Disturbing dreams flying past your noggin,
in the night out of darkness,
in the daytime, at any time,
here you are disturbed, rattled
by this and that phantasm
of your own creation;
Why do you give these things
so much importance?
A poem by Robert Aho © 2025
People are a little bit surprised by my attitude when they ask me about world events, politics or this person or that event. I report that I’m not really concerned, it’s always been this way. This world is governed by the least wise among us, and they are prone to making the absolutely worst decisions possible. War, famine, misery on all fronts seem to be the way things are set up.
At the root of this is simply an obsession with disturbing emotions, rather than reliance upon something greater than that, something akin to reason, compassion or an investigation into reality. As humans, we charge into battle without thinking about what we are actually doing. A neighbor spreads gossip, and everyone joins in without any evidence. A war is called for and people march off to battle, all full of rage and indignation.
I don’t have time to spend supporting rebellions, fighting wars or joining political parties. All of these are acts of futility. They only lead to more of the same. With my precious time on Earth, I need to be efficient with my moments by sitting in contemplation, finding ways to help others awaken, deal with all the fine strands of karma and grasping that still remain. If I begin to engage in the causes of outrage all around, then it simply leads to disaster, and it will help nothing whatsoever.
This is not to say that I’m advocating for people to simply bury their heads in the sand. What I’m actually saying is that we treat the world the same way that we treat thoughts. We remain aware of them, without trying to cover them up, without trying to push them away, and without engaging in them. We remain present, but we don’t make these thoughts bigger. Our task is to awaken, not to create bigger multiplying disturbances in our lives.
Recently, I have read something quite political from a very well-regarded Buddhist teacher, a bit of ranting and raving that simply plunged off the deep end. This particular teacher is someone whom I had avoided, simply because my own Buddha Nature or intuition very loudly told me that this is not someone who can help me in the least. Despite that, I held a great deal of respect for this person who is widely regarded as a Tibetan Buddhist master, someone who has multitudes following him—at least I did have respect, while wishing that I could have met him, up until the time that I saw this political ranting and raving.
I suppose the carefully orchestrated marketing campaign, the blind faith of his followers, and the institutional acclaim should have been enough of a red flag for me. I didn’t really need that little extra boost from my own innate wisdom to tell me what to do. When I saw this political ranting and raving, I realized at once that such a teacher is far too caught up in worldly concerns to bring much benefit. I had lost respect for that person; and, I was now quite sad to witness these trappings of mind on full display for all the world to see. It would only be a matter of time before his students find themselves in full crisis, with a little bit of trauma added to the mix.
It's important to examine very carefully who you accept as a teacher. Some say that we should really take many years to decide before we bring them close to us. It’s important to have a teacher who is not bound to worldly concerns, such as fame and fortune. It’s also important to make certain that a teacher is not bound to disturbing emotions, such as fear, hate and anger. If a teacher is not fully and efficiently engaged in their own Spiritual Practice, then how can they be of any help? We must delve into mind, discovering our real nature, entering deep contemplation that reveals reality itself, beyond human imagination, beyond concept and belief. By increasing our own agitation, we only create obstacles for our own awakening.
Although peaceful abiding meditation alone will not provide awakening, we must have this as the basis for our entire existence. When we encounter energetic disturbances, we must be ready for that by remaining at ease. If we engage in these disturbances of mind, we only create a disaster full of clutter and serious traps.
If we wish to awaken, we must certainly develop a great compassion for all beings; however, we must also be very careful not to slip into this very condition at the root of all that troubles us. If we wish to help all beings, we must remain focused on our own aspiration to awaken. This provides the basis to help all beings.
Engaging in what has always been, all the anxiety, trouble, ego and pecking orders surrounding us, will only bring more of that. We have this tremendous ability to awaken. Let’s do that instead.
Blessings in Light,
Robert Aho
So very important in these particular times. I have recently found people with a highly remarkable, spiritually deep production, fall into worldly traps and become a part of the mass who goes around tagging actions and people for political reasons. I even watched a walking miracle, a basically unknown man who I can assure, after reading his dozens of books and talking to him for hours, is one of the deepest teachers that have ever walked this Earth, with a written production that rivals the best of all time, just totally lost in a nihilistic drift at age eighty-plus...
Inner peace harmony with our own commitments allows us to act more in accord with what is needed. If we freak out with people freaking out, it doesn’t make sense or lead to anything beneficial.
Like Mountain, a Lake and the Sky we can accomplish much.
Best wishes 🙏🪷💎⚕️🍀