Quiet action....

A quiet still mind is pure, alert and attentive to what is at each moment. You have this action within you now. Breathe and quiet  movement, let thought come and go. Move with quiet mind. Action with no motive, no outcome, no agenda can only be an action in the present moment.This is freedom, liberation!

"Stop being a thinker."

"Row,  row, row your boat
Gently down the stream.
Merrily, merrily, merrily
Life is but a dream."

         No truer words have been sung...learned as a child's song!

        You are not your thoughts. Row gently and merrily enjoy life as it unfolds.

Only takes a crack to let the light in...

It can seem crazy, radical, mind blowing when you discover that you are not who you thought you were.
And yet it will also seem as if you have always known, because you have.

Seeing that you are not your thoughts, is a breaking down of all concepts and beliefs you ever had. This understanding can be like an unfurling, peeling away or it can come as a bang...for most it will be an un-layering of concepts and beliefs. The good news is that once the crack has occurred it only gets wider! Mind has a lot of traps and the personal I, the me (ego) dose not give up so easily... remind yourself that you are not your thoughts...no matter how important  the thought may be. Watch and see the personal self, the me, identifying with thought, when you do, do nothing, let the thought pass by without judgement.

                                                    You are not your thoughts.

Who's thinking...?

                            
               Life gets much easier when one doesn't let the "thinker" be in charge.

Peace....

We all want peace.

We all want peace. And most of us also wish for; a less stressful life, healing for ourselves and others, answers, more money, happier relationships, a better job, vacation, better weather, different circumstances than we are in, something to be over or something to begin, so on and so forth....a desire of some sort for something better in the near future... the desiring and wanting is the all pervasive condition of the personal, egoic I, separate self. The separate personal egoic I can only exist in the past or future. What if we were to say right now, this very instant as you are reading these words that this IS as good as it gets, this very moment and the next and the next....try it on for size, roll with the idea that right now is as good as it gets.... you may land yourself in the present moment (if your attention is there and not in thought) and smile knowing that this IS as good as it gets!

Change...No Change.

External Change occurs constantly. Just observe nature and one can witness changes on the most  grandiose or subtle scale. The body does the exact same thing whether one recognizes it or not. There is birth, living and death. External changes of all forms occur over what we call  time.

Internal Change happens when we have a sudden stir (or shock) that gives rise to a knowing that the external world is not making sense. This generally marks what is known as "inquiry" into, "Is this really life?" or "Who am I?"  Once this occurs there is no turning back! When your eternal Self is known  you will know only changeless stillness, changeless  peace & joy as who you and all others are, your shared oneness...from here one might say I am Awake and living!

Accept what is....

Can you truly accpet what is occurring right now... right now in your life without judging it, analyzing it or having a running commentary about it...?

Accepting what is at every given moment does not come from the personal I construct. Your personality self will always interpret each moment from a conditioned past through comparison  or opinion. Acceptance is letting things be as they are with no thought attached. Not an easy thing sense we have been so programmed to separate and name everything & every experience through the personal I thought system.Once you observe this in yourself there will be a loosening, an expansion of something new to be there...acceptance!
In this, there is freedom in every moment. This does not mean that you do not contribute or share, on the contrary, when there is true acceptance a natural response or action (or not) will occur without motivation.

Who's asking....

When thoughts arise, ask "Who is asking this? or Who's opinion is this? ...the answer will always be  the personal "I." The personal self (personality/ego) will always be commentating on just about everything...it is what we have been conditioned to do.

Ask too, "Who is it that needs to know?" and "Why does one need to know?"

 In the answers to these questions you will find where you are attached to thought.  Let it all go...thought is not you!

Be Still...

Be Still...Shhh quiet all activity and be still.

 When I was young I remember adults always saying  "Be still!" How profound. If adult and child alike could be still together....what peace the child and adult would have... at that "Be still!" moment.

What happens when we are still? What happens when we stop all activity of the body and the mind? Discover what lies behind all the un-stillness in you...

Thoughts...reach, touch only thoughts.

All thoughts can reach, touch, only thoughts.

Memory is a bundle of thoughts. Ideas are thoughts. Thought will not awaken you. No amount of reading or studying others thoughts will bring you to your natural Self. Thought can help one understand  the nature of thoughts, that is all. The separate personal I is simply a bundle of thoughts. Look deeply at thought (how it arises & where it comes from) and see/know that you are not thought. Ahhhhhh....free!

Form & Formless...

                                      You are the form and formless ...

                                            ... the light, the shadow, the darkness.
                                              
                                                  You are everything & no-thing.

   "Nothing real can be threatened. Nothing unreal exists. Here in lies the peace of God." ACIM

Dancing cheek to cheek...

Are you dancing with thought? Most of us dance all day with thought...

Allow yourself the awareness to know that you are dancing with thought, in bed with thought, holding hands with thought...use what ever words that work for you that lets you know that you are identifying & believing in your thoughts...once you are aware of "Oh I am identifying with thought, dancing with thought" you have a choice to keep dancing or stop... and become aware of sounds, sights, taste, touch etc...

 Each time you are aware that you are dancing with thought & drop the dance partner, you will discover that it becomes easier to be in awareness.... aware of what is naturally around & within you. As one becomes less identified with thought one opens to your natural being...your essence! 

You will become aware that your essence has always been there, moving through your form, essence is in all forms & formless. And you will smile with joy...true joy!

              The key here is being aware, of the personal I thoughts, leading the dance!

Beyond form....

If you are not interested in seeing beyond form then you are bound to the laws of form and will suffer with intermittent happy moments.

You will know your true essence once you stop identifying with the personal I (the incessant thought streams). Here suffering ends...yeah!

 Action thus arises out of something other than thought and nothing is personal...some call this bliss...it is living!

Loosening....

 All that passes and is impermanent is not real...it is an experience. If you are reacting to a situation, it is your personal I (me, ego) that is reacting. Once you are aware that the identity of the personal I is reacting...watch it, let this identity perform it's act....next time, the reaction will become less reactive ...once you are aware how the personal "I" operates, the personal identity loses its identity. And that which you are, presents the "light of day!" Who you are and the personal "I" cannot coexist.You will smile, cry and laugh knowing that you have removed the blindfolded veil...

The loosening of the personal "I" (me,ego) is  much like a child that is being ignored while having a temper tantrum. The first time the child is ignored the tantrum runs it's course. The next time the child tantrums and the behavior is (again) ignored the tantrum is less, by the third time (if) the child tantrums the behavior is snuffed out...it really is that simple...it's just that by the time we reach adulthood we have a tendency to want to make effort much more complicated...this "idea' keeps the personal "I" running!

                                    Your essence is Love...that is who you are!

Forgiveness...

True forgiveness is seeing through all form & situations ... seeing the essence of that which we are.
If you are not seeing your essence, know that form & situations are not real, they are experiences. Believe that you know that you know!!Your essence is real...let it flow through every single pore of the body & more.

Forgive not through the personal "I" thought, forgive because you know the deep truth, no matter what others are saying/doing, each brother/sister is not separate, we are a shared essence...Love.

Once you realize that all thought is the construct  of the "personal I" (ego), you will naturally loosen your identity with thought ( I am this, I am that, I have done this & I have done that, etc.) From here you will know the freedom to be... 

When something you experience upsets you or elates you, notice how you have a thought with the feeling, or a feeling & a thought....you are neither, it is all thought, the construct of a personal I which is not you!

Once your attention is aware of this you will be less attached to thought and the peace that you are, begins to permeate. This is not an "aha" or a revelation, this is simply who you have always been & will be.

When our loved ones (children, spouse, partner, family, friends etc.) appear to be having difficulties in life  with dependencies, life choices, etc.,  we often turn to prayer feeling there is no where else to go having tried all known options. This is a gifted opportunity to ask "Who am I?" Let this be your prayer and listen with all your heart to the answer.

When you hear the answer to this prayer, you will stop hoping and wishing for things to be different. You will know the peace of who you truly are, the same peace that is in each of us and all forms, you will know all of this (you already know!).

This knowing alone will allow you the presence to be... and  for an instant you will not worry with a hurting heart.

You are so much more...!

                               Know that you know, you are so much more. 
 
When you smell with the physical nose you are scent limited, yet when you smell with your essence,you smell the scent of a deep intelligence and knowing.

When you see with the physical eyes you are sight limited, yet when you see from your essence, you see through all form as stillness, love.

 When you hear with the physical ears you are sound limited, yet when you hear with your essence you hear the heart of all matters.

           Be all your senses and essence, both are alive in you now!

Do rest...

There is the saying "Don't rest on your laurels" taken from the first Olympian who finished first in the race and was crowned with a laurel wreath. It is a personal I (egoic ) statement meaning don't rest or another will beat you. There is another choice here...you can choose to rest with the laurels.

Catch yourself when your thoughts are in attention with the personal I mind thoughts and return to the laurel and rest.We all wear the laurel crown, it is a matter of that which we identify with... "Don't rest on your laurels." or "Do rest with the laurels!"

Wake up & smell the roses...!

Wake up! Smell the roses! When you reach your nose to the rose and draw in it's scent, you awaken something wonderfully ancient within you...your being!

 Let the scent of the rose stir your deepest depths and touch your beauty...relax and fall into that which you are.

Waiting...

You are never waiting. When the personal I, the you says "I'm waiting" aloud or inside the mind, know that you are present and accept what is. Enjoy the acceptance by feeling the presence of your own body, whether in the car at a traffic light, road construction, standing in line, sitting in an office, on the phone on hold or the time it takes for a computer to respond, become aware of your breathing, sounds, smells...you are never waiting... You are always present!

Seeing Is Freeing...

Seeing Is freeing! Some would say that a flower is the closes form we have on earth that mirrors our essence, our beauty. If a flower pulls your attention, even just for a moment, know that your essence presence is touching the essence presence of the flower...you are seeing from within!

                                        

Attention yields truth ...

                                                Full Attention is acceptance.

Acceptance is accepting what is happening each and every instant without thought interference.In other words, no judgement of what is happening right now.

                
                This attention enables one to be wholly present in form and beyond.

Full attention happens when one is without a personal I thought interruption.
Your Being is always there, fully attentive, fully alive both in form and formless!

If full attention doesn't feel possible right now...just watch what is happening, observe yourself with no judgement...this will give you space...

Good at....

When your attention is no longer occupied with personal I thought, you will feel a new aliveness within your body and without.

Take a moment and identify what you are really good at such as; organizational skills, public speaking , writing, cooking, child care, communicator, taking care of others,art, music, working with numbers, growing plants, teaching, etc. Pin point exactly what you think you are very good at and use the same focus/ energy that made you "good at" and go inward. Inward meaning; your breath, awareness of the body from head to toes, and surrounding space (sounds, smell, textures). If a thought distraction arises, recognize it only as a thought like you would recognize a glass of water, let it pass with no judgement and return to your focus within & without with the same "good at" focus/energy you have that got you to the "good at" identity. You can do this practice throughout the day as there are many in- between moments.

Let the external happenings be, they happen anyway. Go inward and watch; how you breathe, walk, sit, talk and move throughout the day. If you really put the energy into this, just like what it took to get "good at"  you will discover you are a very alive Being!

Grace...

The personal I always identifies with thought (me, mine, yours, them). Let all thoughts attached to personal I pass through, like a wave, a ripple in the water. Do not judge yourself for holding on to any thought. When you recognize "Oh, I have been in thought "  breathe, relax and return to being the watcher, without judgement.

The watcher/observer  no longer identifying with the personal I story will give you a renewed energy. Identity with thought carry's a weight, the watcher becomes weightless.

The watcher witnesses all experiences at the deepest peace, that which you are, no longer attached to personal I stories, drama, etc.. You are able to stand amidst turmoil, happiness, sadness, conflict with compassion radiating, you are no longer involved in "cause & effect" outcomes. You are Grace in your Being.

To Think...

To think "I've got it" or "Now I know what it is" is still the personal I announcing it's knowing ... although conceptually, understanding offers a deeper sense of self it is still the personal I self that is operating here (mind trap!). Keep watching, let understanding pass and see what unfurls...!

Know that you know ... You (your radiant, perfect whole Self) have never not been here!

Journey...

There is only one journey that we all take ...

... the journey to the HEART.

           With many experience's along the way ... each one, a step closer to the HEART!

Hold On To Nothing...!

Even nature has a show... a sense of humor... when it comes to humankind responding to a deep stir within the heart knowing that there is so much more than this .... hold on to nothing!! The personal I will try its' best to grab on & hold tight ... relax, breath & gently slip out of it's grip!

Expression...

Your body is a precious expressive instrument!

We are all made of the same perfect energy and yet our individual bodies let us express uniquely & differently. If we are living from the mind's thoughts of; past, future and imagined ideas ... we are asleep to our natural unique expressiveness. Being is all that is needed, from here your unique expression shines with no effort at all!

Quietness...

Can you quiet the mind's thoughts enough to feel the silence or the space of stillness in you? For most our thoughts rule us.

Quieting the constant thoughts can be done just by watching your thoughts and giving them no attention, no matter how important your mind thinks they are....do not discriminate, all thoughts are just thoughts!


                                                       


Remember, you are not small, in fact you are the greatest gift to mankind. Your gift to mankind is Being, no doing, no becoming, no gifting, etc...just rest in Being!

You are not small!

There is nothing small about you. In fact you are the most important gift to mankind. If you let the veil fall away, you will see that you have always been here. This amazing, brilliant you is what is needed now for all mankind. If you use thought to think that you are this or that...this is not you.

Who you are is not known through the personal I am (this or that). The I AM, I am referring to needs no identification. If the personal I thought is involved, know it's not you, breath and see what unfolds...!