Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism

If we go to hear a teacher speak, we should not allow ourselves to be carried away by his reputation and charisma, but we should properly experience each word of his lecture or each aspect of the meditation technique being taught.

Did we actually taste it and chew it and swallow it properly, that one object of beauty, that one spiritual teaching? Or did we merely regard it as a part of our vast and growing collection?

point: the impulse of searching for something is, in itself, a hang-up. When this impulse begins to wear out, then our fundamental basic nakedness begins to appear and the meeting of the two minds begins to take place.

We must make a real commitment to being open with our teacher; we must be willing to give up all our preconceptions.

The lord of form refers to the neurotic pursuit of physical comfort, security, and pleasure.

If the strategy of continually creating overlapping thoughts is penetrated, then the lords stir up emotions to distract us. The exciting, colorful, dramatic quality of the emotions captures our attention as if we were watching an absorbing film show.

Enlightenment is permanent because we have not produced it; we have merely discovered it.

The lord of mind refers to the effort of consciousness to maintain awareness of itself.

It is a question of what is sane for you, the really solid, sound, stable approach to life. The Buddha, for example, was not a religious fanatic, attempting to act in accordance with some high ideal. He just dealt with people simply, openly, and very wisely.