I certainly understand the frustration with blogging and the compulsion to give it up. I gave it up for seven months, resumed with renewed vigor for several months, and lately have been very sporadic. However, I am not ready to give up on blogging. I still believe blogging has potential, although not in its current form.

Understanding the limitations, less then a week ago my teacher made some comments about blogging. He had previously commented that it seems everyone is very eager to state their understanding, and often state it as if it is THE understanding. His more recent comment was a continuation of his earlier observations. “What I see happening is something I see everyone doing. ”

“First, some people will come on and state that they do not understand the issue being discussed. Then, after saying that, they will give their opinion, but the opinion is stated in a tone of being factual. Now, I do not have a problem with someone saying they don’t understand; nor do I have a problem with someone saying they don’t understand, and then giving an opinion from the perspective of being someone who does not understand. But, I do have a problem with someone who doesn’t understand, who then gives an opinion as though they do understand.”

“Second, sometimes someone will be right on the point, but then they lose it, or it drifts away, with no one picking up on it. People will connect to the point for a moment, and then they will drift off course.”

Maybe we don’t see the problem this way, but my teacher’s insights suggest that discouragement with the medium is because we either don’t know what the point is, or we don’t recognize it when we see it, or we lose it once we have it. Of course, it is very easy to apply this to our own lives and frustrations with how to make a deeper connection, the one we are yearning to make. So why all the frustration? It is because we don’t understand the next step.

The reason we are having a problem is because we are cutting into the unknown. Last night I heard a teacher describe the door into understanding as being very tiny. He said it is the teacher’s job to show us that tiny, little door.

Two nights ago I personally met a fellow blogger for the first time, Jon Zuck. I have known Jon for a couple of years and it was great to finally meet him. After a night of getting acquainted face to face over dinner, we agreed to get together the next night so that I could attend a class with Jon’s teacher. This master is dedicated to the Way; it is his profession and life’s work. Born in 1948, Kitabu Roshi is an author, teacher and martial arts master. He recently started a new website. After the evening class, in which he discussed the importance of a teacher and the importance of learning how to ‘get out of the way’ and let the ‘One’ come through, there were refreshments and informal chats. Among other things, we briefly discussed the web as a teaching medium. While I sensed in Roshi a hopeful optimism, he also sees its limitations.

E.R. Spruiell and Kitabu Roshi

As bloggers we are touching people, but we are sometimes hitting barriers within our blogging and within ourselves. Spiritual blogs and websites can help and inform us, but words only take us so far. Using our intellect only gets us to a certain point and then we start regressing or at best doing lateral development. Essential to deeper development is the need for actual deeper experiences. How is the web going to get us to the next point? How is the web going to give us deeper experiences? We don’t know the answer to that.

If we want to open up, in a truly meaningful and substantial way, we need a teacher (in whatever form that takes) to guide us through the unknown. Yet, we are often way too quick to define what the unknown thing looks and feels like.

With respect to a person as a teacher, many people resist the notion of a spiritual teacher. They don’t want to give up their personal power, or they have been taught that everything is already in them. Everything is in us, but if we glibly dismiss the need for a teacher because ‘everything is already in me,’ we are denying our salvation. If everything is already in us, then why don’t we demonstrate and live the ‘everything’? This is one of those many paradoxes that can confound us when we are on the outside of the door looking in. Actually, we are not looking in the door, because we don’t even know what the door looks like. We wouldn’t recognize it if it was staring us right in the face.

Teacher’s who are genuinely capable of being a guide along the inner path are hard to find. But they are much easier to find than the point inside of us that we find to be so elusive. Meanwhile, the teacher stands patiently, ignored as he continuously, 24/7, points to the tiny, little door.

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Oops… that last post? My teacher came back to my blog today, called me and told me I had gotten off track with his comments. For the record, the main topic wasn’t about blogs; the blog topic was only a momentary aside. And what is interesting, and reflective of something I believe we all do, is that the main thing he was showing me yesterday? …well, I pretty much ignored it.

Read on and check it out. After a few introductory comments, you can read what he actually said to me today.

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Sensei was talking yesterday about the Art of Giving, and how these principles are in a certain order, and that inherent in the running of these principles, or (as we call it) ‘the loop’, there are elements that often get overlooked: including the order, that it is a sequential, dynamic loop, and that we should always give a portion of the proceeds or benefits back to the source. Not understanding these things, we end up practicing and living the individual principles of the Art of Giving, but never get the machine, so to speak, up and running.

What does that mean, giving back to the source? According to Sensei, this is an essential ingredient. It is something we may be doing in many parts of our lives and applications, but it is likely to be something we do not understand when viewed within the context of the formula for the Art of Giving. He reminded me that we keep missing that point.

One way to look at it is as a tithe - as we respect a value, and then appreciate it, we take part of that appreciation, and in gratitude for that increased value, we return some of it to the source of our understanding, bringing it, so to speak, into the temple of understanding, and placing it on the altar, that place which is the source of our understanding, guidance or improvement.

The ‘altar’ should be the thing or person in our lives who best represents that – within the context of our own individual applications. If it is a person, it isn’t necessarily the person delivering the message… since they may only be the messenger. Also, use of the word ‘altar’ is unimportant, as it is only being used to convey the idea of what is going on.

Anyway, after reading his insight about the principles being listed in an incorrect order - i.e., my last post - I didn’t think to ask (nor did anyone else) something like “Hmm, why would that be important?” We didn’t individually or collectively wonder why my teacher would say something like that. And he views that behavior as a problem. I have been studying with him long enough that I agree with his assessment, but I forget, slip, get distracted, etc. He doesn’t forget; that’s why he’s Sensei (teacher).

So, another perspective of giving back to the source is by asking a question, but not just a question for question’s sake - rather, a question that has emerged because we stopped and put a value on what was being said, found something there to respect, appreciated it and then took at least some of that increased value (resulting from the act of appreciation) and returned it to the source, in this case a question directed toward my teacher. This is only an example, but it makes the point.

Sensei told me today, “The principles of being a Giver allow you to continually improve your connection to the Divine, as giving becomes your reason for Being, and sharing that becomes your way of Being.”

Here is some more of what I captured, quoted directly (any errors are mine):

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I can see when people are giving [referring to some of us bloggers, and people in general] that it appears they are looking to give and share in ways that are significantly impacting. I definitely see that and respect that, and don’t take anything away from that.

But what I am trying to explain to you is in order to make this effort superconductive, there is a set of principles to do this by, and they have to be done in a certain order to make that happen. Superconductivity is something that improves as we improve our relationship to the source, or the current of a particular application. People don’t understand that, and don’t understand typically how to improve their coordination in that.

So the application to the Path of Understanding through the Art of Giving - where we are looking to improve our connection to the Divine, as a way of being, moment by moment, so that our lives become more conductive to what we are wanting them to be about - requires a particular form of principled application where we are looking to produce more of the value that will support that ideal, by cultivating a relationship with that ideal because we practice toward it, and then give a portion of our produced value and understanding back to the source or the current or to our connection to higher understanding.

We do this so that we can continue to grow that higher understanding in a more and more apparent way. This apparent growth takes something that is normally transparent and invisible, and brings it to become apparent and visible. As it becomes more apparent it is because it is using the creative force more conductively, and that’s what produces offspring. [He gave a nice big laugh here.]

I see this occurring, but the system only goes so far, because while the right principles are being used, the order and the formula for getting them in motion is not there. You are looking at principles as stand alone, versus a motor, a machine. This is a dynamic process involving a set of principles.

What people are doing is finding value in particular principles, and that is good, but they are losing sight of the dynamic process that these principles are a component of, and it is the process and your ability to have facility with that which allows you to become more purposeful and to improve your connection with the Divine, the current, the living thing.

This is the difference between static study and dynamic study. Both are important, but the static is only important in how it supports our understanding of the dynamic.

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Sensei came to my blog today. He read a recent post that included the following words:

Found in these few words are the essential principles of the Art of Giving: Respect, Appreciation, Gratitude and Value. Move sequentially, from one to the other. Find value, and learn to find it in anything. Then, respect that value, even if the respect is only a smidge. Once respected, be grateful, somehow, for the value and then appreciate it, finding a way to increase its value, no matter how small. Then, do that again. And again. Forever. This is the art of the Divine Giver.

Here is part of his lesson to me:

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“You are doing very good with these principles, but if you can open you mind for a few minutes, you are at a point where you can hear me say something, and you have an opportunity to make a very good adjustment.”

“The order that you have placed them in, while it works, is not actually creating a duplex [fully functioning] circuit. You have a circuit, but it is going to ground. What you should be striving for, if this is what you want to do, is building a duplex circuit, something that not only creates flow, but keeps returning each time it runs with a greater value toward source.”

My mind quickly flashed back many years to when I first began studying the Art of Giving. I was soundly rooted in selfishness, and yet, like many people, had no concept of that. I felt like I was a good guy - and I was a good guy, but also someone who didn’t have a clear concept of selfishness. Studying and practicing the Art of Giving had not only changed me, but had eventually turned me into a believer.

He went on with the lesson. He pointed out I had reversed the order of gratitude and appreciation when I said, “Once respected, be grateful, somehow, for the value and then appreciate it.”

I’ll post more about that later, but he also said something that speaks to all of us here. “This subtle change I am showing you is what’s causing blogs to not really work right. I have been studying and observing this. What happens is, someone puts up a post, a comment is made in response, and then perhaps a thank you and a comment back - and then, that’s it. It’s over.”

“Yes, that is exactly right,” I said; and, I thought, one of the reasons I had dropped out of blogging.

What’s the point of blogging? He was right, the circuit just stops. Nothing ever really ‘builds’. Oh sure, we can see there is value and benefit… no doubt. But what are we actually out to create and build?

“There is a way to correct this,” he said, and continued with the lesson, clearly demonstrating how proper firing of the circuit called the Art of Giving could completely change blogging.

While these things take study, it isn’t always rocket science, but you do have to study. How to do that? Look for a source; it’s all about Giving and about returning value to the Source.

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Segovius over on Anulios has allowed me to be his first guest blogger. I think he is a bit out of his mind for putting my stuff on his site, but what the heck - I enjoy hanging out with fellow madmen. He posted a rather long article I wrote, that primarily focuses on recognizing the real thing when you see it.

I very much enjoy Segovius’ (Tarquin Rees in real life) site. Tarquin is a talented European blogger, currently based in Barcelona (that’s one of his photos, above). Discussions sometimes go along at length, which is refreshing in a world where so many of us are conditioned to a quick fix.

Comments touch on some other areas, including the ‘mad behavior’ sometimes witnessed among teachers of the deeper inner mysteries. Perhaps you enjoy sipping a steaming hot coffee whilst you mull things over, or maybe you just need a break from the sugar-highs of the kool-aid served up by puppy mill gurus. Either way, kick your feet up for a few minutes (preferably more) and check out Anulios.

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Sensei with his daughter

Sadiq M. Alam:
The more I read about Sensei the more I feel interested. Sorry for not knowing, but who is he? Is there any website by or about him? Do you have any pictures of him?

Mark replies:
I have put two links below that show Sensei. He is my younger brother, Scott Walter. However, I recognize him as my teacher from past lives. GRI does not yet have a website. My blog is a personal attempt to spread his teachings to a wider audience, as seen through the eyes of a student.

Sensei is in the center of the this picture (below), and next to me (he’s in the center with red, white and black belt on) in this picture. He is an astounding individual.

Sadiq’s replies:
Wow, what a wonderful thing to know. All praise be to God. He is your younger brother and you feel such a great bond in terms of teacher - student relationship. That is really wonderful.

Why does he not he start a blog? It’s so easy, I’m sure he can manage. Thus he can spread his wisdom and share with all of us and can touch hundreds of lives by his teachings.

Please convey my regards to your brother. Please mention that he has another fan in Singapore. Automatically I have become a disciple of Sensei by reading so many thoughts and ideas of him from your blog. Thanks also goes to you as well.

Thanks for sending me the pic of him as well. By the way, what does Sensei mean?

Mark replies:
It is a great thing to be his student. He is far too busy to do a blog. Thank you for your kind thoughts about him, and your sincere expression of friendship. I will certainly convey your thoughts to him.

Sensei means teacher. It is a Japanese word, and is primarily used to refer to a Master or teacher or instructor of the martial arts. He is a Master or “Shihan” in Jiu Jitsu, and is referred to as Scott, Master Scott, or Sensei. I nearly always refer to him as Sensei, even though he is my brother by birth; I see him as so much more than my brother. Many people call him Scott, and he certainly welcomes that. I am also a Sensei, but not a Master or Shihan. I prefer people to call me Mark. In the Jiu Jitsu dojo (training hall), students refer to me as Sensei Mark, but outside of the dojo everyone calls me Mark.

Sadiq replies:
I wish the best of luck to GRI. If I can help in anyway, please do let me know. I would be more than happy to help in anyway.

Sadiq’s blog

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One evening a Shinto priest, Hideo Izumoto, was surrounded by a group of Great River students who were respectfully asking questions. One student had been quietly but anxiously waiting her turn. After posing her question, Master Hideo nodded softly and after a brief pause gently said, “You need to stop thinking so much.” She smiled quizzically and slowly walked away, thinking about what he had just said.

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