درسنامه تعاملی دوم

Dark Night – Interactive Lesson B

Hello this is AJ, and welcome to our interactive B lesson. We’re gonna go through the essay again. This time I’ll ask some questions. Answer the questions out loud with a strong voice and you can just use one or two words, a few words it’s okay. Here we go.

The most important qualification for leadership is intimate knowledge of defeat

So what’s the most important qualification for leadership?

Knowledge of defeat. Knowledge of defeat.

What kind of knowledge do you need?

Intimate knowledge. Intimate knowledge of defeat, close emotional knowledge of defeat.

You need knowledge of what to be a good leader?

Knowledge of defeat. You need intimate knowledge of defeat, defeat, to be a good leader.

Descent into the lower realm

Do you need to go up or do you need to go down?

You need to go down, descent.

Descent into where?

The lower realm, the lower kingdom. Descent into the lower realm, descent into hell, into a horrible defeat.

You need annihilation of the what?

Ego, annihilation of the ego.

Do you need to destroy the ego or make it stronger?

You need to destroy the ego, annihilate; totally destroy the ego.

You need death and rebirth. Of course death mean it’s a metaphor. To be born again.

We all have to go down and we have to learn how to go down and we have to learn how to go down how?

Gracefully. Gracefully, beautifully, gracefully. We need to learn how to go down, how to be defeated, gracefully and even willingly. Do we need to go down angrily?

Not angrily no, not with anger. We need to learn how to go down gracefully, even willingly.

We need to know that after a certain point, after a certain time, the only way to go up is to go up is what?

To go down. Sometimes the only way to go up is to first go down.

It’s a normal and natural part of life, wretched but survivable

It’s what but survivable?

Wretched, but survivable.

What is wretched?

Defeat, right, this defeat. The going down.

Defeat, terrible failure, suffering is what?

Wretched, wretched. It’s wretched but survivable.

It’s also cleansing and ultimately, finally inspiring.

What is ultimately inspiring?

Defeat, terrible defeat is ultimately, finally inspiring. It’s wretched. It’s miserable, but ultimately finally, it’s also inspiring.

The only point of any education worthy of its claim, meaning a worthwhile education, is to teach people about this going up or going down?

Going down. This descent.

So true education must teach ascent or descent?

Descent, must teach people how to be defeated gracefully, how to go down gracefully. Descent…

But, unfortunately, the subject is hardly ever what?

Broached, broached. It means started to talk about. We hardly ever start to talk about this. The subject is hardly ever broached, discussed, recommended, in our schools, and churches and synagogues and temples, hardly ever talked about. Why this need for wretchedness?

According to Zubati, do we need wretchedness or do we not need it?

We need it. According to him we need it, we need this what?

Wretchedness, this misery. Sounds strange but he’s saying we need this misery, we need this defeat.

How many people have you met who say they don’t believe in suffering? What exactly is being resisted?

So he’s saying most people accept suffering or they resist it?

They resist it. He’s saying most people fight against suffering, most people fight against defeat. They resist defeat.

But he says, the spiritual path has nothing to say about success and much to say about defeat and failure. So he’s saying the point of the spiritual path is arriving at the place where the special person no longer feels special.

That’s interesting. He’s saying, the highest path, the highest way, the spiritual path, the whole point is to arrive where you don’t feel special anymore.

Where the special person feels trashed.

Do they feel or does he feel powerful?

No, not powerful, trashed. Trashed, exhausted, defeated, exhausted, trashed.

Where he’s taking cold water bucket showers and eating other people’s leftovers.

Is he eating fresh food?

No, he’s not eating fresh food.

What kind of food is he eating?

Leftovers, leftovers, other people’s extra food, their leftover food, their leftovers.

His sense of self-importance, his feeling of self-importance, his self-esteem, his self- confidence has been peed on by life.

So life, life situations have peed on, urinated on what?

His self-importance and his self-esteem; self-importance and self-esteem. Is his ego bigger?

No, his ego’s not bigger from defeat, his ego is smashed, totally destroyed, violently destroyed. His ego is smashed.

What is smashed?

His ego, the defeated person’s ego. His personality is capsized.

Is it sunk? Is it turned upside down and sunk, his personality?

Yeah, it’s capsized.

And that’s why this collapse has to happen.

So does this defeat, does this collapse have to happen or is it optional?

It has to happen. It must happen, according to Zubati. It must happen. This collapse, this destruction, this falling down of the ego must happen, it has to happen.

The person who doesn’t unload his/her ego is stuck.

So, do you need to hold onto your ego or remove it?

You need to remove it. You need to unload your ego.

Do you need to load your ego, hold onto it, put it inside, or do you need to unload your ego?

You need to unload your ego, take it out, get rid of it. You need to unload your ego.

He/She cannot grow and complete this life. If he/she doesn’t unload their ego they can’t grow, they can’t complete this life. He/She can never be trusted to lead others.

Can you trust someone if they have never been defeated?

No. He says you cannot trust them as a leader if they’ve never been defeated, if they’ve never suffered, you cannot trust them to lead others, or to explain the meaning of life or to offer up goals to be pursued.

You can’t trust them to offer up what?

Goals.

You can’t trust them to give goals, is that right? That’s right, you can’t trust them to offer up goals. You can’t trust them to give goals to be followed, to be pursued.

Here is divorce, he’s giving examples now of defeats.

Here is divorce and loss of your children and loss of your job, the breaking of a leg or the breaking of a relationship. Here is where you have to rediscover your connection to a benevolent higher power.

You must rediscover, you must find again your connection to what kind of higher power?

Benevolent, a benevolent higher power.

You must connect to a mean and terrible higher power is that right?

No, not to a mean or terrible higher power, to a benevolent higher power, a kind and good higher power.

What must you do with this benevolent higher power?

Connect, you must connect. You must rediscover, you must find again your connection to a good, to a benevolent higher power.

If you don’t you will spend the rest of your life in cynicism and regret.

You’ll spend the rest of your life in positivity is that right?

No, no, not in positivity, in cynicism. Cynicism is super negativity, being super, super negative.

What is being super, super negative?

Cynicism, cynicism, cynicism.

So cynicism is positive or negative?

Negative, super, super negative. Cynicism is being always negative all the time about everything.

So this is not optional knowledge, it’s required knowledge.

Is it required or is it optional?

It’s required. This is required knowledge.

This isn’t an extra credit course. It’s not an extra credit course. Is it an optional course, is it an optional thing to learn?

No, he’s saying it’s necessary. It’s required.

The emotional tools for surviving calamity are the most important cultural items to be passed from generation to generation.

The tools for surviving success are very important to teach children right?

No, no, no, not the tools for surviving success, the tools for surviving calamity, calamity, disaster.

Must we teach children to survive success or calamity?

Calamity, we must teach children how to survive calamity, disaster.

Is this a little bit important?

No, not a little bit, it’s the most important cultural item or items, to be passed from generation to generation. This is the most important knowledge we must teach each generation, how to survive disaster, calamity.

All right, that is the end of our interactive B lesson. I will see you in the commentary.