Theos-Talk Archives (January 2001 Message tt00111)

Thursday, January 18, 2001



Dear Gerry:

Well I've been the "heart failure" route too (about 4 times),
and that is not funny.

As to being dogmatic, fundamental, etc.. To choose to elect
certain statements from H.P.B., etc. and apply them is not what I
meant at all. H.P.B. came with a Message. We do the selecting.

Our selection filter could be biased. Hence while presenting a
view we ought to make it very clear and say we are not trying to
force anyone into a belief system that we regulate by words we
select. We ought to present what Theosophy has to say on a
subject, and leave it open for further and deeper research. A
mosaic is made by many pieces and also by many workers. But even
the mosaic is governed by a pre-planned pattern.

The way Theosophy operates (if it operates at all) is to let the
student, seeker check out statements and see how they fit into
whatever view he has constructed already. If any "view" is
correct the fitting won't be too difficult. That is if Theosophy
is what it claims to be, namely a record (history) of the
research down the ages by the Adepts and their students in every
department of Nature (S.D. I 272-3)

One of our main problems is the question of independence and
free-will (which we intuitively and instinctively claim) and :
how do we reconcile this if we are having to live in a UNIVERSE
RUN BY KARMIC LAW ? Are we then not slaves revolting at the idea
that what we choose forces us later to expiate or to enjoy the
fruit of our choices?

Religions are generally built on the concept that some kind of
intermediaries (priests, clergy, etc...) have devised a way
whereby the inevitability of KARMIC RESULTS can be either
enhanced (pleasure), or, mitigated (expiation, misery, pain,
suffering). Theosophy looking at this equation says: If you
know it is right -- DO IT. If you know it is wrong and unfair:
ABSTAIN. If you are uncertain, ABSTAIN until one acquires the
wisdom to act rightly. If pressed to act by time and
circumstance, DO THE BEST YOU CAN IMPARTIALLY. Karma accepts no
bargains if the lawful tenor of life has been disturbed, one way
or the other. Harmony is the balancing of opposites. Thought
and desire are also actions and sometimes more potent even if not
overt. They affect our Karma because they attach themselves to
the MONADS (skandhas) around us.

Since, as MONADS we are all eternal Pilgrims, we will be bumping
into each other in the future as we have in the past, and
hopefully we will recognize each other by our compassionate
nature, and our active brotherhood.

Hope this is of help, at least to clarify what I am able to see,

Dal

===================================

-----Original Message-----
From: Gerald Schueler [mailto:gschueler@earthlink.net]
Sent: Tuesday, January 16, 2001 7:09 AM
To: Theosophy Study List
Subject: Fundamentalism

>>Fundamentalist seems to me to be a kind of "no brainer."<<

Hi Dallas. Sorry to hear about your arm/hand. I am still
recovering from
heart failure for about 6 months now, and while I do feel better,
I am not
out of the woods yet. I'm sure our physical problems are all
karmic - we
are working out lots of past karmic baggage and should be better
off down
the road (at least I like to tell myself that!).


>>Bur the use of FUNDAMENTAL facts and ideas shows some
willingness to learn
and change one's point of view.<<

Certainly. Actually I have nothing against fundamentalists per se
so long as
they don't become agressive. The real problem is not
fundamentalism
(assuming that we define this as taking HPB and the MLs as
gospel) but
egotism. The insidious idea that "I am better than you" is the
real problem.
If we really have compassion and brotherhood, we would feel sorry
for those
whom we feel are under us, and try to help them not scorn or
ridicule them.
I know from your posts that you are a compassionate person,
Dallas, and I
respect you for that.


>>And that is individual growth -- something we like to check out
with others, as we can always be wrong somewhere -- and then an
obliging friend comes t one's aid and readjusts.<<

Exactly. When we read and study Theosophy without compassion, we
tend to
rile against those who disagree with us when we should be trying
to help
them.

Jerry S.





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