Friday, August 10, 2007

Now What?

"Well I've been all 'round this great big world and I've met all kindsa girls....." and boys, and gurus, and seekers, and joiners, and misanthropes, and mystics......and now what? More to the point, so what?

Is it a so what? Naw.....I've decided that I can live comfortably with all of my past experiences, the goofy, the grisly, the ghastly, the ghostly and that I can even live wonderfully because of some of them.

I have to say though, in all frankness, that I certainly feel done with the spiritual seeker/guru hopper persona. Endeavor. I'm not sure, if it is a worthy pursuit for anyone after all. I have come a long way from the days when I felt that chasing after enlightenment was the only game in town. That to have a living spiritual teacher was the apex of Existence; you couldn't GET more lucky! However now, boys and girls, I have to tell you that in my experience, the people who want followers have a very personal agenda. They may say they want to benefit YOU, they may say there is nothing in it for them, they may COMPLAIN to the rafters about "oh how hard it is" to have followers, as if it is a giant pain for them to put up with adoring disciples, but I will tell you that it is bullocks! Scratch the surface and you will find that they need you, much more than you need them. You can see this, by observing the difficulty they have when someone decides to leave. Do they bat an eyelash? Do they disparage the departing or departed? Do they place emotional and psychological barriers between you and those who are considering leaving or leave? Right. They can't let go with an open hand. They like that tight-fisted grip. What is that all about?

Perhaps I would not RECOMMEND that one chase after a guru; I certainly cannot imagine any circumstance where that would be my honest advice. It may be my advice to a stubborn "learn-only-by-the-school-of-hard-knocks" type, " Sure, go ahead, knock yourself out, see what it's all about." However, I do not regret my own excursion into Guru Land or Spiritual Disneyland as it seems a path on which I was destined to traverse. I have learned the MOST about my own human nature, my own tendencies and some of it was eye-opening. Hint: we, most of us, quickly line up to become sheep, no matter our protests to the contrary. More on this in another post, I should think.

For now, I will say that while done with the enlightenment game, I've not given up on contemplation of the Universe and our place in it. I still ponder and wonder. I still marvel in fact, that ANYTHING exists at all! I am still baffled that more people aren't simply AWED by Consciousness, awareness itself, and don't run screaming down the street yelling "Existence!" I mean, my god, isn't it a spectacular Mystery? I truly am baffled at my fellow humans who are instead, (it would seem instead, and I can only hope it IS instead, and if another, more profound pastime were seriously offered, humanity would jump on it) mesmerized by the likes of "American Idol" and/or naughty Hollywood "poptarts".

Do YOU have anything within your experience that beckons YOU to marvel, wonder, philosophize, question...and if so, do you care to share it here? I'd love to enter into a dialogue that can perhaps take us to richer and deeper emotional and intellectual places. What is YOUR intuitive "hit" on Life and what brings you to this particular point? I invite you to expound and at length if need be!

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Trudy, I believe the issue is derived from a new generation and the way society has morphed into the modern day. Seeking enlightenment and living for one's own happiness is only so important in a world of 7 billion people. Today's people are more prone to treating their problems with substance abuse and carrying on with daily life, neglecting their spiritual and emotional needs. While it may have not always been true, it certainly is now: money can buy happiness! Cute blog honey, keep up the amazing posts!

Trudy said...

Well thanks Miles. I do, also see that people in the current society are turning to substances more often. This may very well be a result of neglecting spiritual and emotional needs, don't you think?

Just because folks can't buy into the religious dogma and doctrines set down thousands of years ago by people completely unrelated to our modern times, doesn't mean that there is NOTHING to the notion of spirituality. Also, because seeking "enlightenment" in the traditional sense may also be falling off, as well, doesn't mean there is no enlightened way of living.

To me, "enlightened" means that all of the powers of the intellect, emotional intelligence and maturity that can be brought to bear upon our living conditions, ARE brought to bear. Also, that we strive ever to increase our understanding of our world, our place in it and how we can best help ourselves and help one another.

After all, it is increasingly obvious, that we're all in this together baby!