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So what do you think is a universal truth?
Well, there are no absolute truths you can put down in words. Truth exists within each of us. We can recognize an absolute truth only through feeling the truth within ourselves. To paraphrase a great eastern sage “the truth that can be written is not the absolute truth.”
Lao Tzu.
Yes. How did you know that? Don’t tell me you read too.
No. I don’t read. But, I get the information from the same source.
You mean Lao Tzu’s dog?
Hey. Lao Tzu would have been nowhere without his dog. But no, I didn’t get that from his dog. I got that information from...well this starts to get difficult. You said yourself, we can’t really write down, speak, or put certain concepts into words. So we need to approximate the important concepts, if we are to use words. You said that Neale got some stuff wrong.
Yes, I did. I guess I don’t believe that anyone has the last word on God.
Precisely. I agree. Who do you think has the “last word?”
I guess no one can. Sentient beings can get pure knowledge, may be even the truth from “the All,” “the Source,” “God,” “the Force” whatever you want to call it. But, that concept is filtered through our poor animal nature before it can be written into words. So, words cannot be used to tell the truth, only to get close to the truths. Truth can only be felt inside you.
Words are like a finger pointing at the moon.
Exactly. Hey! Have you read all of eastern philosophy?
No, I have never “read” anything. My job is usually to be a dog, and you better believe it is a lot easier than doing this stuff. But, we need to agree on some language. I like “Source.”
That’s OK with me. I like the term Source. It has less connotation than a lot of other terms. So how does a dog get knowledge from the Source?
Beats me. Remember, I am here to help you. That’s what dogs are good for. No one loves you like your dog. I was just given a different role starting today. I don’t know how it happened, I don’t know when it may end.
You mean this may stop sometime? I was just starting to have fun. I guess we need to get as much work done as possible.
You bet. Also, I won’t be talking with you in eyesight or hearing of any other humans. It gets too messy. While we are writing you should keep this to yourself as well. When you are done with this book, you can tell anyone you want, or no one if you want. Dogs don’t need fame and glory. But, they do need water, thank you, my bowl is empty.
Sorry, Midnight. I’ll get you some water, and me another cup of tea. We should get some work done.
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So. Source is everything. As the sages say; the 10,000 things come from the Source. I can feel that truth when I meditate.
But, Neale does a good job of describing the partitioning of Source into the physical realm “the 10,000 things.”
Yes. A little wordy. But, he does do a good job. I get the feeling he was definitely in touch with Source when writing those passages. We are in this physical state so that Source can appreciate Itself. The split into good and bad, pretty and ugly can only be appreciated in the physical world. If you recognize Source, the duality ceases to exist. But I don’t like his concept of the “Triune that is God.” His Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit as knowing, experiencing, and being. He also says the Triune has been called superconscious, conscious, subconscious, as well as mind, body, spirit. Too complicated.
I agree. So, how would you put it?
I like to think of this age old concept of “the three” as the third way, a more evolved way, of looking at any set of opposites. So, the third way of looking at pretty and ugly might be termed Beauty. When you can see Source within everything, the concepts of pretty and ugly disappear. When the Hindus say “namaste” they mean “whatever your outward appearance, I greet the Source within you.” If you appreciate that concept you can detect Beauty within the ugliest of circumstances. Again, we cannot really appreciate what we are talking about using words. Try this. Think about it as pretty and ugly as the base of a triangle. Now put Beauty at the apex of the triangle, above pretty and ugly. That’s about the best I can do to show the relationship between “the three.”
So what about good and bad.
Yes. That is a tough one. I think Neale gets close to explaining why there is so much disparity in the world. Why there are terrible disasters, wars, children starving. But I can’t agree that we, as a society of humans, have simply made it this way. That we are responsible for all the bad stuff in the world. I feel that a closer truth is that the good and the bad are part of our evolution. The yin and the yang. The balance results in the greatest good and the most awful bad. We can evolve toward greater good and, perhaps thinking optimistically, the bad will rise up toward good. For a more pessimistic possibility, the bad could get worse as the good gets better. I am unable to discern the truth between these two possibilities.
So what is the reason for good and bad?
We get caught in the cycle of being attracted to the good, pretty, and pleasureful things and experiences. We experience attachment and desire for happiness. We are repulsed by the bad, ugly, and painful experiences. So we reject these experiences and try to avoid suffering. But, we must experience both. We must reach that point where we are not attached to pleasure and we do not avoid suffering. When we achieve that balance, we are free. True freedom. If you desire nothing, then you are truly free, and you have everything.
Please explain further.
What a taskmaster you are. All that fueled by dog chow. OK. Suffering is important because it leads to action. If we feel pain we do something about it. Suffering can lead to the thirst for inner knowledge. The desire to relieve that suffering can lead to evolution of the self, bring it closer to the Source and merging closer to It. We could say that self becomes Self. Self with a capital “S” is the Source. We recognize that we are no different than Source. Essentially, that is what the Buddha wrote, as well as many other sages throughout history. It is the balance of wisdom and compassion.
Wisdom and compassion?
Wisdom is when we spend time merged with the Source. Compassion is bringing that wisdom, that knowledge or recognition that we are always merged with the Source, back to the physical plane to help relieve the suffering of others.
I don’t understand your statement “if you desire nothing, you have everything.”
It is easy to see that, once you have your basic needs met, if you don’t lust for anything, then you have everything you need. What is more difficult to understand is the situation where you do not have your basic needs met. Perhaps you are in constant pain or you don’t have enough food, water, or shelter. How can you desire nothing under those circumstances? That is what transcendence is all about. Transcendence is when you recognize that you were never really apart from Source. It is not easy. If you survive your challenges, you have a chance to reach that level of transcendence. If you die, you return to the Source.
So, do you have to suffer to transcend this mundane world?
Absolutely not. We can transcend by many means. There are infinite paths. Finding the right one is not so easy. However, I feel that we are all evolving as a species. Part of that evolution is that more people are recognizing that there is no self, only Self, only Source. We start to see that most of us live our lives asleep. When we start to see that we have been asleep, we are on the path to recognition. Anyone who has read this or any other book on any aspect of transcendence is already on the path. These paths are open to anyone. No suffering required.
So, why do we hear so many tales of suffering, prior to this so-called transcending the self and reaching the point where we recognize that everything is Source?
Good point. I think there are those humans that are basically born recognizing this. We hear tales where a 2 year-old precocious child seems to understand deeply and becomes a guru, usually in India. I hate to think of what might happen to a child like that in the US. Probably we would take him or her to a psychiatrist and medicate them until they stop talking like Jesus Christ. But more seriously, I think that any adult who starts down that path and touches the Source finds some very pleasurable feelings generated. Remember the word “rapture” is frequently used in Christian mysticism. We you break away from the Source, after that brief encounter, nothing on earth looks good anymore. This has been termed the “dark night of the soul.”
So all this searching can lead to depression?
Yes. For many seekers there is a period of years, 5, 10, 20, 40 years, before they integrate recognition into their life. Until that integration occurs, their life can be filled with mental anguish. Only during certain times of successful meditation, or other brief recognition of Source, do they have that intense pleasure. Then they leave that, and it feels extremely painful. Painful compared to our everyday existence. The worst kind of pain and suffering you can have is mental pain. Physical pain is far easier to deal with.
Never end a sentence with a preposition.
Oh, so now you can correct my English? I thought you were supposed to keep me on track?
Sorry. Actually, I hear a car pulling into the driveway. We will have to continue this tonight.
I don’t hear anything.
No, of course not. If you were a dog, you could.
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