John Sherman Excerpts

Origins of Self-Inquiry

Adapted from a Meeting with John Sherman in Ojai, California on October 21, 2006.

It seems that eastern spiritual traditions share a common ground from which all the different teachings and practices spring. That common ground, that common viewpoint of reality is very seductive and it resonates with us in a way that nothing else does. It seems to have a couple of components to it.

First, there is not two anywhere to be found or, to put it another way, we are all one. Despite appearances, despite our different upbringing and experiences in life, despite different or even conflicting desires, even as enemies, we are all in this together and we are all the same, no matter how it seems.

Second, creation itself is essentially benevolent, and there is a benevolent purpose to it that may not be immediately apparent to us. This sense of benevolence and goodness underlies the whole of creation and colors everything, even the strife, the warfare and hatred. In some mysterious way, this goodness infiltrates the whole show.

I Am No Guru

Adapted from a Meeting with John Sherman in Ojai, California on October 20, 2006.

I am no guru, but I am a teacher of sorts, and I do not conflate the teaching with the teacher. I am a teacher of sorts and I am trying to learn how to teach what I have to offer, I am trying to learn how to pass it on to you. Sometimes it seems like there is some success; other times it seems like I just cannot get it right, but that is what I am here for. I am not here to bestow upon you any good experiences or any bad experiences. They come and go on their own, with no help from me or anything you can do about them. I am not here to give you enlightenment. I am not here to show you the path to enlightenment. I am not here to bestow on you samadhis or experiences of oceanic consciousness. I am not here to give you something new to believe about yourself, for example, that you are Self, or God, or Oceanic Consciousness. I am here only to try to bring to you what worked for me, and what seems to me to be the only thing that has any possibility of ridding you of this cancerous, stupid idea that there is something wrong that needs to be fixed, which leads to all the horror in the human world today, yesterday and tomorrow.

Self-Inquiry Is Not Spiritual

Adapted from a Meeting with John Sherman in Ojai, California on October 4, 2006.

My purpose in being here is to discuss with you and bring to you the practice of self-inquiry as offered by Ramana Maharshi. I am not a very spiritual person. I see nothing that is essentially spiritual in the practice of self-inquiry. In fact, it is my experience and my clear sense that the idea that there is anything especially spiritual about anything is a delusion, and not worth paying much attention to. I am not here to offer you the possibility of waking up because, so far as I can see, you already are awake and always have been. So, I am not here to offer you enlightenment or awakening. I am not here to offer you what you already are. I am here to offer you the very practical and down-to-earth practice of self-inquiry as it comes to us from Ramana Maharshi.

Ramana spoke of self-inquiry in a certain vocabulary, using a certain traditional set of concepts that was available to him. When I speak of self-inquiry I don’t sound anything like Ramana Maharshi, just as Ramana doesn’t sound anything like the Buddha. The words with which Ramana Maharshi tried to offer us self-inquiry are really unimportant. The essence of it is absolutely practical, simple and it has nothing whatsoever to do with any spiritual tradition. It has to do with you and nothing else. It has to do with the reality of what you are. And to know what you are requires no spiritual, psychological or philosophical understanding.