The remarkable effect of "YES"

Richard J Miller

(Please Go Right to the full blog on this one, 'Read More', not the shortened version.)

A little more than 13 months ago I had the honor to sit with Ramesh Balsekar in Mumbai, and ask him a few questions. One thing that he talked about he called the "biological reaction", meaning our body's reaction to what we see, hear, think and feel, coming from this moment into our senses. He said that "we are not the doer of this bodily reaction."

Apart from that, we can all acknowledge that we do get a different feeling from each thing that we see and hear. Watching one video we get very engrossed and want the follow-up discussion right away, while another video we switch off immediately. Something remembered within our mechanism comprises our likes and dislikes and our illusive sense of "knowing". Sometimes it comes out particularly strong as feelings followed quickly by action.

An effect that I find, seemingly coming from exposure to non-dual ideas, or let's say from exposure to "straight talk about life" is that I can now find a kernel of truth in almost everything that confronts me. Sometimes that truth is pretty strong, even when it is laced with statements that my judgement machine considers missing the mark.

I wanted to share, and open for discussion (perhaps we will get a few comments), a pre-Christmas sermon that I heard in a very large and active Christian church, delivered by a dynamic pastor visiting from a Detroit city center church. Pastor Harvey Carey has been at his calling for 27 years, the first 2 decades in Chicago and then striking out to do "good works" on the street, where the need runs high, at www.CitadelofFaith.org. I thought that he said some very remarkable things.

1) First of all he said that throughout history, ordinary people have accomplished extra-ordinary things, and that all of these people initially felt very ill-equipped. Whether he meant Moses or Churchill, or everyone in between, we get his point. Of course, if we believe that only the experts can adjust the wrongs in society, then ours is only to judge, criticize and feel victim.

He also said something that I found very interesting. If your sense of reason, and "self" knowledge is always in control, then whatever you attempt is always a measure of the limitation of your beliefs. Then whatever you accomplish is always self-explained as "my" doing. If on the other hand, you "step over the edge", allow your passion to rule, (he is talking about giving yourself to Jesus, but we can also say "step into this present moment", without your sense of what isn't possible), then what can be accomplished might have a different limit. Coincidences might seem to be very fortuitous. Net effect, you know that you were in no way responsible, or the "doer". If you don't try, how will you ever find out? Ramesh would say there would be no praise nor blame, no pride nor arrogance no guilt.

2) The second dynamite thing he said is that we have all been immensely blessed, (by God, by fortune by circumstances by luck). I know this is correct, at least for everyone reading, all of whom have a pretty good computer and a broadband internet connection. Again, if we believe that we are the doer in our lives, then we own our own good, and it is separate from those who do not own it. But then who can really say that they are the doer of their birth, the doer of the circumstances in which they were born, or of the sequence in which their life unfolded? Harvey talks about being "set up" by God.  Into a position from which great work can be done.

3) The third amazing thing he says that is spot on is, most of you have "Paralysis of Analysis", and nothing is brought into action. (You live only in your thoughts). This is the way that you continually say "No" to this moment, the way in which you build a fence of limitation around yourselves and the way in which you maintain the illusion of doer-ship and personal self. All this from a Christian point of view, to bring Jesus into you life, (just maybe Jesus is already in our lives? Where else would he be?), but it is a pointing that still works to radically see "who am I".
I guess I will just let you watch for yourself, about 20 min.