When: May 5th at 8:AM Pacific
Where: Connect by Internet or Telephone Connections Details Here.
Topic: We’ll explore these two topics during this May 5th class:
a) The Subtlety of Self-Observation: The Opportunities and Pitfalls in this Classic Inner Growth Technique
b) Digital Technology: How to Spiritually Profit from Its Power, Without Catching Severe Brain Fog

Meet friendly people all over the world. It’s free. Connections Details Here.

2) The Immense Challenge of Independence and Open Inquiry
By Tom Russell

The aim of SuperWisdom Foundation is to highlight and harvest the nuggets of precious insight and procedures, found in a wide diversity of teachings, both ancient and modern. This approach requires more self-responsibility, and is not appropriate for everyone. Some prosper best (at least for awhile) in a structured environment, and they should not be discouraged.

A challenge (or downside, if you will) present in the SuperWisdom approach, is that too much diversity can tempt one to just skim the surface, always looking for something new. Dabbling here and there doesn’t lead one far, and fosters frustration. In the SuperWisdom approach, the focus rests on discovering key underlying principles and developing them in your daily life, like a research scientist would discover, then unfold, a key discovery. Though an ideal approach for some, this is the more difficult way because it requires clear perception, unwavering self-honesty, dogged persistence, and discipline.

On the other hand, a downside to the structured, more isolated approach is the possibility of sliding into laziness. Over-identification with a given teaching (gripping it too hard) can turn the mind into ruts, even if they have true words in them! Ruts with true words — it happens. Any spiritually authentic program recognizes this proclivity, and attempts over time to help students loosen up, open up, look around more, and turn more to the Essence within.

Different TYPES of people respond to different opportunities. There’s a large part of the human mind that wants to look out and declare someone engaging a different approach, as inferior, misguided, or even “devilish.” What is this mania to be right? Where does it come from? No wonder more wars have been fought in the name of God, than any other reason. Joiners are territorial.

In spite of the commercialization of “awareness” studies and its seeming popularity, few harbor real lasting interest in Higher Themes. Anyone truly wishing to grow stands on the side of Life — they wish to move closer to Reality/Truth/God. These are our true friends, even if they do not reciprocate that friendship.

3) The Guru Fallacy
Formulated by Tom Russell
Answers from J. Krishnamurti

This article was first published by SuperWisdom in 2004. The questions are my own (Tom Russell), while the replies are all direct quotations from J. Krishnamurti:

Q: I am confused about what path to follow. There are so many gurus and self-appointed teachers. Some of them have amazing and attractive personalities. They seem to speak with authority. They walk and talk with such confidence.

A: There are so many gurus in the world, the hidden ones and the open ones. Each of them promises that, through conformity to a certain system or method, the mind will arrive at that realization of what truth is; but no system or method – which implies imitation, conformity, following, and thereby fear – has any significance whatever for a mind that is enquiring into this whole question of life, a question which needs such a delicate, highly sensitive intelligent mind.

The guru is supposed to know and you not to know. He is supposed to be far advanced in evolution and has therefore immense knowledge. And you, who are down below, are gradually going to come to that highest form of knowledge. This whole hierarchical system – which exists not only outwardly in society but also inwardly and among the so-called gurus – is obviously, when one is enquiring into what is truth, an illusion.

There is no path to truth. There is not your path or my path. There is no Christian way to it, or Hindu way to it. A ‘way’ implies a static process to something which is also static. There is a way from here to that next village, the village is firmly there, rooted in the buildings, and there is a road to it. But truth is not like that, it is a living thing, a moving thing and therefore there can be no path to it, neither yours nor mine nor theirs.

To proceed with this problem, to learn, to see, there must be the quietness of a mind that is not broken up, that is not torn apart, that is not tortured. If I want to see something very clearly, the tree, or the cloud, or the face of a person next to me, to see clearly without any distortion, the mind must not be chattering, obviously. The mind must be very quiet to observe, to see. And the very seeing is the doing and the learning. (J. Krishnamurti)

Q: Where does this direct perception lead?

A. Understanding is not a gradual process to be gathered little by little, with care and patience. Understanding is now or never; it is a destructive flash, not a tame affair; it is this shattering that one is afraid of and so one avoids it, knowingly or unknowingly. (J. Krishnamurti)

Q: I’m still not sure how to bring this about?

A. One has to be alone and quiet, then it is there . . . the brain must be utterly still, sensitive, to watch, to see . . . As a stream of water gushes out from the side of a mountain, naturally and under pressure, this cheer (pours) out in great abundance, coming from nowhere and going nowhere, but the heart and mind (is) never the same again. (J. Krishnamurti)

Q: I have touched something new before. I have felt it. How can I bring the experience back?

A. One can never get used to any of these things for it is not a thing of habit and desire. It is always surprising, after it is over. (J. Krishnamurti)

Q: But surely there’s a path I can walk that will help facilitate this new experience?

A. I maintain that Truth is a pathless land, and you cannot approach it by any path whatsoever, by any religion, by any sect. Truth, being limitless, unconditioned, unapproachable by any path whatsoever, cannot be organized; nor should any organization be formed to lead or to coerce people along any particular path. You must climb towards the Truth. It cannot be ‘stepped down’ or organized for you.

You cannot discover the path, because there is no path, Truth is a thing that is living, and to a living thing there is no path – it is only to dead things that there can be a path. Truth being pathless, to discover it you must be adventurous, ready for danger; and do you think a guru will help you to be adventurous, to live in danger? To seek a guru obviously indicates that you are not adventurous, that you are merely seeking a path to reality as a means of security. (J. Krishnamurti)

How Poetry Comes to Me

It comes blundering over the
Boulders at night, it stays
Frightened outside the
Range of my campfire
I go to meet it at the
Edge of the light

(Gary Snyder – 1992)

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You’re cordially invited to enjoy our monthly live class event, at 8:AM Pacific time, this coming Saturday, April 7th. It’s free, and you can listen in over the internet, or by telephone. Topic: How to Harmonize with the Principle of CHANGE. So much of our anguish comes from resistance. How can we place the immense power of change on our side? Details here.

1. Profoundly recognized and honored by the Ancients, spiritual vitality enters through the Heart, illuminating and enlivening every aspect of our being. This flowing source, in the region of our breath, exists as our primary residence. The masterpiece home Fallingwater, designed by the architect Frank Lloyd Wright, symbolizes our original home.

2. The intellect exists as our secondary home. It can be compared to a small apartment we keep, near our place of work in the big city. Yet, decades of influence and habit inverted its original purpose. The intellect became our assumed primary residence, and we almost forgot our original home.

3. Inner development involves a demotion of the intellect — not an extinction, but a demotion. However, the intellect doesn’t see it this way! The intellect retreats and regroups, donning clever new costumes, including sometimes the struggling and sincere spiritual student who just can’t get it. It spreads confusion, deception and discontent in its war to stay on the throne. The intellect believes it will perish if one moves her primary residence back to the Heart, back to Fallingwater.

4. Ultimately, the intellect is much better off when it embraces its role as the servant of the core, and not the master of your life. It then feels far more competent in daily life, having access now to pure perception and resilient happiness, precious qualities that it tried so hard and long to manufacture for itself. The sacred spiritual aim is amazingly simple — to recognize and re-inhabit your primary residence, opening all of yourself to the refreshing currents of your wise and energizing core.

5. Is the central problem really a confused intellect, that bounces all over the place causing all kinds of inappropriate responses? Or, is the fundamental problem a DISCONNECTION, a walling off, between the intellect and core? People want rest from a beehive mind. Yet, a quiet intellect without a quiet core is impossible. A healed brain without a healed Heart can never be. The intellect wants all of your spiritual efforts to be head based and conceptual. It loves to think! However, being clearly isolated and fragmented, is it real thinking?

6. Wright’s Fallingwater consists of an actual stream of water flowing beneath the home, then cascading as a beautiful waterfall on the side. The home in the Heart is truly our own, yet we almost forgot about it as we lived out our life in the small city apartment, hypnotized by all the “buzz.” However, we did not forget!

7. Reclaiming and expanding the spiritual content of one’s core flourishes as the centerpiece of inner development endeavors. This expresses the deeper meaning of Christ’s counsel, “Put the Kingdom of heaven first, and all else shall be added unto you.” Throughout the Bible, over 800 times, the Bible uses the word Heart to reference this sacred inner domain. With a King James Bible, John 7:38 is particularly interesting.

Visit Youtube.com and search “Frank Lloyd Wright Fallingwater” to see videos of this amazing home.

2. “It has been said that to remember oneself one must have a sense of something superior to oneself. Self-Remembering is a lifting up of oneself to another set of influences. The idea of new influences and of coming in contact with them is the center of the Work.” (Maurice Nicoll)

3. “At the boundary, life blossoms.” (Scientist James Gleick)

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Decades ago, an experienced spiritual researcher visited a number of Buddhist monasteries to observe each environment firsthand. He had little interest in meeting the abbot. “The abbot is a manager. Who teaches the novices? That’s the person I want to see.”

Must a novice seek out a school, a teacher? I stumbled across Dr. Chester Chapin, my first mentor, totally by accident. A very wise and spry physician in his eighties, he authored no books and led no organization. I write about him in the book SuperWisdom. Over and over again we can perceive serendipity at work, helping us make the connections that serve us best at any given time. One view of the meaning of Faith involves serendipity. We have confidence the Universe supplies us.

The inner life scientists does his own research, working patiently like a miner of gold sifting through tons of rock to find the precious. All the gold mined, throughout time, fills only two Olympic sized swimming pools! How many massive truck loads of rock were discarded to find this gold? Life feels this way sometimes — sorting through lots of superfluous items (inner and outer) to find the real. However, even when the Universe seems to hold back, when we decline to resist we find new wisdom right there.

With self-reliance, patience, and self-forgiveness, the novice can thoroughly enjoy the beginning years of the journey. One tip from personal experience: cultivate skills and favorite recreational activities outside the domain of the learning center, and the people involved there. Have a social life! This creates the inner space that makes the most of what you might learn at the center. When one wraps his entire heart around any outside influence, a shriveling eventually ensues.

A wise and competent instructor knows that the New Birth is between the novice and God/Truth/Reality, with the instructor serving at most the role of a midwife. The instructor facilitates, respects the uniqueness of the individual, and works to create an atmosphere (sometimes a very challenging one) conducive for reflection and original discovery. Some need more contact, others less. Some need to speed up and be more aggressive, others need to slow down and be more passive. We’re all bent in different ways, which is precisely why your discovery of Truth cannot be duplicated. Serendipity exists to make possible, for each of us, a unique opening to radiant, abundant Life.

1. “It starts out with 1% rightness, and 99% wrongness. But that 1% is 100% pure. It is surrounded by all the darkness but it is 100% right. That is the opening through which can flood in your true life. It will come with power, pushing out all the darkness and giving you a new life.” (Vernon Howard- Treasury of Trueness)

2. “The loyalty of the true believer is to the whole — the church, party, nation –and not to his fellow true believer . . . Absolute power corrupts even when exercised for humane purposes. The benevolent despot who sees himself as a shepherd of the people still demands from others the submissiveness of sheep.” (Eric Hoffer)

3. “Why do tunes sometimes just go round and round in my head and will not go away? Why do we have the sort of brains that do that? What possible use is it for me to spend all day singing ‘Coke Refreshes you Best’? The answer from memetics (the study of memes, rhymes with genes) is that it is no use at all to me — but it is of use to the memes.” (Susan Blackmore – The Meme Machine – Podcast #47)

This latest podcast revolves around four excellent questions received from the audience. Enjoy 17 minutes of discussion on highly liberating themes. Listen now.

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February 4th SuperWisdom Tele/Web class – Live this Saturday at 8:AM Pacific time.
Topic:  Chapter 11 in Treasury of Positive Answers, by Vernon Howard.
Get connection details, read the chapter,  and compare your time to the world clock.

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2. SuperWisdom February 2012 – What One Drop of Water Can Teach  If print appears too small in this email, read online....
3. SuperWisdom World Connect Class Next class: It’s free! Saturday, June 2nd at 8:AM Pacific...

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 If print appears too small in this email, read online.

February 4th SuperWisdom Tele/Web class – Live this coming Saturday at 8:AM Pacific time.
Topic:  Chapter 11 in Treasury of Positive Answers, by Vernon Howard.
Get connection details, read the chapter,  and compare your time to the world clock.

What One Drop of Water Can Teach
By Tom Russell

Glimmering effortlessly, the morning sun lit up one drop of water on the edge of a blade of grass. I watched from my office window for several minutes, grateful for nature’s ability to demonstrate inspiring truths. In the following exploration, the drop of water represents one’s essence, the sphere:

1. Realization of Oneness dawns as static inside the sphere subsides. The sphere grows sensitive, quiet, receptive, vibrant, joyful, alert to unnecessary tension, and this clarity reflects the morning sun.

2. The sphere’s inherent desire for growth can turn in unproductive directions; for example, a frantic and desperate search for God/Truth/Reality that creates much static inside the sphere. The productive direction is toward a calming down, and a heightening of sensitivity – a sensible approach that does not postpone interesting and joyful activities, and does not demand immediate “spiritual” results.

3. The sphere represents a unique expression of life, one that has never happened before. A great deal of static is caused by spiritual seekers who have picked up a very strange idea — that they must collapse or melt the sphere.  Not so! The water drop on the edge of the leaf was not collapsed, but transparent and bouyant; likewise, the sphere exists to reflect the light of the inner Source. When clear, the sphere enjoys a dynamic and active life — daring  the unknown and trying new things, thinking its own authentic thoughts, and manifesting many other admirable, sometimes heroic qualities.  It also possesses a wonderful sense of humor. Growth is not retreat, but resilience and radiance!

4. In the absence of static and background noise, the quiet currents of the inner Source flow over and energize the internal structure of the sphere. This energy ebbs and flows, sometimes felt more, other times less. Learning to be content with temporary low flows opens the door to increasingly profound flows. So called “spiritual work” to get back high flows, originating in impatience disquised as sincerity, creates much static. When the very next breath is a gift, where does this greed come from?

Our society fosters static. Television shows about political matters have opposing opinions, not for discussion, but to generate conflict and confusion. Religions and spiritual enterprises must make malcontents, the more loaded with guilt and/or disquised ambition, the better (from their viewpoint). Education comes nowhere near teaching peole HOW to think, but what to think.  In most any family or business, you have a CSO – the Chief Static Officer. Static is contagious and manipulative, a vibration that seeks your entrainment. 

Only silence reveals and nourishes  the perception of Oneness, revealing what cannot be taught by any human teacher. Silence dawns many times during the day, even if only for a minute at the traffic light. The sphere lights up effortlessly.

Podcast Highlight

A wealth of inquiry exists at the SuperWisdom audio website. The latest posting, “Moments of Higher Consciousness” fits nicely with the article above. Use iTunes to subscribe, or enter your email, to receive notice of new discussions.

Years ago Fred and I recorded a podcast on The Human Shadow.  It’s a frequent theme in literature, especially in Robert Louis Stevenson’s Doctor Jekle and Mr. Hyde. Enjoy this podcast if you haven’t already.

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SuperWisdom Tele/Web class. Connect free by internet or telephone.
Topic: The Power of Beginner’s Mind
You’re invited!  Connection Details Here.

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Saturday, January 7th, 8:AM Pacific time.

SuperWisdom Tele/Web class. Connect free by internet or telephone.
Topic: The Power of Beginner’s Mind
You’re invited!  Connection Details Here.

In this upcoming tele-class, we will focus on this powerful story told by Vernon Howard:

A young man loved books. He thought about choices for his career. The idea came to him, “Why not work in an industry connected to something I love?”  He applied at a big book publishing house and was hired.

He started on the ground floor in the binding department. He mastered the work and was promoted to a supervisory position. However, the time came for him to move upward to a new dimension of the enterprise. The second floor was the typesetting department. After substantial time in this second department, he moved up to cover design, later to advertising, then to distribution, followed by the editorial department.

Decades later, as the head of the entire publishing company, he looked back to highlight the primary lessons of his professional life. He recalled the beginning years, and how with each new level of responsibility he felt uneasy and uncomfortable about starting all over.  He then observed how a highly constructive switch in his thinking occurred at a certain point, where he began to look forward to the newness, the uncertainty of starting all over once again.

Likewise in our spiritual journey, there arrives over and over again the necessity to leave what we know, what we’re comfortable with, and be a beginner on a higher dimension of spirituality. Often we hesitate. We linger. To “know” feels good. To “doubt” feels painful. A part of us likes the idea of certainty, of knowing; thus, a recurring temptation exists to settle down, sometimes with others who support this tendency.

In this January 7th class, we’ll explore together the many connections to this transformative principle. These are friendly events that you can enjoy live, as they occur, through your computer or by telephone.

A “Not to Do” list for 2012

So often people make a list of new year’s resolutions, focused on new things to do.  How about a list of things to stop doing?  Wouldn’t it be energizing to detect activities and involvements you can eliminate? Doing less clears the space to do fewer things, that really matter.

Immunity from Propaganda

In the movie “They Live” a few people get hold of special glasses, allowing them to see through a spellbinding worldwide signal generated by alien invaders. You have in your pocket a pair of special glasses that enable you to see, with stunning clarity, the hidden currents of today’s sophisticated propaganda. As in the movie, it hurts when you first put the glasses on.

We live in a mushy, feel good society that has been infected by ideas that destroy individual initiative and responsibility.  The old-fashioned virtues of self-reliance, kindness and orderliness, plus artistic interests and cultural literacy, all build the launch pad from which the journey to the inner stars begins. Gurdjieff divided people into three categories: tramp, lunatic and good householder. Only those who reached the level of good householder, meaning cleanliness, responsibility and capacity in daily life, could move upward.

SuperWisdom Quotables

1. “What remains to be done is that the general public should absorb the facts of mind-manipulation. Failure to do so has resulted in the almost free field for the cults which are a bane of Western existence.” (Idries Shah)

2. “How does one cope with darkness? Not with one’s fist. You don’t chase darkness out of the room with a broom, you turn on a light. The more you fight darkness, the more real it becomes to you, and the more you exhaust yourself.” (Anthony de Mello)

3. “Catch a moment when you are particularly far from remembering yourself — at this moment you will remember yourself.” (P.D. Ouspensky)

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In our digital age, information overload presents a serious challenge.  Less is often more.  Let’s slow down and focus on seven key ideas, from seven different sources: Taoism, Gurdjieff, Vernon Howard, Zen, Buddhism, J. Krishnmaurti, and the Bible.

1)  Taoism teaches the big idea of FLOW — moving with the currents of life rather than resisting and demanding that things be different, or go another way.  The most fruitful ground for the application of this principle is the inner domain. What we resist inside ourselves expands.  Thus, by granting space for undesirable elements in the inner world to dissipate on their own, resilience and cheerfulness flourish.

In the outer world, what a relief to give up demands that people behave on a higher level than they actually occupy. We chain ourselves with our own demands. Insisting that people be kinder, more thoughtful, more efficient, more resourceful, hardens our own egotism.  What a clever way to avoid seeing our own lightless inner caves!  Have you known people amazingly perceptive at seeing the faults of others, but having no capacity to see their own? (Podcast)

2) Gurdjieff beautifully demonstrated the principle of creative destruction.  He would end activities that had served their purpose, then begin something fresh – a new project or a new group.

Gurdjieff honored what was precious – the generation and expression of energy, and not the continuance of forms.  Gurdjieff taught how everything visible in this world can serve, at best, a temporary purpose. At a certain point, what was once constructive turns destructive.  Gurdjieff’s principle of creative destructive frees us from false allegiances to “the way things are” and teaches us to love the original Source of all, and not its temporary expressions.

3) Vernon Howard challenged his students to be very alert to self-deception, especially as it applies to spiritual pursuits.  In such a wide diversity of ways, he encouraged the end of the split between the cellar and the house. If there’s a torture chamber in the cellar, don’t try to blot it out of mind by decorating the above ground house. End the fracture and dare to come face to face with the ache. “Never cover a pain with a pleasure,” he said.

A favorite escape for those who take up spiritual aims, according to Vernon Howard, is to entertain fond illusions of being further along on the spiritual path than one actually is. Though this direct approach never earned Vernon Howard any popularity contests, his high standards were deeply compassionate and authentic.

I well remember the relief I felt, after first arriving at his school, of giving up at least part of the act of being a “together” spiritual person. Admitting how presently fractured things were in the inner world eliminated the pretense, allowing a ray of light to enter and touch the anguish, without filters. It felt good and true. Podcast

4) Zen reveals the power of Beginner’s Mind – an inner state of  openness, child-like curiosity, and pure perception. Beginner’s Mind is not bogged down with “how much it knows.” Beginner’s Mind is light and nimble, capable and wise, flexible and receptive. If a certain concept has something for us, then consume it, but don’t’ save the wrapper. Toss it! Life is what is happening while we’re trying to be “spiritual.”

An anchor serves a valuable but temporary purpose. Your ship was meant to sail unchartered seas, not stay anchored in the cove. If I’m someone wise, someone who knows, someone who can teach others, then I block myself from the immensity of the present moment. I can let the content of the present pass through me, but if I try to grab it, warehouse it, then I kill the perfume. This was one of the challenges J. Krishnamurti presented to his audiences toward the end of his life: “How will you keep the perfume alive?” Organizations degenerate into relics without the perfume.  (Podcast A) — (Podcast B)

5) Buddhism houses many treasures. However, if one contribution has to be highlighted, it would perhaps be the principle of the Middle Way.  If we try too hard, we miss it. If we don’t try at all, we miss it. If we reject something with too much determination, we invite a counter force that takes us in the opposite direction. If we embrace something too passionately, even the wish for enlightenment, we incubate anguish and desperation when what we embrace slips out of our arms.

The Middle Way overflows with practical wisdom, teaching us how to traverse this life of temporary appearances without attachment and concern. This nourishes a tranquil mind and produces a lively heart, more receptive to life’s subtle currents of wisdom and vitality.

6) J. Krishnamurti revealed with brilliant clarity how devastating dependency and imitation are to the awakened life.  When J. Krishnamurti entered a room, one felt himself to be in the presence of a prince from the cosmic realm. His countenance and graceful manner were the most magnetic, yet he also wore finely crafted clothes, and arrived, perhaps, driving his Mercedes sports car — totally blowing the images people formed of what a spiritual teacher should be like.

His direct approach to spirituality stressed the necessity of exploring life without the overlay of gurus and authorities. Today his message inspires us to dare to think for ourselves, even if we make mistakes, which we will!  He declared, “Nobody can push you out of your trap – no guru, no drug, no mantra, nobody, including myself, especially myself.”

J. Krishnmaurti exposes a dangerous trap to spiritual seekers, which is the attitude:  “I’ll find someone, somewhere, who by just being in his or her presence, or involved in the group activities, will lift me to a better place.”   When one thinks this way, he is not yet at the point where authentic inner development can begin. When one loses the ability to think accurately and critically, calling a spade a spade without vibrations of self-righteousness, he or she becomes an empty vessel through which dynamic and confident personalities enslave the mind. Podcast  

7) The word mentioned in the Bible more than any other, over 800 times? Heart. “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” (Proverbs 4:23)  To “keep thy heart” is to invite and cultivate awareness in the center of your being. The Bible teaches that the way is to slow everything down  and dive deep into this sacred inner region. Listen to what’s there! This is your inner teacher. “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46:10).  Podcast.

Conclusion:

You may wish to keep a journal of “big ideas.” As you pick up a diamond, either from an outer source or from your own internal connections and insights, why not record the experience?  Your own “Book of Development” grows to be your most productive reading.

* SuperWisdom Live Connect Class this Saturday, December 3rd at 8:AM Pacific time. Participate over the internet or by telephone, anywhere in the world! It’s free. Invite friends. Details Here

* New Podast: The Inner Meaning of Christmas – Reclaiming the New Testament for Esoteric Scientists. Listen now.

Donations – Thank you!

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Following this article, find your invitation to the Saturday at 8:AM Pacific, December 3rd free online class. Participate by internet or telephone. Welcome!

If the print is too small in your browser, read this newsletter online here

Seven Key Ideas from Seven Wise Sources
By Tom Russell

In our digital age, information overload presents a serious challenge.  Less is often more.  Let’s slow down and focus on seven key ideas, from seven different sources: Taoism, Gurdjieff, Vernon Howard, Zen, Buddhism, J. Krishnmaurti, and the Bible.

1)  Taoism teaches the big idea of FLOW — moving with the currents of life rather than resisting and demanding that things be different, or go another way.  The most fruitful ground for the application of this principle is the inner domain. What we resist inside ourselves expands.  Thus, by granting space for undesirable elements in the inner world to dissipate on their own, resilience and cheerfulness flourish.

In the outer world, what a relief to give up demands that people behave on a higher level than they actually occupy. We chain ourselves with our own demands. Insisting that people be kinder, more thoughtful, more efficient, more resourceful, hardens our own egotism.  What a clever way to avoid seeing our own lightless inner caves!  Have you known people amazingly perceptive at seeing the faults of others, but having no capacity to see their own? (Podcast)

2) Gurdjieff beautifully demonstrated the principle of creative destruction.  He would end activities that had served their purpose, then begin something fresh – a new project or a new group.

Gurdjieff honored what was precious – the generation and expression of energy, and not the continuance of forms.  Gurdjieff taught how everything visible in this world can serve, at best, a temporary purpose. At a certain point, what was once constructive turns destructive.  Gurdjieff’s principle of creative destructive frees us from false allegiances to “the way things are” and teaches us to love the original Source of all, and not its temporary expressions.

3) Vernon Howard challenged his students to be very alert to self-deception, especially as it applies to spiritual pursuits.  In such a wide diversity of ways, he encouraged the end of the split between the cellar and the house. If there’s a torture chamber in the cellar, don’t try to blot it out of mind by decorating the above ground house. End the fracture and dare to come face to face with the ache. “Never cover a pain with a pleasure,” he said.

A favorite escape for those who take up spiritual aims, according to Vernon Howard, is to entertain fond illusions of being further along on the spiritual path than one actually is. Though this direct approach never earned Vernon Howard any popularity contests, his high standards were deeply compassionate and authentic.

I well remember the relief I felt, after first arriving at his school, of giving up at least part of the act of being a “together” spiritual person. Admitting how presently fractured things were in the inner world eliminated the pretense, allowing a ray of light to enter and touch the anguish, without filters. It felt good and true. Podcast

4) Zen reveals the power of Beginner’s Mind – an inner state of  openness, child-like curiosity, and pure perception. Beginner’s Mind is not bogged down with “how much it knows.” Beginner’s Mind is light and nimble, capable and wise, flexible and receptive. If a certain concept has something for us, then consume it, but don’t’ save the wrapper. Toss it! Life is what is happening while we’re trying to be “spiritual.”

An anchor serves a valuable but temporary purpose. Your ship was meant to sail unchartered seas, not stay anchored in the cove. If I’m someone wise, someone who knows, someone who can teach others, then I block myself from the immensity of the present moment. I can let the content of the present pass through me, but if I try to grab it, warehouse it, then I kill the perfume. This was one of the challenges J. Krishnamurti presented to his audiences toward the end of his life: “How will you keep the perfume alive?” Organizations degenerate into relics without the perfume.  (Podcast A) — (Podcast B)

5) Buddhism houses many treasures. However, if one contribution has to be highlighted, it would perhaps be the principle of the Middle Way.  If we try too hard, we miss it. If we don’t try at all, we miss it. If we reject something with too much determination, we invite a counter force that takes us in the opposite direction. If we embrace something too passionately, even the wish for enlightenment, we incubate anguish and desperation when what we embrace slips out of our arms.

The Middle Way overflows with practical wisdom, teaching us how to traverse this life of temporary appearances without attachment and concern. This nourishes a tranquil mind and produces a lively heart, more receptive to life’s subtle currents of wisdom and vitality.

6) J. Krishnamurti revealed with brilliant clarity how devastating dependency and imitation are to the awakened life.  When J. Krishnamurti entered a room, one felt himself to be in the presence of a prince from the cosmic realm. His countenance and graceful manner were the most magnetic, yet he also wore finely crafted clothes, and arrived, perhaps, driving his Mercedes sports car — totally blowing the images people formed of what a spiritual teacher should be like.

His direct approach to spirituality stressed the necessity of exploring life without the overlay of gurus and authorities. Today his message inspires us to dare to think for ourselves, even if we make mistakes, which we will!  He declared, “Nobody can push you out of your trap – no guru, no drug, no mantra, nobody, including myself, especially myself.”

J. Krishnmaurti exposes a dangerous trap to spiritual seekers, which is the attitude:  “I’ll find someone, somewhere, who by just being in his or her presence, or involved in the group activities, will lift me to a better place.”   When one thinks this way, he is not yet at the point where authentic inner development can begin. When one loses the ability to think accurately and critically, calling a spade a spade without vibrations of self-righteousness, he or she becomes an empty vessel through which dynamic and confident personalities enslave the mind. Podcast  

7) The word mentioned in the Bible more than any other, over 800 times? Heart. “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.” (Proverbs 4:23)  To “keep thy heart” is to invite and cultivate awareness in the center of your being. The Bible teaches that the way is to slow everything down  and dive deep into this sacred inner region. Listen to what’s there! This is your inner teacher. “Be still and know that I am God.” (Psalms 46:10).  Podcast.

Conclusion:

You may wish to keep a journal of “big ideas.” As you pick up a diamond, either from an outer source or from your own internal connections and insights, why not record the experience?  Your own “Book of Development” grows to be your most productive reading.

* SuperWisdom Live Connect Class this Saturday, December 3rd at 8:AM Pacific time. Participate over the internet or by telephone, anywhere in the world! It’s free. Invite friends. Details Here

* New Podast: The Inner Meaning of Christmas – Reclaiming the New Testament for Esoteric Scientists. Listen now.

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1. Healing Challenges: These twenty-one discussions dare us to think in a new way by questioning everything at a far deeper level.  As you glance over the titles, be sure to take note of these two:  #154 (How true teachings get distorted by followers) and #123: (How to let stress and worry pass you by – why the false self is so “sticky”)

2.  A Feast of Best Books: The most powerful reading material never makes the best-seller list. These fifteen discussions highlight books with the vitality to boost you to entirely new zones of thinking and being.  Challenging and sometimes upsetting, yes, and not recommended for surface seekers.

3. Success Without Stress: This category of eight discussions peels away the layers of false solutions to uncover the core reasons for stress, tension and anxiety.  The spell of stress and its false lure can be shattered forever.

4.  Great Literature: Vernon Howard said once that the story Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde has more real psychology in it than an entire library of standard psychology books.  Don’t miss the two discussion on the Human Shadow, #30 and #89.  Also on this list is one of the most unusual podcast discussions ever placed on the internet — a four part series on Bram Stoker’s Dracula and its immense inner symbolic meaning.

5. Tom Russell Speaks Live: 95% of the posted podcasts are discussions between Tom and Fred, along with audience questions and participation. This category, however, features six talks to live audiences by Tom Russell.  Of particular interest is #72 (The Flow Knows – Enlightenment in the Center of Live’s Turmoils)

6. Kinesthetic Awareness: Increase your sensitivity to the vast network of nerves throughout your system. Let them help you rediscover the well of living water within, where your True Self shines.  Many people have commented on the power of #72 (The Great Allegory of the Circus High Wire Act) as well as #130 (The Time Out for Truth Diet – How to Eat Your Way to Eternal Life).

7.  Authentic Inspiration: All true talks, discussions and writings end on a positive, inspiring note. They may venture through dark places in order to gain bright new understanding and deep releases, but they always send you home inspired.  This lineup of twenty-two discussions can send your spirit to the stars!  Don’t miss #97 (How to Dissolve the Inner Critic and a Review of Jet Li’s Movie Fearless).

You’ll see other categories at the podcast website, but these will give you off to a wonderful start.  Enjoy the journey!  Please share with friends and if this information resonates deeply for you, send us a note through the “contact us” page above  to request participation in the live monthly SuperWisdom Tele-class.  (Tom)

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