TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS
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To review:
That which is natural is rooted in non-duality; all which involves unnatural thinking and / or supernatural thinking is rooted in duality.
Whether speaking of Maharaj's lesser focus on the Nisarga Yoga in the beginning or discussing his near-total focus on abiding naturally in the end (as opposed to trying to live supernaturally and / or unnaturally), it is granted that all of that is relevant only to the AM-ness, but presently, what happens in the AM-ness impacts every person far more than anything to do with the THAT-ness.
Now, to conclude:
After Having Reversed, Gone Back to the Absolute, and Returned
Again, it has been asked “Aren’t these teachings just a recommendation to practice denial . . . escapism . . . fantasy?” That might be a conclusion that is drawn by those with a propensity for forming opinions about experiences they have never had—in other words, "the non-realized masses."
Yet it is the non-realized masses who are trapped in denial and escapism and fantasy; furthermore, it is only by completing all seven steps that persons can move beyond identification with the body and the ego—that is, “the false I”—and can understand the true difference in illusion vs. Reality / reality.
Only after “completing the circle”—that is, only after having “visited” the Absolute and only after understanding the difference in Consciousness and Awareness and only after seeing infinity and only after understanding the functioning of the totality—only then can the “return” to the relative happen in the direct path manner that circumvents the obstacles that had blocked the seeing of Truth as a result of programming and conditioning.
It is by that means alone that the actual distinction can be understood between (A) what might appear to be escapism on the part of the realized Advaitin and (B) the actual instances of the denial and escapism and phoniness and distortion that mark the relative existence of the non-realized.
The overlaying of Reality on reality (on the beingness . . . on the relative existence) allows the remainder of the manifestation of the consciousness to happen as the still Awareness rather than as the fluctuating consciousness. The result is like a wave that can come along and sweep away all the false impressions imprinted on “the mind.”
It is only the overlaying of Reality on the relative that can place the manifest consciousness in touch with Reality and in touch with reality, simultaneously.
That condition then provides the means by which the differentiation between what is illusion and what is real can be understood. It allows for realizing the difference in delusion vs. truth and in what appears to be dualistic vs. that which is "One" and "truly Real."
This pointer is offered in the book Consciousness / Awareness:
"THAT is perfect peace, not unlike the delta-sleep state of slowed brain wave movement during deep sleep. The non-beingness is that natural state with no body, no mind, no form, no space, no . . . anything.”
How could peace not manifest under those conditions? It WILL later; it CAN now. Later, it will happen, but there will be no “one” to know it’s happening. If it is that peace and bliss that is sought, it must be found now because “later” is not an option.
Also from Consciousness / Awareness:
“Bliss is the stuff of being manifested and Realized during the period of Amness. The non-being state that follows has no awareness of awareness."
Having transitioned into the non-beingness, the Consciousness Is, but it cannot know It Is. Enjoy it NOW, for no other opportunity exists. That allows for peace to happen every day. So does a clear understanding of what bliss is and what bliss is not.
Avoiding Denial, Escapism, and Fantasy
Only after “completing the circle”—that is:
only after having “visited” the Absolute and
only after understanding the difference in Consciousness and Awareness and
only after seeing infinity and
only after understanding the functioning of the totality,
only then can the “return” to the relative happen in the direct path manner that circumvents the obstacles that had, earlier on, blocked the seeing of truth as a result of programming and conditioning and acculturation and domestication.
Once the "going back out" happens and then once the "coming back in" happens, only then can AS IF living happen; furthermore, it will happen without any effort to deny, escape, or fantasize one's way through the challenges of the relative existence.
Again, the resulting condition after Reality has been overlaid on reality provides the means by which the differentiation between what is illusion and what is real can be understood. It allows for realizing the difference in delusion vs. truth and in what appears to be dualistic vs. that which is "One" and "truly Real."
Yet the sense of non-beingness can be overlaid on the beingness now, after the third of the three legs of the "journey" is completed and after AS IF living begins. How could peace not manifest under those conditions? It WILL later; it CAN now. Meaning?
Meaning this: later, peace will happen, but there will be no “one” to know that it’s happening. If it is peace and bliss that is sought, and to be known and enjoyed, then it must be found now and enjoyed now because “later” is not an option.
Having transitioned into the peace of non-beingness, the Consciousness Is, but it cannot know It Is; thus, awareness without aware of-ness. Enjoy it NOW, therefore, for no other opportunity exists. Completing the entire "journey" and then abiding AS IF allows for peace to happen every day. So does a clear understanding of what bliss is and what bliss is not.
Of all living forms / spaces on the planet, only one adopts identities. In order to abide in an AS IF, natural fashion, therefore, all seeking and all "journeying" must end; after the third leg of the three-leg "journey" has been completed, there can be no assumption of any identity at all.
There should not even be a sense of “THAT-ness” in terms of identity. To understand the functioning of the totality requires no labels or names. That which is understood via the inner resource or the inner guru is understood but is not “nameable.”
Consider: Maharaj said, “I am beyond the mind, whatever its state, pure or impure. Awareness is my nature; ultimately, I am beyond being and non-being.” Yet there is something to be understood beyond that pointer which was expressed on another occasion by Maharaj:
“When you go beyond awareness, there is a state of non-duality in which there is no cognition, only pure being, which may be as well called non-being, if by being you mean being something in particular.”
See, you are not anything in particular; moreover, You Are not anything in particular. Whether pondering the relative, the Absolute, the beyond, the beingness, or the non-beingness, neither you nor You are anything.
Maharaj said on another occasion, “Just like ice turns to water and water to vapour, and vapour dissolves in air and disappears in space, so does the body dissolve into pure awareness (chidakash), then into pure being (paramakash), which is beyond all existence and non-existence.”
1. Take “paramakash” to point to “the great expanse, the timeless and spaceless Reality”;
2. the term’s roots begin with “param,” and “param” means “highest,” “most distant,” and “greatest”;
3. Then “param” is combined with “akash,” and “akash” means “the void.”
Maharaj later said: “To be a living being is not the ultimate state; there is something beyond, much more wonderful, which is neither being nor non-being, neither living nor not living. It is a state of pure awareness, beyond the limitations of space and time. Once the illusion that 'the body-mind is oneself' is abandoned, death loses its terror. It becomes a part of living.”
As for that "something beyond" which Maharaj said is "much more wonderful," an asterisk is required: yes, beyond would be much more wonderful than the relative existence as experienced by the non-Realized, true;
however, it cannot be much more wonderful than the relative existence as enjoyed by the Realized because that something beyond will not be known at all, post-manifestation.
Since it can only be known and enjoyed now, now is the time to Realize and enjoy what is be enjoyed - and what can only be enjoyed - NOW.
IN CONCLUSION: The Nisarga Yoga's Invitation
Allow the “WHO-ness” to dissolve and play around with the “THAT-ness” for a spell, but eventually see that even contemplating THAT is doingness. To be—without being “this” or “that” or “This” or "That" or “THAT” or anything—is the closest you’ll come to bliss. Dissolve and know that of which Maharaj spoke. Know “something beyond” that is “much more wonderful.” Dissolve.
Next, in regards to such dissolution, Maharaj also said: “Reality is the ultimate destroyer. All separation, every kind of estrangement and alienation is false. All is one—this is the ultimate solution of every conflict.”
He said at another point: “Non-identification, when natural and spontaneous, is liberation. You need not know what you are. Enough to know what you are not. What you are you will never know for every discovery reveals new dimensions to conquer. The unknown has no limits.” Non-identification.
One seeker attending satsang years ago when the term was employed in a talk said, “Non-identification? I’ve read every transcript of every talk your teacher offered—some many times—but that’s the first time the term has really registered.” Yes, non-identification. Be satisfied and relax into the comfort of those words which invite you to an awareness of what you are not and then take it easy. How much have you discovered on “your “journey”? So much, yes?
Yet at this moment, is not this discovery now revealing “new dimensions” of understanding? Thus, is it not now time to simply relax? If you do so, then the beingness for the remainder of the manifestation can still have Reality overlaid upon it.
After that happens, a Show of Love can happen, and bliss can happen, and joy can happen, and fun can happen, and the lightness of the dance can happen. And it will all happen in a "much more wonderful" manner than ever imagined possible.
(Moreover, during times when the not-Lovely and the not-blissful and the not-joyous and the not-fun and the not-able-to-dance-lightly manifest, those can all be witnessed and processed without your being pulled down into a dark vortex of emotional intoxication.)
Further, Maharaj said, “Non-being . . . it gives birth to being. It is the immovable background of motion. Once you are there you are at home everywhere.”
It is that “immovable background” that has brought stability to the relative existence of this speck called “floyd.”
Abiding as an immovable background, then up’s and down’s disappear; turmoil disappears; chaos disappears; perceptions about “good vs. bad”—along with all instability that is rooted in such movable dualities—disappear. Mutatio terminus. Stabilitas. Stabilitas bellus.
At that point, it becomes your call: generate beauty . . . or harmony . . . or both . . . or neither. That is what was being pointed to when My Cherokee Grandmother modeled “The Great Whatever”:
"It's cold!"
"Whatever."
"It's hot!!"
"Whatever.'
Whatever, indeed.
Either way, fear not . . . dread not. Nothing is lost.
Now, for those who still think that realization must surely involve the loss of something and fear that it will leave them robotic or will rob them of some of their current degrees of pleasure, know that those beliefs could not be farther removed from reality.
(What is loss via realization, per Maharaj, is "learned ignorance," and who would not readily relinquish attachment to that?)
To expand the “practicality” as well as the understanding of “the way that AS IF Living happens when Reality is overlaid upon the relative,” understand that Reality brings with it to each and every event the traits that are unique to Reality but which can allow a level of joy not previously known to manifest once identity ends and once the I AM THAT; I AM is understood to be advaita . . . “not-two” . . . One.
That means that when the relative becomes swathed in Reality, the consequence is that every happening which was previously strapped with cultural boundaries, with conditions and conditioning, with so many qualifications, with limitations, with a sense of incompleteness, with ambiguities, with adulterations, and with self-consciousness suddenly all happen in a manner that is the “embodiment” (so to speak) of the Absolute.
All relative happenings (once Reality has been overlaid upon them) happen Absolutely without boundaries, Absolutely without conditions, Absolutely without qualification, Absolutely without limitation, Absolutely without any sense of incompleteness, Absolutely without ambiguity, Absolutely without adulteration, and Absolutely without self-consciousness.
When happenings no longer happens in “a relative mode” but happens in “an Absolute fashion"; then, the unblocked, manifested consciousness might be heard to speak of “more colorful colors”; of “something sweeter than the sweetest sounds, namely, the sweet sound of silence”; of “tastier tastes”; of “beholding beauty at levels never before imagined”;
of "lightness"; of “‘True Love’ rather than ‘love’”; of "‘Showing Love’ rather than ‘making love’ or having sex"; of “feeling feelings rather than emoting”; of “being so attuned to all in nature—to all that is natural—that the You-Nature (that "not-two" paradigm) suddenly spawns delights of a previously-unimagined intensity.”
Such is possible when abidance is happening as the awareness while the pure (or unblocked) consciousness is totally and completely and “unobstructedly” conscious of.
Those intensified elements of color and sound and taste and beauty and lightness and Love and feelings, as well as an absolute sense of Oneness with all that is natural (Nisarga), result when “living AS IF” and when happenings happen from the platform of Reality rather than from the stage of illusion.
There are billions who claim that they are “alive,” but they are so far removed from what that concept implies that they must be counted instead among “the living dead.”
That cannot be said of any speck of unblocked, manifested consciousness which is functioning from the standpoint of total awake-ness, complete awareness, and full conscious of-ness, all manifesting in a totally unlimited manner.
After the Final Understanding manifests, then all of the five-sense-awarenesses as well as all of the sixth-sense awarenesses that have been discussed will be realized and the relative and the Absolute shall finally and truly be understood as not-two. Such happens when the relative is absolutely subsumed in Reality.
Peace, Unity, Love and Light
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