read. This one would talk about Tibetan initiations and how
great they are. Over here we have a modern Zen master-to-be
talking about sitting meditation and preaching koans.
Various Hindu sects are focused on reciting mantras, the
yoga practitioners are focused on asanas and postures
without meditating, and the Celtic folks are trying to
cultivate magick. New Age teachers expound on this and that
without any experience, common sense or science to their
pontifications (though they all want to get onto Oprah), and
all sorts of fluff books abound in the marketplace that are
much more popular than tried, true and tested cultivation
texts. Today the big topic is crystals. Tomorrow it's
channeling. Then it's talking with spirits, astrology,
creative visualization, feng shui, or whatever.
What a zoo!
Every cultivation school develops tumors after awhile, just
as every government eventually experiences some form of
corruption. If every cultivation school was adequate or
perfect to begin with, there would be no reason or room for
competitors. But how do you differentiate between the
schools that abound? How do you know what's right about
Christianity, and what's wrong; what's right about Zen and
what represents a degradation of the school; what's the true
path in Taoism and what's a waste of time; what is the
fundamental principle of the esoteric school to be followed
and what is nonsense; what was the inadequacy of Hinduism in
that a Buddhism had to arise; what a Socrates was trying to
teach and why his message left no successors?
Do you know what are the true principles of spiritual
practice and how do you apply this knowledge to religion,
your personal school and personal practice so that
ultimately, YOU DO NOT GET LOST BUT FIND SOLID PROGRESS FOR
ALL THE TIME AND ENERGY YOU PUT INTO YOUR SPIRITUAL EFFORTS.
I asked Master Nan to give a once-in-a-lifetime lecture on
this topic, which became "The Insider's Guide to the Best
and Worst Spiritual Paths and Practices." You can find it
at:
http://www.meditationexpert.com/bestandworst.html
Well I just received a letter from a reader in France who
read the book and extracted the exact lessons that Master
Nan was trying to teach. They wrote:
"I bought 'best and worst spiritual paths' last week, and
I'd like to share my experience with you. ... You see, I've
been on a 'spiritual quest' for several years, which
intensified about a year ago. I took another job to have
more time, read a lot of stuff, tried many things, spent a
lot of time and dollars. But I ended-up more confused than
when I started. There is just too much accessible knowledge
nowadays, and I lack the required wisdom and experience to
discriminate. Every school, every site, every guru will tell
you that they know best, that their approach works, and that
you should stop wasting your time searching and join them.
The point is that you can only find out if their practice
works for you after 10 to 20 years ;-). Deep inside, I was
growing frustrated with the How of the Spiritual Path. In
addition, the 'What' of spiritual cultivation was still
eluding me (are you cultivating energy, vibration, chi
channels, chakras, internal winds, sexual energy, ...). So I
looked for independent, transversal perspectives. Most of
them are shallow, superficial, in a word, they did not help
me.
"Then I found your site and ordered, a bit skeptical, I must
admit. I was blown away. This book is amazing : a mix of
timeless wisdom, practical recommendation, theoretical
developments, lively anecdotes... I read it like a novel,
and had a great time. I learned a lot, and more importantly,
realized that I could have easily gone on 2 or 3
'erroneous' paths without knowing. Things are now much
clearer, and I feel much better equipped on the 'Path'....
If I had to say this in a short way, I would say : I see
spiritual growth as an adventurous journey in which the
ultimate goal eludes you. You can easily get lost and waste
a lifetime (as well as a lot of money) stuck on an
'inappropriate' path. To me, this book is like a map that
can help you to get started or to get back on track.
"Thanks again !"
The idea that this series of lectures become a map to help
you was EXACTLY the purpose for this book. Another customer,
after reading it, wrote:
"Now there are a lot of information sources on the subject
of inner cultivation in libraries and obscure book stores
and I will say that most of it is bogus creations of many
peoples illusions. Most of it does not bring clarity to your
search for greater spiritual understanding. The stuff makes
you feel good like smoking some green stuff but eventually
you have to come down to the reality that there is a lacking
in "real substance" amongst all the smoke. This is not the
case for "The Best and Worst". It delivers more clarity in
less then 200 pages than a library full of encyclopedias' in
the subject. Not only will you get very clear cross
comparisons but insights into how you might gain and "bare
witness" to what is being taught."
The Insider's Guide to the Best and Worst Spiritual Paths
and Practices, which is one of the finest translations ever
of Nan Huai Chin lectures, is actually a PRACTICE manual to
help you with your cultivation efforts because it will tell
you why your practice is ineffective, why it is going wrong
or not getting anywhere. In reviewing the shortcomings of
the various paths and traditions, it will help you identify
where you stand and what you might be doing incorrectly so
that you end up guiding your practice to a higher level. As
another individual wrote,
"I'm exposed to the many colorful traditions of the East and
West, but after a while, they all looked the same and
jumbled. Which do you really focus to advance your practice?
A Taoist meditation retreat with a ritual to the Ursa-major
looks good, but so is a 2-week kaya-kalpa rejuvenation
program. A Kalachakra initiation feels about the same as a
big hug from a motherly saint. Learn the lessons well from
this book, for you don't want to end up like a beginner
playing the Rubik's Cube, excited and thrilled when only one
sided color aligned, and later realized that there are five
more sides to take care of! "
Ponder the time you are probably wasting... and money... and
effort if you don't know what you are ultimately doing,don't
understand the principles of meditation practice, and
whether you are following them or not.
Where can you find this eloquent paradigm busting book?
http://www.meditationexpert.com/bestandworst.html
Bill Bodri
MeditationExpert.com
TopShape Publishing, LLC
1135 Terminal Way Reno, NV 89502
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