point from the mind, which makes this present post equally facetious, since words live in mind. Whatever unfolds in life is neither good nor bad, right or wrong, but simply IS. This CANNOT be understood with mind. A sage said (more or less) "The flaw with words is that they always force us to feel enlightened, but when we turn around to face the world they always fail us and we end up facing the world as we always have, without enlightenment. For this reason, one who has seen the truth (without thoughts)seeks to act rather than to talk and to this effect he gets a new description of the world--a new description where talking is not that important, and where new acts have new reflections."
The ONLY mistake is the first one...the "me-stake". Drop the identification with the false ego-mind to see the truth, except that there is no one to drop anything. None of this makes "sense" to the mind. You might try meditating on rather than thinking about all this, but in truth, there is nothing that anyone can do to 'achieve enlightenment' since it just happens or not, outside of any 'control' the I-Thought may think. As one Zen teacher said "There are no enlightened persons. There is just enlightenment"...
There is only the diving, the ONE, GOD, Awareness, Consciousness masquerading as many to explore ALL possible ways of being, and entirely devoid of any 'meaning' except what the various points of view (we call people) give it. This situation feels like it is on the cusp of changing, as more and more separate points of view awaken to the Truth of Oneness.
Since there is only One thing at play in this dream, there is no one to 'contact' since who you think you are has never been separate. It's all smoke and mirrors...

Anonymous said...

When The Going Gets Weird
The Weird Turn Pro

Hunter S. Thompson

Jj

Visible said...

There's a new Smoking Mirrors up.

The Fall of the House of Nariman

Anonymous said...

Weird is a relativistic judgment of mind. The Thomson quote sounds glib, but only to mind...
This is probably not an appropriate place to discuss no-mind (not that it can ever be captured by words), since almost all attention here (and everywhere) comes through the filters of mind. Mind cannot grok no-mind...
The world is not only stranger than you think, but stranger than you CAN think. Stranger than any drug, for sure...

Anonymous said...

Sounds to me like your e-mail correspondent is right to say there's nothing that a seemingly separate ego-being can do to get itself enlightened, because there is no such being, and because enlightenment isn't caused by anything.

Now i believe it's true to say that the real Jesus, in his real teachings, was teaching nonduality . . .

"Be still and know: I AM"

(see Bible Mystery and Bible Meaning by Thomas Troward)

. . . and yet, paradoxically, Jesus himself does say,

"Seek and ye shall find, knock and the door shall be opened, ask and it shall be given."

And he gave at least one demo of how to do that, namely the Lord's Prayer.

i see your two posts as demonstrations of how to 'ask.' This could be of great value, coming from someone who's actually had lots of practice.

i didn't get any hint that you think that some kind of ultimate enlightenment can be triggered by the 'asking' that you are describing in your posts.

i also didn't get any hint that you believe your way of 'asking' is the only way or the 'right' way of doing it . . . rather you appear to be saying "this is how it looks when I do it."

Also i don't see any contradiction between the "ultimate" viewpoints presented by your correspondent, and this process of 'asking.'

We don't have to wait till enlightenment strikes before we cultivate a life-giving, rejuvenating relationship with 'God' or 'the Universe' or 'the All'. Starting from right where we are, in whatever dualistic mess or bliss we appear to be in, we can do that now, by 'asking.'

Someone who is actually doing that in their own life and can point out how, for other people, is an asset to our planet, not a dangerous 'Pied Piper.'

The very best writing i know of, on the whole subject of recognizing what is really of value, and separating it from 'spiritual' bullshit (i.e., self-deception), is by Jed McKenna . . . "Spiritual Enlightenment, the Damnedest Thing."

ellis

m_astera said...

In what way does this "you already are, there is no enlightenment or anything you can do" happy horseshit differ from Calvinist predestination or the Paulist/fundie Christian baloney that one is "saved by grace" and any personal works or actions are useless?

I guess it's over a week since the piece was posted but planetary vibrations or not, the non-dualist attitude irritates me. It's like teaching a baby that they can't walk or learn to walk because they are already walking. Or something.

Do not try to sharpen a chisel because all chisels are already sharp, all stones are equally hard and equally soft. To claim that one should or even can pick up a mallet and begin is useless, as the form is already there in the stone.

What twaddle.

Willow said...

It's establishment New Age doctrine...ever insisted upon by "the followers."

They're a pushy lot. Gotta work hard to maintain your boundaries with that crew...

Anonymous said...

Sure, all is One and the temporary is illusory. But we (who don't exist) can either sit on the couch (which doesn't exist) and eat chips (which don't exist) and digest them with a stomach (that doesn't exist) or we can put our body (which doesn't exist) into the lotus posture and experience pain (which doesn't exist) and hunger (which doesn't exist) to purify our soul (which doesn't exist) for the sake of that which does exist (in non-existence) and is permanent and is One, which directs all action anyway without doing anything. It will change nothing in the end, but you can arrive at the beginning either through the bottom loop or the upper one. The choice is yours, even though we never have any choice.

This New Age "do nothing, you are already There" mimics the fundamentalist Christian "accept Jesus and viola you're saved!".

Its not that easy to do nothing, that's the hardest thing to do. And its not that easy to believe in Christ. Especially without experience, that's like for a blind man to believe in colour purple.

If you are already there then how come you still have a body? How come you still have desires and attachments in your soul? How come your nadis are still full of karma?


Anyway,




YOU hAvE TRiEd To lEAD mE ASTRaY A FEW TimEs lES. BUT ThAT WAS mAINLY IN the smokinG mirroRs PART oF THE SiTE conceRNING THE PRoXiMITY oF THE WAR on iRAn AnD THE RESULT oF PRESEDENTIAL AnD CoNGRESS ELECTIONS. Well the war is still nowhere near and the elections changed nothing. So I can happily stroke my EGO on those two points, hehe. Nah, just joking. I know you are just presenting perspectives and I've never noticed that you have ever been attached to one viewpoint or another or trying to lead anyone astray.

After all these years your writing is still a breath of fresh air.





BOOKS, MUSIC, VIDEO


FEATURED READ-




Visit the recommended reading page for many more.





FEATURED MUSIC-


'I Need More Light' from the Les Visible Album
God in Country



Visit the Blog Music Page
to stream all of Visible's music for free
(purchase is always appreciated but entirely optional)





FEATURED VIDEO-


A classic Visible post:



With gratitude to Patrick Willis.

Click here to watch and comment on Vimeo and here to read the original text.



Visit the Blog Videos Page for many more.