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The Mysterious Law of Opposites
Kali’s sword and Krishna’s flute are one
O partially perceiving mind, your basic error of double vision
has not been corrected….
O divided mind,
your narrow devotion to the Goddess
is mere self-seeking and self-adoration.
You have not entered the radical contemplation
where she reveals her final secret:
Kali’s sword and Krishna’s flute are one….
— Ramprasad Sen
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In our culture, clergy are expected to speak only in the cliches of our own sect. We are expected to pretend to have answers to the great mysteries of life. We are expected to NEVER utter the four forbidden words, “I do not know.”
The problem is…that such certainty requires us to pretend to be magic people. Such mock religion was condemned by Jesus as hypocrisy. My understanding is that the word “hypocrisy” wasn’t originally an insult. It referred to the mask Greek actors wore. Jesus continually condemned donning a mask to hide our mixed motives and uncertainty. As embarrassing as it can be to remain authentically human, it is even harder to go through a radical transformation of mind and heart if we are pretending to be something we are not….
