Caution is definitely important in these cases, though it's equally important to allow oneself to trust.
My zen master asks little of me (suggests quite a lot, though i am prone to ignore some of the better advice. Idiot am i), and he has never asked me to do anything that would compromise myself. Some things may be a little bizarre ('tell this disciple about your cat') and are a little hard to fathom. But i have never felt compromised by anything asked of me.
There are definitely times when i would rather not do a certain thing, but these are the times when it is more important to do so - the times when your ego does not wish to lose its hold and allow a more genuine self to show through.
In a way, i think it is similar to finding a loved one (lover, spouse, friend) - it is important to open yourself to the possibility of trust and love within a situation that may seem strange at first.
I'm quite a cynical person and have been brought up in a society which places large emphasis on the individual. This is beneficial in that it allows one to lead a relatively autonomous existence where you are able to make your own choices away from the societal pressures that may be stronger in other societies. However, it does lead to a certain lack of emphasis on interrelation and codependence.
To hold the idea that you might learn, trust and follow the advice of another person seems quite stigmatised in a society which emphasises the importance of the single 'I' and its self-contained sovereignty.
I think i agree with warnings of people who claim to be englightened masters, but i'd be equally as cautious of those who are declared to be masters by other people. I doubt that a training in a certain tradition is any more likely to guarantee the validity of a master than is their own word.
What do his other students think? Does he have other students?
He has a small number of disciples and a larger number of people he considers 'students' (these are people who will chat to him, email him etc. to ask him about various 'zen stuff', but who have not taken sannyas). Most of the disciples i know seem to like the old man very much. They enjoy his presence, sometimes get scared when he shows them a little of themselves. One disciple is (or at least was) conviced that our master is not enlightened, but is insane. He stays his disciple though...
It's hard not to like a man called 'bunny'.
The link you made in your first post is pretty interesting and i agree with some of what it says. It seems to put a certain emphasis on using scriptures or religious texts as framework for judgement, which i'm not sure i agree with totally. I also disagree with some of the statements made and quotations given in the text, but it in the most, it seems quite a worthwhile set of questions.
In case you're curious,
1. Does Your Guru/Path Charge Money For Membership or Particpation?
Nope. I have never been asked for money, goods, sexual favours, anything. In fact, my zen master has bought me dinner a couple of times and put me up in his house rent-free for a few weeks.
2. Does Your Spiritual Teacher Have A High Standard Of Moral Conduct?
Strikes me as a largely irrelevant question. Morality is a construct of the societal mind and has nothing to do with no-mind or enlightenment. There are many different moralities; which one do we chose? There are stories of masters cutting the fingers off students or throwing students out of windows to help them realise enlightenment. Would this fit into your moral framework?
That said, i would say he exhibits what some masters speak of as 'right action' - he is a kind person, he is loving, i've never seen him hurt a person or an animal. He's never cut anyone's finger off...
3. Does Your Master Make Claims About His/Her Spiritual Development, Powers, or Attainment?
Only if he's taking the piss. He finds the claims and actions of famous gurus such as Sai Baba to be pretty hilarious. He finds the need that some seekers have to find masters/gurus who will perform miracles or act somehow perfect to be quite bizarre.
Sometimes he will talk of experiences he has had of things that sound rather extraordinary to someone brought up with a materialist mindset, but he doesn't boast, and he never 'extends' these experiences to posit some kind of meaning ('my kundalini awoke, which proves i was the buddha's mum!').
4. Does Your Guru/Group Proselytize Vigorously For New Converts?
No. He often bugs students to buy his book (obligatory plug, sorry), but this is mainly so he can repay his husband for the printing costs. He seems to enjoy being a master and teaching new disciples, but usually waits for them to ask, or offers in a polite way. I'm not sure what he would convert people to, so i don't think he could do the whole proselytizing thing very well.
As he once explained to me, people will do what they want pretty much 90% of the time. The role of the healer is not to try to change people, but to support them in whatever it is they want to do. If someone wants to become his disciple, he will support that. If not, he will support that too. If they don't want support... you get my point.
5. Who Appointed Your Teacher to Be a Master?
I honestly don't know. He took sannyas under osho and has been taught by meher baba as well, but i don't know if they ever ordained him a master. He realised his enlightenment, then offered his services to people. They tended to find him, rather than vice-versa. His choice to teach seems to be what 'makes' him a master: enlightenment + teaching = zen master.
6. Are The Central Teachings Of The Guru/Movement Trans- Rational Or Pre-Rational?
I don't really know the term 'trans-rational', but if it means true religion is a transrational endeavor to achieve higher states of consciousness beyond the verbal mind, then yeah, he's pretty trans-rational. The teachings he gives are quite simple, but definitely effective. Basically, it's meditation. Lots of meditation. 'Listening' to yourself, the world around you, the universe... The more that listening happens, the less 'I' is there.
He tends to giggle at, or just point out as wrong, any attempts i make (as a philosophy student and ex-christian) to codify the universe into some kind of framework. He also advocates a proper questioning of many of the assumptions i have about life.
7. What Are The Day To Day Results Of Your Interaction With The Guru/Path?
A bit goal-oriented, this one. Seems to imply we are only with our masters to acheive a result, rather than being with them out of friendship/love/'just because'.
But in the 3 years since i took sannyas, i have stopped smoking, stopped drinking heavily, started eating healthily, learnt reiki, moved away from depression and mental worries, moved deeply into a loving relationship with my fiancee, found joy in sitting at the base of a tree, come to terms with my bisexuality, learnt to meditate, become dead good at social interaction, become less worried about what people think about me, lost weight, grown a ponytail, learnt to cook, gone back to uni to finish a degree, kept a steady job and got promoted, had conversations with people who aren't in a body anymore, become less scared of crying... there's more but i'm sounding like a weight-watchers advert.
These are all things that i have done, things that i have become, but i doubt that i would have made the choices that brought me here had i not been in this relationship. I guess my zen master has helped me to find out who it is that i am, and shown me that it is okay to be that person. In doing this, i've learnt and become a lot more than if i had remained the malnourished pothead of 4 years ago.
One thing i was worried about (and it's a classic assumption of the whole 'spiritual awakening' thing) was that i'd suddenly become somebody different, that i'd ditch my girlfriend, run away from home and never speak to my family and friends again.
The opposite happened. I'm now engaged, my family mean more to me than ever, and they tell me that this is the first time they can remember where i actually seem happy. Some of my friends miss seeing me get wasted, but they're good at coping with it, and we all get along well.
Essentially, the only things i 'get' out of the relationship have been beneficial. I receive advice that seems to work (when i follow it), i get to partake in a great friendship with someone who is loving, helpful and funny.
When he first asked me if i wanted to become his disciple, my master said something along the lines of 'a master is only a master of themselves, not of others. A master is more like a friend - someone who will help to guide you to yourself.'
That seems to be pretty true in my experience.
If, one day, i came to realise that my master is not enlightened, but has been a fraud all along, i can't think of a single difference that it would make to what has happened so far. While i have a lot invested in our friendship, i have nothing invested in the idea that he is a master. All of the advice he has given me has proven to be true. He has not gained anything from our relationship (other than friendship and love). I love him for who he is, and not for what he is.
Perhaps this would be another 'rule' to look at when questioning the validity of a master - what do you stand to lose if your master is faking it? |
