"Billiards is a path of passion that cares the soul." - Fred Fechter
As in life and all sports, including the discipline of billiards, having knowledge is not the same as understanding. Knowledge is being of the world and a false power in itself; but understanding is true power in the world and of itself. We can acquire books, videos, education and instruction containing a great deal of knowledge in the form of information, but we cannot acquire understanding. An instructor or coach can only speak of the knowledge and information of an activity, but not of understanding. An expert cueist, golfer, gymnast, pianist, etc. have understanding of an activity but cannot speak directly of its understanding. With knowledge we can easily fool ourselves that we know something, while we only know about it. This form of ignorance is called intellectualism. In reference to this, from a great teacher, every intellectual statement is a "lie and the father of it", because when we make an intellectual statement, we pretend that we know something and actually it is not true; we only know about it.
It is only possible to believe what is not true. We understand only what is true. Only truth can be understood. Truth is what really is. Reality, understanding and absolute truth are synonymous; which is all good, perfect, healing, liberating, and imparts harmony toward the betterment of all things and anyone.
Truth and understanding cannot be experienced or acquired, but can however, be realized. For we can experience things that are not true. Experience is an organismic reaction to some situation, a reaction through emotions, sensations, intellect; the totality of the organism reacts to certain factors. These things are not reliable, therefore we cannot judge truth on the basis of experience. The worlds of psychiatry, psychology, and theology are confusing the two things; they are confusing realization with experiences. Realization is a synonym for understanding, not experience. Those who believe understanding can be acquired are disillusioned and ignorant. We can distinguish two kinds of ignorance, negative ignorance and positive ignorance. Negative ignorance is when we don't know and we know we do not know. Positive ignorance is in evidence when we don't know, but we think we know. Positive ignorance is acquired through education. Jesus knew this because he had a running battle with a large and powerful group of positively ignorant people, namely, the Pharisees. These were the most educated elite group of his time, but they were miseducated as to the nature of Devine Reality. They had a legalistic approach to God. At one point Jesus said: "Except ye be converted, and become as little children [not knowing] ye shall not enter the kingdom of heaven" [become enlightened]. He knew that in order to become enlightened, we must be willing to admit to negative ignorance. The Zen Masters and Buddhist scholars also understand this because they say, "Knowing can only come from not knowing". To take offense of calling oneself ignorant is a sure sign of false assurance.
The source of all ignorance is the tendency of man to judge by appearances. We draw erroneous conclusions based on false premises. The fact that there is such a great variety of psychotherapeutic schools demonstrates that they all have different assumptions about what man is. Every founder of psychotherapeutic school has its own assumptions - either conscious or unconscious, explicit or implicit - about what man is. If we start with a certain premise, we will inevitably arrive at certain conclusions determined by that premise. Thus the result is a multiplicity of psychotherapeutic schools. We cannot blame people for being Jungian, Freudian, Adlerian, Rogerian, etc. It does not help to blame and it is not fair to blame. We must understand how these things have come about and then there will be no problem in communication.
The truth cannot be imposed on anyone or acquired. Acquisitiveness is willful that comes from personal ego. Personal ego functions of remembering, forgetting, believing, agreeing, trusting, accepting, disbelieving, disagreeing, mistrusting and rejecting are all mental attitudes. Mental attitudes are willed. Truth cannot be willed. When these categories of willed thoughts are eliminated in facing an issue, the open mind is attained. Education is about knowledge which produces mental attitudes that help us to develop a closed mind. A total open mind is only possible with total absence of personal ego. The natural way is the open mind. Whenever someone states they have an open mind, you can be sure that it is closed. The closed mind is a product of experience and education. Education helps us to develop a closed mind.
The primary requisite for understanding to happen is the open-minded confrontation of that which reveals itself from moment to moment, becoming aware of what is real. A realization comes into consciousness very peacefully, like a descending white dove settling upon us, as described of the one which descended upon Jesus after he was baptized. Realization descends imperceptibly and it transforms our entire outlook on reality. Understanding or realization occurs in consciousness only but by grace. Grace cannot be acquired or experienced but is received in spiritual awareness. Therefore understanding and realization are not organismic; they are spiritual. Only material things can be acquired or experienced. Understanding comes only by grace to those who are receptive in discerning the obstacles to grace.
As the great teachers having taught so often, the necessary needed requirement is in receiving. The increased opening of each one's receptivity so understanding and truth can come about is what Cuesport Instructors, as a gifted team, are gratefully blessed to help, heal, guide and teach anyone... to become better.