Notes from the mystical path - Smarter than Jesus

Notes from the mystical path of Davey G.

This evening a new feature is being introduced on UU A Way Of Life entitled, "Notes from the mystical path of Davey G."

Are there many people walking on a mystical path in the United States? A handful maybe. Davey G. is a friend of mine who has been walking on a mystical path on and off since 1960. He tells me he has lost his way several times but seems always, even though he has taken detours, to get back on the path.

Raised as a Roman Catholic and reading and studying religious and spiritual paths eclectically, his last sojourn in an organized religion has been with Unitarian Universalism. But outside of the transcendentalists, there is not much of a mystical tradition in UU, and so Davey G. told me he has been exploring the six sources and then some.

The mystic aspires to shed the ego and become one with Oneness and experience the nondualistic consciousness. Check the notes periodically to better understand and perhaps pursue the mystical path as well.

Davey G. called me to tell me he was sending the first note saying that he is smarter than Jesus and then laughed hysterically. He said he got the idea that he was smarter than Jesus from Osho, and then laughed some more. And then, Davey got serious, and said that while he might be smarter he was no where as wise and loving and still had a long way to go to achieve the loving oneness that Jesus experienced.

"Humanity now knows more than it has ever known before: knowledge goes on accumulating. In fact, you know more than Jesus. If you meet Jesus you can teach him many things. He will not know a thousand and one things. I don’t think he will be able to pass the matriculation examination – impossible! But that does not mean that he is not a knower. He knows, but in a totally different way. His experience has transformed his being.

He is not as informed as you are but he is transformed, and that is the real thing. Information means nothing. A computer can have more information than you have, but the computer can never become a christ or a buddha. Or do you think a computer can become enlightened some day? That is impossible.

A computer can know everything possible, but it will remain a computer and it will repeat only that which is fed into it. It cannot be blissful either – what bliss can a machine have? It cannot be loving either – how can a machine be loving? It may say, “I love you, I love you very much: I am ready to die for you.” It may say beautiful things, but they will simply be words. It can be taught to hug you and kiss you, but there will be no love at all. And you will know that this is just foolish – a machine kissing you and hugging you. You will look all around, embarrassed!

A machine can be taught these things and the machine can do these things very efficiently. But millions of people are doing exactly that: functioning like machines, computers. They repeat clichés – Christian, Hindu, Mohammedan – beautiful words, but all dead.

With me, it is not a question of becoming more informed. I am not a teacher, I am not here to teach you anything. On the contrary, I am here to help you unlearn – not to learn but to unlearn, so that you can be unburdened and you can start seeing on your own.

The moment you start seeing on your own, your life takes a quantum leap into a new dimension: the dimension of eternity, the dimension of godliness, the dimension of bliss, truth, freedom."

Osho. Last in the Evening: 365 Relaxing Moments to Enter the Night Consciously

Separation from Life leads to hell.

Unitarian Universalists covenant together to affirm and promote the inherent dignity of every person. The inherent worth and dignity does not come from separating ourselves from the Divine. Our inherent worth and dignity comes from the recognition, acknowledgment, and celebration of that of which we are a part that is bigger than our tiny little egos.

Separate egos do not have inherent dignity and worth. Just the opposite. Separate egos lead to a descent into hell in which we suffer and writhe in anguish.

Osho says, "Either I can exist or God can exist; we cannot both exist together - because if I exist, then I am a separate entity. Then I have my own existence independent of God. But God simply means the total, the whole. How can I be independent of it? How can I be separate from it? If I exist, I destroy the very idea of totality." p. 182 "Ah, This!"

And how the ego wants us to be separate. It is this desire which is the original sin. We stupid humans want to be the author of our own existence. This is ridiculous. People, with their egos, are just ridiculous, Ridiculousness reigns supreme on the earth plane and creates the hell for us which we suffer in.

Surrendering our egos is so scary that most of us avoid even thinking about it. It seems like a crazy idea unless we obliterate our consciousnesses with drugs or other mood altering, mind bending activities like compulsive gambling, pornography, workaholism, compulsive overeating, extreme sports, internet addictions, etc.

Our egos set up a false dichotomy of me against Him. "I don't believe in God" we say because like children we don't like anyone being the boss of me.

But "God" is not a person. God is an energy. Luke Skywalker had it right when he called it The Force. Osho teaches that God is a quality; godliness he calls it.

Neale Donald Walsch teaches that if you don't like the word "God" use the word, "Life." "Life" works just as well. Try it.

Who can deny that they are part of life? Life is what we are in, not hell at all. Hell we create all on own by separating ourselves from Life.

Becoming Godliness in the eternal present

Osho says, "Ordinarily you think that time is divided into three divisions: past, present, and future. That is totally wrong. That is not how the awakened ones have seen time. They say time consists only of two divisions: past and future. The present is not part of time at all; the present belongs to the beyond." p. 180, "Ah, This!"

Remember the past are memories and the future is imagination. The present is the eternal Now, what is called in A Course In Miracles, "the Holy Instant."

The Buddhists say, "Be here now," but perhaps it would be better put if it they simply said, "Be Now," or maybe just "Now".

God said in the bible when asked who He is, "I am who I am, " or "I is what is."

When we become aware of the present we experience an Oneness with existence. We become Godliness. We become one with the All in the eternal present where there is no time at all.

"You got the time?"

The title of this blog is UU A Way Of Life. Is that way of life chemical free? Unitarian Universalists are not Mormons or Methodists. UUs like their chemicals especially their caffeine which they indulge in notoriously in their coffee hours after "worship."

This discussion of the use of chemicals brings us to the famous meme, "Miller Time," and a consideration of the spiritual meaning of "time." What is time? Past, present, future. As Osho says, there is no such thing. We just make it up. The past is nothing but memories and the future is nothing but imagination. All we really have is the present and most of us are not present in the present because we are living the past or the future in our minds. Isn't this a shame? As the Buddhists say, "Be here now." Being here now is tasting eternity, heaven, as Jesus said, "On earth as it is in heaven."

Osho says, "Time means mind. Time is a projection of mind. It does not exist; it is only an illusion. Only the present exists - and the present is not part of time. The present is part of eternity. Past is time, future is time; both are non-existential. The past is only memory and the future is only imagination; memory and imagination, both are non-existential." p.180 "Ah, This!"

"Hey, Bob, what time is it?"

"It's time for a cold one."

"It's always time for a cold one with you."

"That's right, it's Miller time."

And as Kurt Vonnegut has written, "And so it goes........"

God or Godliness: that is the question?

Some Unitarian Universalists say they don't believe in God. Francis David, the Unitarian pioneer in the 16th century said that we need not think alike to love alike, and it may well be that even if people don't believe in God they do believe in Godliness.

Osho says, "There is no God but godliness. It is a quality, a fragrance. You experience it, you don't see it." p.170, "Ah, This!"

Can you smell God? If God is a fragrance, you should be able to smell him/her. It's like pheromones. We love the smell of the ones we love. It is subtle. It is subconscious. Not always conscious, but not unconscious either because it can be easily called to mind.

When the pheromones activate our experience dopamine is released in our brains and we feel better. Godliness is a feeling. It is awkward to say, "Do you feel God?", but it is lovely to say, "Do you feel the Godliness?"

Where, when, how do you feel Godliness? Perhaps in meditation, in forgiveness, in compassion, in beauty, in justice, in freedom, in peace.

Some people find Godliness in nature, in music, in athletic performance. Psychologists call it "flow." Flow is very close to Godliness. When do you experience flow? Flow is that fine balance between exertion and letting go. It is that sweet spot. It is the sweet spot where we become one with the All.

The project of enlightenment.

Unitarian Universalists covenant together to affirm and promote the inherent worth and dignity of every person. From where does this "worth and dignity" come? Where does it abide?

Osho says, "There is only one sin and that is unawareness, and only one virtue and that is awareness." p.49, "Ah, This!"

The graffiti on the men's room wall over the urinal read, "Be alert! America needs more lerts."

We all struggle with our unconscious. Dr. Freud said people can either talk it out or act it out. People act stuff out all the time unconscious of why they are doing what they are doing. There are sometimes patterns of behavior that are unconscious. There seems to be things that always happen. They make the same mistakes over and over and over again. You know, that thing that they do.

You know that thing that you do. If you don't, ask your partner or your kids or your best friend.

A good spiritual practice is asking for feedback. This requires the person to be open and willing to listen. This is how the blind spots become illuminated, how the unconscious becomes conscious.

To paraphrase Osho, the only sin is not being willing to listen to feedback so that you can illuminate your blind spots and make your unconscious, conscious. The virtue is manifested in listening to feedback, reflecting on it, and if accurate, accepting it, and using it to change, first one's understanding, then one's intention, and then one's behavior.

Enhancing self knowledge is the project of enlightenment.

Are you in the dark seeking the light?

People who have come to Unitarian Universalism from other religions or no religions have come looking for something. They have been attracted by the affirmation and promotion of the free and responsible search for truth and meaning as well as other things.

Unfortunately, many seekers do not engage and are not retained in the fellowship because the fellowship appears to be a social club which engages in psychobabble and lacks an authentic and genuine spirituality. Unitarian Universalism has not cultivated Masters of spirituality and without them, the spirituality promulgated is anemic and fails to nourish at deeper levels. The search for truth and meaning becomes a misguided wandering with many detours and distractions and many lose interest.

Osho says, "The Master speaks not to give you the truth, but to help you recognize the truth that is already in you." p.145 "Ah, This!"

Osho uses the metaphor of the sun rising outside with the person inside the house with all the windows and doors shut. The sun is there and the person resides in darkness. If the person is to experience the sun the doors and windows need to be opened.

The sun is there. The person didn't do anything to bring the sun about nor can the person control the sunshine. The sunshine is a given, a free gift, there for everyone to enjoy and benefit from. However, the person can control the windows and doors. The person can remove the blocks which prevents the sunshine from being experienced.

The Master simply tells the person to "get up out of bed and open the windows, open the doors." Many people didn't want to be woken up, let alone gotten out of bed. They don't give a hoot about the sunshine, let alone be blinded by it. They prefer darkness and sleep.

Experiencing the sun is a personal choice. The Master can't force anyone to do anything. All the Master can do is alert, cajole, persuade, encourage, support. The people in the dark have to choose, once they know it is there, whether they want to experience the sunshine or not.

The Beatles were Masters. They tried to awaken us with their great song, "Here Comes The Sun."