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The words of enlightened masters

JeroenJeroen Luminous beings are we, not this crude matterNetherlands Veteran

Yesterday I was revisiting the quotes of U. G. Krishnamurti that I had saved in the “no Buddhist quotes” thread, and I came across this one…

“Courage is to brush aside everything that man has experienced and felt before you. You are the only one, greater than all those things. Everything is finished, the whole tradition is finished, however sacred and holy it may be -- then only can you be yourself -- that is individuality. For the first time you become an individual. As long as you depend upon somebody, some authority, you are not an individual.”
— U. G. Krishnamurti

And it occurred to me that over the last ten years, from roughly the time when I started my current spiritual adventure until now, I have been conditioning myself with the words of enlightened beings in the hope of making progress on the path. Now I have arrived at the point where I ask myself, does it actually make sense to do that?

The other day I asked on another forum, “what is the purpose of studying sutras?” The answer I got was, “it supports one’s right view”. But it also turns you into not much more than a parrot, someone who has adopted a thin veneer of someone else’s opinions.

At some point you have to stop, you have to digest these words of others and throw away the dead remains, and come back to yourself. It took U. G. forty-nine years to come to the end of his search and to rediscover his natural state.

BunksFosdickShoshin1

Comments

  • Shoshin1Shoshin1 Sentient Being Oceania Veteran

    I'm reminded of ....

    “Bhikkhus, the teaching is merely a vehicle to describe the truth. Don’t mistake it for the truth itself. A finger pointing at the moon is not the moon.
    The finger is needed to know where to look for the moon, but if you mistake the finger for the moon itself, you will never know the real moon.
    The teaching is like a raft that carries you to the other shore."
    ~Thich Nhat Hanh~

    Or as Bruce Lee would say.....

    KotishkaJeroen
  • JeroenJeroen Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter Netherlands Veteran

    Knowing when to digest another’s teachings, absorb what you can and to drop the chewed-up remains…

  • JeroenJeroen Luminous beings are we, not this crude matter Netherlands Veteran

    On waking up in the morning I feel a gentleness, a loving presence that is more than just U.G.’s individuality. To be loved, to be cherished by another, is a wonderful and under appreciated thing. In so many areas of life we get carried away by wanting, while in fact we are beloved of existence and we should just stand still and be grateful for that.

    Bunks
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