Not long ago I was reading an announcement about a series of public events being held for almost a month in a couple of different US cities. Then at the end of the email was this fascinating bombshell of a sentence: “No interviews or personal meetings will be scheduled during this time period.” This is referring to what used to be the practice (in this particular group) of individual followers being able to schedule some personal, private face-time with the guru. During the “personal interview” one could have the opportunity to talk to one’s spiritual master about the spiritual or mundane affairs of life. The teacher would set a certain amount of time aside for this purpose of meeting with souls and offering spiritual direction and guidance being the guru, in other words. The role of being a guru and working with others is still on the to-do list apparently, just somewhat further down the list. Personal contact with the teacher, and group meditation, are just the first of many spiritual principles to be abandoned when a group experiences growth beyond the threshold of manageability.

What happens when a group with a belief-system that there can only be “one” valid guru on Earth at a time, desires to promote, grow, expand, market some more, and swell their ranks, to the degree that it is no longer possible for everyone to have at least some opportunity for one-on-one encounters with the master? No more personal interviews? A friend of mine, who also read the same email announcement with the devastating “No Personal Interviews” clause attached at the end, said something quite profound and authoritative: “Maybe you can recommend a good book for me please, maybe another lesser-known Teacher? Big names don’t have time for small people anymore.” I find that to be such a powerful observation. After reading it, I knew it would be something I would quote for many years to come.

And, in groups where gurus have an overwhelmingly large numbers of followers, letter writing may not necessarily provide one with an avenue of communication either. One may still not actually make genuine contact with the master or receive back any real, direct, personal guidance. Often, with some large Eastern paths, there is an approach of having on file many pre-authored, standardized letters in anticipation of people writing, asking for guidance or blessings. Such are the predictable vicissitudes of life that standardized replies can be written in anticipation of people’s future letters voicing concerns about deaths in families, marriages, divorces, career choices, questions about success in business, and so on! By churning out these ready-made replies, it’s possible for guru-helpers to process large amounts of mail. Good for them I suppose, but what about the needs of the people!? Thus, assuming you receive a reply at all, and there is even some doubt about that, there is a likelihood of ending up with something to the effect of Standardized Reply Letter # 47, signed, Yours Truly, Autopen (Signature Signing Machine), not an actual reply to specifically your sincere attempt at writing a letter. One may find that their questions remain unanswered.

The notion of the inaccessible teacher is very much at odds with the traditional concept of living masters and their role in the lives of their students as “Light-givers.” Light-giver is the classic meaning of the word guru. Mystical or contemplative paths, East and West, usually advocate some direct contact between teacher and student in person, or at the very least encourage communication via letter or phone, and these days we can add email and online chat to the list as well. What would be the point of having a guru you can hardly ever, or perhaps maybe even never, communicate with? Might as well turn to past holy books, opening a page randomly for guidance. For mystical or esoteric paths with an advanced meditation practice and ethical system however, old scriptures written on cuneiform tablets, scrolls or parchments are not enough. The illusion of guidance provided by photocopied letters signed by signature machines, or the illusion of intimacy, waving at a someone in a motorcade that passes you by, is also not enough, is not adequate, can not honestly be called guidance from a living teacher, is not an encounter with a Satguru, is not discipleship, is not personal contact or spiritual direction.

Empire Builders vs. Original Source Groups

There are pluses and minuses with both approaches to spiritual paths. Big groups have millions of followers. Their “golden arches,” if you will, are visible in many cities. They act as corporate chains, spreading around standardized creeds and recipes, sharing with humanity at least some ideas that emanate from a traditional school of spirituality. With their visibility they do introduce many people to concepts and practices they may not have been aware of or exposed to previously, and that’s generally a good thing.

I put the Apostle Paul’s version of Christianity in this category of Empire Building or Corporate Chain Religions. Paul vs. the Essene-Ebionite or Gnostic remnant is a useful analogy here. If one were alive during the First Century in the ancient Greek city of Ephesus on the west coast of Anatolia, it is most likely that you would have heard about the message of Jesus from a representative of Paul’s branch of Christianity. You would receive a version of the gospel edited from a Pauline perspective. At the time it might even seem like the one-and-only perspective. One probably would not even think of Paul’s movement as a distinct “branch” of Christianity. One might assume there is only one group, a single church universal and triumphant. Only after being informed by that tradition for a period of time would there be a possibility or likelihood that one might eventually learn of other branches or versions of Christianity independent of Paul’s “brand,” if you will. One might even at some point be attracted to one of those other “branches,” perhaps with a different apostolic succession linked to Thomas, James the Just, or Mary Magdalene, finding in it much more wisdom, depth and satisfaction, a rich spiritual heritage with genuine Aramaic roots, closer to the original unvarnished message and vision of the historic Jesus, in one’s estimation. Without your encounter with the Big Name Empire Building path, you might have never had the luxury of digging deeper and unearthing other possibilities, discovering a more mystical spiritual community to join… or defect to. Thus, I observe there is a legitimate role for both the Empire Building paths as well as the lesser-known Source Communities that originally, several generations prior, gave them birth, existing in the contemplative quietude of an inner circle of disciples in Jerusalem (before 70 AD) further to the East, Qumran, Nag Hammadi, Hathras, Agra, etc.

It’s always quite liberating to have choices when it comes to the thorny subject of spiritual paths. It’s very, very, very unhealthy to be trapped in an imaginary matrix where there is only one true guru on Planet Earth, only one option. If one has been indoctrinated into thinking there is only one path on Earth for this lifetime, only one choice and no place to run, there is the danger that one could rationalize all their concerns away in the name of protecting their own spiritual condition. Living in a multi-verse where there are multiple options, however, makes one bold and daring, willing to ask the tough questions come-what-may, allowing one to view things fearlessly, free of worry. One develops a wisdom-eye blessed with discernment and high standards.

Learn New Things – Ascend and Discover A New World!

“Cut off have been My people for lack of Knowledge.” (Hosea 4: 6, Young’s Literal Translation Bible) That verse from the prophet Hosea sums up the human condition quite nicely. Being cut off without full access to Knowledge or Gnosis, without even knowing what it is we might be missing, with heredity and environment working against us, sometimes mislead by others, sometimes mislead by our very own ego-dominated self, who is there who is free of this labyrinth of ego, mind, and matter, and therefore can help us escape, too? Who can we trust to be a worthy Sherpa guide on this unfamiliar path of ascension?

I find this passage from the Corpus Hermeticum to be one of the most eloquent descriptions of the awakened soul, trapped somewhere in time, seeking to begin its search for a competent and qualified teacher, spiritual path and initiation into the Inward Life: “People, where are you rushing, so intoxicated and having so fully drunk the strong wine of reasoning unaccompanied by acquaintance [Gnosis, Spiritual Knowledge]? Look up with the eyes of your soul—and if you cannot all do so, at least those of you who can! For the imperfection that comes from unacquaintance is flooding the entire earth, corrupting the soul along with the body that encloses it and preventing it from putting in at the Havens of Safety. Do not be swept away by the main current! Rather, you who can must avail yourselves of a counter-current, take to the Haven of Safety, put in there, and look for a leader to show you the way to the Doors of Acquaintance [Gnosis], where there is Bright Light, pure from darkness, where no one is intoxicated, but all are sober, fixing their eyes on that Being who wills to be seen--with the heart, for that Being cannot be heard or told of or seen by the outer eyes, only by inner spiritual vision.” (The Gnostic Scriptures, Bentley Layton)  To be continued…

James Bean reviews books and music for the Wisdom Radio Network and other stations via a syndicated radio program called Spiritual Awakening, and teaches Sant Mat Meditation and Surat Shabda Yoga.