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I notice how when something touches us, our attention moves to the sensations, trying to bring them to peace.

Its rare to look and see if what touched us is real or not.

For example if we see a rope and mistake it for a snake and get a huge fright.

On recognising that its a rope, do we have to work on the fear or does the simple seeing that its a rope, end it.

Recognising the Truth of whom we have always been is a prerequisite to be available to life as a love affair, in which the unconscious patterns that have plagued mankind forever come to peace.

Most of us have had moments of happiness. Usually we associate the happiness with a cause, like for example, the person, or the situation made me happy. So, is it the circumstance or the way we relate (the quality of attention) that is the source of the happiness. Ramana’s question “Who am I” is in essence an invitation to bring our attention to awareness, the source of everything. Untangling this, allows a simple resting without needing to run after anything.

For most people, our focus of attention is on our experience, with an ongoing activity of measuring and evaluating it.

This manifests as trying to fix, change, get rid of and waiting for a better experience and is experienced as suffering.

Deeply resting as THAT which is beyond all experience, in which all experience appears and savouring our experience as the Beloved changes everything.

Notice how when we become aware of some resistance or defensiveness, the knee jerk reaction is to try and change or fix it.

Recognise that this is how your system survived and honour it.

Gently enquire if it is necessary in this moment. The answer is yes or no.

Notice how when the new info comes in how the mechanism responds.

If it relaxes, notice that you are surviving!

So many nuances as love lives itself.

Being true to love, as this capacity of awareness makes these fine distinctions and reveals the felt sense of the exquisite sweetness of dropping deeper into the indescribable.

So love living as an invitation to embody, Truth, Love, Wisdom, Beauty.

Don’t know of anything more exquisite and see how many of us resonate with this calling..

Last evening the topic of “killing the ego” came up.

This baffles me as how and who could kill something that doesn’t exist?

Clearly there are automatic unconscious habits that play and there is a beauty in being available for these to become conscious.

This process is facilitated by resting as awareness and allowing the innate capacity of awareness to make distinctions, as these habits can only function unconsciously.

Such luck, get to spend time with folks interested in Truth, exploring the nuances of consciousness and resting as THAT in which everything appears.

The field that opens up is such a caress, a love bath. The felt sense/knowing of no boundaries, nobody, simply life living itself in all these manifestations.

Gently noticing where and how attention is drawn, noticing and exploring if the habits are joyous and human friendly.

That simple noticing is awesome.

So grateful for the recognition of This, that all manifestation appears in, and that attention rests effortlessly with That.

Silence and beauty prevails. Hari Om

Amazed at how the seeing, in an instant shifts the basis that life is lived from.

Noticing subtle differences in how my son and I relate, which I can see is what we both always wanted. The unconscious patterns playing in us both, caused friction that was painful to both of us.

Who knows how many more unconscious patterns are playing. All I know is I am available for them to become conscious.

Feeling so blessed. Got to hang out with my 17 year old son and his buddy into the wee hours exploring truth.

Both so available and interested.

Such a privilege to witness as recognition happened in them both, and a joy as they described in their words so articulately and freshly how it opened up for them.

I had longed for this with my son for quite some time and knew that it would have to happen at the right moment without any push. So grateful.

Whats the distinction between doubt and not knowing?

Can we ever really know what is happening?

Seems to me in the recognition that it is not possible to know, a relaxing happens and life lives itself.

With doubt, there is some semblance of control remaining.

Doubt. Let’s explore doubt. What is it?

Is it a thought? Can you doubt without thinking?

What is its promise? Maybe if you doubt long and hard enough you’l be certain.

So if doubt arises, is it useful to follow it, by either entertaining or resisting it? Is it possible to simply recognise what it is and let it come and go?

Resting as awareness, no agenda.

The natural capacity of awareness to notice, with exquisite sensitivity all the usual movements that cause difficulty, invites a deepening that is sooooo delicious. Bliss.

Who you are, you already are, so no need to do anything or make any effort to become anything.

Recognising your nature is simple. The habits to be confused and to measure our nature with our mind and to measure by our experience are the activities that are suffering.

Interesting to notice these activities and question who does them! Really check it out.

So often when we meet an expression of life whom we commonly refer to as “another”, there is some discomfort that is experienced.

Usually, we trust our perception of what they seem to be doing or being that is causing the discomfort and there is an automatic trying to get them to be different. Usually with the idea that if they change or recognise what we are talking about, the universe will be a better place.

What happens in this movement is a feeling of separation, of “I” and the capacity to be present to experience is non existent.

Compassion literally means to feel with, or to say it another way, the recognition that everything and everyone is an experience to us and that all experience appears in awareness.

In our culture, we have been conditioned to believe that things make us happy. Relationships, money, toys, possessions etc.

Check and see if its the object or the way we relate (our habit of attention) to the object that produces our experience. For example we can love and hate a person within seconds of each other. Is it the person or our way of relating to them that produces the different experience?

Once we can see that our experience happens from where and how our attention is focused, then its possible to explore relating to this moment as the beloved.

Always interesting to check in and recognise what priorities are being lived in your life.

Easiest is to notice where your attention is most of the time, not what your mind tells you your priorities are.

Is the priority living as Truth, Love, Peace or being busy with other things.

No right or wrong, just a gentle simple noticing.

This love of Truth, bringing attention to THAT in which everything appears.

So simple and so much momentum to believe thoughts, feelings and experiences as real.

Somehow life has picked us up to be available as this love affair of everything and nothing.

This moment, recognising that the entire manifestation is appearing in something that can never be described, drinking and kissing and being caressed by manifestation as the beloved.

Bliss.

The tendency to believe that our experience means something about “me” is interesting to look at, recognising that the entire universe is an experience to us.

We feel the human frequency which is pretty freaked out. If there is the idea it means something about “me” then there will be energy spent to try and fix, change or get rid of the experience, which of course only makes it stronger. This unintended identification causes so much trouble.

Great to be conscious of this mechanism.

In the recognition that the universe is an experience to us, lets consider what the human constituent as an experience is.

The majority of expressions of life we call humans are confused, anxious, unhappy, fearful etc. Living life waiting for a better experience.

Of the totality of our experience of now, which includes galaxies upon galaxies not to mention trillions of cells, nature etc, the human expression is a tiny fraction.

Is it possible to include the human vibration in the awesomeness of this moment, just gently allowing it to be what its is. Holding it with love. A word for this, compassion.

So often there is the feeling/idea that our experience means something about us.

Lets examine that. The entire universe is an experience to us experienced through 5 senses.

We experience where our attention is focussed, similar to a TV set. Hundreds of channels and what shows up on the screen is which channel the TV is tuned to. What does what shows up on the screen mean about the TV?

What determines where our attention is focused? We could call that our interests.

Where do our interests come from? Do we choose them, or do they come by themselves and leave the same way?

A friend today mentioned this idea of “You choose your suffering”

Don’t know anyone who wakes up in the morning and says lets see how much I can suffer today.

Seems to me that suffering occurs because of automatic unconscious habits and that no one does it consciously.

The idea that You choose it, is a double wammy, which brings up blame, shame and guilt which I have not found useful in exploring and bringing unconscious habits to consciousness.

Is it possible to describe the totality of your experience of this moment?

Does anyone really know what going on?

If the answer is no to these questions, gently rest and notice how there is an activity that wants to know and make sense of whats happening and provide a context to the mystery.

When automatic unconscious patterns, that are expressions of pain play through us, they hurt not only ourselves, but everyone, especially those closest to us.

Resting as awareness, meeting every sensation as the beloved our expression becomes one of beauty that caresses existence.

During the time the body was forming in the womb, the cells were being conditioned by how the Moms cells were responding to their environment. This was way before thought.

Our experience and our responses, including thought stem from this early conditioning as far as I can see.

The thoughts that come from a feeling that everything is not OK come from this.

The capacity of awareness to gently notice these automatic movements or responses is what allows them to become conscious and then come home.

Exploring the distinction between teaching and inviting to what you have always known, but was hidden by the way the mind and nervous system function?

Being THAT in which “here” and all of manifestation appears, including the sense of “I” and everyone.

Most of us have a conditioned habit of focusing our attention, in a way that produces a sense of me and another, subject / object.

The use of language turns living processes into nouns and then we look out and see a thing and it seems like we get the info of what we are looking at from outside.

If you would like to try an experiment, relax your eyes and imagine they are holes and that light of everything is effortlessly pouring in.

Notice that what is seen is an experience to you and that all experience appears in awareness. Now notice that the info is coming from inside. Enjoy!

Responsibility.

Interesting to explore how it feels in the body to look though the filter of believing in the idea of responsibility.

For eg, I am responsible, or you are responsible. Just noticing what happens in the body without right or wrong, good or bad etc, without having to decide if there is or isn’t such a thing, just what happens when that idea is looked through at life.

Does every cell vibrate in ecstasy or is there contraction?

A whole day meeting today, hanging out with beloveds whose love of Peace and Truth keeps us meeting and exploring after all these years..

We all know there is nothing to get and no one to get anywhere and yet as we spend time together, love keeps revealing Itself to its Beloveds..

How lucky is that!.

Almost everyone has had the experience of feeling hurt. If the hurt is strong, it can feel existential and there is an automatic response to do whatever it takes to get away from the pain.

Under all of that are the sensations of the touch which shows up as the hurt, which rarely are met consciously without any agenda, to change, fix or get rid of. Ironically that is what’s required to bring them home.

Exploring the easiest way to quieten thoughts.

As far as I can see, thoughts are the capacity to solve problems, which is what enables us to build all the accoutrements of what we call civilisation.

As we enjoy the sensations of now, there is no problem to solve and hence nothing to solve, so thoughts quieten or stop.

Have invited this enjoying for no reason, many times in the meetings and almost everyone has the direct experience.

Give it a go.

People talk of accepting life the way it is?

But how is it?

Is our experience of life, it?

Such a paradox, recognising THAT in which everything appears and then to see how THAT plays a character which believes it is independent, time bound and separate. Amazing!

Worth looking fresh at the idea of identification.

Who does it?

The sense of “I” that appears, appears after identification, so obviously “I” doesn’t do it.

Who or what is responsable for the sense of separation?

Who or what is responsable for the automatic unconscious patterns that play as us?

We so often hold that exploring the unconscious patterns that play in us, is for ourselves, so that we feel better, have more etc.

Holding exploration like that actually is in the way of integration and is identification.

In the recognising that the patterns are not personal and that as they come to peace, it benefits all beings, then the exploring becomes service. Such a different dynamic.cient suppressed and disowned pain, that I could see manifested as expressions like Monsanto, the oil and banking industries and the war machine. Never even knew it was there.

So amazing to be able to be present and not take it personally. Such grace.

What I could see is that from the perspective of the pain, there was no value for life including its own.

However because of being suppressed and disowned, on the surface, there was quite a different view, including an idea of being pro life, and into love, peace etc.

Also could see how universal this pain is. So happy it is revealing itself.

Touched today an ancient suppressed and disowned pain, that I could see manifested as expressions like Monsanto, the oil and banking industries and the war machine.

Never even knew it was there.

So amazing to be able to be present and not take it personally. Such grace.

In response to some of the comments about my previous post.

When our systems never received the info needed to embody in a happy healthy way, there is an ongoing yearning to deeply connect to get the info.

However we seem to get attracted to a nervous system that is also lacking the info, so our patterns fit perfectly. This is usually quite painful and often either gets suppressed with an overlay of many spiritual ideas of not needing anything, trying to not want etc, In my experience when we try to deal with the yearning by simply moving our attention, which is great for resourcing ourselves, the missing info never gets completed.

For this, usually a nervous system that has the info is required.

Recognising the intricacies of bringing to peace, unconscious patterns that play in intimate relating.

Requires such a willingness and persistence to gently keep exploring even when the habit is to run.

Incredibly useful to remain friends in the exploring, even though the habit when we touch those core woundings is to be upset and project.

So usual to fall into compensations that are less then alive in order to maintain relationships and the cost is high.

Looking at the human experience, its easy to see that it is completely relational. This means that the quality of the attention that we receive is a huge factor not only in our physical health but also the health of our psyche and our sense of self.

This brings into view the importance of community or what in the East is called Sangha. To be in a community of friends on fire with a love of Truth, is a great gift for humanity.

Listening to the Beloveds call, resting as awareness. Being in awe at this appearance of life, and the grace of having human form to recognise the Truth beyond form.

Whatever automatic unconscious mechanisms are functioning, is happening in present time. In order to integrate these mechanisms or bring them to peace, there needs to be, a knowing of who you are, an interest to bring them to peace and the knowing of what assists for this to happen.

Gentle noticing and honouring of these mechanisms with no agenda is essential.

Also really slowing down and not getting sidetracked by thinking.

Being available as space, as love allows these mechanisms to reveal and become conscious.

There is an interesting habit when talking about what troubles us, which is saying things like, “I always” or “what to do when this happens again”.

Whats happening is based on the past and our thoughts project the same into the future.

This habit is obviously trying to assist us. Once seen deeply, frees the projection mechanism and assists in remaining present.

What a paradox, to know that who we are is that in which everything appears, matter, energy, time, space, and every known and unknown universe and then to have human experience.

Such grace that this love affair with Truth establishes Itself in our hearts, so that when “touches” happen, instead of projecting outward or on ourselves, a gentle enquiry arises.

Gratefulness.

In the journey of this expression of life called human existence, if anywhere from conception on, the body never received the information from the Mom it needed to feel held, safe, welcomed, the experience of embodiment will be filtered through this lack of information.

This will show up as a sense of suffering, which feels personal and often accompanied by wanting and needing.

Then we are told wanting and needing are not spiritual, so we try wanting to not want. Clearly this can never work.

In gently exploring wanting and needing, honouring and allowing, their gifts reveal and come home. Usually for this another nervous system that has the info is required, as this is how the human nervous system is designed to get the information it needs to be at peace.

Writing like this offends many non dualists, that feel recognising your true nature is sufficient to end suffering.

So curious western and eastern conditioning around touch.

Most primates bond and are comforted through touching. My feeling is that touch nurtures and resources us.

We feel free to hold and touch infants that we know and feel enriched by the contact and then it gets crazy.

Touch gets tangled up with sexuality and relationship.

In some circles, it’s OK to hug, saying hi and goodbye, or shake hands but the bonding and need of touch remains quite loaded.

In some circles even hugging is difficult.

There is also the option of getting massaged, but spontaneous holding is rare.

In our retreats, I notice that after a little while, participants start naturally supporting and being supported through touch. This happens spontaneously in the field of trust that opens up. I love it!

Resting as awareness. Nothing to do, nowhere to go and no-one to do or go anywhere.

The experience of now, viewed through whatever filters, is all we have.

The filters are so habitual, they don’t even appear on our radar. Somehow we feel that how we perceive, is the way it is, even if we can see that everyone perceives differently.

What brings these habits of perception into view, so that they are no longer unconscious and colour not only the sense of life but also the sense we have of ourselves?

If our nervous system is in survival mode, whether there is any actual existential threat or not, what chance is there to notice finely enough, so these filters can be seen?

The luxury of having time, space and a friend that we feel met and held by, to assist in this exploration, is such grace.

Recognising our nature as awareness, does not deal with the habit of attention, that is identification and the feeling sense of separation.

The capacity of awareness to recognise the tiny movements in sensation that are pre thought and that actually drive thought, is what integrates.

In my view, this is the exploration that is the love affair with life and is service to all.

So easy to misunderstand this invitation to know who you are.

That is why it is so fortunate to have a friend who is experienced to assist in the invitation.

The friend needs to have a maturity that is capable of simply being present without trying to fix, change or get rid of anything.

Also the ability of not going into agreement or arguing with the stories that our thinking invariably spins.

The more they have been able to bring the unconscious patterns that have been playing in themselves to peace, the deeper the assist will be.

If when you are with them, you can notice getting quieter, your system calming down, and clarity returning, these are good signs.

If they are vulnerable and relate as being equal with you, this allows trust to arise, without putting them on a pedestal.

Such a huge difference between hard and gentle noticing. Hard noticing is how we have been conditioned and always has an agenda to change, fix or get rid of, and is actually violence. Hard noticing makes it impossible to integrate what is being noticed and adds layers of blame, shame and guilt.

Gentle noticing is curious, honouring, using the capacity that is inherent to awareness, to make fine distinctions and bring what has been unconscious to consciousness.

We are conditioned from at least conception on in how our nervous system relates to the field of information we call the universe. Usually the conditioning objectifies everything, which is what language does. It turns living processes into nouns, like for example tree instead of treeing. So what happens is our focus of attention produces a sense of separation and a feeling of a separate “me”.

In reality there is no separation nor can there ever be. So our habit of attention causes a sense of me which feels disconnected, but this is an illusion or as they say in the east, maya.

As the habits of conditioning become conscious, there is a sense of being more embodied.

Hear people talking about going in and out of awareness.

What is it that goes in and out and what is that based on? It is usually based on measuring awareness by experience.

Awareness cannot go in and out of itself. What moves is attention, which gives that illusion.

There is such a habit to believe our experience means something about us?

This has a huge cost.

A question; What does the reflection in a mirror mean about the mirror?

Or, what does a program on the TV mean about the TV?

Only shows where the mirror is pointed or what chanel the Tv is on.

in human terms, where and how our attention is focussed.

Is our attention who we are?.

Often hear people say, I am irritated by my mom or by someone.

Love to ask if the irritation is with the mom or a pattern playing in the mom.

That distinction seems easy to make. Then is it you that is upset or a pattern in you.

Clearly a pattern is upset with a pattern. Recognising that it is not “you” or the “other” can be quite liberating.

Drinking nectar in that always present source of all.

The wildest passionate love affair of everything and nothing.

What is a mistake?

Does it live in loves garden.

In recognising a “mistake” and learning happens, is it a mistake?

Often hear the question, What can “I” do when “my” mind is spinning?I and my are rarely explored.

Take a moment to deeply explore what feels or seems to be the “doer”.

What or who is that? Where does that go when deep sleep happens?

So loving the depth and deepening I see in all of us in the Meetings happening here in Amsterdam. So lucky.

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Love always.

30 April 2013Facebook Quotes

Awareness awarenessing.

Drinking a cup of tea.

Spring is springing.

Gratefulness.

The capacity of awareness to make really fine distinctions, is the enquiry that brings unconscious patterns of conditioning to consciousness and thus to peace. Papaji would speak of this capacity being like a swan, that if you mixed water with milk, the swan could drink only the milk.

In even the most simple life forms, there is the capacity to recognise what is food and what is life threatening. Amazing design.

Wow.

The paradox. Unbelievable human ignorance without a doer that breaks the heart, appearing in an ocean of intelligence, love. And nothing is happening.

Try to wrap the mind around that.

Beyond the senses, beyond any experience, including the senses and all experience… aaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhh