Q1-19840920-Larry_Rosenberg-UNK-buddhas_ancient_med_path_a_modern_challenge_part_ii-1516 Leandra Tej

Talk: 19840920-Larry_Rosenberg-UNK-buddhas_ancient_med_path_a_modern_challenge_part_ii-1516 Leandra Tejedor Start_time: 00:01 Display_question: Can you talk about the use of visions for deepening in our practice? Keyword_search: Buddhism, visions, energy, memory, unknown, spiritual practice, Quran, Bible, intelligence, revelations Question_content: Questioner: (inaudible) That you are ridden with it… Larry: I hear you. Questioner: And the fact that there are… Larry: Yes, that's a very…that’s a delicate one. It's no question that certain, let's say, intimations, and visions, give us energy, and propel us, in a certain direction. And as much value as that has, there will come a point… I'm saying this rather dogmatically, but I don't think it's unique to Buddhism. I think it's true of all…they'll come a point, where that's its own limitation because…the unknown is beyond….if you can already imagine it, then it's not unknown. Then it's from your past. It's from your memory bank. Even if it's a very extraordinary memory, culled from spiritual books, inspiring, wonderful. The unknown is not a concept, or an image, or the truth, or God. Break_line: And so, at a certain point, any anticipation of what it's like, is a barrier. I'm not saying eliminate it, but at a certain point you yourself may start to realize, that this is an expression of mind, and that the spiritual journey must use mind, creatively, and at a certain point go beyond itself. At which point, any…vision of how you think things are, may block you. It may block you. And that becomes, in spiritual practice, the challenge area, because you'll want to hold on. And then someone like myself will say, let it go. Because in back of that is, what you want. But it's not what you think you want, because what you think you want, is what you think you want. Break_line: In other words, the vision is to some degree, socially determined. Now, perhaps there are revelations, that are deeper. Let’s say all… the Quran, or the Bible, or the Buddha’s teaching, where is that coming from? Can we get the most intelligent people on the planet together? Or the think tank, are they going to be able to write the Quran, or the Bible? I doubt it. Now, at that point, don't know. I don't think anyone who we have has the slightest idea, as to where this incredible intelligence is coming from. But you can be a manifestation of it. The degree to which you empty yourself of the known, even those, and I see you cherish that. So for you, that would be... a teacher would probably push you a little bit there. Oh, you like those visions, huh. Something like that. End_time: 02:19