Human is Going to Human

The Blind Leading the Blind

“Don’t follow leaders, watch the parking meters”
- Bob Dylan

A decade ago I first heard about Amazonian shamanism on the Aubrey Marcus podcast. Eventually that led to 7 years of going back and forth to the Amazon, studying that wonderful and shady art. Well I hear that Marcus is a cult leader now, with a harem. Hrm.

Human is going to human.

Recently I heard about the passing of Carolyn Elliot, who I did not know of until I got a newsletter from someone I knew, who referred to her as “her teacher”, and that Eliot had taken her own life.

I saw part of an interview between Marcus and Eliot. Only a part because it was too cringe. Each blowing smoke in the other’s direction about how enlightened they are. How it has taken time, but they’ve figured things out.

Don’t follow leaders. And keep yourself grounded in the details of life.

Eliot wrote the book Existential Kink. I got that book. I was surprised at how effective the central exercise is. It might be one of the most powerful forms of shadow work I’ve encountered.

Don’t follow leaders, watch the parking meter. This is not the first time I’ve encountered a “teacher” who hit upon a very effective method, who made an empire out of it, who did not have other things in their lives in order, where the empire became a prison. The facade had to be maintained. Too much of their own kool-aid was drunk. In fact I would say this is more the norm than not.

I know someone else, a monk who created/discovered an extremely effective form of meditation, one that I still do, all time. Toward the end of his life, his mind disintegrated. Delusions of grandeur came out. He tried to jump out of a window. A lifelong Buddhist, he started to talk about how he renounced Buddhism, and was a Christian, as was his upbringing.

Human is going to human.

Don’t follow leaders, pay the parking meter. There is no one on this planet who has conquered this thing called life. Life and its messiness is undefeated. I suggest that you don’t let the delusions of others gaslight you into thinking otherwise.

This post has a bit of a chip on shoulder vibe. Oh well. Human gonna human.