From errors-247-8119-nagasiva=luckymojo.com@onelist.com Fri Jun 11 14:33:46 1999 Return-Path: Delivered-To: yronwode@prog-relay.sonic.net Received: (qmail 21586 invoked from network); 11 Jun 1999 14:33:45 -0000 Received: from sub.sonic.net (208.201.224.8) by buzz.sonic.net with SMTP; 11 Jun 1999 14:33:45 -0000 Received: from onelist.com (pop.onelist.com [209.207.164.221]) by sub.sonic.net (8.8.8/8.8.5) with SMTP id HAA32636 for ; Fri, 11 Jun 1999 07:33:45 -0700 X-envelope-info: Received: (qmail 9007 invoked by alias); 11 Jun 1999 14:34:05 -0000 Received: (qmail 8985 invoked from network); 11 Jun 1999 14:34:04 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO mailsorter-105-2.iap.bryant.webtv.net) (209.240.198.118) by pop.onelist.com with SMTP; 11 Jun 1999 14:34:04 -0000 Received: from postoffice-102.iap.bryant.webtv.net (postoffice-102.iap.bryant.webtv.net [209.240.198.102]) by mailsorter-105-2.iap.bryant.webtv.net (8.8.8/ms.gso.08Dec97) with ESMTP id HAA13944; Fri, 11 Jun 1999 07:33:40 -0700 (PDT) Received: (from production@localhost) by postoffice-102.iap.bryant.webtv.net (8.8.8/po.gso.24Feb98) id HAA06891; Fri, 11 Jun 1999 07:33:35 -0700 (PDT) X-WebTV-Signature: 1 ETAsAhR+yMJsyfbwmRWbp1LXYNrgYFg6YQIUCo0gU+JvltYAmYsedLryL6oSWXU= From: bobbays@webtv.net (Bob Bays) Date: Fri, 11 Jun 1999 10:33:34 -0400 (EDT) To: NondualitySalon@onelist.com Message-ID: <13539-37611E3E-11720@postoffice-102.iap.bryant.webtv.net> In-Reply-To: Tim Gerchmez 's message of Fri, 11 Jun 1999 02:28:46 -0700 Content-Disposition: Inline Mailing-List: list NondualitySalon@onelist.com; contact NondualitySalon-owner@onelist.com Delivered-To: mailing list NondualitySalon@onelist.com Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: Reply-to: NondualitySalon@onelist.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: Multipart/Mixed; Boundary=WebTV-Mail-1125595733-6721 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit Subject: Re: [NondualitySalon] Nonduality and "The Wizard of Oz" - Reworked Status: RO --WebTV-Mail-1125595733-6721 Content-Type: Text/Plain; Charset=US-ASCII Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit How many of you know that L. Frank Baum, the author of the Oz books, was an active member of the Theosophical Society, and there have been several "spiritual" interpretations of his work? The current President of the Theosophical Society in America, Dr. John Algeo (retired Chairman of the English Department at the University of Georgia), has written several articles on the subject, and also lectures on it around the country. OM shantih, Bob --WebTV-Mail-1125595733-6721 Content-Disposition: Inline Content-Type: Message/RFC822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7Bit Received: from mailsorter-102-1.iap.bryant.webtv.net (209.240.198.98) by postoffice-102.iap.bryant.webtv.net; Fri, 11 Jun 1999 02:32:07 -0700 (PDT) Return-Path: Received: from onelist.com (pop.onelist.com [209.207.164.209]) by mailsorter-102-1.iap.bryant.webtv.net (8.8.8/ms.graham.14Aug97) with SMTP id CAA06119 for ; Fri, 11 Jun 1999 02:32:10 -0700 (PDT) Received: (qmail 22601 invoked by alias); 11 Jun 1999 09:31:58 -0000 Received: (qmail 22594 invoked from network); 11 Jun 1999 09:31:58 -0000 Received: from unknown (HELO mail.eskimo.com) (204.122.16.4) by pop.onelist.com with SMTP; 11 Jun 1999 09:31:58 -0000 Received: from desktop-pentium (fewtch@05-030.009.popsite.net [207.227.232.30]) by mail.eskimo.com (8.9.1a/8.8.8) with SMTP id CAA06877; Fri, 11 Jun 1999 02:32:04 -0700 (PDT) Message-Id: <3.0.5.32.19990611022846.008d0b20@mail.eskimo.com> X-Sender: fewtch@mail.eskimo.com (Unverified) X-Mailer: QUALCOMM Windows Eudora Pro Version 3.0.5 (32) Date: Fri, 11 Jun 1999 02:28:46 -0700 To: NondualitySalon@onelist.com From: Tim Gerchmez Cc: Umbada@ns.sympatico.ca Mailing-List: list NondualitySalon@onelist.com; contact NondualitySalon-owner@onelist.com Delivered-To: mailing list NondualitySalon@onelist.com Precedence: bulk List-Unsubscribe: Reply-to: NondualitySalon@onelist.com Mime-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1" Content-transfer-encoding: 8bit Subject: [NondualitySalon] Nonduality and "The Wizard of Oz" - Reworked From: Tim Gerchmez Nonduality and the Wizard of Oz ------------------------------- The movie "The Wizard of Oz" is actually more ‘nondual’ than any other movie I’ve seen. When looked at carefully, just under the surface of a child’s story of witches and tornadoes and munchkins lies an amazing collection of truths that have been with mankind for all time. First, we have a girl who seeks escape from the evils and misery of samsara ("Somewhere over the rainbow..."). A tornado strikes (symbolic of the Dark Night of the Soul) and knocks the girl out, drawing her into an inner world. She is transported to a mystical land called "Oz," and encounters a pair of ruby slippers (the value of which she does not yet suspect), but also encounters Glinda, the good witch of the North (symbolizing Grace) who urges her to put them on anyway. She then embarks upon a spiritual path symbolized by the Yellow Brick Road. At the end of this path is the "Wizard," which is an apt symbol for "the Guru." She meets other travelers on this path who are unhappy with their lot in life as well, and walks with them, and is repeatedly tempted by a wicked witch, a symbol of the ego or that which would block one on a spiritual path. Mostly the witch attempts to inflict fear, which happens to be that which is most capable of blocking someone on the path of Self-knowledge. At one point, the witch actually manages to work a spell putting Dorothy to sleep. This occurs as her and her fellow travelers see the beautiful, gleaming emerald palace in the distance, leave the proscribed path, and make a run for it - no shortcuts allowed in sadhana. It’s notable that only Dorothy fell asleep under the spell of the poppies… her traveling companions were unaffected, because they aren’t central to the theme. They are really aspects of Dorothy’s personality. The witch seems to have won, but a benign force (Glinda, the good witch of the North, symbolizing Grace) makes it rain, waking Dorothy up (her first awakening, through Grace - Samadhi) and allowing her to continue. Eventually, after many trials on her sadhana, she reaches the wizard/guru, who informs her that she must first defeat the wicked witch of the west (ego), bringing back a symbol as proof, after which he will grant all the traveler's wishes (escape from samsara). In the process of defeating the witch, both herself and her fellow travelers have to face themselves directly and manifest those qualities which they believe they don't have (courage, heart, brains, etc) - while Dorothy has to face death itself. Finally, the witch is defeated by a simple bucket of water, showing her as the "mirage" that ego has always been. A simple bucket of water is sufficient to "melt" her. She seemed powerful, but a benign substance like water melted her away in seconds. Only the correct "substance" needed to be known. Interestingly enough, the dissolution of the witch happened entirely by accident. Nobody was aware that water was the substance needed. The ego cannot dissolve itself - it can only submit to the Higher Self. When the Higher Self manifested through Dorothy’s unselfish act of trying to put out the flames burning up her friend the scarecrow, she "lost her ego" in the process of selflessly thinking of her friend, thus killing the witch. This is Nirvikalpa Samadhi. Upon return to the wizard, the travelers discover that he is a fraud (OR SO THEY THINK), and is not able to confer those qualities they desire upon them, not realizing that those qualities were already seen as present in the process of the defeat of the wicked witch. The wizard ends up simply making them aware (through symbolism) that *they had these qualities all along*, and it was only ignorance of the fact that had to be lifted. It turns out that the wizard/guru was not a fraud after all. Dorothy, the central character in the story, has the most poignant and difficult-to-fulfill desire of all: She wants to go home. Home here represents the true Self, the eternal "home" which all of us long for. Yet the wizard fails in taking her there. The Guru can lead the chela to the brink but not "bring them home..." the chela has to discover the way for him or herself. Upon meeting again with the "Good witch Glinda (Grace)," she discovers that she has had the power to "go home" all along, inherent in the ruby slippers which Glinda (Grace) gave her BEFORE she began her sadhana. It was the same with her. It was only ignorance preventing her from going home. With great sadness she says goodbye to her traveling companions and the rest of samsara, and takes the final step, attaining moksha. The repeated phrase "There's no place like home... there's no place like home..." is very reminiscent of a mantra repeated in meditation. Upon return (and upon waking up - such a powerful symbol, especially in Buddhism - WAKING UP), Dorothy realizes that indeed, "there's no place like home." She has Realized the search she started at the beginning of the movie; that what she desired (escape from samsara) had been with her ALL ALONG. She wanted to run away, but was ignorant of the fact that everything was already perfect, and that indeed it is the searching that is false, that is imperfect. What she wanted at the beginning of the movie she has found, and at the end, she's once again in the same place, but with a greatly changed outlook on things - a shift in consciousness, if you will. One of the most interesting points is that all of this was in INNER journey. The "Land of Oz" was INSIDE Dorothy, as were her traveling companions. When she wakes up, she sees the people who, inside, she thought were the scarecrow, the tinman, etc. This is a nondual statement that indicates that All is One, that all these people in Dorothy’s life are both inside and outside her, that there is no difference at all between those in Dorothy’s life and aspects of her personality. It is the people in one’s life that help to form the personality, and so it was them that manifested as her traveling companions on the inner journey. I believe that the perennial popularity (and classic film status) of the Wizard of Oz is due to the fact that it helps explain a way to resolve that "inner longing" that all people have for True Self. Through the use of symbolism, it clearly shows the futility of the search, and the constant presence of That which is desired -- whether or not we are aware it is there. It contains an uplifting message that is also a true one, and people subconsciously respond to that (especially children, who are generally closer to Ground of Being than adults). … Tim Gerchmez ----- Visit The Core of the WWW at: http://www.eskimo.com/~fewtch/ND/index.html Music, Poetry, Writings on Nondual Spiritual Topics. ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Have you entered ONElist's "Grow to Give" program? http://www.onelist.com Deadline is June 19. Join now to win $5000 for your charity of choice. --WebTV-Mail-1125595733-6721--