THE PRESENT OF THE PRESENCE. (The state of awareness). Introduction to a book being written.by Tony O'Clery.
Many people sometimes wake up in bliss, which lasts for a few moments or minutes and is probably due to a direct awakening from deep sleep as opposed to transversing the dream plane.
It has happened to me on occasions and on awakening from meditation sometimes.
Recently I awoke from my unconscious meditation in a bliss state and it lasted an hour or more. I or something was observing the bliss state, and the world was more ephemeral and didn't matter at all. I couldn't really tell if I was the state or was even separate from it. It lasted just as long as I was observing, as soon as I started to function in the world it began to diminish progressively....The memory or residual is still there though......This leads on to the what is this 'I' or rather Who am I? Young toddlers for example think and speak in the third person and don't really have a strong ego-sense as such. However due to conditioning an ego starts to develop and expand. However it is only a thought and what we call mind is also really just a bundle of thoughts.
Separation is the odd man out rather than the truth, or the ground energy of everything from the big-bang onwards is only one. We constantly try to reinforce our illusory ego like having a mirror facing a mirror and seeing reflections going on and on, and then believing the image must be true for there are so many reflections of it. I am doing this and this is happening to me and so on and so on. Separating ourselves from the common energy, like a whirlpool in the ocean believing it is separate from the whole ocean, or a wave doing the same thing.
Taking responsibility for action causes us pain, and problems with other people, who also have egos. Not only egos but 'minds' and a subtle bodies that stores all the joy and grief of our experiences. Our relationships are a minefield of navigating to avoid each other rocks of wreckage and pain. Joy is no problem as it can be shared even if not totally understood, for it is nearer the truth of the 'ground of being or energy'.
This leads us to the question of freewill and what it means. Freewill cannot be explained without explaining what time is or isn't. There really isn't any time even science recognizes the concept as relative. So if there isn't any time everything must be happening at once in some way. Like a wagon wheel, consciousness is the hub and it concentrates on one spoke at a time but all the other spokes exist as well even if they are not illuminated. This has the effect of us completing an action that we have essentially already completed. In other words if we deliberate over an action and come to a decision, that is the decision that we made anyway. This allows the illusion of freewill so we can take responsibility for what we do or don't do. The reason for that is that we set up a memory to learn, which we call karma. Karma will teach the mind through experience, and the mind puts the body in many situations to learn.
However we are not our thoughts nor our mind, we are the consciousness or state of awareness behind the thoughts. Thoughts are also something that our ego reaches out and grasps hold of. If you sit quietly you will notice thoughts continuing unabated, running on and on. This gives you the opportunity to observe as a witness rather than a participant, and this is the first step to finding out 'Who am I'. The trick though is to realise that enlightenment cannot be achieved it can only happen.
It can be helped along so to speak by meditation 'observation' being the easiest way. That is observing the mind and its thoughts and one will find out it is only thoughts. This has the effect of strengthening the feeling of being the observer, which is the awareness state. One has to have course of enquiry though, and continually be aware of what the 'I' is. One has to realise that the 'I' is just a thought also and the ego does't exist apart from that. So going about one's daily chores ask the questions, who is this happening to, who am I, who is happy who is upset, who is doing this as an act of selfishness, and so on.
Every now and then some joy on earth will overwhelm our enquiry such as falling love with a person and creating an attachment. This sets up a chemical situation in the brain as well as a psychological one, and one thinks one has found happiness. But no human can live up to that the eventually the partner's ego starts to show and his or her mind full of karmas starts to take effect. Proving again there is no lasting happiness on the outside and one has to go within so to speak. This does not mean that one cannot have a meaningful relationship however; For that in itself is a learning experience and an exercise in reducing the egos.
KARMA AND OR GENETICS.
In the Eastern Religions and Philosophies karma from previous 'lives' is used to explain today's happenings, tendencies and attributes. However if one doesn't believe in karma, which many in the 'West' do not, then the alternative is genetic tendencies and influences from the environment. No matter what the origin of these conditions the fact remains that our tendencies and attributes affect the very way we live our lives and make our decisions. It may not be possible to isolate a tendency that easily or even an attribute, but one can observe oneself and notice them.
The mind is like a glass of fluid with sediments at the bottom, these sediments can be stirred up and so changing the fluid's conditions for a while. Tendencies and attributes are something similar and may be triggered by a certain event and then subside and lie low until the next 'triggering'. The trick in controlling these mostly sub-conscious tendencies, is in understanding that which triggers them and avoiding them, if it is unpleasant or 'bad'. (The opposite is also true of course).
Observing the ego or 'I' thought can help avoid and control certain tendencies, understanding when it is a motivation of selfishness, or altruism.
The ego looks for liner achievement to fulfill itself. However even on achieving great goals the feeling of unfulfillment is still there, for it is related to falsehood of egoistic activities. The nature of the ego is to be greedy and desire ever more and more of its desires.
ACTION OF NON-ACTION?
It is a common misconception that activity is required, to help humanity or do 'good'. However, once one understands the mind and the fact that it broadcasts vibrations, a person sitting in a cave and doing no activity could help the world, with invisible influences. Meditate on the space between thoughts and one will find out the truth.
ACTION.
With regard to the field of action, there is a great concept taught in the Bhagavad Gita, by Krishna to Arjuna. That is surrender, or 'no karma, karma'.. This essentially means surrendering the fruits of the action one is doing and leaving it to providence. Karma Yogis, are among the best known in history. St Vincent de Paul embraced this concept and used it as a devotion and to help the poor and downtrodden. This in fact brings the 'Universal' into the lives of many through the Yogi or Saint, as well as expanding love and reducing the ego of the practitioner. For the Saint or Yogi offers his work itself as a prayer to the Universal, and therefore absolves himself of thinking about a successful or a result in failure. One doesn't have to do anything karma will take its course anyway. So surrender and have the confidence that as long as one complete's action things will unfold as they should do. One can create 'Good' karma for the future and future 'Lives', for 'Dream actions have dream results'.
Motivation and Desire.
Motivation is a belief in the present, but it is also following one's bliss. Find your inner feeling and you will find your raison d'etre or goal.
There may be other goals on the way. It is a matter of being positive, complete your actions, and surrender to the moment. There is an old saying that we become what we think about and this is so true, for we are thinking of what we are at a deeper level.
HOPE.
Hope is an expectation with a belief the goal is already mentally achieved, except for the action to complete. This does involve visualization and dreaming the goal but also act. Dreaming the goal brings it up from the subconscious present. Think in the present for the present is the result and no result can be achieved without the present.
'The person who has the most success is the one who expects it'. For they know they are already successful in the present.
So after the goal is set dwell in the present not on the desire for the desire will invariably not measure up and result in unhappiness and frustration. This is due to the energy being forced in contrast to the truth of the subconscious present. So dwelling in the moment is an advantage for there is less stress, good vibrations of happiness, and peace. This leaves people in a sense of relaxation, enthusiasm and communication
