Wild, Wild Country: Wrapping Our Minds Around the Rajneeshees
The Netflix documentary series on the saga of the Rajneeshee commune in rural Oregon, Wild, Wild Country, has been described by more than one reviewer as "jaw dropping." It is. Indeed, while watching it for the last few days I often realized that my mouth was hanging open. Over the course of several posts I'll explore some of the random thoughts that occurred to me while while watching, and that have occurred to me in the days since, as I try to wrap my mind what went down in the mountains of Oregon in the 1980s. Here's the first.
1. If a person wants to join an alternative spiritual community and devote him- or herself to a guru, there aren't really any good reasons why they shouldn't. Why shouldn't a person leave regular society and submit to a spiritual regimen dictated by the person they consider a spiritual master? There's not just one way to live, is there? Now, I'm not endorsing that path, but why shouldn't someone do that if they want to? Appealing to authority, as in saying that saying that Christianity and/or God forbids it, is a nonstarter. Half the well-considered actions or beliefs of people worldwide fit that category. Mine certainly do. Personally, I think that submission to a guru will more often than not, or at least frequently, come to a bad end, but so what?* People have to live and learn. All of us take mistaken paths during our lives. I guess it rankles the public so, because these alternative spiritual communities and their values often represent a rejection of mainstream values and ideals. Tends to rub people the wrong way.
* I should add that a lot of good and growth can come from following a guru, too. Let's just say, the whole thing is tricky.
1. If a person wants to join an alternative spiritual community and devote him- or herself to a guru, there aren't really any good reasons why they shouldn't. Why shouldn't a person leave regular society and submit to a spiritual regimen dictated by the person they consider a spiritual master? There's not just one way to live, is there? Now, I'm not endorsing that path, but why shouldn't someone do that if they want to? Appealing to authority, as in saying that saying that Christianity and/or God forbids it, is a nonstarter. Half the well-considered actions or beliefs of people worldwide fit that category. Mine certainly do. Personally, I think that submission to a guru will more often than not, or at least frequently, come to a bad end, but so what?* People have to live and learn. All of us take mistaken paths during our lives. I guess it rankles the public so, because these alternative spiritual communities and their values often represent a rejection of mainstream values and ideals. Tends to rub people the wrong way.
* I should add that a lot of good and growth can come from following a guru, too. Let's just say, the whole thing is tricky.
Comments
Post a Comment