Teaching and Learning are Synonymous

All the music I write is a search for myself ~ Bruce Hornsby

In a Buddhist text an author confessed, “I have no pretension that I am writing this book for any purpose other than my own awakening. ” This brought realization that I, too, write primarily for the healing of my own mind and spirit. I was surprised to find that countless artists agree that even if no one else ever read their books, saw their paintings, or listened to their music, all of their efforts would be worth the sheer joy of producing the work.

To whom are your creative efforts directed? Do you write, sing, or dance for worldly approval, or are you hearkening to the inner writer, singer, or dancer calling to express and celebrate?

Perhaps we teach what we need to learn? Sometimes teachers are reluctant to admit that they need to study what they are teaching, but that is the very reason we are in a particular position. 

A fitting story; a famous relaxation technique was developed by a renowned psychologist, this man was described as, “most uptight person ever met. ” Was he a hypocrite? Not necessarily. If you teach what you have mastered, even while you’re learning more, you are in integrity. The technique this man developed for his own healing helped many people who applied it.

Your right place is the one in which you are receiving the most edification. The fact that other people receive a benefit is the icing on the cake. Do what is healing to our spirit, and without effort we will offer the world healing in return.

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Excerpt from Alan Cohen's meditation book, A Deep Breath of Life.