Sunday, December 6, 2009

A Game of Concepts

Enlightenment isn't about some spiritual state yet to come. It's realizing the inherent Oneness of this very moment, of recognizing your true Being as the Being of all "things", that all there is, is just THIS, undefinable and unshakable.

The world is only appearance. The existence of the world is not of separate "things". Yet the spiritual search is undertaken from within this perspective, from the platform of assumed separation.

We're looking at the world from this paradigm of "ME-SEEING-WORLD", from the perspective of an individual. Therefore we only see space and time, objects and ME as a separate subject.

We can only see reality this way as long as we define "things" in terms of separate existence. Yet Existence isn't separate. Being isn't split up.

Take a close look at these so-called "things". Try to define the ACTUAL existence of any "thing".

What IS it? Look deeply at anything. What IS it? All we can see is a name and a form. But is that it's actual existence? Is it's existence actually separate?

What IS it? We may find that we can NEVER say. We may find that the ONLY WAY to define ANYTHING is to assume it's separateness, to call it some "thing", and in doing so, automatically assume all that it is not.

If we look at a flower in this way, we only see the name "flower", the shape. But that isn't it's true existence. What IS it? What really IS it? What is it's essential existence?

In calling it a flower, we've seemingly split up existence into parts, assumed that the flower exists independently, on it's own, with a beginning and an end.

We might break it down - it is simultaneously organic matter, elements, molecules, atoms - these are still only assumed separate "things". Eventually we find nothing at all, empty space, intelligence which "forms" itself or manifests, pure undefined potentiality of Being.

The essence of that "flower" cannot be found, yet it IS. "Something" is there, however that "something" is undefinable. We cannot say nothing is there yet we cannot truly define that "thing" in terms of separate existence. THAT is called "SAT" in Vedanta. The essence of the flower is this pure IS-ness or Being-ness or existence or Life.

The existence or Being of the "flower" is the very same existence or "substance" or Being of all "things". The essence is called Sat - "Sat" is simply translated as "IS". All we can say is that it IS. Not WHAT it is, THAT it "IS".

The body-mind is also THAT. It is not a separate existence. In calling it "body" we assume it's separateness from all other "things". In calling it body we give it a location and duration, as all things have these.

We cannot say WHAT it is, only THAT it is. And that IS-ness is the only reality - within this there are concepts of flowers and bodies - the concepts are only concepts and cannot divide the pure IS-ness of reality.

Therefore the "ME" you've taken yourself to be is only a mental concept, a way of thinking, a convenient mechanism of language. There is no "ME" as a separate "Being". There is only THIS - pure Being or Sat.

There is no reaching THAT. There is no finding THAT. You already ARE THAT. And from this realization there really is no YOU, there is only THAT, of which the real "you" is the totality or Oneness itself.

So how to find yourself? THIS right here and now is IT. Anywhere you look, any experience is THAT and YOU are not separate from THAT. All "things", all appearances are in reality THAT already - they are only appearances from the perspective of separate "things", from the standpoint of separation, in which YOU must be also separate. Anything you see is THAT already, therefore no change in appearance is necessary, no condition is placed on experience, no spiritual lights or special states - ALL states are THAT.

You are looking at THAT right this very moment, only the "seer" and the "seen" are one and the same IS-ness.

The seeker then, the "ME", is nothing but a little game of thought, play of energy, an assumption of "thingness", a contraction into a ball of suffering, fear and desire. Freedom is not an achievement - it is a realization that you are already FREE of the ME. You are the totality and the ME is a game of concepts.

There is one pure and whole reality right here and now - separation is a superimposition or veil made up only of concepts. And that game of separation is extremely fragile, entirely dependent on the belief in "things" as separate existences. A little tapping on the table and the house of cards collapses.

11 comments:

su said...

Hi Randall,
Beautiful post.
The graphic at the top of the page of the snake/rope is magnificent.
I have not seen it before - is it new?

Anonymous said...

Hi Randall-so-clear-so powerful-thank-you.

donommen said...

Thank You Randall...Perfectly done is what WE did...Excellent explaination of OUR ONENESS...Don Ommen

Anonymous said...

:)

Hammer to the head, Randall... hammer to the damned head.

I'm thankful that you're still swinging it 'cause I keep coming back with that thick skull.

Thanks again (and again, and again...)

Anonymous said...

It is so easy to make this recognition into a goal and the "undefinable" as a state to attain...

Anonymous said...

I recognize you from Second Life 2 years ago where we spoke on the microphone. All there is is This...what is happening. 'I' almost wanted to type : ' yeah, I understand that', but that was an afterthought of an illusiory I. Well, I too have a thick skull like the others in here so thanks and keep on posting.

Anonymous said...

This is true compassion. Thank you Randall, the energy behind your words is powerful. Keep these posts coming, they are very, very helpful!

Randall Friend said...

Susanna,

The graphic has always been there, only it was very subtle - the objects on the page seemed to obscure or draw attention away. With a little tweak to the tint, that which always was is now quite obvious. But nothing new arrived.


love
randall

No One In Particular said...

It really is terribly, terribly fragile.

Anonymous said...

It has been said that in awareness everything appears. The mirror doesn't judge appearances nor can it. All is one in non duality.Here is a point. Love is different than hate. Light is different than darkness. To skirt that, to blur the distinctions between them, is, in my mind, a dangerous thing. In the name of being spiritual and nonjudgmental, we let the ego in the back door. Blurring the lines between light and dark, right and wrong, is a gold-lettered invitation to dark and wrong to sneak back onto the stage, where now no one dares disapprove of them. We know that it's a dangerous thing to blur the lines between right and wrong in all sorts of mundane areas of life: business, parenting, politics, crime prevention. Why don't we know it in spirituality? Why don't we know it when it comes to ultimate reality?

Einrich said...

I left this in the other post, but I'll say it here too, as it relates.

My understanding of enlightenment is simply that it is understanding the true nature of nature.

Everything just is, but even in that, there must be nothing to compare it to. :)