Living Consciously

In most instances people are living their lives totally unconsciously. By that I mean that they are so absorbed in their inner dialogue that they overlook their essential nature, which is pure consciousness. They take that inner dialogue and so identify with it that this dialogue gets weaved into the "story of me", which is then taken to be their life, or so they think.

When you catch yourself retelling your "story" as it's happening and realize it's only a story in the mind, then you have separated yourself from the "story of me" and its attendant thoughts and emotional connections. You have opened up a space between the story and your essential nature - in fact, that opening IS your essential nature. Now that story can be watched dispassionately without getting involved and trapped within it. You have "identified the story" for what it really is, just thought playing itself in the mind, and thus are momentarily free of it. When you are free of all stories life is then lived "consciously", no longer reacting in conditioned ways, no longer trapped by the mind and the stories that run through it.

From an Eckhart Tolle Fan

Playing the role of a receiver

We cannot increase our basic happiness by altering exterior conditions like marriage, residence, career. Every attempt to do so only increases the sense of despair. It is the essential self that must be changed. Our level of consciousness must be raised.
As your consciousness grows, you will see that you are not a sending set, as previously assumed, but a receiver. You have nothing to do but welcome the healthy impressions that seek entrance all day long. This brings relief from useless struggle and from false responsibility. Suppose a television set thought it was a sending station. It would be useless. When it plays its correct role of receiver, it functions normally.

Vernon Howard

The Silent Watcher

Be present as the watcher of your mind -- of your thoughts and emotions as well as your reactions in various situations. Be at least as interested in your reactions as in the situation or person that causes you to react. Notice also how often your attention is in the past or future. Don't judge or analyze what you observe. Watch the thought, feel the emotion, observe the reaction. Don't make a personal problem out of them. You will then feel something more powerful than any of those things that you observe: the still, observing presence itself behind the content of your mind, the silent watcher.

Eckhart Tolle

How can I go beyond daily suffering?

The original cause of suffering is a feeling of isolation, of not being related to the whole .This brings conflict in your life .Generally you only see the conflict , the superficial suffering, but when suffering is contemplated deeply beyond the level of conflict , the root cause comes up.You must face the origins of suffering and not be distracted by secondary effects .It is the ego which suffers .When the fractional sufferer disappears then suffering points to oneness .

Jean Klein

Difference in attitude of enlightened and unenlightened people to the world

To the unenlightened, the world is all there is. There is nothing else. This time-bound mode of consciousness clings to the past for its identity and desperately needs the world for its happiness and fulfillment. Therefore, the world holds enormous promise but poses a great threat at the same time. That is the dilemma of the unenlightened consciousness: it is torn between seeking fulfillment in and through the world and being threatened by it continuously. A person hopes that they will find themselves in it, and at the same time they fear that the world is going to kill them, as it will. That is the state of continuous conflict that the unenlightened consciousness is condemned to—being torn continuously between desire and fear. It's a dreadful fate.
The enlightened consciousness is rooted in the unmanifested, and ultimately is one with it. It knows itself to be that. One could almost say it is the unmanifested looking out. Even with a simple thing like visually perceiving a form—a flower or a tree—if you are perceiving it in a state of great alertness and deep stillness, free of past and future, then at that moment already it is the unmanifested. You are not a person anymore at that moment. The unmanifested is perceiving itself in form. And there is always a sense of goodness in that perception.
So then all action arises out of that, and has a completely different quality from action that arises out of the unenlightened consciousness, which needs something and seeks to protect itself. That is really where those intangible and precious qualities come in that we call love, joy, and peace. They are all one with the unmanifested. They arise out of that. A human being who lives in connectedness with that and then acts and interacts becomes a blessing on the planet, whereas the unenlightened human is very heavy on the planet. There is a heaviness to the unenlightened. And the planet is suffering from millions of unenlightened humans. The burden on the planet is almost too much to bear. I can sometimes feel it as the planet saying, "Oh, no more, please.

EckhartTolle

Total attention

I do not know if you have ever noticed that when you give total attention there is complete silence .And in that attention there is no frontier , there is no centre as the "me" who is aware or attentive .That attention ,that silence , is a state of meditation .

J Krishnamurthy

Living in the World

In the past, if you were called to explore the spiritual, it may have been necessary to have joined a monastery, convent or the priesthood of whichever religion you belonged to. Of course, that is also an option today. We must all find the way of living that is right for us, given our own individual circumstances and inclinations. But we probably have more options today.

Do we want to live in the world, earn a living, raise a family, have relationships and so on, or do we wish to live a more reclusive existence, have few responsibilities and be cut off from society at large? Our answer may be different at different stages of our life. We may also prefer to live in the world and take occasional retreats. But, whatever we do, it is important to understand our real needs at a deep level.

Whilst at the deepest level we all share an essential Oneness, nevertheless, we do also live temporarily in the world of duality and do have different skills, talents and creative abilities to express and share. However, the task before us is how to live and function physically in the world of duality whilst also residing psychologically and at a feeling-level in the non-dual.

Living in the world, it is not always easy to stay consciously in our true nature without getting caught up in all the activity, the emotional pulls, the ties and responsibilities. Sometimes we may feel like just getting out and escaping to the middle of nowhere. At other times, we may get completely involved in what is going on. Whatever happens, living in the world, our senses are continuously battered by all the activity, all the business of modern life.

Television, radio, newspapers and the internet are all bombarding us every day with news, information, advertising, lifestyle programming and the like. Our senses are filled to the brim with this constant flow of information and influence on our lives. If we have children, it is hard to know how to protect their innocence in a world of mass education and mass conditioning. Then the so called experts tell us we should be living like this or living like that, eating this and not eating that, believing this and complaining about that.

All of this is taking us further and further away from our true nature, further and further away from feeling life at a deep level, and more and more into trivial thoughts and emotions. This is the consumerist society, where we consume all that is offered to us, where society consumes us and then spits us out at the end of our useful life. As long as we throw ourselves into this way of living we will never find happiness, we will never be at peace within ourselves.

We need to stand back from all that is going on in the world, enter that timeless part of ourselves and learn to feel what it is to be alive. Then we can live in the world if we wish, but not be a product of it. Whatever society is today, it will change. All cultures and civilizations have a limited life span and what is fashionable at one time is unfashionable at another. But underlying all that goes on in the world, our true nature is always there, underlying our sense of who we are.

We are never apart from our true nature, except psychologically, whilst we believe in the play that is being enacted in the world, whilst we identify with it and immerse ourselves in it. But we always have, if we are aware of it, the option of standing back and going into the silent emptiness of our true nature. If we don’t take this option, then we get swallowed up by the world and all the meaningless activity, and thus miss the plot entirely.

It is a real challenge to live in the world, especially today. Modern communication and information resources mean that we can very easily and quickly gain access to vast amounts of information and knowledge about absolutely everything, including spiritual teachings. The information available to us is so vast that we could easily become confused by what is on offer. But are we information machines? What is the sense of having all this information if we do not know ourselves, if we are not deeply in touch with the core of our being?

The positive side of living in the world is that, if we have at all been awakened spiritually, we are constantly challenged by daily living, by the attitudes of those around us who are completely oblivious to the spiritual dimension. We are continuously challenged to re-think and re-explore our own attitudes - our anger, fear, desire, self-pity, resentment, greed and so on. We are bombarded with so much information and so many emotionally charged situations, which come at us at such a fast rate, that we make mistakes more frequently and more quickly than would be the case were we living in isolation from the world. But we also have more opportunity to observe these mistakes and move on more quickly - if we are fortunate enough to not be completely pulled in by the world and all the activity.

There are many obstacles to spiritual unfoldment in the modern world, but there is also an intensification of any awakening that begins to take place, because the chasm between what is going on in the world and the spiritual perspective is so vast that everything becomes clear and obvious.

When we live from the silent emptiness of our true nature, all the activity in the world cannot dislodge us from that reality. All the armies of Mara cannot force us from under the Bodhi Tree, when we live in the light of our true nature. We may sometimes face the anger and aggression of people we work with, or even members of our own family, but we stay in the feeling, not resisting - listening, receiving, but not discarding, not pushing away, not fearing. We stay in the silent emptiness of our true nature.

Everything that happens, that confronts us in the world, is a part of the great cosmic play of life. Resting in the silent emptiness of our true nature, we watch it flow, neither pushing it away nor pulling it near. People may say that we lack feeling, that we give no response, but what they are really saying is that we do not get emotionally involved, which is what they want us to become.

People use emotion in order to avoid really going deeply into the feeling. It is much easier and safer for the ego to play around with emotion, manipulating other people through emotional blackmail, but never really going to the root of the problem, never seeing beneath the surface of life. But this is what living in the world is all about - facing the challenges, exploring the relationship between the real and the unreal, standing back and diving deep into the bliss of one’s true nature and laughing in the face of the world.

From the Book "The Texture of Being"

How can one drop into the Now?

Whenever you are observing what your mind emotions are doing, witnessing what is going on inside you, the state of presence is already arising. You can watch all of this, how noisy your mind is. When you’re suddenly aware of it, that ability to watch means you’ve dropped out of the time-bound state. Something has arisen that is very different. I call it the state of presence.

So, again, one could almost say there is no how. That state of consciousness, which I call the state of presence, being fully present in the Now, is the state of high alertness. Some people have experienced it in certain situations of great danger accidentally. That can be good if one remembers being in a state of intense aliveness where there was also absence of thinking and of mental noise, just a state of intense alert presence.

People who climb mountains or engage in other dangerous activities love that state. It’s the only time when they can be in that state. If they were in past or future climbing a steep wall they wouldn’t survive for very long. So, in some situations you’re forced into a state of presence and it’s so alive and fulfilling that the old state becomes very unsatisfying.

Eckhart Tolle

Spiritual Practice

There may be a place for spiritual practice. The difficulty with spiritual practice is again that most practices give you "time." They are based on time and on becoming, or "getting good at" something. In the end every practice will have to be left behind. No practice can take you to liberation. That is important to know. It can be a little step that is useful until you realize you don't need it anymore, because after a certain point it becomes a hindrance.

Now if a teacher gives you a practice, he or she would perhaps point out when you don't need it anymore or you realize yourself when you don’t need it anymore. No technique can take you there. That is the important thing.

Eckhart Tolle

True Happiness

True happiness cannot be found in things that change and pass away.Pleasure and pain alternate inexorably.Happiness comes from the self and can be found in the self only.Find your real self (swarupa) and all else will come with it.

Nisargadatta Maharaj

A man of understanding

A man of understanding , a man who understands himself and others ,always feels compassion .Even if somebody is an enemy , a man of understanding has compassion towards him because a man of understanding can also understand the viewpoint of the other .He knows why the other feels as he feels .He knows why the other is angry because he knows his own self and in knowing that , he has known all others .He has compassion , he understands, and he follows understanding .

Osho

My Yoga Blog

Dear Friends

I have started one more blog of mine called http://eyogateacher.blogspot.com/ to share my knowledge and insights on the Science of Hatha Yoga and Raja Yoga .This spiritual message blog will be mostly containing messages related to Non dual teachings of Bhagawan Ramana Maharishi , Osho , Eckhart Tolle , Atmananda Krishna Menon ,Papaji , Vernon Howard , Jean Klein , Nisargadatta Maharaj , J .Krishnamurthy and other non dual teachers .

Why 2 separate blogs ?

There is a fundamental difference between the teachings of Yoga and teachings of Advaita Vedanta ( also called as Jnana Yoga or Non Dual teachings ) .In Yoga we accept body and mind as real and do all form of sadhana ( i.e spiritual practices ) to purify and stabilize the mind but in Advaita Vedanta ( i.e Non Dual teachings ) Mind and Body are treated as unreal and only the Self is treated as real and the general assumption in that is all efforts to purify / control the mind will not work and only "Enquiry in to the Self " will lead to eternal peace and happiness .
So we need not worry about that .We need not confuse with this .Yoga acts as a foundation for Vedanta . A person whose mind/body is not prepared through yoga cannot assimilate Vedanta or Non dual teachings and a person who is fully involved in yoga practices and if he does not expose himself to Vedanta /Non dual teachings will get stagnated in his sadhana and will not progress further in his spiritual life .
So both Yoga and Vedanta ( Non dual teachings ) are required and it is better to start first with Yoga and then move to Vedanta ( Non dual teachings ) .Of course there are some very mature souls who can directly go in to Vedanta ( Non dual teachings ) but such individuals are very rare and it is better to have an intense yoga practice along with a study of Vedanta ( Non Dual Teachings ) .
So for all Yoga Related Teachings kindly refer my yoga blog(http://eyogateacher.blogspot.com/) and for all Vedantic ( Non dual ) realted teachings kindly refer this blog itself .Kindly also share ur feedback with me either through email or in this blog itself as a comment .

with pranams

Krishnanand

Inner Luxury

To me luxury is something inner .It is the quality of your being , the flowering of your potential - the peace , the silence ,the blissfulness .I can be in a palace or I can be in a small cottage ,but I remain myself .Neither the palace affects me , nor the cottage .

Osho

Transforming Yourself

Do not waste any energy convincing anyone .Use all the energy that you have in transforming yourself .Your transformation will help many ; your argument can help no one .

Osho

Ordinary & Spiritual Economics

In ordinary economics you have to be a miser , then only you can become rich ... accumulate , never share .In the spiritual economics , if you are a miser whatever you have will be lost .It can live only if you share ; it is a living experience .By sharing it continues a dynamic movement .

OSHO

Transcending the world

Transcending the world does not mean to withdraw from the world, to no longer take action, or to stop interacting with people. Transcendence of the world is to act and to interact without any self-seeking. In other words, it means to act without seeking to enhance one's sense of self through one's actions or one's interactions with people. Ultimately, it means not needing the future anymore for one's fulfillment or for one's sense of self or being. There is no seeking through doing, seeking an enhanced, more fulfilled, or greater sense of self in the world. When that seeking isn't there anymore, then you can be in the world but not be of the world. You are no longer seeking for anything to identify with out there.

Eckhart Tolle

SAY GOODBYE TO DEPRESSION

“I am asking every one of you hearing this talk to never ever again be depressed over anything that happens to you — business, romance, socially.
I'm asking you to never express any kind of sour spirit whatever. For instance, no matter how close that reckless driver came to you on the highway, no matter what happened to you, you're never ever again going to allow any happening to turn you into a bad person. You're not going to fall for it. Instead, you're going to understand it.”

Vernon Howard

Root of Frustration

The root of frustration which the civilized man feels today lies in
the fact that he lives not in the present moment but for the illusory
future, the future which is only a creation of brain and therefore a
mere inference based on memory, a futile abstraction at best.

Nisargadatta Maharaj

Stay With It

Practice this exercise. The next time you are confused about an inner matter, about a spiritual matter, for example you don’t know what you're supposed to be doing with your life, I want you to remain with that confusion instead of trying to do something about it. If you try to do something about your confusion, that’s confusion trying to manage confusion.
Do nothing about the inner fog but simply watch it as it operates, and if your heart is right, if you don’t want to live in inner fog anymore, when you refuse to push it away, then the fog will dissolve of itself because you have invited something that is higher than your nature to come in and turn on the light and it will happen.

Vernon Howard

Awareness behind the voice

When you recognize that there is a voice in your head that pretends to be you and never stops speaking, you are awakening out of your unconscious identification with the stream of thinking. When you notice that voice, you realize that who you are is not the voice — the thinker — but the one who is aware of it.
Knowing yourself as the awareness behind the voice is freedom.

Eckhart Tolle

What is the Ideal form of Charity?

It should be spontaneous , unconditional and prompted from beyond the realm of the mind .It should be selfless .
If,after doing any charity , you continue to pride yourself over it or even think about it , you are really degrading yourself to that extent .If you continue to criticize the way in which the amount was utilized ,it means that you have not actually parted with the ownership of the money .
A conditional charity means that you have engaged the recipient as a servant , to do something for you in your absence according to your instructions , expressed or implied .
Therefore , the best way to do charity would be to do it and forget all about it immediately .
Sri Atmananada Krishna Menon

40 Inspiring Guides to a New Life

1. Examining the doubts we have about our present way is a highly intelligent act.
2. Anyone weary of stumbling in the dark has taken the first step toward walking in the light.
3. The one supreme power that will guarantee personal happiness is personal right thinking.
4. Inner light shows you what to do with yourself all day long, making everything comfortable.
5. Acquired beliefs and cosmic facts are as different as pebbles and diamonds.
6. Please people and you achieve nothing, but please your real self and you start a miracle.
7. Feel the need for something different, then let it grow by having affection for it.
8. Cosmic wisdom reveals why unhappy events happen, after which they cease to happen.
9. You are not required to listen to anyone, who demands, “What are you doing about my problems?”
10. Even if all your friends and relatives do not know how to live rightly, you can surely know.
11. No one is more qualified than you to discover the true treasures of your inner kingdom.
12. The very nature of your essence is confidence, so why seek this virtue outside of essence?
13. Freedom from painful decisions is a happy result of discovering who you really are.
14. Truth has its reasons for acting as it does, and every one of them is for your benefit.
15. Calm command can replace agitation as surely as sunshine can replace a storm.
16. All good things come to anyone who refuses to be intimidated by his own despair.
17. By eliminating the sheep in himself, a man gives psychic wolves nothing to prey upon.
18. Welcome higher facts without understanding them and in time you will understand.
19. Truth does not hurt, rather, it is our resistance to its message that causes pain.
20. When a frantic world tries to carry you away, remind yourself that you need not go.
21. Self-knowledge creates an inner state in which you are valuable to yourself in a new way.
22. The feeling of being in danger from oneself fades with the application of higher facts.
23. Be aware of how people insist upon draining your energy, then quietly refuse it.
24. Heartache can be conquered because a higher part of you is free and apart from heartache.
25. It is a bright day when we see that cosmic facts are as practical as a recipe for baking bread.
26. Reflect often on the interesting idea of getting out of your own way.
27. We attract events which correspond to our nature, so a higher nature will attract higher events.
28. One thing that is always right is your eagerness for something higher than yourself.
29. Most people merely rearrange their problems, but with self-insight you can end them.
30. By seeing what we fear to see we shatter one of the pillars supporting the haunted house.
31. Wrong action in the past is corrected perfectly by right action in the present.
32. Self-concern is caused by living from mere ideas, which is cured by living from essence.
33. Real courage consists of departing from the false while not yet knowing what is true.
34. We learn to love the light by seeing clearly what the darkness does to us.
35. One day you will look calmly at a fear and say to it, “You have shaken me for the last time.”
36. We can either hear what we want to hear or we can hear the rescuing truths.
37. Starting now, never again permit hard or disapproving facial expressions to intimidate you.
38. A quiet mind knows the answer, which means we must cease to fight anxiously for the answer.
39. Living from your real nature is the same as doing something worthwhile with your life.
40. If you are now reading this line, you have a rich opportunity to make everything new.

by Vernon Howard