Namo Buddahya friends!
To continue the theme of mythology, I was thinking about a conversation I had with someone about a “Spiritual Location”.
The conversation started with a man who I will call Scott. Scott recently spent a few days at a retreat facility in Colorado. He told me of driving on to the property, and witnessing a man in simple clothing approach a stupa, walk around it a number of times, and offer a prayer. Scott was intrigued by the sight, and approached the man, asking what he was doing. The man explained that he was a Buddhist, and part of his daily routine was to walk a path in meditation, and offer prayers at the stupa, and other locations. He explained also that this place was one of very few locations on the planet that “spiritual energy” gathered in greater amounts, therefore a person seeking to be more spiritual would have more success here than other places. I looked at the photos he had taken, told him that I would love to visit the center, and spend some time there as the views are lovely. I did not mention to him that I was unaffected by the “spiritual energy” part of the story. I did spend some time thinking about the “spiritual pooling” aspect of his narrative however. Later in the day, we were speaking again, when the topic was brought up, I replied to his excitement with as much restraint and brevity as I felt was appropriate. I explained that though the location was indeed beautiful, and was a place that I would very much enjoy going to for a meditation retreat, that I could gain as much peace, and learn more sitting in front of a brick wall as I could meditating with the beautiful imagery of this place in the mountains. He was taken aback. I further explained that though the location was beautiful, quiet, and serene, there were flaws in the story that the center tells visitors.
First, spirituality of an individual is not a magical force, and the strength of spirituality is based on our own personal determinations, understanding, and inquiries. There is no outside force that can impart spirituality upon us; it is our effort alone that makes us who we are.
Second, though certainly a beautiful location, the peace we may feel there is no different that the peace we feel anytime we take a vacation from our daily lives. It is just as likely that one person can feel at peace in a beautiful location, while the person next to him, can feel anger, sadness, or frustration. Anyone who has ever taken a vacation to a beautiful location feels the serenity (at least for a while) of a new location, as well as the mental relaxation of breaking from a work routine. I did however, agree that if someone has not developed a wiser mindset, that a place of such beauty, and tranquility would feel very spiritual, and this perception would indeed help still the mind. This temporary stilling of the mind would seemingly be attributed to the quiet, and appreciation for the views, but at the end of the day the causation of this feeling would not be because of spiritual pooling, as some might suggest. It must also be said that though I would discount such things as “more-spiritual” locations, any time we can find a way to increase our well-being, especially emotionally, we should pursue this peacefulness.
Lastly, I suggested to him that if one views serenity as an outside force, and confuses this peaceful feeling with an increase of personal spirituality, then that person has fallen in to the trap of a false narrative. By this, I mean simply that a person who chooses to believe that he can only experience spiritual feelings at a particular location (or under certain circumstances) will become reliant on outside source (or locations and situations), and will be less likely to believe that this feeling can be reproduced at home, at work, or even in traffic. Locations, like feelings, are temporary. Relying on a location to “feel” spiritual is another attachment that really impedes personal insight.
The truth is, spirituality, like all feelings, and emotions, is internally generated, and internally regulated. By developing the understanding (a higher mindset) that how we feel is a choice, and is not at all dependent on outside sources, we begin to be see that we have complete control over reactions to outside stimuli, and circumstance.
The beauty of realizing things like this, is that we begin to fully understand that our “peace” is 100% within our control in any given situation. When we begin to embrace our ability to remain peaceful, and to view events as nothing more than momentary conditions, we begin to unravel the emotionally charged feelings we are bound with. This change in our thinking however, is not automatic, it takes, time, and intentionally mindful practice.