The Child Within Us Lives! by William Samuel pp. 339 - 343
THE
ZEN TRAP, THE TAOIST TRAP, THE ABSOLUTIST TRAP
The Semantic Games of Subjectivism (first published 1980's)
(Editors notes: Read William's use of the words 'metaphysics' and
'subjective' as today's word 'non-dualism')
Nothing is more ridiculous than a theological argument among
theologians, especially if they use a common book to support their
differences and can't even agree on exactly which verses to use nor
on how to interpret the ones they do use.
Ah, but nothing is more absurd (or funny) than an argument among
metaphysicians. The reason for the absolute absurdity lies in the
fact that metaphysicians argue about things they say don't exist and
can't happen.
The danger of metaphysics (and perhaps the reason the rabbis of old
discouraged the study of subjectivism) is that one can so easily
entrap himself in his own semantic game and begin believing himself
and his words.
Metaphysicians who have discovered the inner nature of things are,
sooner or later, brought to express that knowledge to others-if only
because "others" see their light and come asking questions. One can
spot the metaphysician who is entrapped at the absolute level
because he has stopped asking questions. He has begun believing he
must find every answer within his own objective/subjective head, so
to speak. He denies the "outside," calling it an illusion.
The metaphysician, old or new, finds that his subjective words have
quantum power in his experience, compared to the former use of those
same words "out there" in the world. Right there, the unwary
metaphysician, establishing the "God is absolutely ALL" position,
spends the rest of his life explaining (and trying to understand)
that position-and, without realizing it, never moves beyond it. He
may even hold to that lordly place telling of the simplicity of
Allness and the inability of words to capture his thoughts, all the
way to his "seeming" grave, but he stays right there at the semantic
bend of the river, content to see himself able to joust verbally
with "others" and hold his own.
From that point, unless the subjectivist is willing to move on, he
measures his progress, not by new insights and new Light of the
Absolute, but by his ability to hold to the "God is ALL" (or
whatever else) position. "I am God and not man!" he proclaims
against the greatest odds-enjoying the battle.
This is the Zen Trap, the Taoist Master's Trap, the Absolutist Trap.
While it is absolutely necessary that we come to this correct
conclusion-God is, indeed, all in all-we are expected to go beyond
it. "It is a mountain; it is not a mountain; it is a mountain
again." The subjectivist who has not recognized the third position
can't get there by merely claiming to be there.
Ah, but there is Something Beyond.
The Child within us is beyond. The Child within us remains
unacknowledged and undiscovered by the Zen advocate, the
subjectivist and Taoist.
"Nothing is beyond INFINITY," says the Absolutist.
God is beyond Infinity to infinity. The Child I am is beyond
infinity. For goodness sake, even experimental mathematics is beyond
infinity. If science can get beyond infinity, why can't we? We can.
"Nothing is beyond ALL," says the absolutist.
God is beyond All-or any other concept. The Child I am is beyond
all. "See the trap that semantics can become," said Han, old master
of Kwangse Province.
"See that trap and go beyond that trap. But one doesn't go beyond
it, without working his way through it. THAT is the hard part. THAT
is the Zen of the matter. That is also why we get busy and get going
and get beyond the glib flow of words that settles nothing out there
in the world-and frequently misleads others. Leave the endless
talking to entrenched metaphysicians and theologians. We begin the
DOING. We complete the INTERFACE."
The paradox that so baffles us at the metaphysical and
transcendental level is that the interface of DOING requires the
concomitant use of words that don't matter. Try to get a
metaphysician to DO anything for the world and he'll tell you
everytime, "There is no world to illumine or instruct. There is no
world to heal." Those words are only half the Truth. Ah, but at
least they are half the Truth, half way up the mountain. Indeed, we
get our subjectivism correct-that only God is happening-then we put
our knowledge to work on the illusory scene.
THE WORLD IS A PERFECT VESSEL AND WHOEVER TRIES TO ALTER IT, SPOILS
IT. LaoTse, 500 B.C.
The view that there is no world to heal and no persons to instruct
is a perfect view-almost. But there is a View beyond that view, as
the real masters have told, including LaoTse, Jesus and many others.
The greater view simply hasn't been widely "seen" yet.
"Oh, yes? What?" the minister, metaphysician and philosopher ask in
unison.
There is a world to be understood rather than denied. When it is
understood, we understand the reasons for the illusion of a world in
need of healing.
Nothing is done for this world of illusion by the view that there is
no world to heal nor persons to illumine. (If the absolute view of
metaphysics really "worked," the illusive world would not appear to
be on the brink of a common disaster in every field of human
experience.) To arrive at the near-final conclusion that the world
is all right (despite the tenacious claims and holds of world-belief
to the contrary) is a wonderful and necessary second step, but Truth
is an ongoing revelation that ultimately tells us why the appearing
appears. Subjectivism without the Child within is a dead thing, even
as religion is. Without the Child, religion and metaphysics are like
stillbirths in the world. The final light from the third step (the
step beyond metaphysics) tells us what we are to do for the
illusion. When we know this, we set out to do it. And until we do
that, we haven't done anything.
To paraphrase the enlightened Zen saying once more (Mountain; not a
Mountain; Mountain again): First there is a world to heal and many
ignorant people to be instructed; then we see there is no world to
heal nor persons to be illumined; finally, the world is understood
for why it appears, and our real action begins, with much for us to
do in each position.
These are the apparent steps along the way up the mountain of Da
Shan. The minister often bogs down in the first step, the absolutist
most certainly in the second. The illumined are those who have
continued to move on and have found the Child within themselves. The
Child is the third step, and those who have found It are already
gathering into a joyful new community preparing the way for
mankind's recognition of the Child-within-Everyman. Messiah!
This Community spans the universe in a sweet camaraderie of
simplicity and childlikeness.
But, let the reader understand: The Child within us can be
acknowledged and found anywhere along the objective or subjective
way. Within religion or outside it. We do not leave or forsake
either science, religion, metaphysics or "the world." Rather we
understand them and include them to infinity, perceiving whatever is
real of their activities and truth. The Child within does this for
us! Wherever and whenever the Child enters our conscious
recognition, That One takes us quicky through the objective,
subjective, male, female, first, last, above and below "steps,"
without ignoring or ridiculing them-and brings us to a marvelous
Balance and a unitive knowledge of Godhead. In that balance, where
the marvelous Equation is learned and lived, we live our
subjectivism in the objective experience, accomplishing wonders-and
mankind doesn't even see us doing it!
The first step laughs at the second. The second step holds itself
mighty and superior, doing nothing in the world that it calls an
illusion. The second step deceives the elect and denies both the
first and third steps with all the vigor it possesses. Religion and
metaphysics without the Child neither eat the oats they profess nor
allow the world to. But the Child IS the third step-and includes the
lesser steps to infinity. The Child within us leads the way to
Godhead here at hand. |
