That's the first qualification. The second qualification is being
able to
communicate
the overlapping truth in a way that can be heard ie in a way that
people would be willing to let it in, to try it on. Truth is truth,
whether you're a great teacher or not. Neither you nor I nor anyone
else can take credit for the overlapping truth. It's the second
qualification which is harder, and for which he gets full credit:
being a
communicator
of the truth in a listenable, likeable, folksy, attractive
way. In this, he was one of humanity's self-made
rock
star
gurus.
Yet a
face to face
encounter with him
was an encounter with just a
regular guy
- almost forgettable at that level, charming in its utter
simplicity, being so
regular.
It's that, which he was able to distinguish for people, for which
he's remembered, and sorely missed.
I had
two such personal,
face to face encounters with him,
and years of being inspired by his book
"Remember, Be Here
Now"
which was to be found in every self-respecting hippie's backpack.
It wasn't just that his book uncovered the truth (the truth doesn't
require any uncovering). It's that he shared the truth in a way
that was inspiring, listenable, getable, and even
entertaining. That part of it got me. But it's when he broke with
the recreational drug traditions of the day and of his past, that
he made what is arguably his greatest contribution: showing
enlightenment
is available to all of us
regular guys
exactly the way we are - no additives or sacraments required.
Essential to his message was that you don't have to do anything to
be enlightened.
The signs, he showed, are everywhere: you already are. You don't
have to become somebody to have worth: you're already
it. It's arguably just the propulsion of the survival
driven, perpetually dissatisfied
ego
to (quote unquote) become somebody ie to be a
contender. The antitheses of becoming somebody would be, I suppose,
becoming nobody. That's the
anti-ego,
if you will. That was his message:
remember, be here
now,
you're alright the way
you are,
enjoy. We're all it. We're all pretty much
regular guys
after all. That's what I think he meant by "becoming nobody". It
wasn't said disparagingly. Listen: his "becoming nobody" doesn't
equate with a colloquial "being a loser". It's just the
opposite actually, a spiritual powerhouse in fact.
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