Empty Words or Words from Character

Shawn Tedrow

I recently wrote a post entitled Thinking or Being that seemed to stir up a little controversy. Though I attempted to withdraw any doubt that this was meant to be people specific, I do not withdraw the premise of my post.

I speak to myself as well as this audience. It appears to me that today's spirituality is about swimming in the bay of clever and empty words, containing very little substance of proceeding forth from character. There seems to be a complete disconnect, where words are drifting on their own, detached from being borne of REAL LIVING.

I feel like today's spirituality is turning into a bunch of "pie in the sky" groovy words abstract from experience. It is like there is a lot of chatter about living in a particular foreign country without anyone ever LIVING in that country. But these inexperienced chatters of that country seems to keep us anchored at the Bay of Delusions, as if we are actually experiencing living in that country.

I am not at all saying that we need to start doing a bunch of good works that would replicate our words. I am trying to say that it is quite easy to "talk about" this Tao stuff, void of experiencing Tao. Then these inexperienced words seem to put us in a trance as if "these words" represent spiritual growth and understanding. Words become the standard to measure spirituality. A talented poet would win at this game.

Maybe this is why I like Trey's post when he talks about a daily experience he had. I am not saying that the Tao-talk we do needs to always be related to a specific experience but it needs to be borne from experience. Otherwise, what is it?

Who knows? Maybe I am just going through a personal observation and I am projecting it outward.

Thanks for listening.

You can check out Shawn's other musings here.