At the Threshold of the Tao

I wrote and posted the following article at http://autumnhaiku.newvine.com only a week ago.  Wonders! 

There is, within each of us, a "Magnetic Center". It is connected in some way with intuition, with instinct, and it is also known by other names. The name doesn't matter.

For most people, this Magnetic Center is active through childhood, then becomes dormant, un-used for the rest of their lives.

This Magnetic Center is not to be confused with "animal magnetism", the chemistry of sexual attraction, nor is it to be confused with "luck", or that charmed life that some seem to lead.

There comes a point, in some people's lives, when they find themselves feeling bewildered, perhaps even disillusioned. They may wake up one day and find that all which held weight in their lives, all which held colour and depth, is suddenly weightless, bland, shallow. They may think to themselves, "Yesterday, I laughed, and loved, and lived. Where is that passion today?"

Some who reach this threshold, will make all attempts to "shake it off". They will continue with their lives, and thus, without noticing, fall into a mechanical, automated way of living.....marching in step with millions around them.

Some who reach this threshold, lacking the anchors of emotional or intellectual stability, may embark on a journey of endless drifting through the void of the abyss. Some may even prefer to spend their lives adrift; explorers of the void.

Some others, upon reaching this threshold, without understanding how, what, or why (and by chance of external influences and internal reflection), will manage to awaken their Magnetic Centers. This Magnetic Center, once awoken, begins to attract to itself kindred influences, and in this manner, it grows.

If the Magnetic Center receives sufficient nourishment and if there is no strong resistance on the part of an individual's personality, it begins to influence the person's orientation....causing the person to begin to understand the idea of Tao (that there is a Tao, a Way), and to begin the search for it.

Suddenly, resources (perhaps even a Teacher) appear, as if drawn to you magnetically. Like minded seekers begin to appear.

How does one arrive at the threshold? How does one recognize it? How does one keep the Magnetic Center energized, nourished? How does one know that the Way is the correct one?

Some reach the threshold through practice and study; others may turn a corner in their lives and happen on it. It is un-mistakable; easily recognized.

A note here about passion. There is Passion, and there is passion. The second is an illusion we hold on to because it gives us a feeling of being awake and alive. Yet it is no more than the empty calories gotten from a sweet. In most cases, what we think we have lost is passion, with a small "p", and that can be easily found again, like a handful of sweets.

To keep the Magnetic Center energized, one needs to have an "burning" question, a deep hunger. The question may not initially be fully realized, or formalized in our minds, but the hunger (ah..here's where passion comes in), kept in the forefront of our awareness, will drive the Magnetic Center to attract nourishment. It requires one to make a switch from living "automatically" to living "intentionally".

The question of whether the path, or the Way, that appears is the right one, is moot. At this stage, there is not enough knowledge to make that determination, so one must trust those external influences and internal reflections.

Some caveats here....

- one of the dangers of intellectualization here is that one may not recognize the resources for what they are, or acknowledge the Teacher if one approaches. Keep your eyes and mind open.

- do not despair! Keep your being focused on the "burning" question, on your passion, your hunger. Help will arrive. It may already be there....look around you.

- the Way is not pre- or pro-scribed. There are many paths; yet your Tao can only be discovered by you.

- one of the secrets of the journey is that you may not leave your post until there is another to take your place; the longer you hold on to what you know, the longer you stay in place. Pass it on.

- sleep is easier, safer, more comforting, takes less energy. One can always turn away from the threshold, many have. (Yet, given the opportunity, why not strive to living a fully realized life? What's there to lose?)

(P.D. Ouspensky's "In Search of the Miraculous: The Teachings of G.I. Gurdjieff" used as reference.)