The Absolute - Knowing our True Nature as Infinite Being
The actuality
The truth is simple and direct. It consists of experiencing the actuality of what is beyond time and space. The truth is available to all spirits and allows us to achieve something other than mere relative knowledge and mundane experience.
All activities coming from the ego defy the truth of the present moment. Why is there such emphasis on formalizing and reducing our lives to verbal explanations? This is not necessary. Our activities do not allow us to reveal ourselves as absolute beings containing the fullness of life.
The truth is love. There is no division, discrimination or personal interest involved in it. It contains everything, all beings and dimensions, all colors and shapes, allowing the pure light to shine from everywhere. It is false to believe that the truth is difficult to find or realize. Indeed, the source of all difficulty and confusion is the untrue. The false makes us wait for something to happen, continually desiring and searching for something better. The mind looks for confirmation of permanency in the objects of the world. But since all forms are empty and transitory, its search is futile. Nothing that we can see, feel or think will lead to anything other than impermanence.
Who is the entity that feels or thinks? Is it not just another part of something incomparably greater? Even sin and virtue, merits and demerits, are not what they appear to be. In general, the bad and the good are mere concepts of convention and culture; they are rejected or accepted according to the context in which they appear. Good and evil exist on a worldly level of consciousness, still imprisoned by the ego and its moral principles. The prison does not consist of external phenomena. The prison is internal, and is of the mind.
The mind must find peace within in order to realize the truth. The truth reveals that what is called "true" or "false" does not exist, and that what really exists is the state of awakening. If the mind awakens, naturally, good emanates from it. The awakening expresses the truth and unity of true being. All harmony resides in this absolute.
All that the awakened mind is called upon to do in this world is universally spontaneous and beneficial; the mind does not act deliberately in this sense. The mind is no longer conscious of any moral principle. Since the mind is in a state of awakening, the absolute expresses and reveals itself through it. Then our actions are in their proper place and spontaneously move in the best way possible.
At first glance, an awakened mind may not be distinguishable from others. But inwardly, it is obviously enlightened, for it has an incomparable quality, which allows the individual to reflect on the divine. Only the awakening of the mind matters, not its beliefs and traditional and moral principles, for all knowledge and experience we accumulate stems from the ego and its ignorance. Only the ego still identifies with form and is filled with the need to acquire knowledge and experience. But since the ego comes from ignorance, the accumulation of these things is limited, leading to misery. In truth, once we turn away from the external world, there is no limit to what life has to offer. Then the past and future disappear, as does the distinction between the ego and the world, the subject and object.
If there is no division, there is no need to act in the world or to protect oneself from it. Indeed, in the awakening of the mind, there is no illusion that the world exists. In contrast, the world and its misery appear within the mind that has not awakened. It is this mind that creates the necessity of knowledge and experience; it is this mind that believes the world must be changed or withdrawn from.
The mind creates the world and the misery that comes with it. Like the ego, it also forms a need for knowledge and experience from which springs the idea that the world must be changed or that one must withdraw from it. Indeed, the truth reveals that the illusion of the world only exists within oneself.
To save the world and escape from its misery, we must realize the false nature of the mind, the ego and the world. To think that tomorrow will, in some way, liberate us from suffering is ironically the cause of this suffering. It is not necessary to escape the world in some fashion; what tends to make people think in such a way is nothing other than the ego, whose nature is to accept or reject.
The awakened mind remains still and does not choose, but acts spontaneously in the best way possible. If such a mind chooses or rejects, its motivations have come from the ego. It is divine bliss that is at the origin of all actions. Freedom of mind is a myth, for the mind in its very nature is a prison. Suffering is a sign that only the permanence of the Self has any validity. The only purpose of darkness is to have its existence destroyed by the light.
The infinite consciousness expresses itself through numerous forms, as does the ego of the individualized consciousness. In becoming aware of itself as joined to an individualized ego, the mind faces the desire to experiment with the divisions from which emerge ignorance and knowledge. But there comes a time when the mind realizes its essence is the absolute; here, the mind begins its spiritual practice.
It is false to say that it is necessary for the mind to go through many cycles of evolution. However, the mind must realize its true identity. The rest is secondary and takes care of itself. The mind comes from the absolute and returns to it, completing its cycle of evolution. Let the mind reside at its source. In this way, one can achieve the understanding that the universe, the world and the mind have never existed.
Only the truth of the Self matters before anything else. Then it is not necessary to go or come, to accept or reject, to follow or avoid any path. Free will no longer means anything; freedom is no longer a goal, since the mind is already free.
The Destiny of Spirit - A Return to the Reality of Being
The goal
The mind is like a fertile soil: everything planted in it, flowers and weeds alike, take root. As such, all thoughts that we entertain take root on some level, and this is how patterns become entrenched.
Once accustomed to a particular mode of perception, the mind finds a sense of security in moving within patterns that become established. This is how the principle of intelligence becomes individualized and deluded. We imagine something in a certain way and here we are: taking our thought for reality. As long as the mind is not conscious of itself in movement, through the events of existence, it will assign itself the permanence of form-identity – ego.
The ego is always seeking to take possession of something external. Through the provocations of existence, it needs to assert itself, to convince itself that it is really something tangible; otherwise it would have to face an unknown, an unimaginable void. For the ego, reality cannot be anything other than its own reality, something within its domain of possession and control. We hold on to this idea of an ego that we believe to be essential, constantly comparing it with other egos, that are no more than projections that would not exist without the seminal delusional concept of "I".
The collectivity provides ego with a stimulating environment for self-assertion. We look for confirmation or any form of feedback, so that we may define ourselves by our relation to that collectivity; we define ourselves by our areas and levels of conformation or non-conformation to the collective lifestyles and values. However, within any collectivity, large or small – whether the collectivity is as loosely defined as a nation, or as sharply defined as a jail – relationships are shaped by the backdrop of community, and are therefore based on externally-influenced images of people. As long as the mind is identified with thoughts, all relationships will be based on images and therefore not real. This is why there is so much confusion and misunderstanding and problems with communication.
We live within unconsciousness which necessarily creates a void, a void that we unsuccessfully try to fill with ideas and concepts. For example, it is not for no reason that the individual may fluctuate between feelings of love and hate in realm of intimate relationship. When the other person does not conform to our expectations we start hating them and when the expectations of both parties are in accord, then we experience what we call love. Because these expectations are based on self-images, they are always subject to change – though we may choose to impose an artificial consistency on them for the purpose of maintaining some sense of stability.
This feat of image-stabilization is the mainstay of most so-called successful marriages, but stability is achieved at the expense of vitality. Such relationships become rooted in habit. If neither party has the courage to deal with the suffocating stagnation of a dead relationship, the two will remain together like a tree that is dead, but refuses to fall. At the other end of the empty relationship spectrum we find people who bounce around from one meaningless relationship to another, expecting that some day somebody will come along to fill that great internal void. Nothing inspiring, nothing of the sacred is lived and embodied.
True love is of another world and can only grow and nourish both partners when it is unconditional and when the individual is found to be in a complete state of independence. It is when neither person needs the other that true love can be shared and experienced as a way of getting closer to the Divine. This is indeed rare, but when it occurs, it is something truly magical.
As we undertake the course of self-examination, we become aware of the "I thought" as the dominant feature of consciousness, and this awareness may cause us to react, to regard ego as a liability. In so doing, we give more solidity to the thought structure, and we uphold the principle of duality.
As long as we persist in identifying with images, the mind remains divided. On a superficial level, it is an image-identified entity, but on a deep level, it is cognizant of its formless nature. This dichotomy leads to internal conflict.
We may gain some clarity on the issue of self-concept by taking a few steps back from it. We might consider that the consciousness of an "I" is not distinct from the total contents of the mind. It may be seen as just another thought, and it may be taken as a starting point for the unraveling of deluded consciousness. Once the self-image is removed, we can get a sense of genuine identity.
In the process of self-inquiry, we are awakening the consciousness that is still unconscious of itself. Understanding happens on its own when the mind is fully awakened, meaning when it is conscious of its unconscious manifestations. This begins with the mind´s realization that it is under the control of unconscious thoughts.
In progressively expanding its self-awareness, the mind frees itself from latent tendencies which compose its unconsciousness. The later will express itself as long as the mind does not bring awareness to it. It is when we are perfectly whole and conscious of all of that which we are, and purified of all that we are not, that consciousness is found to be what it has always been – the light behind the shadow.
We must clean the vessel – this is the ultimate goal that allows for the discovery of our true and permanent identity. This is the direct path, but because of its directness, it appears to be the most difficult. However, once the mind has experienced the efficacy of neutral awareness, it can never revert to the ordinary spiritual practices which are made for those who wish to remain comfortably attached to self-image, yet at the same time want something more.
There is a narrow gate through which we all must pass; nobody can go around it. Nobody can maneuver their way around the goal that underlies this existence that we believe to be our own.
Into Vastness - The Purpose of Existence
Walking freely
In all of us there exists the capacity to transform energy to the highest level of vibration where everything in daily living can be not threatening and stress-free. It is difficult for us to understand that and to believe it because we are not accustomed to moving from one state of mind to another, and even when that does happen, we are not aware of it. Nevertheless, we know that when we are happy, things become clear and precise. Life and its difficulties disappear and leave room for a softer, more harmonious reality. If, however, we allow ourselves to be crushed under the weight of events, it is as if the entire world is collapsing.
Our vision of the world corresponds with our state of mind. If the later is heavy, we will have heavy thoughts about life. If we have a light mind, life becomes simple and beautiful. It is always possible to raise or to lower our level of vibration. This is determined by oneself alone.
We can always live in this world without being affected by the unpredictable changes. After all, the final goal of our existence entails the absolute liberation of consciousness. It is when the unpredictable events of our lives occur that we can truly determine whether or not we are the prisoners of the mind.
It is usually the case that when life subverts our little habits, our little comfort and security, we feel depressed and drained of vitality. We should rather acknowledge that life is offering us the opportunity to properly get on our feet and retrieve our responsibility to the righteous path. We should always have in mind the highest goal, the only goal worthy of our full attention.
In daily lives there are often circumstances that make us feel as if everything is divided. These problems, these mere material difficulties are only serving the big picture. Unpredictable events arise as a remedy to the mind´s tendency to dull its awareness, to escape reality by putting itself to sleep.
When we seriously consider the possibility of changing the vibrational level of our consciousness we take a step forward. Life is a school where we constantly receive lessons, the most important of which are lessons about ourselves.
In order to advance on the path of self-knowledge and elevate consciousness to its highest vibrational level, it is necessary to discard all those negative thoughts that keep us trapped in the bleak dungeon of ignorance.
We must insure that absolutely nothing in this world is permitted to impede the aspiration to higher consciousness. The transformational energy of higher consciousness is always moving forward because life is always moving forward on its evolutionary course, and it is precisely because life is so constructed that we are not given the opportunity to sleep for too long. Nevertheless, as long as we remain incapable of fully realizing the ultimate goal of our existence, we will be bouncing around from one extreme to another. These opposing movements manifest in such a way that we are often compelled to look for the opposite element.
There is no spirit that wants to remain in sorrows. We are all looking to free ourselves from pain in order to find happiness. This is the way of life and we cannot avoid it, unless we become masters of our minds.
There is no greater occupation than the practice of elevating our level of vibration, for this elevation not only affects our own freedom, but the freedom of everyone around us. The joy we experience is the joy of the universe. This is happiness, to know that we are functioning according to life´s purpose and that we are contributing to it. To acknowledge that we must devote all our energy to the highest ideal, this is the absolute benediction. Whatever we do becomes a means to ascension. When negative energy comes our way, no resistance is offered; when attention springs from a complete state of awareness, negativity is transformed into positivism.
The experience of complete vastness is given to the mind that has learned to be aware and to serve life´s higher purpose. Everything is given to the mind that does what it needs to be doing, and so we should always ask ourselves about who or what we are serving.
In awareness, we are necessarily serving the highest, whereas when we are listening to the ego, we serve the lowest. Whether we find ourselves happy or under the weight of difficulties and thus unhappy, we should always ask ourselves, who are we really serving. With this sort of self-examination, the mind finds clarity and because of that, the path to follow is shown with total clarity.
The path is all about liberation. Everything else is life’s concern. The spirit takes precedence over the material. Material phenomena are mere reflections of the movements of spirit. When the mind is in its place, the material world will be in its place as well.
To speculate on what we should do on a mere material level is a waste of time, because the material world doesn´t really exist. To attempt to establish control over it is a big mistake. Also, to think that we must deny the material life in order to awaken spiritually is to entertain a delusion, for to lead a true spiritual life, no such distinction is made between the so-called spiritual life and the ordinary life.
The distinction between all things is made merely for clarity in communication on a conceptual level. The idea is to move away from the realm of concepts and to see what really needs to happen in order to free oneself.
A true spiritual life means leading a holistic life, to acknowledge the unification of all things and to go beyond. We must be conscious of that unity in everything we do. This is the task. As much as we are nothing, we are everything. Though we appear to be very small, we encompass the totality of life.
We are using words to communicate, but realization belongs to the mind alone. Ultimately, the mind must come face to face with its loneliness in order to proceed on the path to self-realization.
