Judy, I did not think your point was the taking on of the dharma of another, but I do think there are some similarities between attuning one's mind/consciousness to the mind/consciousness of another, whether or not the intent is the taking on of their dharma. I don't see how the two cannot become commingled once one "attunes" one mind/consciousness to that of another.
Re: your second point, I have tried, with some degree of success, to look at the 20+ years within the TM org. as a "learning experience." There's certainly nothing I can do to recapture any of them. It still seems such a shame that so many intelligent, well-meaning people spent so many years of their lives, some are still deeply entrenched, and end up, after so many years, with little to show for the years. And I'm not even talking about anything fancy, I'm talking the very basics, such as a decent place to live, a decent car to get around, the ability to pay for repairs as needed. Even more, though, as many of us are now in our late 50s (and beyone) I'm talking about the ability to go out of life with some dignity. --- In [email protected], "authfriend" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > --- In [email protected], "anonyff" <anonyff@> wrote: > > > > --- In [email protected], "authfriend" <jstein@> wrote: > > > > > > That's my impression too. The point isn't to absorb > > > the teacher's qualities of *mind* but his/her qualities > > > of *consciousness*. Moreover, it's the process of > > > surrender itself, I should think, that does most of the > > > "work" of structuring freedom. > > > > This discussion, and Judy's point (everyone's collectively, really) > > brough to mind the passage from the Gita (Gita scholars chime in > > here) where it says (paraphrased) "...better to die in one's own > > dharma than trying to take on the dharma of another..." > > (Just to clarify, taking on the dharma of another > isn't what I was talking about above. I don't > think that's what MMY was doing with Guru Dev at > all.) > > > I know that this has really had to come into play in my own life, > > realizing that all that I took and and tried to be via my long years > > with the TM org were attempts at living someone elses vision of how > > my life should be lived. > > > > And I've seen this struggle in so many others. Some have > > successfully managed to imbibe qualites/ways of living that, > > initially, seemed so alien, and they truly made them their own. > > Others, like me, strained to be a certain way and in many ways it > > backfired. I feel like I wasted years of my life, from age 30-40, > > knowing and experiencing my life as anything but a success but > > unwilling/unable to escape from the deep rut I had dug myself into > > from taking on a massive belief system that clearly wasn't working > > but which I clung to in the hopes I was wrong and any second now it > > was going to work. This never happened until I decided to "get > > out" and even then (15+ years ago) and now, I struggle with the > > whole thing. > > Can you look at it as a "learning experience"? It > sounds like you're blaming yourself. Is that what > the struggling part is about now? That seems to me > to be more of a waste than sincerely having tried to > make a go of a way of life that felt as though it > made sense at the time. > > > > > > > > > Ricks example of those around him now I think is false. They are > > > > "works in progress". Better examples are SSRS. Perhaps Chopra. > For > > > > more finsihed works. > > > > > > > > Look at the holy tradition. Was each master a clone of his > master? > > > > Hardly, it seems. What is passed down is consciousness awakened > to > > > > itself. Content is not "the thing". > > > > > > ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Join modern day disciples reach the disfigured and poor with hope and healing http://us.click.yahoo.com/lMct6A/Vp3LAA/i1hLAA/UlWolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
