Theos-Talk Archives (January 1997 Message tl00901)

M K Ramadoss <ramadoss@eden.com> quoted Krishnamurti:

> The guru who teaches you the method of independent thinking does not
> exist. Do not say, "My particular guru teaches me that." That is an absurd
> way of getting out of it. There is no method, no system; there is no guru
> who can liberate you.

I'm glad you have found Krishnamurti's words to be helpful, Doss. I don't
criticize that, but I have to say that the above is misleading.

There are many examples of ethical gurus who do teach their chelas independent
thinking. They were strict in some of their chelas formative years, but
respected their volition and trained them to be independent. To list a few,
contemporary and historical: Sai Baba, Paramahansa Yogananda,
Ramakrishna. Compared to the "fat gurus" who exploit people, they are vastly
fewer in number. Today, I would say that one's chances of meeting an ethical
guru are not far from zero. But that doesn't mean that one can't learn from
from the ethical few. I find tremendous value in reading Yogananda, who
certainly developed admirably under his guru, Yukteswar.

No method or no system? One has to start somewhere. A method or system is not
the end in itself, true. Yogic exercises have for thousands of years been the
means to an end.  They can become "non-living", empty procedures if one does
not unite with the "spirit" in them. But if one correctly follows a guru's
teachings, he is not merely mechanically going through the motions. He is
becoming aware of where they lead to, namely, one's own realization.

My previously posted example of teaching someone tennis by showing him typical
strokes, racket grips, follow through, etc., is a simple illustration. These
steps get the student in touch with his body, with his natural
inclinations. Most of us are not in touch with our "natural" inclinations.
If we were, we wouldn't need instruction.

In the same way that you offer structure to a child initially, you have to
offer it to a person who has not united with his inner structure yet.