the pupil...

... a friend relayed the news the other day that a mutual friend of ours' was in the market for a Spiritual Teacher. ... ... now... i find this to be an honorable impulse... noble even.. in this day and age where there are so many directions to turn, many roads to plumb, so many things to buy..... well... it's nice to know that there are those who are striving towards the higher realms.. but it got me to thinking. in the yogic tradition there are thousands of things to contemplate, to initiate, to master... there is asana, the daily hour(s) spent upon the mat, fine-tuning the vehicle of the body, pranayama - refinement of the breath intended to still the processes of the mind, that roguish monkey-chatter... the bhandas, the vrittis, the koshas, the chakras, the yamas.... the layman's acquisition of sanskrit, the alignment with the guru. and lalalalalalala.... and at the bottom of the page, the end of the chapter, that last section of the book you thought contained only notes and literary references, a note: from the teacher that says, in effect: All these things are unnecessary for he who has already attained enlightenment.. these regimes, practices, dictates, & disciplines.. well, hey, if you've already reached the mountaintop, saith the buddha, shit-can 'em. sit back and enjoy the view... and i wonder... in this small, quiet effort to democratize my own life.. to quietly wrest power away from the hospices of madison avenue and any brilliant ad campaign that seeks to take the contents of my wallet by selling me on the notion that true beauty is only attainable in the form of a cream or rosy blush. ... in the effort to re-direct my food supply away from the powers-that-be that care nothing for my health and even less for the planet and back to the work of my own two hands, the soil in my own backyard, the leaves on my own damn tree... in a search to cultivate wisdom, beauty & truth.. to acquire learning, to make the small patch of ground on which i stand a bit more blessed, richer, deep, & MINE.... i have to wonder... another friend reminded me recently of a fabulous title of a book i have yet to read " If you Meet The Buddha, Kill Him" ... Yeah. cuz really.. is not Your Life.... the unsexy details of it all... the Teacher Itself? The beautiful infant child who exists to remind you that Love is a form of Sustenance and that Beauty happens in the still, quiet moments... the gorgeous sunset that stills your mind and Alters your Breath.. the poignant piece of music you play again and again, in the sanctuary of your bedroom, Again & Again, because it fills your being with unspeakable Joy. .. and more even.. is not the teacher nestled in the partner/lover/boyfriend/girlfriend/neighbor/parent with whom you constantly squabble, reminding you that you have a tendency to prize your own stupid opinions over those of others??? the empty bank balance at the end of each month, stating plainly, painfully, that you spend your time & energies on worthless shit.. too much of it.. when what you need to do is fill your life with what is real & true & nourishing - & this shit comes for FREE. perhaps i oversimplify dear reader, but i have to wonder, in an age where we have given so much of our power away... civil rights handed away nilly-willy to keep some unnamed terrorists at bay... profound thought & creativity shuffled aside in favor of near-constant handheld entertainment... real food in exchange for its' chemically-altered, genetically-modified mutant cousin... real life for...... what??? the list, i am sure, continues... but i am willing to bet, and to begin to believe that , we have all already been granted great spiritual teachers... "When the student is willing, the Teacher will appear." but as the words of a modern-day Icelandic poet bespeak (Bjork = ) .... "All is Full of Love... you just Ain't Receiving." so i would like to go on record as saying that I am not seeking. Rather I am finding... the teacher, the lesson, the gorgeous hallowed beauty they told me I would find... if I could just show up, wait & listen.. to this, my oh-so-ordinary life.. and every Gorgeous Speck of Wisdom it is just waiting to Impart . ....