Doing can only be fruitful when you get past "neediness" and "lacking". Until then it will be self-serving not Self and One serving.
-Eckhart Tolle (paraphrased)
Doing
Hmmm! I have been doing and doing yesterday trying to get the final things done for my yoga studio. I was pumped. I have been waiting for this for months...and finally all that was left was the final touches. I was going to offer a great service in a great space. It was all going to be worth it...all I spent that I didn't have was going to pay off. All the frustrated waiting was not going to be for nought. There was just some tidying up to do to de-create a scene from the Trailer Park Boys in the outward appearance of my home. So I did and I did and I did. I had a long list for D. to do too. I was so grateful for the doing...it gave me a wonderful distraction from what I was dealing with earlier this week and I was convinced it was going to take me to that "outcome" I have been anticipating for months. My doing was going to be fruitful.
Accomplishment?
In the midst of my doing, there was a cancellation, an innocent comment made about some minor décor detail and an inability to get certain things done because of circumstance. I felt myself suddenly becoming dissatisfied with my situation. The up I was feeling earlier slipped away so quickly. I looked about my "almost" ready studio and thought, "I need to do more, get more, have more!" My mind cried out. "I do not have enough, this will never be done; how will I make enough to pay for what I lost here." And finally, "This thing is not doing it for me. It is not enough." I had slipped into the "neediness" and "lacking" that spurred me on this journey in the first place. I realized that the creation of my yoga studio, though a wonderful accomplishment, was not going to "fulfill me" as I thought it would.
Who am I Serving?
As much as I want to serve, as much as I wanted to be a yoga teacher for that reason, there was sadly also an ulterior motive for my doing. Ego wanted to find satisfaction and it attempted to fill in the holes with doing and striving for an outcome. I looked outward , instead of inward for my fulfillment. I focused on doing more so than being. In that process, I realized I was attempting to serve self ( my hungry little ego) and not Self, not the world.
Is this Yoga?
Isn't it ironic that in my attempt to create a space for yoga I neglected the motivation that yoga is? I need to turn my sites inward. It is not the space or the doing that will allow me to live and teach yoga...but the simple being of it.
Hmmm! Sigh! so much learning in one week. :)
All is well!
Eckhart Tolle ( September 2019). Aligning Being and Doing: Joyful Creation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=70F7huPoNeA
Friday, September 20, 2019
Thursday, September 19, 2019
Awareness is Wisdom
Awareness is wisdom. They are one and the same.
-Eckhart Tolle
Oh my! Ego did slip in yesterday. As coy and as sneaky as it always is, it slithers under what seems to be "wisdom" to find its mark. It vents a little anger, a little self righteousness and a little attack when one assumes they are being wise. I used the terms "incompetence' and "absurdity" in yesterday's entry. They are ego terms and this morning I feel bad about them. Who am I to judge incompetence in another? What good does describing a situation as "absurd" do for humanity? I was simply venting anger and resentment because things did not turn out the way I (little "me") thought they should. Outcome did not meet my expectation.
It turned out exactly as it was meant to...and the "wise" part of me knew that during that evening crisis. One of the reasons I did not push. Ego, however, was not asleep throughout that encounter, only pretending to be.
Wow...it is good to be able to see it now though. So , so much learning. I am glad that learning excites me so. I obviously am not going to be bored for a while. :)
If I wish to make a difference in this world from the wise Self...I need to be aware when ego is lingering about. I am learning. Wisdom is awareness.
People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost.
-Dalai Lama
-Eckhart Tolle
Oh my! Ego did slip in yesterday. As coy and as sneaky as it always is, it slithers under what seems to be "wisdom" to find its mark. It vents a little anger, a little self righteousness and a little attack when one assumes they are being wise. I used the terms "incompetence' and "absurdity" in yesterday's entry. They are ego terms and this morning I feel bad about them. Who am I to judge incompetence in another? What good does describing a situation as "absurd" do for humanity? I was simply venting anger and resentment because things did not turn out the way I (little "me") thought they should. Outcome did not meet my expectation.
It turned out exactly as it was meant to...and the "wise" part of me knew that during that evening crisis. One of the reasons I did not push. Ego, however, was not asleep throughout that encounter, only pretending to be.
Wow...it is good to be able to see it now though. So , so much learning. I am glad that learning excites me so. I obviously am not going to be bored for a while. :)
If I wish to make a difference in this world from the wise Self...I need to be aware when ego is lingering about. I am learning. Wisdom is awareness.
People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they've gotten lost.
-Dalai Lama
Wednesday, September 18, 2019
Wisdom and Intellect
Wisdom is an intuitive knowing that is much deeper than the intellect.
-Eckhart Tolle
Learning to "not close" is not an easy task. Let me tell ya. Sometimes, I wonder if it is necessary to close...just a bit...in certain situations.
Closing in Crisis
I found myself sitting in the ER with a loved one a couple of nights ago, my upper body bent forward, my arms crossed in front of my chest and my face as flat as the Saskatchewan prairie. My body was closed up like a Tupperware container.
I wanted to come into the ER like a Mom, allowing my feelings and perceptions to flow freely from me. I didn't want to have to use my mind, assuming others would be clearly using theirs. Within moments, however, I knew that was not going to be possible. I had to put away the maternal role and close to some degree.
When Intellect is Needed
I tried to maintain a sense of emotional and mental control. My loved one, because of her state of mind, perceived my "cool as a cucumber" outer appearance as cold, condescending indifference and attempted to use it to push some ego buttons. She was thankfully unsuccessful. My professional and personal experience told me it was necessary to stay far away from ego, at least until we got out of that place. If I and she was going to survive that night I knew it was necessary to close egos off.
In order to function...to keep my head clear so I could evaluate the situation...with my intellect...(this was indeed one of those times that intellect was very much needed)... I had to be clear and cool. To make necessary choices that others didn't seem to be able to make... I knew I had to close down the outer layers of me so ego daggers ( both my own and those of others) did not pierce through to cloud my judgment. Oh...it was difficult, dealing with the life threatening nature of the circumstances, dealing with her behaviour, and dealing with the professionals who were making assumptions and judgments that could have been potentially lethal. Some closing was necessary.
Staying Open to Wisdom
That closing down of the outer layers of me to the outside world, however, is not the same as closing down to the internal layers where wisdom sits. I did close down to some aspects of my moment but I was open to Self where calm and peace are. As much as I needed my intellect, I needed that calm. I needed that peace. I needed that wisdom that can only be found in that center of Self. Wisdom implies you are connected with [Self]. (Tolle)
So I took a deep breath and called upon both my intellect and my inner wisdom to get us all through that awful night. (oops I described it as "awful" and it wasn't...it simply was what it was.). While others, who clearly didn't understand the seriousness of the situation, were telling me what was going on, I sat quietly and listened. Though I explained my interpretation, I didn't defend myself against the judgments and assumptions made. I didn't get angry and attack. Though ego certainly started to grumble and growl within me at what I thought was complete incompetence and absurdity....I was able to sink back down into Self and notice that the individual did believe he was helping and was actually attempting to be kind and nonjudgmental. I found myself appreciative of that attempt.
I also realized and accepted that she would not get the help she needed there that night. It would not be safe to leave her. I could have pushed for what should have been provided without my asking but I didn't. Something in me knew that it was not the time or place.
So I took over without anyone probably noticing I took over and guided the situation back with wisdom's help. We went home and it was a very, very rough night but we got through it. We went for help the next day to set her up with at least some of the help she needed.
Realization
I realized, however, that the true help was not going to come from professionals or family members. It had to come from her and her tapping into her own source of wisdom. I also realized how utterly powerless I, as one human being, was in attempting to "help' her. It wasn't my journey after all. This was between her and Life and though I would continue to do whatever I could to preserve that life...it was ultimately and very sadly an outcome I could not control.
Taking Off the Shield: Going Back to "Not Closing"
I also knew that this shield I wore around myself that night was not something I could wear all the time. It was much, much too heavy. Closing is heavy!!! I would be no help to her in the long run if I collapsed from that weight. It was time to step back and heal a bit myself before I could be there to offer presence when she began to heal herself. I decided, at some point, I would leave this to God and not to my ego or the egos of others.
Hmmm! My message: yes there are times when we need to create distance between the outside world and our egoic emotional reactions, so we can function with clear intellects in challenging situations. There are times we may need to close just a bit. At those times we can still be open to the wisdom within. When the crisis is over or at least subdued, however, remove the shield. Be open to both the inner and outer Life once again.
All is well!
-Eckhart Tolle
Learning to "not close" is not an easy task. Let me tell ya. Sometimes, I wonder if it is necessary to close...just a bit...in certain situations.
Closing in Crisis
I found myself sitting in the ER with a loved one a couple of nights ago, my upper body bent forward, my arms crossed in front of my chest and my face as flat as the Saskatchewan prairie. My body was closed up like a Tupperware container.
I wanted to come into the ER like a Mom, allowing my feelings and perceptions to flow freely from me. I didn't want to have to use my mind, assuming others would be clearly using theirs. Within moments, however, I knew that was not going to be possible. I had to put away the maternal role and close to some degree.
When Intellect is Needed
I tried to maintain a sense of emotional and mental control. My loved one, because of her state of mind, perceived my "cool as a cucumber" outer appearance as cold, condescending indifference and attempted to use it to push some ego buttons. She was thankfully unsuccessful. My professional and personal experience told me it was necessary to stay far away from ego, at least until we got out of that place. If I and she was going to survive that night I knew it was necessary to close egos off.
In order to function...to keep my head clear so I could evaluate the situation...with my intellect...(this was indeed one of those times that intellect was very much needed)... I had to be clear and cool. To make necessary choices that others didn't seem to be able to make... I knew I had to close down the outer layers of me so ego daggers ( both my own and those of others) did not pierce through to cloud my judgment. Oh...it was difficult, dealing with the life threatening nature of the circumstances, dealing with her behaviour, and dealing with the professionals who were making assumptions and judgments that could have been potentially lethal. Some closing was necessary.
Staying Open to Wisdom
That closing down of the outer layers of me to the outside world, however, is not the same as closing down to the internal layers where wisdom sits. I did close down to some aspects of my moment but I was open to Self where calm and peace are. As much as I needed my intellect, I needed that calm. I needed that peace. I needed that wisdom that can only be found in that center of Self. Wisdom implies you are connected with [Self]. (Tolle)
So I took a deep breath and called upon both my intellect and my inner wisdom to get us all through that awful night. (oops I described it as "awful" and it wasn't...it simply was what it was.). While others, who clearly didn't understand the seriousness of the situation, were telling me what was going on, I sat quietly and listened. Though I explained my interpretation, I didn't defend myself against the judgments and assumptions made. I didn't get angry and attack. Though ego certainly started to grumble and growl within me at what I thought was complete incompetence and absurdity....I was able to sink back down into Self and notice that the individual did believe he was helping and was actually attempting to be kind and nonjudgmental. I found myself appreciative of that attempt.
I also realized and accepted that she would not get the help she needed there that night. It would not be safe to leave her. I could have pushed for what should have been provided without my asking but I didn't. Something in me knew that it was not the time or place.
So I took over without anyone probably noticing I took over and guided the situation back with wisdom's help. We went home and it was a very, very rough night but we got through it. We went for help the next day to set her up with at least some of the help she needed.
Realization
I realized, however, that the true help was not going to come from professionals or family members. It had to come from her and her tapping into her own source of wisdom. I also realized how utterly powerless I, as one human being, was in attempting to "help' her. It wasn't my journey after all. This was between her and Life and though I would continue to do whatever I could to preserve that life...it was ultimately and very sadly an outcome I could not control.
Taking Off the Shield: Going Back to "Not Closing"
I also knew that this shield I wore around myself that night was not something I could wear all the time. It was much, much too heavy. Closing is heavy!!! I would be no help to her in the long run if I collapsed from that weight. It was time to step back and heal a bit myself before I could be there to offer presence when she began to heal herself. I decided, at some point, I would leave this to God and not to my ego or the egos of others.
Hmmm! My message: yes there are times when we need to create distance between the outside world and our egoic emotional reactions, so we can function with clear intellects in challenging situations. There are times we may need to close just a bit. At those times we can still be open to the wisdom within. When the crisis is over or at least subdued, however, remove the shield. Be open to both the inner and outer Life once again.
All is well!
Monday, September 16, 2019
Doing what we ought
Do what you ought and trust what may be.
Johann Wolfgang Van Goethe
So what is all this stuff about life purpose that others speak about? Though being is more important than doing, we know we have to "do" something while we are here. What do we do to fill in our time and benefit the world at large?
I try to avoid labels to define me or my roles these days but if I had to, the two most authentic labels I could apply to myself are "writer" and "teacher". I can use those descriptions in good conscious, certainly not based on talent or ability, but because I think, feel and behave like a writer and teacher.
My first thought when I experience anything is..."Oh I could write about that!" My second thought is, "I could teach people about what I am learning through this experience!" I am constantly putting my thoughts together in some logical, readable form. I am constantly teaching to learn and learning to teach.
So when I combine those two roles into my life purpose what do I come up with? A desire to teach through the written word. That is why I am here writing on this blog right now. That is why I also intend to take all I have written here and put it in some publishable form. (most of it is already copy right protected for that purpose) Eventually, I will get it published and out there to those who may want it. But I won't get too attached to outcomes. I will let Life do the remaining work after I do my part. For now, I can only focus on doing "what I ought".
All is well.
Johann Wolfgang Van Goethe
So what is all this stuff about life purpose that others speak about? Though being is more important than doing, we know we have to "do" something while we are here. What do we do to fill in our time and benefit the world at large?
I try to avoid labels to define me or my roles these days but if I had to, the two most authentic labels I could apply to myself are "writer" and "teacher". I can use those descriptions in good conscious, certainly not based on talent or ability, but because I think, feel and behave like a writer and teacher.
My first thought when I experience anything is..."Oh I could write about that!" My second thought is, "I could teach people about what I am learning through this experience!" I am constantly putting my thoughts together in some logical, readable form. I am constantly teaching to learn and learning to teach.
So when I combine those two roles into my life purpose what do I come up with? A desire to teach through the written word. That is why I am here writing on this blog right now. That is why I also intend to take all I have written here and put it in some publishable form. (most of it is already copy right protected for that purpose) Eventually, I will get it published and out there to those who may want it. But I won't get too attached to outcomes. I will let Life do the remaining work after I do my part. For now, I can only focus on doing "what I ought".
All is well.
Sunday, September 15, 2019
Shakti: The Love of Life
The most difficult thing-but an essential one-is to love Life, to love it even while one suffers, because Life is all. Life is God, and to love Life means to love God.
Leo Tolstoy
Wow! My head is full, my heart is heavy and my body is tired and sore. lol...This is an experience of dis-harmony; dis-ease and simply being out of balance. I am not settling into Self but temporarily operating from a 'driver-less' mind instead.
At the same time witness consciousness is watching, observing without judgment this human tendency within me. As a person who gets excited about learning...I am in awe as I watch myself . Even though, mind 'thinks' I would rather be or 'should' be experiencing the joy of sun and Self rather than this dense cloud cover between them...it is still so very interesting.
I guess, I am a bit in awe as an objective observer standing in the back ground of my psyche. As I look about I can see we are all in here. :) (No...I am not in a dissociative fugue("multiple personality" reaction)...I promise...lol) . I just see the different elements of Shakti at work.
I ask, "Am I closed or open to Shakti?"
It is just so cool to look at this sense of un-ease from the view of Self without attachment to it, without judgment, without a heck of a lot of words to wrap around it. It just is and because it is...it should be. There is no need to resist it, fight it, or struggle against it. This is what is unfolding in this moment and it is perfect simply because it is. The more I watch this...the more excited I get. It is so weird lol.
What is Shakti?
I wanted to get a better mental grip on what Shakti is (to appease my chattering ego). Shakti, as described by Michael Singer, is the energy of spirit that flows beneath the mind. This differs somewhat from B.K.S. Iyengar's definition that Shakti includes the mind stuff. So wanting to fully understand what I am watching inside me with the mind first, I am looking for other definitions and descriptions of it.
Dr Swami Shankardev Saraswati and Jayne Stevenson from the Yoga site Big Shakti describe it as the creative energy of the universe. They write that it is the essence of feeling good and everything that has this energy flowing trough it is alive, illuminous and desirable. Most importantly, they describe it as the foundation for consciousness...not necessarily all of consciousness but the foundation for it. When directed inward it allows us to raise our consciousness so we can become connected to something greater, to the Source and all as One. It is not our true essence...it leads us to it.
In Hinduism Shakti is personified as the Goddess of creation. The Chopra Center describes it as a divine cosmic energy that moves through the universe. It is a universal source of energy, power and creation.
In Taoist terminology it might be called Chi. In Christian terminology it might be defined as the "Holy Spirit". In ACIM it is the Holy Spirit that can lead us to our source.
So ?
Shakti...or whatever word you use to call it, is the energy that vibrates under the surface of our superficial beings. It is the Life force, the prana, the joy and bliss of our existence. It is what moves us toward the essence of who we truly are and back to God or Source . When we are open to it, feeling it, sinking into it...we feel joy, love, wellness etc. We love Life.
When mind gets in the way with its very limited degree of Shakti energy, telling us that this moment right here is not what we want for whatever it judges it as...we may be closed to it. We not love Life so much.
So even when mind attempts to convince us that the moment is "wrong" the Life force energy of Shakti still flows through us...we just cannot feel it because we are closed to it.
When we open up and allow the moment to be what it is without resisting it or struggling against it ( not closing)...we feel it, no matter what is going on around us or within us. We love Life!
Hmm! So I guess I am feeling Shakti because I am loving Life right now regardless of what she is throwing in my direction. I am excited about my new discoveries as I study self and Self in action. That is pretty cool.
References
B.K.S. Iyengar. (2014 ) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random house
Michael A. Singer (2007) the untethered soul. Oakland: New Harbinger
Dr. Swami Shankardev Saraswati & Jayne Stevenson ( August 2015) What is Shakti? from Bigshaktihttps://www.bigshakti.com/what-is-shakti/.
Shakti: A Universal Force. (n.d.) Editors at The Chopra Center. https://chopra.com/article/shakti-universal-force
Leo Tolstoy
Wow! My head is full, my heart is heavy and my body is tired and sore. lol...This is an experience of dis-harmony; dis-ease and simply being out of balance. I am not settling into Self but temporarily operating from a 'driver-less' mind instead.
At the same time witness consciousness is watching, observing without judgment this human tendency within me. As a person who gets excited about learning...I am in awe as I watch myself . Even though, mind 'thinks' I would rather be or 'should' be experiencing the joy of sun and Self rather than this dense cloud cover between them...it is still so very interesting.
I guess, I am a bit in awe as an objective observer standing in the back ground of my psyche. As I look about I can see we are all in here. :) (No...I am not in a dissociative fugue("multiple personality" reaction)...I promise...lol) . I just see the different elements of Shakti at work.
I ask, "Am I closed or open to Shakti?"
It is just so cool to look at this sense of un-ease from the view of Self without attachment to it, without judgment, without a heck of a lot of words to wrap around it. It just is and because it is...it should be. There is no need to resist it, fight it, or struggle against it. This is what is unfolding in this moment and it is perfect simply because it is. The more I watch this...the more excited I get. It is so weird lol.
What is Shakti?
I wanted to get a better mental grip on what Shakti is (to appease my chattering ego). Shakti, as described by Michael Singer, is the energy of spirit that flows beneath the mind. This differs somewhat from B.K.S. Iyengar's definition that Shakti includes the mind stuff. So wanting to fully understand what I am watching inside me with the mind first, I am looking for other definitions and descriptions of it.
Dr Swami Shankardev Saraswati and Jayne Stevenson from the Yoga site Big Shakti describe it as the creative energy of the universe. They write that it is the essence of feeling good and everything that has this energy flowing trough it is alive, illuminous and desirable. Most importantly, they describe it as the foundation for consciousness...not necessarily all of consciousness but the foundation for it. When directed inward it allows us to raise our consciousness so we can become connected to something greater, to the Source and all as One. It is not our true essence...it leads us to it.
In Hinduism Shakti is personified as the Goddess of creation. The Chopra Center describes it as a divine cosmic energy that moves through the universe. It is a universal source of energy, power and creation.
In Taoist terminology it might be called Chi. In Christian terminology it might be defined as the "Holy Spirit". In ACIM it is the Holy Spirit that can lead us to our source.
So ?
Shakti...or whatever word you use to call it, is the energy that vibrates under the surface of our superficial beings. It is the Life force, the prana, the joy and bliss of our existence. It is what moves us toward the essence of who we truly are and back to God or Source . When we are open to it, feeling it, sinking into it...we feel joy, love, wellness etc. We love Life.
When mind gets in the way with its very limited degree of Shakti energy, telling us that this moment right here is not what we want for whatever it judges it as...we may be closed to it. We not love Life so much.
So even when mind attempts to convince us that the moment is "wrong" the Life force energy of Shakti still flows through us...we just cannot feel it because we are closed to it.
When we open up and allow the moment to be what it is without resisting it or struggling against it ( not closing)...we feel it, no matter what is going on around us or within us. We love Life!
Hmm! So I guess I am feeling Shakti because I am loving Life right now regardless of what she is throwing in my direction. I am excited about my new discoveries as I study self and Self in action. That is pretty cool.
References
B.K.S. Iyengar. (2014 ) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random house
Michael A. Singer (2007) the untethered soul. Oakland: New Harbinger
Dr. Swami Shankardev Saraswati & Jayne Stevenson ( August 2015) What is Shakti? from Bigshaktihttps://www.bigshakti.com/what-is-shakti/.
Shakti: A Universal Force. (n.d.) Editors at The Chopra Center. https://chopra.com/article/shakti-universal-force
Saturday, September 14, 2019
Karmic Lift
Alas, two souls are living in my breast,
And one wants to separate itself from the other.
One holds fast to the world with earthly passion
And clings with twining tendrils:
The other lifts itself with forceful craving
To the very roof of heaven.
-Goethe in Faust
Sigh! I want to lifted to the roof of heaven but ego "keeps pulling me back in!" lol. It is all good. It is exactly as it is meant to be for now.
Have a heavy heart and a disturbed mind as I continue to react to circumstances (or phenomena) occurring around me. I see a reflection of my "disturbance" as more and more mentally judged "unwanted" circumstances unfold before me. I'm closing.
Closing?
I am forgetting my practice commitment to not close and I close. The body closes. I close my jaws; the space between my belly and thighs which is a common reaction to trauma (iliopsoas contraction) and other muscles tighten, contract in a retraction from the moment. I close my mind by "enduring" this moment rather than being in awe of it. I close my heart in an attempt to not feel the pain others around me are experiencing and sharing. When I can't do that (I just seem to soak up pain others have?) I go back to the mind so it numbs me with useless thought and story. Sigh! I am closing.
When I am closed not only am I physically sore lol I am mentally and emotionally sore. The worse thing is I don't look about me with awe and amazement. I am not consumed by the miracle that is life. Instead I kind of "think" and "want" a bit of a break from it, from people and their pain,. I withdraw and retreat.
Karma?
In my old understand of Karma, I would ask: "Why is this happening to me? What have I done in the past to deserve this?" It is almost if there is some heavy cloud attached to me. I feel it so intensely at times. I look around other family members and I see it attached to them as well. One circumstance after another. Why?
I can't answer why but I find a bit of peace knowing that I might be living out my karma. I settle into enduring my life. Ego begins to hold fast to this world by attempting to rearrange its circumstances and to get "more" from it...clinging to any semblance of okayness I can get from each moment.
Yet, there is something in me that says, "No! no! Lady, you got it all wrong! Karma yoga is all about how you relate to the outside world...and this...this is not how you are supposed to do it! You are not supposed to shrink away from it or "endure it"!
This moment is not yours. It is not here to "punish" you. It is not about "you' at all. It is simply unfolding in front of you. It does not have a problem with "you" and you do not have to have a problem with It. The one who is clear in mind does not have a problem with the moment. They are in awe of it!"
Karma yoga is not all about serving out some punishment, it is about serving the world. We can only serve the world when our minds are clear. We have to have clear minds in order to do that. If we want to help create harmony in the world, we first need to create harmony within ourselves. We need to let go of our clinging with twining tendrils. Take the "me' out of the moment and serve with the open Self. You do not use the moment to fix what is out of harmony within you...as the closed self tends to do. You allow the moment to use you for the benefit of all.
When we get there the other lifts us to the roof of heaven. When we are lifted, the world is lifted.
Hmmm! Just some food for thought!
Wayne Dyer (2006) Living an Inspired Life. Hay house
Michael Singer...Untethered Soul Lectures (sorry, not sure which volumes)
Friday, September 13, 2019
River of Joy Beneath Phenomena
There is a beautiful river of joy that flows within you all the time-nothing can take you from that but you.
-Michael Singer
I am not going to let phenomena close me!
That is the mantra we need to be constantly repeating. That is the commitment we need to make so we stop reacting in a less than healthy way to phenomena...all that unfolds in front of us and within our superficial layers.
Manipulating Phenomena
So many of us are on the kick of attempting to manipulate the outside world so it becomes something that will prevent us from being disturbed. We seek to do more, gain more, be more in the eyes of the world. We defend and attack. We control and try to fix everything we assume is broken and we want.
Wanting
We want! We use "The Law of Attraction" in hope to manifest all the things we think we want into our lives. We may even sit in "japa" meditation every morning and evening visualizing what we want. We act as if we have it. We affirm and put it out there. "This is what I want!!!"...we scream out to the universe.
This is neither right or wrong but the question to ask is , "Am I getting what I truly, truly want by doing this? What is it that I am hoping to gain from the phenomena I am hoping, praying, visualizing will show up, or in some cases be removed from my life experience?"
What you truly want
It isn't the car or the house, the six figure salary you want, is it? It is a sense of being enough, having enough that you are truly seeking from this material abundance , isn't it? It is not the soul mate but the sense of being loved and having the opportunity to love. It is not the fame and recognition but the sense of belonging to something bigger than yourself. It is not the perfect body but the sense of wellness a healthy body can provide. It is not the exciting life full of one extreme adventure after another that will make your Facebook buddies sigh with jealousy that you honestly seek, but joy. What you are actually seeking through your striving and your wanting, is to be enough, love, belonging, wellness, and joy.
You are also not seeking to end a bad relationship, shrink a tumour, get out of debt, or get rid of your demanding boss. You are simply trying to get rid of "disturbance" that you figure this phenomena is causing in your body, heart or mind.
But...
What if you were to know...I mean really know...that you didn't have to be disturbed...that peace is your natural state. What if you knew that you are already enough, that you are a source of unlimited love, that you do belong to the greatest thing there is, that you are well and that you are joy? Would you still feel the need to react to or manipulate the occurrence of phenomena in your life then? I don't think so.
Yoga is one name for the spiritual path many take to know this truth. It teaches that spirituality is about "not wanting", about knowing the truth of who we already are and not needing to manipulate the outside world so we do not get disturbed. It is about being able to stay open to all the phenomena that shows up in each moment of our lives.
How the heck do I stay open then?
Practice not closing
Singer teaches that the practice doesn't involve repeated attempts to stay open but to "not close." It is much easier to stop doing something we have a tendency to do than it is to do something we really don't know how to do.
We practice not closing when phenomena shows up. We practice not resisting or struggling against what is and that will prevent us from closing. And heck if we don't close...we are open. We have accepted and surrendered to what is.
And what is?
This river of never ending joy, peace, love, belonging and wellness is what is!
We just have to stop closing ourselves to it so we can sink back down into it.
All is well!
Michael A. Singer (November, 2018) What do you really want? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-9j3AjdO3E
-Michael Singer
That is the mantra we need to be constantly repeating. That is the commitment we need to make so we stop reacting in a less than healthy way to phenomena...all that unfolds in front of us and within our superficial layers.
Manipulating Phenomena
So many of us are on the kick of attempting to manipulate the outside world so it becomes something that will prevent us from being disturbed. We seek to do more, gain more, be more in the eyes of the world. We defend and attack. We control and try to fix everything we assume is broken and we want.
Wanting
We want! We use "The Law of Attraction" in hope to manifest all the things we think we want into our lives. We may even sit in "japa" meditation every morning and evening visualizing what we want. We act as if we have it. We affirm and put it out there. "This is what I want!!!"...we scream out to the universe.
This is neither right or wrong but the question to ask is , "Am I getting what I truly, truly want by doing this? What is it that I am hoping to gain from the phenomena I am hoping, praying, visualizing will show up, or in some cases be removed from my life experience?"
What you truly want
It isn't the car or the house, the six figure salary you want, is it? It is a sense of being enough, having enough that you are truly seeking from this material abundance , isn't it? It is not the soul mate but the sense of being loved and having the opportunity to love. It is not the fame and recognition but the sense of belonging to something bigger than yourself. It is not the perfect body but the sense of wellness a healthy body can provide. It is not the exciting life full of one extreme adventure after another that will make your Facebook buddies sigh with jealousy that you honestly seek, but joy. What you are actually seeking through your striving and your wanting, is to be enough, love, belonging, wellness, and joy.
You are also not seeking to end a bad relationship, shrink a tumour, get out of debt, or get rid of your demanding boss. You are simply trying to get rid of "disturbance" that you figure this phenomena is causing in your body, heart or mind.
But...
What if you were to know...I mean really know...that you didn't have to be disturbed...that peace is your natural state. What if you knew that you are already enough, that you are a source of unlimited love, that you do belong to the greatest thing there is, that you are well and that you are joy? Would you still feel the need to react to or manipulate the occurrence of phenomena in your life then? I don't think so.
Yoga is one name for the spiritual path many take to know this truth. It teaches that spirituality is about "not wanting", about knowing the truth of who we already are and not needing to manipulate the outside world so we do not get disturbed. It is about being able to stay open to all the phenomena that shows up in each moment of our lives.
How the heck do I stay open then?
Practice not closing
Singer teaches that the practice doesn't involve repeated attempts to stay open but to "not close." It is much easier to stop doing something we have a tendency to do than it is to do something we really don't know how to do.
We practice not closing when phenomena shows up. We practice not resisting or struggling against what is and that will prevent us from closing. And heck if we don't close...we are open. We have accepted and surrendered to what is.
And what is?
This river of never ending joy, peace, love, belonging and wellness is what is!
We just have to stop closing ourselves to it so we can sink back down into it.
All is well!
Michael A. Singer (November, 2018) What do you really want? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z-9j3AjdO3E
Thursday, September 12, 2019
A "deeper" look at phenomena
The outer form is a temporary reflection of what you are within, your essence. That is why love and beauty can never leave you although all outer form will.
Eckhart Tolle
I want to look at phenomena a little more and our reaction to it.
Temporary
Phenomena or things that occur in form are temporary and fleeting. We get that right? Most of what the conscious self experiences is what is on the superficial layer. When we think we want abundance, we tend to think in terms of "things" and "more". We want more things. We want "certain" things on the outside of us to show up or go away.
Accept What is first!
We may get what we think we want, we may not. We get things we don't want in our lives too. But the trick is to accept the form in whatever way it shows up in the now of our existence, no matter how limiting it is, how our mind judges it as unwanted. (This includes accepting that the wanted is not yet in your life.) Accept first and know that because it is phenomena, this situation you are experiencing will not last. "This too shall pass." We accept what is, surrender to the now of our lives...first!
Depth
Eckhart Tolle, among many, many masters, teaches that there is a depth to what is in this moment , whether the mind sees it or not, that is much, much deeper than form. This depth connects you to the depth within you, the depth that is you. It connects you to your essence. When we open up to the moment regardless of what it is presenting in terms of phenomena we sink into this depth.
Yet why are we not open?
Our Natural State
Michael Singer echoes the truth that many yogic masters speak to. Our natural state, this depth, is one of peace, wellness, love and joy. It is not one of "disturbance" . Our essence is naturally peaceful. It is where love and beauty are found and never go away. So no matter what phenomena is going on in the upper layer of existence at the deepest level we remain peaceful.
The Ripples
What stops us from experiencing this peace all the time is the fact that we are letting mind run the show. We are allowing mind to tell us that our present moments are unpleasant, uncomfortable and therefore unacceptable.
We may initially feel disturbed by the tings that are going on around us. When mind feels "disturbance" it tries to neutralize the so called problem with thinking...so the thoughts start spilling in ...randomly and out of control...that take us farther and farther away from this peaceful, natural state of Self.
When we resist what is, we close up to it and we close up to It...our essence. As long as mind is keeping us lost in thinking, we cannot feel the peaceful still presence of Self...we are focusing on the ripples on the surface, not the stillness below. We are lost in the mind and all its reactive and unhealthy ways of coping with "disturbance." We identify with it. We cannot seem to make that distinction between the surface phenomena and who we really are. We are indeed lost.
So what do we do next...besides learning to accept what is?
We learn to control the mind. We work on the mind, do the inner work of working on our triggers and reactions. We do not go out into the external world and try to change everything , fix everything, control everything out there so it doesn't "disturb" us. that is an impossible mission but that is what so many of us do. We need to prevent or at least limit the ripples instead.
If you can control the rising of the mind into ripples, you will experience Yoga. -Patanjali
Yoga, of course, is that union with Self...is that falling into depth of essence where peace and love and joy and beauty are. It is a connection to what is really important, to what we really want whether we know it consciously or not. It is where abundant Life, which is not a life of more things and perfect phenomena, is...it is where a Life of deeper abundance can be found. (Tolle).
I have come so that you may have life and have it more abundantly.
James 10:10 NKJV
Requires work and practice
To retrain these minds so they are not constantly running off like misbehaving monkeys, requires some work on our part. If we do not constantly want to react to phenomena in a less than healthy way, if we want to learn to accept, relax and surrender to what is and be able to stay in Self...we have to commit to working on the mind.
We have to be willing to sit in witness consciousness again and again as we observe what our minds are doing and learn from the gross mistakes they make in their attempts to return to mental homeostasis. What triggers us and why... so we can bring ourselves back to the moment and the depth of Self.
We have to know that the mind is only trying to help us...it is only running the show because we have jumped out of the driver seat while the car is still running. Without a driver, mind is all over the place. We need to get back behind the wheel and practice using the accelerator and brakes in the way they were meant to be used. We need to practice using our conscious awareness to slow the vehicles we are in down. We need to learn what makes us want to slam on the brakes too early, what makes us want to lay on the accelerator too much etc. etc. It won't be easy, according to Singer, but working on us is worth it in the long run.
We can learn to live in peace no matter what phenomena is going on up there. We can settle into the arms of Self and live from there...the way we were meant to. We just need to take care of our minds.
All is well!
Sri Swami Satchidananda (2012) The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Yogaville: Integral Yoga Publications
Michael Singer (August, 2018) Taking charge of Your Inner Greatness-Volume 8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSzhP04g5ys
Michael A. Singer( August, 2018 ) Your Direct Path to Inner Freedom-Volume 9 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Y0onz7aPr8
Eckhart Tolle (Oct, 2018) Don't Get Disturbed by Events.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSD8vkcRGCE
Eckhart Tolle
I want to look at phenomena a little more and our reaction to it.
Temporary
Phenomena or things that occur in form are temporary and fleeting. We get that right? Most of what the conscious self experiences is what is on the superficial layer. When we think we want abundance, we tend to think in terms of "things" and "more". We want more things. We want "certain" things on the outside of us to show up or go away.
Accept What is first!
We may get what we think we want, we may not. We get things we don't want in our lives too. But the trick is to accept the form in whatever way it shows up in the now of our existence, no matter how limiting it is, how our mind judges it as unwanted. (This includes accepting that the wanted is not yet in your life.) Accept first and know that because it is phenomena, this situation you are experiencing will not last. "This too shall pass." We accept what is, surrender to the now of our lives...first!
Depth
Eckhart Tolle, among many, many masters, teaches that there is a depth to what is in this moment , whether the mind sees it or not, that is much, much deeper than form. This depth connects you to the depth within you, the depth that is you. It connects you to your essence. When we open up to the moment regardless of what it is presenting in terms of phenomena we sink into this depth.
Yet why are we not open?
Our Natural State
Michael Singer echoes the truth that many yogic masters speak to. Our natural state, this depth, is one of peace, wellness, love and joy. It is not one of "disturbance" . Our essence is naturally peaceful. It is where love and beauty are found and never go away. So no matter what phenomena is going on in the upper layer of existence at the deepest level we remain peaceful.
The Ripples
What stops us from experiencing this peace all the time is the fact that we are letting mind run the show. We are allowing mind to tell us that our present moments are unpleasant, uncomfortable and therefore unacceptable.
We may initially feel disturbed by the tings that are going on around us. When mind feels "disturbance" it tries to neutralize the so called problem with thinking...so the thoughts start spilling in ...randomly and out of control...that take us farther and farther away from this peaceful, natural state of Self.
When we resist what is, we close up to it and we close up to It...our essence. As long as mind is keeping us lost in thinking, we cannot feel the peaceful still presence of Self...we are focusing on the ripples on the surface, not the stillness below. We are lost in the mind and all its reactive and unhealthy ways of coping with "disturbance." We identify with it. We cannot seem to make that distinction between the surface phenomena and who we really are. We are indeed lost.
So what do we do next...besides learning to accept what is?
We learn to control the mind. We work on the mind, do the inner work of working on our triggers and reactions. We do not go out into the external world and try to change everything , fix everything, control everything out there so it doesn't "disturb" us. that is an impossible mission but that is what so many of us do. We need to prevent or at least limit the ripples instead.
If you can control the rising of the mind into ripples, you will experience Yoga. -Patanjali
Yoga, of course, is that union with Self...is that falling into depth of essence where peace and love and joy and beauty are. It is a connection to what is really important, to what we really want whether we know it consciously or not. It is where abundant Life, which is not a life of more things and perfect phenomena, is...it is where a Life of deeper abundance can be found. (Tolle).
I have come so that you may have life and have it more abundantly.
James 10:10 NKJV
Requires work and practice
To retrain these minds so they are not constantly running off like misbehaving monkeys, requires some work on our part. If we do not constantly want to react to phenomena in a less than healthy way, if we want to learn to accept, relax and surrender to what is and be able to stay in Self...we have to commit to working on the mind.
We have to be willing to sit in witness consciousness again and again as we observe what our minds are doing and learn from the gross mistakes they make in their attempts to return to mental homeostasis. What triggers us and why... so we can bring ourselves back to the moment and the depth of Self.
We have to know that the mind is only trying to help us...it is only running the show because we have jumped out of the driver seat while the car is still running. Without a driver, mind is all over the place. We need to get back behind the wheel and practice using the accelerator and brakes in the way they were meant to be used. We need to practice using our conscious awareness to slow the vehicles we are in down. We need to learn what makes us want to slam on the brakes too early, what makes us want to lay on the accelerator too much etc. etc. It won't be easy, according to Singer, but working on us is worth it in the long run.
We can learn to live in peace no matter what phenomena is going on up there. We can settle into the arms of Self and live from there...the way we were meant to. We just need to take care of our minds.
All is well!
Sri Swami Satchidananda (2012) The Yoga Sutras of Patanjali. Yogaville: Integral Yoga Publications
Michael Singer (August, 2018) Taking charge of Your Inner Greatness-Volume 8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSzhP04g5ys
Michael A. Singer( August, 2018 ) Your Direct Path to Inner Freedom-Volume 9 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Y0onz7aPr8
Eckhart Tolle (Oct, 2018) Don't Get Disturbed by Events.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSD8vkcRGCE
Wednesday, September 11, 2019
Phenomena
Phenomena exist; that help and harm obviously come from them is a sign they exist. However, they are empty of existing in the way in which they appear to us. That phenomena cannot be found under ultimate analysis indicates that they are not truly or inherently existent.
-Dalai Lama
Say what Dalai Lama?
Understanding this is important to our understanding of Self. Though phenomena in the world of "form" exists in the perceptual sense, i.e. we can pick it up with our five senses and we "react" or "respond" to it...at a deeper level it is not all that real. Hmm!
What is Physical Phenomena?
Physical phenomena, according to Buddhist teachings, are "things" of matter that occur in the mind, the body or the external world that are existent and functional to an extent. They are "things" and "thoughts" are among those things.
Now, according to his holiness, we know they exist because we will react or respond to them in a helpful way or a harmful way.
For example, you are walking down the street and bump into someone you know but have not seen for a while. The person, the circumstance is the phenomena. Automatically the senses pick up all the information about the person and circumstance: the look of the person, the sound of their voice, the feel of them etc as well as the environment they are in at the time. You react or respond to the situation making it seem that it was the phenomena itself that led to the reaction or response. Therefore we can say phenomena exists.
We need to investigate a little closer..
Such a chance encounter does, however, go beyond the obvious phenomena to a deeper level of "conscious" phenomena. We encounter the individual and we do perceive everything at a physical level. Then the mind tries to process that perceptual information. Memory banks are opened and more information (more phenomena) enters the mind. Past experiences of pleasure and pain with this person or place are remembered...more phenomena. Judgments are made about those past experiences. It was good or it was bad. The judgments are phenomena. Then we either feel glad to bump into this person, (the feelings of happiness and joy are phenomena)....or we fear, get angry and upset because we judge it as an unfortunate event. We then respond or react creating more phenomena. We either slap the person across the face or hug them, depending on how the Shakti was stimulated.
Say what?
Let's get back to Iyengar's description of the three layers of being. We, as these little selves in bodies and minds, moving around the physical world will experience physical phenomena. We will have circumstances, people, things showing up in our lives and we will take in the information through our senses about those things. That will then stimulate the "Shakti"(the middle layer of being) within us...in a helpful way or a harmful way. Phenomena stimulates energy and it is the energy that creates the reactive tendencies within us. We react to phenomena. How we react will take us either closer to Self (the inner most layer of being) or further away. If we feel good...something within us opens and we feel the joy from within pulling us closer to Self. If we feel bad...we close up, the cloud cover thickens between us and Self.
We are not actually reacting to Phenomena
Now the reaction to phenomena was not a knee jerk response to the thing or person that showed up in our lives...it goes deeper than that. It was the mental judgment and interpretations we made about it that stimulated the Shakti energy in either a helpful or harmful way. It was the labelling it good and a "wanted' experience or our labelling it bad and an "unwanted " experience that led to the reactive experience. The phenomena itself was neither good or bad but the thinking about it made it so.
The reaction was harmful if it led us to slap the person across the face because not only did we hurt them...we hurt ourselves by closing up and getting farther away from the Peace of Self. The reaction was helpful if it led us to hug and welcome the person in a warm embrace not only because that probably made the other person feel good but at that moment we were opened up , the cloud cover between us and the Love Self was very thin or non existent.
It was never the phenomena, never the thing, the person or the circumstance that led to either reaction. It was whether we were open to allow Shakti to pull us into Self or whether we closed up and pushed Shakti away so we didn't experience It, that defined the experience. Therefore we can say that phenomena are not truly or inherently existent.
Shakti is the beautiful energy inside of you...that comes and goes because of the opening and closing of your heart.
-Michael Singer
All is well!
Phenomena exist; that help and harm obviously come from them is a sign they exist. However, they are empty of existing in the way in which they appear to us. That phenomena cannot be found under ultimate analysis indicates that they are not truly or inherently existent.
-Dalai Lama
Say what Dalai Lama?
Understanding this is important to our understanding of Self. Though phenomena in the world of "form" exists in the perceptual sense, i.e. we can pick it up with our five senses and we "react" or "respond" to it...at a deeper level it is not all that real. Hmm!
What is Physical Phenomena?
Physical phenomena, according to Buddhist teachings, are "things" of matter that occur in the mind, the body or the external world that are existent and functional to an extent. They are "things" and "thoughts" are among those things.
Now, according to his holiness, we know they exist because we will react or respond to them in a helpful way or a harmful way.
For example, you are walking down the street and bump into someone you know but have not seen for a while. The person, the circumstance is the phenomena. Automatically the senses pick up all the information about the person and circumstance: the look of the person, the sound of their voice, the feel of them etc as well as the environment they are in at the time. You react or respond to the situation making it seem that it was the phenomena itself that led to the reaction or response. Therefore we can say phenomena exists.
We need to investigate a little closer..
Such a chance encounter does, however, go beyond the obvious phenomena to a deeper level of "conscious" phenomena. We encounter the individual and we do perceive everything at a physical level. Then the mind tries to process that perceptual information. Memory banks are opened and more information (more phenomena) enters the mind. Past experiences of pleasure and pain with this person or place are remembered...more phenomena. Judgments are made about those past experiences. It was good or it was bad. The judgments are phenomena. Then we either feel glad to bump into this person, (the feelings of happiness and joy are phenomena)....or we fear, get angry and upset because we judge it as an unfortunate event. We then respond or react creating more phenomena. We either slap the person across the face or hug them, depending on how the Shakti was stimulated.
Say what?
Let's get back to Iyengar's description of the three layers of being. We, as these little selves in bodies and minds, moving around the physical world will experience physical phenomena. We will have circumstances, people, things showing up in our lives and we will take in the information through our senses about those things. That will then stimulate the "Shakti"(the middle layer of being) within us...in a helpful way or a harmful way. Phenomena stimulates energy and it is the energy that creates the reactive tendencies within us. We react to phenomena. How we react will take us either closer to Self (the inner most layer of being) or further away. If we feel good...something within us opens and we feel the joy from within pulling us closer to Self. If we feel bad...we close up, the cloud cover thickens between us and Self.
We are not actually reacting to Phenomena
Now the reaction to phenomena was not a knee jerk response to the thing or person that showed up in our lives...it goes deeper than that. It was the mental judgment and interpretations we made about it that stimulated the Shakti energy in either a helpful or harmful way. It was the labelling it good and a "wanted' experience or our labelling it bad and an "unwanted " experience that led to the reactive experience. The phenomena itself was neither good or bad but the thinking about it made it so.
The reaction was harmful if it led us to slap the person across the face because not only did we hurt them...we hurt ourselves by closing up and getting farther away from the Peace of Self. The reaction was helpful if it led us to hug and welcome the person in a warm embrace not only because that probably made the other person feel good but at that moment we were opened up , the cloud cover between us and the Love Self was very thin or non existent.
It was never the phenomena, never the thing, the person or the circumstance that led to either reaction. It was whether we were open to allow Shakti to pull us into Self or whether we closed up and pushed Shakti away so we didn't experience It, that defined the experience. Therefore we can say that phenomena are not truly or inherently existent.
Shakti is the beautiful energy inside of you...that comes and goes because of the opening and closing of your heart.
-Michael Singer
All is well!
Buddhist Analysis: Types of Phenomena. From: Study Buddhism by Berzin Archives
(https://studybuddhism.com/en/advanced-studies/abhidharma-tenet-systems/types-of-phenomena/using-buddhist-metaphysics-to-analyze-a-problem/buddhist-analysis-types-of-phenomena)
B.K.S. Iyengar (2014) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random House
Michael Singer (July, 2018) Author's Insights on The Untethered Soul-Volume 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTytKupYUw4
Buddhist Analysis: Types of Phenomena. From: Study Buddhism by Berzin Archives
(https://studybuddhism.com/en/advanced-studies/abhidharma-tenet-systems/types-of-phenomena/using-buddhist-metaphysics-to-analyze-a-problem/buddhist-analysis-types-of-phenomena)
B.K.S. Iyengar (2014) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random House
Michael Singer (July, 2018) Author's Insights on The Untethered Soul-Volume 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTytKupYUw4
-Dalai Lama
Say what Dalai Lama?
Understanding this is important to our understanding of Self. Though phenomena in the world of "form" exists in the perceptual sense, i.e. we can pick it up with our five senses and we "react" or "respond" to it...at a deeper level it is not all that real. Hmm!
What is Physical Phenomena?
Physical phenomena, according to Buddhist teachings, are "things" of matter that occur in the mind, the body or the external world that are existent and functional to an extent. They are "things" and "thoughts" are among those things.
Now, according to his holiness, we know they exist because we will react or respond to them in a helpful way or a harmful way.
For example, you are walking down the street and bump into someone you know but have not seen for a while. The person, the circumstance is the phenomena. Automatically the senses pick up all the information about the person and circumstance: the look of the person, the sound of their voice, the feel of them etc as well as the environment they are in at the time. You react or respond to the situation making it seem that it was the phenomena itself that led to the reaction or response. Therefore we can say phenomena exists.
We need to investigate a little closer..
Such a chance encounter does, however, go beyond the obvious phenomena to a deeper level of "conscious" phenomena. We encounter the individual and we do perceive everything at a physical level. Then the mind tries to process that perceptual information. Memory banks are opened and more information (more phenomena) enters the mind. Past experiences of pleasure and pain with this person or place are remembered...more phenomena. Judgments are made about those past experiences. It was good or it was bad. The judgments are phenomena. Then we either feel glad to bump into this person, (the feelings of happiness and joy are phenomena)....or we fear, get angry and upset because we judge it as an unfortunate event. We then respond or react creating more phenomena. We either slap the person across the face or hug them, depending on how the Shakti was stimulated.
Say what?
Let's get back to Iyengar's description of the three layers of being. We, as these little selves in bodies and minds, moving around the physical world will experience physical phenomena. We will have circumstances, people, things showing up in our lives and we will take in the information through our senses about those things. That will then stimulate the "Shakti"(the middle layer of being) within us...in a helpful way or a harmful way. Phenomena stimulates energy and it is the energy that creates the reactive tendencies within us. We react to phenomena. How we react will take us either closer to Self (the inner most layer of being) or further away. If we feel good...something within us opens and we feel the joy from within pulling us closer to Self. If we feel bad...we close up, the cloud cover thickens between us and Self.
We are not actually reacting to Phenomena
Now the reaction to phenomena was not a knee jerk response to the thing or person that showed up in our lives...it goes deeper than that. It was the mental judgment and interpretations we made about it that stimulated the Shakti energy in either a helpful or harmful way. It was the labelling it good and a "wanted' experience or our labelling it bad and an "unwanted " experience that led to the reactive experience. The phenomena itself was neither good or bad but the thinking about it made it so.
The reaction was harmful if it led us to slap the person across the face because not only did we hurt them...we hurt ourselves by closing up and getting farther away from the Peace of Self. The reaction was helpful if it led us to hug and welcome the person in a warm embrace not only because that probably made the other person feel good but at that moment we were opened up , the cloud cover between us and the Love Self was very thin or non existent.
It was never the phenomena, never the thing, the person or the circumstance that led to either reaction. It was whether we were open to allow Shakti to pull us into Self or whether we closed up and pushed Shakti away so we didn't experience It, that defined the experience. Therefore we can say that phenomena are not truly or inherently existent.
Shakti is the beautiful energy inside of you...that comes and goes because of the opening and closing of your heart.
-Michael Singer
All is well!
Phenomena exist; that help and harm obviously come from them is a sign they exist. However, they are empty of existing in the way in which they appear to us. That phenomena cannot be found under ultimate analysis indicates that they are not truly or inherently existent.
-Dalai Lama
Say what Dalai Lama?
Understanding this is important to our understanding of Self. Though phenomena in the world of "form" exists in the perceptual sense, i.e. we can pick it up with our five senses and we "react" or "respond" to it...at a deeper level it is not all that real. Hmm!
What is Physical Phenomena?
Physical phenomena, according to Buddhist teachings, are "things" of matter that occur in the mind, the body or the external world that are existent and functional to an extent. They are "things" and "thoughts" are among those things.
Now, according to his holiness, we know they exist because we will react or respond to them in a helpful way or a harmful way.
For example, you are walking down the street and bump into someone you know but have not seen for a while. The person, the circumstance is the phenomena. Automatically the senses pick up all the information about the person and circumstance: the look of the person, the sound of their voice, the feel of them etc as well as the environment they are in at the time. You react or respond to the situation making it seem that it was the phenomena itself that led to the reaction or response. Therefore we can say phenomena exists.
We need to investigate a little closer..
Such a chance encounter does, however, go beyond the obvious phenomena to a deeper level of "conscious" phenomena. We encounter the individual and we do perceive everything at a physical level. Then the mind tries to process that perceptual information. Memory banks are opened and more information (more phenomena) enters the mind. Past experiences of pleasure and pain with this person or place are remembered...more phenomena. Judgments are made about those past experiences. It was good or it was bad. The judgments are phenomena. Then we either feel glad to bump into this person, (the feelings of happiness and joy are phenomena)....or we fear, get angry and upset because we judge it as an unfortunate event. We then respond or react creating more phenomena. We either slap the person across the face or hug them, depending on how the Shakti was stimulated.
Say what?
Let's get back to Iyengar's description of the three layers of being. We, as these little selves in bodies and minds, moving around the physical world will experience physical phenomena. We will have circumstances, people, things showing up in our lives and we will take in the information through our senses about those things. That will then stimulate the "Shakti"(the middle layer of being) within us...in a helpful way or a harmful way. Phenomena stimulates energy and it is the energy that creates the reactive tendencies within us. We react to phenomena. How we react will take us either closer to Self (the inner most layer of being) or further away. If we feel good...something within us opens and we feel the joy from within pulling us closer to Self. If we feel bad...we close up, the cloud cover thickens between us and Self.
We are not actually reacting to Phenomena
Now the reaction to phenomena was not a knee jerk response to the thing or person that showed up in our lives...it goes deeper than that. It was the mental judgment and interpretations we made about it that stimulated the Shakti energy in either a helpful or harmful way. It was the labelling it good and a "wanted' experience or our labelling it bad and an "unwanted " experience that led to the reactive experience. The phenomena itself was neither good or bad but the thinking about it made it so.
The reaction was harmful if it led us to slap the person across the face because not only did we hurt them...we hurt ourselves by closing up and getting farther away from the Peace of Self. The reaction was helpful if it led us to hug and welcome the person in a warm embrace not only because that probably made the other person feel good but at that moment we were opened up , the cloud cover between us and the Love Self was very thin or non existent.
It was never the phenomena, never the thing, the person or the circumstance that led to either reaction. It was whether we were open to allow Shakti to pull us into Self or whether we closed up and pushed Shakti away so we didn't experience It, that defined the experience. Therefore we can say that phenomena are not truly or inherently existent.
Shakti is the beautiful energy inside of you...that comes and goes because of the opening and closing of your heart.
-Michael Singer
All is well!
Buddhist Analysis: Types of Phenomena. From: Study Buddhism by Berzin Archives
(https://studybuddhism.com/en/advanced-studies/abhidharma-tenet-systems/types-of-phenomena/using-buddhist-metaphysics-to-analyze-a-problem/buddhist-analysis-types-of-phenomena)
B.K.S. Iyengar (2014) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random House
Michael Singer (July, 2018) Author's Insights on The Untethered Soul-Volume 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTytKupYUw4
Buddhist Analysis: Types of Phenomena. From: Study Buddhism by Berzin Archives
(https://studybuddhism.com/en/advanced-studies/abhidharma-tenet-systems/types-of-phenomena/using-buddhist-metaphysics-to-analyze-a-problem/buddhist-analysis-types-of-phenomena)
B.K.S. Iyengar (2014) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random House
Michael Singer (July, 2018) Author's Insights on The Untethered Soul-Volume 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DTytKupYUw4
Tuesday, September 10, 2019
Sleepless in...
The Great Way is not difficult for those who have no preferences.
-The Third Patriarch of Zen
I awoke at 430 with a hot flash and the mind was already to whirl away. I heard Rumi, somewhere in the background of my psyche, whispering, "Don't go back to sleep!" I crawled out of bed, got myself a cup of hot camomile tea and plopped myself down here. Damn Rumi lol.
I have been reacting to some stressors: an unfinished basement project that is costing me more money than I have and also leaving me with this deep sense of incompleteness and hopelessness. My expectations for cost and time frame went way over what I was expecting they would and instead of making any return on my investment I am losing, and losing, and losing money I don't have at this moment, students and opportunities. Well, so it seems to my overactive mind. My youngest is having adjustment issues...I know she doesn't want to be in the program she is in right now but I need to let her figure it all out. I worry about my son and his future. The sentencing/bail hearing is definitely today for someone close. My heart breaks and fears at the same time though I tell myself I don't want to think about it. I feel it all physically rumbling around inside me. The reactive and unstable energy of Shakti is flowing in many directions at once. It "disturbs" me and my normal inclination is to want to fix it.
Singer tells us that en route to being more spiritually connected we go through three stages:
What we fail to realize is that the things we want...a sense of belonging, love and abundance are things that are already in us. They aren't out there. What we should be praying for is a connection to that feeling of belonging, love and abundance rather than the thing we assume will bring it.
I woke up disturbed by what is going on in my life and I wanted peace. I guess I knew I couldn't fix it out there...I had to fix my energy levels in here, where "I" am. It is an inside job that begins with accepting things as they are.
All is well in my world.
Michael A. Singer: Untethered Soul Lectures (sorry listened to a bunch of them and not sure which one)
-The Third Patriarch of Zen
I awoke at 430 with a hot flash and the mind was already to whirl away. I heard Rumi, somewhere in the background of my psyche, whispering, "Don't go back to sleep!" I crawled out of bed, got myself a cup of hot camomile tea and plopped myself down here. Damn Rumi lol.
I have been reacting to some stressors: an unfinished basement project that is costing me more money than I have and also leaving me with this deep sense of incompleteness and hopelessness. My expectations for cost and time frame went way over what I was expecting they would and instead of making any return on my investment I am losing, and losing, and losing money I don't have at this moment, students and opportunities. Well, so it seems to my overactive mind. My youngest is having adjustment issues...I know she doesn't want to be in the program she is in right now but I need to let her figure it all out. I worry about my son and his future. The sentencing/bail hearing is definitely today for someone close. My heart breaks and fears at the same time though I tell myself I don't want to think about it. I feel it all physically rumbling around inside me. The reactive and unstable energy of Shakti is flowing in many directions at once. It "disturbs" me and my normal inclination is to want to fix it.
Singer tells us that en route to being more spiritually connected we go through three stages:
- We notice that we are in here with all this stuff going on, with all the energy flowing around, all the mind stuff, the feelings, the preferences, the interpretations and judgments, the body symptoms etc etc. We are in here with all this.
- We notice how all this energy/Shakti/ cloud/ mental modifications react to the outside world...(what I am noticing as I write this). We feel "disturbed".
- Then we ask, "How do I fix it, control it and make it all better so I no longer feel disturbed?" That is exactly why I got up and came here.
What we fail to realize is that the things we want...a sense of belonging, love and abundance are things that are already in us. They aren't out there. What we should be praying for is a connection to that feeling of belonging, love and abundance rather than the thing we assume will bring it.
I woke up disturbed by what is going on in my life and I wanted peace. I guess I knew I couldn't fix it out there...I had to fix my energy levels in here, where "I" am. It is an inside job that begins with accepting things as they are.
All is well in my world.
Michael A. Singer: Untethered Soul Lectures (sorry listened to a bunch of them and not sure which one)
Monday, September 9, 2019
Receiving not doing
How do I receive this moment right in front of me?
Oh I embraced my moments today. I went out and enjoyed a lovely walk in the woods with D. and the dogs. The sun was shining and I stopped several times to soak it up. I felt its warmth, its light, its presence soaking right through me...but that, of course, brought me back into my mind and what I wrote about this am. lol. Mind" keeps pulling me back in!" lol.
Not sitting well
Something from my last entry didn't sit well with me in the conceptual part of my mind. It isn't important because it is just a concept but because my mind is still so active in its need to use ideas and words to understand things, I felt the slight "disturbance" of it. I wanted to escape that disturbance.
What we "do" with this moment?
Anyway...it dawned on me that the thing I found somewhat unsettling was Michael Singer's statement that the real spiritual question we need to ask ourselves is, "What do I do with this moment right in front of me?" I understood exactly what he meant when I first heard that...the exact choice of words had no real significance other than being pointers to a greater understanding.
Yet...unbeknownst to me...the "do" in that statement left an impression on my mind. I judged it. To "do" to me means to actively pursue an activity...to fix...to strive etc. After all the learning I did about the importance of being over doing...that one word hit my psyche in a negative way. It felt counterproductive. I didn't like it. It disturbed me and I felt a need to fix it. Awe...back in mind I went.
Anyway using my mind I rephrased that statement so it settled better in my psyche and allowed me to once again open up to the experience of sun...to my soul! I rephrased it to "How am I going to "receive" this moment "right" here in front of me? "
That just felt so much better to me. I could relax in that statement because this choice of words had a different symbolic representation for me than "do" did.
This question means to me that it is most important how we receive the moment than what we actually do with it. How open and accepting of it are we? Do we receive it with defense and attack, resistance and struggle? Do we receive it numbly or absent mindedly? Do we receive it with hate and anger, frustration and complaint? Do we receive it with avoidance and denial?
Or do we receive it with openness, acceptance and love? Do we receive it with curiosity and awe? Do we receive it with utter appreciation and amazement?
Receive requires no effort other than opening and closing to what is. It implies more of a surrender and a letting go to what is than "doing" does.
Hmmm! So what is my point of this ramble?
First of all, I want to explain that words are just pointers and symbols of a greater truth. They themselves mean little. Whether Singer used "do" or " received" is irrelevant. As soon as I read that statement, I knew what he meant. That is what is important.
Yet, it is beneficial to show an example of how quickly the mind steps in to judge, to disturb, to attempt to fix what we receive. Mind will come in when it comes to words and concepts. It prefers things a certain way. "I accepted "do" but my mind didn't. So still being so much in my mind ...I allowed mind to attempt to fix it. It came up with another question to ask on our spiritual journey. Neither right or wrong...it just did and that statement does "feel" a little easier for me to absorb for whatever reason so I will accept it.
Secondly, maybe you find it easier to absorb as well. "Receive" your moment with an open heart and you experience reality. Witnessing and experiencing reality can instill joy and awe in us because Life, with all its ups and downs, is a miraculous thing to uphold. We really have to "do" nothing. It does all!
All is well!
Oh I embraced my moments today. I went out and enjoyed a lovely walk in the woods with D. and the dogs. The sun was shining and I stopped several times to soak it up. I felt its warmth, its light, its presence soaking right through me...but that, of course, brought me back into my mind and what I wrote about this am. lol. Mind" keeps pulling me back in!" lol.
Not sitting well
Something from my last entry didn't sit well with me in the conceptual part of my mind. It isn't important because it is just a concept but because my mind is still so active in its need to use ideas and words to understand things, I felt the slight "disturbance" of it. I wanted to escape that disturbance.
What we "do" with this moment?
Anyway...it dawned on me that the thing I found somewhat unsettling was Michael Singer's statement that the real spiritual question we need to ask ourselves is, "What do I do with this moment right in front of me?" I understood exactly what he meant when I first heard that...the exact choice of words had no real significance other than being pointers to a greater understanding.
Yet...unbeknownst to me...the "do" in that statement left an impression on my mind. I judged it. To "do" to me means to actively pursue an activity...to fix...to strive etc. After all the learning I did about the importance of being over doing...that one word hit my psyche in a negative way. It felt counterproductive. I didn't like it. It disturbed me and I felt a need to fix it. Awe...back in mind I went.
Anyway using my mind I rephrased that statement so it settled better in my psyche and allowed me to once again open up to the experience of sun...to my soul! I rephrased it to "How am I going to "receive" this moment "right" here in front of me? "
That just felt so much better to me. I could relax in that statement because this choice of words had a different symbolic representation for me than "do" did.
This question means to me that it is most important how we receive the moment than what we actually do with it. How open and accepting of it are we? Do we receive it with defense and attack, resistance and struggle? Do we receive it numbly or absent mindedly? Do we receive it with hate and anger, frustration and complaint? Do we receive it with avoidance and denial?
Or do we receive it with openness, acceptance and love? Do we receive it with curiosity and awe? Do we receive it with utter appreciation and amazement?
Receive requires no effort other than opening and closing to what is. It implies more of a surrender and a letting go to what is than "doing" does.
Hmmm! So what is my point of this ramble?
First of all, I want to explain that words are just pointers and symbols of a greater truth. They themselves mean little. Whether Singer used "do" or " received" is irrelevant. As soon as I read that statement, I knew what he meant. That is what is important.
Yet, it is beneficial to show an example of how quickly the mind steps in to judge, to disturb, to attempt to fix what we receive. Mind will come in when it comes to words and concepts. It prefers things a certain way. "I accepted "do" but my mind didn't. So still being so much in my mind ...I allowed mind to attempt to fix it. It came up with another question to ask on our spiritual journey. Neither right or wrong...it just did and that statement does "feel" a little easier for me to absorb for whatever reason so I will accept it.
Secondly, maybe you find it easier to absorb as well. "Receive" your moment with an open heart and you experience reality. Witnessing and experiencing reality can instill joy and awe in us because Life, with all its ups and downs, is a miraculous thing to uphold. We really have to "do" nothing. It does all!
All is well!
How to thin the cloud cover over Self: Step One
If I keep missing reality, I will miss my life.
-Michael Singer
Step One: Accept what is
The first step to thinning that cloud cover that prevents us from experiencing the true joy of Living that comes when we reacquaint ourselves with the true Self...is acceptance of the now. We need to accept what is as it is.
I know we talked about this many, many times before but Michael Singer offers some new insight into the "challenge'' and importance of surrendering to the present moment in Michael A. Singer: Honoring and Respecting Reality-Vol 7 The Untethered Soul Lectures. Spirituality, he teaches, has little to do with the question, "Why am I here? Why is this happening to me? How do I fix it? ....It is all about asking the question, "What am I going to do with this moment right in front of me?"
What am I going to do with this moment right in front of me?
We have several options but for most of us we choose to take this moment of our life to the mind rather than experiencing it fully.
But it doesn't have to be this way. We can instead...decide to stay present and not go into the mind. How?
All is well!
Singer, Michael (Aug, 2018) Michael A. Singer: Honoring and Respecting Reality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhaMrMZS6YI
-Michael Singer
Step One: Accept what is
The first step to thinning that cloud cover that prevents us from experiencing the true joy of Living that comes when we reacquaint ourselves with the true Self...is acceptance of the now. We need to accept what is as it is.
I know we talked about this many, many times before but Michael Singer offers some new insight into the "challenge'' and importance of surrendering to the present moment in Michael A. Singer: Honoring and Respecting Reality-Vol 7 The Untethered Soul Lectures. Spirituality, he teaches, has little to do with the question, "Why am I here? Why is this happening to me? How do I fix it? ....It is all about asking the question, "What am I going to do with this moment right in front of me?"
What am I going to do with this moment right in front of me?
We have several options but for most of us we choose to take this moment of our life to the mind rather than experiencing it fully.
- We question our experience as to why it is happening; what is meant by it; what it will mean in the next moment etc. We analyze it to death.
- We judge it. We talk ourselves into believing it is good or bad, right or wrong, worthy or unworthy etc.
- Or we complain about it. "It is too hot. She is so annoying! This is terrible! That is just wrong, bad or awful!"
- We may should it to death: "This should be a different way! This should not be happening right now! "
- We may spend much mental energy scheming and planning ways try to fix it or get a better "next' moment! "If I do this I will make it better! If I say that she will react differently."
- We delve into past memories.
- We dive into future projection.
- We resist it. "No...no I will not tolerate this!!"
- We may numb the mind from it with any substance or activity that takes us away from the moment.
- We deny it or avoid it. Close our eyes to what is.
- We create story around it so at least we can escape into drama and other reaction.
- We rationalize why it is happening. What event triggered or caused it?
- We narrate our way through it because words and thought often have a numbing effect.
- We use it as a means to get to the next moment: "I will endure here so I can get there where things will be better."
- We skip out of the reality of experience and slip into the sleep of thought.
- We make it all about "me" .
But it doesn't have to be this way. We can instead...decide to stay present and not go into the mind. How?
- We can deal with one moment at a time as it shows up in front of us.
- We can stop questioning why something is happening or popping up in front of us and just accept that it is.
- We can stop personalizing it and know that what is showing up in front of us is a creation that took billions of years to manifest through many and many different sources. It had very little to do with us!
- We can also stop blaming ourselves for it or struggling to make it something it isn't by using this axiom from Alanon to our advantage, "I didn't break it and I can't fix it. "
- We can relax into it rather than resisting or struggling against it.
- We can respond rather than react.
- Put aside judgment of it. The world is not unfolding for you to judge it. (Singer)
- Stop narrating our way through it.
- Realize that this moment, as it is , is reality and reality is a manifestation of God. (Singer)
- It is perfect just the way it is. Nothing is either good or bad, but thinking makes it so." (Hamlet)
- Not only that... it is awe inspiring to witness creation unfolding in front of us and each moment is a moment of creation. How lucky we are to witness Life.
- Be in awe of it...whatever it entails.
- Honor and respect it!
All is well!
Singer, Michael (Aug, 2018) Michael A. Singer: Honoring and Respecting Reality. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BhaMrMZS6YI
Sunday, September 8, 2019
Between the Body and the Soul
The most important aspect of a human being is the part which lies between the outer skin and the innermost soul-the Shakti, which includes the mind, intellect, emotions, vital energy, the sense of "I", and the conscience. These are different in every human being, and that makes us individually both mysterious and unique.
-B.K.S. Iyengar, from Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health, page 56
We need to thin the cloud cover
Energy is Consciousness
Energy is consciousness and consciousness is energy. Where we place our attention, our awareness, our conscious focus...energy flows. So if our conscious focus up there in the upper layer is all about how stuck we are, how little we have and how miserable and scary life is...guess what? We are going to have a shift of energy downward...that shift of energy downward pulls us from our Seat of awareness, keeps us stuck in mental chatter as the cloud cover between our little physical selves and It gets thicker and thicker. We get farther and farther away from Self, from peace, from joy. We suffer.
If, however, we make a deliberate choice to experience Self and work on lifting that energy by questioning our conditioned ways of perceiving...we will experience a break or a thinning of cloud cover. We will get closer to Source and the joy of living that is there.
We need to up our energy and thin out the cloud cover between the layers of our experience so we experience the light like we are meant to and so we can pass it on.
I will discuss in the next post, how we can do that.
All is well!
B.K.S. Iyengar (2014) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random House
Michael Singer (Sept 2018) Michael Singer: The Unlimited Energy of the Self.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEOQoRhaX1s
-B.K.S. Iyengar, from Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health, page 56
Hmmm! I am still a little hung up on my entry yesterday. I want to introduce a new 'idea' to my already overloaded mind...but need to be clear about my thought process from yesterday. We were talking about It...the home where joy exists. I know, ultimately, It has very little to do with conceptually understanding this, of being able to analyze It with mind or to put It into words that make sense. This thing I refer to as It is something that goes beyond the mind and must be felt and experienced. Still I use the tool of mind and words to point us there...if I can, that is.
The Outer Skin
Yesterday I referred to Michael Singer's explanation about the three basic layers of our existence. Today, I am adding Iyengar's yogic interpretation to it. On the most superficial level, we have the "little me' on the surface moving around the planet doing all the things humans do. The most superficial layer is where many of us are and where many of us stay until we die but it is a place that is foreign to us. We are in it but not of it. It is a place dependent on the five senses and the body for survival. In its visibility, it is very physical, matter and body centered.
Most of us just want to leave it at that but as we awaken for whatever reason and in whatever way...we are drawn deeper,
The Inner Most Soul
At the deepest level, we have the "most innermost soul"...the true Self, the seat of awareness, ultimate consciousness, Spirit, One, pure intelligence, and what is referred to as purusha in ancient Sanskrit. It is this deep level where joy and the creative life force exists, where it always existed and it is where we experience It and know It. It is where what many of us call God can be found. Yet It is inexplicable, invisible, cannot be named, cannot be understood with thought. It is pure infinite space where all things originate. In quantum physics It is called The field.
It is a place we want to be. It is home. Some thing is constantly pulling us there. Yet it is beyond perceptual understanding in its matter less state. Singer refers to it as the sun in its example.
In Between
And in between these two layers is what Iyengar refers to as Shakti. This is basically all the mind stuff that can be used to serve us if we learn how to use it correctly. Or it can act as a cloud cover between the two layers preventing us from experiencing the joy of the Inner most soul if we use it incorrectly.
Many of us use it incorrectly and we allow negative energy to build up like a dark cloud cover between the physical part of us and the spiritual (the sun). Our sense of misery and 'suffering' comes from not experiencing Source energy. The thicker and greater the barrier between us and It, the less joy we experience and the more we suffer. Do we get that so far?
Everything is energy
We have to understand that everything is energy. Energy flows and moves in us and around us all the time. Many will refer to Shakti as energy...the unseen force that moves us and the world.
Singer explains in Michael Singer: The Unlimited Energy of the Self that this energy, like all things originates from the innermost part of us. It has the power to pull us toward it. When it goes up, we feel up and we are pulled toward the innermost soul. The cloud cover is thinned out, we think less and feel more and we experience joy, freedom, a connection with who we are (even if we cannot conceptualize it or put it into words; even if we mistakenly believe it was something in the outer world that made us happy). We have opened up! We are closer to our home, our Source. It feels wonderful.
We have a sense that the sun is out shining brilliantly down on us even though the sun never went away.
But....
If we fill this in between layer with useless thoughts, distractions, conditioned beliefs that bring us down...the energy gets blocked or dips down. We begin to feel frustrated, angry, depressed, unfulfilled, trapped etc. We suffer. We may mistakenly believe that we are suffering because things in the outer most layer are not working out for us but that is not it. We suffer because we created another thick cloud cover between our Source of light and our experiencing It. We need to thin the cloud cover
Energy is Consciousness
If, however, we make a deliberate choice to experience Self and work on lifting that energy by questioning our conditioned ways of perceiving...we will experience a break or a thinning of cloud cover. We will get closer to Source and the joy of living that is there.
We need to up our energy and thin out the cloud cover between the layers of our experience so we experience the light like we are meant to and so we can pass it on.
I will discuss in the next post, how we can do that.
All is well!
B.K.S. Iyengar (2014) Yoga: The Path to Holistic Health. New York: Penguin Random House
Michael Singer (Sept 2018) Michael Singer: The Unlimited Energy of the Self.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nEOQoRhaX1s
Saturday, September 7, 2019
Precious Things from the Tao
But I have three precious things that I prize and hold fast. The first is gentleness; the second is economy; and the third is shrinking from taking precedence of others.
-Lao Tzu
Chapter/ Verse 67
"All the world" proclaims that though "my" Tao is great it is inferior to other modes of teaching. [Confucianism which was prominent at the time of the Tao?]. Because it is so great it appears small but if it were like any other system ...its smallest would be known.
There are three precious things I [Lao Tzu] holds dear: gentleness, economy and humility (shrinking from taking precedence over others). Gentleness makes him bold, economy makes him free to spend and give?, and humility gives him honor. The other teachings these days are about being bold and giving up on gentleness, being too free and giving up on economy and being ahead and giving up the position behind or beneath others.
Gentleness however is self saving and protective even in battle... for heaven will protect the gentle.
My take: sometimes the teachings that do not profess to be the greatest actually are in their humility. Gentleness, economy and humility are things to value in a teaching and in life.
Chapter/ Verse 68
In war (be it literal or figurative) if one has skill they do need to strike out at the vulnerable parts of others; if one has good will they do not succumb to rage; if one backs off and leaves the battle field...he will keep his foes apart; and if one does not seek to win he can "humbly ply his art". The wisest men who do more for others are those who do not seek to use might and power, to win on the battlefield but to unite for the sake of peace.
My Take: As above
Chapter/ Verse 69
A war master once said that he did not want to be the one to start the war; he preferred to be on the defensive side rather than the offensives. I dare not to advance an inch; I prefer to retire a foot. Meaning that it is best to back down than to instigate a battle. This is all about realizing there is no need to defend or offend because really there is no enemy. ( I think of ACIM).
When we engage in war we risk losing what is so precious to our humanity: gentleness. So when we have no choice but to fight...we do only because we have to but we hate all of it. by deploring war we conquer.
My Take: Thinking of what Lord Krishna told Arjuna when he was attempting to make away from war. Just the opposite but at the same time having the same meaning?????
Chapter/Verse 70
"My" words(Lao Tzu's) are easy to know and practice but no one in the world can know or practice them. There is a natural and authoritative 'law" in my words that I enforce. It I because men do not know these principles, men do not know me. The few who do know me tend to prize me so I must go undetected in a poor mean's garb while I hold what is truly precious and sought after in my heart.
My Take: The words are just pointers that Lao Tzu uses to guide men into understanding the principles and laws of some great truth that cannot be known by the mind or practiced by the body. Because of this men do not know the sage when they see him...never know if he carries the truth (the jade). If they knew they will hunt him down to get that truth. The sage then is hidden in a poor man's clothes ( not professing to be a sage in a humble way) and holds the truth within the heart ( the only place it can be held). Truth is an inner treasure.
After reading this I question the assumption of many that Lao Tzu was actuality not one man but a collection of many sages.
Chapter/Verse 71
To know and think we do not know is the greatest achievement. To think we know and know nothing is a disease ( of the mind?) . We are spared of this disease if the thought of having it causes us suffering. (That is...we would not be content with thinking we know when we don't...we want truth). The sage does not have this disease...he knows how painful it would be so he doesn't have it.
My Take: Taken back to Socrates and this teaching: The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing. Most of us do not know anything though we think we do and that is the disease of the mind that plagues humanity and causes a great deal of our suffering. The moment we realize that our suffering is induced by conceptually believing our thinking we can be released. If we know that our minds are responsible for suffering because we fill them with things other than truth we can admit we know nothing...and that is the greatest attainment...a step toward enlightenment.
Chapter/Verse 72
If we do not fear what we should fear, that dread (or maybe the thing we fear the most) will come upon us. We should not get lost in our ordinary lives nor should we be weary of what life depends on. If we avoid the daily mind numbing indulgences we will not weary of Life. The sage knows this but does not parade his knowledge, loves but does not appear to value himself. He puts the 'little self" away for Truth and does not get lost in indulgences.
My Take: Not sure about this one.
Chapter/Verse 73
If a man uses his boldness to break the law and wrong others , he will be punished possibly with execution. If a man uses his boldness and refrains from hurting others or breaking the law, he lives on. One of these cases appears to advantageous, the other injurious...but...what if Heaven's anger hurts a man? The sage ponders this. It is the way of heaven not to strive yet it attains what it needs, the way of heaven not to speak yet it gets a reply...men answer a call to heaven they cannot hear. Heaven is quiet in its demonstrations yet its plans are skillful and effective. The meshes in the net of heaven are large and far apart but at the same time it allows nothing to escape.
My Take: I a not sure what Lao Tzu (or Legge) was getting at here.
Chapter/Verse 74
If people do not fear death (as a punishment for committing crimes?), why attempt to frighten them with it to keep them on the straight and narrow. If people however were afraid and they could be seized any time they did wrong and be put to death, who would dare do wrong? There is One( capitol letter making it significant) who presides over death. If one would commit an execution in the presence of this One he will end up hurting himself.
My Take: Who is the One who presides over death? I would say God but Lao Tzu doesn't use God? Is Lao Tzu for or against capitol punishment...that would depend on this One meaning, wouldn't it? If One is God...then no he is saying it isn't good...we hurt ourselves by killing others who commit crimes. If the one is someone trained as an executioner...whole different ball game. He would be more or less saying...leave it to the executioners. Anyway...I believe he meant the One as a supreme being because of the heaven reference in the previous verse.
All is well
James Legge (1895) Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu. https://www.sacred-texts.com/tao/taote.htm
-Lao Tzu
Chapter/ Verse 67
"All the world" proclaims that though "my" Tao is great it is inferior to other modes of teaching. [Confucianism which was prominent at the time of the Tao?]. Because it is so great it appears small but if it were like any other system ...its smallest would be known.
There are three precious things I [Lao Tzu] holds dear: gentleness, economy and humility (shrinking from taking precedence over others). Gentleness makes him bold, economy makes him free to spend and give?, and humility gives him honor. The other teachings these days are about being bold and giving up on gentleness, being too free and giving up on economy and being ahead and giving up the position behind or beneath others.
Gentleness however is self saving and protective even in battle... for heaven will protect the gentle.
My take: sometimes the teachings that do not profess to be the greatest actually are in their humility. Gentleness, economy and humility are things to value in a teaching and in life.
Chapter/ Verse 68
In war (be it literal or figurative) if one has skill they do need to strike out at the vulnerable parts of others; if one has good will they do not succumb to rage; if one backs off and leaves the battle field...he will keep his foes apart; and if one does not seek to win he can "humbly ply his art". The wisest men who do more for others are those who do not seek to use might and power, to win on the battlefield but to unite for the sake of peace.
My Take: As above
Chapter/ Verse 69
A war master once said that he did not want to be the one to start the war; he preferred to be on the defensive side rather than the offensives. I dare not to advance an inch; I prefer to retire a foot. Meaning that it is best to back down than to instigate a battle. This is all about realizing there is no need to defend or offend because really there is no enemy. ( I think of ACIM).
When we engage in war we risk losing what is so precious to our humanity: gentleness. So when we have no choice but to fight...we do only because we have to but we hate all of it. by deploring war we conquer.
My Take: Thinking of what Lord Krishna told Arjuna when he was attempting to make away from war. Just the opposite but at the same time having the same meaning?????
Chapter/Verse 70
"My" words(Lao Tzu's) are easy to know and practice but no one in the world can know or practice them. There is a natural and authoritative 'law" in my words that I enforce. It I because men do not know these principles, men do not know me. The few who do know me tend to prize me so I must go undetected in a poor mean's garb while I hold what is truly precious and sought after in my heart.
My Take: The words are just pointers that Lao Tzu uses to guide men into understanding the principles and laws of some great truth that cannot be known by the mind or practiced by the body. Because of this men do not know the sage when they see him...never know if he carries the truth (the jade). If they knew they will hunt him down to get that truth. The sage then is hidden in a poor man's clothes ( not professing to be a sage in a humble way) and holds the truth within the heart ( the only place it can be held). Truth is an inner treasure.
After reading this I question the assumption of many that Lao Tzu was actuality not one man but a collection of many sages.
Chapter/Verse 71
To know and think we do not know is the greatest achievement. To think we know and know nothing is a disease ( of the mind?) . We are spared of this disease if the thought of having it causes us suffering. (That is...we would not be content with thinking we know when we don't...we want truth). The sage does not have this disease...he knows how painful it would be so he doesn't have it.
My Take: Taken back to Socrates and this teaching: The only true wisdom is knowing you know nothing. Most of us do not know anything though we think we do and that is the disease of the mind that plagues humanity and causes a great deal of our suffering. The moment we realize that our suffering is induced by conceptually believing our thinking we can be released. If we know that our minds are responsible for suffering because we fill them with things other than truth we can admit we know nothing...and that is the greatest attainment...a step toward enlightenment.
Chapter/Verse 72
If we do not fear what we should fear, that dread (or maybe the thing we fear the most) will come upon us. We should not get lost in our ordinary lives nor should we be weary of what life depends on. If we avoid the daily mind numbing indulgences we will not weary of Life. The sage knows this but does not parade his knowledge, loves but does not appear to value himself. He puts the 'little self" away for Truth and does not get lost in indulgences.
My Take: Not sure about this one.
Chapter/Verse 73
If a man uses his boldness to break the law and wrong others , he will be punished possibly with execution. If a man uses his boldness and refrains from hurting others or breaking the law, he lives on. One of these cases appears to advantageous, the other injurious...but...what if Heaven's anger hurts a man? The sage ponders this. It is the way of heaven not to strive yet it attains what it needs, the way of heaven not to speak yet it gets a reply...men answer a call to heaven they cannot hear. Heaven is quiet in its demonstrations yet its plans are skillful and effective. The meshes in the net of heaven are large and far apart but at the same time it allows nothing to escape.
My Take: I a not sure what Lao Tzu (or Legge) was getting at here.
Chapter/Verse 74
If people do not fear death (as a punishment for committing crimes?), why attempt to frighten them with it to keep them on the straight and narrow. If people however were afraid and they could be seized any time they did wrong and be put to death, who would dare do wrong? There is One( capitol letter making it significant) who presides over death. If one would commit an execution in the presence of this One he will end up hurting himself.
My Take: Who is the One who presides over death? I would say God but Lao Tzu doesn't use God? Is Lao Tzu for or against capitol punishment...that would depend on this One meaning, wouldn't it? If One is God...then no he is saying it isn't good...we hurt ourselves by killing others who commit crimes. If the one is someone trained as an executioner...whole different ball game. He would be more or less saying...leave it to the executioners. Anyway...I believe he meant the One as a supreme being because of the heaven reference in the previous verse.
All is well
James Legge (1895) Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu. https://www.sacred-texts.com/tao/taote.htm
The Cloud Cover of Mind
What stands between you [self] ...and the joy of Life...is mind.
Michael Singer
We are getting that aren't we? What prevents us from truly knowing Self and experiencing the peace that is our home...is our mind. Michael Singer puts it this way: Underneath is who we really are...peace, joy, eternal essence....spirit. Above that is our consciousness, this little self we are aware of....and in between is mind. What prevents us from living in that place of our unchanging joy is our mind. Mind is an obstacle on our path to experiencing home...a veil over home that prevents us from seeing it.
Isn't it the world that is between us and happiness?
Most of us would say that is a bunch of bull *&^%. It is the world that stands between us and joy, between the lives we are experiencing now and the lives we want to be experiencing. Life just keeps handing us one "problem", one "awful" circumstance, one "wrong", one "bad" event, after another. That is why we may be unhappy, depressed, burned out. If life gives us what we want, however, we are happy. Therefore...it is the world , not the mind that is responsible for our happiness and most importantly...for our lack of.
So let's look at that. Maybe in order to be happy I believe I have to have a certain job that is stress free. I have to have a partner who constantly confirms my lovability. I have to drive a certain car and have a certain income. If I get all those things...I am happy. My world becomes brighter and I experience some semblance of joy. The world then, is believed to be the giver of this state....the provider of my joy.
If on the other hand I can't seem to get those things or they are taken away by the world... I lose my partner or my job. I wreck my car or lose all my money on the market...then it was the world that stood between me and a joyful life...between me and happiness. It didn't give me what I needed to be happy.
If the world gives me what I want, I seem to be happy. When it doesn't, I am depressed. So it is easy to see why we believe the world is making us happy or unhappy...the world that prevents us from experiencing joy.
Looking at this mixed up perception a little closer
Singer tells us we need to examine this a little closer. The joy of Life is far greater than the temporary pleasure we receive from the gaining of things or preconceived "pleasant' circumstances. The joy of Life is permanent and unchanging. It doesn't fluctuate or go away. It is always there ready to be received underneath all the noise this world makes. It is not "of this world" as we know it...so it therefore can not be effected by it. It is like the sun...always shining brilliantly, never moving, there even when we cannot see it or feel it. It just "seems" to be here one moment, gone the next; rising and setting when in actuality it is just there.
The world doesn't stand between what we consciously experience and It...it can't. What stands between our joy and our awareness of It is the mind...with all its preconceived ideas about what it "wants' from life, its conditioning, it's judgments about what is good to have and what is bad. Our thinking is like a dark heavy cloud cover between us and "experiencing" the joy that is always there. The more negative the thinking, the darker the cloud cover....the less joy we feel in Life. It does not mean the joy isn't there...we just cannot experience It because of the cloud cover of thinking.
The Mental Cloud Cover Thickens and Thins
But sometimes it thins and we feel joy?
This mental cloud cover is constantly fluctuating...thinning out or becoming thicker. Thoughts are just moving energy forms that come and go. When Life lines up perfectly and coincidentally matches what our mind thinks it needs in order to be happy with a break in the cloud cover ( a break in thinking) we assume we are happy because we got what the mind wanted! But the reason for any joy we may feel...any peace, love, and happiness ...has to do with a thinning of mind...a thinner of the cloud cover so Spirit could shine through...not with what the world handed us.
We can't control what Life gives us. We can spend all our energy trying to get the things we think will make us happy from the world but we will never be completely successful. We can put all our energy into trying to control Life so it gives us what the mind tells us it wants and needs to be happy but we will just burn ourselves out trying. We do not have to fix the world...we need to fix our minds.
It is mind that creates a barrier between us and the joy that is waiting for us. ...not the world. It is the mind that squeezes so hard on our life energy. A release of that hold that will give us freedom to enjoy living. If we know it is the mind that is the problem we are on our way to Joy.
If we learn to get beyond our thinking...we will learn to accept and even appreciate anything the world throws at us. We will constantly feel the sun shining on us regardless of circumstance and we will experience the true joy of living which is not determined by whether or not the mind gets what it wants. The joy will come from simply living what is.
All is well!
Michael Singer ( July 2018) Michael Singer: Freedom from Mind- vol2: The Untethered Soul Lectures https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uVewPl9fzY8
Friday, September 6, 2019
A Bird from Another Continent
I am like a bird from another continent, sitting in an aviary. The day is coming when I fly off, but who is it now in my ear who hears my voice? Who says words with my mouth? Who looks out with my eyes? What is the Soul? I can't stop asking?
Rumi from Whoever Brought Me Here (https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/whoever-brought-me-here-2/comments/)
I have been asking the question for many, many years: Who am I? I feel , so often, like a bird from another continent. I feel out of place especially now as my thinking is changing so radically. I know that I am in this world but not of it. If that makes sense to anyone, let me know. lol
The bigger question then arises: Who is this "I" that hears, speaks and sees through "me". Me, I am learning, is this idea I have of me, the body others see and the one I see when I look in the mirror. It is the personality others know ( or assume they know). It is my role, my label, my status, what I own or don't own and what I do. This "me", the mind has created is the aviary in which I am trapped. It was built with walls of personal and collective thought, ideas and beliefs. The aviary is this continent...this perception of my world. I try to fit in here but know that I am a stranger in a foreign land. This aviary is not my home. In fact, it is a prison of sorts. I am not from here. Part of me wishes for freedom. I long for freedom. I long for home.
Yet I also know that "someone" took me here and "someone" will bring me home. Who is this "someone"? It is the being within me that will carry me to freedom. It is the same being who hears through these ears, speaks through this mouth and sees through these eyes that will take me home...that is home. That is the soul Rumi questions.
Hmmm! All we need to do is reach out to that Self, become familiar with that Self and we will be taken home.
I have linked this little meditation video before because I find it so helpful in its simplicity. Kim Eng (2019), "Who Am I?" Guided Meditation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qk5dlmylOZk
All is well!
Rumi from Whoever Brought Me Here (https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/whoever-brought-me-here-2/comments/)
I have been asking the question for many, many years: Who am I? I feel , so often, like a bird from another continent. I feel out of place especially now as my thinking is changing so radically. I know that I am in this world but not of it. If that makes sense to anyone, let me know. lol
The bigger question then arises: Who is this "I" that hears, speaks and sees through "me". Me, I am learning, is this idea I have of me, the body others see and the one I see when I look in the mirror. It is the personality others know ( or assume they know). It is my role, my label, my status, what I own or don't own and what I do. This "me", the mind has created is the aviary in which I am trapped. It was built with walls of personal and collective thought, ideas and beliefs. The aviary is this continent...this perception of my world. I try to fit in here but know that I am a stranger in a foreign land. This aviary is not my home. In fact, it is a prison of sorts. I am not from here. Part of me wishes for freedom. I long for freedom. I long for home.
Yet I also know that "someone" took me here and "someone" will bring me home. Who is this "someone"? It is the being within me that will carry me to freedom. It is the same being who hears through these ears, speaks through this mouth and sees through these eyes that will take me home...that is home. That is the soul Rumi questions.
Hmmm! All we need to do is reach out to that Self, become familiar with that Self and we will be taken home.
I have linked this little meditation video before because I find it so helpful in its simplicity. Kim Eng (2019), "Who Am I?" Guided Meditation. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qk5dlmylOZk
All is well!
Thursday, September 5, 2019
Lost in Thought? Find the Space...
The habit of spending nearly every waking moment lost in thought leaves us at the mercy of whatever our thoughts happen to be. Meditation is a way of breaking the spell.
-Sam Harris
Going Home
Hmmm! We are all on an inward journey whether we recognize it or not. In our search for peace and happiness (which we may still mistakenly assume can be found "out there") we are headed in the direction of knowing Self. Yet to get to Self we have to get past this veil the ego has thrown over Self in hope that we can't see it.
Thinking, meant to be tool to guide us home
You see, it is our inherent human goal to get back to Self...the mind is a tool we can use to do that. It is a fascinating instrument that allows us to ''make sense" of things in our outer and inner worlds as we journey along toward our destination.
Thinking is the means it offers to do this. There is actually no problem with thinking. Thoughts are just thoughts...little energy forms that come and go. If we see them for what they are and use them correctly they can be very helpful.
Misusing and getting lost in thought
The issue is that with most of us...we don't use them correctly...we don't use them as the pointing fingers they are meant to be leading us back to the familiar home of Self...we don't weed out the unhealthy thoughts and learn from the healthy...we become too identified with them....we get lost.
We have collected so many thoughts over the years and not all of them are positive and life affirming. In fact, the majority of them aren't. We have heard from authority figures (people we believed knew more than us) over our life spans all kinds of things about who and what we were. Those "thoughts" like little entities of energy landed in our psyches and found a home there. The more we heard them from the outside or inside voices...the more we have come to believe them.
And that is the problem...once we believe all our thoughts...we become them. We see them as us and this is what ego is. Ego is our identification with thought and this is what throws a veil...a thick, dark veil, in many cases, over Self...so we don't see it, don't have a chance to become familiar with it. We believe we are these little vulnerable selves ego defines us as. We forget there is a Self to go home to.
Our thoughts become us and if we believe those collective thoughts we live through this veil...seeing the world in the way ego tells us to see it. We get further and further away from Self, from home. We are as the saying goes "lost in thought".
Creating Space
Hmm! Without any space between us and thinking, we are our thoughts and we are guided by ego. If, however, we are able to create at least a small amount of space between us and our thoughts...we begin to see that our thoughts are not who we are. We are the one observing them.
So the trick is to be able to take a step back from thinking...just enough so you can observe your Self thinking. That distance allows you to disconnect from the crazy illusion that you are your thinking. How can you be your thinking and the one observing your thinking? You cannot be the subject and the object at the same time can you?
You don't have to stop thinking (you couldn't if you tried because it is simply a flow of energy) nor do you need to actively control it. All you have to do is take a step back away from it, create a little space between you and your thoughts so you can see the thought as the object...not you. In other words, you do not have to believe everything your monkey mind is telling you to believe. Thoughts are something one can simply observe. Meditation can help us to create this space.
That space between you and your thoughts is actually where Self is. That space is the doorway home. Find it.
All is well.
-Sam Harris
Going Home
Hmmm! We are all on an inward journey whether we recognize it or not. In our search for peace and happiness (which we may still mistakenly assume can be found "out there") we are headed in the direction of knowing Self. Yet to get to Self we have to get past this veil the ego has thrown over Self in hope that we can't see it.
Thinking, meant to be tool to guide us home
You see, it is our inherent human goal to get back to Self...the mind is a tool we can use to do that. It is a fascinating instrument that allows us to ''make sense" of things in our outer and inner worlds as we journey along toward our destination.
Thinking is the means it offers to do this. There is actually no problem with thinking. Thoughts are just thoughts...little energy forms that come and go. If we see them for what they are and use them correctly they can be very helpful.
Misusing and getting lost in thought
The issue is that with most of us...we don't use them correctly...we don't use them as the pointing fingers they are meant to be leading us back to the familiar home of Self...we don't weed out the unhealthy thoughts and learn from the healthy...we become too identified with them....we get lost.
We have collected so many thoughts over the years and not all of them are positive and life affirming. In fact, the majority of them aren't. We have heard from authority figures (people we believed knew more than us) over our life spans all kinds of things about who and what we were. Those "thoughts" like little entities of energy landed in our psyches and found a home there. The more we heard them from the outside or inside voices...the more we have come to believe them.
And that is the problem...once we believe all our thoughts...we become them. We see them as us and this is what ego is. Ego is our identification with thought and this is what throws a veil...a thick, dark veil, in many cases, over Self...so we don't see it, don't have a chance to become familiar with it. We believe we are these little vulnerable selves ego defines us as. We forget there is a Self to go home to.
Our thoughts become us and if we believe those collective thoughts we live through this veil...seeing the world in the way ego tells us to see it. We get further and further away from Self, from home. We are as the saying goes "lost in thought".
Creating Space
Hmm! Without any space between us and thinking, we are our thoughts and we are guided by ego. If, however, we are able to create at least a small amount of space between us and our thoughts...we begin to see that our thoughts are not who we are. We are the one observing them.
So the trick is to be able to take a step back from thinking...just enough so you can observe your Self thinking. That distance allows you to disconnect from the crazy illusion that you are your thinking. How can you be your thinking and the one observing your thinking? You cannot be the subject and the object at the same time can you?
You don't have to stop thinking (you couldn't if you tried because it is simply a flow of energy) nor do you need to actively control it. All you have to do is take a step back away from it, create a little space between you and your thoughts so you can see the thought as the object...not you. In other words, you do not have to believe everything your monkey mind is telling you to believe. Thoughts are something one can simply observe. Meditation can help us to create this space.
That space between you and your thoughts is actually where Self is. That space is the doorway home. Find it.
All is well.
Wednesday, September 4, 2019
Missing Something?
If you do not know who you are at the essence level, you are a problem to yourself [and others].
-Eckhart Tolle
There is something missing here! There is something frightening! There is something 'wrong'!
As long as we see ourselves only on the surface layers of our existence, as bodies and minds full of thinking, we will have the sense there is something missing, frightening and wrong with and in the world around us.
Many, many of us operate only on the surface layer. We are so distracted and hypnotized by the busyness of the physical world with all its moving and "separate' forms that we cannot see, recognize or accept our true essence that lies at a deeper level beneath all that. We cannot feel that below this constant flux of form is a stillness that is us. We cannot see that beneath body lines and the sharp borders of matter everything is actually One, a One that we are connected to.
As long as we operate on this level we are a problem for our selves and for others. We will sense the truth as something "missing" but so caught up in external craziness we will look to the external world for that missing something never finding it. So far from the peace that is us, we will feel frightened by the noises, the constantly changing nature of this busy outer existence. We will sense and know that it is all "wrong" as we learn to judge like the world of mind judges. We will act out! We will feel lost, incomplete, afraid and wronged....until we recognize who we are.
That is where stillness comes in. It is when we take moments of our day to pull away from the noise and the busyness to spend in stillness and silence that we learn to reconnect with that essence. The more we connect with that essence, the less real and frightening the outer world seems. The more we are aware of this essence, the more we know how whole and complete we actually already are and the more perfect and right life becomes. We are no longer a problem to ourselves or others.
All is well!
Eckhart Tolle ( Aug., 2019) Our Essential Nature and Awakening. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ETelbX32eQ
Note: I had a compulsion to go back to September 4th's entry from last year for some reason. Ironically, I was writing about this exact thing. Go figure
https://dale-lynwritin.blogspot.com/2018/09/the-quest-for-happiness.html
-Eckhart Tolle
There is something missing here! There is something frightening! There is something 'wrong'!
As long as we see ourselves only on the surface layers of our existence, as bodies and minds full of thinking, we will have the sense there is something missing, frightening and wrong with and in the world around us.
Many, many of us operate only on the surface layer. We are so distracted and hypnotized by the busyness of the physical world with all its moving and "separate' forms that we cannot see, recognize or accept our true essence that lies at a deeper level beneath all that. We cannot feel that below this constant flux of form is a stillness that is us. We cannot see that beneath body lines and the sharp borders of matter everything is actually One, a One that we are connected to.
As long as we operate on this level we are a problem for our selves and for others. We will sense the truth as something "missing" but so caught up in external craziness we will look to the external world for that missing something never finding it. So far from the peace that is us, we will feel frightened by the noises, the constantly changing nature of this busy outer existence. We will sense and know that it is all "wrong" as we learn to judge like the world of mind judges. We will act out! We will feel lost, incomplete, afraid and wronged....until we recognize who we are.
That is where stillness comes in. It is when we take moments of our day to pull away from the noise and the busyness to spend in stillness and silence that we learn to reconnect with that essence. The more we connect with that essence, the less real and frightening the outer world seems. The more we are aware of this essence, the more we know how whole and complete we actually already are and the more perfect and right life becomes. We are no longer a problem to ourselves or others.
All is well!
Eckhart Tolle ( Aug., 2019) Our Essential Nature and Awakening. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ETelbX32eQ
Note: I had a compulsion to go back to September 4th's entry from last year for some reason. Ironically, I was writing about this exact thing. Go figure
https://dale-lynwritin.blogspot.com/2018/09/the-quest-for-happiness.html
Monday, September 2, 2019
Oneness
All human beings come from a mother's womb. We are all the same part of one human family. We should have a clear realization of the oneness of humanity.
-Dalai Lama
-Dalai Lama
Sunday, September 1, 2019
Timelessness
The timelessness in you is aware of life's timelessness. And knows that yesterday is but today's memory and tomorrow's is today's dream.
-Kahil Gibran
September 1st and my daughter is off to her second year of university. My house feels so empty and so does my head lol. I have no idea how we got to September first. Where did the summer go?
I have, I realize, a very limited experience of time now. I don't see it passing. I just know that it has by life events and seasonal changes. What is up with that lol? Even my concept of hourly time is off. I think it is morning and find out it is three in the afternoon. If I am outside, I can tell by the light changes what time of day it is but if I am in the house on a writing spree. .. I can't. Oh well...that is life. :)
Beautiful day, just the same.
-Kahil Gibran
September 1st and my daughter is off to her second year of university. My house feels so empty and so does my head lol. I have no idea how we got to September first. Where did the summer go?
I have, I realize, a very limited experience of time now. I don't see it passing. I just know that it has by life events and seasonal changes. What is up with that lol? Even my concept of hourly time is off. I think it is morning and find out it is three in the afternoon. If I am outside, I can tell by the light changes what time of day it is but if I am in the house on a writing spree. .. I can't. Oh well...that is life. :)
Beautiful day, just the same.
I know it is September by the return of these guys to their tree. It does not seem as if a whole year has passed since I took this shot.
All is well.
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