How the ‘Pooh Bear’ stories are at times similar to Eckankar’s teachings, in my opinion

POST #9  |  BY ELIZABETH JEWELL STEPHENS

Did you read ‘Pooh Bear’ when you were a kid? Back then you probably didn’t notice the underlying spiritual message. I didn’t either. 

How the ‘Pooh Bear’ stories are at times similar to Eckankar’s teachings

Benjamin Hoff is the author of The Tao of Pooh in which he examines the philosophies of Winnie-the-Pooh (an anthropomorphic teddy bear) created by English author, A. A. Milne. 

 

It is apparent there is a big dose of ‘is-ness’, acceptance and Spirit in the Pooh stories. 

I sometimes quote Hoff in my courses because of his understanding of acceptance, problems that are really gifts, and the interconnectedness of all events. These are much the same as my understanding of Eckankar’s teachings.

 

I love the Hoff quote on this page. It perfectly encapsulates and simplifies what could otherwise be a complex notion.

 

In this quote, below, you see that Hoff mentions Wu Wei. His own philosophies are based on the Tao (ie, The Way, Holy Spirit, or the ECK, etc.) Wu Wei means to live in harmony and effortlessness with the Tao.

 

You could take this whole quote and live life by it, don’t you think?

Benjamin Hoff

When you work with Wu Wei, you have no real accidents. Things may get a little odd at times, but they work out. You don’t have to try very hard to make them work out; you just let them. [...] If you’re in tune with the way things work, then they work the way they need to, no matter what you may think about it at the time. Later on you can look back and say, "Oh, now I understand. That had to happen so that those could happen, and those had to happen in order for this to happen…" Then you realize that even if you’d tried to make it all turn out perfectly, you couldn’t have done better, and if you’d really tried, you would have made a mess of the whole thing. Using Wu Wei, you go by circumstances and listen to your own intuition. "This isn’t the best time to do this. I’d better go that way." Like that. When you do that sort of thing, people may say you have a sixth sense or something. All it really is, though, is being sensitive to circumstances. That’s just natural. It’s only strange when you don’t listen.

Yes, it’s only strange when you don’t listen. Won’t it be wonderful when more of us agree with that notion. Actually, my problem is that I know it but forget it too often. How about you?

More resources below:

POSTS


  • Why I am NOT going to ask you to join my path

    "People don’t realize that God has provided all these different religions for a specific purpose"

    Post #1

  • How I got into Eckankar

    ... and it could just as easily be called 'How I kept ignoring signs'

    Post #2

  • How I was instructed in my dreams—I got business help with these two dreams in particular

    Post #3

  • No magic, no spooky stuff– My hope for you is to discover the beauty and power of the meditative experience

    Post #4

  • My 80-word definition of spirituality—

    Speaks for itself; no more to say

    Post #5

  • A spiritual understanding of some ‘hairy’ questions that might be bothering you—includes same sex marriage, abortion, free will...

    Post #6

  • A New Year’s Eve that went in a different direction—an example of how Spirit works in our lives

    Post #7

  • The five 'baddies' in our lives—Could 'not-enoughness' be at the bottom of what many religions accept as obstacles?

    Post #8

  • How the Pooh Bear stories are sometimes similar to Eckankar’s teachings—a big dose of ‘is-ness’, and Spirit in Pooh stories

    Post #9

Click the button below to download this story: 'Proof' that my father's soul visited from the 'other side'

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Click the button below to download this tool: Wastepaper basket method to clear clutter in your mind

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Click the button below to download a 6-page, 10-minute PDF, "Looking for a path to explain the weird, cosmic stuff?":

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