Fruit of the Contemplative Life
Fruit of the contemplative life: => Spiritual Crisis => : Jhanananda March 12, 2023, 12:51:35 PM
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While we have been discussing the dark night of the soul on other threads, I thought I might discuss why mystics become mystics. After reflecting upon the history of the major mystics it came to me that the Dark Night of the Soul is the motivation of the mystics to become mystics. After all we should be asking why so many mystics came from wealth and power, and gave it all up to become recluses, mendicants and otherwise completely impoverished and dedicated to becoming enlightened, which we will define here as becoming a mystic?
My guess is they all experienced some serious trauma in their life, which so broke them internally that they could not otherwise function in life. I am reminded specifically of one of the first Sufis at the time of the Islamic expansion out of Arabia into what is now today Afghanistan. The ruling monarch of the region known as Afghanistan today were apparently devout Buddhists at the time of their defeat by early Muslim conquerors. One of the young sons of the ruling monarch became a mendicant preaching very Buddhist like lifestyle and philosophy within the context of Islam. His ruling family being conquered surely would have been a deeply traumatic experience. In my study of history I have read some accounts of conquests and these were particularly horrific accounts, so this Sufi mystic was most likely so deeply traumatized there was no moving forward in life without complete renunciation.
I am also reminded of Francis of Assisi. His dad was a wealthy merchant. There is a war between city states that Francis gets caught up in. He returns home an emotional wreck, and ends up bed-ridden for a period. He meets Claire, and brother Leo at that time, and begins to recover and leaves his status of wealth and becomes a mendicant, and mystic.
And, since the primary focus of this forum is based upon early Buddhist doctrine and contemplative arts, then we should be asking why Siddhartha Gautama left his fathers wealth to become a mystic? And, right off we need to recognize that before Siddhartha set off to become a mendicant (samana) he sees suffering among the people on the road he traveled with his cherioteer. And, while we are at it, Siddhartha's father, and Francis of Assisi's father do not fit into the story after the son becomes a mendicant.
Also, as stated on other recent threads: Teresa of Avila came from a powerful and wealthy Jewish converso family shortly after the reconquest of Spain, and her grandfather had been burned at the stake for secretly practicing Jewish mysticism, so her family put her into a convent to prove their conversion to Christianity.
And, Teresa's genius student, John of the Cross, was a Moor, and grew up in an orphanage, so he surely had some trauma as well.
In conclusion I would say we have some strong evidence of trauma being the inspiration for why someone gives up the material life and wholly dedicates themselves to the spiritual life. So I agree with Alexander when he wrote the following:
We all have trauma. Trauma is the vehicle. All you have to do is get in the car ;D
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the Dark Night of the Soul is the motivation of the mystics to become mystics.
Thanks for this thoughtful post, Jeffrey.
As I read through the examples of mystics who gave up their wealthy birthright in order to become mystics, I thought of Gautama when the Four Noble Truths came to him. What is the first Truth?
There is suffering.
Suffering constitutes our individual and collective plight, which we must negotiate one way or another.
A mystic who follows a Path such as what Gautama laid out stands a chance of traversing the Dark Night, and thus becoming a guide of others who are still in the throes of suffering. The simple act of dedicating oneself to a contemplative lifestyle offers a level of peace and ease that the world desperately needs, and for the mystic who takes such a step, it offers a way out.
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Thanks for this thoughtful post, Jeffrey.
As I read through the examples of mystics who gave up their wealthy birthright in order to become mystics, I thought of Gautama when the Four Noble Truths came to him. What is the first Truth?
There is suffering.
Yes, I read this as a reality check. Can the contemplative grasp the reality that the material world is characterized by suffering, and someone with PTSD is going to know that better than the people who have experienced little suffering, or are in denial that they have PTSD.
Suffering constitutes our individual and collective plight, which we must negotiate one way or another.
I completely agree here as well. In fact I would argue that suffering (PTSD) is the very motivation for the future mystic to give up the obsession for the material world to lead a rigorous, self-aware, contemplative life.
A mystic who follows a Path such as what Gautama laid out stands a chance of traversing the Dark Night, and thus becoming a guide of others who are still in the throes of suffering. The simple act of dedicating oneself to a contemplative lifestyle offers a level of peace and ease that the world desperately needs, and for the mystic who takes such a step, it offers a way out.
I agree here to. One who is addicted to the material world is not going to find the still mind necessary to find peace.
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I agree here to. One who is addicted to the material world is not going to find the still mind necessary to find peace.
I have a friend (Remer), I always say he is like a bear ;D The bear likes honey. But the bees are never far behind.
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One who is addicted to the material world is not going to find the still mind necessary to find peace.
I love the concept of addiction to the material world.
We are attracted by the shiny object. Has anyone messaged me? Any non-spam emails I need to follow-up on? What headline am I missing out on? What is the royal family up to today?
Most of us have at least one addiction. I love my morning coffee. I check this forum several times a day for new messages. Many other addictions have come and gone down through the years, having been greatly reduced by my experiences as a mystic. Most of us on this forum are living testaments to the fact that a contemplative practice really does reduce craving for things we once considered essential.
Developing the capacity and habit of inward focus is the only true cure for material world addiction. No pill can take its place.
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I agree here to. One who is addicted to the material world is not going to find the still mind necessary to find peace.
I have a friend (Remer), I always say he is like a bear ;D The bear likes honey. But the bees are never far behind.
Perfect!
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Definitely for me there were several major cathertic episodes in my life that pushed me forward into the lifestyle. I was very ill as a child of 3 until 13, that was a major push. The incident in 2018 was a major push as well. I also think going to college and being alone at age 18 was a major push.
-David
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I love the concept of addiction to the material world.
We are attracted by the shiny object. Has anyone messaged me? Any non-spam emails I need to follow-up on? What headline am I missing out on? What is the royal family up to today?
>>>
I stumbled across something supprising that has helped me with obsessive thoughts recently. My parents suggested I take supplemental Vitamin D like they do. In the past I have had traditionally low Vitamin D levels. After several days of supplementing last week I suddenly noticed more inner calmness and fewer obsessive thoughts. I would recommend anyone to try it as well, digging into my memory I do recall low D levels associated with depression.
I found this supporting article:
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In my practice, what I have found is that when patients are not fully responding to antidepressants and their vitamin D blood levels are low, once we add vitamin D supplements the response to medication improves....
The National Health and Nutritional Examination Survey confirmed that people with vitamin D deficiency are at significantly higher risk of depression than individuals with normal levels. A study from the Netherlands found that those living with depression showed 14% lower circulating concentrations of vitamin D (25-hydroxyvitamin D, a form of vitamin D) than those not diagnosed with depression....
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https://www.usnews.com/wellness/mind/articles/vitamin-d-for-depression
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-David
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I have a friend (Remer), I always say he is like a bear ;D The bear likes honey. But the bees are never far behind.
Thank you, David, Tad, Michael and Alexander, for your contributions. I particularly like this metaphor, Alexander, because it reveals the attraction to the material world, and the painful consequences of our attraction.