Alan Watts - Philosophy and Society II

===== Philosophy And Society II - 01 - On Time And Death =====

The birds are outside the window. Just in time for Alan Watts here on WFMU.

East Orange, WXHD, Mount Hope. Tonight, death.

And taking this until 7 o'clock with Joe Frank.

Alan Watts info, you can write to us here at WFMU P.O. Box 2011, Jersey City, New Jersey, 07303.

AlanWatts.com, that's A-L-A-N-W-T-T-S.com for more information on the late Mr. Watts.

And check out WFMU.org for our weekly schedule.

Right now, though, Alan Watts, death.

People have a tremendous investment in survival, in continuity, in going on and on through time.

The opposite has been true with at least three major religions of Asia.

The Hindu, the Buddhist, and the Jain.

Where they seem to be against continuity.

And design their disciplines to give deliverance from constant rebirth into the world of birth and death.

And we normally interpret that point of view as being a pessimistic attitude against life.

And sometimes it is indeed, in a way, against life.

One discovers, in India, in modern times, at any rate,

a puritanical attitude of asceticism, avoidance of pleasure, of sex, and all that,

in order to become spiritual.

But I think, to a large extent, the attitudes of modern Indians, who are ascetical in this way,

are very largely influenced by British education.

A very strange thing happened in India.

In the early 19th century,

there was a certain Lord Macaulay,

who wrote poetry that all Englishmen learn in school, called the Lays of Ancient Rome.

And he was a great classicist.

He was someone like Mortimer Adler,

who believed that all wisdom was contained in the great books of the West.

And he attempted to eradicate Hindu culture completely and replace it with British culture.

And he was pretty successful in many ways,

because a great Hindu statesman I used to know

told me that he had not discovered Hindu culture until he was 45 years old.

He was brought up like an Englishman

on Xenophon, Plato, Sophocles, Livy, Ovid, and Julius Caesar,

Shakespeare, etc., etc., all down the line.

And it was so funny, because he was much older than I,

but we all knew the same Latin jokes.

And he looked like an elephant.

At great big ears, he was a wonderful fellow.

So, India was Briticized to an extraordinary degree

and acquired certain Victorian attitudes,

which still exist among many of the Swamis who come to this country.

They're squeamish.

But the real meaning of this so-called escape

from the round of birth and death

is not actually an attitude against life.

Indeed, to the contrary.

It's an attitude of the fundamental and true acceptance of life.

Now, it seems gloomy and wretched

to point out that we're all going to die.

But I want you to notice

that the theme of the transience,

the impermanence of all forms,

is a theme

to which poets constantly resort.

One of the most popular poems in the world

is the Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam.

And the whole theme of it is transience.

The earthly hope

men set their hearts upon

turns ashes

or it prospers.

And an arm like snow upon the desert's dusty face

lighting a little hour or two

is gone.

The great passage in Shakespeare

in The Tempest

Our revels now are ended

and these our actors, as I foretold you,

were all spirits

and are melted into air

into thin, thin air.

And like the baseless fabric of this vision

the cloud-capped towers

the gorgeous palaces

the solemn temples

the great globe itself

I, all which it inherit

shall dissolve

and like this insubstantial pageant faded

leave not a rat behind.

We are such stuff

as dreams are made of

and our little life

is rounded with a sleep.

Well said that, well

it isn't so bad.

So

but we resist this.

Unamuno said

the Spanish philosopher

the human beings

are the only creatures

who hoard their dead.

Why do we do this?

There's an undertaker's adverb

that was around some years ago

which shows

a middle-aged

but handsome lady

looking out of the window

on a rainy day.

And it says

what a comfort to know

that

you know

your husband

who's died

of ulcers

or something

is not corrupting

because he's been put

in a concrete vault

in a bronze casket

and skillfully embalmed

and there he will be

forever and ever

safe from the bugs.

This is terrible

because

I have a theory

that

dead people

should be used

as fertilizer.

that enormous fields

should be prepared

and they'd be put

about three feet

underground

until they rot

completely

and then

a certain period

has to wait

for maturing

and then we plant

all those fields

and we return

to the earth

that which we took

from it.

That would be

really civilized.

but instead

we try to make

a block

on the end.

You see

biology

is a mutual

eating society.

Everything

eats everything

and human beings

are trying

to opt out.

We refuse

to be eaten.

Of course

we've conquered

the tigers

and the various

predatory animals

that might eat us

except the little ones.

The little bacteria

they feast on us

and we say

no

we are the end.

Man is the head

of nature

and man

must not be eaten

but in so doing

we do not realize

how we deprive

ourselves

because

we are trying

to put a stop

to the chain

of life.

So then

we would say

however

that the Hindus

and Buddhists

are really trying

to put a stop

to the chain

of life

because they

want to opt

out altogether

but this is

a misinterpretation

of the profoundest

reaches

of their

discipline.

What the Hindus

and Buddhists

are seeking

deliverance from

is not life

but time

and time

is as I

have tried

to show you

an artificial

concept.

This gadget

that I wear

on my wrist

represents

each minute

by a hairline

and this hairline

is made to be

as thin

as possible

as is compatible

with visibility

because

therefore

it gives us

the notion

that this

moment

is

nowhere

and therefore

we get the feeling

from the watch

that time

flies

and we become

anxious.

So short

and so

the exclamation

of Faust

at the end

of Goethe's

drama

saying to the

moment

oh still delay

thou art so fair

the horror

of the approaching

end

so on in

Marlowe's

version of the

same drama

where he

sold his soul

to the devil

and it's

approaching

midnight

ah Faustus

he says

to himself

thou hast

but one

brief hour

to live

and then

the horrors

and he quotes

the latin

verse

oh

lente

curite

nocti

sequi

oh slowly

slowly

run ye

horses of

the night

back up

see

the person

facing death

as you get

older

as you face

death

you notice

that time

is going

faster

and faster

when you're

a child

time drags

and you just

can't wait

for it

to get

ahead

so that you

can be

an adult

because to be

a child

is to be

in a sort

of

to have

no civil

liberties

you can't

wait to

grow up

then

when you get

to be

50 60

and so on

it's going

faster

you just

can't keep

track of it

but it's

an illusion

there is

no time

and so

this is what

the Hindu

Buddhist

wisdom

is really

saying

is that

it is not

for the

abolition

of real

life

but of

abstract

life

of the

conceptualized

idea

of the

universe

which bugs

us all

that it's

a terrible

thing

that forms

all come

to an end

that they're

transient

and therefore

to protect

us

from this

reality

we construct

abstract

worlds

in which

our form

goes on

forever

but the

abstract

worlds

that we

construct

are all

terrible

like I

was showing

you

the Christian

idea of

heaven

was a

complete

bore

and the

Buddhists

and the

Hindus

know all

about

various

heavens

they have

at least

seven

of them

but they

regard them

as illusions

and they

regard the

very gods

and angels

as still

in the

state of

illusion

whereas a

Buddha

or in

the Hindu

terminology

Jivanmukta

someone who's

liberated

is in a

certain way

higher than

the gods

because

delivered from

the illusion

of the cycle

of time

so

notice

therefore

that almost

all religious

beliefs

are in fact

fantasies

to overcome

mortality

the slipping

away of

life

the dissolving

of ourselves

and therefore

they exhibit

fundamentally

anxiety

belief is

anxiety

the Anglo

Saxon word

underlying belief

is leaf

l-i-e-f

which means

to wish

so we say

wishful thinking

underlies

the various

beliefs

of all

what I would

call dogmatic

religions

because if you

go into it

the reason for

belief in God

as a

compassionate

father

the reason for

belief in

immortality

the reason for

belief in the

notion that

goodness will

triumph

and

it will all

come out

all right

in the

end

that is

what the

Buddhists call

Krishna

or clinging

it isn't

really an

attitude of

faith at

all

it's an

attitude of

frantic

clinging on

to what you

think you

are

and therefore

you might say

that the

highest religion

is the

religion of

non-religion

we could

call it

atheism

in the name

of God

it so

happens that

this is

within the

orthodox

christian

tradition

very few

people know

about it

but there

was a fellow

who lived in

the fifth

or sixth

centuries

who wrote

under the

name of

Dionysius

the early

upper guide

and he

was

translated

into latin

by John

Scotus

who was a

scholar at

the court

of

Charlemagne

he was

deeply

studied by

St.

Thomas

Aquinas

in fact

if the

writings of

the

area

upper guide

had been

lost

they could

probably

be

reconstructed

from

St.

Thomas's

quotations

but he

wrote a

book called

Theologia

Mystica

which is a

very strange

book

it's about

what he

calls

negative

theology

there are

two kinds

of theology

one is

called

the

phatic

part

comes

from

the

Greek

word

phimi

which is

to say

kata

means

according

to

apo

means

away

from

so when

you talk

about

God

apophatically

you're

talking

about

God

in

terms

of

things

which

God

might

be

said

to

resemble

you're

using

a

parabolic

analogic

metaphorical

language

God

the

father

therefore

does not

say that

God

is

literally

a

cosmic

male

parent

but

is

in

certain

respects

like

a

father

but

cataphatic

our

apophatic

language

tells

you

what

God

is

not

and

so

you

get

such

words

as

infinite

eternal

and so

on

illimitable

bodiless

and all

these are

negative

words

and so

Dionysius

explains

that the

highest

knowledge

of God

must be

by the

way of

negation

and he

likens it

to a

sculpture

a

sculptor

making

an image

but he

makes the

image by

taking

stone

away

and so

in the

same

way

one comes

to the

knowledge

of God

by going

beyond all

ideas of

God

and getting

rid of

them

this is

the same

exactly as

the doctrine

of the

Upanishads

where the

principle is

of Brahman

we must

say

neti

not this

idea

not that

idea

all

ideas

all

fixations

and

even

religious

methods

must

must be

surpassed

because

all

our

intellectual

concepts

of the

divine

all our

methods

to get

the

divine

are

in the

last resort

only ways

of avoiding

it

let go

there is

there is a

Tibetan

tanka

painting

I have

at home

of a

monstrous

being

called

yaman

thaka

yaman

thaka

has

eleven

heads

eighteen

arms

and eighteen

feet

and an

aureole of

fire

and in the

various

hands

of the

various arms

there are

bells

and daggers

and clubs

and thunderbolts

and all kinds

of objects

which this

being

manipulates

and the

being is

always shown

tilted

at an

angle

and dancing

like fury

upon the

bodies of

the gods

all the

gods

including

buddha

are being

trampled

underfoot

by yaman thaka

this is a

very strange

thing and

naturally the

christian

missionaries

who went

over there

said

well these

people are

obviously

devil

full

with

fangs

although

when you

see all

the other

heads

right at

the top

is the

head

of the

bodhisattva

of supreme

compassion

chenresi

in tibetan

or you

know as

kanon

in japanese

avalokiteshvara

the watchful

lord

who's an

androgyne

and always

comes on

in a

majorly

female

appearance

so

likewise

one of

the great

chinese

zen

masters

lin ji

or rin zai

as they

say in

japanese

had a

passage in

his

discourses

where he

says

oh you

followers of

the way

if you

meet buddha

kill the

buddha

if you

meet the

patriarch

kill the

patriarch

if you

meet

father or

mother

kill them

kill

everything

you

meet

stand

above

it

pass

on

and be

free

now this

sounds

terrible

it's as if

a minister

were to get

up in

church

and say

every time

you say

jesus

wash your

mouth up

and until

they do

that

christianity

will remain

pretty dead

it's

interesting

it's interesting

that the

buddha had

a disciple

by the

name of

ananda

who loved

the master

very much

and was

sort of his

very close

personal

friend

and he

was the

last of

all buddha's

disciples to

attain

enlightenment

he was too

attached to

buddha

so that

in a way

being

religious

gets in

the way

of religion

now does

that mean

on the

other

hand

see

here's a

puzzle about

krishnamoji

who explains

this very

carefully

but his

earnest

disciples

which he

doesn't admit

that he

has

can't read

anything

except mystery

stories

they try

he says

he never

reads a

religious

book

he never

reads the

bhagavad-gita

or the

lankavatara

sutra

or the

dao de jing

or the

bible

a friend of

mine was

sitting next

to him

on a

plane

and

was

fascinated

as to

what he

was

reading

and he

was

reading

a mystery

story

fine

there's

nothing

against

that

but if

you can

only read

mystery

stories

and if

you

can't

join in

any

religious

observance

you are

in some

way

curiously

limited

because

you have

made a

religion

of the

religion

of no

religion

ha

what a

trap

that is

so those

puritans

who broke

down the

idols of

the church

and

burned

like the

caliph who

burned up the

library of

Alexandria

because he

said either

it is the

koran or it

is not in the

koran and the

koran is the

only thing we

need so if

these books are

not the koran

burn them

in the same

way with

bible bangers

so they have

this iconoclastic

attitude

against all

the wonderful

colourful

exuberant

activities and

arts that have

flown from

the great

religions

I think that's

silly

to me it's a

hang up

to be against

religion

because to be

against it

is still not

to have

transcended

it

so

however

if we are

going to have

an attitude

which accepts

religion

but transcends

it

Bernard

Berencene

you know

made the

interesting

remark that

he regarded

himself as a

graduate of

the Roman

Catholic Church

in just the

same sense as

he was a

graduate of

Harvard

University

he was very

grateful to

the Catholic

Church but

he didn't

swallow it

anymore

he wasn't a

member of it

any longer

and I

take the

same attitude

to the

Anglican

Church

and for

that matter

to Buddhism

so

one

gets

therefore to

the point

where beliefs

are seen

to be

obstacles

belief in

survival

belief in

God

heaven

hell

all those

ideas

are dropped

because you

see

that really

they're your

own

projections

as also

is

the belief

in the

mechanical

universe

belief in

atheism

these are

equally

projections

some people

find the

idea that the

universe is

merely

mechanical

extremely

comforting

because thank

God there is

no God

watching us

judging us

ah that's a

relief

it's just

tick tock

stuff

you see

every way

every form

of belief

is really

an attempt

to cling

on

and

it is

precisely

that which

destroys

life

it is

time which

destroys

life

now we

have to

understand

that

carefully

there is a

difference

between time

and rhythm

the clock

goes

tick

so that

the human

mind

can't

stand it

and so we

project upon

the clock

tick

tock

tick

tock

tick

tock

tick

tock

and if you

listen to

a clock

with a loud

tick

you find

yourself

eventually

making it

play tunes

we'll be right

back

in just a moment

with part two

of tonight's

Alan Watts

lecture

death

here on

WFMU

taking us up

until 7 o'clock

and Joe Frank

at that time

this is WFMU

freeform

listener

sponsored radio

91.1 FM

90.1 FM

and on the

internet at

wfmu.org

why because

we're getting

nearer

to the

biological

rhythm

biological

rhythm

is real

rhythm

your heart

goes

everything

in biology

is that

that's rhythm

it isn't time

it's something

quite different

shortens the

moment to the

hairline

of the abstract

second

see

time

kills rhythm

and life

because of the

abstract notion

of the hairline

as the now

now

if we are to

measure now

must be made

to be

as

to seem

as short

as possible

and so

time

altogether

ignores the

fact that

now is

eternal

means

beyond time

it doesn't

mean everlasting

that's the

the nature

of hell

is everlasting

everlastingness

but the

nature of true

heaven

is eternity

which it is

beyond time

and therefore

beyond

transcending

the round

of

samsara

of birth

and death

now dear

people

I really

would love

it

if I could

in some way

convey to you

the experience

of eternity

I mean

here we

are

in this

room

and at

any rate

now

we don't

have anywhere

special to

go

I mean

you're a little

bit trapped

here as a

captive audience

because you

paid to get

in

and

you may as

well make

the best of

it

but we are

not at

this moment

we are not

really going

anywhere

see

actually this

assemblage

sitting around

here

is the

eternal

gathering

and as I

look at you

I see

an array

of gods

and goddesses

beautiful

wow

touched by

sunlight

we're here

this is it

is that

possible

to accept

that

to understand

this actual

situation

that we're

in

is the

point

of all

great

spiritual

quests

it's not

going to

be tomorrow

it's not

going to

be when

you've

had time

to do

something

you know

and progress

towards it

and practice

you have to

get it

now

now or

never

the

Easter

anthem

incidentally

one of

the old

archaic

ones

goes

this

is

the

day

which

the

Lord

hath

made

let

us

rejoice

and be

glad

in it

see

this is

the day

hekdias

it's called

in latin

this is

the day

the zen

buddhist

saying

every day

is a fine

day

lies this

you see

we don't

give a shit

anymore

about immortality

it just

simply

ceases to

matter

because

in the

full

experience

of the

eternal

now

we

watched

under

your

very

eyes

or

rather

to be

more exact

under

your

very

ears

you

heard

the

future

vanish

and you

heard

no

past

if

you

come to

your

senses

there

is

only

the

eternal

now

so

what

you can

get rid

of an

awful lot

of

encumbering

baggage

because

you see

when you

have

really

accepted

this

and

it's

easy to

do

by

accepting

mortality

i

mean

you're

sure

we're

all

going

to

die

sure

we're

all

falling

apart

but

once

that

has

become

obvious

you

find

mysteriously

that you

have an

immense

access

of new

energy

because

we are

constantly

wasting

energy

i mean

really

wearing

ourselves

out

trying to

hold

ourselves

together

and

to be

sure

that

we're

secure

and

that

everything's

going to

be

all

right

and

isn't

and

we

get

more

and

more

worried

and

so

on

and

so

on

whereas

if

we

just

left

that

alone

we'd

have

all

that

energy

available

for

other

things

and

we

would

blossom

like

great

saints

and

spiritual

people

who have

abandoned

the

world

they

don't

mean

what

of

the

world

and

they

float

around

in

japanese

one

calls

such

people

unsui

which

means

cloud

and

water

in

other

words

they

drift

like

clouds

and

flow

like

water

be

unsui

why not

what have

you got

to lose

only a

concept

of who

you

are

that's

all

and

that

concludes

tonight's

Alan Watts

lecture

death

here

on

WFMU

===== Philosophy And Society II - 02 - The Smell Of Burnt Almonds =====

Some time ago, I received a visit from a woman who, as a result of listening to these talks,

was wondering if I could help her to regain an experience which she had had while undergoing

a surgical operation, as is generally known.

Anesthetics sometimes induce peculiarly vivid and unusual states of consciousness, and every

now and then, a person under anaesthesia will undergo a specific and particular experience

which is of the utmost fascination.

It's the kind of experience which I suppose we would ordinarily call mystical or spiritual,

and which, while it lasts, carries the most powerful sensation of understanding with

complete clarity and certainty, what is the mystery and meaning of the world.

This occurs sufficiently often to have been made a subject of experimentation.

Perhaps you know the story of the investigator who took doses of anaesthetic for this purpose,

equipped himself with pencil and paper to record, at the moment of awakening, whatever revelation

might have been given to him.

Fortunately, the expected experience took place, and for a brief period the investigator had the

vivid conviction of complete comprehension of this universe, of life and death.

death, he regained waking consciousness, with the tail end of the sensation still upon him, grabbed

the pencil, and swiftly recorded the essential content of the experience just before it faded.

After several minutes, during which his mind returned to its normal state, he looked at what he had written,

and there, upon the paper, was the following immensely profound observation.

Everything in this universe is the smell of burnt almonds.

I suppose that all sensible and hard-headed people would agree that this is just the sort of inanity

to which all these mystical revelations ultimately boil down.

In the clear, cold light of rational consciousness, the seemingly inspired and utter convincing knowledge

of dreams, of drug delusions, and of mystical experiences comes down to just this sort of idiotic anticlimax.

Masked in the poetic or exotic obscurantism of such phrases as

all is Brahman, or the divine unity beneath the multiplicity of the world.

It may sound for a moment as if it meant something, but the essential nonsense of these feelings,

and the purely subjective character of the sense of insight which they involve,

at once becomes obvious when Brahman, or the divine unity,

is replaced by the smell of burnt almonds.

We might settle for this conclusion.

If some of us

had not had the same sensation,

not under drugs or hypnosis,

but when very wide awake,

and I, for one, will not quarrel

with the smell of burnt almonds as the key to the mystery.

I like it much better and feel it makes much more sense than Brahman or the divine unity.

For its very banality,

its very consequential silliness,

brings out the real significance of the experience in question.

For the importance

of the mystical revelation

does not lie in the precise nature of what

everything in this universe is.

It can be God, or Brahman, or burnt almonds, or applesauce, or anything you like.

Its importance lies rather

in the simple sensation of wholeness

in the part of the sentence which runs

everything in this universe is

no matter what.

For

the conviction

which has come to the experiencer

is that his habitual sensation

of isolation from his environment

from the rest of the world

is an illusion

and that as a corollary

his own

deeds and misdeeds

fortunes and misfortunes

are the same process

as the changing seasons

and the circling stars

and unreasonable

as it may seem

this gives him the sensation

that his whole life

past, present, and future

is somehow

perfectly natural

and in order

and that he himself

is not just

the mind

enclosed in the skull

but the total process

of the world

The significance of this experience

does not, I think

lie in any

consequences or conclusions

which might be drawn from it

It is not

an important experience

in the sense

that

it is useful for some other purpose

It is simply like

playing or listening to music

which is

obviously phony

in the very moment

that we do it

for some ulterior motive

such as

to appear cultured

or

to convey

an ideological message

Its significance

for human beings

is not like that

of say

the second law

of thermodynamics

but like that

of

the Mozart sonatas

or

the arabesques

on a Persian rug

The significance

of useful knowledge

like the second law

of thermodynamics

is precisely that

by applying it

human beings

may be enabled

to go on

experiencing

such things

as music

or love

or

mystical insight

But what could I say

to the woman

who

under anesthetic

had once

had this experience

and

wanted it again

more than anything else

in the world

Go and have another

operation

Get yourself

some ether

or

mescaline

or

lysergic acid

or

take up yoga

or get thee

to a nunnery

there are still

other

and much to

Pat

answers

to this question

as that

she is failing

to revive

the experience

by the very act

of seeking

for it

as well tell

a starving man

that his very hunger

is what prevents him

from finding food

for once

a person

has had

an experience

of this kind

he is gone

it's easier

to get rid

of an addiction

to heroin

or to choose

something more natural

to get rid of

the love

of the opposite sex

no I could better

say something

like this

the answer

is

in the very

experience

which you have

had

didn't you know

then

for certain

with utter

clarity

that your

whole life

past

present

and future

was somehow

as you yourself

put it

part and parcel

of that

universal

harmony

which the

Chinese call

the Tao

I

feel sometimes

that

phrases like

universal harmony

are so

hackneyed

so

almost slushy

and sentimental

that it's

terribly difficult

to begin

to find

the right word

for this kind

of thing

without sounding

like

Voltaire's

Mr. Pangloss

without

sort of

jumping on

this

best of all

possible worlds

business

because the

thing isn't

like that

at all

it's very

very much

stronger

than

the feeling

that this is

the best

of all

possible worlds

and the

curious thing

about it

it isn't

that it

glosses

over anything

but it

makes the

most awful

things

seem that

way too

without at the

same time

making them

cease to

seem terrible

it's very

peculiar

she had

seen then

for certain

at the time

of that

experience

seen with

total clarity

that her

whole past

present and

future life

was in some

way part

and parcel

of what we

are perforce

driven to

call the

universal

harmony

of the

Tao

but what

one doesn't

seem to

understand

then

is that

this still

remains true

of what

one is

today

you are in

the stream

when

seeking for

what you

have lost

and when

feeling

perfectly

ordinary

no less

than when

you were

in ecstasy

you're not

feeling the

experience

and you're

striving to

regain it

is as a

matter of

fact

the very

future

which you

saw to be

in such

perfect

accord with

the process

let me

remind you

of a

celebrated

tale that

was told

by Sri

Ramakrishna

the story

of one of

his disciples

who had

learned from

the master

that

all the

multiplicity

of this

world

is the

illusory

outward

form

of the

one

eternal

divine

Brahman

underlying

the entire

process

and having

sat and

listened to

this

exposition

the disciple

got up

and went

his way

and in

passing down

a rather

narrow street

he saw

an elephant

coming

towards

him

and

Mahut

riding

on top

of the

elephant

well

the Mahut

saw

the

disciple

wandering

down

the

centre

of

the

road

and

shouted

at

him

hey you

get out

of the

way

this

elephant

isn't

very

nice

but

the

disciple

thought

now

the

master

Ramakrishna

has told

me

realized

this

to

be

true

so

he

ignored

the

warning

of

the

Mahut

and

approached

the

elephant

and

the

elephant

swung

his

trunk

and

swatted

that

disciple

hard

and

threw

him

into

the

ditch

where

he

was

scratched

with

the

brambles

well

he

was

very

that

I

am

brahman

and

all

other

creatures

is

that

not

so

master

and

the

master

said

yes

it

is

so

well

he

said

I

was

walking

out

in

the

road

and

I

saw

this

elephant

coming

towards

me

and

it

didn't

seem

to

me

to

be

necessary

to

get

out

of

the

way

when

the

mahut

riding

the

elephant

warned

me

to

do

so

because

I

figured

that

I

was

brahman

and

the

elephant

was

brahman

and

I

could

come

to

no

harm

you

stupid

man

said

Sri

Ramakrishna

you

didn't

realize

that

the

voice

of

the

mahut

was

also

brahman

and

you

should

have

heeded

that

too

so

also

in

this

case

the

one

who

is

trying

to

regain

the

vision

is

are

actually

feeling

now

and

which

you

are

ignoring

because

of

your

eagerness

to

feel

some

other

way

that

is

the

voice

of

the

mahut

and

that

too

is

brahman

nine

times

out

of

ten

an

observation

of

this

kind

will

mean

nothing

and

will

fall

as

flat

as

being

told

that

everything

in

this

universe

is

the

smell

of

burnt

almonds

but

the

tenth

time

it

will

dawn

upon

you

as

a

statement

of

total

and

luminous

clarity

I

do

not

think

we

need

have

any

fear

that

this

tenth

time

will

never

come

for

in

other

circumstances

it

has

come

again

and

again

think

back

to

school

days

when

with

the

utmost

care

your

teacher

explained

over

and

over

the

mysteries

of

percentage

or

sentence

structure

or

daylight

saving

time

and

you

consistently

failed

to see

the point

and

then

suddenly

something

clicked

in your

mind

and

the

principle

became

clear

there

is

a

Chinese

poem

which

says

words

do

not

make

a

man

understand

it

takes

the

man

to

understand

the

words

now

today

we

are

living

in

an

age

which

is

quite

peculiar

because

in

the

world

of

science

there

are

no

longer

any

secrets

because

the

method

of

science

requires

that

all

scientists

be

in

communication

with

each

other

and

therefore

that

every

scientist

as soon

as he

has

discovered

something

or

got a

good

idea

he

rushes

into

print

and

it's

important

for

him

to

do

so

because

some

other

scientist

somewhere

else

in

the

world

might

be

thinking

about

something

on

the

same

lines

and

would

be

stimulated

in

his

work

by

this

man's

speculations

even

if

not

by

discoveries

and

so

the

whole

scientific

world

tries

to

remain

in

communication

and

for

this

reason

it

was

absolutely

impossible

to

keep

atomic

energy

a

secret

in

former

ages

that

might

have

been

managed

because

there

were

many

secrets

once

upon

a

time

and

people

were

not

admitted

to

these

secrets

unless

they

were

in

we

live

in

such

a

dangerous

age

because

all

the

secrets

are

out

in

the

open

and

anybody

can

run

amuck

with

them

and

that's

just

the

situation

we

have

to

face

and

that

is

just

the

situation

we

have

to

handle

it

is

too

late

to

stop

it

because

that

would

be

as

they

say

locking

the

vital

a

few

months

ago

said

there

are

two

major

forces

operating

in

the

world

today

for

good

or

for

evil

one

is

red

china

the

other

is

LSD

and

there

is

a

certain

reason

why

such

a

thing

as

a

certain

chemical

which

is

capable

of

opening

people's

minds

in a

certain

way

should

be

something

extremely

disturbing

because

this

particular

chemical

in

common

with

a

number

of

others

that

have

been

known

for

centuries

but

have

been

rather

played

cool

through

those

centuries

is

capable

of

doing

something

which

simply

cannot

be

tolerated

that

is

to

say

capable

of

letting

properly

prepared

individuals

or

sometimes

improperly

prepared

individuals

in

on

secret

which

is

very

closely

guarded

and

which

is

as

a

matter

of

fact

the

deepest

and

most

fundamental

of

all

our

social

taboos

I

have

just

finished

writing

a

book

which

I

have

had

with

a

sort

of

tongue

in

cheek

attitude

had

the

sex

is

not

really

a

serious

taboo

in

our

culture

if

you

are

initiating

a

young

person

into

life

and

you

realize

that

your

son

or

daughter

is

going

to

college

and

that

you

ought

therefore

to

have

a

think

deeply

what

is

fundamentally

taboo

in

this

culture

and

perhaps

in

other

cultures

as

well

what

would

what

information

in

other

words

would

really

let

the

cat

out

of

the

bag

and

give

away

the

persons

simply

not

make

well

there

is

one

and

that

is

if

anybody

claims

that

he

is

God

that

simply

isn't

done

certainly

not

in

our

culture

although

it's

very

frequent

in

India

but

in

our

culture

that

is

simply

not

allowed

because

we

most

of

us

from

a

Christian

background

and

if

not

that

from

a

Jewish

background

and

there's

a

great

given

common

because

both

Christians

and Jews

are

concerned

about

somebody

called

Jesus

Christ

both

Christians

and Jews

are

in

a

way

followers

of

Jesus

Christ

in

different

ways

he

is a

problem

to

both

because

he

was

the

man

who

came

out

and

discovered

he

was

God

and

that

simply

is

impermissible

the

Jews

perfectly

even

more

tactfully

than

the

Jews

by

putting

him

on

a

pedestal

and

saying

this

was

the

only

man

who

ever

was

God

and

nobody

else

was

really

so

before

and

certainly

nobody

can

be

so

afterwards

stop

right

there

put

him

on

the

altar

bow

down

to

him

worship

him

so

that

everything

he

had

to

say

will

be

null

and

void

and

it

worked

beautifully

but

you

see

the

trouble

about

deep

secrets

is

they

can't

be

repressed

indefinitely

now

here's

the

problem

you

see

that

there

are

certain

processes

some

of

which

are

what

you

might

call

spiritual

exercises

others

are

simply

chemicals

others

are

and

self

goes

with

other

and

as

this

becomes

clear

to

you

it's

rather

shaking

because

look

if

what

you

define

as

you

is

inseparable

from

everything

which

you

define

as

not

you

just

as

front

is

inseparable

from

back

then

you

realize

that

deep

down

between

self

and

other

there

is

some

sort

of

conspiracy

if

these

things

always

occur

in

combination

and

look

very

different

from

each

other

and

feel

quite

different

nevertheless

the

feeling

of

difference

between

them

allows

each

one

to

exist

and

so

underneath

the

opposition

or

the

polarity

between

self

and

other

or

between

any

other

pair

of

opposites

you

can

think

of

there

is

something

in

common

as

there

is

for

example

between

figure

and

background

you

can't

see

a

figure

without

a

background

you

can't

have

an

organism

without

an

environment

equally

you

can't

have

a

background

without

a

figure

or

an

environment

without

organisms

in it

or

without

things

in it

you

can't

have

space

which

is

unoccupied

by any

solid

you

cannot

have

solids

not

occupying

some

space

this

is

absolutely

elementary

and yet

we

don't

realize

it

because

for

example

the

average

person

thinks

that

space

is

nothing

it

is

just

a

sort

of

not

there

in which

there

are

things

and

we

are

slightly

afraid

that

not

there

ness

that

nothingness

that

darkness

that

the

negative

poles

of all

these

oppositions

will

win

that

they

will

eventually

swallow

up

every

kind

of

being

and

every

kind

of

there

ness

but

when

you

catch

on

to

the

game

you

realize

that

won't

happen

because

what

is

called

not

existing

is

quite

incapable

of

being

there

without

the

contrast

of

something

called

existing

it's

like

the

crest

and

the

trough

of

a

wave

you

can't

have

a

wave

that

is

all

trough

and

no

crest

just

as

you

can't

have

thing

has

never

been

manifested

in

the

physical

universe

they

go

together

and

that

is

the

secret

there

really

is

no

other

secret

than

that

but

it

is

thoroughly

repressed

and

therefore

we

are

all

educated

to

feel

that

we've

got

to

fight

for

the

white

because

the

black

might

win

we've

got

to

survive

you

must

survive

that's

the

great

thing

we're

all

working

rounding

it

out

day

after

day

anxiety

because

this

is

a

description

of

anxiety

is

the

fear

that

one

of

a

pair

of

opposites

might

cancel

the

other

forever

and

if

by

any

chance

by

any

means

you

find

out

that

is

not

so

you

have

game

the

game

called

white

must

win

because

you

know

that

neither

black

nor

white

are

going

to

win

because

they

belong

to

each

other

so

one

of

the

problems

of

the

various

chemicals

which

can

change

the

and

people

who

take

these

chemicals

and

see

through

the

human

game

cannot

be

trusted

they

may

decide

to be

good

sports

and

go

back

into

the

game

and

play

it

as

if

it

were

for

real

or

they

may

not

and

if

they

don't

what's

going

to

happen