Tag Archives: kalyana-mitra

The idea for this series occurred to me when contemplating one on George Grimm and his notion of “Self”. Then it struck me how someone in particular has thoroughly broken-down Grimm’s formulations on the matter, that someone being “The Zennist.” In point of fact, the Zennist’s foremost expertise on this can be considered as second to none as he is one of the most advanced, contemporary-sages when it comes to Ekacitta, or the One, Absolute Mind/Spirit. The Zennist’s long familiarity and vivacious acumen within the field of Zen Mysticism is vastly underrated when compared to more Western materialistically-bent and spiritually-myopic (purportedly Buddhist) “celebrities” whose focus is exclusively upon psychophysical components at the expense of the Transcendent. As the Zennist writes, “It almost goes without saying, but without the transcendent, there can be no mystical experience. Furthermore, without the transcendent, neither can there be genuine salvation and, hence, no actual deliverance from suffering.” He goes on to say that for those who hold fast to today’s fashionable notions of Zen, the “mystic” element is indeed an “inconvenient truth.” As a result, these incorrigible personages have downplayed the Zennist’s principles and teachings over the years, in particular during his “Dark Zen” days. Truth be told, they never took the time to digest the teachings, which even now speaks volumes. His Dark Zen Manual can be found in our library and one is encouraged to read and study it. It also needs to be underscored that since the inception of his blog, roughly circa 2007, the Zennist’s teachings have proven to be even more insightful and I for one have been studiously attentive to them over the years. This series will certainly expound upon the Zennist’s notions of Self, but also upon his profound insights into Zen Mysticism as a whole—including even some prevalent (and timely) sociological insights. We will survey the spectrum from Self, to authentic Zen- meditation, to his relationship and mystical encounters with “the kalyana-mitra (or virtuous spiritual friend)”. read more