There is Only One Realization

I have been questioned about the "theme" of what I write about. My answer is I don't really have a centralized "theme". But there is in actuality only one realization and that is of the mind that is unconditioned. It is getting to the point where a person's every activity, whether mental or physical, emanates that one truth. We are blocked from full realization because of the division in our thinking. The mind is conceptual, so it requires imagination and projection in order to systematically and logically understand. If a person can realize through the activity of an unconditioned consciousness then the illusion of the conceptual is completely understood. It is the dissipation of the projected self which is the contradiction and confusion of a mind that perceives through its experiential conditioning. We can take any subject that the mind can conceive of and trace its origin back to the conceptuality of a mind that is caught in its own self motivated processes. It is the way in which the mind includes its identity in every thought process. What we think of we make part of our identity because the thinker is in reality also the thought, they are not separate. This insight can only be realized through a consciousness that is without the the conditioning of the self that knows. When I say one realization, what is meant is that all insights about the self emanate from a mind that is whole within its self, not divided by comparison, conclusion and judgement. Only a mind that has realized its own conditioned thought process can go beyond limited understanding that is the result of the experiential.

There is not graduated understanding. You do not learn gradually through a practice or some sort of program, whether prescribed by another or of individual effort. This is very hard to grasp because we are accustomed to a learning process that involves conceptual thought. We visualize a concept and then take steps in order to accomplish a goal. A person must realize that the conditioned mind cannot understand that which is unconditioned. It can only realize then affirm or negate what it knows. It can never conceptualize the absolute moment which is the unconditioned. That which is forever unknown. Negation clears the way and eliminates the ideals of an ego/self that hinders the truth of the absolute moment. The absolute moment is emptiness, it is not connected, proscribed or in way related to the minds projected concepts. The outcome of this emptiness is an intelligence that understands beyond thoughts conditioned consciousness, its obsession with self.

Negation is a natural function of a mind that is choicelessly aware of the inner and the outer. Aware of the movement of the self and its underlying motivations. Aware of the relationship that exist between the conscious and sub-conscious and its connection to all that is. If a person truly realizes in the moment, which is absent the conceptual, then something quite extraordinary may take place. Freedom and joy that cannot be defined...the realization of the true self of that which is unconditioned.

It helps if one can see the conditioned activity of self in each and every moment of thought. To be aware of the sublety of thoughts propensity to divide and assign belief or non-belief to what is observed.

The Book

Does a person read for entertainment, to learn something or as an escape or distraction from ones life? I was asked why I do not read books. It seems to me more important to live life than to read about it. Shouldn't I, if I am at all serious and passionate about life, find out the truth for my self. Should I be influenced by the opinions of others, the musings of the clever and resourceful. Would it not be better to have original understanding. Then it is my truth, my own realization, which has a depth of understanding that transcends the interpretation of a book or a lecture. You have to find truth that is not the product of thought and of knowing something. Truth is original and in the moment, not something that is a result of what is read or otherwise accumulated.

So many things in life are prompted by the following of personalities and ideals. We are bombarded by a media that wants to entertain and influence. We believe that we are following our own independent mind, but the reality is that we are controlled by thoughts seeking and its conditioned fallibility, which are the accumulations of all that we have read and been taught. Freedom that is the realization of the origins of our conditioning, is the only thing that will create the capacity to understand beyond the limitations of exposition and accumulation. You can fill you head with all sorts of platitudes and systems, the opinions of the so called enlightened and spiritually adept, but you will be no closer to realizing peace and love that is beyond all imaginings. The truth is in freedom that is without origin, design, influence, conditions, rules or anything that is the product of thoughts defined limitations. When all else is not the truth is.

The Depth of Our Conditioning

The depths of a persons conditioning is so strong that it is second nature in terms of response and emotion. It is so very difficult to break away from the fear that is created by the conditioned mind. Whatever one does to understand by way of thought only strengthens the self that is a product of its own conditioning. Even though we understand conceptually, the minds fears and conflicts, it is difficult to realize in the moment the extent to which we are controlled by the whole field of thought manipulation. Even though we are aware of the process, if one does not allow the freedom of the moment to negate self illusion, we cannot realize understanding that is not part of this process of opinion and conclusion. We are psychologically despotic when it comes to the true reality of the moment. The authority of the self that knows creates conflict that is the result of ones conditioned thought process. To realize the subtlety of this dynamic is to come upon the possibility of negation, freedom that is the outcome of a consciousness that has realized beyond its conditioning.

All that a person can do, as I have said many times, is be aware. But that awareness must have a quality of disconnectedness. You have to be aware of the movement of the self as a conditioned entity. But that awareness must not judge or choose, for then it becomes an escape. When you see and realize in the moment that what you observe is in fact the one who observes, then there is a different quality to ones awareness. The dual nature of thought creates the illusion of separation, which results in the "one" who references the past in order to compare and judge the moment. When you actually see and realize this, not conceptually but actually, then ones mind is no longer trapped by a conditioned and thus limited consciousness. Negation is the key, you cannot realize a consciousness that is unconditioned without negating the self that is the separation of knowing and the known. Negation is freedom that is not freedom from something, but the outcome of a mind that has realized the truth of the self.

Origin

I was meditating in the early hours of the morning, there was a stillness that could not be disturbed and in that same moment a clarity that was without any purpose or sense of time. The mind moves through its emotional content and at times singles out events that define and give meaning. There have been relationships that we cling to and somehow try to understand and assign significance. We seek out the results of our experience, we look at who we imagine ourselves to be and wonder how it all took place. We realize that we were not really aware of circumstances and try to grasp some significance in the memory of what was. But those moments have passed and this is a new moment. Can I understand the true nature of who I am, of the consciousness of self by looking at and through the past? Is the origin of this moment a product of the past of what was or is it in reality something entirely new? It seems we are trapped in yesterdays ending which becomes today's beginning. It is the continuity of what was, the projection of a never ending origin.

Origin is an interesting word. It means the beginning which becomes the extrapolation of what was. Extrapolated origins are diffused and hidden by the accumulation of the experiential. It is very difficult to realize the origin of the many images of self and its accompanying fear. Understanding is complicated by the minds desire to escape the reality of what is for the reality of what should be. If a person can stay in the absolute moment then it is possible to realize the origin of all that causes the fear of not knowing and not being. We trend to look at life as a continuance of yesterday. It gives us a sense of control, the ability to predict. We desire predictability which provides the illusion of security. So we become trapped in the repetition of the origin of our fear. We are unable and unwilling to realize the newness of the moment and that in reality it has no relationship to what was. Because we project the origin of our fear we cannot accept the beauty of the moment which is the change the transformation of what was into the peace and love of the eternal present. To exist in the moment is to realize the originality of a consciousness that has no connection. It is not part of the minds desire to know, capture or define. It is the outcome of the realization of total freedom.

The Nature of Belief

Through my conversations with friends and acquaintances their is this idea that a person must either believe or not believe in something. The mind is always in search of a "spiritual" or "factual" ideal that conforms to ones already established self image. The fact that a person is seeking at all provides the impetus for attachment. Why must we have a belief or a non-belief, and are they not in reality one in the same? When the mind encounters a challenge to the intellect it either accepts or rejects wholly or partially in some measure. The mind is influenced by its content, what it already believes. So a person is naturally looking for conformity and ultimately validation. This thought process is an escape from the moment. If the truth of reality is in the moment then shouldn't we view the moment with a consciousness that is free of both belief and non-belief? It is the only way we can truly accept the reality of what is and circumvent our propensity to judge and thus create conflict.

The mind that is opinionated is a small mind that is caught in the selfish activity of promoting ones agenda. If a person can look without the limitations of a self involved and conditioned consciousness then it is possible to realize a life lived on a different level. A life lived not for the self or for some vague and irresponsible ideal that only causes suspicion, disintegration, and ultimately violence. But for a life of understanding that accepts the reality of the moment and that is a reflection of the peace and freedom that is a consciousness that is absent prejudicial thought. Only a mind that is free of what was can see the reality of what is. All belief and non-belief is grounded in what was, the illusion of the known. Do you dare free yourself of all the garbage that you have collected over the years? Can you realize a consciousness that is so totally free that you live a life of peace. A peace that is so overwhelming to others that they are caught up in its immensity and realize that they are experiencing something that is beyond thoughts ability to know or define.

The nature of belief is always in what was. There is no such thing as belief or non-belief in the moment. It is simply the projection of a self that thinks it knows, the illusion of a self created image which one worships and forces on others for the purposes of self gratification and greed.

Self Absorbed Intelligence (Statutory Thought)

I was discussing the notion of perception with a friend last evening. The mind perceives according to what it has accumulated. The minds content or experience determines how we perceive and to what extent that perception validates what we believe we know. Statutory thinking revolves around the minds belief in what it knows. It is the activity of a mind that is consumed with its own self importance which may be validated by rule of law. Rule of law is the result of organizational tyranny, which disregards the moment and seeks only to opine and judge. The mind is seeking factual relevance in what it perceives as reality, but that reality is always inconclusive. This is so because the thought process is continually referencing a memory that is selective and obsessed with its own defined self image. So self absorbed intelligence is very superficial and is the result of the minds inability to go beyond its own narrow construct. What you believe you know is in need of constant revision because the nature of thought and thinking is always incomplete. The problem is that the mind is caught in a stasis of factual irrelevance. We try to understand the moment through the past, which leads us to believe in absolutes of right and wrong. This whole process is the authority of the self which is projecting belief. Conflict is the result of our need to revise belief as we observe the contradiction of the moment. Revisionism is a form of escape. It allows us to continue to believe in something even though it contradicts the truth of the moment.

To see the inadequacy of thought in the moment is to come upon and an intelligence that allows one to realize beyond the known. Then it is possible to realize a perception that negates the limitations of a mind that is self absorbed. A mind that is limited by its own prejudicial knowing lives in contradiction, confusion, and conflict. Intellect is a product of the known, of statutory thought. Such a mind seeks out absolutes, the result of this seeking is the authority of the known or the self that knows. Authority is always the result of statutory thought. It is the parent of all conflict and violence.

So how does a person have a clear perception of the reality of the moment? If there is an awareness of thoughts movement as the self that is under the influence of the known and knowing, then it is possible to negate its relevance. It is a negation of the content of a mind that is seeking validation of self in what is. It is the minds process of projecting belief and conclusion. Belief and conclusion which is the result of self image or ego. Awareness creates an atmosphere that is conducive to an understanding of the moment that is independent of the known. Understanding that is the outcome of choiceless awareness. An awareness that is absent comparison, judgement and conclusion. One is aware, with an emptiness that allows the newness of the moment to unfold and reveal truth that is absent the self that is thoughts habitual projection of what was (memory). In a sense it is the realization and then a letting go of a persons conditioned responses to the perception of similarity in what is. The mind is repetitious in this regard because it is always seeking what was in what is. The perception of sameness or similarity in each preceding moment is the illusion of a mind that is trapped in a conditioned consciousness. A consciousness that cannot escape the repetition of its own self induced conflict. To be aware of this dynamic as ones conditioned reality is to discover something totally new from moment to moment. A timelessness in which past and future are without relevancy. The realization of the unconditioned which sets one free. A consciousness that is unconditioned exist only in the absolute moment, it has no relationship to what has been or what will be. It is absolute reality. The outcome of which is an intelligence that transcends statutory thought.

Love Without Limitation

I attended a Christian church service today for observance of Easter. I knew a person who was performing in the service and I wanted very much to give them my support and love even though I am not a Christian. It is interesting how the mind works when it is influenced by a particular belief. Their is that sense of belonging or not belonging, both of which can create a division in ones thinking. Beliefs tend to divide and separate and for this reason it is very difficult to realize understanding that is not the result of conclusion and prejudice. We are taught to be suspicious of the other through our identification with religious beliefs and political ideals. How is it that we fall short of realizing the love of all mankind, regardless of appearances, that is the premise of almost all religions? Somehow the brotherhood and sisterhood of the truly sacred is lost in the dogma of religious organizations. To organize is to destroy the very freedom that allows for a realization of love that has no agenda and that is without conditions. The truth of love is unconditional. If you have requirements for your love, religious or otherwise, then you do not love and probably never have. A person must realize vulnerability in order to truly love. If you look at the Christ, not through your religious prejudice, but as the highest example of vulnerability, you may come to the realization that he loved all regardless of their position. Whether you believe he was God or not is of no consequence, what is important is that he loved beyond all concepts of religion, unconditionally. If one could realize that same love then their would be no need for religion. In this way Christ and Buddha are alike, they transcended the religious prejudice of their time, and loved all with compassion and understanding. Should we do no less?

It is very difficult to give up ones religious practice. A person has much time invested in the psychological accumulation of that which gives a sense of security. To be totally free is to be unattached and to open the door to understanding that has no limitation. To realize a freedom that allows you to love without motive or condition is the highest spirituality. One must find that aloneness that allows one to realize in the moment that which is the negation of all that limits and keeps one in the darkness of the known. To shed all divisional concepts whether religious or ideological is to find the selflessness of love that has no limitation. You can name your religion, you can create all sorts of dogmatic requirements, but you cannot name or limit the truth of love.

Two Buddhist

I was having a conversation with two of my Buddhist friends last week, the topic was seeking and how does one discover anything if one does not seek? One friend was a Tibetan Buddhist who insisted that a person needed to follow a regime consisting of a study of the various sutras, coupled with a consistency in ones meditation practice. Another friend who was of the Zen persuasion said that Zazen was his mainstay and that he had had many enlightening experiences in his meditation practice. They both agreed that a person needed to seek, at least initially, if there was to be any progress toward illumination.
I asked them both; what is the state of a mind that is seeking anything? Can a mind that is in illusion ever discover that which is beyond self? Surely whatever the mind has realized is only a projection of its own discordance. As long as the mind is thinking in terms of an accomplishment or goal laid down by a system or practice there is the illusion of knowing. What is known is a product of ones conditioning. The mind that is conditioned by religious or idealistic precepts can never escape the tenants of its own self induced limitations. As long as you follow another, whether system or individual, you are trapped by the inevitable contradiction and confusion of the conceptual.
My Tibetan friend replied, "I know what you are saying and have read your blog with great interest, but I can't get past the feeling that I must start someplace with my study. I have to have some goal otherwise I feel I will not find." I said to him, I know what you are feeling. It is very difficult to let go, the mind wants something to cling to. The mind is very subtle, even when you decide that you must free yourself, the mind can trick you and cling to the idea of freedom. I think that if you can meditate freely, that is, without the notion of meditation as a goal, then perhaps that will allow a moment of awareness that sees into the essence of mind. Then their may be a dissipation of that which seeks and realization of a freedom that is not seeking a result.
The other friend added, " that he knew what I was saying, but that a person must start with even a superficial understanding if one is to progress." "You have to know something, otherwise where do you start from?" He added, "I don't agree, that to be free you disregard all that you have been taught, what you learn and follow can set you free." I replied, you are either totally free or not free at all. Total freedom means that you have the capacity to understand that transcends the known. What you know is always simply the projection of the self absorbed. To realize is to go beyond the self that knows. It is to stay in the moment and not escape into ones idealized canonical thinking. Freedom is the starting point, one has to be free, otherwise their is always the tendency to revert to the past. Freedom is never a product of the known or knowing. Knowing things does not set you free, it only hinders the truth of the absolute moment. A Buddhist knows, a Buddha knows nothing.

Defined Ignorance

One of my friends asked what is meant by the term "defined ignorance". When I write these blogs they are an expression of my own realizations. It is sometimes difficult to phrase reality so that it becomes an understanding that is not the result of experience. Words are not understanding, they are purely representational. They point to a reality that has to be realized in the moment by the individual. When you have a realization about yourself that is not the result of experience...i.e. the past, then it is solely your truth. Truth that is the outcome of the unconditioned. The unconditioned is a consciousness that is not personal but rather a oneness of all existence. That oneness is forever unknown it cannot be defined or "known". It is the experiencing of the absolute moment, in which beginning and ending are simultaneous. In a manner of speaking there is no separation or demarcation or defined limitation.


So it can be said that "defined ignorance" is the whole field of thought that limits. Ones limitations are self induced. Actually existence has no limitations. To live without limitation is to be free of all the minds cravings. Cravings that create the pigeon hole of ones conditioned existence. A persons accumulations, both the psychological and the material, contribute to a life lived in a prison of "defined ignorance". While we have now more or less defined what it "means" to live in defined ignorance, its actual in the moment realization is an original experiencing by the individual which cannot be defined. Because it is a negation of thoughts illusion of knowing it is forever unknown. Its all about freedom and realizing the truth of it, not though some defined "doing" or " attainment" but seeing for the first time the reality of the true self. The true self is undefinable, it is an absence of all that limits. The individual can realize the truth of it, but cannot convey its essence through thoughts reasoning process. You cannot read about it or be lectured about it and understand. It has to be an experiencing in the moment. Essentially words and groups of words can tell you what it is not but not what it is. The individual must see that when all is negated as the illusion of self then what is left is the truth. Because truth is undefinable in terms of the known, it cannot be reasoned into existence and understood as "something" conceptual or spiritual or whatever ones illusioned belief perpetuates. It is, when all else is not.