How to Spot a Fake Spiritual Teacher
Maybe this topic is a little personal. I am not sure. It’s what’s on my mind. I have a mentor for like a day and then he got sick and died. I’m always feeling the pain of his lost that he didn’t take proper care of himself and I am left without guidance. He was going to teach me Chinese medicine and herbalism. A topic I find interesting and might eventually study. I’m an atheist but spiritual. I’ve been looking for an instructor ever since and I have found lots of fakes. Most of the time the people who claim to be teachers really aren’t. They just want your money. That’s the first sign of spotting a fake. If they want you to pay, they are probably not the real thing.
I don’t agree with Gurdjieff and his theory that if people want knowledge, they got to pay for it. Anyone who knew anything what they were talking about has always given it freely. I also don’t agree with the Fourth Way system – they teach their way is the only way. Any system of thought that teaches their path is the only path to enlightenment is a fake. There are many paths to the same end. Everyone needs to pick their own path that works for them. The Fourth Way system from the book I read sounded cool the first one-third of the book but then started sounding like a cult. Anyone who requests you give up control over yourself is a fake. Also, the thing to remember when seeking enlightenment that the system is a the means to the end – not the end. Most people who are rather spiritual or religious forget that and get so caught up with the religion or belief being the ends rather than the means, they get very lost and confused.
The idea of being an enlightened being is to be loving, kind, compassionate, and peaceful human being. You can walk the path on your own but some guidance is helpful. Another signal of a fake is that if they tell you what they teach you is to be kept a secret. Like, you have some hidden truth or something that sets you apart from everyone else. I went to a receiving the Tao ceremony before – first warning sign was that they wanted $20. Second sign of falsehood is that they wanted me to keep the details of the ceremony and the chant I learned a secret. Third warning sign of something being wrong was that they wanted me to come to meetings to “learn more” and pay more money. They were trying to make it felt like I belong but it just didn’t feel right. Trust your gut: if something doesn’t feel right, don’t go along with it.
My mentor wanted to teach to genuinely share knowledge and help me along my path. He wasn’t pushing an agenda on me. People who want to do that are really rare. Most people are after something. The thing with being spiritual, like the idea that the path is the means to the end – enlightenment – so is the mentor. The mentor should be there to help you – not use or manipulate you. The goal is to understand and be one with the world around you, figure out how to cope with the world as it is, and how to change it for the better.
Current Myths of World Culture
All forms of civilization has it own myths. The Greeks had their gods, prophets, and heroes. The Roman’s stole theirs. How are our gods, prophets, and heroes any different?
Currently, the world is living out a self-fulfilling prophecy with the end result being catastrophic destruction of our entire planet. Most of the human species seem to be living out the fantasy that Earth was intended for Man to conquer. That the Earth is Man’s property to do with as he wishes and what he wishes to all life on it. How ignorant and naive is Man to assume that creation ends with him. There are billions and billions of planets which might have life we can only dream to imagine. There might even be life in ways we can’t even conceive or perceive due to the limited wiring of our own human brain. It’s as fanciful as thinking that the universe revolves around the Earth.
However, this idea of Man verses Nature is so ingrained in our culture – most people never think to question it. We are all working together for the destruction of our planet by living life within the system we do. It’s how our society functions striving for the most modern and civilized technology at the expense of our Earth. Modern Man is not driven by the thoughts of peace, equality, and freedom but of the ideas of selfishness, money, and greed. It’s taken for granted that all men are inherently incomplete and imperfect for no one really knows how to be human and without this essential knowledge mankind is lost.
Man turns to modern Myths to help guide him – believing in the unbelievable and having imaginary friends. Myths so full of contradiction that the people can’t even agree on the ideas that are supposedly there to guide them. Breaking fundamental rules of their belief at will for personal gain. Others reject some of the myth – but maintain the belief that Man was destined to rule the Earth. Few people reject all our modern myths all together and know that manifest destiny is a dumb idea to begin with. However, for the few who see the world as it really is, there are thousands who see it as their possession. It seems like a losing battle to fight against the status quo of world destined to be a chain mall without any traces of nature while being a blazing inferno due to climate change.
I’d rather fight a losing battle than give up without a fight at all. I feel like I was never given a chance in the world to stop things from going in the direction they are going due to being born during borrowed time. People are taught to accept the world the way it is unquestionably and accept the destruction of our natural world as the cost of the modern lifestyle. The cost of indoor plumbing and heat/air does not need to be the end of life on this planet. We can make green choices to make a difference. We can choice to change the world. With each dollar we spend, we are voting for what type of world we want.
The problem is that most people don’t know that the power is in them. Another myth of our culture is that people are so caught up with media fictions that life becomes something that happens to them rather then something they make happen. People believe they are powerless with the corporate gods in control. The corporate gods are nothing without the belief of the people. How can we educate people to know that the power is with them and not with some unknown other? Things can change very fast if the people want it to change. What type of world do you want?
Peace Needs To Be The Foundation of Our Society
In order for there to be peace, the whole foundation of our society needs to change. We live in a society based on violence. If we are to have peace, we need to have a society based on peace.
Everything from entertainment to what we put in our bellies to what games we play as a child are centered around violence. We have the “good verses evil” scenario drilled into our heads. We are taught separation, “us and them.”
Most people are addicted to violence. Their life revolved around it and they aren’t even aware of it. If we really valued peace, why would we murder animals for food? Why would we watch superheroes fighting supervillains for “truth, justice, and doing things our way?” Why would we teach our children to play with weapons? Why would we later send our children to war?
Having violence in news, television, and video games are made to desensitize us. It trains us to even find violence to be entertaining and unquestionably accept it as another part of life. It makes it so when we hear of war people praise it instead of abhor it.
If we built a society based on peace, the current establishment would collapse. Our youth wouldn’t want to fight wars. We wouldn’t murder animals for pleasure. We would detest the taking of life and value tranquility.
Instead of viewing the world as a conflict; dog eat dog or us verses them, we’d start building community. Instead of seeing differences as a threat which is the hostile violent reaction to have – we would cherish our differences and embrace them. If we taught kindness and compassion in place of conformity and unquestioning obedience to authority – we’d have a nurturing and caring world instead of the hostile environment we have.
News flash: The world is the way it is because of us. Humans make the world the way it is. The only way the world is going to change is if the people change. The only way the people are going to change is with education. The way we’ve been educated: from pre-school to college is inept. There are so many problems in this world because people weren’t taught properly. Humans aren’t born knowing how to be human and most people forget that. The current system doesn’t teach people brotherhood, solidarity, or sharing. We need to focus on unity regardless of what limits our meat suit proscribes us. The current school system isn’t focused on building the best people it can. It’s more focus on building the best worker it can.
The quality of people today is terrible. It’s just messed up people having messed up children, teaching their kids the same mistake they were taught. No wonder why the world’s a mess. The cycle needs to end somewhere. It can start with you by learning to be a kind, compassionate, and loving human being. Philosophers, religions, and thinkers across the ages have all been trying to communicate the same idea: That we need to love each other and get along. That we are all human. We are all one.
We need to teach ourselves that fighting amongst ourselves is not okay. That violence is not acceptable. We need to find a way to tolerate each other and not hate. There’s so much hate in this world when the foundation should be love. I was told once by a friend’s mom that “People only act out of pain.” I thought about it, and she was wrong. People act out of love too, not just pain. If we all learned to love a little and have our actions be based in love – the world would be an amazing place.
Treat Me For Who I Am and Not How I Look
Looks can be deceiving and you can’t judge a person by their looks. For example, who’s more threatening: a blue haired mohawked, tattoo studded jacket wearing punk rocker or a person wearing nondescript clothing and generic hair? I would say the person who’s wearing the nondescript clothing and generic hair is a greater threat than the blue haired mohawked, tattooed studded jacket wearing punk. Why? Think about it: If the blue mohawked person robbed you – they would be easy to spot and find as they are unique looking and standing out from the crowd. They might look like a threat being so loud but in reality they are harmless because if you are up to no good – you don’t want to draw attention to yourself. The generic hair and nondescript clothing person could rob you and if you tried to describe them to the cops – they just look like everyone else. There are a few exceptions when people who are loud are also violent and crazy but *usually* they are as law abiding as anyone. They dress differently to make a statement and express individuality. The punk rocker might appear to be a threat but they are really not to you as an individual.
People treat me funny because I am tattooed, pierced, and mohawked. All it is really is their fear of the unknown showing. Think about it: if I was really a danger I wouldn’t go around advertising the fact. There are a few exceptions to the rules but most of the time when someone advertises being a radical, they aren’t up to anything illegal. They might have different ideas than the mainstream and philosophies and be a threat to the status quo but they aren’t breaking any laws.
Laws are there to give people the illusion they are “safe”. Think about it: if there was a law to enforce identification cards (like they are planning in the UK) only the law abiding citizens will do it. The criminals don’t care about the law and won’t follow it or get fake IDs. It’s to give the masses, the sheep, the appearance of order in the chaos we exist in. The criminals will be criminals and do illegal things while the masses fall into line. The ID card is a stupid idea and very 1984ish because it only applies to who will follow the law to begin with.
More laws equal less freedom. Sure, common courtesy laws like not stealing or killing are nice to have to protect me from your average idiot. I am an anarchist and sometimes I am grateful for the police to protect me from stupid people. For instance, the police helped me out when I was punched in the face for being a “homosexual.” In an ideal, anarchical society, the person would behave like an anarchist and respect his fellow human beings – however, the assaulter was moronic, angry and fucked up so I need the police to protect me from people like that.
However, I am against police brutality and abuse of power. There is a difference in keeping people safe from the idiots of the world and harassing someone because they have a studded vest. One time, I was in the wrong place at the wrong time eating pizza on the steps of Search and Destroy in NYC and the police treated me like I was a criminal when all I was doing was eating pizza. It was pretty scary – they patted me down and violated my rights all because they have nothing else to do. There’s also the cops who give out traffic tickets for being a few miles over the speed limit to make their quota. Things like that are an abuse of power – laws are there to keep you safe from other human’s stupidity not be a money making tool.
That is not the case in our capitalistic society. The law system and prison system are money making tools. It’s really messed up.
The question is: How will this change? The answer: Is with you. If the people were to stop profiling and treat people for who they are and not what they look like we would have a stronger, happier society.
We are all in it together.
We live in a society that thrives on the “us” verses “them” mentality. Country against country. Worker against worker. Subculture against subculture. It is everywhere. Imagine what the world would be like if we stopped dividing ourselves into groups and just accepted each other as being human and help each other out?
For example, most middle class white gay males are so caught up in their own “oppression” that they aren’t an ally to other causes. They are holding a couple of positions of privilege in the hierarchy that exists in our society by being male, middle class, and white. They feel marginalize because they can’t marry but they won’t join in the fight for other oppressed groups. However, what they don’t see is that their oppression is linked to the oppression of others. It’s like a drop of water in a lake – it ripples. If they would be willing to help out other minorities they would be helping themselves. No one is free while others in society are oppressed.
Some oppressed groups have taken a separatist approach to constructing their movements which I believe is an error. For example, some people of color groups don’t want white allies involved or feminist groups don’t want males involvement. I think that is very silly. It isn’t someone’s fault what color their skin is or what they have in their pants. To discriminate against potential allies simply because they don’t fit the mold and discounting their attempt to help the struggle due to factors beyond control is mad. We need all the allies in all shapes, sizes, and colors they come in if they want to help fight for freedom and equality from all oppressive forces.
I’ve met a handful of separatists who are always in denial of being a separatists – it’s really odd. See, if the world is going to be non-oppressive place – all forces will be working together in reality. By dividing and fragmenting – you are not mimicing the conditions of the real world and the real world will never change if you keep on keeping to yourself.
It’s like the idea of the monk who goes up to the mountain and is enlightened by never shares his insight with the world. It’s just a waste. Part of the project is sharing the knowledge with the world – with everyone. Not just “us” or “them.”
Let me point out too: just because you disagree with someone’s lifestyle choice doesn’t give you a right to dictate the rights or govern how someone else lives. I disagree and think my dad is a murderer because he eats meat. But, we co-inhabit the planet peacefully because it isn’t for me to make those chooses for him. The same can be applied to other aspects of life – that others shouldn’t censor their peers because of not approving.
If there’s one thing I’ve learned in life so far is that you can’t please everyone. Someone is always going to find something to be unhappy about and it’s not about being PC for everyone. It’s about having freedom and not being oppressed. That should be the goal of society and we have a long way to go.
Gender Binary, Sexism, and Sexuality.
The gender binary is a form of oppression and hierarchy. Male and female stereotypes and roles put so much stress on our kind. Things like “Boys don’t cry” or if a girl sleeps around she’s a slut and if it was a man, he’s a stud. Girls are supposed to wear dresses and boys are supposed to wear pants. What madman came up with the idea of dividing humanity along the lines of what’s in one’s pants? What I want is equality which isn’t the same thing as sameness. Men and women will always be different but we can also be equal. I am in the middle of reading a book Sexism in America: Alive, Well, and Ruining Our Future and there is so much overlooked. Just even classic television shows like “Father Knows Best” encourages the model that he male knows best and the woman is inferior. Even recently with the scandalous performance of Adam Lambert with the double standard that it’s okay for some girl on girl action on prime time Television and not guy on guy. Girls can be bicurious but men have to be straight and narrow. We need this to stop this sort of thinking.
I was talking with a friend last night how the label “bisexual” enforces the idea that there are only two sexes. Then again, if the person is only attracted to cis-males and cis-females this works but that is often not the case. It doesn’t really cover all aspects of human sexuality. Then again, why do we need to worry about labels? You can like what you like and just be yourself.
However, in this imperfect world labels are helpful for sorting things and giving meaning. They have their use. I usually identify as “queer” since it is all encompassing. I am against gay and lesbian assimilation like the Steford Gays who want to be the cookie cutter American family with 2.5 kids. I know some people are afraid of the word “queer” due to it’s past and it isn’t PC. That’s the thing though, being gay doesn’t have to be PC – we aren’t going for heteronormalitivity. I am more worried about the issues of homeless youth LGBT (gays make up 10% of the population but 40% of the homeless) than having gay marriage. Gay marriage would be nice for those who want it but it’s mostly a concern of the white middle class. People aren’t worrying about gay marriage if they can’t get their medicine. Universal health care should be more of a queer issue than gay marriage because we wouldn’t need partners benefits if everyone had health care.
Again, equality isn’t the same as sameness. I am proud to be queer and different then 90% of the people. I used to joke with my friends that if 90% of the population was queer and only 10% straight – we wouldn’t have the overpopulation problem. But we do because those breeders want to keep on breeding when there are so many children in need of a good home already.
Looking for a colony of 5's – a theory about humanity
My doctor told me about the “1-5 scale for people.â€Â Basically, everyone in our society can be sorted out into a number between 1-5.
1’s are people who do minimal work and only think about sex, getting drunk, or drugs. They don’t really think about the big picture and have no interest in politics.
2’s are people who depend on the system to survive but don’t contribute anything back to it. They only care for the system as much as they can take from it.
3’s are people who are your average person who’s mainly looking out for their self interest. They might be Republican or Democrat but overall, they are pretty moderate. They vote and participate in the system but aren’t actively involved in trying to change things. The system works for them for the most part or if it doesn’t, they don’t care enough to do anything about it. “This is the way things have always been.†can be heard coming from the mouth of a 3.
4’s are people who are involved in the community more than your average person. They might be involved in city activities, gives to charities, and/or run a business. They might be Republicans or Democrat or something else entirely! Sometimes, they don’t fit neatly in the box provided and sometimes think out the box but if they see the system providing them a door – they’ll walk through it instead of fighting it.
5’s are people who try to walk through a wall. They are the dreamers, the visionaries, and the people who try to change the system. Unlike 4’s, they’ll fight against the injustices of the world and won’t take a door if offered to be met halfway. It’s all or nothing with these folks. Sometimes, a 4 might help a 5 by giving them a saw to help them through the door but for the most part, 4’s have better things to do then help out a 5. 5’s are often tormented as they are trying to get the 1’s, 2’s, 3’s, and 4’s up to their level to shake things up. There have been some awesome 5 leaders in the history of mankind.
My doctor told me I’m a “5†and I keep trying to walk through the wall to bring about change in the world. That I need to realize that most people are 1’s, 2’s, and 3’s and are very selfish. That a 4 might listen to me but that’s about it.
I realized a awhile ago, that there’s a lot of people in this world but not a lot of people who do things. Most people are like silhouettes against a blank screen. Just living life passively and not actively taking part in the process. A lot of people just following the flock, keeping in line, upholding the status quo and whatever is “normalâ€. This world could be such an amazing place if people cared a little to make a community really make earth our home rather than just a place we exist.
I wish people would “get it†and let peace and love reign supreme. But, until then, I’ll keep on trucking. I organized a few shows in the past as fundraisers for charities to try to build community but my community didn’t come through. It crushed my little idealistic heart but that’s the way people are. Instead of getting discourage and giving up, I’m trying to work things different. I got a couple of solo projects I’m working on and we’ll see how things pan out.
I really hope there’s more 4’s and 5’s in the world than 3’s. If you’re a 5, drop me a note. Maybe we can change the world together. 🙂
