The Self is free of intensities, colors, shades, nuances, etc. Non-dual is the word. But when it appears as beauty in the intellect, which is in Maya i.e. ignorant of the non-dual nature of reality, it unwittingly assumes a dualistic orientation. It takes opposites seriously. In other words, beauty and ugliness appear, each defining the other. In this context, ugliness is just the mind generating aversion, repulsion, dislike, fear, outrage, distaste, etc with reference to a particular object And beauty or love is the mind generating amusement, pleasure, humour, joy, love and laughter with reference to a particular object. The Self is unaffected by beauty or ugliness or the emotion of love. It is an independent objective factor. So, when a particular side of the coin of duality is present, the opposite side is immediately apparent to it. This is why we say that life is entertainment for people who know they are the Self. They don’t take their’s or other’s apparent selves seriously.
The juxtaposition of two opposites is variously silly, stupid, contradictory, amusing, foolish, ironic, humourous, absurd, unreasonable, and ludicrous. The more you want something the more you are afraid of losing it. If that isn’t funny, I don’t know what is. A person loves another person for years and then inexplicably hates him or her. If that isn’t funny, I don’t know what is.
I received a “serious” email full of censorious outrage from an old “spiritual” friend who took umbrage at a recent satsang entitled “The Glitter of an Exotic Tradition” without actually thinking about it clearly because of a disagreement we had a few years ago. The article cautioned people to maintain their dispassion because appearances can be deceiving. It was occasioned by a person displaying a picture of himself prostrate on the floor in front of an Indian sanyassi juxtaposed with a request for money for a proposed ashram in a European country.
Most of the people who read my blog are unfamiliar with the history of the Western world’s interaction with the spiritual traditions of the Orient. On the other hand I am well-informed, in this case about the dismal track record of “export” swamis who are self-tasked with the mission of enlightening the Western mind in the last 50 years. Keeping in mind the childlike gullibility of Western spiritual seekers in general, I feel this warning is a thoughtful heads up. One wishes the young man well. Whether his project succeeds or fails is obviously in God’s capable hands.
My policy with reference to good intentions is always to trust and wait for verification. What occasioned the satsang was the absurd juxtaposition of a Western person lying face-down in front of an Indian swami clad in orange robes and an appeal for money for said person to start an ashram.
How should an eager Western spiritual seeker view it? Of course, we are all eager to save the world, but the fact that the world always needs saving despite the best intentions of thousands of saviors known and unknown, should make any curious person, not to mention prospective donors, long for more details. One wishes the devotee the best but isn’t it wise to wait and see how his experiment works out? The length of the list of fallen yogis exported from India and their exploited, disappointed followers, suggests that discretion is the better part of blind faith.
My friend is a case in point. For a long time—perhaps 8 years— he had nothing but praise for me, now he is a contemptuous angry troll. Now that’s funny.
James