In many “spiritual” circles, they refer to two kinds of “truth”: Relative and Absolute.
Relative Truth is what we know and experience on a daily basis. There’s a you, there’s a me, we’re separate individuals. Events transpire over time. As the Zen boys would say, “Mountains are mountains and rivers are rivers.”
Absolute Truth on the other hand is when “Mountains are no longer mountains and rivers are no longer rivers.” Everything is an illusion. There is no separateness. We are all one. There is no time, no “I.” Nothing ever happens, nothing is born and nothing dies.
Some teachers suggest that the absolute is, well, absolute. That’s the only REAL reality. Because it’s, well, absolute!
Others have been saying, “Oh, no, life includes both the relative and the absolute.”
And while I wouldn’t disagree, their position is still a sales pitch for the absolute… because it’s still ABSOLUTE.
THE ABSOLUTE… well that sounds so much better, so much cooler. Who doesn’t want to see everything as a dream, to be one with all, to be timeless and spaceless and birthless deathless? I mean it’s ABSOLUTE. Clearly, Absolute is better than Relative. Why would you settle for anything less than Absolute?
The choice of language, of Absolute vs. Relative, is a set-up. It’s a come-on. It’s an enticement for buying a taste of Absolute.
Let’s pick new words. How ’bout: Juicy and Bubbly? Or Fred and Wilma? Or Chocolate and Peanut Butter? Or Crap and Shit?
If we use words with less connotative difference, or words that don’t set up an obvious and instantaneous preference, or words that are preferred as a pair, or words where neither are desired… well then we can have a conversation, an exploration, an honest investigation into the various and varying dimensions of human experience.
Neither is preferred. Neither is special. Neither is a problem. Neither is bad. Now there is one, now another… whatever.
“Mountains are once again mountains and rivers are once again rivers.”
Comments
4 responses to “Absolutely Relative”
Hey Steven, I really enjoy your blog (I bet you get that a lot 😉 )
As for the Absolute and the Relative I thought you’d enjoy this http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UyyjU8fzEYU or maybe you have seen it already.
I had an experience similar to hers, not as a result of a stroke or 15 years of meditation, but quite possibly due to suffering and learning acceptance, but as you pointed out somewhere else it is not possible to have a cause and effect kind of answer to that. I think I’m with you on the anti-guru campaign, although with me it’s more about the fat-cat gurus.. I respect the Work of Byron Katie, I feel moved by Eckhart Tolle, I trust myself..
Hey Aleks,
It’s always fun to hear that someone enjoys the blog (and pretty fun to her when someone doesn’t, too) 😉
I’ve been having an e-chat with Dr. Jill … I don’t think I’d recommend inducing massive brain trauma as a way of having “out there” experiences. Meditation does seem to be the better choice. 😉
And, from my experience and now the experience of hundreds of Explorers, it seems the practices I call the I AM Techniques (from the Instant Advanced Meditation Course) are some of the easier, quicker and more reliable ways to set up the conditions that lead to those types of experiences.
I’m a big fan of that trusting oneself thing… except for the ways that we’re untrustworthy 😉 (see Wrong About Being Right)
I’m from Europe, I cannot buy anything that has ‘Instant’ or ‘For a Limited Time Only’ featured in the title 🙂 It’s been made illegal.
I would be very interested in your chat with Dr Jill though. Any chance you’ll be writing a blog entry ’bout it soon? (preeeetty please…)
LOL! re: Instant… in fact, it was some of the people who I first taught the practices to who came up with the name 😉
Nothing to write yet, re: Dr. Jill, but once there is, I will.