Like steam, water and ice are one H2O... Sailor Bob and the ND group. 7 Apr 2024

And someone coming in still. That's Marvie, and Horace, and Raymond, Julia, Navi, and Nisargura. Ruma, Ruma, Ruma, Tanya, Nandie, Joe, Nina, I was lucky. Robert here there. Marty, would you like to grab a picture of him? There's one more inside. Oh, that's nice. Oh, Marty. Here we go. Thank you. We are online. Yes, sir. Morning, Gerald. Good to see you. And you all know what it's all about. What we always talk about. What they call in some of the ancient texts non-duality. Non-duality meaning one without a second, not two. Only that. Absolutely. And perfect. As it is. As it is doesn't mean it doesn't need to be changed.

And it can't be changed. But things are not as they appear to be. And they call it a phenomenal manifestation. And the definition of phenomenal is that which appears to be. And we see so many different things that are manifest right here and right now. But we take it to be actually separate, divided. But it's not. It's only that. That's the great mantra. And you all heard that and you all know that. And you know that. Because that's the chair you are sitting in. That's the trees, theりis, the flat. And the black. And the class. And the three. And the two. And the two. And the two.

And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. And the two. you, me, everything is that already. And it's only that, the one and only, that which is. Not something that was or something that will be. Because that brings into it the concept of time. And when you look into these manifestations you'll see that that's all. Time is the mental concept. If you ask yourself, is there a past if I don't think about it? Have a look at that and you realise, you can't say there is a past without a thought, without a concept or a word.

And you say, I was in the past. But go and try and live five minutes ago or last week or last year. You can't live in the past, it's gone. And if it wasn't recalled, you can only recall it, but when you're recalling it, it's always called in this present moment. You can't recall it, it's gone. You can't even remember that it happened without the recognition. The same with the future. You can't live in the future. But you can anticipate and imagine what you're going to do when you leave here. And that anticipation and imagination will be going on now. What about this presence? Well they call it omnipresence, total presence.

Presence is spontaneous. It's got no duration so it's got no time. It's spontaneously happening. Try and grab this now moment. I've got it. But as soon as you say that it's already gone. And another one of those. So you realise, investigate, that you'll see time is a mental concept. And they call it absolute or the great perfection. And the Buddhist says the great perfection is non-conceptual awareness. It's this awareness without any concept. In Hindus they'll say it's Satyata Nanda, existence, consciousness, bliss. Or another way of putting that, being, knowing or loving to be. Or another way of putting that is awareness of being is bliss.

Different ways they're pointing to the same thing. Only that one essence. The absolute. If you recognise that it is absolute, what can you add to absolute? You can't add anything at all to it. What can you take away from absolute? You can't take anything away from it. And what would you want from anybody else? If it's absolute, you know you are already that. And everything is yours. And they tell you that in a lot of the scriptures. But we've got this conceptual image we believe ourselves to be. This separate idea that we are this person, this individual. This separate entity. And when you look at that, you see it's only me that can be fearful.

Only me can be anxious. Only me can be unhappy, depressed, guilty, jealous, envy. All the psychological problems come about because we relate to this believed in entity. This seeming person that we take ourselves to be. Person, where does that word come from? It comes from ancient Lakin, person, persona, the mask. So all these concepts or thoughts or words we've got are masking or obscuring the reality. The natural state that you are. Natural. What's that mean? The same as nature. Look out there in nature. And you'll see things are happening or appearing to happen there. Coming and going. You'll see things are happening. You'll see things are happening.

But nature is not concerned with any of it. It allows it to happen and express and it does. And everything works itself out. As Banky as Zenvunk in the 16th century tells you. He called it the unborn Buddha mind. And he tells you that everything is perfectly resolved in the unborn mind. And he goes on to add, why exchange the unborn for thought? And as soon as we bring thought in it, this seeming mind is born. And we take ourselves to be this person, this body, mind. Investigate. And that's what they tell us. The false cannot stand up to investigation. Know the truth. Know the truth.

The truth will set you free. And the thing is, we haven't looked into these things. Well, a few of you here might have looked into them now. But the majority of people don't. And when you do look at them, you see for yourself that what they were pointing out is the truth. And you're free. And you're free. What do you mean to be from? Free from the bondage of self. It's believing in the self as the bondage. We tie it up. It's the fetters or ties or we put on ourselves and tie ourselves up in these concepts. And so we need to investigate it. Well, you might need to, you might not.

Some might, some won't. Some will. But they'll tell you that the false cannot stand up to investigation. Pointing out that if it is investigated, you will see through it. You can't help but see through it and recognise it. Am I this body? Am I this mind? Am I this mind? Well, lately you know already when you say my body, my mind. You say my house, my car, my coat. Are you the house? You're not the house. Are you the coat? No. Or are you the car? No. So maybe you're not the body either. And when you'll investigate and have a look, you'll say, what's this body made up of?

You'll see it's made up of elements. Air, earth, fire, water, space. Just like the elements around you. Try and separate yourself from those elements. Stop breathing. You wouldn't last too long. Stop the heart beating. You wouldn't last too long. Take the water out of your body. That element you can't. Take the fire. You don't have to go. The body temperature, you'll soon die if those elements weren't there. And all those elements can be broken down into subatomic particles. Those subatomic particles have been broken down into pure energy. Pure vibration. Same with the sink or mind. Again, you say, my mind. Show me a mind if you believe you are the mind.

Or you have a mind. have a mind. And you'll realise that Shakespeare told you there's nothing either good or bad but thinking likes it so. So we think we have this mind, this conceptual image, this person and the delay that the so-called mind is thinking. But what is mind? Your eyes, when you look into it, it's nothing but word. Word mind is not the mind. You can't show me a thing called mind. And what's word? Sound. And what's sound? A vibration. What's vibration? A movement of energy. So everything can be broken down into that vibrating intelligence energy. I call it an intelligence energy. And so would you if you look around and you see how all these pattern shapes and forms, which is nothing but vibrations of energy, the way they pattern shape and form implies that they're not just accidental or haphazard.

It implies they're suffused with intelligence to pattern shape and form the human body for a start off. And all the, everything that's going on and that implies there's a lot of intelligence in the trees, the flowers, the mountains, the hills, the stars, the planets, everything else. The way they're patterning, forming and expressing implies they are suffused with that intelligence called life. It's another term for intelligence. It's life. And Christ told you, I am the life of the world. I wasn't talking about himself. He was talking about that sense of presence which translates through the mind as the thought I am. And each one of you knows that thought I am.

That I am is the sense of presence. And there's no one who is unaware right now. There's no one who is not existing right now. Conscious, existence, consciousness, no one is happy to be. Not happy to be. They don't want to be dead right now. So you're all happy to be. And the other two factors, Naama Rupa. The Naama is the name we've been given and the Rupa is the form, the body. As Pat and Sample, we shall put those words on. So where does it all come about? You realise it comes about through the learning of words. But words on everything. Tells it in the Bible.

In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God. The Word was God. That's all that God is. Another label or another word. All things were made by Him. And isn't that so? Everything in this manifestation has a Word on it. And there was nothing made without the Word. Without the Word. And that Word was made flesh and dwelt among us. So it's that Word that's expressing through everything. It's the very life essence of everything we are. that Word. And when, how many words were you born with? When you stop and have a look at that, you realise you weren't born with any words.

So how can you say, I was born? And when you look into it, you realise you can't remember your birth. And you don't remember anything until you were a couple of years old. When your parents fussing around you, called you Little Johnny or Little Jean or whatever your name might be. And you take it on the meaning, this is what I am. I am this person. This little Jane or little Johnny. Take ourselves to be the Word. But we point out before too, that the Word is not the thing. There's no Word that is the actual. Take the word water. Try and drink the Word.

You won't be able to drink the Word. Try and wash in it or drown in it. You can't wash or drown in it. Take the word fire. Try and cook with it or heat yourself with it. So you can go through all the words and see they are just labels or tags we put on things. They are not the actual. So the word is not the actual. It is just a name or a label. Now if you went into a department store to buy a shirt and you came out with a label, you wouldn't be too happy because you wouldn't have the thing. But we have got all these words we have labelled ourselves with and we wonder why things don't run smoothly and happily.

Because we stop putting the Word on them and leaving the Word to be real. So I can't say I am this body. I can't say I am this mind. But the sense of presence or the awareness of presence I cannot negate. Can you? Anybody say they are unaware of it? You can't say they are unaware right now? You can't. You know that you are aware. So what are you searching for? You are searching for that life essence as you are or that godliness or beingness. And where it's described as Sat, Shet and Ander, existence consciousness. And you recognise you are existing right now. You are And you are conscious right now.

And you are happy to be. What else are you going to find? If that's the absolute. But we don't think it is. We think we've got some concept. Where some of the scriptures are written about a higher power, what they call a god or a greater being. And we take that there is something. We'll have a look at that. And you are and you're happy to be, what else are you going to find? If that's the absolute. But we don't think it is. We think we've got some concept where some of the scriptures are written about a higher power, what they call a god, or a greater being.

And we take that there is something. Well, have a look at that, a greater being. We call ourselves human beings. You believe in God, you'll call God the supreme being. What happens if you take that word supreme off and take the word human off? Try and separate the beingness without the label. There's no one in this room who can say, I am not. Each one of us knows I am. And yet, we've got the concept or idea that there's got to be more to it than that. The sense of presence. The awareness of being. The loving to be. It's right there with you, right here, right now.

Where did this... How did we come into existence? We think we were born. We're told we were born, but nobody can remember their birth. Why can't you remember your birth? How could you remember it when you didn't have any words? People say they remember their birth, but if they didn't have any words, how could you say I was born? You couldn't. And you realise you couldn't have any words till you were a couple of years old. And that's when the body was developing. And the presence of awareness in it was growing. And we learnt words. The capacity of reasoning developing. You can reason these things, start to reason things out.

With the capacity of reasoning. And we learnt words and took the word to be the real, without questioning. Instead of realising that I am the absolute, you took on the idea I am little Johnny or little Billy or little Jane. And you know that too now because somebody asks you who you are, you'll say I am Jane or I am John, whatever your name is. None of us say I am the great perfection, I am the absolute. And you wouldn't because people are putting you in the funny farm if you did. But that's the fact, now in your heart that that is all there is.

And I am that. I am that non-dual one without a second. How did you come into existence? Well take that pattern you call your father, that life essence, that intelligence energy, that pattern in that animatic life essence you call your father, through the prana, the breath and the heart beating and the food he is eating and the life in it, enabled in that pattern a little microscope particle called the sperm to form. You can't see it with your naked eye. But that sperm was suffused with intelligence. It knew what to do. And the same in your mother, that animatic life essence, intelligence energy in your mother, enabled in that pattern another microscope called an egg or an ovum to form.

That ovum was suffused with intelligence. It knew what to do. It attached itself to the wall of the uterus. And the sperm, knowing what to do, swam to the ovum. So these two weren't those two blobs of goo. They were suffused with life. And when they came together and that cell doubled and doubled and formed a little embryo, the little fetus, which is what you are today. What were you doing about it then as you were growing in the womb? Nothing. What were you doing when you were first born? Nothing. You were out now and you were breathing on your own, heart beating and seeing and things were happening like that and you didn't learn any words to let capacity for reasons develop more and your parents fussing around you speaking words.

You picked up the words and we took the words to be real. Instead of saying, I am the absolute, now I am little Billy or little Jean. And that little Billy or little Jean didn't know a great deal. It was picking up more words as it went along. When it went to school and the reasoning developed, it learnt more words. And then we got all sorts of words seeing what the word is, the sound, the vibration, the vibration is a movement of energy and it vibrates into sound or words or thoughts or ideas. So it's all vibrating patterns of energy which we label as words and label the words as me or I and we take on the word and that's the cause of all our psychological suffering.

Only me can be fearful, only me can be anxious. Only me can be depressed or unhappy. Me is the cause of all this fear, anxiety, stress, jealousy, and they. And they are the effects of the cause, me. Cause and effect. Isn't that what they call karma? Cause and effect. We talk about this karma and I got this karma and that karma. If it's cause and effect and I look at it and see that the cause, me, is a word, a concept. Has no substance or any independent nature whatsoever. And I ask myself the simple question, if I'm not relating to the cause, can there be an effect?

Well if you're not relating to the cause, how can there be an effect? There's no relationship to it. It's just as it is. So it can be rid of all the psychological problems that are going on by not relating to them and dividing and separating what is inseparable. And what's it all appear in? When you look and investigate you'll see everything, every so-called thing that's appearing in this manifestation is the content of space. Space is the basic thing which everything appears. Have a look at it, investigate that. Space is no thing. Can't grab it, can't find a beginning to it, can't find an end to it, a height to it, a depth or a warmth or a cold.

It is no thing whatsoever but everything including you, me and everything is the content of space. That's what they call it, the basic space of phenomena. All this manifestation is phenomena and it's all taking place in that space, the base of it all. The definition of phenomena is that which appears to be. the way. So though it's all seemingly here before our very eyes right now, what's it all in? You don't have a mirror of scholarly work out, it's all the adornment of space. It's all appearing on that space. Just like you've got a mirror at the end of the room there, what's in the mirror?

It's full of reflections. When you investigate, see, go up and try and grab one of those reflections out of the mirror, you can't say there's anything there, but you can't say it's not so it still appears to be there, but you can't say it is, but you can't grasp it. But every reflectional image in the mirror is the adornment of that mirror, just like everything is in a space is the adornment of space. So you and I and everything else is that space-like awareness. That being, knowing, and loving to be, that life itself. And this argument tells you there's only life. That's all there is.

There's nobody who lives a life. And he says life lives on life. And out of life, more life comes. And that's where we came from. As I pointed out earlier, the sperm and the ovum coming from the parents, the food they're eating and the breath they're breathing. So life comes from life. And out of life, more life comes and goes. life. But it's absolute. Space is no thing and everything is the content of space. Can something come from no thing? It can't. space. So all these things which are adornments of space are nothing but patterns, shapes and forms like images in the mirror appearing in that space.

Space has no beginning, no ending, no start, no finish. And see what happens. When they were born, you came out of that space through the different elements and things like that. When you die, where do you think it'll go? Well, the human body will either be buried, put in a box or burnt. And that will continue to break down. And as they say, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. And those ashes and dust will go further down into space. So it came from space, been fattening, shaping and forming and appearing in space, enjoying the dream, the pattern or not enjoying it if you're having a bad trot.

But that's our own fault because we didn't investigate it. And you go back into the space again. The absolute. So though we fear separate and isolated and take on that separate entity, that individualism and separation, it's not how it is. You are absolute, nor ways will be. The Buddha called it a cognizing emptiness. Space is empty. And he called it a cognizing emptiness. And we think, yeah, that's right, we cognize or know the emptiness. But it doesn't mean that at all. It means the emptiness has the capacity of cognizing and is cognizing. And he made the statement then that emptiness is form. you, me, and everything else in this room, the trees, the flowers, everything in this manifestation are forms, shapes and forms.

And they're all emptiness. Because he turns it around the other way and says emptiness is forms. And he says the forms can be nothing other than the emptiness, whether you like it or not. that's all there is. Nothing other than that. And the telegram tells you in the Hinsing Ming the changes that occur in this empty world. Come on, I forget what goes after that. Anyway, it's in there. You can read it. It's all. But it tells us all continually changing. appearing and disappearing. Now, if that is recognised that I am that space-like awareness, I am that no-thing in which everything appears or absolute and there's nothing that can be superior to me, nothing that can be inferior to you and I wouldn't want anything from anyone else.

wouldn't life be a lot different? I mean, I'm not going all these shapes and forms, concepts, ideas and beliefs and dividing everything up into the fear, the anxiety, the stress, the guilt, the shame and remorse, having a horrible time when if you're living as the absolute and realise that it all unfolds and expresses as itself. As Christ told you years ago, take no thought for your life, what you shall drink, what you shall wear. Your father knoweth have neither of these things and it's your father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom. we take thought about it and try to alter it, change it and moderate and change it and get lost in the concepts whereas if things are left as they are, they work out.

What have you done about growing yourself from the sperm and the ovum? Those two things come together. What have you done about any of that? Nothing at all. and first you're likely to learn words nothing at all and when you learn words you've got the idea that you were doing but it wasn't you at all as a person. Is it you that's taking that breath now? What's taking it? Is it the me, the person? And you realise it can't possibly be the me, the person because it's just a word. It's got no substance or any independent nature to it whatsoever. It's just a thought and if I ask you what's your next thought going to be?

You'll say I don't know and you don't but a thought will come up and the thought comes up what happens? We claim it I think I think this thought so you've done that what have you done? You've formed a subject a thinker and realise that thinker is nothing but the thought I think and what you're thinking has become the object so there's the duality subject object thinker and thought apply that to the other sensations of feeling in the body seeing the thought comes up I see but does the I tell you I see? Well I'm not saying look at this or look at that it can't but it's the instrument through which the seeing is happening just like the brain and the head are the instruments it's the thinking that's happening it's translated we take on the idea that I or me is thinking or seeing or hearing or tasting touching smelling feeling the ing is the actuality seeing hearing tasting but the I think as the personal is the conceptual it is illusory it's the false one it's the one that gets us into trouble because it's only me that can be unhappy if I think I can think unhappiness it's only me that can be sad or loving or jealous or envied me is the cause of all my psychological problems and me is only a word a concept an idea it's not what I am take notice again what we told in the scriptures Christ tells us that in the Bible I am the way I am the truth I am the life not talking about himself as people thought he set him up as some great being talking about what we all are that sense of presence that I am-ness is the very life of you it's the awareness it's the beingness you are that sense of presence so recognize that know yourself as that as they say know the truth and the truth will set you free how does it work this idea that we are this separate in there well thinking has happened when you've reached about two two and a half you learnt words and thoughts well a thought will come up and it might be a nice thought a happy thought or a good thought well this is great but we don't want it to go we want the good things to be there all the time because we've tasted the other the opposite and not realized it's a vibration and no matter how much you love it or try and keep it there it's going to change it's not going to last everything in this manifestation is transient this body that you believe yourself and you're saying I am the same as you said when it was a couple of years old when you first started reading I am it's still I am now but it's the same body it's not it's changing right now in this very moment there are thousands of cells dying and being replaced some of them are getting cut out and not being replaced get a lot of road on it take a bit away it's being replaced so the good things are not going it's going to last but we don't realize and recognize that everything is transient constantly changing we think it's real so we don't want it to go away we don't want the opposite to come up with our unhappiness so what do we do well naturally we try to keep it there we resist it from going I've got to keep this thought going not really no matter how much I try to keep it there it's transient it's going to change anyway but we try with all our mind to keep it there so we're resisting it we're fighting with it we don't want it to go we don't want to lose the thought we want to be happy all the time and that fighting with it is conflict and if you're in conflict with something it means you're at war with it you're fighting it and that makes you uneasy this conflict trying to keep it there and struggle with it don't want to go watch what comes up then all the thoughts and feelings that come up so resistance is conflict and conflict makes you unhappy uneasy disease you're not at ease with your being so resistance conflict and disease that's what our life is turned around into something comes up you don't like oh I shouldn't be thinking this thought this will make me unhappy it'll make me worse so we try to get rid of that too try to keep it there we don't want that one to go the other one we try to get rid of this one we try to keep there the good or the bad thought the other way around I think it is but it doesn't matter but still we try to resist it again resistance conflict and to see so that's what our life is made up of this constant fight that's going on what is wrong with right now if I don't think about it can I say it's good without a thought can I say it's bad though the sensation or feeling might come up if I don't label the sensation or the feeling just leave it as it is what is means it's just as it is unaltered unmodified uncorrected no preference no partiality no comparison but it's free there's no conflict going on it's free to change as it will and when you realise that and start to see that these thoughts so we're making them opposites good bad pleasant painful happy sad loving hating as Shakespeare told you there's nothing either good or bad but thinking makes it so what's going on like that we don't want it to be like that and what you have to do to be like that you need to pause the thought wouldn't you and see if it's true and you can't pause the thought for very long because there is no thinker of a thought thoughts come up but it can be seen when you breathe out before you take the next thought and realise there's no thoughts coming in without the word there could be a little bit of a gap there and start to recognise that gap it will become more bigger and bigger and in that gap and there's no words going on you can't say it's good bad pleasant painful or nothing about it whatsoever it's just as it is presence awareness and in that period of presence awareness there's a sense of being well well being nothing wrong anymore a natural joyousness and sense of being wellness wells up because it's not being stamped on by the concept this is bad this is good I don't want it struggle and the conflict that goes on take a leaf from nature again everything is working out here just the same as it is in nature the sun's out there now and the earth is out there and this part of the earth is facing the sun so what is it means it's daylight here now the other side of the earth which is round is facing away from the sun so it's dark there so instead of being divided into day darkness you realise that the sun doesn't know anything about the darkness and the earth doesn't know anything about the darkness doesn't know anything about the light either but that's how it is when it turns around now the earth keeps rolling around it keeps moving and this part which is light now will turn into the darkness and the other part will be light so you see there's no one fighting with it or doing anything about it it comes about of its own accord now the same thing happens out there is happening here now if we're in this conflict with these thoughts instead of fighting with them trying to make the other come around leave it as it is realising there's two ends of the one stick it's not two separate sides not good and bad two ends of the one stick just as as two sides of the globe or the coin there's two sides of the coin so left as it is what happens like the earth rolling around the sun the so called bad will come up again and it's not fought with a left as it is it'll change and the good will come around again and so the cycles will come about like in nature day and night winter summer high tide low tide seasons good bad things wet dry storm all the pairs of opposites are all out there but they're not fighting with each other like we do here they're allowed to happen and be as they are and as Banky told us everything is perfectly resolved in the unborn mind we're not using that mind to think good and bad just leave it as it is and he says it resolves in the unborn one that it does leaving things as it is he's giving you the clue there it resolves itself and we don't have to put this struggle in for things in this manifestation that are useful and all the rest but you need to put it in the you'll know what to do with those things but life itself and the functioning of life happens quite naturally and effortlessly so the good comes about and the bad will come up go outside again and I say look at that cloudy day you realise the sun is obscured the sun forms the cloud how does that cloud come about you realise when you look at it you investigate the sun forms the cloud how does the sun do that well it's natural function is to shine to radiate its heat that's warmth in that radiation it forms it evaporates water which rises and condenses and forms the cloud which obscures it so see it's still that nature it's just one essence it's doing everything just the same as it's doing with our thinking and everything else see the way things function in nature or in life and realise you and I and everything else is that light thought feeling emotion like steam water and ice what's happening in nature thought feeling emotion are happening in this world thought will come up and then the sensation which will develop into the feeling if it's kept there long enough and that feeling will cause this anger the fear the jealousy the envy emotion it's another word for that energy in motion energy becomes active and struggles and causes all these concepts and we lost in this fear this anxiety recognise that it doesn't have to be that way and it's not that hard to see it's very simple it's that simple that we miss it there is nothing simpler than one and everything is that one and there's a lot of you in this room who know it have been coming along and listen to it you realise out there the old way is not good enough leaving some big daddy in the sky that's going to beat the shit out of you don't do this or don't do that you know recognise there is the one essence the one power and you are that one the pattern shape and form you're expressing to it now is just an adornment it is the concept that seemingly forms into space or space forms into the content but you've never moved away from that spaciousness and in looking and living the natural way your very life is a lot different it eases out the ease of being the sense of well-being being well nothing wrong the love of being and they say God is love if you believe in this thing called God well God is love they tell you that clearly why don't you turn it when you turn it the other way if God is love the love must be God and that sensation that you feel that heartfelt essence that joins us that comes over is the godliness in you but we ignore it we think it's got to be somebody out there that is different from us and try and find it but it's in your very breath it's in the very heartbeat the feelings and everything that's going on and you are that and only and ever that and that's that thank you and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and andivo and and and and and and and and and and and and and and and andivo 30 people plus minus watching with us from around Australia and around the world.

And they only have to say good morning, good day, one and all and blessings. So good. So there really are no questions or no highlights. So the magic wand goes up to you. Anyone would like to open up, start with a question, a highlight and anything that comes up? I like to mention that. I hear that a lot. I'll say that. Thanks, Mari. Wow. Look at that. How's everyone doing? I wanted to kind of shed light on just a pattern of mine that I feel like comes up a lot is the seeking. You know, trying to find the answer or understand non-duality. And, you know, I've been investigating and I encourage everyone else to, you know, not take my word for it, but actually investigate for yourself as well.

That, you know, the seeking or trying to find something. We think that that process is going to satisfy or actually, you know, fill this, you know, this craving that we have to find who we are or to understand it better or whatever it is. We think that by seeking we think that by seeking we're going to satisfy that. But actually that feeling that we have that craving to seek is actually created by seeking. It's not actually satisfied through seeking. So if you actually, you know, if you actually look at it, you know, if you have this drive to find out or understand or seek, just notice that that in itself is actually will not satisfy the search.

It will actually just create the unsatisfaction. And so the only way to clear that up is not to search. And then when you don't search, now you're satisfied. Yeah, that's all I wanted to say. That's a really good point. And it's always worthy of highlighting. And thank you. You can actually see how adopting a role of a seeker, the assumption of a seeker, something that you are already missing, that is only reinforcing the sense of luck. And you can't just stop because there is no you to stop. But there is a possibility of recognizing that within that whole field of knowing, that part of that seeking part, that desire to find the sense of fulfillment is known from the point of completeness.

It's also, it's recognized, just recognize that part of yourself, which doesn't seek anymore, which doesn't need to seek anymore, which never really did. That peaceful, spacious part, see that the seeking entity or identity is not always present. So it couldn't possibly be who you truly are. If sometimes it comes up and sometimes it doesn't. So there is a part which doesn't, never did, never need to seek completeness. You wanted to add something? Oh, you know, Laura. Okay, I have one. I have a few beautiful musings from a friend that I made over the email. And he watched our meetings and he made a couple of really sweet, poetic little comments to what people were saying last week.

Like Tibor was talking about capturing photos of the shadow. So Ray is saying shadow play in the infinite. It appears that in the vastness of luminous space, objects project shadows that seem to have movement and a life of their own. What a metaphor. And in Bob's opening talk, especially when he spoke about imagination and space, imagination unleashed the tale of an elf to self. In the realm of imagination, an elf, a lively and mischievous creature ponders the idea of adding the letter L, S to its name elf, which might transform it into a self, an entity which its own unique identity, autonomous will and actual independence from similar beings.

It imagines that this transformation would allow it to leap out of the realm of imagination and become an actuality, as real and aware as the space would then occupy. How sweet. Put the S on it. Put the S and then elf becomes a self. And one could say the infinite field of potentiality suddenly takes a position, a viewpoint, a perspective. And that perspective becomes solidified by that act of energy, of belief, solidifying it. Everything that is believed seems real. I have a few more, but I would like you guys to contribute to me. Give us something new that will inspire, maybe write a comment on it.

Mitra, wonderful. So I just heard something, I mean, this morning, probably, I'm not saying it very accurately, but someone asked what is consciousness, and someone answered that it's our capacity, to reflect, like, so, and then it occurred to me, and I don't know, during Bob's talk somehow, that if it's all reflection, you know, it's like everything is a reflection, so what is reality, I mean, can we even perceive it, like, all of these are a reflection in our head, because we can't, I mean, seeing even is a reflection, right, because the seeing happens in our brain, right, so what is real, I mean, how can we, what is real then, how do you see reality?

The reality is that we never change it, when does, when does space change, can you find a centre to it, a start to it, a finish to it? No. Lots of appearances, that's all they are, appearances. Okay. And the consciousness, the definition of consciousness is existence, utterly aware that it exists, so it's the true awareness, awareness first, then it becomes conscious. It's all happening, you can't say first or second, it's all happening just as it is right now. You try to grasp it with a concept, then you fail. It's non-conceptual. Because you can't negate your own being. See, that is an answer, a good answer to the question, what is real?

Instead of going with the belief, or going with the theory, scientific theory, or any definition of consciousness, or any definition at all, go to your direct experience and see what is undeniable right at this moment. What is real, that you don't know from someone else telling you, that you don't know from language, and from describing something that you understand from the past. Because even your childhood, or whatever, your past memories, is something completely reliant on the activity, brain activity. So that what is actually real, right in this moment, that you can't ever deny or question. This aliveness. This aliveness, yeah. Yeah, you can't stop being.

Yeah. So that is the reality, that is something you can totally rely on. And the rest is the adornment of space, like Bob beautifully calls it. Adornment. And you can just see the beauty of that adornment. You can delight in every moment, being so fully, juicily adorned with the taste and smells and textures and movements and sounds and all of it. That is which constantly changing. And the reality that never changes, that conscious awareness or that field of presence, in which that adornment shows up. Right. And now what you're going to put your heart into? The truth or the adornment, the ever changing? Right. Yes.

When you say put my heart like half. Yeah. What kind of... See, if you are in love with the world, you actually forget that you are that conscious presence. That's right. And that's perfectly fine. When I'm love, this is everything. That's like Nisargadatta says. When you are completely aware of your presence being an empty, vacant field of pure knowing, that that is the awareness of nothing. Whether your heart is completely with the present moment as the space, the pure potentiality, or your heart is completely with whatever that emptiness transforms into the form. If there is a heart, if there is a love present, you don't suffer.

But when you have one leg in one boat and the other leg in another boat, and you're sitting in your mind and you're commenting and you're complaining, no, I don't quite get it. Oh, no, this is wrong. This shouldn't have been this way. And this sound is right or this is not right. See, there is no love present. And that is a human suffering. Because every perspective from which you are complaining about the reality is the perspective of I know better than the totality how this moment should look like. I, this is me. I'm wiser than God. I'm wiser than life. I don't like it this way.

So where is your heart now? Yeah. Yeah. So when... Okay, that's, I get that. Like, like... It's yours, take it. Sorry? You get it? It's yours, take it. It's yours, take it. Thank you. A lot of people get... Don't understand what they're talking about when they're talking about heart. But I think we're talking about the physical heart. It is not the heart as the core of your being or the centre or the symbol of the spirit. And you know what heart to heart is when you feel your people's heart, my heart go out. That sensation that comes in the body, it's not your heart jumping up and your throat again.

It's quite a period of it. But it's a scent. But it's felt here, right? Yeah. Somehow. Yeah. Here. That's what I say. In this position. Here. Here is the right answer. Yes. It's located in the middle of my chest or halfway between the head and the toes. No. It's here. Right. It's not precisely locatable like a physical pain. But the here is the most intimate sense of presence right in this moment and right in here. But you know, that sense of presence or aliveness, I just feel it within the boundary of my body. How do you know that? Yes. Because the boundaries, when they dissolve, I agree.

Like if I close my eyes within 30 seconds, they all dissolve. There you go. But then. So what creates them? I don't feel it here. Like Julia is there and I feel the aliveness closest to this part. That's right. What creates that boundary? What creates that boundary? First of all, you open your eyes, right? That creates the boundary. What else creates the boundary? The feeling that aliveness is mine and not. Yes. Yeah. The feeling, the sensations does that. No. Sensation doesn't do anything. Interpretation of sensation. You interpret the sensation. The mind comes in and interpret it for you. Because the sensation, the only thing you could honestly say about the sensation is here.

So you feel the aliveness even here? Apart from there, you feel it in me too? Wrong question. If you say you feel it here or there, you know, if there is a you that feels things here and there, that's confusion. If there is no sense of questioning or no sense of creating a boundaries, I can say that aliveness is here. But that here doesn't end here or there. It doesn't end anywhere. It's here. That's it. End of story. The moment you open your eyes, you start thinking, oh, no, no, that here is there. It's just this. This is where the here ends and the there starts.

That's the thought. Without that thought, here is all there is. Here is the only thing you can experience. You can't experience there. You can only conceptualize there. That's right. Imagine there. That's right. That makes sense. And defining here, see where it comes from. It comes from the thinking. Because you close your eyes and you stop thinking. Boundaries disappear. Definitions disappear. Here. That's it. No concept. Where it begins, where it ends, how far it reaches. No concept. Without a concept, there is no boundaries. There is no separation. Right. Yes. That makes sense. And then the desire to experience a feeling of somebody else or maybe the sight of somebody else.

Well, that's that beautiful 3D entertaining machinery which invites you for the trip of imagination. Imagining. And that's called empathy too. Or compassion. It's a wonderful capacity. Right. Thank you. Thank you. Yeah. It's nice. Thank you so much. And I have a couple of comments here from Ram says, you can just stop seeking. That's not going to work. What is required is a serious and intense search for the seeker itself. Who is seeking? Is the seeker real? What is this energy of seeking? Where does it come from? Look and see. The dissolution of the belief in seeking is the end of seeking. And John David says, with the eclipse happening this week, I found a beautiful quote from Nisargadatta that could lead to further discussion.

The mind must learn that beyond the moving mind there is a background of awareness which does not change. The mind must come to know the true self and respect it and cease covering it up like the moon which obscures the sun during solar eclipse. Just realize that nothing observable or experienceable is you or binds you. Take no notice of what is not yourself. And Gilbert commented on that. That was Nisargadatta's quote. Boundless awareness. And Vivek says, heart is a pointer, not physical. Boundary of the body? Check if the emphasis is on the body. And a smiling face. I heart is just for pointing, stay in existence.

And JB says, so seeking is a belief then? Seeking is a belief then, that's the question. But reality doesn't need or require any belief. It just is as it is in this ever present immediacy without any concept of belief. Belief is a step away from what is then. Yeah, absolutely. Yeah, good point. JB, yes. Seeking is a load of assumptions. That there is something missing. That there is something missing. That there is something to be found. That there is someone to find it. There are tons of assumptions there which perpetuate that action of looking for something else than this moment. Yeah, good point. And belief is a step away from what is then.

Well, you can't really step away from what is then. But if the attention covers up what is, by investing in that imaginary belief, so-called belief, then the illusion of stepping away from what is, is very persistent. Do you want to add something? On a belief maybe? Pretty well, I was going to. Anyone else would like to elaborate or add something? I love the quote by E. Dishanti. A belief is a container for uncertainty. Do you believe the sun's going to rise tomorrow? Yes. Or do you know the sun's going to rise tomorrow? I know. So you don't need to believe the sun's rising tomorrow. Interesting.

Do you really know that? That's a... Do you really know that? I mean, there is thousands of civilizations that's been, maybe not thousands, but at least historically we know there was a lot of civilizations who, and individuals, who might have believed the same thing and died in the sleep, like a gambler. So question it. Question it. Question it. If there is a strong knowing that the sun is going to rise or the next breath is going to be in that body, well, if there is any sense of certainty around future, something that is not happening right now, that's a wonderful invitation to just question it.

See, if you really know that, this is a beautiful example of a distinction between the belief and the knowing. Because you can totally pull it apart. Yeah, but there are some... I mean, there is some knowing, right? Yeah. We are that knowing, you say. That's right. I wonder about what exactly it feels, but... But it's not conceptual. Conceptual. Conceptual is not a true knowing. Conceptual knowing or intellectual understanding, like people like to say, is plain imagination being believed. Little children know the Santa is real. They know it, of course, because they believe it. But sun rise. Right now. Right now. What do you know about tomorrow?

Oh, yeah. Does it even exist? Does it even exist? Unless you imagine it. That might sound like a negative thought. But it is just a plain honesty. That's the truth. There is no such thing. So if we don't even say that, then what is left? Like just being alive? Right now. Isn't that enough? Yeah, that's... Yeah, look what the cat knows about the sunrise tomorrow. I was looking at the... Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. This is the true freedom. You don't have to worry about anything that is not happening. And if there is something to be attended to, you can totally trust on life. Just like life will have another heartbeat for you, it will have the right thought.

Ah, taxes. Ah, have to choose the dentist. There was a comment here on our little Facebook group. Anyone is invited to actually join our little private Facebook group. And there was a comment on free will. Like if there is no free will, well, I have to still choose the dentist. Well, nobody says there is no free will. All we say is there is no owner imagined entity who possesses the free will. You can say the will is free. Everything is totally free to flow whatever, wherever. But if there is an imagined entity who has or owns the free will, well, basically the next thing, that imagined entity will not get their willing things happen and there will be a suffering.

And that's fine too. The truth is, if the thought is required, it will appear. If the sweat on the skin is required, it will appear. And if it doesn't, it wasn't required, obviously. Right. Simple. Thank you. The ancient Chinese, I believe, knew when to go to the dentist. What time was appropriate? It was 2.30. I think. Oh, oh, oh, oh. And I'll be very quick. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No.

No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. No. I did a lot of confusing things around seeking you know if I'm seeking then I'm not satisfied if I'm doing this also thoughts kept arising about looking within, without, around about years of it but then I think I came to a bit of a realisation or became apparent to me that actually it's just intuitively correct so if I had to say question that it was simply validated by the lightness of being more of a lightness of being so I can't deny that say seeking I mean everyone seeks before but as long as it was coming from an intuitive part Bob sort of you you know through difficulties or one thing or another but that's an intuitive direction so it's one if they were to use a word one just to choose a word because you have to be able to communicate then we say the word I'm seeking but I think the thing for me was to take away but the actual awakening is not something I can do the me grace whatever life is going to do is going to do but the intuitive path of seeking is still okay it's just all okay as long as I don't determine the outcome because life will determine the outcome when or when you're ready or not absolutely I don't think from this place I can't determine because I used to get frustrated and think well if I'm doing this and I'm doing it night and day in and out and around about seeking you know going over to Nepal or some other place looking for me when me is already here it's already here so it made me laugh it was almost ridiculous I'm looking over there listening to every person to validate what's actually the experiencing what's the truth here but it had to start with the word seeking so I can't deny it I can't deny the word seeking as long as I don't give it the validation if it's a me seeking it's the inspiration from in here so I kind of return all the time to the in here or the whatever that's without a word yeah that's beautiful that's a perfect distinction because yes seeking happens I mean you look at the wildlife and show me the animal which will not be seeking for their you know nourishment or for the mate when the time comes or for the nesting place seeking is just part of life it's the movement we give it a label seeking but it is really just a movement attention is moving constantly but when the imagined self comes in and claims this is me I am seeking well now that totally innocent natural activity has been claimed and converted into something that has all those assumptions that ah this rejection of the moment resistance to to the life as it appears because I the seeker so it's beautiful beautifully thank you for highlighting it it is intuitive movement absolutely by all means call it seeking no issues with that it's just that yeah that empathy that's what we are all the time experiencing and creating yeah because we're here to have expansion you know for a while there I got lost in the thought oh that's it I just have to stay in the total you know void or whatever because anything else is going off on a tangent but then from from just experiencing love having children meeting friends talking this just general experiencing yeah it's doing its own thing yeah it's just doing its own thing so then I get inspired oh go over and see Bob and Kat but half the time's not because I've sat there two weeks thinking oh they they'll you know it's it's that that takes you there absolutely yeah you know so therefore I've annihilated or given twin points if I say seeking or non-seeking it's only a difference if as you said if you get dissatisfied with the result that hasn't come that you're predetermining from listening to your intuition yeah you know so kind of yeah and that's also a beautiful example of recognizing life in all thy ways you can see how life moves you to come here rather than the justifying story in the narrative that oh this is what I need to do this is what I I I I this is beautiful just recognizing how life moves you and take care of everything it provides thinking provides feelings provides the movement in the muscles it provides nourishment everything through many means spontaneously thank you thank you I just wanted to clarify what I said earlier I I've got nothing against seekers alright nothing against seekers I I just wanted to basically I mean just highlight something that I've noticed you know observing the mind is that oh there's a misconception that the mind thinks that by searching they will satisfy or you know find themselves or understand themselves I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that process because my mind's you know gone through that pattern of thought for years so I'm not saying that there's anything wrong with that and I think being okay with that is an important step in just allowing things to happen but but if you understand there's a misconception thinking that if I search that is going to satisfy me you know that is a misconception because in the search right in the process of searching you're actually creating the problem you're creating the the lack in searching so I mean I'm not saying don't search but I kind of am saying don't bother searching but as we've all said we're here right here so I mean there's no fucking point of searching for that anyway so maybe I am saying don't bother fucking searching but yeah the search creates the lack it creates and it doesn't satisfy it so I'm just clearing that misconception the searching will not satisfy you it would actually be the concession if that's the right word or the letting go of searching that will bring the answer that you're looking for which has been said you know by everyone in many different ways but I have nothing against seeking and you know I'm still seeking right now so having found the elephant that's in the room yet we still go out looking for its tracks but what Marnie was saying before about unsatisfactoriness the Buddha called that Dukkha it was one of the three characteristics of existence I think he was talking about that the dualistic existence and this that's unsatisfactoriness is something that I seem to know a lot about because it all seems to be unsatisfactory and then every now and then like you were saying the lightness of being comes in and you see you actually see the light it's not a metaphor or an analogy you see the light but it's very rare it seems with this character here and it's such an extreme difference between the unsatisfactoriness the Dukkha and actually feeling alive feeling really totally present and it comes up every now and then I'm intrigued by the way it operates because from an early age it was always seen to be connected with concentration like when you're doing your exams at school you probably haven't well this character again probably didn't study or wasn't serious about the lessons or learning at all but after trying to in the last minute attempt to come up with the right answers the bell would ring you'd come out from your exam and then you're suddenly in a different world you can hear the birds you can feel the fresh air you look around you think what's going on but that's just it seemed to be always linked with the effort of concentration and what and the fruits of that would be mindfulness and in the Buddhist terms it would be a connection a process of mindfulness the rise of energy with the energy comes joy and with the joy there's the fullness of that and then you rest in equanimity eventually it's amazing process that seems to be linked with concentration I just wonder if anyone has a similar feeling about that Tasha here Tasha just to offer a slightly different perspective on seeking when I was in the dark room in Guatemala you had a long time to ponder and I was pondering seeking and what came to me is that seeking can only ever only ever happen from the point of view of the separate self because otherwise it would be known as life unfolding or life happening and what came to me then was that which you seek is seeking you so there was a bit of pondering around that and then there was the realisation of oh wow that which is seeking is seeking to be sought life just wants to happen the pattern of life happening is a happening or an unfolding but when we separate from that oneness of life happening we split into a non-dual state of the seeker so the seeker is born because then we come from the mind of perception trying to concretise reality I don't know if I'm going to make any sense here but it made perfect sense to me that there is no real such thing as seeking other than from the separate self point of view and when I not that I'm very good at it but when I realise that there's dissatisfaction because what I'm seeking is not happening I realise then that the chasm or the gap between the seeker and the life unfolding is growing bigger and hence there lies the dissatisfaction but when those two sort of magnetic forces come back together as one there is no satisfaction and there is no dissatisfaction there is just life unfolding but when Tasha comes back with all her criticisms and judgements and condemnations and perception of what's right and wrong that's when the seeking is wrong or it's really good I don't know if that makes sense anyway that was my experience in Guatemala thank you beautiful I hate to admit it but sometimes I find it's really heady and I have a need to simplify things and I found seeking has helped me get some sense of a return to my being and you can sit in chaos for a while with it but it's knowing when to stop investigating and I had an example in more recent times where I had an issue and a decision to make and I consulted and consulted things happened and I was like in a tsunami and then life or intelligence created a situation where I had no choice of surgery and I came to accept whatever outcome knowing I had done everything that I could to contribute to that being positive and in retrospect now six months down the line I realized I was my own worst enemy through too much thinking which brought about even more crisis and ultimately the body or intelligence made the decision and I feel very blessed so I think there really is a place for thinking and evolving with awareness of what you're doing which can take you out of a chaos that that in itself can create if you can understand what I mean absolutely yeah and you can also see how intelligence brings up that discipline to evaluate to put your pros and cons on the card you know to consult specialists you can't think your next thought you can't choose your next thought but the thought will arise like Bob often points nobody knows what they're going to be thinking in five minutes we don't know because it depends on the ten thousand things so that intelligence of that life will bring the idea you may switch on the TV and the specialist may show up or your friend or your someone or the other will bring up the discipline who to consult what to do where to go next and this is recognizing life in its action recognizing that intelligence behind everything you can see how you are looked after just like your skin like Bob was saying the cells are being replaced thoughts are being also provided what is unnecessary and beautifully you highlighted that you know when that thinking ruminating over the thinking there is an action thought arising action thought let's plan or evaluate happens followed another action thought let's go and see the specialist and they're also a ruminating thoughts that are creating a story the narrative commenting oh am I doing the right thing oh no this is not this is gonna go wrong oh what about this about me me you know those things create so called psychological suffering and this is your great enemy the action thoughts which you can see they're coming naturally and spontaneously and they don't contain any me in it the action is of course about the body mind but there is no me owning the body mind it's precisely what every creature will do you know when the animal will get wounded it doesn't say oh I have to find the tree and sit under and lick my wound or my knee or whatever no if the action happens the body mind is taken care through that charged intention that brings about the action yes there was a coordinated surrender which was very peaceful actually and I didn't expect it and that in itself is a blessing yeah thank you Julia if you're seeking for us on zoom tomorrow remember that the Australians moved their clocks back oh thank you thank you for reminding us yes everyone who is also who is in America for the zoom tomorrow and also those who are in Europe for the zoom on Tuesdays and Thursdays we are one hour later now and I have couple of comments here from Gilbert concept is concept there are no misconceptions in reality non-conceptual awareness has no problem with concepts and Antonella says the imagined narrative created in the search is the fallacy and Tazi says why get involved in all those concepts about doubt confusion and belief recognize that your being is beyond any doubt and free of all concepts about confusion and belief you know that you are that's it brilliant this is a beautiful pearl yeah my analyzing and Linda says the distinction is the sense of doership as a seeker beautiful and then we have thank you messages and thank you everyone thank you thank you everyone thank you thank you