If it's not a paradox it's not the truth

Truth is one.  This world of duality has broken truth in two, and so for something to be true it must contain both opposing aspects.  No one point of view can ever be the truth.  Truth includes all viewpoints because there is some truth in all points of view.  This is why judgement is never justified.  Judgement is the result of the false belief that truth can be found in any one point of view.

Who is in control?

        Many people like the idea of dropping the ego and work hard at spiritual practice.  But of course, it could only be an ego that wants to “get rid of the ego.”  And much of spirituality is really the ego‘s constant desire for more.  In the case of spirituality, it is for more peace, more love, more enlightenment, etc.   It is the rare individual whose desire for truth is stronger than the desire for more or to be a “somebody”.    Most people use spirituality to become a better person, whereas the inconvenient truth is that there is no person.

      The following research evidence has been ignored by the media, much like the early discoveries of quantum mechanics, because its implications directly undermine our experience and our beliefs about reality.  It should be front page news, one of the most important discoveries of all time, but no one is talking about it.  We humans are so sure that we are in control of what we do, that we ignore evidence to the contrary.

           So here it is.  It is so simple and so difficult to believe.  When a person is hooked up to brain/body machine and an action is initiated, the thought to take that action occurs after the action itself.  So I reach for a cup and then, a thousandth of a second later, the thought arises “I’m going to lift that cup.” The brain makes up a commentary that takes ownership of what is already just happening. 

         If we look at birds flying in perfect formation, all of them moving together as one, it is clear that each bird is not in control of the overall pattern. There is some greater intelligence at work, even though if asked, each bird might insist that they are freely choosing where to fly.  We humans are being influenced by this same greater intelligence, and IT is living the life and making the choices that we mistakenly consider to be our own.   The human ego does not want to know this.  We go on making up a story to fit and take ownership of what is happening all by itself.

There is no chooser

      If it is seen that there is no choice, you can then see that there must be no chooser.  How can there be a chooser that can make no choices? This chooser, that does not exist, is what is referred to as the ego.  "It" (the story of "me") takes ownership of what would be (and must be) happening and calls it MY life.  As life proceeds, however, we have many opportunities to see how this "me," despite its belief in its own power, cannot control even the most basic things.  For example, the "me" story may be that “I want to stop (smoking, over eating, being lazy, being depressed, lying, drinking, thinking about my problems, etc, etc).”  What happens in most of these cases is that these "problems" continue anyway.  The ego says “I try to stop these behaviours but I just can’t.” This supposed ego is constantly revealed to have no power and no real existence if we are willing to notice.

        So if the ego is not in charge, than who or what is?  The answer of course is that nobody is in charge. Our lives are just happening, in the same way that everything else in the universe is just happening.  One might say that it is all the direct result of a Power that expressed itself about 14 billion years ago in what has been called the Big Bang.  This big bang had no choice but to be a big bang, and we, its direct descendents, have the same choice.  The big bang is not over yet and we and human evolution and everything else in the universe are a continuing expression of that.

      At first, when we realize that the main character of our story is just a concept and has no power to do anything, it may seem discouraging.  But there is a further revelation, waiting for us, that is much more empowering, when we discover that while our ego is not real, the Power that expressed itself as the Big Bang is indeed real, and we are That.  We humans, having forgotten what we are, are suffering from a painful case of mistaken identity. 

    It is the human condition to want  to see ourselves as separate and free.  As we look inside, however, and read in our holy books, we learn that there is no separate self.  This understanding, when fully digested, makes the idea of free will appear to be the impossibility that it is.  The question to be asked of a person claiming to have free will is, given that the ego is an illusion, who is it that is claiming to have free will?  When we give up the painful folly of creating a false self that takes responsibility for what is just happening, we can finally live in peace

We have no choice about our choices

       Imagine a child who is born with a passive, dependent nature, a child that seeks the approval of others in order to feel worthwhile.  Imagine he is born into a family that teaches that some people (blacks, Jews, Muslims, atheists, Hindus, women, gays, etc) are like a plague on the earth, and need to be eradicated for the good of all.  He is taught that this murder would not be murder, but a gift to god, and that anyone doing such holy service to god will be loved by all.   

  This child grows up and kills one of these “evil” people.  Knowing the biological and social influences on this child’s behavior, can it be said that he had a choice in the matter?  Given these preconditions, could he have chosen otherwise? But if you ask this killer why he did it, he would say that he chose to do it.  What seems clear is that while he “chose to do it,” he had no choice about his choice.

This same illusion of choice underlies every “choice” that we make.  All of our choices are governed by forces that are beyond our control (our genetics and past history).  We can seem to make choices but we cannot choose or control those choices.  We are as responsible for our choices to the same degree that the killer is responsible, and that is not at all.  When we recognize this we are offered total freedom from guilt and the belief in sin.  Forgiveness can then be offered to ourselves and everyone when it is seen that no one has had a choice in the matter. (“Forgive them Father for they know not what they do”) Everyone is doing the best they can at every moment and there is nobody to praise or blame.  It’s all just happening.

Law of Paradoxical Truth

      The Law of Paradoxical truth states that the opposite of a great truth, is also a great truth.  I am defining a  "great truth" as a fundamental belief we hold about an aspect of living such as the meaning of life, the correct ways to raise or educate or discipline a child, how to make and use money, the nature of love, how to have a happy life, beliefs about religion, and most importantly, the belief in our own story. (What kind of a person are we, what are our qualities and our faults, how have we succeeded and how have we failed, etc).

      Applying this Law to our great truths is a powerful tool to overcome false judgment and to learn to see the truth in all points of view.  Practice it by stating a great truth about something, like parenting, for example. What can you say for sure about what is the most important attribute of a parent?  Let's say your great truth is that parents should (set limits, or teach their children right from wrong, or send their kids to school, etc).

      The next step is to consider the truth in the opposite point of view.  So, in the above example, to see that parents should not (set limits, teach right from wrong, or send them to school). As we practice this with all of our great truths, we begin to see that our beliefs are just a point of view, just as true as all other points of view.  Think of a word that best describes you.  Can you also see the opposite?  If I think "I am smart", can I accept that I am also (at times) stupid? How about the opposites of honesty and dishonesty? Or gentle and cruel? When we don't acknowledge the truth of our inner opposites, we are stuck in a rigid story that needs continual judgment.  As we accept all opposites we flow with nature and live a life with nothing (and noone) to defend.

All one

 If humanity is to survive, a fundamental shift in human consciousness must occur.  This shift involves each of us releasing identification with our individual story and remembering our oneness with and interdependence on everything and everyone.  It’s the recognition that each of us are a part of a greater, integrated whole, called Humanity.  From this perspective all that is done is in the best interests of everyone.  From this perspective we care for and share with everyone, recognizing that giving and receiving are one and the same.  

A New Humanity

         There is a higher frequency of consciousness that is seeking expression through every human being.  It is the force behind everything we do.  If it is directed through a false self, it will result in unhappiness and a sense of lack.  If it is allowed to flow through a channel that is not encumbered by false identification, the results are inevitably healing and empowering for everyone.  When enough people live their lives in alignment with a higher consciousness, we will have birthed a new humanity in which love, compassion, wisdom, joy, abundance and creativity will simply be the way it is. 

Head vs heart

           Our bodies can be seen to have two minds, one with a center in the brain, and the other centered in the heart.    The brain-mind is responsible for the endless chatter and thinking that goes on in our heads.  The heart-mind broadcasts its thoughts on another frequency and sees its loving reflection everywhere.  The voice of higher self is simply the thoughts of our heart/mind.  The question is, what frequency are we tuned in to?

The new human potential

We have become new beings.  What we have been taught about ourselves and the world are thoroughly outdated.  We now have the potential to find what we have always wanted, an end to suffering and doorway to inner peace.  We can do it now.  We have the tools. We are ready.

the potential in fundamentalism

An experience of the infinite field, often described as Source or God, is independent of the level of consciousness of the individual.  When the individual’s level of consciousness is low, Spirit has a tendency to be expressed in violent, fundamentalist ideologies.  As consciousness reaches higher levels, Source Energy resonates with and is expressed by a belief system based on love and the recognition of the oneness of all beings.  As humans evolve into higher levels of awareness, those very people who are now the most violent, have the potential to lead us all into a global awakening where the rule of love takes root in each human heart.

the philosophy of "two-at-once"

 Until now, traditional psychology has focused exclusively on the mind, emotions and the physical body.   These are all objects of consciousness and arise in the infinite, unchanging  field of pure being.  Objects of consciousness continually change and therefore cannot offer any solid ground for identification or comfort.  When we look to that which changes (which is everything) for meaning , we live with the inevitable fear that comes from uncertaintly.  To know the true Self and to transcend fear is to discover the timeless, eternally unchanging  nature of what we really are.  To be an awakened being is to live fully with the recognition of both aspects of human nature, the eternal and the temporary.

Higher Consciousness Living Now

Higher consciousness is not a future state to be achieved.  It cannot be found in the world’s teachings, workshops, spiritual experiences, drug trips, etc  And the reason It cannot be found anywhere is because It (consciousness) is what is doing the looking.  All our attempts to find this True Self must fail because who we really are cannot be found.

Does knowing  this assist us on our spiritual path?  Yes. It shows us where not to look.  

call to awaken now

It’s not about letting go of our attachments,

It’s about realising that we are already free.

It’s time to stop the folly of seeking, of trying to awaken.

We are here, now.

There is no problem

Life is unfolding exactly as it should but the ego thinks it knows best what we should do or accomplish.  Ego tells us what our goals should be and when we don’t accomplish these goals we think we have an inner problem or some kind of unconscious avoidance of success.  This is not true.  What is happening in our lives should be happening, based on all that has come before. The problem is not that we are not achieving our goals; it is the false belief that reality should be different than it is.  Goals are deceptive because they give false authority to the ego.  The “unaimed arrow never misses” means that when we stop judging we realize that what we are doing is already hitting the bull’s eye.

remember

Let us remember who we are.
We are the bringers of Light.
We are the Awakeners.

We are the focal points of a new age.
We are the soothers of fear,
Bringing eternal love to a level the body’s eyes can see.
We are here to speak spirit’s gentle commandments,
We are here to show the way Home,
“on a journey without distance to a place we have never left”

The Illusion of Free Will

        What we choose to do is determined by factors over which we have no control, namely our genetics and our past life experiences.  The sense of having a choice makes the existence of a separate self seem real, but on closer observation we see only the play of impersonal, universal forces.  These forces “decide” what is, and we delude ourselves into thinking we are in control by taking responsibility for what is simply happening.  Without our inner commentary, it can be seen that everything is happening totally by itself, just as the body breathes, the sun shines and the birds sing.  Despite all our effort and worry, things are always just as they are.  There is no separate self that can do anything.

relationship turmoil

This is a hard time for couples.  Each of us is evolving so quickly that the old ways of being together no longer satisfy.  It’s understandable to take these changes personally even though they are connected to, and part of, a universal transformation.  Our relationships are being called to rise to a new level of consciousness where we come together offering our love rather than seeking it; where our choice for being together  comes from the joy of each other’s company and not to fill a lack that we imagine we have inside.  We are learning that relationships based on ego (who we thought we were) lead only to suffering.  We are learning, sometimes the hard way, to let our past and expectations go, leave our guilt, anger and blame behind us, and find at last, that we, are who we are looking for.

our church

This is
our church,
It has no boundaries,
It has no dogma
And no rules.
It is a place of celebration
And remembrance,
A place where we can leave
ourselves behind.

No trespassing

With all the evolutionary changes continuing at a faster and faster rate, raising a child today is like raising a new  species of being, unlike any previously existing.  We have no idea how this species will manifest when mature and if we  allow  our children to proceed with respect and encouragement,  they will grow to their fullest potential.  The ideal  parent has no desire to change or improve their child.  Acceptance and love are the only requirements 

road less travelled

There is a way to treat a child that will ensure that she grows up to be all she can be. This way requires that the parents want, more than anything  that their child be exactly as  she is, just as she was created.   This way, is the road less travelled. .  A path that can only be  traversed without the use of power, anger or criticism.   A path  based on the  utmost love, respect and devotion for our child’s  deepest Self.  And when we succeed, we discover that we are that same divine Self and we live in peace.                   

child's inborn potential

Every child now being born has the potential for Self Realization, but only those who are encouraged to remain in touch with their inborn gifts will be able to do so.  It is never a question of teaching anything to the child, but one of allowing child to know Himself.  This knowledge comes from within and only the child that has access to his inner world can reach this Knowing.

attention deficit disorder

There is no such thing as a child having an attention deficit disorder since the child is always attending to something. It is only when we want him to attend to what he is not attending to that a problem seems to arise.  But it is our problem.  It is not the child’s problem that he is not interested in what his parents and teachers want him to be.  Is it a disorder to not pay attention to what doesn’t interest you?  In school, the answer to this question is “yes.”  Instead of schools taking responsibility for their irrelevance to their student’s lives, they blame the students by creating an imaginary illness called ADHD.

ego as nothingness

      I was  just thinking about the digital world of 1's and 0's that seem to be able to become just about everything through the magic of our computers.  I then realized that digital technology is really about only one digit, the one.  There really is no zero;  it is merely empty space, the absence of one;  nothingness that we give the name zero to.  The idea of zero is analogous to the the story of ego.  It too seemsto be a co-creator of reality but does not really exist except as a concept;  ego is just another word for nothingness.

 Reality is the expression of the One, there is nothing else.  We are all one.  One is all there is.

     

bondage

     When we accept the ego's notion of who we are, we have accepted the seeds of suffering.  When we believe we are a body and are separate from the rest of the universe, we must be in fear; of death, loneliness, failure and loss.  This fear, and the fruitless attempts to relieve it (as suggested by ego) is known as bondage.  As we begin to notice that the ego's voice in our head is not to be trusted, we withdraw our identification with it and begin to look elsewhere for the truth of our being.  This is the beginning of sanity.

no inherent meaning

      Since the world has no meaning in itself, it is only our interpretations that gives it meaning.   If our interpretations are positive and forgiving, then life will be experienced as joyful and rich.  If they are negative, life will be full of conflict and loss.  Thankfully,  we can always choose again when we realise that it is only our negative thoughts that are showing us a painful reality.