Ian,
I'm not Buddhist so I can't comment on the Buddhist path with any authority, but I find some of your comments fascinating. I'm hoping you'll continue to illuminate us. Let me also clarify again that any statements I make come from my own unique perspective and don't necessarily reflect the nature of TRUTH for any other individual here. They are simply my own experiences.
If I reached a certain state I wouldn?t discuss it openly here, because it ...could actually affect the progress of another student
In my experience this is very true. However, it can either be an affect toward the negative or the positive. We are all constantly affecting one another. I try to be conscious of how my statements and actions may affect others as well, but I don't let the the fact that it does stop me from sharing experiences as I feel motivated or impelled. Sometimes such experiences are exactly what others need, so personally I hope you won't hold back too much. Sometimes I think of it like reading a book. I can open a book on any topic and read it. The moment I read it I get a certain amount of information from it that I can process. However, if I go back and read that same book again 2 years later I am amazed that I now understand some of the statements I don't even remember seeing before in a new light. This has all happened to all of us who have read the bible repeatedly. I believe this happens because our minds actively filter out that which we are not able/ready/willing to accept and/or comprehend at that moment. So, I think the same thing happens in conversation as well as obviously in these types of posts. If someone is not ready for something I say, it is likely they just won't understand it, and/or will ignore it mentally. If they for some reason latch onto it, perhaps that is because they are ready to digest it at that moment. In general agree with your caution however.
Only a master can help one through what one sees
But, what is a master? I could say I know many "masters" in the Martial Arts. In fact I can call myself a "Master" in the martial arts (though compared to some other "masters" I'm nothing). The word Sifu in chinese is commonly rendered here in the US as "Master", but the word simply means "teacher". The word Sijo is the word for a Teacher who is also the Founder of a particular art. These two words apply to any trade or skill, not just martial arts. So, a "master" is really just a teacher who has aquired enough skill to be better than the average person at a particular art or trade. It does not mean they are infallible, perfect, or that they always know what is best for you. My personal experience is that the saying "when the student is ready the master/teacher will come" has always been true for me.
Whenever I reach a particular area or level of growth in any particular area and need the next step, some guidance is provided to me. This comes in many different forms. It could be a book written a long time ago to which I was never really attracted to until now. It could be a friend who suddenly begins providing me excellent advice I need at the moment. It could be school with a teacher I am particularly drawn to. It could also be a dream and/or an astral experience in which I speak with a Guide/higher level being that provides me instructions for particular things (this has happened to me).
I believe we are dynamic creatures living in a dynamic universe where static rules do not apply. Go with the flow, get in touch with your inner knowing (as fleur seems to be doing) and follow the inner knowing to your next teacher in whatever form it may appear. Remember, teachers do not know everything... BUT, the teacher you need at any moment will have a piece of the puzzle that you need for your particular stage of growth at this moment. Be careful not to ATTACH yourself to any one master/teacher. This is in fact where a lot of religions begin to develop and lead people astray. Rather than looking inward at their OWN unique path, people begin to allow the Master or Teacher tell them what their path should be. Don't get me wrong. We ALL need to be told where to go sometimes... we all need advice... we all need guidance... but there is a difference between critically listening to advice and guidance, and blindly allowing ourselves to be lead by the same person or group to the exclusion of all other sources of guidance and knowledge.
Also, remember that since we are all connected and really we are all ONE... when you say someone else is helping or guiding you, in reality you are saying you are guiding yourself. Sometimes what is lacking is not the KNOWING of what to do, it is the confidence to trust in one's own knowing. So, we tend to look toward external advice for confirmation of what we may already know inside. Over time hopefully our confidence in and ability to discern that knowledge grows to a point that we no longer NEED external masters/teachers.
However, that being said, some people absolutely need them. It all depends on where you personally are at any given moment in your own growth and awareness. Personally, I believe that religions are necessary "evils" for want of a better word... maybe I could use the word structures or institutions. To illustrate, I read an interview recently with a Buddhist monk in Tibet. The interviewer asked the monk about the various rituals and celebrations the people in Tibet do and perform. They have various rituals and parades and get all dressed up hit gongs and burn incense and have prayer wheels etc. The Buddhist monk responded by saying that most of the people are like children. They need toys to play with. It's like a child in a play pen. The play pen is an environment to grow in. Within the play pen are various toys for them to play with and occupy themselves. These toys do not really represent reality, but they are in fact shadows of the reality or symbolic of reality. As adults we know that the toy bear is not a real bear, but only a symbolic representation of one that the child plays with. This applies to all his toys. However, as the child grows and matures they will realize the emptiness or lack of real value that the toys he is playing with provide. Naturally, the child will then begin to look for that which is MORE real... more substantial... that which has greater true value and is a closer representation of reality. The Buddhist monk went on to state that higher level Buddhist monks care nothing for and do not need the prayer wheels, the incense, the candles, the masks and gold ornamentation, the cloathing. All of that disappears and one is able to exist in a state of contented happiness without such things... and yet, who would take the toys away from a child and try to force them to grow up when they are only 3 years old? A small child NEEDS structure, and toys. So too, I believe many souls in this world still NEED religion. Just as every parent is not perfect, not every religion is perfect... and some are worse than others. However, just like with any child who has any parent, every child must grow up and at some point decide to leave the nest and grow beyond the boundries established by their parents.
I am reading right now and concentrating on being still
Fleur, this is excellent. Stillness is one of the most important aspects or skills to learn. It is very closely tied to both focus and awareness and your concentrating on stillness will improve both of these. Please feel free to share any of your experiences in stillness as you progress.
In regard to Taosim and Buddhism, well, I am neither Taoist nor Buddhist, but the foundations of both of these agree with who I am and my own philosophy. I did not evolve my own philosophy by reading about these "ways" or systems. My own inner philosophy or outlook evolved through prayer, meditation, and personal experience. However, what's so fascinating to me is that these practitioners of Buddhism and Taoism developed their philosophies in a similar manner... prayer, meditation, and personal experience... and the founding principles all seem to be the same. The differences in them all seem to arise over time as technical details and/or the tainting of a "way" by persons less aware and less experienced interpreting the sayings of these individuals and forming their own egocentric systems. I have been flaberghasted to read in both ancient Taoist and Buddhist texts passages that seem like direct quotes of Jesus and yet these were written before Jesus, so was he quoting from them... or is it possible Jesus was just a "Buddha" or enlightened being/soul who has been misrepresented over time by those less aware and experienced? I tend to believe that is the case. In any event I feel there is great merit in studying and reading about both of these philosophies as well as Zen. Look for the similarities, because I believe that in the similarities is where you will find the most "truth". Also, when someone simply says or writes something I personally give more weight to it if the person says, "I had this experience", rather than the person just giving their opinion based on their "logic". In my experience Truth is far from "logical". Logic is flawed because logic is only based upon what one knows or can see at any given moment. Pure experience is closer to truth although not always necessarily absolute truth. Experience can also be deceiving at times. However, going back to why logic doesn't usually lead to the truth behind complex things such as this reality we live in...
Imagine you and some friends are working together to put together a jig saw puzzle on the ground. The jig saw puzzle is a picture of something, but you don't know what it is. So, you start putting the pieces together but you cannot see the whole picture yet. As you put it together you see a leaf form... ah... then you see a flower form... ah... then you see some grass form... ah... then you see some tree bark form... ah ha! you say! I know what the picture is! This is a picture of a forest with trees and flowers! So logical... of course because it is based on evidence right? So, you tell everyone in the room with you, "don't worry... there is no need for you to continue working on the jigsaw puzzle... I've already figured it out... I have the truth. You don't need to think for yourselves anymore or put any more pieces together... just listen to me... I know the answer.".
Well fortunately, a couple of your friends do not decide to follow your advice and conclusions based on "logic" or the evidence at hand. So, they continue putting the jigsaw puzzle together and finish it. Low and behold the picture turns out not to be a forest of trees and plants, but rather a picture of only one tree sitting in a patch of dirt and grass in the middle of an urban city with buildings around it. Thus, logic generally is limited and will not generally lead to the truest picture. It is my belief however that during episodes of personal experience during meditation (and even in other things) that one is able to get larger chunks or pieces of the entire picture. So, that is why I tend to give more weight to a persons words when they say, I had this particular experience. Because the experience they had is more likely to be one of the missing puzzle pieces than when they just come up with some concocted theory based on their limited evidence and viewpoint. When someone tells me they had a particular experience I listen with rapt attention and try to see how that experience fits into the framework of my own experience to see if it might illuminate my own experiences further.
As you read you will notice many of the fundamental Buddhist, Zen, and Taoist philosophies come from direct experiences. How those experiences are interpreted may not always be THE TRUTH, but the experiences themselves are extremely valuable. You might find it interesting to read the experiences of Robert Monroe in his books as well.
