There is a dimension inside all of us which is constantly still. When we are young we are submersed in it at all times as it is the natural state of being. As we get older and enter out adolescent years we begin to evolve into structured thought. You are told that “Your name is Richard”, “You’re more of a logical person than a creative person”. Because you are young and not knowing any better you take this as the truth from your parents and elders. “I’m Richard, who else could I be?”.
This is the start of a dysfunction that affects almost all of the human race barring the few who have woken up from its trance. When you go from being a baby, then to adolescence and adulthood you start to identify with thoughts. This happens at a very early age so affects your mind at its most susceptible. You are called by your name from birth and it will probably be one of the first words you can say, either that or the name of one of your parents. This starts the process of thought identification. You identify with the basic thought that you are your name. “I’m Richard” pretty much equals “I’m a thought”, the thought of Richard. Take a moment to digest that.
Then later in life comes identification with jobs, social positions, financial strength, music preference etc. Thoughts are on the level of form. This it the level which all “things” are that we can perceive. The only thing we cannot perceive is what we are because we ARE it. If you could perceive what you are then what would be perceiving it? It’s impossible. You are everything that exists that is not a thing yet we are taught that we are things. This is obviously unnatural and leads to great disruption.
When you identify with thought you will then start to identify with beliefs which are collections of similar thoughts and physical objects which starts off as your body but this extends to your work place, home, possessions etc. You identify with your body because, like more than 99% of the human race, you are completely unaware of the formless dimension within yourself. You are only aware of the form. So the form aspect of you (your body) is what you think your true nature is. Does this sound familiar? It should do. It’s the story of the human race so far.
Consider this. Isn’t it silly and childish how something like your losing your job can get you upset? You are completely unaffected physically yet you feel inside that this could somehow mean your physical end. Something that you ultimately don’t have full control over has just changed form. This is not to say that you should passively accept it. Accept that it has happened, have no inner resistance and then go to work on changing the things that upset you.
You must have come to the realization in your life that all form things eventually won’t exist. Your first love probably didn’t last forever, your happiness at your first paycheck gave way to the fact that you paid so much in tax. These things are subject to time whereas you are timeless consciousness temporarily embodying a human body. When you put yourself in the time dimension you become victim to the vigor of time. You will get anxious about death and this will affect every area of your life as your purpose becomes to preserve your form body and identifications. You will cling to money, family and other things you perceive as possessions as if when they die you too will die. This is because you think you are form and a form death would mean your death.
Let me ask you a question. Have you ever had a thought that lasted a year? Or even 1 month? 1 day? Thoughts are transient objects and tend to be much more transient than physical things. If you think you are a thought like “I’m Richard”, “I’m a banker”, “I’m a spiritual person”. Then when these things appear to you to not be true you will feel like you have died or death is imminent. This causes immense suffering for a person. To feel like you have no control and you are dying a little each day. It’s not normal.
This suffering has a purpose though. The suffering will break the false self that has been created. When you have suffered enough you will be so motivated to get out of this state that you will find a way. Your spiritual mother will force you to wake up just like my birth mother did all the way through school.
The universe will give you the teacher you need when you are truly ready. When the student is ready, the master appears. You will find the resources flowing into your life as if from nowhere. The universe wants you to do well and have what you want. Maybe you’re not ready to start to awaken yet and that’s fine. When you’re ready you’ll find a teacher.
Truth vs. Ego
If you find yourself looking for inner stillness to become something more in the eyes of your mind then you will 100% definitely NOT succeed. It has become another form label that you are going to add to yourself. “Look at me, I’m a spiritual person. I’m much more developed and therefore a better person than you.”. Go into it because your intuition tells you too and you are at the point of awakening. How do you know if you are ready to awaken? You will just know, you will feel the absolute urgency for change.
It can’t be an adding of form because this is an ego level thing and this is exactly what we are trying to transcend. Enlightenment is not the adding of more to you. It is the stripping away of all form identification and suffering until you are just left with what you are which is unity with all that is. Don’t try and mentally understand this. That’s the ego trying to come in again with duality. It wants to create the thing to understand and the thing trying to understand it which are illusions within unity. If there is something within you that knows this is right even a little bit, listen to it.
The Plan
Here are some techniques that I and others have used successfully to undergo a spiritual awakening. Feel free to teach these to others too.
Logical Questioning – If you want to change a belief you have to rock it a little so it becomes unstable. Ask yourself questions that are designed to change your belief. Some that I used include things like:
- “If my pancreas was removed and I was my body then would I still be Richard? How much of my body has to be removed before I cease to be Richard if I’m still alive and responding?
- “If I died and then came back to life during illness was I my body during that time? What if people told me my body was still there? Are they lying?”
- “When I say my body, who is the me who has the body? What is the distinction here?”
It’s a good idea to put yourself in a meditative state through 20 minutes of relaxation meditation before doing this as you can concentrate and communicate with your subconscious much easier.
Good beliefs to question include:
- Am I my body?
- Where was I before I was born?
- What differentiates me from someone else?
Eventually the belief will become unstable then questionable and then downright silly.
This operates on the mind level so I would recommend this for beginners. Pure awareness meditation is more advanced.
Pure Awareness Meditation
One meditation I enjoy is to become pure awareness which is your true identity at the deepest of levels. I sit in meditation and after relaxing myself for 10 minutes I simply sit at the gate of my mind and become totally aware. If this sound impractical at all to you then simply sit, eyes closed in silence and listen to the silence which is the background to all things. Don’t struggle whatever you do. Just be. Let all things pass you by and become aware of them. You will see a thought come up. acknowledge it and sit at the gate of your mind. Whenever anything is bought to your awareness bring the light of consciousness to it without thinking. Just look at it like a man who’s mind is silenced by the beauty of a sun set. There is no mental chattering. The aim is to become concentrated in the state of no thought. Don’t be thinking “Oh man, I’m struggling, he told me not to struggle”. Just be. It’s tough at first but it is the most rewarding experience the universe has to offer bar none.
I’ve achieved pure awareness recently a few times for a couple of minutes or so and to be totally honest I was scared. The absolute unlimited feeling of power, the feeling that God is running through your veins right their and then and communicating with every fiber of what you are is pure ecstasy. You become transparent to light and embody it, you become timeless and infinite and then return to your physical body. It’s infinitely better than an orgasm or achieving your life’s dreams in the physical world. And it’s all free! But seriously, no words can explain it and when you experience it you will know exactly what I mean. Why else do you think the Buddha spent weeks contemplating whether his insights were worthy of teaching. They’re so subtle and hard to verbalize and much of it is a personal story.
How To Find Others who Have Awakened
There will come a point on your spiritual path when the people you used to socialize with seem dull and lifeless and you’ll feel totally disconnected from them because they are disconnected from their spiritual dimension and have yet to have a spiritual awakening. Reach out and connect with people who have found their way though suffering or others on the same journey as yourself. Here are some resources.
- The Internet – Humanity has never had so much information at its fingertips. It,s a vast resource of free information. Things are at the stroke of a few keys and 5 seconds now that just 20 years ago would have taken at least a trip to the library and 200 years ago you’d never get to read. Just Google things
- Meetup.com (Free) – This site helps you find or create a group of like minded people and has meetings worldwide. There is lots of spiritual groups on there.
- Books – Reading a great book is like sitting down and conversing with the greatest minds in history. Plenty have awakened to a new way of life. I recommend Eckhart Tolle, Lao Tzu, Buddha and Jesus. With Jesus though, try to be like him, don’t try to be a good Christian. Big distinction there and I’m sure you know what I mean.
Eckhart Tolles beautiful book ‘ Stillness Speaks has “a collection of “200 concise and beautifully illuminating entries arranged into 12 reflective themes”. These are perfect snippets for meditation. The 12 themes, in order, are:
- Silence & stillness
- Beyond the thinking mind
- The egoic self, the now
- Who you truly are
- Acceptance and surrender,
- Nature, relationships,
- Death and the eternal,
- Suffering and the end of suffering.
- Meditations
Oh before I forget, here’s the best resource to find anything online, enjoy! 
