Friday, May 23, 2008

The meaning of “NON-DUALITY”


The premise of non-duality is that there is no need to strive towards achievement of reaching a place which is different from where one already is.

In fact, “achievement” takes one further away from being at one with one’s birth-right, the experiencing of the realm of non-duality.

The biggest obstacle that stands between one’s experience of separateness and interconnectedness is one’s own mind — an instrument designed mostly for survival tasks.

That’s the main reason there is such a huge marketplace of techniques, magazines, videos — and let it be said, sites — applied to working with the mind.

by SMADAR DE LANGE

A Life Lesson


There is only one life lesson and that is to let go. Everything arises from that. The miracle of this lesson is that it leads to new life on every possible level. It is to be turned inside out. As the third Chinese patriarch said, “Cling nowhere.” I am reminded of static cling.

When we cling, we get static.

I was born clinging, but then, aren’t we all? We are pushed into the world wet and screaming. Maybe that is why we gravitate to water slides.

Or want to go to spas and be wrapped in seaweed and other clingy stuff.

We are taught to acquire and share at the same time. Sweet.

Once we take to the spiritual path, things don’t change that much. If you are lucky, you will find a teacher who is smart enough to cut the cord between you and your attachments. By this time, most of us can’t fly very far because we don’t travel light enough. We have suitcases full of fear and compromise. Only a wise man or woman will jettison them in favor of freedom.

Let go by seeing that you can’t let go. That is enough to start with.

Insight is non-attachment, believe it or not. Be aware of how you are clinging to your suffering. That alleviates it. Practice the medicine of surrender and something else will let go for you.

--Vicki Woodyard

Thursday, May 22, 2008

True happiness

People believe themselves to be dependent on what happens for their happiness, that is to say, dependent on form. They don't realize that what happens is the most unstable thing in the universe. It changes constantly.

The joy of Being, which is the only true happiness, cannot come to you through any form, possession, achievement, person, or event--through anything that happens. That joy cannot come to you--ever. It emanates from the formless dimension within you, from consciousness itself and thus is one with who you are.

Eckhart Tolle

Love

Awakening reveals that there is no personal self, and that everything is myself. It appears to be a paradox. We find we are nothing and absolutely everything simultaneously. When we see this, we realize there is nothing more happening other than love meeting itself -- or we could say you are meeting yourself, or the Truth is meeting itself, or God is meeting itself. Love meets itself each moment, even if it's a rotten moment. This will never happen through the egoic state of consciousness, filtered through the mind. But from the innocence, love is simply meeting itself. If you love me, it meets that. If you hate me, fine, it meets that, too. And it loves meeting that. I am talking about the One meeting itself, realizing itself, experiencing itself.

There is a love that includes the good feelings that we associate with love, and also far transcends good feelings. It is a love that's much deeper than an experience. Have you noticed, with whatever quality of love you have experienced, that when true love arises, it opens up both your mind and emotions? It's an openness to whatever is happening. The egoic state of consciousness is always closing the doors.

Emotionally and intellectually, it's always slamming things shut as soon as the moment isn't the "right" kind of moment, which is about ninety-nine percent of the time. But the innocence and the love do not slam the door shut, even in the face of something that is very unpleasant.

Notice that the more you see past your sense of personal self, the more innocence creeps in. And the more innocence is known, the more love sticks its head out and starts to experience life, live this life, and move within this life. The wisdom becomes available now because one is open. So the wisdom deepens, and the innocence deepens. And the innocence allows for more love, and the more love there is, the more room there is for wisdom, and so it goes. These qualities of love and innocence are what make liberating wisdom possible. They are not only outcomes of the blooming of your true nature, they are also what make awakening and the embodiment of it, possible.

In Zen, one of the definitions of enlightenment is the harmonization of body and mind. This also means the harmonization of spirit and matter. When spirit and matter are in harmony, it's as if a third entity is born -- that's really the Buddhist "Middle Way." The Middle Way has nothing to do with the notion of being halfway between two opposites. The Middle Way is when spirit and matter are in harmony -- when the inherent oneness is realized. Spirit and matter are not two different things, they are two aspects of the One. This is the realization of our true nature.

As humans we become identified with matter. Matter includes every subtle and gross manifestation. Matter is anything that can be touched, seen, felt, perceived, or thought. A feeling is matter and emotion is matter, as is a body, a car, or a floor. The essence of matter is spirit. Matter is animated by spirit, by the life force, and they cannot be separated. Although we can speak about them as if they are two things, if we take away the life force, there is no matter. It's not as if there is dead matter. There is no matter. Part of realization is moving from identification with matter (which manifests as personality or "me") to identification with spirit. True enlightenment is when matter and spirit are in harmony. We could call this harmony nondifferentiation or oneness.

When we realize that we are spirit, there may be a much deeper harmony than there was before that realization, but there can still be some disharmony. So it is helpful to understand the value of exposing ourselves to the teaching, which is the same as exposing ourselves to what is, each and every moment. We need to expose ourselves as we would to the sun if we want to get a tan. Instead of putting on clothes, we take them off. If we want to be free, then we don't clothe ourselves with our concepts, ideas, and opinions; we take them off. Then something happens quite by itself. In order to deepen this harmony, we cannot hold on to concepts just like we cannot stay partially dressed and get a full tan. We will not get transformed. But once we are really naked and completely exposed, we can become transformed or awakened in a very natural way.

- Adyashanti, from Emptiness Dancing

Pure Awareness

Separate yourself from your Body/Mind and rest as Pure Awareness. Don't try to stop your mind. Don't try and do anything. It is all the trying and searching and sweating yourself into a frenzy that makes you unhappy. Let go of all of it. Rest in Pure Awareness, right now, in this moment, and confusion is gone, sorrow is gone, bondage is gone, fear is gone, limitation is gone. Yes, the mind may say something. Thoughts may arise. But you are not the thoughts. You are not the feelings. You are Pure Awareness. You are free from all concepts.

Are you looking for spiritual experiences? You are not the experiences. Experiences are phenomena. Phenomena come and go, but you are always the witness to all experiences and all phenomena. Do you want to see God. The experience of seeing God may come and go but you are always the witness to all experiences and phenomena. That Witness state, that Absolute Pure Consciousness is itself non-different from whatever you might conceive of as God. Do not underestimate this. Do not evaluate it at all. Give up all evaluation, all judgement, all intellectualizing and reside in the peace of who you are.

Are you seeking Awakening? As long as you are seeking you will never find. You cannot be a seeker and a finder at the same time. You must give up your seeking. You must give up your striving. You must give up all that which is the very nature of your mind and intellect. What is prior to that. It is only Pure Consciousness without an object. It cannot be known or grasped for it is the Knower, the Knowing. Let go of all concepts and simply rest in that.

Who you think you are is concepts. It is your personal mythology in which you are the Hero/ine. But that is a story based on a supposed individual that doesn't exist, like a reflection in the mirror. It is an appearance only. A case of mistaken identity. Don't be fooled any longer. It is like watching a movie and thinking that you are the main star. But it is just light on a screen that gives an appearance of people and personalities. Recognize the projector, which is the pure light of consciousness itself. Only then can you be content and free from all of your desires and anxieties (which are also only an illusion).

- Aja Acharya

To Call It One


To call it One is
One to many,
To call it nothing,
Minimizes its importance,
To say it is in me,
Implies it is not outside,
To say it comes from somewhere,
Says it is not here,
To say it has a beginning,
Makes it appear to have an ending,
To think it will come,
Implies it has not arrived,
To search for it,
Implies it is hidden,
To wait for it,
Implies it exists in time.

To try to describe it is futile,
It has no edges,
You cannot catch it,
You cannot find it,
You cannot see it,
You can only
Be It.


Larry Epston

Tuesday, May 20, 2008

Awareness

By being constantly and effortlessly aware of life without thinking about it, this awareness soon continues to function even when there are thoughts floating through the mind just as clouds floating through the sky leave no change in the space.

- Ramesh Balsekar

The Truth Is

Remove all becoming, you are Being.
Becoming is effort,
Being is not effort.
You are always That so be like the breeze
that is attached to neither the garbage nor
the garden that it blows over.

- Papaji