04-09-2011, 12:00 AM
Gonzo wrote:
It seems to me we need a differentiation between types of teachers based upon what is being taught.
Aren't you the guy who preaches that all things are equal and the same, that there is no difference between Chuck Manson and Mother Theresaa? That being the case, you can't have it both ways.
I think the type of teaching that traditionally has been without fee has been spiritual. That would include churches, which in this country function tax free and depend upon donations. When you go to confession, for example (qualifies as a teaching if taken seriously), the priest is not tipped, nor is there any charge.
Perhaps true, but also a sticky wicket if you want to get technical. Parishoners are all but guilted into tithing 10% of their earnings to the church, so IS it really "free"? Sure, you can go to mass and confession without making a donation, but if you're honest with yourself, you know perfectly well that such is frowned upon and the parishoner who doesn't tithe is considered a sinner, even if only a "minor" sinner. LOL.
In none of Castaneda was there mention of a fee. True, CC often brought groceries and things - a donation of sorts.
Remember once again: you're referring to "fictional" characters, in the sense that you cannot REALLY know all the ins and out of what REALLY transpired between CC and DJM... or if, indeed, DJM ever existed in the flesh or was "merely" an extension of CC himself. Doesn't matter - the core teachings are valid either way - but ultimately we don't live in that world. You and I live in a world of cell phones, computers and the internet, so the system of barter is somewhat different than for someone living in the middle of nowhere in a shack at the edge of the nagual. The system of barter for DJM/CC seemed to be groceries, errands, and so forth. That was what DJM "needed". A nagual in today's world probably just needs to pay the rent, like everybody else, so the system of barter will be different.
In my own experience of several years with Michael King I never paid him a dime, although I did buy him some beer.
In my opinion, when you encounter someone "selling" spirituality in whatever form (Benny Hinn, Elmer Gantry, the guy in Sedona, Kris Raphael, Lujan, Theun Mares, et al), it's time to run the other way. However, in all fairness, you get what you pay for.
I don't think they are "selling spirituality". I think they are selling "time", if anything. Jessica put it very well. "Money is energy." All it does is enable the teacher to give you their time, when they would otherwise have to be at work in some suffy office... renting their "time" to Microsoft or Nike or some other corporate sponsor.
It seems to me we need a differentiation between types of teachers based upon what is being taught.
Aren't you the guy who preaches that all things are equal and the same, that there is no difference between Chuck Manson and Mother Theresaa? That being the case, you can't have it both ways.
I think the type of teaching that traditionally has been without fee has been spiritual. That would include churches, which in this country function tax free and depend upon donations. When you go to confession, for example (qualifies as a teaching if taken seriously), the priest is not tipped, nor is there any charge.
Perhaps true, but also a sticky wicket if you want to get technical. Parishoners are all but guilted into tithing 10% of their earnings to the church, so IS it really "free"? Sure, you can go to mass and confession without making a donation, but if you're honest with yourself, you know perfectly well that such is frowned upon and the parishoner who doesn't tithe is considered a sinner, even if only a "minor" sinner. LOL.
In none of Castaneda was there mention of a fee. True, CC often brought groceries and things - a donation of sorts.
Remember once again: you're referring to "fictional" characters, in the sense that you cannot REALLY know all the ins and out of what REALLY transpired between CC and DJM... or if, indeed, DJM ever existed in the flesh or was "merely" an extension of CC himself. Doesn't matter - the core teachings are valid either way - but ultimately we don't live in that world. You and I live in a world of cell phones, computers and the internet, so the system of barter is somewhat different than for someone living in the middle of nowhere in a shack at the edge of the nagual. The system of barter for DJM/CC seemed to be groceries, errands, and so forth. That was what DJM "needed". A nagual in today's world probably just needs to pay the rent, like everybody else, so the system of barter will be different.
In my own experience of several years with Michael King I never paid him a dime, although I did buy him some beer.
In my opinion, when you encounter someone "selling" spirituality in whatever form (Benny Hinn, Elmer Gantry, the guy in Sedona, Kris Raphael, Lujan, Theun Mares, et al), it's time to run the other way. However, in all fairness, you get what you pay for.
I don't think they are "selling spirituality". I think they are selling "time", if anything. Jessica put it very well. "Money is energy." All it does is enable the teacher to give you their time, when they would otherwise have to be at work in some suffy office... renting their "time" to Microsoft or Nike or some other corporate sponsor.