The Sage goes to a motel....

[manitou]

I saw this tonight in a notebook I was writing in. I don't recall when I wrote this down or where I got it from. Maybe TTB's. Please forgive me if this has been discussed previously.

 

This is a bit of a mind boggler, if you ask me. I think I can see what it's getting at, but I'd love to hear any one else's comments

 

 

The Sage goes to a motel.

He finds a spider with her babies in the shower.

He is arachnophobic through no fault of his own, as when he was young someone put a spider

down his shirt.

He certainly doesn't want to kill the spider, but he also wants to sleep without fear.

If he calls Maintenance,

Would the Sage be arachnophobic?

[Dagon]

Hi Manitou,

 

How have you been?

 

I don't see how calling maintenance would take away his fear of spiders?

But maybe he wasn't a sage if he feared spiders in the first place?

 

I don't know.

Would being afraid of spiders be like being afraid of the Tao?

[thelerner]

I saw this tonight in a notebook I was writing in. I don't recall when I wrote this down or where I got it from. Maybe TTB's. Please forgive me if this has been discussed previously.

 

This is a bit of a mind boggler, if you ask me. I think I can see what it's getting at, but I'd love to hear any one else's comments

 

 

The Sage goes to a motel.

He finds a spider with her babies in the shower.

He is arachnophobic through no fault of his own, as when he was young someone put a spider

down his shirt.

He certainly doesn't want to kill the spider, but he also wants to sleep without fear.

If he calls Maintenance,

Would the Sage be arachnophobic?

I was kinda hoping there'd be hookers involved and a punch line. If serious, I'd have the Sage close the bathroom door and put a towel to block underneath it. Might want to search the rest of the room for spiders too. If none, sleep peacefully. When leaving, leave the doors to bathroom and hall open so spider/s have a chance to leave. If he's not willing to carry them outside himself there fate is up to Karma.

 

also

Feels like we're missing something here. Some important element of the story.

Edited September 15, 2013 by thelerner

[Flolfolil]

...

Edited March 6, 2015 by Flolfolil

[Protector]

No, that's not how the sage labels self or is going to act out of

If the Sage calls maintenance to remove the spider, they will label

[Dagon]

fear is natural. so is the drive for self preservation...

 

I agree that self preservation is natural, but is a fear of spiders? Do you need to be fearful of a pride of lions to avoid them?

 

 

I don't see how fear is necessary? I personally think it is largely due to ignorance. If you studied your fears you probably wouldn't be as fearful anymore, like you would know which ones are venomous and can hurt you, etc . . .

 

Most spiders are harmless to us.

 

I think you can replace fear with common sense and knowledge.

 

As far as I know, sages aren't usually the ignorant type, so maybe the story was about a persons personal experience and they used the sage as an example, rather than telling it about their self.

 

(It would make more sense to me if that was the case.)

Edited September 15, 2013 by Dagon

[Apech]

I saw this tonight in a notebook I was writing in. I don't recall when I wrote this down or where I got it from. Maybe TTB's. Please forgive me if this has been discussed previously.

 

This is a bit of a mind boggler, if you ask me. I think I can see what it's getting at, but I'd love to hear any one else's comments

 

 

The Sage goes to a motel.

He finds a spider with her babies in the shower.

He is arachnophobic through no fault of his own, as when he was young someone put a spider

down his shirt.

He certainly doesn't want to kill the spider, but he also wants to sleep without fear.

If he calls Maintenance,

Would the Sage be arachnophobic?

 

 

I like spiders ... and try not to kill them. I don't know why but I think its something to do with the webs and the fact that they kill and eat flies (which plague this place at certain times of the year). The Sage has fear through memory. If he is a Sage then maybe he could see through that fear as no longer appropriate. Maybe he could get a glass and a piece of card and then catch the spiders and put them outside. Otherwise he is just giving his problem to someone else (Maintenance).

[C T]

i'd venture to say the Sage is afraid of routine, even to the point of detesting it.

 

just a feeling i had.

[manitou]

I think Dagon is spot on.

 

Would the arachnaphobe be a Sage?

 

I think there is a false premise to the question from the onset.

[Brian]

The sage should have taken one of the drinking glasses/cups from the motel room and placed it over the spider, then slid a piece of paper (folded to make it stiffer, if necessary) or cardboard under the cup. A postcard works nicely. The spider with babies could then have been transported outside and released without incident.

 

Unless we're talking about a real phobia, of course, in which case the so-called sage would have been totally incapacitated and incapable of rational action and may have just set fire to the room and fled...

 

Or maybe I don't understand the question?

 

EDIT:

I like spiders ... and try not to kill them. I don't know why but I think its something to do with the webs and the fact that they kill and eat flies (which plague this place at certain times of the year). The Sage has fear through memory. If he is a Sage then maybe he could see through that fear as no longer appropriate. Maybe he could get a glass and a piece of card and then catch the spiders and put them outside. Otherwise he is just giving his problem to someone else (Maintenance).

 

 

 

Guess I should have read the other replies first, huh?

Edited September 15, 2013 by Brian

[Marblehead]

Guess I should have read the other replies first, huh?

At least you started off with your own thoughts instead of being swayed by what others have said. (That's important most times.)

[Apech]

At least you started off with your own thoughts instead of being swayed by what others have said. (That's important most times.)

 

Especially if they are spinning a web of lies.

[suninmyeyes]

I agree that self preservation is natural, but is a fear of spiders? Do you need to be fearful of a pride of lions to avoid them?

 

 

I don't see how fear is necessary? I personally think it is largely due to ignorance. If you studied your fears you probably wouldn't be as fearful anymore, like you would know which ones are venomous and can hurt you, etc . . .

 

Most spiders are harmless to us.

This could also depend where Sage is ..

If he is in Sri Lanka and has a massive poisonous spider on the bathroom wall , fear would be appropriate signal in order to take action and remove it .

 

Fear of crossing the red light in the middle of busy traffic is also appropriate etc .So fear is a warning , but I do agree that most of our fears are useless and actually in a way we as individuals are defined by fear .

 

Can Sage be having fear of spiders ? I don't know , life is full of suprises .....OK not I suppose if this fear is chronic .

Is Sage Perfect ? If so by what definition ?(just some questions that came up as I wrote this , indicated to whomever feels to answer it )

[manitou]

This could also depend where Sage is ..

If he is in Sri Lanka and has a massive poisonous spider on the bathroom wall , fear would be appropriate signal in order to take action and remove it .

 

Fear of crossing the red light in the middle of busy traffic is also appropriate etc .So fear is a warning , but I do agree that most of our fears are useless and actually in a way we as individuals are defined by fear .

 

Can Sage be having fear of spiders ? I don't know , life is full of suprises .....OK not I suppose if this fear is chronic .

Is Sage Perfect ? If so by what definition ?(just some questions that came up as I wrote this , indicated to whomever feels to answer it )

My feeling is that the Sage wouldn't be a Sage if he hadn't dealt with his chronic fear of spiders. A muscle memory from long ago would indicate a chrystalized fear. The true Sage would probably feel at One with the spiders as well as everything else?

 

Just guessing here.

Edited September 15, 2013 by manitou

[manitou]

At least you started off with your own thoughts instead of being swayed by what others have said. (That's important most times.)

As an aside, I think this is one of the most important things I've ever seen on this forum. It's all in learning how to think and not to parrot the ideas of others, regardless of whether they have Rinpoche after their name or not.

[Marblehead]

I would have liked that 10 times but I am allowed only one. (And you do pretty good with that most times.)

[Friend]

 

Would the Sage be arachnophobic?

If a Sage is Wise, is it wise to be arachnophobic?

[manitou]

If a Sage is Wise, is it wise to be arachnophobic?

How is the wisdom acquired?

[Dagon]

If a Sage is Wise, is it wise to be arachnophobic?

 

Is an unnecessary fear of everything wise?

 

http://phobialist.com/

 

If we say that arachnophobia is wise then we must also consider all the phobia's or needless fears wise.

 

Maybe it is good in a certain rare circumstance, but certain rare circumstances aren't what constitutes a phobia.

 

I personally don't think that it is necessary to fear something to use caution or common sense.

Edited September 16, 2013 by Dagon

[Marblehead]

I personally don't think that it is necessary to fear something to use caution or common sense.

Repeating this for effect.

[manitou]

 

Is an unnecessary fear of everything wise?

 

http://phobialist.com/

 

If we say that arachnophobia is wise then we must also consider all the phobia's or needless fears wise.

 

Maybe it is good in a certain rare circumstance, but certain rare circumstances aren't what constitutes a phobia.

 

I personally don't think that it is necessary to fear something to use caution or common sense.

There is a couplet in the DDJ (Yutang) which reads something like:

 

 

"That which is feared is truly to be feared,

 

But distant yet is the dawning of awareness"

Edited September 16, 2013 by manitou

[suninmyeyes]

My feeling is that the Sage wouldn't be a Sage if he hadn't dealt with his chronic fear of spiders. A muscle memory from long ago would indicate a chrystalized fear. The true Sage would probably feel at One with the spiders as well as everything else?

 

Just guessing here.

Yes, I also think that if he had chronic fears than he would not be a sage .

But than again I wont know until I become one ...

 

In Yoga Vashista there is a beautiful story about Demon who gained enlightenment after a lot of realisations and hardships , he felt compassionate and really wanted to stop being Demon . However regardless of his enlightenment the best form he could take eventually was that of a Virus . Being a Virus is much better than Demon because it would do malice on very , very rare occasion . Whereas as a Demon he would need to do harm most of the time .

So he lived as an enlightened Virus (or bacteria --cant remember correctly ) and did his viral infections whenever duty called .

Maybe it sounds funny as I write , but it is actually a very deep story that shows that Nature is so colourful and full of different possibilities . As well that everyone has a role to play in keeping Life Alive, sometimes an unexpected one .

Edited September 16, 2013 by suninmyeyes

[Marblehead]

But than again I wont know until I become one ...

But you are going to eliminate all your fears before you accept such a label, Right?

[Apech]

But you are going to eliminate all your fears before you accept such a label, Right?

 

 

I wonder if its about eliminating all fears or just not giving in to them ... not sure ... they say a truly brave person is also a bit afraid (e.g. heros in battle).

[hydrogen]

Is the sage a human?

 

Is Human allowed to have irrational thinking like love or faith? If so, why not fear?