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emc
2072 Posts |
 Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 06:18:30 AM
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I have an issue I am working on, where I know I have some heavy judgements distorting and disturbing me, and I asked for guidance before meditation. I got a clear image of the three wise monkeys - see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil.
However, I do not really understand the interpretation of those monkeys. Searching the internet seems to reveal a disagreement on their meaning, ranging from not being nosy and spreading humors to not being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
"If we do not hear, see, or speak evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil." Should man avoid from acting evil and flee an immoral situation - a moral guide line in order to get your life straight?
“I see nothing, I hear nothing and I say nothing”. Is the three monkeys telling you to log off and mind your own business when confronted with immoral situations?
Or is it something like a description of where you land the further you go on the spiritual path. You will eventually see no evil, because you will have understood that good and bad does not exist. Pain is love. Injustice is illusion. When you see people behave in whatever way, you will have no judgement about it. You will hear no evil, since all you will hear is perhaps ignorant speech or wonderful expressions of what's going on in people's minds. You will speak no evil because you will be radiating divine love and all your words will be words of love and truth...
How do you interpret the meaning of the monkeys?
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Katrine
Norway
1813 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 07:56:42 AM
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Hi emc
Although I have never heard of these three monkeys (the only monkey story I recall is the one in the book "When the shoe fits" by Osho; on the teachings of the Taoist mystic Chuang Tzu)..... on reading your post, the three you speak about immediately melt into one: The mind. The mind is the monkey.
quote:
“I see nothing, I hear nothing and I say nothing”. Is the three monkeys telling you to log off and mind your own business when confronted with immoral situations?
No. Remember, they are telling you nothing. They don't speak  . Silence is to not mind your own business... is to be your own business. Then, shockingly, freeingly, it is revealed as noones business at all. It just is as it is. Find out who it is (you) that has opinions on what is moral/immoral. Find out if she is separate from the opinions themselves.
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If we do not hear, see, or speak evil, we ourselves shall be spared all evil
I never could buy into the realness of "evil". Evil does not exist in and of itself. The most I can resonate with, is the fact that thought, believed to be self-existent, veils the presence of Life. The thought, identified with, is the darkness. Thought springs out from Life - not the other way around. Thought can never permeate Life. Life is always permeating thought. Whether you see it or not. Evil - the other way around - is Live. I love the English language  The language of the angels
When objects (thoughts or any other object) are believed to be real in and of themselves, suffering follows. It has to be that way. It is intelligence operating. The heart naturally hungers for love when it is believed to be "without" it. On the horisontal plane of thoughts, every thought is separate . To be spared all evil is simply to stay with the beingness that makes all thought possible. To stay with Life. You can still enjoy the thought play immensly (as I am now) - as Silence is always here. The paper or screen, that makes the poem readable, is silence. Always. The letters are only real in the sense that they are permeated by this silence.
So. Speak all you want, emc. See all. Hear all. But know - in your heart - that all is one in realness. What permeates everything is the same oneness for all. Then no illusion will attract you as if it is ultimately real. The only reason it will attract you, is the fact that it is permeated by what is real: The Shine of Silence. Some people/objects/situations are less crowded. When you are less crowded with what you think you are, who you truly are shines through. It is the shine that attracts. And the shine never was anywhere else but here, in noone "else" but you. This is true for all of us.
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When you see people behave in whatever way, you will have no judgement about it.
Exactly. Simply because you will see no people (in and of themselves). Only the shine that you are. "The people" and you will not be seen as separate. All the separate objects in the "situation" will be ephemeral....they will all vibrate as the same unity. I am.
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I have an issue I am working on
Find out who the worker is first. Never mind the issue.
Or:
Are you sure they are two? The issue and you?
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I have some heavy judgements distorting and disturbing me
Has it occured to you that the judgement itself is what you call "you"? And that if so, then the judgement, the distortion and the disturbance is all one: The thought of you. Find the root thought. Who are you, emc? First go here. Stop travelling everywhere else. Noone else knows.
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However, I do not really understand the interpretation of those monkeys. Searching the internet seems to reveal a disagreement on their meaning, ranging from not being nosy and spreading humors to not being in the wrong place at the wrong time.
People speak from their level of understanding; we receive from our level of understanding. They are all "true", relatively speaking. Interpritations never satisfies for long. The most they can do is point you inwards. Only the direct finding out for yourself is true contentment.
Emc - as always, you are never in the wrong place at the wrong time!
Thank you for making the day brighter 
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VIL
USA
586 Posts |
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riptiz
United Kingdom
741 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 08:17:14 AM
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Hi Emc,
My own belief of the three wise monkeys s a s follows and is true to the yogic path and my teachers teachings.To refrain from thinking,speaking or acting badly towards others.To hear no evil is to be detached from any slander you hear against others.Non judgement of others.Don't believe gossip but only believe what is provable to you.Thats my take on it anyway.
L&L
Dave |
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 08:26:51 AM
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Thank you Katrine. Great post, although it did not make me more wise of why I'd get that image...
VIL, it was exactly pages like that that did not tell me anything of the meaning of the monkeys. That's why I ask you. |
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VIL
USA
586 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 08:51:20 AM
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Okay, I'll throw a banana in the mix. It's impossible for a monkey to see, speak, or hear, evil, let alone good, since an animal doesn't have the capacity to differentiate.
VIL |
Edited by - VIL on Dec 31 2006 09:03:20 AM |
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Shanti
USA
4854 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 09:12:54 AM
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Hi EMC,
Mahatma Gandhi was a big believer in the Three Monkeys.
Maybe your vision was more in the lines of reading up on him.. or any of the other great ones who believed in the Three Monkeys...
Here is an article on The three monkeys |
Edited by - Shanti on Dec 31 2006 09:56:59 AM |
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riptiz
United Kingdom
741 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 10:08:34 AM
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Hi Shanti,
I'm a great believer in the philosophies of Gandhi and I guess so are the yogis as that is certainly in keeping with what they teach.
L&L
Dave |
Edited by - riptiz on Dec 31 2006 10:09:33 AM |
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Katrine
Norway
1813 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 10:22:39 AM
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Hi emc
quote:
it did not make me more wise of why I'd get that image...
Find out to whom the image occured.
Then the issue (you) dissolves..... and all is well.
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Manipura
USA
870 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 10:29:30 AM
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| I heard a Buddhist teacher speak a few nights ago. He said, If you can't train your tongue, how do you expect to train your mind? |
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Balance
USA
967 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 10:48:19 AM
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| You are the Self beyond attatchment to these events. |
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Thokar
USA
45 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 12:08:06 PM
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| I prefer the maxim of "Fear no evil" and I also add my own philosophy of "Crush whatever evil happens to stand in your path" |
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emc
2072 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 3:48:18 PM
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Thanks for your thoughts. Shanti, that link was good and Riptiz had the same view.
quote:
The monkey shutting his ears suggests that a man should pay no heed to evil talks, we should avoid participating and listening to gossip and futile talks. This will actually clutter his mind. It is but wise to shut your ears and not listen to any gossip, instead one could just move away from a situation that is distasteful.
‘Silence is golden, speech is silver’. So adopt prudence while speaking. When you speak do not hurt anyone, as hurtful words can be lethal weapons, do not flatter anybody for no reason. If we follow the path shown by Gandhiji, this world would be a better place to live in.
It seems then, that it is meant as moral guide lines for behaviour. That makes sense to me in relation to my issue, and it also brings me back to Gandhi... I have always liked him a lot. I think I should take up on reading a bit more about him.
Katrine... You are so right! I will definitely take a closer look on that peculiar thing called "I" who has this issue and to whom the image appeared. But while doing that I will also get a clearer picture of why the issue is placed in the existence from the start... I always appreciate your posts!
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david_obsidian
USA
2602 Posts |
Posted - Dec 31 2006 : 4:41:05 PM
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Like all maxims, the maxim has the meaning it is given by those who speak it.
By and large though, its usual meaning is just a hygiene recommendation. Keep the trash out of your mind and speech. Some people read higher meanings into it; I see that as putting higher meanings into it, which is fine too.
Pretty much all maxims are only approximate, and pretty much all can be used naively, or taken too far. Unfortunately, if this maxim is taken too far or naively, it can mean 'keep your head in the sand, like an ostrich, and think it is holy to do so, letting corruption and abuse have its day among your kind'.
So, obviously, nuance is important here.
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Edited by - david_obsidian on Dec 31 2006 4:44:59 PM |
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Three wise monkeys
