Could be, though that again raises the point -- Are we reacting to Ravi's behavior, regardless, or trying to set this up as "a teachable moment" in which we align Ravi's behavior with an assumption about his consciousness, or his mental health?
--- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, "Rick Archer" <rick@...> wrote: > > From: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com [mailto:FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com] > On Behalf Of whynotnow7 > Sent: Tuesday, December 06, 2011 12:42 PM > To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com > Subject: [FairfieldLife] Re: Hey Ravi > > > > > > Its really pretty easy to just disregard the whole enlightenment issue here. > If anyone, in any state of awareness goes over the line and is perceived by > the group here as annoying or insulting, what does their awareness have to > do with it? Its apples and oranges. No one is more or less responsible > because of their state of awareness. An asshole is an asshole and a nice > person is just that. > > Trying to tie any behavior to someone's state of consciousness is like tying > it to their skin color, or sexual preference. Now perhaps Ravi, having set > himself up as some sort of yogic teacher or expressed that desire anyway is > more vulnerable to the claims here that if a person is enlightened, > self-realized, awakened, AND a teacher, they can't just get up in anyone's > face with the excuse that the universe made me do it. > > But really it boils down to group dynamics, exclusive of someone's > perceived, expressed, or imagined state of consciousness. If someone is > being a jerk, it gets back to them, and I personally don't think the > Universe much cares how enlightened they are. > > I think that a partial awakening prior to significant diminishing of ego and > working out of its quirks can intoxicate and aggrandize the ego, magnifying > its faults. One may feel exempted from personal responsibility, since from > their perspective, personhood seems to no longer be running the show. Or as > Alex put it, "it is tempting to disregard the story as unimportant and let > it act out messily. Also, for people with serious mental health issues, > nondual awakening can make matters worse." > > > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com > <mailto:FairfieldLife%40yahoogroups.com> , "Alex Stanley" > <j_alexander_stanley@> wrote: > > > > > > > > --- In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com > <mailto:FairfieldLife%40yahoogroups.com> , "raunchydog" <raunchydog@> wrote: > > > > > > I don't like it either, Curtis. I don't generally engage in such > > > rank personal attacks. I agree it stinks up the place. Maybe if I > > > were enlightened, I wouldn't have a hint of conscience about it. I > > > would simply disown responsibility for my actions and claim, as > > > Ravi does, "the existence made me do it." > > > > It looks to me like crazy wisdom has shifted from spiritually realized > people behaving eccentrically to assholes acting out and justifying it as > somehow being spiritual. Which is not to say that complete assholes can't > have amazing realization. Adi Franklin Bubba Free Da John Jones Samraj could > very well have been highly realized, but as a human being, he was very > dysfunctional and acted out in ways that were highly inappropriate. > > > > I can see why many traditions of awakening get the samskara/vasana inner > work out of the way before awakening, because once sole identity with the > I/me story is broken, it is tempting to disregard the story as unimportant > and let it act out messily. Also, for people with serious mental health > issues, nondual awakening can make matters worse. > > > > > > No virus found in this message. > Checked by AVG - www.avg.com > Version: 2012.0.1873 / Virus Database: 2102/4660 - Release Date: 12/06/11 >
