I just came back from an interesting session in which a traveling monk ( I believe he is of the Hare Krishna tradition.) He chanted, talked of life and shared his views on life. I enjoyed the session and agreed with most of the things he was saying but there were a number that I have a completely different view on. In the next four or five entries I will try to understand what I think further and explain the differences, specifically his thoughts on Karma, You are not your body, Physical Lives as a Bad Dream & Meaning of Life, and Bhagavad Gita as PhD in Spirituality.
Before I begin allow me to apologize in advance to everyone that disagrees with me. I understand that over 500 million people think of Bhagavad Gita as the holy book and what I am about to say will go against some of its teachings. I do not claim to be a student of the book since I have never read it. I only speak based on what I have heard the monk say. I do so in exploration of my own belief and fully realize that what I think today may not be so tomorrow. Thus I mean no disrespect and am just theorizing on the life's questions. However, I do ask that readers keep an open mind and put aside cultural biases.
Let's begin with the thought that You are not your body. I understand what the monk was saying and he used colorful examples to demonstrate this fact. Of course we are not just our body, we are a being of physical and spiritual essence. Thus he was trying to open those eyes that think of themselves as only a body. What I disagree with the monk on is how he was describing the body. The way it sounded (which I accept maybe how I heard him) was dismissive. He said that bodies come and bodies go and while we need to take care of them they are just vehicles that we use and throw away. He said the focus should be on the spiritual within not the cage. There in-lies my problem. During the past 2 years I have focused more then ever on my spiritual development and have experienced things I didn't know were possible. And then all of a sudden I started feeling worse and worse physically until my guides in no uncertain terms told me to stop the spiritual and focus on the physical. I had neglected my body and had come out of balance. My physical problems were manifesting everywhere and a "healthy" young man was suddenly unable to teach because of light headiness whereas before I loved being in front of an audience. I was having panic attacks, chest pains, "hot flashes", blood pressure fluctuations, and all sorts of other troubles. The message was clear, your body cannot handle the energies you are playing with. In order for you to continue to grow spiritually you must get your body stronger and healthier.
Thus, while I agree with the overall message that we are not JUST our bodies, we are spiritual being that have materialized. To negate the body is to negate the experience. One cannot focus on one part of their being without hurting the other. Our bodies consist of "plumbing" and if the energy tries to flow into a tube that is "clogged" you are asking for trouble. It is too simple to think that all blocks will be dissolved instantly by the energy. When energy flows into those blockages they become highlighted as something we need to fix and manifest in different ways. We are complex multi-life beings that carry a lot of "baggage". We must take care of our bodies in order to live a healthy and meaningful existence. As all spiritual traditions teach - it is about Balance! I say Love and appreciate your body and Love and exercise your Spirit. Develop both, for that is the purpose.
4 comments:
I also believe that there is a connection to the mind, body, and spirit. No disrespect to the monk, but if we put all our focus on the spirit in this incarnation, the rest will wither and perish. That is not enlightenment, that is starvation and lack of balance. Our psychical bodies are needed on this plane to ground us so we don't all float off into unknown realms without a way of getting back.
Thanks Rob. Again, I understand his message and maybe because he had to cover many topics in 1 hour he just didn't get enough time to go into details. But based on what he did say I wrote this.
Ya,
Thanks for your comments. This is how Google translated what you said. Please verify "...If the honest to ourselves, over time, there is no disloyalty of others."
I think of myself as a traveler, and my body – a vehicle. Some trips require plane, others – car or a bike. The journey is not about the vehicle, it’s about the experience. However, transportation is one aspect of that experience. A plane and a car need to be maintained, fixed and cleaned regularly, otherwise they will at minimum be dirty and not fun to travel in, or in the worst case - end my journey by crashing. And we all know how a trip can be ruined when there is car trouble all along the way!
I don’t change my car’s oil/rotate tires and all that other maintenance stuff because I deeply care about the car. I do it because that’s what I need to do in order for the car to stay in good condition and allow for my trips to be smooth (at least in transportation aspect), so I can concentrate on the trip itself instead of worrying about the car. I like my car. It’s fun to ride in. It’s not fun by itself, really. It’s a bunch of metal. But it’s fun to ride in. Same as my body, I think. The collection of bones, blood and other fluids is not that exciting. Yet what it allows me to feel and do, is amazing.
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