FROM A SENSE OF SELF TO A SENSE OF BEING

'Get your mind off yourself. ... There needs to be a shift

 in emphasis from self to non-self.' -- Dr Norman Vincent Peale.

So many of our problems arise out of self-centeredness, self-absorption, and self-obsession---in other words, selfishness and egocentricity. In many ways, this is the inevitable price we pay for the infinite, eternal, universal, and timeless spirit of life having descended into matter and flesh---which it forever does---and taking shape and form in time and space as the finite person each one of us is.

Not only that, but every moment of every day we generate literally hundreds of little ‘I’s’ and ‘me’s’ (i.e. likes and dislikes, views and opinions, attachments and aversions, as well as the ego-self, the so-called 'witnessing [or 'transcendental'] self,' and numerous other selves) in our mind and we then proceed to identity with these false selves---false because they are not the real person that we are---and we even mistake these false selves for that real person. Such a mindset is a ‘sense of self,’ but in truth that ‘self’ has no separate, distinct, or independent existence from the person each one of us truly is.

As I’ve said many, many times on my blog, what we need to do, if we are to be happy and live authentically, that is, from and as the real person we are, is to move from a ‘sense of self’ to a ‘sense of Being.’ Now, what do I mean by ‘sense of Being’? Let’s start with life itself. Life is. That much is axiomatic. Yes, life is. And, what’s more, we are. Now, life is Be-ing, or perhaps more accurately Be-ing-ness, for is not life nothing other than living things---including you and me---living out their livingness, or be-ing-ness, from one moment to the next? I think so. In other words, Be-ing, or Be-ing-ness, is the very ground of our being (one’s ‘I Am-ness’), indeed, the ground of all Be-ing. It is the All-in-all. However, few of us seem to be aware of this truth, the reason being that we are so locked into a false sense of self. If only we could come to the realisation that self is illusory.

Many years ago I wrote out a short mediation with the hope of assisting the meditator to recognize and appreciate the true being of their ‘I Am-ness,’ so that the meditator can move from a ‘sense of self’ to a ‘sense of Being,’ and thus enter into a state of choiceless awareness of their ‘true Self.’ What follows is that meditation, which I’ve continued to change over the years, but not in any major way. (A shorter version of the meditation has already appeared in a post on this blog.) The meditation may also be useful whenever there is a need to get one’s mind off oneself---and isn’t that most of the time?

Now, here’s the meditation …

I have a body, but ‘I’ am not that body.

I have a brain, but ‘I’ am not that brain.

I think thoughts, but ‘I’ am not those thoughts.

I experience emotions, feelings and desires, but ‘I’ am not those emotions, feelings or desires.

I Am the ‘I’ of me, the reality of me---‘me’ being the real person that I am.

I Am not my sense of self, that is, the hundreds of little ‘I's’ and ‘me's’ generated in and by my mind from moment to moment. None of those little ‘selves’ are the real person that I am.

I Am that in me which lives and moves and has its Be-ing in me and as me.

I Am the person that I am---a person among persons.

I Am a centre of consciousness, awareness, and awareness of awareness----choiceless awareness, that is---from which all things are a matter of present observation.

I Am the impersonal. I Am the personal.

I Am the presence and power of pure Being---the very Be-ing-ness of the person that I am.

I Am my own Be-ing.  Life is Be-ing-ness.  Its Be-ing-ness is my very Be-ing-ness right now. That Be-ing-ness is my Real Self.

I Am, in truth, my Real Self.

My Real Self is the same Self in all persons and things.  That Self is not a thing of time or circumstance. It is the only presence and power active in the universe and in my life now. It is the omnipresence of life itself---the very living-ness and Self-expression of life---manifesting itself everywhere as the Eternal Now.

I know my Real Self as One with the Self in all.

I Am that which I Am. Life is---and I Am.

My ‘I Am-ness’ is what is, and that is what in truth I Am.

I Am not the I, I thought I was.

I Am pure Being. I am a person among persons.

This meditation is a ‘spoken meditation’---to be spoken either aloud or silently and interiorly to oneself, in whole or part. The meditation, in whole or part, can also be used in groups with the group leader saying aloud the words of the meditation.

What I suggest is that, when you’re ready so to do, you go to some quiet room or other place and proceed to say this meditation to yourself---either aloud or silently and interiorly---slowly, quietly, and meaningfully. The meditation is usually more effective if it is said many times over. Indeed, repeat the exercise as and when you feel it necessary. However, from time to time you may wish to ponder and reflect upon just one or a few of the lines of the meditation. Either way, let the words sink deep into your consciousness by a process of mental or spiritual osmosis.

Now, there is absolutely no ‘magic’ to any of this. This is not an exercise in so-called ‘magical thinking’---at least, that is not what I have in mind, as I am totally opposed to all such thinking. And there’s absolutely no point whatsoever in saying this meditation at all if you don’t understand the meaning of the various metaphysical concepts referred to in the meditation, or if you don’t agree with what I’ve said.

There will also be some people for whom this rather metaphysical meditation will appear dry and hollow or perhaps mechanical. I respect those who feel that way. That is the way they are, and it is no weakness on their part to feel that way—forgive me if I sound patronizing (that is not my intention)---for we are all different. This type of meditation ‘works’ for me because I have been trained as both a lawyer and a minister of religion to think in these rather abstract, metaphysical thought-forms.

Ultimately, it’s what works for you, but the all-important thing is for each and every one of us to … get our minds off ourselves. That’s the only thing that truly matters.

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FIVE STEPS TO FREEDOM---OR HOW TO ESCAPE AN UNWANTED SELF

‘Enlightenment is not a fixed place. There is no fixed place.

All one has to do is understand the chaos, the disorder in 

which we live.’ J. Krishnamurti.

All of us---yes, all---are in bondage, some of us more so than others. Some are in bondage to alcohol or other drugs. (I’ve been there. Done that.) Others are in bondage to other sorts of addictions including being addicted to work and other people. (Oh, how we crave the useless attention and approval of others! But why?) Still others are in bondage to mental obsessions and physical compulsions, things that make even their moment-to-moment existence misery. What can we do about all this?

When we get right down to the bottom line all bondage is addiction to self. Yes, addiction to self. Self-obsession, self-absorption, self-centeredness, selfishness. Yes, there may be mental illness as well as physical illness involved as well, but deep down all forms of bondage are bondage to self, that is, to a sense of self that is illusory. I have written often about this subject. We are not a ‘self,’ or those many, many ‘selves’ which are nothing other than mental images. They are not the real person each one of us is. So, what is the answer? We need to ... wake up! We need to experience self-release, which is the ending of illusion. Once we see the false as false---and self is the ultimate illusion---a whole new world opens up for us.

Many years ago, when in very great bondage to alcohol, I read a little booklet penned by the Theosophist and Liberal Catholic bishop George S Arundale [pictured]. I can’t remember the title of the booklet---it was more of a pamphlet---but I do remember something of immense value in it, something has that helped me greatly in my own life, something that I want to share with you now. Of all the bits and tidbits of advice and wisdom I’ve read over many decades, this gem of spiritual wisdom from Arundale is perhaps the best and most useful of them all.

George Arundale wrote of the five stages of true growth---true spiritual growth, that is. The five stages are as follows: discontent, search, escape, discovery, and freedom. Let’s deal with them in turn.

First, discontent. This is the beginning of freedom. You know, there is a phrase ‘divine discontent,’ because discontent can be a most wonderful thing. Without a certain amount of discontent in our lives we would never seek to grow, learn, understand, or escape bondage. The Indian spiritual philosopher J. Krishnamurti had this to say about discontent: 

Only a mind that is in despair can find reality. A mind that is completely discontented can jump into reality, not a mind that is content, not a mind that is respectable, hedged about by beliefs. ... Though painful, it is a marvellous thing to be discontented ... .

Arundale calls discontent, which is the knowledge and recognition of bondage and limitation, an ‘angel-messenger of Light in the midst of all darkness.’ Take the alcoholic, for example. Alcoholics are never really happy. In fact, they live in misery, as do all addicts. Every alcoholic---and the same goes for any addict---seeks to escape an unwanted self. 

Actually, that is a very necessary thing to do, for we all must learn to escape our unwanted selves, that is, all those false and illusory images we have of ourselves that prevent us from seeing things as they really are. The problem with alcoholism and all other forms of addiction and bondage is that drugs and the like are never the answer. Indeed, they increasingly become the problem, and more and more of a problem, until the sufferer either dies or goes mad. That’s true. Don’t doubt it, even for a moment.

The second stage of true growth is search. Discontent, after varying periods of time, results in a search for a way out. A thought comes to mind---‘There must be a way out!’ There is---always. So, we look for a way out. That may take a long time, although in most cases we make it longer than it need be. We may seek the views of others. We may join a new religion. We may read self-help books galore. I did all of those things. None of them really helped, but for some glorious reason I never gave up hope. But eventually I gave in---that is, surrendered, let go. Only then was it that a power-not-myself---for self can never change self, as self is forever the problem and never the solution---led me to freedom. Sadly, many people never get to this second stage. They die---discontented.

Discontent alone is not enough. Insight alone never changes us. We must want change---I mean, really want it above all other things---and we must be prepared to go to any length to get it. As Williams James used to say, we will always do whatever is our strongest desire. Search begins with desire. The stronger the desire for escape, the more likely the search will not be in vain.

The third stage is escape. We exit the prison. We enter into a new world. Arundale called it a ‘garden.’ Lovely imagery. Then, we make a great discovery.

Discovery is the fourth stage. We take possession of our new world and we discover. We learn. We understand. Gone are the old beliefs that only helped to keep us in bondage. Once, we believed. Now, we know and understand. There is a whole world of difference!

The fifth stage of true growth is freedom. Arundale wrote that we ned to be very careful here. Sometimes, if we are not ever-vigilant, we will find that we have entered a larger prison. True spiritual growth, he wrote, is often a case of freedom succeeding freedom as we draw nearer to Eternity---‘at least to an Eternity,’ wrote Arundale.

Discontent … search … escape … discovery … freedom. That’s it! In many ways these five words are all you need to know to be able to live a long, happy, and satisfying life. Arundale wrote that these five steps encapsulate a certain spiritual or metaphysical law---the ‘Law of Universal Growth,’ he called it. He also wrote that this law of growth is ‘God’s gift of Time.’ Perhaps, but for many people time is running out. We must act … now!

‘Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation (2 Cor 6:2), says the New Testament. Yes, right now! Forget the evangelicals. Salvation is all about wholeness and health of mind, body and spirit … and freedom from bondage and limitation of all kinds---in this life. Salvation is all about ... waking up! It's about self-release. It's about freedom from bondage.

Yes, there is a power-not-oneself that can make all things new. That power, as Norman Vincent Peale has written, is 'a spiritual giant within you, which is always struggling to burst its way out of the prison you have made for it.’ The power can restore you to health and vitality, release you from all bondage, and make your life worth living. The power is your 'real self'---that is, the life in you manifesting itself as you ... your very ground of being ... the source and essence of your life, health, strength, and vitality.

May you come to know this power today ... indeed, right now!

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SLAVES OF THE ‘I’---EVEN UNTO DEATH

I have written much---perhaps too much---on the unreality on the ‘self,’ but I couldn’t resist sharing this saying, attributed to Shakyamuni Buddha, which I read only recently:

Ye are slaves of the I, that toil in the service of self from morn to night, that live in constant fear of birth, old age, sickness, death, receive the good tidings that your cruel master exists not.

‘Slaves of the I, that toil in the service of self.’ When I think of the legal profession---of which I have been an erstwhile member for almost 35 years---I see so many practitioners who ‘toil in the service of self’ while self-righteously affirming they are doing it for the sake and benefit of their clients. They write aggressive letters to the lawyers for the other party which basically say no more than, ‘My dick's bigger than yours.’

These lawyers suffer so greatly from being in slavery to themselves and their own sense of self-importance. No wonder lawyers are statistically more unhappy than any other people. So many lawyers I have encountered in my working life as a lawyer and legal academic are oblivious to the fact that their clients are generally aware of the childish 'dick' game of one-upmanship constantly being played out before their very eyes---and at such great expense to the clients themselves and the general public, I might add. It’s total ego stuff, through and through, and the same thing can be said for most other businesses, trades and professions---not to mention what goes on in the home and in all day-to-day personal relationships. We are all very good at being disingenuous.

It has been said that when we leave this world we can take with us only what is ours ‘by right of consciousness.’ I am not at all sure that we can take even that ‘with’ us when we go---but I do know that what is ours by right of consciousness will remain for quite a long time as a memory and in the memories of those who remain and who remember, for better or for worse, what we were really like in our lifetime.

Most people have given up conventional religion, and I can readily understand why that is the case. All too sadly, however, the new religion of most people---at least in Western societies---is consumerism, and there is a helluva lot of ‘dick stuff’ associated with that religion! It’s all dick stuff 'from morn to night' with ‘constant fear’ that the so-called good times will come to an abrupt end at any moment, what with the credit cards all maxed out and so forth. And I am not being self-righteous here, for I stand 'guilty as charged' as well.

I read somewhere once that Leonardo da Vinci scribbled in the corner of one of his drawings that he had agonized over for some considerable time, ‘Leonardo, Why toilest thou thus?’ He saw the ultimate futility of all our endeavours. I know. I get the same feeling as I churn out these blogs each week---and I am certainly no Leonardo da Vinci! Far from it.

We all need to slow down and ponder this truth---the ‘cruel master’ for whom we toil in vain does not exist.

‘Why toilest thou thus?’

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