Physical Immortality (John White)

[Guest guest]

Someone wrote: > The only living Western person I know who is aspiring for

this

> kind of Transformation is writer John White.

 

Harsha: I did not know that John White wrote about physical immortality. But

I am not very well up on these matters. Last time (couple of years ago) I

spoke to John White (I think it is the same John White being discussed

here), if memory serves me, he was into UFO sightings and organizing a

conference on that or something. His son went to school here and graduated

from here and the school newspaper goes to their home, I guess. He read one

of my columns and wrote me a short letter expressing his possible interest

in coming here and giving a talk. We spoke a bit and exchanged interests. He

knows my teacher Chitrabhanuji and took some time to give me the benefit of

his experience in terms of writing and publishing spiritual books. We spoke

about J. Krishnamurti and some other people whom he had interviewed for his

books and written about. I have spoken to him by phone twice/maybe thrice

only. Pretty good conversations. A very candid, congenial and a nice fellow.

I certainly respect various traditions and points of view and all that

although this physical immortality thing seems a diversion, a side show.

There is a school in southern India where this tradition continues. Ramana

Maharshi used to say that various people give enthusiastic lectures on

physical immortality, prescribe various herbs and medicine and exercises for

it, write long treatises on how to achieve it, and then at some point get

old and die like everyone else. My experience with spiritual masters is that

they are pretty ordinary folks. Their greatness lies only in "perception."

Therefore, Attention should be paid to the nature of "Perception." Without

the Clear Knowledge of the source of all perception, one is lost in

diversity and remains on the periphery, in the maze of contradictions,

impressed by every novel or interesting concept that emerges in this scenic

view we call life. The one who stares at the root of all perception, and

roots out the illusion that gives rise to differentiation, will have no more

questions left and no answers to give.