Monday 5th March 2007
No Ashtanga practice today - day 2 of menstruating, probably brought on early by sleeping on the mysterious moonrock in the Barossa Valley under the full moon on Saturday night. It's a strange, otherworldly thing to do, but this insane society I'm pretending to live in is feeling so superficial lately, I have to dip more often into the 'other world' for authentic nourishment - the superfood my spirit needs to grow stronger.
I'm halfway through reading Jed McKenna's book "Spiritual Enlightnement: the damnedest thing" (the book almost jumped off the library shelf and into my hands yesterday, as these things do when we need them). And I must say it's gotta be the most real approach I've ever encountered on the subject of awakening.
No frills, no fuss, no props - it echoes my attitude entirely.
And he puts into plain English what I've been feeling for a long time - that you don't need all the spiritual teachings to get to enlightenment, that it really is a natural occurrance and our true state of being. And since we are natural beings, it's where we're all heading, whether we acknowledge it or not. Just strip off all the unnatural stuff that clogs up your vision and there you are, seeing clearly, fully awake.
But I'm still to be convinced about his take on mysticism - that enlightenment and mysticism are two entirely different beasts. For me, the experience of awakening was a two day blitz that stripped my brain of its entire contents, rewired it to a much higher frequency, then left me stranded to start all over again. But the experience did have a very mystical flavour - as if I'd been permitted unlimited access into the secret headquarters of God/the Divine/the Absolute source of everything.
Perhaps Jed only got to first base. Perhaps he's just not the mystical type and wasn't allowed that far. Or perhaps he really went all the way (which is why he can write about it so confidently) and I got sidetracked and then stuck in the alluring mystical realms.
I shall suspend judgement (as all good little enlightened beings do) and read on.
Meanwhile this serious attitude I've adopted to advancing along the spiritual path (fuelled by yoga, meditation, reflection, spiritual practice etc) is quite frankly looking a bit silly. Like I've forgotten what I really know and have reverted back to the default position. Should I even consider spiritual practice may be superfluous, that it served its purpose years ago and its time to move on, to give up the trainer wheels and accept that I can fly.
Right now just playing around with the profound and profane, when I should be typing up the minutes from our last Academic Committee meeting.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
No Ashtanga practice today - day 2 of menstruating, probably brought on early by sleeping on the mysterious moonrock in the Barossa Valley under the full moon on Saturday night. It's a strange, otherworldly thing to do, but this insane society I'm pretending to live in is feeling so superficial lately, I have to dip more often into the 'other world' for authentic nourishment - the superfood my spirit needs to grow stronger.
I'm halfway through reading Jed McKenna's book "Spiritual Enlightnement: the damnedest thing" (the book almost jumped off the library shelf and into my hands yesterday, as these things do when we need them). And I must say it's gotta be the most real approach I've ever encountered on the subject of awakening.
No frills, no fuss, no props - it echoes my attitude entirely.
And he puts into plain English what I've been feeling for a long time - that you don't need all the spiritual teachings to get to enlightenment, that it really is a natural occurrance and our true state of being. And since we are natural beings, it's where we're all heading, whether we acknowledge it or not. Just strip off all the unnatural stuff that clogs up your vision and there you are, seeing clearly, fully awake.
But I'm still to be convinced about his take on mysticism - that enlightenment and mysticism are two entirely different beasts. For me, the experience of awakening was a two day blitz that stripped my brain of its entire contents, rewired it to a much higher frequency, then left me stranded to start all over again. But the experience did have a very mystical flavour - as if I'd been permitted unlimited access into the secret headquarters of God/the Divine/the Absolute source of everything.
Perhaps Jed only got to first base. Perhaps he's just not the mystical type and wasn't allowed that far. Or perhaps he really went all the way (which is why he can write about it so confidently) and I got sidetracked and then stuck in the alluring mystical realms.
I shall suspend judgement (as all good little enlightened beings do) and read on.
Meanwhile this serious attitude I've adopted to advancing along the spiritual path (fuelled by yoga, meditation, reflection, spiritual practice etc) is quite frankly looking a bit silly. Like I've forgotten what I really know and have reverted back to the default position. Should I even consider spiritual practice may be superfluous, that it served its purpose years ago and its time to move on, to give up the trainer wheels and accept that I can fly.
Right now just playing around with the profound and profane, when I should be typing up the minutes from our last Academic Committee meeting.
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