Ram Dass wrote the famous book , Be Here Now, in 1971
Be Here Now is one of the first guides for those not born Hindu to becoming a yogi (spiritual path to unity with our source) For its influence on the hippie movement and subsequent spiritual movements, it has been described as a "countercultural bible" , the "seminal" with its influential, formative and groundbreaking spirituality introduced to that era.. -paraphrased from wikipedia.org
I was a very young teen in 1971 but , looking back, now, I do believe there was an eastern influence on my generations spirituality. At that time, I was influenced by the original Kung Fu series . My hero was Kwai Chang Caine . He was the humble Buddhist/Taoist monk, that showed power without force, as his true self. But, when force was needed he sure kicked ass with that Shaolin priest martial arts training. I loved that blend, of gentleness and force which David Carradine played so well in this character.
Often Caine sat in meditation, or seemed in total bliss with nature. He was the wise one who spent his time helping others. He lived a simple life with little need. When asked what he needed, he said '...food, rest,work....' . He worked for food and lodging but, did not stay long in any place, he was driven by a force greater then him, a drifter in search of Tao. The Taoist/Buddhist philosophy spoken by him and his teachers was foreign to us at the time. But for my young mind, it was intriguing and appealing to my spirit.
I believe that, this period, in the early 70's, and also the 60's hippie and other spirituality movements, were a major influence on our generation. This period opened our young minds to a whole world of wisdom and spirituality. The drug culture has gotten a bad rap, but drugs have been influential for thousands of years in opening up the human mind to the Spirit. The 60's and 70's were a turning point in North American spirituality. Christianity had taught for two millennia, in the west, that it alone held 'the only truth'. All other people groups were lost in sin, and needed to hear 'our' truth. Christianity was believed to be the only way to God. But, it seems now, after the world has looked at this for several decades, that there are many paths leading to unity with the ultimate truth and mystery of life, its power, and its source.
The introduction to eastern spirituality has opened up our vision of what life is. The mystery of life cannot be explained or named . It can only be experienced now with gratitude, for what is, this moment. Its just this ! and again, Just this!.. this ... now... this ... all there is, is now. Happiness, bliss, and joy are found in living fully now, with gratitude and love, in the moment.
I have the entire Kung Fu series on DVD! That was such amazing show, so far ahead of its time for so many reasons. I loved watching it again a year or so ago, noticing how almost all the lessons Grasshopper received in the Shaolin temple were directly from the Tao Te Ching. I can't believe they put that on TV back then! The actor who played the young Grasshopper said years later in an interview that growing up on that show shaped who he became as an adult. He internalized much of what Grasshopper was taught during those scenes. Great post.
ReplyDeleteI also have the whole three year series, Galen. I am listening to them again now for a third time. That is a good point, that all the teachings are more Taoist then Buddhist but for some reason everybody thought it was Buddhism at the time. Joseph Campbell wrote much on the hero with a thousand faces. He talked about the hero in mythology. We all seem to be attracted to the hero character. It can be a fictional or real character. Caine was my teen age hero and his character affected me as a teen. I believe I began returning to my spiritual roots when I got a renewed interest in eastern teaching about a decade ago after being absorbed in Christianity for over three decades. Thanks for commenting , I appreciate the feedback.
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