The Student Becomes the Master By Scott Shaw

 By Scott Shaw, Ph.D.

 

There is the tradition on the Buddhist path that one is a direct reflection of their teacher—that one possesses no authenticity unless they can document the transmission of enlightenment from their teacher to themselves and from their teacher to their teacher's teacher, back to the Buddha. Though this method of transmission is commonly accepted, there is many flaws in this path to enlightenment.

 

First, and perhaps most important, is the fact that enlightenment is not something which can be given. Enlightenment is not a rank which can be earned. Enlightenment is a personal process of progressing towards the ultimate understanding of human consciousness. Though a teacher is commonly used as a tool to lay the foundations which ultimately achieve this end, a teacher cannot give you Nirvana as if it were some sort of gift or an earned distinction.

 

Student consciousness is obvious throughout the Spiritual Path. When one is initially drawn to the path, the first step is oftentimes the seeking of a Guru. Once one becomes a disciple, they often times idolize this individual to the degree that they believe them to be so all encompassingly holy that obtaining their level of consciousness is a virtual impossibility. Due to this fact, students become locked into, “Disciple Consciousness.” Though they become great at performing the techniques of worship, they do not develop the necessary mental elements to let go of this limited understanding and move onto the realm where Nirvana may actually be embraced.

 

Christians are the ideal example of, “Disciple Consciousness.” They have attached such a great singular obtainment to one figure, Jesus Christ, that how could anyone ever hope to become, “The Son of God?” What is misunderstood by many modern Christians and is revealed by Middle East, Judaic, and Biblical scholars is that the term, “Son of God,” or more precisely translated, “Child of God,” was a term which was assigned to everyone from the Jewish faith of that era who were persecuted by the Romans. As time evolved and translations of the writing of the disciples of Jesus took place, the term “Son of God” took on the singular connation of being assigned solely to Jesus Christ.

 

When an ideology becomes singularly obtained by one individual, it obviously cannot be experienced by any other person. Buddhism is no different.

 

Siddhartha Guatama, The Sakyamuni Buddha lived over two thousand years ago. Numerous legends have come to be attributed to his life and his enlightenment. With a being so distant and so immaculate, how can anyone hope to achieve the same level of consciousness?

 

Whereas Christianity has evolved to the level where it is, in fact, blasphemy to contradict the totality of holiness, which is solely held by Jesus Christ, the Buddhist should not be bound by this mentality. Yet, in many cases, they are.

 

Certainly, from a Christian perspective, it may be argued that, “Enlightenment is not God-hood.” But, it must be kept in mind that the Buddhist does not want to become the, “Son of God.” The Buddhist seeks enlightenment: oneness between the individual self, the universal self, and the cosmic whole.

 

In India, where Buddha found his enlightenment, there are an untold number of Sadhus, Yogis, and renunciates everywhere. They do the most abstract things to their body and mind in order to alter their consciousness so that enlightenment may enter. They vow to stand only on one leg for a lifetime. They walk naked through the streets, never wearing any clothing, even in the cold of the Himalayan winter. They lock themselves away in caves, refusing to interact with any other human being. This is all done as a pathway to enlightenment. Though these beings may have been initially initiated by a Guru, who gave them a mantra or a specific spiritual practice, they have let go of “Disciple Consciousness,” and have forged their won pathway to Nirvana.

 

Legend states that Buddha himself had two primary teachers. But, he found no enlightenment from them. So, he moved forward and achieved Nirvana by his own method.

 

Immaculate Connotations

Whatever immaculate connotation you assign to your teacher, it is must be understood that as long as you unduly idolize them, you will never reach Nirvana. Nirvana can only be experienced by the individual who lets go of the definitions of Better and Worse, Higher and Lower, Less and More, and relinquishes themselves to the fact by letting go you can become one with all that is: nature, the teacher, and the universe. This is Nirvana.

 

The Pali Canon of Buddhism describes twenty-eight Buddha which lived before Siddhartha Gautama. Throughout the centuries in in India, Nepal, Tibet, Thailand, Japan, and now the Western World, there have been cases of others who have also achieved the highest level of consciousness. So, it is doable! But, it is ultimately only doable by you.

 

Do you wish to be a student or do you wish to be enlightened? If you say you are not good enough, knowledgeable enough, pure enough, or holy enough—you never will be. Your teacher may know more than you, but that is information and knowledge. Information and knowledge are nice, they are even useful to present a point of view, but they are not enlightenment. Enlightenment is steeping beyond all that is believed and that is known.

 

Let go of your teacher and become enlightenment.

 

Copyright 2000—All Rights Reserved

Scott Shaw Writings on Zen, Yoga, and Human Consciousness

Buying Into Their Own B.S. By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

 

            As I have often stated, for whatever karmic reason, I have walked the spiritual path for most of my life. And, I use the term, “Spiritual Path,” for lack of a better term. But, I am referring to those of us who have decided to make the evolution of human consciousness and tuning into and understanding of the great-beyond their primary focus.

            As someone who has been on this road for a lot of years I have witnessed many things about people on the path. Perhaps most disconcerting is those who buy into their own bullshit. But, I’ll get into that in a moment.

            People are drawn to spirituality for an untold number of reasons. Some enter the path at a young age and some much later. Most, when they decided to, “Get Spiritual,” find their pathway in organized religion—which is very pervasive and universally accepted in all cultures. So, it is easily at hand. Then, there are the more abstract realms of spiritually which call out to people like me. In either case, the person who has newly found the path is generally the most fervent about it.

            I remember when I was a young boy of about eleven or twelve and I was sent to summer camp. One of my campmates was a young boy who used to love to make flavored toothpicks and chew on them. He brought his little bottle of liquid cinnamon spice and he would daily dip a few toothpicks into it to keep in his mouth throughout the day. Though this seemed a bit strange and bizarre to me, what was more curious about the boy was that he had already decided what he wanted to do with his life. He was going to be a minister. While most children of this age group have little idea of what they want to become, he had decided. Me, I wanted to grow up and be like Neil Young or Jimi Hendrix. In any case, he had set upon his path very early in life. Whether or not he ever became a minster, I don’t know. But, what I do know is that youth who enter the spiritual path possess a deep belief in the possibilities of what it has to offer.

            In fact, this is not only true for youth but for others who enter the path at whatever stage of their life. Once upon the path, the first step is generally to seek out a teacher to guide you down the road to your ultimate end-goal. This is where the problems begin.  I have seen it so many times. A person new to the path is full of anticipation, promises, and belief. Thus, they are quick to believe whatever they hear and are easily taken advantage of.

            The reality is, when a person is new to the path they are full of exuberance. Belief equals exuberance. But, what comes next?

            In this state of exuberance many desire to go out and spread this emotion to the world. They want others to be as full of joy as they are. Me too… When I was young I wanted to tell all my friends and family about what I was experiences and guide them to experience the same. This, even though most people do not desire to walk down this road.

            As time progress, however, and a person’s knowledge becomes deeper, they generally no longer need to go out and spill it onto people who are not of the same mindset and do not desire to walk down the path.  They simply become who they are and embrace their cosmic understandings in a more pure and personal space. But then, there are the others. Those, who as they get older decided that they have something unique to give. They have found their calling. They possess something; a deeper knowledge that others do not hold. Thus, they decide to become teachers. And, oh yeah, that usually equals them getting paid for what they teach or, at least, being provided with other various favors.

            In formalized religious, there are generally schools that a person must attend to rise to the level of a teacher. On the spiritual path, this is generally not the case. So, anybody can go out there and claim that they have had a particular revelatory experienced and that experience is what makes them so all knowing and the one that other people should follow.  But, their experience is generally not real. It is simply something that they have read about; something that they have projected as something deep and meaningful, or simply they have realized this is a good way to attract people to follow them to feed their pocketbooks and their ego.

            Mostly, what I have seen is that the people who do this spout knowledge that they have read from books written by other people or have heard at lectures. But, whatever it is, their knowledge is based upon, “Borrowed knowledge.” It does not rise from a pure, personal source—though they will, of course, argue that this is not the case till the end of their days. These are the people who buy into their own bullshit.

            Spirituality is an organic, uniquely individual space of consciousness. Even though two people may be following the same teachings, their interpretation and internal understandings are uniquely their own. People believe they need a teacher because people seek interaction and they seek affirmation that what they are thinking is okay.  But, is what you are thinking, what you are thinking, or have you been guided to think that way? This is the ultimate understanding of consciousness. Are you, you? Or, are you the creation of someone else’s belief system?

            Being you, you are free. That is nirvana. Being what someone else tells you to be is maya. That is illusion.

            Here are a couple of simply rules so you don’t step into someone else’s bullshit.

            Have you heard what they are saying before; from another source, perhaps said in a slightly different way?

            Are they charging you for their knowledge?  Knowledge is free. It doesn’t cost a dime.

            Are they calling you, “My child, my loved-one, my dead-one?” If they are, they are projecting that they are more than you. No one is more than you. You are the source of your own spirituality and enlightenment. Be you. Not a student of someone who buys into their own bullshit.

 

Copyright © 2012—All Rights Reserved

Scott Shaw Writings on Zen, Yoga, and Human Consciousness

Possessing Some Hidden Knowledge By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

 

            I always find it interesting when there is a new figure that takes center stage in the mind’s of the searching masses and offers some new take on reality and how to live life. Many of these people offer the same knowledge that is written and spoken of all over the place, yet they somehow have moved up to the front of the class and begin spouting their truth as if it is something unique.

            The fact of the matter is, the majority of humanity is so locked into their own momentary reality (be it good or bad) that they could care less about someone who says anything. They immediately dismiss this realm of humanity as nonsense. Though the seekers of this life-place look down on that type of person—feeling superior due to the fact that they feel that they are the ONES, the True Believers, on the path of rising consciousness, the reality is, it is a much purer source of mental consciousness to disregard teachers and teaching than to seek them out. Why? Because then you are free. You are not lead down a pathway that can lead to financial or psychological disaster and/or a disillusioned mindset due to the fact that you will eventually seen through the guise of the person you were following; witnessing their flaws, understanding their lack of true knowledge, and encountering their egotism.

            The sourcepoint for anyone who steps to the pulpit is egotism. Whether they call themselves a priest, a reverend, a monk, a swami, a guru, a nun, a mystic, a psychic, a medium, a whatever… At the root of their attempting to teach is an egocentric ideology that, “I know something, I possess something that you do not and I feel I have been chose to impart that knowledge to you.” Bullshit…

… All of these people claim that they possess some hidden knowledge that you do not and step to pulpit base their reality upon what? I know but you do not. I am a teacher and you are a student. And, throughout history, there have been those who flock to these claimers of knowledge. Why is this?

            This is because of the fact that throughout society young people are trained to believe that they are lacking—that they do not hold the answers. And, if they want to find the answers they must turn to someone else who HAS them. This, in itself, is the sourcepoint for all of those people who have and come and gone, claiming to possess some hidden knowledge.

            The good news is, most of the people are a flash in the pan—most come and go with little applause, while others rise to the top of the game and then are allowed to make their living off of the money of others—charging for their supposed knowledge.

            At the end of the day, however, what is left. There are still the people who claim to be teachers. Apparently these types will always exist. And, there are still the people seeking. These too will apparently always exist.

            Here is the fact, if any of these people who claimed to hold knowledge were valid, their truth would spread to everyone. All would know. All would understand. All would no longer be seeking. But, people are still seeking. They are unfulfilled. The teachers who have claimed to be teachers are still out there trying to gather a flock, capture the money and the minds of others and, thus, feeling personally fulfilled by the fact that they have a new student believing in their particular brand of bullshit.

            But, there is one reality, the world ticks on and on. Each of our lives eventually ends. And, that is the end of that… It is all very simple.

            You can spend your time seeking. You can spend your time knowing. Or, you can spend your time embracing the perfection and seeing each life event for what it is—a transient life event. As in always the case, your life is your choice. Do you want to be free? Or, do you want to be under the spell of another?

 

Copyright © 2014 — All Rights Reserved

Scott Shaw Writings on Zen, Yoga, and Human Consciousness

I Believe: Compounding Factual Inaccuracies By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

Life is based upon a set of beliefs. These beliefs come to us from many sources. We gain them from what we are taught, what we hear and read, what we witness, and then; once we have been provided with a certain set of parameters given to us by our culture, our desires, and our placement in life and time, we decide what we believe.

Some people decide what they believe and then simply do the conscious thing; believe it. Others decide it is they who have the calling, the desire, the ability, the power, the gift, and/or the need to broadcast their beliefs to the world. From this, they spread their ideologies out, from within in their own mind, to others. Why do they do this? The simple answer is ego. They want to be seen as a knower. If they are not seen as a knower then, at least, they believe they will be understood to be a discontent, sewing the seeds of controversy and anarchy.

There is one essential problem is the conception of, “I believe,” however. Belief is opinion, it is not fact.

In a free society every one has the right to have their opinion. But, if a person lives a life of consciousness they understand that their, “Opinion,” is just that—it is not a fact. It is simply what they believe and belief is an interpersonal process, it is not a factual accounting of reality and something that someone should expound outwards to the world for then only one thing occurs; the compounding of factual inaccuracies which have the potential to negatively affect the life of others.

It is like the conspiracy theorists, they look for and try to find logical reasoning for what they believe to be an anomaly of life, time, space, and/or occurrences. But, there is fact and then there is theory. Some people attempt to broadcast their theories to the minds of other people. This does not make their ideologies fact; it simply makes them broadcasted theories. And, each theory is simply some-thing that a particular some-one hopes to make fact based upon what they, personally, believe. It is not fact, however, it is simply belief. Yet, they hope to pull others into the web of what they believe. This is how many of the falsehood that have been disseminated through societies, throughout time, have come to take hold. Not fact, simply belief that a large number of people have come to believe.

The fact is, some people are so locked into their beliefs that even if you present them with factual evidence that what they believe is wrong they will argue with you about the validity of your presentation and will not concede that their belief about a practical subject and/or their belief system in general may be wrong.

Some people become very lost between the concept of opinion and fact. If they do not possess an analytical mind they simply assume that there is no difference. People driven by ego, desire, jealousy, or anger often fall prey to their own undefined differences between these two mental concepts. They believe, so what they believe IS.  But, is it? Is your belief ever the defining truth for the entire world? Yes, it may be the defining truth for your world but should your belief be expounded to others? Do you ever ponder this fact before you spread your belief(s) outwards?

How much of your life mind-time do you spend pondering the fact of understanding where your belief system arose?  How much of your life mind-time do you spend actually contemplating why you are saying, what you are saying, when you are disseminating your beliefs outwards, beyond yourself? When you do speak of your beliefs do you only care about the fact that you desire your beliefs to be witnessed as the truth? In fact, do you ever think at all before you speak of your belief? Finally, what is your desired end result when you propagate your belief? Why do you discuss your belief(s) at all? These are all important concepts to think about as you pass through life.

It is essential to contemplate why you believe what you believe. Think about this, have you ever believed one thing and now you believe it no more? This is the simple formula to help you define for yourself the difference between belief or fact. And, it is also essential to keep in mind, just because other people believe something (even large groups of people like a religion) this does that mean that you are forced to believe it?

Belief is only what it is; an ideology formed in your own mind. As long as it is kept in your own mind, it can hurt no one. As soon as it is released chaos is given birth to.

Belief is never fact.

Copyright 2016—All Rights Reserved

I Believe: Compounding Factual Inaccuracies @ Scott Shaw.com

Scott Shaw Writings on Zen, Yoga, and Human Consciousness

Character Study By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

I, of course, am a practitioner of Zen Filmmaking. Zen Filmmaking is all about embracing the naturalness of the moment—allowing your portrayed character to exist in the spontaneity and genuineness of the moment. Thus, the words you speak, while in character, and the actions your take are all guided by the response to what the other actor is saying and where you find the life understanding of your character naturally flowing towards.

Traditional acting is much different from that. A person is told what their character is to be—how they should look, act, feel, and behave. They are then provided with the words their character should say and the way their character should speak those words; all defined by the script.

In many ways, this is a much harder process. In many ways, it is much more unnatural. That is why I devised Zen Filmmaking—to embrace the true essence of the individual to let them be who they truly are while portraying the someone else.

But, there is a great art to actually becoming the someone else. It takes time. It takes practice.

I think we have all seen actors on the screen doing a very bad job in their portrayal. Sure, they are dressed appropriately. Sure, they have memorized their lines. But, they have not become the character they are playing. And, from this, there is something lost in the believability of the character and, thus, with the entire production.

As an actor, every now and then, I am asked to act in a traditional production. I am given my script and I must learn my lines. For me, it is a fun, enlightening experience because I must become that someone else. As I am running my lines I try to emerge myself into the mindset of that character. I try to understand who that person truly is. I try to become that person.

More than simply a process used in acting, I believe this is a technique that people should bring into their life. Ask yourself, how often do you truly try to understand life from the perspective of the other person? How often do you put yourself in their shoes and take the time to try to understand life from the perspective that they are living it? Most people just judge. They just see others from their own perspective, never trying to see the life melodrama that the other person is living.

So, next time you are passing judgment on a person… Next time you think that you know what someone is feeling and why they are feeling it… Next time you believe that you know why a person is doing what they are doing, become that other person. Put yourself into their mind. Become them as a character you are playing on the silver screen. Put yourself into their shoes. If you do, I am sure that you will come away with a completely different perspective about who they truly are and why they are doing what they are doing. In fact, by mentally becoming them as a character you are portraying, you might even emerge with a better perspective about who you truly are.

Copyright © 2019—All Rights Reserved

 Scott Shaw Zen Filmmaking

Scott Shaw Writings on Zen, Yoga, and Human Consciousness

What the Buddha Said By Scott Shaw

By Scott Shaw

Historically, little is of absolute certainty regarding the life of the being who has become commonly referred to as, The Buddha. Throughout history, however, his life has been chronicled in legend.

Siddharta Guatama

Siddhartha Guatama, the Sakyamuni Buddha, “Buddha from the Kingdom of Sakya,” is generally agreed to have lived from 563 to 483 B.C.E. Legend states that he was a Prince who lived a very sheltered life. Upon witnessing poverty, illness, and death for the first time, he lost faith in all that was material and left behind his Royal Lifestyle, his wife, and his newborn child in pursuit of the ultimate truth of human existence.

What is historically established is that during the lifetime of The Buddha a revolution was taking place in South Asia. Iron had recently been introduced to the Indian Subcontinent from China. This led to many rapid advancements in society—agriculture was vastly improved and landscapes could be readily cultivated. No longer were the forests the daunting obstacles they had once been. Now, they could be cleared so crops could be harvested within their once impenetrable boundaries. New structures, particularly palaces, were constructed in a much more substantial fashion. And perhaps most definitive of the era, the tool of warfare were vastly improved. So much so that near the end of his life The Buddha’s own kingdom of Sakya fell to the neighboring Kingdom of Kosala. Within a century of his lifetime, the entire region of what is now Northern India and Nepal would be united as the Magadha Empire.

The prominent religion of this historic era was Vedic Brahanism. This religion can trace its roots back a thousand years prior to the life of The Buddha. Its scriptures, known as The Vedas, began to be composed in 1500 B.C.E. This religion is the basis for modern Hinduism.

The highest practitioners of this religion were the Brahmans. They were identified as the highest cast and obviously the wealthiest of this ancient society. From this, they claimed privileges not afforded to the average individual.

As formalized power, secular wealth, and religious privilege rose in this region, dissatisfaction among the populous also escalated. This gave birth to a group of ascetics who were known as Sramana. The Sramana shunned society, renounced material possessions, and became wandering holy men following an undefined path to enlightenment. This group laid the foundation for what has become more commonly known as the Sadhu. The mindset of this group, undoubtedly, influenced the path the young Siddhartha Guatama as he would ultimately follow.

The Buddha’s path to enlightenment is historically unclear. It is believed that he studied with two primary teachers, Arada Kalama, who taught Akimcanya Ayatana, “The experience of nothingness” and, Udraka Ramaputra, who taught Naiva Samjna Asamjna Ayatana, “The experience of conscious unconsciousness.”

The legend persists in China that Lao Tzu, the Great Sage who is credited as the author of The Tao Te Ching, upon becoming disheartened with Chinese society and leaving his royal post, actually entered what is modern day Nepal and also became one of The Buddha’s teachers. As romantic as the pairing of these great souls appears, there is no historic evidence to provide factual substantiation to this claim.

The Enlightenment of the Buddha

Legend states that The Buddha dissatisfied with not obtaining the ultimate understanding of life from his two teachers or following the path of a wandering holy man, sat down under a Bodhi Tree and swore he would not rise until he became enlightened. Though many legends have been written about what The Buddha experienced during this period of intensive meditation, it is known that he did, in fact, emerge an enlightened being.

The Buddha, upon his realization, gave his first enlightened discourse at what is now Bodh Gaya, near Varanasi, India. This talk is known as, “The First Turning of the Wheel of Dharma.”

It cannot be established, with absolute certainly, what The Buddha actually said during this discourse, however. All that is written, claiming him as the source, was done so years, and in some cases centuries, after his physical death.

The Pali Canon

The Theravada tradition of Buddhism claims that the language of the Buddha was Pali, and thus, their collections of scriptures, known as, The Pali Canon, is the most accurate. This, however, has proven to be linguistically incorrect, as Pali came into existence after the time of The Buddha—who left his body near the city of Kusinagra, when he was eighty years old.

Thus, his spoken words, though possibly initially recorded in his native dialect, most probably, Magadhi, were handed down from disciple to disciple for an undefined period before they finally found their way into scriptural form.

The Buddhist Religion

With the end of Buddha’s life came the Buddhist religion. But, The Buddha did not invent the concept of enlightenment, nor was he the first or the last, being to reach this highest level of conscious evolution. Throughout the centuries, the followers of Buddhism have come to idealize his life and his teachings to the degree that it was impossible for them to reach their own Buddhahood, due to the extensive set of parameters they have assigned to the advancement of human consciousness.

There is an elemental problem with this mindset, however. Was the Buddha a Buddhist? No, he was not. He was a Hindu. Did the Buddha ask for worship? No, he did not. In fact, legend states that when he was asked, “Are you an Avatar,” he answered, “No, just a man.” When asked, “Then, are you a Guru?” He answered, “No, just a man.”

This is the portrait of the true, perfectly enlightened teacher, who achieved the highest level of human consciousness. Yet, he did not seek admiration due to his realization.

It is the unenlightened mind of humanity that has forgotten this simple truth and chosen to make him a deity of worship and his teachings the basis for a religion. From this mindset has come centuries of Buddhist that have been unable to encounter the realms of Nirvana—solely due to the fact that they project such an orchestrated, idealized image of what enlightenment is supposed to be. This problem is amplified by the fact that many Buddhists hold fast to the belief that the teachings of their sect of Buddhism or their individual teachers hold the only great truth and the purest pathway to higher consciousness. They miss the point...

The teaching laid down by The Buddha are absent from formalized religion. Formalized religion employs ritual. Ritual, though beautiful to watch, is based in physical actions. Physical actions only leads to physical reactions. Thus, Karma is set in motion—not enlightenment.

If enlightenment is the core teaching of The Buddha and it is understood that it is possible for each individual to achieve this level of consciousness, then why do anything other than become enlightened? Arguing that my school or my teacher is the best and yours is wrong does not produce enlightenment. Only enlightenment produces enlightenment.

Be enlightened.

Copyright 2006—All Rights Reserved

 

What the Buddha Said on Scott Shaw.com

Scott Shaw Writings on Zen, Yoga, and Human Consciousness