I discovered an interesting article wherein Alan Watts talks about how you can become a fake spiritual guru, taken from his work, The Essential Alan Watts, Celestial Arts (1974). I see lots of quotes from Alan Watts shared on Facebook and wonder how many of those people sharing his words are familiar with his above teaching. Yet how many followers did he have, believing he was an altruistic person? More information on the work of Alan Watts can be found at Gnostic Media.
How often have we followed the work of others to the exclusion of our own research? How often have we adopted what we’ve heard or what we’ve been taught as true, even if it somehow didn’t feel right? When I’ve mentioned this in my social circles, I almost always receive the response, “I’m too busy to do any research. I have two jobs and my family to take care of. I don’t have any free time.” Have you ever played a game on an electronic device at work? Have you ever texted a friend or relative on your employer’s time? If so, you made time to do that. Instead of playing a game, what if on one break time you read an article on a topic that engaged your brain and/or intuition?
Go Without and Then Go Within
Perform your own investigation with the outside world. Research topics that pique your interest. Read books and articles. Attend lectures and watch videos. Get as much information as you can. It doesn't take as long as you think when the topic interests you, and all the sporting events, movies, television shows and celebrity gossip will still be there when you get back. Then utilize your inside world and let your intuition tell you what’s true and what isn’t. The more you’re in touch with your intuition, the sooner these two steps become a one-step process.
What? This Can’t Be True Because I Don’t Want It to Be True
As you’re doing your research, however, don’t be surprised if you feel uncomfortable concerning at least some of the results. When we discover information we’ve long-held to be true might in fact be false, we can experience bouts, sometimes extreme bouts, of cognitive dissonance. Wanting something not to be true because it goes against everything we’ve learned before doesn’t make it any less true. What’s going on is going on whether we buy into it or not. When you let your cognitive dissonance serve you and you begin to examine things you never before thought you would because you want to prove your belief in something is true, you’ll find some amazing information. Keep an open mind and follow where the information leads you.
When I first discovered information indicating that the Hippie movement and corresponding music of the 1960s and 1970s were not organic but rather part of a government plan to change behavior resulting in destruction of the family, I became vigilant at digging for information that proved this claim was false. I wanted to believe a bunch of creative people had come together on their own, utilized their talents and shared their ideas, in the form of books, lectures and music, with the world. Instead, I kept finding information that supported the claim of government feeding us the psychedelic phase of history, even creating the word, “psychedelic” for us. Seeing a photo of Jim Morrison in his youth next to his father, Rear Adm. George S. Morrison, who orchestrated the Gulf of Tonkin Incident which fed United States involvement in the Vietnam War, shined a light for me. A bright one. I still like a lot of the music from that era. I just hear it differently now.
If you experience frustration about being duped concerning information that seems obvious once you discover it, when your entire life you’ve believed the opposite of the information you’ve just discovered, be kind to yourself. You can be intelligent. You can be resourceful. You can be psychic. However, you can’t find the answer before you ask the question.
But How Do We Find the Answers?
You don’t have to sit lotus style on a pillow for an hour to discern what’s real and what isn’t. You can do that if you want, but it’s not necessary. If your intention is to sift through the barrage of information constantly hurled at us and find what’s true and what’s not and you’re tuned into your own inner guidance system, you’ll find your answers. Everything we could ever need to know is already inside us.
This can be a disconcerting process at first but once you work through the uncomfortable mental reaction of, “Oh, that can’t be right. I learned this other thing to be right. Everyone knows that” and step into the open expanse of questioning anything and everything in life that interests you and utilize your intuition, you truly begin your education and it can quickly become a fantastic adventure. You may become so exhilarated with this process that you want to share specific accounts with friends and family and anyone who will listen. When this occurs, put the brakes on it for a while. Think before you speak. You can startle people with the answers you’ve found that now seem obvious to you, but not in the collective mind of the public, and alienate them. Maintain balance and enjoy the ride.
I don’t want readers to confuse Alan Watts with researcher, writer and lecturer Alan Watt. You can find his frequent discussions on Youtube. Here’s a recent one.
Do your own research. Educate yourself. Get in touch with your intuition. Become your own guru.
How often have we followed the work of others to the exclusion of our own research? How often have we adopted what we’ve heard or what we’ve been taught as true, even if it somehow didn’t feel right? When I’ve mentioned this in my social circles, I almost always receive the response, “I’m too busy to do any research. I have two jobs and my family to take care of. I don’t have any free time.” Have you ever played a game on an electronic device at work? Have you ever texted a friend or relative on your employer’s time? If so, you made time to do that. Instead of playing a game, what if on one break time you read an article on a topic that engaged your brain and/or intuition?
Go Without and Then Go Within
Perform your own investigation with the outside world. Research topics that pique your interest. Read books and articles. Attend lectures and watch videos. Get as much information as you can. It doesn't take as long as you think when the topic interests you, and all the sporting events, movies, television shows and celebrity gossip will still be there when you get back. Then utilize your inside world and let your intuition tell you what’s true and what isn’t. The more you’re in touch with your intuition, the sooner these two steps become a one-step process.
What? This Can’t Be True Because I Don’t Want It to Be True
As you’re doing your research, however, don’t be surprised if you feel uncomfortable concerning at least some of the results. When we discover information we’ve long-held to be true might in fact be false, we can experience bouts, sometimes extreme bouts, of cognitive dissonance. Wanting something not to be true because it goes against everything we’ve learned before doesn’t make it any less true. What’s going on is going on whether we buy into it or not. When you let your cognitive dissonance serve you and you begin to examine things you never before thought you would because you want to prove your belief in something is true, you’ll find some amazing information. Keep an open mind and follow where the information leads you.
When I first discovered information indicating that the Hippie movement and corresponding music of the 1960s and 1970s were not organic but rather part of a government plan to change behavior resulting in destruction of the family, I became vigilant at digging for information that proved this claim was false. I wanted to believe a bunch of creative people had come together on their own, utilized their talents and shared their ideas, in the form of books, lectures and music, with the world. Instead, I kept finding information that supported the claim of government feeding us the psychedelic phase of history, even creating the word, “psychedelic” for us. Seeing a photo of Jim Morrison in his youth next to his father, Rear Adm. George S. Morrison, who orchestrated the Gulf of Tonkin Incident which fed United States involvement in the Vietnam War, shined a light for me. A bright one. I still like a lot of the music from that era. I just hear it differently now.
If you experience frustration about being duped concerning information that seems obvious once you discover it, when your entire life you’ve believed the opposite of the information you’ve just discovered, be kind to yourself. You can be intelligent. You can be resourceful. You can be psychic. However, you can’t find the answer before you ask the question.
But How Do We Find the Answers?
You don’t have to sit lotus style on a pillow for an hour to discern what’s real and what isn’t. You can do that if you want, but it’s not necessary. If your intention is to sift through the barrage of information constantly hurled at us and find what’s true and what’s not and you’re tuned into your own inner guidance system, you’ll find your answers. Everything we could ever need to know is already inside us.
This can be a disconcerting process at first but once you work through the uncomfortable mental reaction of, “Oh, that can’t be right. I learned this other thing to be right. Everyone knows that” and step into the open expanse of questioning anything and everything in life that interests you and utilize your intuition, you truly begin your education and it can quickly become a fantastic adventure. You may become so exhilarated with this process that you want to share specific accounts with friends and family and anyone who will listen. When this occurs, put the brakes on it for a while. Think before you speak. You can startle people with the answers you’ve found that now seem obvious to you, but not in the collective mind of the public, and alienate them. Maintain balance and enjoy the ride.
I don’t want readers to confuse Alan Watts with researcher, writer and lecturer Alan Watt. You can find his frequent discussions on Youtube. Here’s a recent one.
Do your own research. Educate yourself. Get in touch with your intuition. Become your own guru.