taking a step back
reading has become an addiction of late, and i take in as much as i can. consciously. through my senses. then process in as much time as i can wheedle out of my work schedule. then reflect and articulate either in stimulating conversations with friends and family, or on this blog. some portions are read and re-read, so they may be better digested. truly, there is much that needs to be understood, much that remains to be internalized, but as a dear friend said today - the brain is always ahead of the heart. and so it must be.
if there is anything i am grateful to my years of schooling for today, it is the ability to read, reason, and reflect. and with this ability, i embark upon my sadhana to understand the truth of this existence. big words. glib words? what do they mean? i can't say that i really know at this stage. there is a leap of faith involved - that people who were considered wise and spiritually accomplished in their lives (and after) must have known. far more than me, at any rate. and so i believe, that as i read, cogitate, understand, there is tremendous value to this understanding, even if not all apparent today. that however much of it i can learn to build into my life, i will be the better for it.
books hold considerable knowledge. indeed, we are fortunate to live in a world with so many books, so much knowledge at our fingertips. we have simply to think of a book, and we have it before us. the wonders of technology. but books are not all, by any means. can we attain enlightenment from reading 100, 1000 texts about enlightenment? no. but as vivekananda says, these books contain stimuli that can spark off spiritual growth within us. for knowledge to be imbibed, our souls must be open. and for our souls to be open, they must empty themselves out thoroughly. of all previous beliefs and prejudices. of all prior adherence. indeed, it is all attachment to knowledge that must be shunned. for only when one is unattached is one ready to receive.
i am grateful today for all these books that lie by my bedside, and others that have been duly returned after being borrowed and digested. i am grateful for the knowledge these have bestowed upon me, and the knowledge they continue to bestow with subsequent reads. i pray only that this soul within truly is open, sans prejudice, sans bias. so that ignorance within may transform itself to knowledge. so darkness may proceed to light. so truth may permeate.
so the heart may be emptied of all but love.
if there is anything i am grateful to my years of schooling for today, it is the ability to read, reason, and reflect. and with this ability, i embark upon my sadhana to understand the truth of this existence. big words. glib words? what do they mean? i can't say that i really know at this stage. there is a leap of faith involved - that people who were considered wise and spiritually accomplished in their lives (and after) must have known. far more than me, at any rate. and so i believe, that as i read, cogitate, understand, there is tremendous value to this understanding, even if not all apparent today. that however much of it i can learn to build into my life, i will be the better for it.
books hold considerable knowledge. indeed, we are fortunate to live in a world with so many books, so much knowledge at our fingertips. we have simply to think of a book, and we have it before us. the wonders of technology. but books are not all, by any means. can we attain enlightenment from reading 100, 1000 texts about enlightenment? no. but as vivekananda says, these books contain stimuli that can spark off spiritual growth within us. for knowledge to be imbibed, our souls must be open. and for our souls to be open, they must empty themselves out thoroughly. of all previous beliefs and prejudices. of all prior adherence. indeed, it is all attachment to knowledge that must be shunned. for only when one is unattached is one ready to receive.
i am grateful today for all these books that lie by my bedside, and others that have been duly returned after being borrowed and digested. i am grateful for the knowledge these have bestowed upon me, and the knowledge they continue to bestow with subsequent reads. i pray only that this soul within truly is open, sans prejudice, sans bias. so that ignorance within may transform itself to knowledge. so darkness may proceed to light. so truth may permeate.
so the heart may be emptied of all but love.
3 comments:
This is a beautiful post and you make a very important point: that we will only grow from what we read if we have a spirit of openness. It's too easy to devour books and not really reflect upon them, much less internalize the sparks of awareness and insight they produce in us.
But I do not think that it is necessary to completely empty the soul first of all prejudices and past beliefs before we can receive, imbibe new knowledge and grow. Indeed, this is a lifelong process. I think the most important thing is that we consciously open ourselves to discovering the Truth... and that may not necessarily require abandoning all past beliefs. We should continue to hold to these, if they make sense to us, while ever remaining open to new truths. If a new truth, after we've investigated it and decided it true, disproves a past belief, we must be ready to abandon that past belief (this is detachment). As for prejudices: it would clearly be better to completely rid ourselves of all prejudice. But I suspect that this is a process, not a fast end point, and it is precisely in opening our hearts and souls to spiritual growth that we will begin to let go of these prejudices more and more.
hmmm, good points - all. i agree with you.
haha, you made that too easy. :)
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