Question Asking in Spirituality

There is a point that appears in a lifetime, regardless of chronological age, when healthy, true doubt appears. We doubt what we have been taught, and we doubt what others insist we must believe. This is the point at which true spiritual inquiry can begin.

Too often there is little support for the deep examination that this spiritually-healthy doubt demands. In my Episcopal confirmation classes — taken with other rowdy 12 year olds — the questions that we could ask with approval had little interest for us. The ones we were interested in, “What exactly is the devil? Where is hell?” were considered disruptive and impertinent. Although the point of the classes was to bring us into the church in a more mature phase, for most of us it was the beginning of the end of our churchgoing days. Something essential in us was denied. I have heard countless variations of this story from others who felt their right to sincerely question had no place in their religious upbringing.

We have sometimes found that we have to rebel against all we have known, since those who “know” are unwilling to allow inquiry to be an essential part of spiritual development. In our rebellions, we absorb new anti-beliefs, and when we dare to doubt them too, we again are branded as heretics. How many converted Buddhists scoff at the naive Christians who believe literal interpretations of the Bible while easily taking on the belief of reincarnation? How many fundamentalist Christians brand New Age visualization as the work of the devil and revile Hindus with their nirvana and multiple faces of God, while having personal conversations with their deity and continuing their own magical thinking about their version of God. Even proponents of inquiry often state what inquiry should reveal. In the “religion” of self inquiry, the concept of non duality takes the place of direct discovery.

Authentic spiritual inquiry reveals the joy of fresh insights and revelation, just as artistic or scientific inquiry does, but if we cling to the latest insight as a thing we know, that thing grows stale.

To be of real spiritual value, inquiry must be alive and fresh. Regardless of what we remember or have discovered from the past, each time we truly inquire, we return to not knowing what the outcome will or should be. No doctrine is needed for discovery. No concepts of multiplicity, duality, or non-duality are needed. In fact, we must put aside all of our doctrines and concepts for our inquiry. All that is needed is the willingness to be unattached to the outcome, conscious, and truthful.

Deep inquiry is not for the fainthearted or weak-minded. It is for those who are ready and willing, regardless of fears and discomforts. It is the challenge and invitation to mature. It is the invitation to give up past reliance on others’ discoveries while allowing those discoveries to encourage and even push us into our own inquiry.

Inquiry is not a coping mechanism. It is not present in human consciousness to provide certainty or comfort, except the sublime certainty that one has the capacity to discover truth for oneself. It is a stretching mechanism. It calls on the mind to stretch beyond its known frontiers, and in this way inquiry is support for maturing and evolving the soul. It frees us from the need to define ourselves to experience being ourselves. It is both humbling and a source of profound joy, but it does not provide a neat package of new definitions and stories.

The challenge in inquiry is to be willing to directly discover what exists with no reference points. Inquiry is no small challenge, for it requires facing the death of the inner and outer worlds as they have been constructed with no knowledge of what will take their place. We have the experience of releasing our constructed world when we fall into sleep, and we cherish and need this experience for our well-being on all levels. The challenge of inquiry appears in releasing the constructed world while remaining conscious.

This blog is adapted from a talk given by Gangaji at Kripalu Center, MA in September 2011. Gangaji’s new book Hidden Treasure: Uncovering the Truth in Your Life Story, was published in September 2011 by Tacher/Penguin. In this life-changing book, Gangaji uses the telling of her own life story to help readers uncover the truth in their own.

Gangaji will be offering a free open webcast on Sunday May 20 at 11:00 AM pacific time. After that, you can join her for a Silent Retreat at Fallen Leaf Lake, South Lake Tahoe, CA, beginning May 29. Visit www.gangaji.org for more information about Gangaji and her upcoming events, including the monthly Webcast / Conference Series, With Gangaji, which is currently undergoing an in-depth study of Hidden Treasure.

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
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Charlotte A.

2:53PM PDT on May 23, 2012

Interesting article.

May 23
send a green star

Terry V.

8:44AM PDT on May 23, 2012

thanks

Ainsley C.

1:20AM PDT on May 23, 2012

Salvation is a free gift called grace given to us by Christ. We just have to accept him as our Lord and Savior and ask the Holy Spirit to take over the reins of our life. The joy of being a Christian is having a relationship with Christ in this life and in the next. Harps and clouds are just stuff cartoonist think up, they aint real. Dieing in life without knowing the Lord has eternal consequences which are horrible. Just read the bible God's word on this subject. In fact read it on many other subjects to get to know the absolute truth about life.

Vicky P.

6:40PM PDT on May 22, 2012

Jane, stop attacking people, and posting 10 million times, ffs. No one cares.

May 22
send a green star

Jane B.

4:43PM PDT on May 22, 2012

OMG, I posted once. COMPUTER GLICHE!

4:42PM PDT on May 22, 2012

Mary L., I'm interested in what your "god" offers me in imaginary heaven. Those 72 virgins don't really appeal to me because I'm a woman. I'm quite content with my life, but if I'm going to shell out big bucks to some cult to get into pie heaven, I want to know what I will get. I don't really like playing a harp on a cloud (don't like that kind of music). I'm one of the 50% of women who like sex, but only with hot young guys. Can I get the equivalent of 72 virgins in your pie heaven and if so, how much do I have to pay? My friend told me that Catholics have to pay $2,000 dollars to get into pie heaven. I think that's extortion. Can you
give me a better rate?