Spirituality, Religion & The Sense of Humour

It has always struck me that the sense of humour is sadly lacking within many religions and spiritual paths. I'm not talking here of slap-stick humour or joke telling for the sake of joke telling, but, the subtle bright-eyed lightness that comes with a certain special outlook. All too often those peddlers of religion and spiritual ways have a heaviness and solemnity that reveals more about their state of mind than spiritual truth. What reaction would you get if you laughed in church? Not a very warm one I would think. Seriousness has become the hall-mark of the pious agents of God as "Christianity should be approached with misery" so one illustrious prelate stated. And why should this be the case? Because, he stated "There is no surviving record that Jesus ever laughed!" This may be true, but, is this ridiculous assumption something to base spiritual or religious practice on? There is also no records of Jesus having to relieve himself so does this mean a good Christian should abstain from going to the lavatory until they explode?

Plato stated, "Serious things cannot be understood without humorous things, Nor opposites without opposites."

Even when there is documentation the conditioned convictions of an individual will often filter them out. Yet, withing Islam we find one of the Prophet's companions, Abdullah son of Harith saying, "I have never seen anyone who smiled more than the Messenger of Allah." Evidently the Prophet Mohammed (pboh) was famous for his sense of humour.

Humour used on the spiritual path, however, as stated above is different to that of worldly humour. It is a many edged sword that can be understood on many levels, reveals aspects about oneself through one's reaction to it and can be a valuable teaching tool when used correctly.

There is an anecdote in circulation around the world:

An American tourist that was taken to a shrine in Japan and shown around it. At one point a very aged monk showed him a flame. "That flame has been been burning non stop for a thousand years" he quavered. The American leaned over, looked at it and blew it out. "Well it isn't now" he said.

The setting of the story changes, the nationality of the tourist changes, but, the story follows the same formula. What was your first opinion of that American tourist when he did that? Did you perhaps think he was insensitive? What if he were English or French, would you have seen the story in a different light? If the person in question had previously been living isolated as a hermit in a cave somewhere in the Himalayas then would you perhaps have thought of him trying to teach some sort of spiritual lesson in non-attachment and the folly of putting so much importance in physical things? What truths do you gleam about yourself and your attitude toward the world and spiritual matters in this story? A many edged sword indeed!

The greatest barrier to spiritual enlightenment, the revelation of Truth, their Self Knowledge or whatever you prefer to call it is ones own concepts and convictions of what it is and how to attain it. You want to be filled. But something which is full has first to be emptied. Empty yourself so that you will fill properly... stated Bahaudin Naqshband, but, how to go about the emptying, how to get rid of false conceptions and convictions? Spiritual humour applied in the correct way at the correct time is one such technique used as a shock-applier and tension-releaser and of course and indicator of false situations. This type of humour is not always immediately obvious, once applied it can sit there within oneself working quietly inside until one day the full import of it breaks to the surface with revelations of one's inner self. A little story about false convictions illustrates this, it's taken from "Special Illuminations" by Idries Shah:

* * *

A certain woman from the West kept plaguing one teacher, who, for twenty years or so, found it necessary to refuse to allow her to seek "Heaven" or enlightenment through divining cards, enigmatic books, mysterious rituals, perfumes, disembodied voices and other exciting and intriguing ways. He did not allow her to use Oriental names, to spiritualize the physical or to physicalize the spiritual.

Finally, when she had become very subdued, he realized that she was just biding her time and would again start demanding secrets and processes instead of just teaching. He decided on a memorable once-for-all interview and counsel.

"Here at last are your instructions" he said. "You will drink some holy water, fast for three months and repeat this word ninety million times. Then you will walk to Kathmandu, measuring your length along the way, never lose your temper, strain every fibre to hear celestial music and never say a metaphysical word. Then you will stop doing all these things and go back to ordinary life as you know it.

"Oh master!" she breathed, "And then I will be in a state of perfect freedom and release?"

"No, but, you will feel as if you were!"

* * *

A true sense of humour is essential if one is going to make any headway upon the Way. I have often heard people referring to God, Allah or whatever name you are conditioned to use, as being serious, stern and even jealous and retributive. This surely is more an indication of the individual's or culture's projection of the self image rather than a fact. Has the Creator a sense of humour? You only have to look at nature and all the bizarre creatures and plants that make you smile and laugh to answer that. Only someone with a sense of humour could create a pomegranate of such delicious taste only to fill it with so many seeds.

So, before going I will leave the following to ponder upon:

There was once two mystics (who had become so enlightened that they were hardly in the world any more) talking. The first one said: "I had a disciple once, and despite all my efforts I was unable to illuminate him."

"What did you do?" asked the other.

"I made him repeat mantras, gaze at symbols, dress in special garb, jump up and down, inhale incense, read invocations and stand up in long vigils."

"Didn't he say anything which might give you a clue as to why all this was not giving him higher consciousness?"

"Nothing. He just lay down and died. All he said was irrelevant: "When am I going to get some food?""