“What is spiritual realization? The belief that you are
spirit? No, that’s a thought. A little closer to the truth than the thought
that believes you are who your birth certificate says you are, but still a
thought. Spiritual realization is to see clearly that what I perceive,
experience, think, or feel is ultimately not who I am, that I cannot find
myself in all those things that continuously pass away. The Buddha was probably
the first human being to see this clearly, and so anata (no self) became one of the central points of his teaching.
And when Jesus said, “Deny thyself,” what he meant was: Negate (and thus undo)
the illusion of self. If the self – ego – were truly who I am, it would be
absurd to “deny” it.
What remains is the light of consciousness in which
perceptions, experiences, thoughts, and feelings come and go. That is Being,
that is the deeper, true I. When I know myself as that, whatever happens in my
life is no longer of absolute but only of relative importance. I honor it, but
it loses its absolute seriousness, its heaviness. The only thing that
ultimately matters is this: Can I sense my essential Beingness, the I Am, in
the background of my life at all times: To be more accurate, can I sense my
essential identity as consciousness itself? Or am I losing myself in what
happens, losing myself in the mind, in the world?”
(from A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle, pp. 78-79.)
These words, from Eckhart Tolle, ring true in my experience
and understanding of the deepest aspects of Life.
At times along life’s journey I have enjoyed moments of
connection to Life and Life’s Mystery… perhaps it is that rather otherworldly
experience of being part of some great oneness… contact with the Source of Life
Energy or Spirit coursing through my being… and so immersed in this world in
the presence of the present moment…
Sometimes we are forgetful of this connection or lost in
the mass consciousness of our surroundings, various roles we play, or just in
the maze of the rambling thoughts from yesterday and tomorrow in which our
egoic mind so skillfully plays with us… accompanied by fears, regrets, hopes,
comparisons… and on and on … Sometimes we need a reminder to look for this essence
of identity… and a few practices come to mind to help us do this…
…Then, all of a sudden the fire alarm blasts throughout the
building and I spring into action …from considering consciousness and identity…
to the role of resident manager… and respond with actions of known protocols and
procedures on how to act in in a fire emergency. And of course, I am now
writing this 3 hours later… after the commotion and smoke has settled… No fire,
just smoke from a resident falling asleep with something cooking and burning on
the stove…
There’s nothing like short loud bursts from a fire alarm to
bring you right into the moment and away from moments of contemplation… yet
there continued a real sense of presence even in the blaring noise… when one is
responsible for the safety of others, direct communication is essential… and
once the fire responders arrive, they are in charge of the scene… and I move to
outside the building to see if anyone has been left behind… We were missing 8
people. Since by this time I knew it was more like a fire drill than a
dangerous emergency, I ask permission to re-enter and check on residents that
were not outside. Only one person chose to stay inside because they didn’t
think it was an actual fire.
So, where there is smoke… there isn’t always fire… but there
was definitely hot energy present which could have become a dangerous fire…
…and now we return again to this now…
Our identities and roles in the world are part of the
journey and path we take on… although I know I am not really a role… I have
roles, but they are not who I am… just like I have a continuously changing
internal landscape of bodily functions and feelings and thoughts, and
sensations and images and whatever other things come to consciousness…. We may
have many important identities… to ourselves and others…. Yet in the middle of
it all…in the middle of the blaring world around us… we remain still… in the
center of consciousness… one with Life Energy… one with Source Energy… one with
that observing consciousness that is at its essence, Being… and from this place
we respond… rather than react from unconscious patterns, fears, or other
ego-related aspects….
If you’d like to recall, discuss, or explore this aspect of
who we really are, feel free to be in touch….
Here are a few resources you may want to try… (some of
these oldies, but goodies):
· Exercises
from Psychosynthesis, compiled by friend and mentor Dr. Tom Yoemans
http://synthesiscenter.org/articles/0011.pdf
.
http://synthesiscenter.org/articles/0011.pdf
.
· Intro
to Centering – the Disidentification exercise:
http://two.not2.org/psychosynthesis/exer/ctr-di.htm
.
http://two.not2.org/psychosynthesis/exer/ctr-di.htm
.
· Find a
spot like a tree or park bench or an ocean… and just ‘Be” and see what emerges.
Love and best wishes,
John Hutchinson
John Hutchinson
John@sunhutch.com
