Bill Hicks

Of course since it's not real, ultimately it does not matter whether we spend the money on food or on bombs. Waking up is all that matters.

Specialness and special teachings

A fellow spiritual seeker wrote to me:

I had been participating in an online group (MysticalPrinciples), and the "teacher" of that group spoke of a series of tapes that Joel Goldsmith made of a "secret" (closed) series of classes to his inner-circle students back in 1953.
Apparently the transcripts of these "closed" talks were so powerful, to study them (if you could get your hands on them) would lift you up and out of all illusion, the fast track! One woman in England actually typed out the transcripts of these talks, and only a few people were permitted to purchase the book form.

This "teacher" made a series of 20 talks based on these other talks, and charged for them. He insisted that only the most serious students apply, and not to pass on these teachings publicly, not quote from them on other groups etc. So it was HIS tapes for sale that I bought, and began to study.

I began to feel the "specialness" creep in of the whole thing. That only a few could access them, that they were for sale, that we were among the elite so to speak, that within the year we would be finished. Through. Fully into the next dimension of Truth. If we did EXACTLY what the teacher recommended.

God. I was taken. I paid that teacher money for those tapes, and halfway through, seeing clearly my error, threw them in the outdoor trash barrel and started a bonfire.. It was not the tapes themselves that were trash, it was the mind of "special-seeking" in myself, the mind that was duped again, that was trash.

I had felt part of a group, part of a special "thing", a communion of others, I had, temporarily gotten rid of the horrible solitariness, loneliness, I had felt for so long.

I am back to lonely. Solitary. The weight on my chest feels more okay, somehow lighter.

Now I see others making VERY special these tapes, this series of teachings. I no longer post on that, or any site, and realize I have to come upon it honestly, alone. Unspecial. Hard. Not knowing when it ends.

--

Oneness and art

I had a breakthrough yesterday regarding the connection between Oneness and art. I posted it on my art philosophy site, here.

Results

Here's a good point I just read: why shouldn't you watch for results in The World after applying Advanced Forgiveness? Because when you do, you're saying these conditions are bad and these are good... in other words judging them, and that keeps it real.

Ken on YouTube

I didn't even know: it seems the Foundation For ACIM is now putting Ken wapnick videos on YouTube! Excellent.
Free content like this is a fantastic promotional tool, it's great for the Course, for FACIM, and for students.

Roger Linden Interview on nonduality

More parts to the interview here.

There's also a good interview with Tony Parsons.

I'm still trying to understand why A Course In Miracles says that you can work towards enlightenment (a no-self state) and all those other teachers claim very definitely that you can't, it just happens when it happens. Strange.

Symbols of the Separation

Not long ago I had the strong perception and revelation that I now suddenly find that DU also tells us clearly*:
As long as you believe in the reality of the World, seeing objects outside of you is a constant and painful reminder of the separation from god. (Because the seeming separation between you and the objects is symbolic of the seeming main Separation.)

This also tells us that unless somebody is genuinely awakened, then happiness in this world is false, anything looking like happiness and enthusiasm is probably more like an armour put on to copy with "life".

*I have never before had a book I can continue to hear/read new things in after half a dozen re-reads. I'm an excellent student, and almost no books made it past one re-read for me before.

A forgiveness method

I just found this old post on the YahooGroups D.U. list by Olga (looking to see if the book she mentions had already been recommended on that list), and I want to commend her for some really pertinent truths there.

Love, Eolake

----
Olga wrote:

Recently I have started, inspired by "Busting Loose from the Money Game" to do a variation of an exercise in that book. Then I go to the feeling as before, and then amplify it if I can. Then I say "I take the power back now, from this miscreation. I know there is no Truth in this, this is just something I made to feel limited/vulnerable/etc. I take the power back and I feel it reintegrate and surge through me. I am Infinite Love. I am Infinite Abundance. I am Infinite Trust."

Basically I don't think letting the feeling go is enough, as you say, that could be avoidance. Allowing the negative feeling/situation is key to me, but it has to be combined with the practice of allowing of the Holy Spirits speedy intervention :). A touch of eagerness to open up to that, but not an eagereness that would constitute resistance.

Sometimes I feel a shift when I do a forgiveness process, but I would not depend on that, but trust HS is working behind the scenes wether I feel it or not. Also, as I understand it, tthe guilt is not necessarily connected to one special area, since it is really impersonal and has nothing to do with form. So, I may forgive a situation, but from that "pool" of unconcious guilt may pour in more guilt into manifestation in that particular situation, AGAIN. And we go "Oh no", but not to worry, it is all the same, and we just have to start forgiving again. Because of that there is no sure way of monitoring your advancement.

As to be "out there" or not, I don't think it matters. I'm a bit of a hermit, but my forgiveness lessons seems to come to me all the same :). Just follow guidance to the best of your ability, and then you will find the lessons that you need.

Love, Olga

Lehrer

I know that there are people who do not love their fellow man, and I hate people like that!
-- Tom Lehrer

Leap the movie

Gary Renard is featured in the new movie Leap.

It's a bit unclear from the over-dramatic trailer whether this one, unlike The Secret, actually goes beyond the Dream, or whether it's another effort at Making A Better Illusion.

If the former, it'll be a hard sell, because there's nothing dramatic about heaven, and you can't sell to humans without drama.

Emerson

A political victory, a rise of rents, the recovery of your sick, or the return of your absent friend, or some other favorable event, raises your spirits, and you think good days are preparing for you. Do not believe it. Nothing can bring you peace but yourself.
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, Self-Reliance

"Do not seek yourself outside yourself."

For unity

[I posted this on my regular blog yesterday, but it might fit better here.]

I give my congratulations to American president-elect Obama, may god be with him in a very tough job.

My wish for the coming four years, the coming twenty years, the coming one hundred years, is that each American as well as each inhabitant of planet Earth will take the opportunity to strive always to correct his vision towards that of unity rather than that of partisanship.

That's not an easy thing. The devil in this universe is obviously a little man in the heart of each of us, telling us that "evil" is out there. It's in the other person, it's in the other group, it's in the other nation. Lord forbid we should ever look into our own heart for the origin of evil and suffering, for this would be too fearful.

Still it can be done and it is being done, and in unity is salvation.

Unexpected

I can picture in my mind a world without war, a world without hate. And I can picture us attacking that world, because they'd never expect it.
-- Jack Handey

Spirit doesn't make anything happen

I think the below (particularly the first half) is one of the things which depart most radically from other spiritual traditions, even the most modern ones:

"The ego, or wrong mind, makes everything that appears to happen on the level of form. Spirit makes nothing happen on the level of form, which is why you shouldn't spiritualize events or objects in the universe. The right mind gives the Holy Spirit's interpretation of the level of form, leading you -- and by you we mean that observatory part of the mind that has identified with and thus bound itself to the ego -- back home. Home is unchangeable spirit."
-- The Disappearance Of The Universe, page 223


This is also one more explanation why it's fruitless to try and change the world: if spirit makes nothing happen in The World, what force is there to make this a "good world"?

Humility

I've just started reading the centuries-old book The Dark Night Of The Soul, by Juan de la Cruz (John of the Cross). Seems interesting so far.
One of the points he brings up is that people who consider themselves less than others are further in their journey towards Source/god than people who consider themselves more than others.
I wonder if it's true. Isn't that kind of humility just inverted pride?

I think it's much more true to recognize that if you feel pride or humility, it doesn't matter. It's just the ego's games, and will blow over in time. The truth is neither, since any separation and differences between yourself and others is an illusion.

Source is Source.
God is.
The rest isn't.

The Translucent Revolution

If you sometimes feel a connection, in your life or work, to "Something Great, Beyond It All", and you feel this has happened more in the last twenty years and not just for you, you might be interested in the book The Translucent Revolution.

Anon commented:

I know this book, explaining the spiritual journey as three steps:
1. ego-bound state,
2. translucent state,
3. enlightened state.

It reminds me on Osho, explaining the spiritual journey also as three steps:
(Quote, as far as I remember)
"Enlightement comes in three steps:
1. the Buddha is following you like a shadow,
2. you are following the Buddha like a shadow,
3. you have dissolved into the Buddha - now you ARE the Buddha."
(/Quote)

I'm not shy to out me as a long-year sannyasin of Osho; BTW the author Arjuna was also sannyasin.

And I'm also not shy to out me as a long-year "dirty old man" - enjoying much your DOMAI site, Eolake ... many thanks to you for doing that. IMO without a sense of beauty and humour any spiritual journey is simply not possible. In tantric tradition the whole universe is seen as "Leela" = Shiva and Shakti enjoying the erotic play of male and female forces, this game of hide-and-seek, of parting and unifying again. Basically a big YES to all what is, meaning: Tantra is basically non-dual, which is necessarily always misunderstood and misinterpreted by the dual mind. But you can live it, stepping out of your mind (the literal meaning of "ecstasy"), transcending it - remember your "DOMAI-moments" ...

Back to the book: In a way it is very comforting for anybody on a spiritual journey to know about being part of some "global alternative movement", so you don't feel alone anymore ... but on the other side it is also very much hindering your journey out of this very reason: Nobody can eat for you, nobody can drink for you, and nobody can do your spiritual journey for you, except yourself. A very simple and basic fact. So, you HAVE to be alone and to go alone into the darkness of knowing nothing, stripping away finally ALL your ego-feeding attachments (doesn't matter whether "negative" or "positive" ... ALL). Very painful, agonizing, a death in all aspects except your body. Very few people are doing this consequently, most people are avoiding this with all one's strength, even if they say: "I'm on a spiritual journey" - especially then. I see it all around.

In my experience, much more helpful in this way are the books of Jed McKenna (www.wisefoolpress.com, or look at amazon.com), who also describes three states of development:
1. Human Childhood,
2. Human Adulthood,
3. Spiritual Enlightement
(aka abiding non-dual awareness,
aka Un-truth Un-realization).

His books are true masterpieces, plain English without guru babble, humorously in a subtle way. I would like to quote something of the epilogue of "Spiritual Warfare":

"There are two emotions that inform and animate the human animal; fear, and a gratitude-love-awe mix that might best be called agapé. As fear goes out, agapé comes in. More accurately, a pure white light of consciousness hits the prism of self and splits outward to become the universe as we experience it. If the prism is gray and murky with ignorance, choked with fear, contaminated with ego, then so becomes the universe that radiates out from it. It's that simple. As the prism becomes free of such flaws, then the whole universe changes with it. It resolves into clarity, becomes brighter, more playful and magical. Because we are the lens through which it is projected, we are participants in its shape and motion; co-creators of our own universe.

That's Human Adulthood. Spiritual Enlightement is just the same, except you take the final step in purifying the prism of self: You remove it."

So, I recommend everybody: Have a sincere look at it, and review your life "dealing with your shit honestly" ...

Thanks for your comments, you have some good points.
Indeed The Translucent Revolution, while a good book, is limited. It firmly sticks around in the area where you still regard the Self and the Ego as real.
I recommend The Disappearance Of The Universe to augment it.

Peace Pilgrim

"I began to realize that it's as though we have two selves or two natures or two wills with two different viewpoints. Because the viewpoints were so different, I felt a struggle in my life at this period between the two selves with the two viewpoints. So there were hills and valleys - lots of hills and valleys. Then in the midst of the struggle there came a wonderful mountain-top experience, and for the first time I knew what inner peace was like. I felt a oneness - oneness with all my fellow human beings, oneness with all of creation. I have never felt really separate since. I could return again and again to this wonderful mountaintop, and then I could stay there for longer and longer periods of time, and just slip out occasionally. Then came a wonderful morning when I woke up and knew that I would never have to descend again into the valley. I knew that for me the struggle was over, that finally I had succeeded in giving my life, or finding inner peace. Again this is a point of no return. you can never go back into the struggle."
-- Peace Pilgrim
Article
videos

Nonessentials

One's destination is never a place but rather a new way of looking at things.
-- Henry Miller

Besides the noble art of getting things done, there is a nobler art of leaving things undone. The wisdom of life consists in the elimination of nonessentials.
-- Lin Yutang

Self-development

Article on my other blog, about openness and outer and inner worlds.

Talking about houses...

Until a couple of years ago I was quite occupied for a while with what kind of home I'd ultimately like to have. Would it be a cool self-built house for instance?

I sort of lost interest, mostly. And reading DU it was confirmed to me that this is because your external circumstances are of no consequence.

Of course if one recognizes that, one can still do what one wants.

I think as humans we tend to try to change our external circumstances (like get a bigger home) in order to change our spiritual life (feel better). The thing is this does not work.

However I think one could change one's external circumstances to *reflect* one's inner state. Have an inner affluence spill over into an outer one.

But I suspect that if it feels *important* to do so, probably one is not so happy and free as believed, and needs to work on the Inner life some more.

Dream of a house

I dreamed that I moved into a room in a big, old house. (From 19 til 36 I lived in a succession of rented rooms, since I didn't care to spare the attention or money yet to get a real home, I was too busy with my spiritual development.)

The house was really huge, and it was in a city. It had many floors, and lots and lots and lots of interconnected room and stairs and halls and spaces. For some reason it had been built with very uneven floors, some dramatically slanted, especially high in the house. Very eccentric, and very interesting and pleasing, and solid.

It turned out many of my old friends lived there already. Some even from back in school.

I walked around and up and down, it was evening, and I saw people/friends occupied with doing the dishes and such. Everything was open, I saw no closed doors. I thought I'd love to hang out here, but right this moment I was too excited to sit down, I wanted to see everything at once.

After I woke up I was in an odd but highly pleasant glow, an intense high that lasted for hours. This was just fantastic.
(I've had that a couple of times before, one of them after self-therapy. If I could get it in pills I'd be rich. And hooked :-)  .)

Success

Look at what your idea of success would be. The more that you take in external motivators, the more it reduces your ultimate satisfaction because it doesn't come from inside.
-- Chris Messina