Dear Neil Greenwood,
Why do you even defend yourself in front of these people? [Insults delelted.]
"Prayers and war are the most important things of the state." In ancient China, shamans who failed their missions were executed. Even Great Yu's father Gun was executed when he failed to control the flood.
Efficacy is the sole proof of spirituality. Teachers, traditions, and scriptural authorities - none can confer the recognition of the gods.
I have yet to meet a reconstructionist who can call forth a single drop of rain. I have yet to meet a scholar who can expel the smallest evil spirit.
Conversely, I have met many Westerners who can divine the future using Yijing with miraculous precision. And they can't speak a word of Chinese. (In fact, I know of one German Singaporean who used Feng Shui to improve radically his local political scene.)
When spirituality disappears, people grasp onto traditions.[Insults deleted.]
When something is true, it is true anywhere, anytime, and for any person. If a technique works, it works for all people. (In the same way chemistry is universal. In the same way automobiles are universal.) Traditions and heritages are irrelevant.
I have faith in you, Neil, as a great shaman. Your work has helped innumerable people. Your writings have certainly helped me. Because they are real. Your writings are real, because they derive from real experience and real practice, instead of speculations built on incomplete traditions and distorted scriptures.
The following is from another post, which was just locked, but I would like to reply anyway. It demonstrates how different peoples view their cultures.
... so, if I write a book about China and the beliefs of your people, even though I have never been to your country and have never met your people - would my book and 'spiritual' conclusions be valid ? ...
... I think this is what the 'native american' people object to - some people in Europe and in America who have never been on a 'reservation' and have never spoken to these people to write books explaining the 'indians' and performing ceremony that is not theirs for profit - I think that this is the problem and the objection here. ...
Leonard.
I understand your objection to people who only care about money. But I have no objection to non-Chinese people adopting Chinese symbolisms, gods, and rituals. In fact, I very much encourage it. Most Chinese people would too. It would be a point of national pride. (Just as French people export French culture everywhere.) This is the difference between a vibrant, living tradition, and a dead, "scholarly" reconstructionism.
Actually, many popular Korean, Vietnamese, and Japanese gods were originally Chinese gods. But oftentimes, they have radically different features and cults in their adopted countries. The same with Chinese festivals.
Furthermore, true traditionalists do not care about traditions. Instead, they care about efficacy. For instance, can you imagine Sarangerel saying, "Oh my! I can't use mirrors, because I am Buryat, whereas mirrors come from China. I can't do divination either, because my divination uses coins, which come from China."
Actually, Sarangerel's book advised the use of Tarot cards and regular playing cards for divination. I doubt anyone on this board can claim to be more traditionalist than Sarangerel. We should learn from her open-mindedness and willingness to innovate.
[Al's note: Debate is fine, but you don't help yourself or anyone else by being immature.]
