Re: Loss of Intellect..?
Date: December 05, 2010 11:05PM
I think 'The Power of Now' was a pretty good read which offered me a new perspective on things: how we, as human beings, label everything, but often (when taking time off) are not present in a way that enables us to truly enjoy beautiful and simple things, like nature, without over-analyzing them. But, the more i progressed in the book, the more i got the impression it was just too radical for me, and too much of some kind of deep, dark abyss. I didn't believe 'living in the now' and not using your critical thinking facilities would somehow magically improve the world and myself, so i didn't finish reading the book. I read through it again at a later time, but again i didn't finish it. The different perspective this book offered was refreshing, and i'll remember these things, but i don't need to hear or read anything else from people like Eckhart Tolle.
Now that i'm critically analyzing 'spiritual teachers', since i started posting about them and reading through message boards like these about 3 months ago, i feel like i've learned much, much more than i have in the year i've spent reading New Age books and just consuming strange theories about strange stuff that i simply couldn't apply to my personal life. I feel much better about being finished with that kind of stuff now, as it turns out that the faith i was seeking, turns out to be a just a very simple and positive concept which doesn't require me to try and change anything about myself, or anything like that. I've also learned that many of these New Agers try to force others to accept their viewpoints, and if they don't, those people are somehow inferior or evil, though they'll never admit this of course. Why? Why should others think the same as them? Will it make the world better if we all try to detach ourselves from feelings and thoughts perceived as negative? Don't think so...
What i've learned the most through all this, is that we should never stop using our discernment, never stop critically analyzing strange claims people make, checking for background information, read testimonies written by former followers and all that. Just about all New Age 'spiritual teachers' tell their supporters to basically stop thinking, and to newcomers this may sound good and harmless (after all, they want to make themselves feel better and that's usually why they become interested in this kind of stuff) and they often just don't realize how much they are endangering themselves, and how they are not really contributing to making the world a better place.