It's Just a Story

You start with a blank page. Nothingness. Formlessness.
You draw a circle. Something comes into existence. A circle.

Also duality. "Inside the circle." "Outside the circle."
Inside the circle - me and all that's mine. My identity.
Outside the circle - you and the rest of the world. Other identity.

The boundary of identity and the birth of separation come into existence simultaneously.

Some people say, "Expand the circle as far as you can and after some time everything ends up within the circle of SELF. The One Self." The Way of expanding consciousness.

Others say, "Gain perspective, rise above and and continue to rise and watch the circle grow smaller and smaller until it becomes a dot and disappears into the Vastnes of the Mystery itself." The Way of transcendence.

Others say, "When the boundary is erased there no longer is separation - only what is before there ever was a circle." But someone asks, "When the boundary is one's skin and thinking mind - how do you erase the boundary then?"

"When the mind no longer tells the story of "me" and "you" and "them" and "it" and "other", there simply remains what is." The Way of the quiet mind.

And still others say, "Live at the boudary itself, straddling 'in and out', 'me and you', 'living and dying' in the ephemeral Now. The way of embodied awareness.

As you can guess there is no one way to awaken to self and no-self. Each one of us has a unique path that we can never step off of even if we try. No matter where or how far we hop, skip or jump we'll always end up right back where we are.

We really are THAT. We really are a manifestation of the universe, a manifestation of the Divine, a manifestation of formless awareness.

However, we come into existence as human being with a seemingly self evident sense (boundary)of separation and individual identity.

Then something happens, usually some form of loss or suffering jump starts awareness to seriously begin inquiring into the nature of "this life of mine." Because if everything is honky dory, there really is no impetus to start this inquiry into the nature of reality. "Awake from what? I'm having a great ol' time just the way it is, just the way I am!"

So after the universe hits us up side the head a couple of times with a 2x4 (depending on how stubborn and resistant we are it could take a couple of dozen whacks) we begin to investigate, do research, take psychedelic drugs, attend seminars or satsangs, practice chanting, meditating, self-hypnosis, seek out teachers and gurus, and throw in pschotherapy while we're at it.

Which on the surface of things looks like a cicuitous route to end up Here. But somewhere along the line, we read a book, have an experience, meet an exceptional person and something resonates within. The truth expressed in the book, the circumstance or person resonates the consciousness within us in recognition.

This resonating recognition is the energy of consciousness awakening. This initial recognition is non-conceptual because feelings pre-date language. That is why so often we are at a loss for words to describe those early experiences of formless awareness and non separation. Thus, it can take a while before we develop the ability to hear the Sat guru within.

Awareness awakening to itself speaks first through feelings than later through words as needed. First being,than speaking.