Click here to go to the next issue.

Saturday, July 29



CHRISTIANA on Andrew Cohen:

Knowing little of AC's history, having read some of his writing and his
magazine, I attended his lecture, because he showed up nearby. I was as
much interested in the 200 others who were there, as I was in his
presentation. I saw no indication of a demand for personal worship. He
seemed more to be throwing the onus of responsibility upon the
listeners. His message is riddled with contradiction, but that appears
to be an ever present dynamic with communication about all This. It
certainly shows up here.

The speculative thought which occured, as I observed his demeanor, was
that he was an East coast Jewish guy who grew up with a fantasy of being
a stand up comic and suddenly had an awakening which catapulted him into
a different arena. He has a certain schtick. His message, however, has
value. His new book has a simple clarity in it's structure.

What I did not experience was the depth of dropping which I have twice
known with Eckhart Tolle and more recently with Dan Berkow (btw.. see
photos of Dan.. although they do not do justice to his presence)
http://www.egroups.com/files/NondualitySalon/Friends+from+the+Salon/

Would I choose AC as a personal teacher? Likely not. Do I value that we
live in times when these teachings are offered so freely? Very much so.
I am aligned with his thoughts about the clarity of intention leading to
utter simplicity.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MARK:

MMmmmmm... i like that word "awakended" kinda hammers home the point,
doesn't it? I hadn't noticed that awakend combines our love of funerals
(wake) and the reason for them (end). Have a good weekend... I'm off
to a breathworkshop.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HARSHA:

Once Dan said, "hold no head above your own"!
We loved it! Wonderful and beautiful advice.

And then we realize that there are no heads and only the Heart. We are in
the Heart. We Are the Heart!


DAN:

Yes, holding no head above
mine, mine seems to have
been misplaced ;-)

I want to tell you about It,
but It won't let me.
It insists on telling you
Itself, directly.

(And It has! And It IS!)

I tried so hard to describe It.
But any word I uttered was
instantly short of the mark.

How useless am I,
with nothing I can say ...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

JERRY on the new NDS Press List:

Anyone else who is gung-ho
about working on some aspect of book publishing,
is more than welcome to join. For now, all messages are
public, so people can see what we've been talking about:
http://www.egroups.com/messages/ndspress

If you join, you will be asked to do some work, such as
writing, gathering material, editing, design, format,
getting involved in legal and business matters, and in all
decisions, etc. If you're enthusiastic and already envision
the finished product, join us!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

HARSHA forwards a post from the Advaitin list:

Thank you for sharing your wisdom and insight Sri Frank-Ji and you have our
gratitude.
Your emphasis on simplicity is, as usual, sheer eloquence. We never tire of
reading it! :-).
Who would have thought that so many graced with knowledge and wisdom would
gather like this on cyberspace!
What people might not know that behind the intellectual power of Frank-ji
(and Sadaji, Danji, Ramji, Janji, and so many others) is spiritual wisdom
housed in a warm, tender, and compassionate heart. We feel blessed to know
you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MATTHEW:

I've been wondering why more use isn't made of the chat room. I see
a lot of people check in there, though not many names i recognize
from these posts, and there is very little conversation going on.
Personally i think it can be a great tool for communicting,
being "live" and all. Anybody have any comments on the nds chatroom?

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

XAN:

Awakening is personal and intimate, just between you and You.
When your intention is clear to look into yourself - your delusions
and your Truth - teachers, no teachers, and teachings show up as needed.
It is the mind that loves to analyze, evaluate and compare
and it is this mind that veils the truth of you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

CHRISTIANA:

Speaking about nothing nakedly..

This week, a perceived blow to this egoic frame, has amplified a deeper
inquiry into both the content and structure of the unconscious program
in operation here, which may have engendered the blow.


To speak of this here is perhaps, an attempt to not hide from this
falling.

I'm staring at my failure to love, as manifest by a program which has a
long standing rhythmic pattern of reinventing itself through critique.
An entrenched perceptual groove of noticing (or fearing) what is "not
right". Rarely inquirying deeply enough into the essential rootedness of
the criteria employed.

A facet of the rhythm of an introvert, is also the identification as
someone who is not seen. A yearning to be seen juxtaposed with an
expectation of invisibility. I wonder about these templates we come in
on. Is the mechanism of created body-temperament the key to what needs
to be overcome (as opposed to excused). So a side question is whether
heightened sensitivity which flavors introversion, is also a function of
a contained hiding and encapsulating of a particular identity.

What I also see is that behind the seeing of what is not perfect is an
inherent failure to grasp the perfection of All.

The eye, predicated upon a core belief that the world is not safe, that
others will not see, is quite crafty at intuiting the flaw in other
which will allow itself to self replicate. Nothing new here for me. As
*knowledge* I've know this for years. What is newer is the direct
witnessing of the movement. That I can locate self in a container which
is bounded by conditions, is sometimes (when I'm paying attention) known
through the alarm of perceived threat and the contraction of defense.
The eye then is turned outward looking at the projected structure of
another's projected container. The ostensible gaze outward, I suppose,
is an attempt to 'make sense' of what is perceived. Yet this 180 turn
inward merely reveals yet another aperture of the container, which in
essence is attempting to perpetuate the assumed rightness of the
container itself. Slipping in and out of the container in ever
broadening sweeps of perception, offers specific observation of the
essential lie. That the container is seen to evaporate, or at least to
break up its pixel resolution, effects a discharge of its realness. When
again I find myself contained, it is easier to understand that I am not
that.. even as the flawed scent of that may still be a pollutant. This
is not self-deprecation but more an essential sobriety as the dance is
seen for what it is doing.

Two movements occured this week which are different. The first was that
beyond the initial reaction to the assumed "blow", what rose up to meet
me was a clear understanding that I was not the images being bounced off
my screen. The fact that these last nine months have been graced with
continuous openings to an essential simple sweetness of being, which is
not encumbered by the personal movements of meaning binding , leaves me
better situated to abide in that open knowing. That the larger symphony
is being heard and understood as that withinwhich any identity container
is held, affords me the courage to stand in the crucible of the
essential failure of the container's programming.

If it is not another oxymoron, perhaps the nondual is also the
cultivation of the capacity to be more fully multidimensionally aware.

So, I am quite soberly observing the mechanism which very subtly and
very craftily intuits in other the very mechanism which will be tripped
off to perpetuate an unconscious position of fear. Fear in this case has
so many faces.. avoidance, confusion, righteousness, hurt, attack.
said to me recently that I was a nasty piece of work. I both own and
release ownership to this view.

Larry said yesterday "A confessor is someone who opens himself for
inspection." There are so many layers to this opening. So many resting
points along the way. So many times I've thought I was open, only to
humbly observe that the opening is merely the next holon, still bounded
by identity.

What is being known now, in large part due to the sandpaper and love
offered here, is enough stability in the Witness to moment to moment
observe and pluck the projection; as well as, at each moment not
identify as surgeon doing anything.

A baby step into the observation at failure to love.. a baby step into
the fullness of resting in Love.

thank you for standing in close proximity within the interval,


MARCIA:

I recognize the feeling of what you are speaking to.
I might put it into different words. If you don't mind,
I will share a bit of my perceptions.

One thing that I notice is that some things I am very
fluid about recognizing that they are not who I am.
In other words, not identifying myself. There are other
things that I cling to as really being who I am. Recognizing
that anything that I can identify as who I am, I am not, is
scary. That is the realization of one's own nothingness.
Being able to hold still and not identify with the fear creates
the space for........(fill in the blanks). I propose that really
nothing new has occurred except that you may be closer to
the bone. Closer to one of those things you really do identify
as who you are. This is a really tricky part cause getting
identified with your identifications is still identification. How
what you see is taken is just another thing to be seen. It is
nothing at all. Just a pack of cards.


DAN:

Wow!
Alice!!
You're walking through
the Looking-Glass!!!

Got to run, now.

I'm late, I'm late,
for nothing, for nothing...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

MARCIA:
This whole psychology and therapy
stuff is really interesting to me. I am not sure what to
make of it really. I went to three different therapists
and told them each a different "story" and each of
them came back with a different diagnosis which I
realized was a reflection of the "story" I told them.
I have a daughter diagnosed as bipolar. She is
very smart and perceptive. She is an actress, a
true "drama queen". She is brilliant and beautiful
and she can manipulate like hell. The important thing
is not the diagnosis but whether the person can
"see" it or not i.e. identification. :-)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

DAN:

The value of guilt is so
the boat can be steered.

No point in repeatedly
hitting the same rocks!

Did you think such a major
emotion evolved
accidently?

It's a matter of discriminating
useful guilt from
compulsive self-punishment


MATTHEW:

You've been reading too many psychology books dan.
Guilt steering the boat? It's time for a mutiny boss.
Useful guilt? Not a chance, not in my neighborhood.
There is such a thing as remorse, often confused as guilt,
but not even close to each other.
.............matthew, who is not under the delusion that freedom from
guilt means we are free to do anything we want.

top of page