The controversial Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa called this “spiritual materialism”. In his book, Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism he stated that:
“Walking the spiritual path properly is a very subtle process; it is not something to jump into naively. There are numerous sidetracks which lead to a distorted, ego-centered version of spirituality; we can deceive ourselves into thinking we are developing spiritually when instead we are strengthening our egocentricity through spiritual techniques. This fundamental distortion may be referred to as spiritual materialism.”
Now, I have already talked a bit on the relationship between Buddhism and other faiths. It is also well known that the Buddha taught everyone, regardless of caste, race, gender, etc. The Dharma places a higher value on a person’s ethic and virtue rather than what family or caste one was born into. Buddha stated in the Vasala Sutta that, “not by birth is one an outcast; not…
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it is sad when we have to pay for what god gives us free
🙂 Funny cartoon. That was a very good read. Thank you for posting it.
Trouble is we all need guidance. Initially from our parents, then our teachers, hopefully our friends, then our mentors. Sometimes that costs. Maybe money, maybe time, maybe commitment. Any of us that meditate have had to learn that from someone else. After all teaching is one of the most spiritual practises there is. 🙂