Dear Everyone,
Fred suggested that I post the below as a separate forum topic, although it was he who called if forth as a response (slightly edited here) to his post under this same forum titled "Inner Pioneers: We ask questions from the inside out." Thanks, Fred. It's wonderful that we can all call forth things from one another to share. It's as if (or maybe actually) we're all just nodes of the same conscious Being, wishing to be more conscious.
_____________________________
Thanks, Fred, for these insights and questions about vital things -- both everyday and fundamental. Would that more people asked them. They remind me that both questions and answers can come from different places in ourselves. And so, relative to this, I would like to share a very recent experience (from the inside) and a resulting perspective.
Three days ago I returned from a meditation retreat in the Santa Cruz Mountains -- near you. It was wonderful and I learned much that satisfied the mind. But the most crucial thing I learned was beyond my thinking mind. I learned that when meditating (or just going about my life), when I pay attention to my own mind and emotions (and body) in a direct, open, non-analytical way (as a pure observer with no judgments, goals, or expectations), I see, first, that emotions and thoughts of every kind come and go. They have no enduring quality in themselves. And the shadows are there, too, naked, flitting in and out of existence with all the rest. It's all okay -- nothing to reject. As time goes on I notice that there are spaces betweens my thoughts. These spaces become more numerous and longer as my "observer" stays on the job. And these spaces grow, and sometimes there is only empty space, which is filled with light and love. It's simpler than simple. Can we call this True Self? God? Well, these are just words. Why pile names on it?
So I see that in the experience of (identity with) this empty, luminous space, lay the answer (non-verbal and comprehensive) to the questions you posed. In one sentence, this is what I'm left with: Everything -- all of existence (the world, all things and events, our thoughts and emotions and shadows, ourselves [all of us]) -- is shot through with luminous awareness and love. That's it. But it's an experience, not an idea. We needn't even look for it, just open to it. It's already there and always has been. We are that. That's fundamentally all there is. So we can truly relax (with awareness, not laxity). Easier said than done in this turmoil, but even if it isn't easy, it's simple -- and possible. It's about opening to what is "inside" as well as "outside."
Having said this, I realize that there are many paths through this phenomenal world -- and experiences -- on all levels. For what it's worth, this is one.
Bob
Your post also spawned another inspiration. When I heard that young man talking about how to access the pineal gland in a more dynamic way, while awake and asleep, his description of the pathway sounded very much like what you are getting at here,
"when I pay attention to my own mind and emotions (and body) in a direct, open, non-analytical way (as a pure observer with no judgments, goals, or expectations), I see, first, that emotions and thoughts of every kind come and go. They have no enduring quality in themselves. And the shadows are there, too, naked, flitting in and out of existence with all the rest. It's all okay -- nothing to reject. As time goes on I notice that there are spaces betweens my thoughts"
The Pineal Gland and art of Shaktipat | Gathering Spot
Thank you again Bob for the very inspiring and True Self-affirming words helping us on our journey "home and abroad"... LLP, Chris
Hi and thanks for sharing your experience Bob. It was a thrill to hear another person talk about this stuff because- it just is.
I also have experienced this calm and sweet place and I am just vexed to regain this experience. As always, the ego really doesn't want me to go there-the ego's afraid of dying or being kicked to the curb I guess. It's hilarious how much I avoid doing what works for me-meditation! Really, you could write a thousand comedy routines on how I avoid being happy or content.
I am very happy for you and hope you will be sharing more about your experiences. It was great timing for me to read your post!
Brian
Thanks Chris. I hadn't heard of Shaktipat. That's a very different style of meditation, but it may lead to the same place. All true paths do, and there are many. And I like learning more about the pineal gland. It's wonderful how the body's untapped "mechanisms" lay in wait to be activated and take us to higher states. Truly, we live in temples with many yet-to-be discovered "rooms" (maybe "jump-rooms").
And Brian, thanks for sharing your thoughts and experience. Yes, "it just is," as you say. It's great to have have transcendent experiences of awareness; you can never forget them and you want to get back to them. (And to be clear, I'm not talking about some super-exhalted state; it's extraordinarily ordinary. Simple. I hope I didn't misrepresent my own experience in my post above. Words are treacherous as always.) Now, a week after my retreat, I'm definitely back in the everday world, and that experience has become mostly a memory -- but not entirely. There is a difference. Things are lighter (in both senses) and more unified in my life and the world (not two things), and I better understand and appreciate the beautiful transiency of life. Also, I can "get back there" when I wish, but it's not quite like that because there's really no path to retrace. It's all about opening in a fresh way, now, now, and now. The past is irrelevant, even non-existent. It's always about just what is, now. There's a beautiful little book I just started reading titled "No Self, No Problem" by a guy named Anam Thubten. What perfect timing! It cuts through layers of concepts and other crap and addresses this matter of awareness and what it really is, directly. It's a rare book. I recommend it to anyone as a help. Of course, like anything, it will speak to some but not to everyone. So what else is new?
Very best wishes to all, and take care,
Bob