--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, Mark Landau <m@...> wrote: > > Is there anyone here who spent long and equal time with > M and Rama?
Besides me, you mean. 14 years each. > I have one friend who felt that Rama's darshan blew M's away. I would have to agree. > But she didn't spend nearly as much time with M as with R. > And, of course, two others who "saw" him fly and disappear. You can find thousands of people who saw that. > Of course we know how he spiraled out of here. Sad. The guy had so much potential, and pissed it away. > And, of course, that's another thing we loved so much about > being with M, how much and how warmly he and we all laughed > together. In the early years. I left when laughter started to be actually frowned upon. > On Jul 27, 2011, at 6:10 AM, turquoiseb wrote: > > > What is the sound that causes the most disparate reactions in people? > > Some can hear this sound and react with fury in the moment of hearing > > it, and seemingly hold on to that fury for years, basing whole vendettas > > on it. Others can hear the same sound and join in, as if adding harmony > > to an already-sweet song. To the former, this sound closes the door on > > any possible future communication or resonance with the person or > > persons who laughed at them forever; it is perceived as an affront that > > can never be forgiven, an offense that should and must be punished. To > > the latter, the same sound actually *opens* doors to enhanced > > communication and increased resonance; it is perceived as an invitation > > to expand one's awareness, both of self and of the world. > > > > The sound in question is laughter. In particular, the sound of other > > people laughing at you. > > > > I've heard this sound a lot, because I studied with a spiritual teacher > > who used it as almost a mahavakya to facilitate breakthroughs to higher > > states of attention. Rama would poke merciless fun at us, his students, > > often in front of an audience of hundreds of other students. > > > > Whatever else he might have been, Rama was a natural comedian, as fast > > on his feet as Robin Williams; he could find something funny in almost > > any situation. He specialized in "finding the funny" in situations that > > almost everyone around him treated with deadly seriousness. One of the > > things that almost every spiritual aspirant takes seriously is their > > self -- its stories, its importance, and above all its very seriousness. > > This 'tude is seemingly endemic to the spiritual seeker, and often to > > the spiritual path itself, as reflected by the very language that path > > uses. A "good" student is described as a "serious" student; a "proper" > > attitude to the study itself is described as "taking it seriously." > > > > Color me not convinced of this. I'm with Christian philosopher G.K. > > Chesterton, who said, "Seriousness is not a virtue." Not only do I agree > > with him that there is no virtue in seriousness, I have come to believe > > that seriousness is the very antithesis of spiritual practice. I believe > > this because the few human beings I have encountered on this planet whom > > I would suspect of being enlightened or close to it were funny as hell; > > they could find a joke in *anything*. Including themselves. > > > > Rama felt similarly. What was best about him is that he wisely included > > himself in the list of "viable targets for humor." He was remarkably > > self-effacing, and made himself the butt of his own jokes as often as he > > did us. In my 14-odd (very odd) years with him, I shared the limelight > > with him many times, and became the butt of many of his jokes. > > > > Some of them roasted me mercilessly, and resulted in many of my fellow > > students joining in the laughter. This presented me with a koan: "What > > is the sound of one person not laughing, in a room full of laughing > > people?" Fortunately, in almost every case I decided that the answer to > > that koan was "An absolute boob who has started to take himself FAR too > > seriously," lightened the fuck up, and joined in the laughter. > > > > I rank doing so right up there with my highest satori experiences in > > this life. Without exception, every time I managed to break through the > > self importance of seriousness, I found my self dwindling to the tiny, > > mischevious, and genuinely laughable imp it really was, and being > > replaced by Self. There is IMO very little in life as liberating as > > being able to laugh at oneself, and one's self. > > > > IMO, the proper "soundtrack" of the movie or soap opera that is the > > pathway to enlightenment is laughter. If your path doesn't have a "laugh > > track," you might want to consider grabbing the remote and changing the > > channel. > > > > The sound of laughter -- especially when people are laughing at you -- > > is a double-edged sword. It presents you with a koan. You can choose to > > reply to that koan with outrage and anger, or you can choose to lighten > > the fuck up and join in the laughter. Or, even better, take the joke > > that you are the butt of and riff on it, not only joining in with the > > laughter but "piling on" and provoking an even bigger laugh. > > > > I've been reminded of such an occasion recently on the Rama-oriented > > forum I've mentioned recently. One woman recapitulated one of her > > all-time highest experiences with the dude. It was at one of our formal > > dinners -- the guys all wearing tuxedos, the women in evening dresses; I > > think we were having dinner at the Pierre in NYC. At any rate, that > > night she was feeling "off," having sunk into a period of taking herself > > and the study far too seriously. Rama, himself dressed in a tux, walked > > up to the table at which she was sitting with about ten other students, > > and "made the rounds," making some comment about each of their states of > > attention that night, from his point of view. He got to her, stopped, > > and said, "You are awfully serious lately. You should masturbate more." > > > > She replied immediately and instinctively, "More?" > > > > Everyone cracked up, including him. She had a major satori experience, > > and wound up residing in enlightened states of mind for some weeks > > afterwards. Go figure. > > > > >
