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Word Gems exploring self-realization, sacred personhood, and full humanity
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Most “all” statements are incorrect, but, it’s probably true to say that, all of the world’s religions, in broad outline, began similarly. It happened like this: There was once a shaman, or holy man, or seer, or mystic, or priest, or saint, or healer. This other-worldly individual began to have visions, saw things, knew things, sensed things - today, we might call this rare orchid a gifted psychic-medium. man, you're really crazy Einstein In any case, all of this access to esoteric knowledge would prompt friends and family to call him weird or insane. Editor’s note: A long time ago I listened to an interview with songwriter and singer Neil Sedaka. He recounted his early years in the business and his difficulty in making a start. He said that he’d written some song, soon to be a mega-hit, and he played it for his sister – who reported to him that she hated it. Neil said, when he heard her that, he knew the song was going to the top of the charts. The air continued to get pretty stuffy in the old village, and so the hapless visionary had to leave town. No love lost there, they all said. However, news got around that this guy was spouting some nifty and wise sayings. A small group of followers began to travel with him. Later, with growing notoriety, the shaman began to avoid the public eye. He said that his teachings were spiritual in nature and could not be mass-produced. Some of his ambitious followers, however, did not like this retrenchment, they liked the glitz and the tinsel, and so they waited for a time when they could run things, build a large impressive organization of this world, call themselves the heirs of the prophet, and merchandize the fame of the holy man. keep those tithes and offerings coming in, brother They got their big chance after his passing. And now the former handlers fashioned themselves as worthy to carry on the work of the great teacher. These materialistically-minded ones were intent upon “bottling and selling” the wisdom of the seer: just $29.95, with operators standing by. Rules were created. Regimens developed. Rituals ensued. Hoops to jump through. Lists were made to see who was naughty or nice. A hierarchy was constructed to protect the coffers associated with the legacy of the great mystic. As time went on, but not a long time, the original spiritual teachings of the teacher were paid mere lip service in favor of a legalistic bizarro-version that was sold to the public. Forms and shadows now dominated and the reality was denied. Ostensibly, great respect was paid to the holy man, but, with irony, the new corporate edifice, bearing his name, began to represent exactly what the seer did not want. The new church leadership emphasized God's punishment and the laity's unworthiness, and played upon the crowd's fear of death. This, and a heavy dose of guilt psychology, kept everyone on time for weekly services. Such a tidy state of affairs and the well-ordered life. It is not far-fetched to suggest that, in the main, in terms of major tenet, this is how all the religions of the world developed. Why is this so? The shaman was receiving messages from Spirit Guides on the other side. This is extremely common. Every age and generation has its psychic-mediums who receive messages. The book “Hello From Heaven” is based upon thousands of such missives.
It’s also possible that, if the shaman were an immature person, he was tuning into mischievous spirits who were attempting to cause trouble for him and make him look like a fool. This too is common. While psychic messages are commonplace, it can all go wrong if the person receiving the transmission is immature or led by the egoic “false self.” This will result in half-baked and self-serving messages. It can be a mine-field of danger and errant teaching. The solution is – we’re not supposed to start religions or join one. We’re to be taught by God directly. There’s no need to surrender to any Dear Leader who claims to have a “red phone” to God. We can all get one of these. No big deal.
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