The Inclusive Path

[vijeno]

I always find it weird - and on the other hand, pretty delightful - how things get complicated when we start including the meta level into our thinking: when we start to talk about exclusive vs inclusive spiritualities, instead of talking about one religious content vs the other.

I have often wondered about the possibility of a truly inclusive spirituality. Such a spirituality, to me, would include the acceptance of those paths that are exclusive: the realization that some people's stance of their way being The Only True Way (TM) is just another way of acknowledging the universe - not stupid or undeveloped, just different from my position, and maybe even different in a delightful, enriching way.

Comparing the following two statements:

• "I am the way, the truth and the life" (exclusive)
• "All instruction is but a finger pointing to the moon." (inclusive)

quite regardless of my greater sympathy for the latter stance, I wonder if there can be a point of view that is ABOVE both of them, including and extending both, in a way that proponents of both the exclusive and the inclusive way can accept.

xposted: allpaths, spiritualities, vijeno