Self-Knowledge and Self-Realization

Live Satsangs to begin in July in San Fernando Valley.  They will still be on Saturday, still be potluck, still be fantastic.  Keep watching this blog for upcoming dates.


Also, our sangha has several wonderful students who are progressing nicely into freedom, but they never post here so others can relate.  I have asked them to post about what they are going through.  I mean Samantha, Marcus, Joan, Deeya, Ruby, Janet and any others.


I have talked before how many put on a veneer of freedom in spirituality by having unusual experiences, blissful or ecstatic states, moments of self-realization that subside, but whose everyday life does not change at all.


Others among us are moving towards freedom in terms of freeing themselves from conventionality in various ways, and feel the blissful energies in a lesser way.  I am working with them to develop modalities to facilitate change, even using DVDs of genius comedians such as Lewis Black to poke fun at conventional behaviors and attitudes.


I see so many people who consider themselves moving greatly into freedom, but who collapse and go silent when they hear a comedian, or me, use the words "fuck," or "cunt."  Two tiny words and they shrivel in a seizure of political correctness.


One of my students is married to a born-again Christian, who told his son not to use the word "heck."  "Don't use that word, he said."  The eight year old child went to his mom and said, "Dad is such an asshole!"  The mother was both pleased and shocked by this expression.  Instantly she felt a failure as a mother not protecting her children from such language, but she also felt pride that he felt free enough to use that language, which the child had enough sense not to use in front of his father, who would likely have a heart attack.


Where is your freedom if you can't even use the word "fuck?"


You see, society enforces conformity on one in so many different ways, from the use of profanity, to the images we have of being a proper parent, to the incredibly nicey-nice monitoring found on Facebook where everyone is so virtually loving.


This is just the tip of the conventionality iceberg.  What we wear, the shoes, the pants, the shirt. That same father used to require that all the females wore dresses no shorter than a certain distance above the knee, no low neacklines, etc.


Robert always wore sweat pants, a sweat shirt or T-shirt, running shoes and a baseball cap. He never wore anything else.  That's what I wear, and I get criticized about not caring about my appearance, saying I need to dress up to look good so people are not embarrassed to appear with me in public.


As Nisargadatta said, "All your problems are body-mind problems. Even so, you cling to that body. Since you identify with the body-mind, you follow certain polite modes of expression when you talk. I do not. I might embarrass you; you may not be able to take what I say. I have no sense of propriety."


At his last Satsang, Robert could barely talk, but those who were close enough to hear his soft voice, all that he said, over and over, was, "Freedom!  Freedom!  Freedom," which does not only mean feeling silence, bliss or ecstasies, but not to be constrained in the world from coming or going, or participating or not in the illusion.


Rajneesh on the word "Fuck":