work and illumination

[Guest guest]

On the subject of work, the late Idries Shah offered the

following story.

 

A certain Sufi was asked: 'People come for companionship,

discourses and teaching. Yet you plunge them into activity.

Why is this?'

He said: 'Though they--and you--may believe that they

came for enlightenment, they mainly desire engagement in

something. I give them engagement, so that they shall realize

the limitations of engagement as a means of learning.

'Those who become totally engaged are they who sought

only engagement, and who could not profit by self-observation

of themselves so uselessly engaged. It is, therefore, not the

deep respecters of activity who become illuminated.'

The questioner said: 'Who, then, is it who does become

illuminated?'

The Sufi replied: 'The illuminated are those who perform

duties adequately, realizing that there is something beyond.'

'But how is that " something beyond " to be reached?'

'It is always reached by those who perform adequately.

They need no further instruction. If you were doing your duty

adequately, and were neither neglectful nor fanatically

attached to it, you would not have had to ask the question.'

[Guest guest]

Nisargadatta, " thomas murphy " <tma@c...> wrote:

 

> A certain Sufi was asked: 'People come for companionship,

> discourses and teaching. Yet you plunge them into activity.

> Why is this?'

 

> He said: 'Though they--and you--may believe that they

> came for enlightenment, they mainly desire engagement in

> something. I give them engagement, so that they shall realize

> the limitations of engagement as a means of learning.

 

This Sufi was an extremely wise man. For what it's worth, Osho made

a very similar statement to the above.

 

Paraphrased:

Questioner: " Why do I come here? "

Nisargadatte: " You go here and there in search of " superior people. "

 

<the rest snipped, but read of course... thanks and Namaste.>

 

Tim