A DAILY CONSIDERATION FOR YOU
F.: Before moving on with the discussion of the pointers offered in the film “STRESS: PORTRAIT OF A KILLER,” the various forms of stress and the various causes of stress might be considered, along with what the non-dual understanding might address and what it cannot.
There are certainly many causes of stress and Maharaj taught that “the cause of all is all.” Might there not only be multiple root causes of stress (both internal and external) but also more than one form of stress? That would certainly complicate some of non-duality’s stress-reducing-or-stress-eliminating counsel.
Non-duality’s “first line of defense” is to encouragement seekers to look internally to find the root of one’s problems rather than looking externally. Yet on the savannah, it has been shown that the baboons at the lower end of a troop’s rigidly-defined hierarchy can be tending to their own business and will still be affected by externals – that is, by alpha males on the attack, exhibiting the same kinds of sociopathic tendencies observable in their human counterparts.
And certainly the non-dual teachings are spot on when they point out that no one can stress any part of a composite unity; that no one can stress energy (including the conscious-energy); that no one can stress the air circulating through a space; that no one can stress earth elements; and that much human stress is rooted in imaginary ego-state that are forever feeling as if they are being hurt or interfered with or threatened.
And certainly Derek Hough was onto something when he made the point that “pressure does not exist” . . . that persons “create pressure” for themselves. That is, pressure is an illusion, an illusion that is as much a product of the mind as any other illusion.
Yet might there be both internal and external causes of stress during the relative existence as experienced by most humans? Is the pressure real – at least relatively speaking – for one being assaulted by a brutal alpha male on the savannah?
[It might be of especial interest to some when the discussion here reaches the point where Sapolsky explained “the how and why” regarding a previously-violent, hostile troop culture that was transformed into a peaceful troop that eventually came to enjoy an existence marked by equality and a state of cooperation that was marked by calmness and quietness and serenity.]
Moreover, might it be possible to eliminate many sources of human stress through “the understanding” and then reduce the effects from other sources of stress through identifying any external stressors and staying the heck away from those? Then, might other sources that cannot be avoided – like those imposed by governmental interference or by dominating religions which control the members of many cultures – might those be addressed to some degree through non-attachment and through pure witnessing?
Are you seeing how truly complicated the quest for peace and serenity and a stress-free existence is nowadays, all around the globe? Are you seeing that no single, simple solution can exist? Are you seeing that the overly-simplistic solution offered by most among the non-Realized masses – to “just have faith” or to “be more spiritual” – cannot even begin to provide a solution to the complex, stress-aggravated problems now facing almost all of humanity? Are you seeing why Maharaj abandoned entirely any and all religious and spiritual methods of trying to treat the Ultimate Sickness and focused more on the psychologically-rooted problems generated by the adulterated mind? Quite the challenge, yes?
Humanity’s stress today around mortgages as mentioned in the film – or around the millions of foreclosures that resulted from human greed in over-buying and from human greed from over-selling – had so many causes that the explanations in many cases are book length. Some causes involved persons who bought what they could not afford while other causes dealt with the avarice of investment bankers.
Discussions of the roots of the stress that came as a result of being imprisoned in a Nazi-run work or extermination camp because one was either a Jew or a gay or mentally-ill or physically-deformed have filled volumes of books.
However, it has been seen that on some occasions – though rarely, true enough - some have shifted their place in the hierarchy by abandoning their willingness to tolerate any further abuse. The result is a shift in the “quality” of one’s relative existence by casting aside excessive tolerance of what should not be tolerated at all.
Recall this from Louise Sterling, offered after viewing the Sapolsky documentary: “Perhaps this research will feed into a refusal amongst the oppressed to put up with exploitation, abuse, narcissistic capitalism, the One Percent, the lies, and the BS. Because it is LITERALLY killing them.”
Here nowadays, dealing with hundreds and hundreds of persons each year, it has been seen that more and more people – female and male alike – are refusing to tolerant abuse from a partner. They are “feeding into a refusal.” Others are taking even more overt action.
Research or not, some at the lower ends of the various hierarchies that exist all around the globe are rebelling against their oppressors who are at the top of the hierarchies. The research was not available in 1953 by the time I reached the sixth grade at Atkins Elementary School and had already tolerated three years of abuse from Donnie Leone, Donnie being the fierceness and most notorious bully in the entire school.
Each morning, teacher Bruce Middlebrooks stood on morning duty. His assignment was to watch over the students on the playground where students gathered, waiting to hear a bell ring which was the signal that the doors of the school had been unlocked so we could begin moving to our classrooms.
Almost every morning, Bruce Middlebrooks would watch as Donnie approached me and put me in a choke hold, demanding that I say, “I give up!” before he would release me and strut away. (Often in Sapolsky films I have seen alpha males swaggering away from their most recent victim and I flash on Donnie and conclude, “Ah, so that’s what happened to him. He moved to Africa and nowadays he’s molesting the helpless and downtrodden on the savannah.)
To understand why humans sometimes contribute to their own stress levels by inaction, it might help to ask, “Why did I stand there and wait for him?” One reason was because everyone knew that to run from Donnie was to be caught eventually and then to be abused even more, so most just stood there and took his abuse, as happens with many baboons on the African veldt that are at the lower end of their troop’s hierarchy.
Stubbornly and pridefully, I would resist the urge to surrender on the first demand, and the choke hold would have to reach a point where physical unconsciousness was seconds away before I succumbed to his demand and said in a guttural, animalistic manner, “Uhhh . . . gheee . . . uppppp.”
Then as Donnie walked away to seek out his next victim on the low end of the schoolyard hierarchy, I would look at Bruce Middlebrooks and wonder, “You sorry SOB . . . why don’t you ever come over here and help me?!” At that point, I had not yet developed the understanding that it is usually useless to wait for help from "the authorities" and that sometimes I would just have to help myself.
So one day, bent over at the waist trying to catch my breath with the palm of one hand resting on a knee and the other hand rubbing my sore neck, I saw the feet of Bruce Middlebrooks come into view. I looked up and he asked, “Why do you like being abused?” I said, “Are you nuts?” He said, “I’m the one who is nuts? Hardly. I’m not the one being choked every morning without fighting back.” I said, “Yeah, and if I fight back I get sent to the principal and get licks” ("licks" being swats administered with a wooden paddle / board, applied across my rear end as I bent over the principal’s desk).
And Middlebrooks said, “So you prefer being choked to being hit on the butt with a board?” I said, “I prefer neither.” He said, “In that case, what if you might get choked one more time only and get a few licks one more time only and then be done with this nonsense?” (Wow. Some of those words could as easily have come from Maharaj.)
“F.: What?”
B.M.: “Stand up for yourself. Go on the offense to defend yourself. When you are approached, cold-cock Donnie Leone. Hit him in the nose as hard as you can when he approaches and knock him on his ass.”
F.: “Yeah, and then you grab me by the ear and tug me to the principal and he beats me with his board.”
B.M.: “Not if I don’t see you fighting.”
F.: “How would you not see the fight?”
B.M.: “You never know what distractions might come up on a schoolyard full of students.” And with that, he walked away. As I watched him disappear, I said, “Hummm.”
That afternoon and all night, my stomach was upset, knowing what might be coming the next day. Then I concluded, “But my stomach has been upset every morning for years upon seeing Donnie Leone approaching. What the heck.”
The next morning, with scores of classmates all about and with Bruce Middlebrooks watching me as Donnie approached, I turned back to watch as Donnie as he drew closer. Then I turned again to check on Bruce Middlebrooks’s reaction, only to find that he was not standing where he had been a few seconds before. He was walking away, pointing at two others students and shouting their names, though they did not appear to be doing anything wrong at all.
I looked back and Donnie was ten feet away, six feet away, three feet away, then two feet away when I formed a fist behind my leg with my dominant left hand, then drew back and then – catching Donnie totally unaware –I brought forth what some today would call “a sucker punch.” I struck Donnie before he ever suspected the blow was coming; in fact, he walked right into the blow, increasing the force of my punch to the center of his face even more. He fell backwards onto the ground, clutching his nose and then looking down into the palm of his hand which was filling rapidly with a huge volume of blood that was flowing quite steadily from both nostrils. His eyes were huge, but his mouth remained closed.
With new-found courage, I told him, “Leave me alone and leave everyone else alone or you’re going to get more of the same every morning!” As I turned and began walking away, my eyes met those of Bruce Middlebrooks. I saw a wide, tooth-revealing grin cross his face before he turned and walked away. Many classmates began applauding as I walked toward the front doors of the school. (Hearing their applause, I might have begun swaggering a bit, or maybe even strutting. Not a posture that should have been reinforced.)
Again: “Perhaps this research will feed into a refusal amongst the oppressed to put up with exploitation, abuse, narcissistic capitalism, the One Percent, the lies, and the BS. Because it is LITERALLY killing them.”
As noted, the “refusal” is starting to happen in some quarters, even without an awareness of Sapolsky’s research.
Miners in Africa are finally rebelling against owners who have been made billionaires by miners who are working under the most dangerous and debilitating conditions for pennies an hour. The workers are striking and being shot by the police authorities who represent the rich owners, yet the protests continue.
Workers at McDonald’s all around the globe are striking to express their discontentment. The “straw that broke that camel’s back” was a publication from corporate headquarters providing “a budget plan for McDonald’s workers” which did seem to show that they could live just fine on their McDonald’s salary. The rub? An entry in the back of the plan that made an addition to their income total that had to come from a second, full-time job.
Workers at the Walmart chain, owned by a family whose annual net income is equal to the annual income of the bottom 41% of all people working in the U.S., are rebelling against the fact that one of the richest families on the planet refuses to take slightly less in order to provide a decent income to those workers who are making it possible for six people to have a net worth of $152 billion. (If those six people live to their average U.S. life expectancy and if they never earn another penny, they would have to spend $18,000,000.00 - that's 18 million dollars - every day in order to deplete by the time of their “demise” what they already have accumulated.)
Workers at Amazon around the globe are beginning to rebel against the intolerable working conditions that the company has set in place.
There is some “refusal” happening globally; however, 50% of all persons are driven by their fear-based and loyalty-based Personality Type Six which drives them to accept what should be unacceptable, whether that involves “personal relationships” or “business relationships.”
Tomorrow: More of Sapolsky's revelations about stress inducers, stress effects, and the ways that stress was reduced in the formerly-aggressive and formerly angst-filled troop that he studied.
To be continued.
Please enter the silence of contemplation.
There are certainly many causes of stress and Maharaj taught that “the cause of all is all.” Might there not only be multiple root causes of stress (both internal and external) but also more than one form of stress? That would certainly complicate some of non-duality’s stress-reducing-or-stress-eliminating counsel.
Non-duality’s “first line of defense” is to encouragement seekers to look internally to find the root of one’s problems rather than looking externally. Yet on the savannah, it has been shown that the baboons at the lower end of a troop’s rigidly-defined hierarchy can be tending to their own business and will still be affected by externals – that is, by alpha males on the attack, exhibiting the same kinds of sociopathic tendencies observable in their human counterparts.
And certainly the non-dual teachings are spot on when they point out that no one can stress any part of a composite unity; that no one can stress energy (including the conscious-energy); that no one can stress the air circulating through a space; that no one can stress earth elements; and that much human stress is rooted in imaginary ego-state that are forever feeling as if they are being hurt or interfered with or threatened.
And certainly Derek Hough was onto something when he made the point that “pressure does not exist” . . . that persons “create pressure” for themselves. That is, pressure is an illusion, an illusion that is as much a product of the mind as any other illusion.
Yet might there be both internal and external causes of stress during the relative existence as experienced by most humans? Is the pressure real – at least relatively speaking – for one being assaulted by a brutal alpha male on the savannah?
[It might be of especial interest to some when the discussion here reaches the point where Sapolsky explained “the how and why” regarding a previously-violent, hostile troop culture that was transformed into a peaceful troop that eventually came to enjoy an existence marked by equality and a state of cooperation that was marked by calmness and quietness and serenity.]
Moreover, might it be possible to eliminate many sources of human stress through “the understanding” and then reduce the effects from other sources of stress through identifying any external stressors and staying the heck away from those? Then, might other sources that cannot be avoided – like those imposed by governmental interference or by dominating religions which control the members of many cultures – might those be addressed to some degree through non-attachment and through pure witnessing?
Are you seeing how truly complicated the quest for peace and serenity and a stress-free existence is nowadays, all around the globe? Are you seeing that no single, simple solution can exist? Are you seeing that the overly-simplistic solution offered by most among the non-Realized masses – to “just have faith” or to “be more spiritual” – cannot even begin to provide a solution to the complex, stress-aggravated problems now facing almost all of humanity? Are you seeing why Maharaj abandoned entirely any and all religious and spiritual methods of trying to treat the Ultimate Sickness and focused more on the psychologically-rooted problems generated by the adulterated mind? Quite the challenge, yes?
Humanity’s stress today around mortgages as mentioned in the film – or around the millions of foreclosures that resulted from human greed in over-buying and from human greed from over-selling – had so many causes that the explanations in many cases are book length. Some causes involved persons who bought what they could not afford while other causes dealt with the avarice of investment bankers.
Discussions of the roots of the stress that came as a result of being imprisoned in a Nazi-run work or extermination camp because one was either a Jew or a gay or mentally-ill or physically-deformed have filled volumes of books.
However, it has been seen that on some occasions – though rarely, true enough - some have shifted their place in the hierarchy by abandoning their willingness to tolerate any further abuse. The result is a shift in the “quality” of one’s relative existence by casting aside excessive tolerance of what should not be tolerated at all.
Recall this from Louise Sterling, offered after viewing the Sapolsky documentary: “Perhaps this research will feed into a refusal amongst the oppressed to put up with exploitation, abuse, narcissistic capitalism, the One Percent, the lies, and the BS. Because it is LITERALLY killing them.”
Here nowadays, dealing with hundreds and hundreds of persons each year, it has been seen that more and more people – female and male alike – are refusing to tolerant abuse from a partner. They are “feeding into a refusal.” Others are taking even more overt action.
Research or not, some at the lower ends of the various hierarchies that exist all around the globe are rebelling against their oppressors who are at the top of the hierarchies. The research was not available in 1953 by the time I reached the sixth grade at Atkins Elementary School and had already tolerated three years of abuse from Donnie Leone, Donnie being the fierceness and most notorious bully in the entire school.
Each morning, teacher Bruce Middlebrooks stood on morning duty. His assignment was to watch over the students on the playground where students gathered, waiting to hear a bell ring which was the signal that the doors of the school had been unlocked so we could begin moving to our classrooms.
Almost every morning, Bruce Middlebrooks would watch as Donnie approached me and put me in a choke hold, demanding that I say, “I give up!” before he would release me and strut away. (Often in Sapolsky films I have seen alpha males swaggering away from their most recent victim and I flash on Donnie and conclude, “Ah, so that’s what happened to him. He moved to Africa and nowadays he’s molesting the helpless and downtrodden on the savannah.)
To understand why humans sometimes contribute to their own stress levels by inaction, it might help to ask, “Why did I stand there and wait for him?” One reason was because everyone knew that to run from Donnie was to be caught eventually and then to be abused even more, so most just stood there and took his abuse, as happens with many baboons on the African veldt that are at the lower end of their troop’s hierarchy.
Stubbornly and pridefully, I would resist the urge to surrender on the first demand, and the choke hold would have to reach a point where physical unconsciousness was seconds away before I succumbed to his demand and said in a guttural, animalistic manner, “Uhhh . . . gheee . . . uppppp.”
Then as Donnie walked away to seek out his next victim on the low end of the schoolyard hierarchy, I would look at Bruce Middlebrooks and wonder, “You sorry SOB . . . why don’t you ever come over here and help me?!” At that point, I had not yet developed the understanding that it is usually useless to wait for help from "the authorities" and that sometimes I would just have to help myself.
So one day, bent over at the waist trying to catch my breath with the palm of one hand resting on a knee and the other hand rubbing my sore neck, I saw the feet of Bruce Middlebrooks come into view. I looked up and he asked, “Why do you like being abused?” I said, “Are you nuts?” He said, “I’m the one who is nuts? Hardly. I’m not the one being choked every morning without fighting back.” I said, “Yeah, and if I fight back I get sent to the principal and get licks” ("licks" being swats administered with a wooden paddle / board, applied across my rear end as I bent over the principal’s desk).
And Middlebrooks said, “So you prefer being choked to being hit on the butt with a board?” I said, “I prefer neither.” He said, “In that case, what if you might get choked one more time only and get a few licks one more time only and then be done with this nonsense?” (Wow. Some of those words could as easily have come from Maharaj.)
“F.: What?”
B.M.: “Stand up for yourself. Go on the offense to defend yourself. When you are approached, cold-cock Donnie Leone. Hit him in the nose as hard as you can when he approaches and knock him on his ass.”
F.: “Yeah, and then you grab me by the ear and tug me to the principal and he beats me with his board.”
B.M.: “Not if I don’t see you fighting.”
F.: “How would you not see the fight?”
B.M.: “You never know what distractions might come up on a schoolyard full of students.” And with that, he walked away. As I watched him disappear, I said, “Hummm.”
That afternoon and all night, my stomach was upset, knowing what might be coming the next day. Then I concluded, “But my stomach has been upset every morning for years upon seeing Donnie Leone approaching. What the heck.”
The next morning, with scores of classmates all about and with Bruce Middlebrooks watching me as Donnie approached, I turned back to watch as Donnie as he drew closer. Then I turned again to check on Bruce Middlebrooks’s reaction, only to find that he was not standing where he had been a few seconds before. He was walking away, pointing at two others students and shouting their names, though they did not appear to be doing anything wrong at all.
I looked back and Donnie was ten feet away, six feet away, three feet away, then two feet away when I formed a fist behind my leg with my dominant left hand, then drew back and then – catching Donnie totally unaware –I brought forth what some today would call “a sucker punch.” I struck Donnie before he ever suspected the blow was coming; in fact, he walked right into the blow, increasing the force of my punch to the center of his face even more. He fell backwards onto the ground, clutching his nose and then looking down into the palm of his hand which was filling rapidly with a huge volume of blood that was flowing quite steadily from both nostrils. His eyes were huge, but his mouth remained closed.
With new-found courage, I told him, “Leave me alone and leave everyone else alone or you’re going to get more of the same every morning!” As I turned and began walking away, my eyes met those of Bruce Middlebrooks. I saw a wide, tooth-revealing grin cross his face before he turned and walked away. Many classmates began applauding as I walked toward the front doors of the school. (Hearing their applause, I might have begun swaggering a bit, or maybe even strutting. Not a posture that should have been reinforced.)
Again: “Perhaps this research will feed into a refusal amongst the oppressed to put up with exploitation, abuse, narcissistic capitalism, the One Percent, the lies, and the BS. Because it is LITERALLY killing them.”
As noted, the “refusal” is starting to happen in some quarters, even without an awareness of Sapolsky’s research.
Miners in Africa are finally rebelling against owners who have been made billionaires by miners who are working under the most dangerous and debilitating conditions for pennies an hour. The workers are striking and being shot by the police authorities who represent the rich owners, yet the protests continue.
Workers at McDonald’s all around the globe are striking to express their discontentment. The “straw that broke that camel’s back” was a publication from corporate headquarters providing “a budget plan for McDonald’s workers” which did seem to show that they could live just fine on their McDonald’s salary. The rub? An entry in the back of the plan that made an addition to their income total that had to come from a second, full-time job.
Workers at the Walmart chain, owned by a family whose annual net income is equal to the annual income of the bottom 41% of all people working in the U.S., are rebelling against the fact that one of the richest families on the planet refuses to take slightly less in order to provide a decent income to those workers who are making it possible for six people to have a net worth of $152 billion. (If those six people live to their average U.S. life expectancy and if they never earn another penny, they would have to spend $18,000,000.00 - that's 18 million dollars - every day in order to deplete by the time of their “demise” what they already have accumulated.)
Workers at Amazon around the globe are beginning to rebel against the intolerable working conditions that the company has set in place.
There is some “refusal” happening globally; however, 50% of all persons are driven by their fear-based and loyalty-based Personality Type Six which drives them to accept what should be unacceptable, whether that involves “personal relationships” or “business relationships.”
Tomorrow: More of Sapolsky's revelations about stress inducers, stress effects, and the ways that stress was reduced in the formerly-aggressive and formerly angst-filled troop that he studied.
To be continued.
Please enter the silence of contemplation.
You can scroll down through the book section below if interested in receiving a free copy of the eBooks entitled:
"GOOD vs. EVIL?" or "IGNORANCE, STUPIDITY, and INSANITY?"
"GOOD vs. EVIL?" or "IGNORANCE, STUPIDITY, and INSANITY?"
or
"THE VISION"
Comments regarding the free eBook entitled “THE VISION”:
“My thanks to you and Andy.” – Andrew “Mac” McMaster
“Thanks so much for the book! And, by the way, it is brilliant and the most effective pointing that you have done. It has served to help clear the remaining blockages.” – Stan Cross
“Greatly appreciate having “THE VISION” added to my Henderson resource library that is situated on the right side of my bed for easy access! Eternally grateful for what was received and what was given.” – Robert Rigby
“ ‘THE VISION’ is such a well-written, condensed version of the Nisarga Yoga approach to understanding and enjoying Reality that I feel it can serve as a must-read ‘meditation guide’ for all earnest seekers.” – Andy Gugar, Jr.
Submit to:
Therefore, another movement or shift is happening here spontaneously after reflecting on the more than two decades since the teachings were first offered here and looking at the results of Maharaj sharing pointers in his loft and looking at the results of "Floyd" sharing pointers in this electronic loft: Looking objectively at his results, Maharaj's satsang method of sharing - in the end and by his own admission (only "one out of 10,000,000") - did not produce the intended outcome.
* * * * * * *
ALL OF THE FOLLOWING BOOKS
are available at
"THE VISION"
Comments regarding the free eBook entitled “THE VISION”:
“My thanks to you and Andy.” – Andrew “Mac” McMaster
“Thanks so much for the book! And, by the way, it is brilliant and the most effective pointing that you have done. It has served to help clear the remaining blockages.” – Stan Cross
“Greatly appreciate having “THE VISION” added to my Henderson resource library that is situated on the right side of my bed for easy access! Eternally grateful for what was received and what was given.” – Robert Rigby
“ ‘THE VISION’ is such a well-written, condensed version of the Nisarga Yoga approach to understanding and enjoying Reality that I feel it can serve as a must-read ‘meditation guide’ for all earnest seekers.” – Andy Gugar, Jr.
Questions?
Submit to:
Comments?
Just hang on to those please.
Just hang on to those please.
SHIFTING THE FOCUS FROM THAT WHICH DOES NOT WORK TO THAT WHICH DOES, Part One
A "movement" or "shift" happened here that added another parallel to the many parallels in terms of the phenomenal "experiences" and the noumenal revelations that "Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj" and "Floyd" share in common. (Many visitors over the years have said that they also shared the same parallels with "Maharaj" and "Floyd" as well.)
In the case of "Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj" and "Floyd":
1. both grew up in very poor families 2. both moved to populated areas to seek employment opportunities 3. both exhibited business skills that led to their opening and operating many businesses and to their having a large number of employees working for them 4. both succeeded financially 5. both became attached to accumulating; 6. both married and had a family 7. both were initially religious 8. both moved away from organized religion and became interested in "spiritual" matters, finding and following the teachings of a big name teacher (or, in "Floyd's" case, many big name teachers) 9. both had highly religious wives who were quite displeased with the shift away from religion and toward "spirituality" 10. both began to feel empty in spite of all of their "spiritual seeking" and in spite of all of their accumulated "spiritual knowledge";
1. both grew up in very poor families 2. both moved to populated areas to seek employment opportunities 3. both exhibited business skills that led to their opening and operating many businesses and to their having a large number of employees working for them 4. both succeeded financially 5. both became attached to accumulating; 6. both married and had a family 7. both were initially religious 8. both moved away from organized religion and became interested in "spiritual" matters, finding and following the teachings of a big name teacher (or, in "Floyd's" case, many big name teachers) 9. both had highly religious wives who were quite displeased with the shift away from religion and toward "spirituality" 10. both began to feel empty in spite of all of their "spiritual seeking" and in spite of all of their accumulated "spiritual knowledge";
11. both began to de-accumulate after both saw that they could survive quite well on a fraction of the income they had been making
12. both had wives who were unhappy when the de-accumulation stage was entered and both had wives who became unhappy about their husbands' focus on non-duality and who blamed their unhappiness on no longer having a religious husband
(The facts be known, in both cases the unhappiness involved the fact that their husbands were no longer interested in - or willing - to work 80+ hours per week and that their husbands were no longer interested in accumulating wealth and possessions and providing the rich lifestyle to which their wives had grown accustomed)
13. both eventually came to see that the religious and spiritual states were also ego-states, and both saw that there are far more steps on the "path" to complete after reaching the religious and spiritual steps and after playing those roles which are the third of seven steps on the entire "path" 14. both "lost" their wives (one via "death," the other through divorce); 15. both accelerated their seeking; 16. both entered into the "forest dweller stage" 17. both Realized 18. both began to de-accumulate even more
19. both began sharing the teachings 20. for years, both answered questions in whatever order those questions were received, though both said that the movement from identification with the false "I" / "I's" involved an exact, step-wise manner of moving along a "path" that involved "going back" in the same (but reverse order) of the way they "came in" - that is, the way that the manifestation happened and the way that the consciousness was blocked through seven stages that resulted in their becoming identified solely with their false personas, with the content of the "mind," and eventually, with the body. But the most significant awareness that finally came to both after years of offering satsang and after having answered thousands and thousands of questions was this: After years of "Maharaj" offering satsang in his loft, and after years of "Floyd" offering satsang in meeting halls and in his home and via what one site visitor called "Floyd's electronic loft," this fact became obvious to both: "Maharaj" came to see in the 1970's and into 1980 and 1981 that his approach was not working and "Floyd" finally came to see the same.
13. both eventually came to see that the religious and spiritual states were also ego-states, and both saw that there are far more steps on the "path" to complete after reaching the religious and spiritual steps and after playing those roles which are the third of seven steps on the entire "path" 14. both "lost" their wives (one via "death," the other through divorce); 15. both accelerated their seeking; 16. both entered into the "forest dweller stage" 17. both Realized 18. both began to de-accumulate even more
19. both began sharing the teachings 20. for years, both answered questions in whatever order those questions were received, though both said that the movement from identification with the false "I" / "I's" involved an exact, step-wise manner of moving along a "path" that involved "going back" in the same (but reverse order) of the way they "came in" - that is, the way that the manifestation happened and the way that the consciousness was blocked through seven stages that resulted in their becoming identified solely with their false personas, with the content of the "mind," and eventually, with the body. But the most significant awareness that finally came to both after years of offering satsang and after having answered thousands and thousands of questions was this: After years of "Maharaj" offering satsang in his loft, and after years of "Floyd" offering satsang in meeting halls and in his home and via what one site visitor called "Floyd's electronic loft," this fact became obvious to both: "Maharaj" came to see in the 1970's and into 1980 and 1981 that his approach was not working and "Floyd" finally came to see the same.
21. Both saw that many who heard the teachings are not going to understand (Maharaj reporting that "only 1 in 100,000 are going to 'get' this" understanding)
22. both soon saw that even more than expected of those who heard the teachings were not going to understand (Maharaj modifying his "guesstimate" and reporting that "only 1 in 1,000,000 are going to 'get' this" understanding)
23. eventually both saw that even far more than expected of those who heard the teachings were not going to understand (Maharaj eventually concluding that "only 1 in 10,000,000 are going to 'get' this" understanding). And the failings were not the fault of seekers.
A "one -in-ten-million" estimate is proof that satsang was not working for most seekers, and the evidence here lately is proof of the same.
Both "Maharaj" and "Floyd" invited seekers to focus on the exact, step-wise "path." Yes, during satsang, "Maharaj" sometimes alluded to the steps while discussing them in no particular order - but he never once laid out the steps in the exact order in which they had to be completed. That was not his teachings style or approach.
Therefore, another movement or shift is happening here spontaneously after reflecting on the more than two decades since the teachings were first offered here and looking at the results of Maharaj sharing pointers in his loft and looking at the results of "Floyd" sharing pointers in this electronic loft: Looking objectively at his results, Maharaj's satsang method of sharing - in the end and by his own admission (only "one out of 10,000,000") - did not produce the intended outcome.
Looking objectively at the results here when using an "electronic loft" satsang method of sharing has not produced the intended outcome nearly as often as any of the three "face-to-face" methods used with seekers by which they have been led through the seven steps in order.
Here, the body is growing older, of course. Mahasamadhi could be taken today, or it could be taken in twenty years.
Obviously, that cannot be known. But the decision here has been made that whatever amount of the relative existence remains shall be spent in sharing the teachings in the ways that have been seen over the last 20+ years to be the most effective methods.
Looking back over the list of those that have truly received the understanding, it is seen that Robert R. read all of the books, then took the online Advaita course and then completed some face-to-face Skype sessions to receive the final clarifications required. It was seen that Mac read all of the books, completed the online course, and then attended a retreat where he was guided through the seven steps. Mac said that the online course work inspired him to attend the retreat in order to be able to receive the final "pieces." It was seen that Andy Gugar, Jr. read all of the books, then came here for a retreat and was taken through the seven steps in order, and then returned once more for the final clarifications required. After reviewing the shifts that happened with him after attending two retreats, he reaffirmed this past week his commitment to helping spread the non-duality, nisarga understanding as presented here. As a result of seeing what has "worked" during the last 20+ years of sharing the non-duality understanding - and seeing what had not "worked" as well - changes will be made.
SHIFTING THE FOCUS FROM THAT WHICH DOES NOT WORK TO THAT WHICH DOES, Part Two
Looking back over the list of those that have truly received the understanding, it is seen that Robert R. read all of the books, then took the online Advaita course and then completed some face-to-face Skype sessions to receive the final clarifications required. It was seen that Mac read all of the books, completed the online course, and then attended a retreat where he was guided through the seven steps. Mac said that the online course work inspired him to attend the retreat in order to be able to receive the final "pieces." It was seen that Andy Gugar, Jr. read all of the books, then came here for a retreat and was taken through the seven steps in order, and then returned once more for the final clarifications required. After reviewing the shifts that happened with him after attending two retreats, he reaffirmed this past week his commitment to helping spread the non-duality, nisarga understanding as presented here. As a result of seeing what has "worked" during the last 20+ years of sharing the non-duality understanding - and seeing what had not "worked" as well - changes will be made.
SHIFTING THE FOCUS FROM THAT WHICH DOES NOT WORK TO THAT WHICH DOES, Part Two
In "Part One," examples were given of seekers that were led to Realization not by satsang but by following the various protocols outlined farther down this page which provide the understanding in the step-wise, orderly, required fashion which moves seekers along a "path" that is as prescribed by Maharaj ... "going back" in the "reverse order" by which the consciousness manifested and became blocked.
However, conversations with some that just read the majority of the books have revealed that they certainly seem to have grasped the understanding and Realized as well.
As a result of seeing what has "worked" during the last 20+ years of sharing the non-duality understanding - and seeing what has "not worked" as well - changes are being made.
There are seven specific steps that happen when awareness-energy is "pulled" into a cycle of manifestation. When that energy manifests as conscious-energy, that formerly pure and unadulterated energy becomes "corrupted" (or "blocked" from seeing clearly) via programming, conditioning, domestication, acculturation, and brainwashing. Soon, there is a belief in the not-Real as a result of seven degrees of separation from an understanding of the Real.
Using the method that was also employed by his contemporaries - a method which focused on offering non-duality pointers via satsang - Maharaj addressed questions in the order in which they were received. He might receive a question from a seeker at the third step and his reply would include what amounted to an invitation to move to the fourth step. The next question might come from a seeker at the first step, and the reply would include an invitation to move to the second step.
The information offered to the second seeker would seemingly contradict what was offered to the first seeker, so visitors who have come here for decades have asked questions which showed how confused they were by the fact that Maharaj's statements to each visitor in his loft were "level-appropriate" yet were provided in no precise order, resulting in what seemed to be an inconsistent message.
So the process overall was confusing in that
seekers were told to follow the "path back" in the same way that they "came in," except in reverse order,
but
pointers were not given in a specific, step-wise order at all.
Maharaj did recognize the seven steps that are taught here, but by offering the teachings in an order that was dictated by the order in which questions were received from seekers who were at different steps on the "path," the result was this:
a pointer about moving beyond the fourth step might be followed by a pointer about moving beyond the first step, and that pointer might be followed by a pointer about how to move beyond the sixth step.
The same was done on this site for seven years. The result is a collection of 1,800 or so essays discussing almost every non-duality topic that can be discussed, and the search button on the top right side of this page will now allow seekers with a question about a specific topic to find an explanation. That method, however, will never provide the manner in which the seven steps on the "path" must be transmitted and received in order to Realize Fully.
An objective study of the history here of more than twenty years of offering non-duality pointers reveals this: seekers that were given pointers in the exact order in which they needed to receive them were the ones that Realized.
They read the books, then they completed the online course and / or completed seven Skype or telephone sessions or came here for a retreat (or watched the downloadable DVD version of an actual retreat, available below).
Some found that which they were seeking by reading the author's book that deal with non-duality subject matter. Via all of those venues, the steps are taught in their proper order.
The essays available on this site will remain for those interested in searching for a discussion of a particular non-duality topic without charge, but the focus here until mahasamadhi is taken is going to be on offering the teachings in the step-wise fashion that has been seen to work.
THESE PAPERBACK BOOKS ARE AVAILABLE THROUGH AMAZON.COM
(Four by Floyd Henderson and two by Dennis Waite. Click the picture for more information or to order)
(Four by Floyd Henderson and two by Dennis Waite. Click the picture for more information or to order)
* * * * * * *
ALL EBOOK AND PAPERBACK VERSION OF HENDERSON'S NON-DUALITY BOOKS
and
RECOVERY LITERATURE
and
FINANCIAL BOOKS
are available at Floyd Henderson's Website
Within minutes of purchase you can be reading any of the eBooks below on your mobile devices, including an iPhone, iPad, Android tablet, Android phone, laptop, home computer or on a Kindle reader. For Apple and Android, either download the eBook directly onto your device or email the eBook file to your mobile device and open the file from your email. For Kindles or other similar devices, use your USB cable to transfer the eBook to your reader.
FOR THOSE SEEKING FURTHER EXPLANATION OF THE NON-DUALITY UNDERSTANDING, AS NOTED ABOVE, SOME SEEKERS HAVE REALIZED BY USING THE METHODS BELOW, OR A COMBINATION OF THE METHODS:
International buyers: note the separate option for those outside the continental U.S.
II. BY READING the explanations offered in the collection of non-duality books that are available on this site and at www.floydhenderson.com.
III. BY ENROLLING in the Online Advaita Classes For information, visit Information on the Advaita Classes on the Internet To enroll visit Enroll in the Advaita Internet Course
IV. BY ATTENDING an Advaitin retreat with floyd and being guided through all seven steps. For details of the retreats offered, please visit the retreat information site.
V. BY ARRANGING a one-hour session via Skype or telephone with Floyd. (Skype is a free service.)
Click the button to pay and you will be contacted to arrange a date and time for the call.
VI. ALL OF THE FOLLOWING BOOKS are available at
Floyd Henderson's Website
are available at Floyd Henderson's Website
Within minutes of purchase you can be reading any of the eBooks below on your mobile devices, including an iPhone, iPad, Android tablet, Android phone, laptop, home computer or on a Kindle reader. For Apple and Android, either download the eBook directly onto your device or email the eBook file to your mobile device and open the file from your email. For Kindles or other similar devices, use your USB cable to transfer the eBook to your reader.
FOR THOSE SEEKING FURTHER EXPLANATION OF THE NON-DUALITY UNDERSTANDING, AS NOTED ABOVE, SOME SEEKERS HAVE REALIZED BY USING THE METHODS BELOW, OR A COMBINATION OF THE METHODS:
WAYS THAT SEEKERS HAVE REALIZED:
I. BY WATCHING the 4-Disk, Seven-Hour Video (DVD) Set of an advaita retreat, or the downloadable file version. To find out more or to purchase the DVD or downloadable computer file version of the retreat, DVD or Downloadable computer file versions of the Four-Day Advaita Retreat
I. BY WATCHING the 4-Disk, Seven-Hour Video (DVD) Set of an advaita retreat, or the downloadable file version. To find out more or to purchase the DVD or downloadable computer file version of the retreat, DVD or Downloadable computer file versions of the Four-Day Advaita Retreat
International buyers: note the separate option for those outside the continental U.S.
II. BY READING the explanations offered in the collection of non-duality books that are available on this site and at www.floydhenderson.com.
III. BY ENROLLING in the Online Advaita Classes For information, visit Information on the Advaita Classes on the Internet To enroll visit Enroll in the Advaita Internet Course
IV. BY ATTENDING an Advaitin retreat with floyd and being guided through all seven steps. For details of the retreats offered, please visit the retreat information site.
V. BY ARRANGING a one-hour session via Skype or telephone with Floyd. (Skype is a free service.)
Click the button to pay and you will be contacted to arrange a date and time for the call.
VI. ALL OF THE FOLLOWING BOOKS are available at
Floyd Henderson's Website
Floyd Henderson's Website
FROM THE I TO THE ABSOLUTE: A Seven-Step Journey to Reality
CONSCIOUSNESS / AWARENESS
FROM THE ABSOLUTE TO THE NOTHINGNESS
THE FINAL UNDERSTANDING
THE ADVANCED SEEKERS' SERIES
Anthology of four books
THE BLISSFUL ABIDANCE SERIES
Anthology of six books
SRI NISARGADATTA MAHARAJ AND HIS EVOLUTION
THE FINAL FIFTEEN TOPICS DISCUSSED BY SRI NISARGADATTA MAHARAJ
A TWELVE-STEP JOURNEY TO SELF-TRANSFORMATION
For more information on this book, or to purchase a copy now, click:
A GUIDE FOR WORKING THE STEPS (IN THE MANNER USED BY THE FOUNDERS)
THE TWELVE STEPS AND ADVAITA / NON-DUALITY: A 21-DAY PLAN FOR A PSYCHIC CHANGE
SELF-TRANSFORMATION MEDITATION GUIDE (VOLUME ONE)
SELF-TRANSFORMATION MEDITATION GUIDE (VOLUME TWO)
WHY NISARGA YOGA IN ADDITION TO THE ADVAITA TEACHINGS?
A DIFFERENT PERSPECTIVE via the Non-Duality Teachings and the Nisarga Yoga
YOUR ORIGINAL NATURE
GOING CRAZY / GOING SANE
INSTABILITY / INSANITY: WHAT THE ADVAITA TEACHINGS CAN (AND CANNOT) ADDRESS
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS "PEACE OF MIND" (THERE IS ONLY PEACE IF YOU'RE OUT OF YOUR MIND)
FREEDOM FROM SHIFTING BETWEEN STATES OF HAPPINESS AND UNHAPPINESS
THE ULTIMATE SICKNESS / THE ULTIMATE MEDICINE
PROGRAMMING, CONDITIONING, DOMESTICATION, AND ACCULTURATION (THE SOURCES OF THE ULTIMATE SICKNESS & THE NON-DUALITY TREATMENT)
"WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I DIE?"
THE MYTH OF "DEATH"
THE ESSENCE OF THE TEACHINGS: THE SIMPLICITY OF REALIZATION
FINDING REAL LOVE IN AN UNREAL WORLD
CASTING LIGHT ON THE DARK SIDE OF RELATIONSHIPS
OVERCOMING THE FEAR OF BEING TOTALLY INDEPENDENT
THE NON-DUALITY POINTERS OFFERED BY YESHU'A ("JESUS THE CHRIST")
NOW ACCEPTING REQUESTS FOR FREE COPIES OF THE FOLLOWING EBOOKS:
A free copy of the 278-page eBook entitled
"GOOD vs. EVIL?" or "IGNORANCE, STUPIDITY, and INSANITY?"
and / or
A free copy of the 267-page eBook entitled
"THE VISION"
is available to be sent to you and anyone else you choose.
[Please note: When the Direct Path Teaching Method is offered in conjunction with the Nisarga Yoga, something unique results when compared to what happens via the approach used by religions, spiritual movements, philosophies, ideologies, etc.:
rather than inviting seekers to learn more, the invitation here is to unlearn all; rather than offerings teachings, what is offered are unteachings; rather than offering to provide seekers more of anything, seekers will find that the process will take away everything. And via that process, the bliss of Your Original Nature will manifest and remain until mahasamadhi is taken.
To that end, the content of this book will seem radical to the seekers of more, but for those truly ready to be totally free and totally independent - and for those who are truly ready to abandon efforts to accumulate and to de-accumulate instead - the pointers in this book might be relevant.]
To receive your free copy, or to have us send a free copy to your friends or relatives, send your email address (or their addresses) to the following:
(Sorry, but for security reasons, we no longer have a clickable link. You will have to type in our gmail address above. By the way, your email addresses will never be used to contact you or your friends or relatives and email addresses will never be shared with anyone else.)
Simply state in your email that you want the book sent as a gift to you (or as a gift from you to as many people as you like. Copies are now ready to be sent.)
WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE THE ADVAITIN
WHEN ONLY THREE HOURS OF MANIFESTATION REMAIN (THE "FINAL" TALKS OF FLOYD HENDERSON)
I AM THAT (vs. "This Is Who I Think I Am")
QUOTATIONS AND POINTERS DEALING WITH NON-DUALITY, ADVAITA, NISARGA YOGA, AND MORE
DANCING LIGHTLY
THE PATH TO FREEDOM VS. THE PATH TO MISERY
THERE IS NOTHING THAT IS PERSONAL (INCLUDING YOU AND INCLUDING GOD)
LIBERATION (ATTAINING FREEDOM FROM PERSONALITY VIA REALIZATION)
WHY YOU MUST BE EMPTY IF YOU WOULD BE FULL
FREEDOM FROM BELIEFS (Believers, Non-Believers, and "No-Belief-ers")
WHEN REALITY IS OVERLAID ON THE RELATIVE
THE RELATIVE RESULTS OF RETURNING TO "THE CHILD IGNORANCE STAGE" OR "THE CHILD NO-KNOWING STATE"
WHAT BLISS IS AND WHAT BLISS IS NOT
THE TWICE-STOLEN NECKLACE MURDERS
THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS OF WARS
LESSONS IN NON-DUALITY FROM TRAVELS IN SOUTH AFRICA
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE FIRST STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE SECOND STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE THIRD STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE FOURTH STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE FIFTH STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE SIXTH STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
A SERIES OF ESSAYS DISCUSSING THE SEVENTH STEP ON THE SEVEN-STEP PATH TO REALIZATION
SPIRITUAL SOBRIETY (RECOVERING WHAT RELIGIONS LOST)
IT'S ALL BULLSHIT (AND WHY KNOWING IT SETS YOU FREE)
