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(C) by Stephen Echard-Musgrave
-----------------------------------------------------------------------From:
gary.ray@tigerteam.org (GARY RAY)Subject: Practice PrerequisiteTo:
zendo@lysator.liu.seDate: Wed, 16 Mar 1994 22:39:00 GMTOrganization: Tiger Team
Information Network (510) 268-0102PREREQUISITES TO SPIRITUAL PRACTICEBy: Stephen
Echard-Musgrave RoshiFROM: Magical Blend, Jan-Apr 1990Re-printed with permission
==================================================================Stephen ECHARD-
MUSGRAVE Roshi is a Zen master in the Soto traditionof Japan, and has also received
teaching sanction from the Korean,Vietnamese, and Chinese traditions of Zen
Buddhism. Echard Roshiteaches at the Zen Institute of San Diego (619) 582-9888.-
G.Ray================================================================== Every
teacher has problem students. There is not a Zencenter, ashram, church or temple
that does not have a few memberswho have an unusually hard time adapting to their
practice and tofellow students. The problem seems to be that most of these people
are not properly prepared to begin spiritual discipline. Theyexpect the discipline
to provide them with on-the-job training inemotional maturity. Unfortunately,
no matter how compassionate the teacher may be,he or she cannot devote the
extraordinary amount of time and energyneeded to parent a student to maturity.
And, if it is a problemfor the teacher to find the right student, it is equally
difficultfor the student to find the right teacher and tradition. There ismuch in
this society that leads one away from the path of wisdomand into inappropriate ways
of living,and some of these diversionscan be mistaken for the path itself.
Confronted with all this, itis easy to become confused. Sometimes the journey
appears to be anendless labyrinth composed of countless potential paths. While
I cannot lay out a simple road map for the spiritualsearch, there are certain
guidelines and tools which might helpsomeone in beginning a spiritual journey.
First, spiritual seekersmust develop a working knowledge of their own personality.
Theymust understand their own spiritual history and how it affectstheir actions
both consciously and unconsciously. To do this, onehas to be honest, capable of
self-analysis, and willing to take theperilous journey of psychic discovery.
Because the power of the unconscious is formidable, a guide ishighly recommended,
but should one feel confident enough toundertake this journey without professional
support, a trustedfriend may be chosen as a guide. It is important, however, that
this friend should not have a natural agenda towards the student,such as a parent,
lover or spouse does. Also helpful are suchtechniques as dream analysis, journal
therapy, or some other formof self-analysis because spiritual exercises, like
physicalexercises, is best preceded by a short period of preparation orwarm-up to
achieve maximum benefits. In circumstances where thespiritual practice to be
engaged in is particularly rigorous, suchas ritual magic, Zen or Tibetan Buddhism,
it is better to use aprofessional who is well-versed in the discipline of
psychologicalanalysis. In undergoing the process of self-analysis, it is
importantthat we try to remove ourselves from excessive attachment toemotion and
emotive states. The goal of the process is not to getourselves in touch with
feelings, but to free ourselves from thosefeelings. Personal feelings are
different from emotions. Emotions arenatural responses to primary situations.
Personal feelings aresecondary responses attached to both conceptual and emotional
frameworks that interfere with our self-understanding, darkeningthe path of self-
understanding instead of illuminating it. Whereasemotion involves an organic,
instantaneous, natural response tostimuli, personal feeling is a complex of
emotional memory thatdoes not allow for intermediate response to the moment without
referencing its own complete matrix. Freeing oneself of personalfeelings allows a
simpler, more direct emotional relationship tolife. When emotion is no longer
interrupted in the present bypatterns of the past, we are free to experience our
life in anorganic way instead of through the bondage of pathologicalconditioning.
This does not mean that we cripple our memory; weare still capable of recapturing
past emotions. It is simply thatthese past emotions are no longer able to disrupt
our life throughcreating negative patterns of conditioning. The only way one
can accomplish this liberation is through thesystematic unearthing of these emotive
patterns. This must be donein a controlled environment that helps to separate
emotions fromthe conceptual framework in which they reside. And since what weare
doing is defusing our memory; we should take the same care asif we were on a bomb
squad, because if we try this without theproper preparation and diligence it will
have the same explosiveresult. Only after one has gained a reasonable level of
maturity is ittime to take up the challenge of the deeper spiritual paths. This
does not mean we cannot begin the preliminary spiritual practicesinvolving correct
moral action, devotion, mindfulness, etc. It issimply that we proceed cautiously
into those disciplines whosepractice involves direct confrontation with our view of
self whenthat self is still fragile for us. How can we know if we have reached
a sufficient level of egodevelopment to attempt a path of self-transcendence?
There arecertain key questions that one can ask oneself, the answers towhich are
indicative of maturity level. The questions ofimportance are: 1. Are you
easily offended? Do situations or people that you disagree with make you
feel threatened or angry? 2. Are you easily bored? Do you have trouble
simply being without the presence of an underlying level of
discontent? 3. Do you lack discipline? Do you find it impossible to set
realistic goals and achieve them? 4. Do you lack direction? Do you have
problems figuring out what it is that you should be doing in your life?
5. Do you love potential and disregard actuality? Do you live in a
world of daydreams and fantasy, and ponder deep metaphysical subjects at
the expense of everyday "taking care of business?" 6. Are you unable
to accept the dark side of life? Do death, disease and violence
completely "throw you for a loop?" Do you assiduously avoid any contact
with them? If you find that you have problems in several of these areassevere
enough to interfere with the quality of your life, then youshould reconsider
whether you are ready to undergo a seriousspiritual discipline. Perhaps it would
be wiser to start with apsychological discipline such as Jungian analysis or
journaltherapy, to get the requisite support necessary to master the smallself
while pursuing the larger self in spiritual practice. The next step in
development is choosing the path that onewill follow. The knowledge gained in
self-introspection and/ortherapy should be used as a guide in choosing the
spiritualdiscipline. Of course, one should not want to enter a disciplinewith
which one did not have a heartfelt rapport, but one should becertain that this
attraction is not just an aesthetic preference,but a decision grounded in
understanding. One should not, forinstance, enter a tradition that requires strict
and strenuousself-discipline from the onset if one's self-analysis has shown alack
of discipline. It is not the role of spiritual training tocure character flaws;
that is the role of counseling. If a personshould attempt this discipline before
they are ready, they wouldsurely fail. In doing so, they would cause a good deal
ofdisruption in their spiritual community as well. It would bebetter to find a
spiritual tradition which is demanding but allowsa steady progression of the
individual through the discipline. While it is often necessary to place
questions on hold whiletaking instruction, we still must be able to use common
sense. Inmy experience, any discipline which requires you to violate commonsense
consistently is a discipline to avoid. While it is true thatsome traditions do use
non-rational techniques such as Zen Koans intraining, these traditions do not
advocate abandoning the use ofreason in daily life. One should also determine
which aspects of spiritual practiceare essential to spiritual growth and which are
peripheral. Thoseaspects of practice which are of peripheral importance should be
treated as such. Many forms and manners of spiritual traditionsare merely remnants
of cultural tradition instead of essentialelements of spiritual practice. It is
not unusual for people to value the trappings of aspiritual tradition more than its
content. In this bland andamorphic culture we live in, the experience of ancient
forms ofworship, which are often rich in ritual, and full of brocade,incense, and
antiquity, can be quite intoxicating. While there isnothing wrong with drinking in
the sensuality of life, we do notwant to get so drunk that we lose perspective.
Another thing toconsider is that it is much easier to put on a colored robe
andshave your head than it is to change what is inside you. Self-transformation
is not always self-evident, and it carries norequisite external reward sufficient
to hold the attention ofweaker students. I always try to remind my students
that they should becomepractitioners, not "true believers." True Believers tend to
getlost in doctrine at the expense of practice. If one spends all dayreading the
maps, one will not have time to take the trip. And ifone gets caught up in the
infinite realms of potential, one canspend an extraordinary amount of time dealing
with fantasy andarcane esoteric doctrines that would take all three Buddhas and a
rabbi a millennia to sort out. If I might offer some further advice for
students planning toengage in spiritual discipline, it would be in the choice of a
teacher. It is better to look for a teacher who is extraordinarynot in
personality, but in conduct. Look for a person who iscentered! A gentle person,
humble, open and compassionate withfirm self-discipline. This person also should
not have an extensiveattachment to money. Spiritual instruction should never be
expensive. It is also true that a spiritual tradition that has atemple or church
needs the support of its members. Therefore, youshould invest your finances with
the same intelligence as youinvest your time and energy in your practice. To put
it simply,don't be cheap, and don't be stupid, either. The qualities of
enlightenment are not the magical powers orpsychic sideshow of the fakir. The
magical is a window between thenuminous realm and our practice. A good definition
of magic is thepenetration of the phenomenal realm by the numinous that revealsthe
significance of life. Such experiences have great potentialfor giving personal
spiritual illumination, but if one attachesoneself to *external magic* (the
phantasmagoria itself) one willbecome lost in it. Spiritual practitioners, after
all, will berequired to live their own lives in this world, and in this timeand
place. The value of practice is in the here an now, no inancient Egypt, Tibet,
China or Atlantis. Without question, theperson we look to for guidance in the
spiritual realm should beable to live in this same modern world with us, in freedom
andpower, without rejecting any of it. Among the teachings of Tibet's great
sage Milarepa, there isa listing of ten signs of the Superior Person. I do not
think onecan find a better guide for choosing a spiritual preceptor thanthese:
1. To have little pride and envy is the sign of the superior person.
2. To have few desires and satisfaction with simple things is the sign
of the superior person. 3. To be lacking in hypocrisy and deceit is the sign
of the superior person. 4. To regulate one's conduct in accordance
with the law of cause and effect as carefully as one would guard the
pupils of one's eyes is the sign of the superior person. 5. To be faithful in
one's engagement and obligations is the sign of the superior person.
6. To be able to keep alive friendships while regarding all beings with
impartiality is the sign of the superior person. 7. To look with
pity and without anger upon those who live evilly is the sign of the
superior person. 8. To allow others the victory, taking on the defeat, is the
sign of the superior person. 9. To differ from the multitudes in every
thought and deed is the sign of the superior person. 10. To observe
faithfully and without pride one's spiritual vows is the sign of the
superior person. If you can find a teacher with these qualities, then you will
have certainly found a rare gem. Polish it brightly be completingyour Work. Then
the coal of your own ego will transform it to thediamond of truth, and you and your
teacher will become one. LikeZen Master Zenrin Kokushu you will be able to say:
Sitting QuietlyDoing NothingSpring Comesand the grass grows by itself
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