If someone says their teaching is absent from scriptures, can I stop reading scriptures?

Do not abandon your own learning and judgment simply because someone says, ‘This is not in the scriptures.’ First understand what they are teaching and why they say it. Then consider whether it corresponds with the virtues and helpful direction of the deity they claim to represent.

Dao Xuan mentioned some independently practising friends who said they did not read scriptures because teachers perceived spiritually taught them everything, even knowledge absent from the texts. Is a new explanation possible? We can discuss that. The origins and contents of scriptures are not beyond question either. Whether attributed to gods or written by people, they can be studied.

But willingness to discuss scriptures differs from telling people they no longer need to understand them. If you do not know the aspirations, deeds or qualities worth learning of the deity you approach, how will you discern what the other person says? My concern is that wisdom may not increase, leaving only dependence on a teacher encountered through perceptions.

So first learn properly about the deity you follow, and read and understand the relevant scriptures carefully. Learn their virtues, great vows and great love. Bring questions for discussion. Learning should improve our discernment and the application of principles in conduct. Someone sounding more miraculous does not mean we need to think less.

Nor should messages claimed to come from higher spirits be accepted completely for that reason, or all rejected merely because they are channelled. I have discussed authors who wrote received material into books and met people claiming instruction from higher spirits. My question is whether they have actually understood and examined it, or merely repeated the other party’s words. The name attached to a message cannot replace judgment of its content. Discuss unclear points with experienced people and retain room for continued learning and inquiry.