The mind is NOT an obstacle to Self Knowledge!

Let's start with a basic premise: There IS existence, existing. Arguments against that Absolute (i.e. NON-Relative!) could never be mounted by any sane, rational mind. ONLY a mind devoid of the natural wisdom of what is OBVIOUS could ever propose such a bizarre metaphysical premise as "existence does not exist". So in the most direct and practical (PRACTICAL, NOT "mystical") sense, NO human can assert with the remotest chance of being in a position to prove his or her statement, "I AM NOT".

Try it! Say out loud: Personally now! ... "I am Not". OR, "I do not exist". Or in a broader sense, an impersonal mystical claim, "There is no existence".

It gets very simple when you get with yourself head-on, deer in the headlights, with that Absoluteness of the clear and present FACT that "Existence IS, and I AM."

So from what source is any confusion, contradiction, or irrational and illogical speculation? From an insane mind. Period. Look: The mind is NOT the issue when it comes down to the attainment of true Self Knowledge. It is the issue of, rather, AN IRRATIONAL mind! A mind which has abdicated it's rightful place as a servant whose function is to THINK for Itself, rather than accept willy-nilly all the secondhand ideas of those who long ago gave up the right to be called human beings and allowed themselves to become machines acting on stimuli installed by idiots who know nothing of what the job of the mind is as the servant of the Master ... YOU, as the formless yet very real intellect. The PURE Absolute Subject I, which is the source and cause of the mind's ability to think and reason, OR the source and cause of denying that very sacred right (at a cost which is all too obvious to the suffering individual who truly knows not what he has given up and for what alternative.)

So when you hear it, or read it, said, “You Are That”, or “You Are Unborn”, we do NOT mean “you do not exist."

We mean you DO exist … ABSOLUTELY. That means ... Forever.

To paraphrase Aristotle: YOU are the Immovable Mover. 

Both Movement and  No-movement are YOU.

Contradiction? Check the premises.

Unmoved? Premise: Existence IS.

Mover? Premise” I AM.

Those "teacher types" who attack the mind as the enemy will find no agreement here! Rather, an invitation to go deeply into that pure Innate Humanity which you are to resolve the issues for yourself. Because suffering is NOT necessary, regardless of circumstances. This I know, as a FACT, NOT speculation.

Think for yourself. Meanwhile, if guidance is wanted, feel free to ask. Information regarding that is at:

http://beingisknowing.blogspot.com/2009/09/consultations.html

Yes, there is a fee for my services. I too need to eat!

Are "we" the Source of What Is?

Q: I was listening to one of your Podcasts, cant remember which, and this question arose.  Isn’t repetition a sort of reconditioning, of the conditioning?   Love,  J.

C: It's really about letting the deconstruction of the false identity happen, so to speak. But as always we must add, IF YOU CAN! If you look straight on at What IS, what is happening right here and now, you MAY be drawn by Source to question, "Am I as this mind-body entity the real The Source of that "letting" or NOT letting go?" I assume and have since around the age of two and a half ASSUMED that I am. But IS THAT TRUE? Or is there a SUGGESTION implanted by Source in the brain, akin to a hypnotic suggestion that "I am a dog therefore I bark!?"  In the human hypnosis it is often "I think therefore I am". But is that TRUE?

The pointer is that perhaps the hypnosis is a divine one planted by Source for no good reason whatsoever, and the product of that hypnosis is "I am the one who must mange, direct and make my life work to get what I want and avoid what I do not want". A good look at that assumption CAN show it for what it is ... a hypnotic assumption That  I  AM the cause and source of what IS. Despite the overwhelming evidence to the contrary as so much of the time we do NOT get what we intend, despite our heartfelt commitment and our rigorous action toward the intention! To IGNORE that contrary evidence IS the effect of that hypnosis.

Just maybe (and perhaps worthy of the deeper than ever looking) the SOURCE of What IS, IS NOT "US!" Repetition may be needed; the identity is a habit sometimes not quickly seen to be just habitual patterns or intrinsically meaningless thoughts. Language! Whereas, what you REALLY ARE is prior to consciousness, prior to language, prior to either being or non-being! And THAT is fully present and awake right "here" and right "now." It's always ON..

The startling thing is when "it" ... the linguistic "entity" ...  with its assumed "conditioning" ... is deconstructed it gets clear as day there never was anything there. No entity, no conditioning! It was only a linguistic trick, an assumption which is revealed as false when sufficiently investigated. Of course whether that investigation actually happens, AND whether the fruits of that are more peace OR even more FRUSTRATION, are NOT in anyone's CONTROL!

WHAT "removes" the hypnosis? Whatever PUT it there! So: If it happens, we can call that Grace. In that natural Seeing this false sense of being the controller of life and living COULD be said to dissolve, if there is Grace ... but that's like saying that the water in a mirage dissolved. It was never there to begin with.

It’s a good question. Thanks! Love ya back.

Jay Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj!

"Tat Tvam Asi" Nisargadatta DVD

I Converses with I

Questioner: Hi Charlie ... Your  “Nothing Works” article muddled my mind and your “Everything Works” article just about fried my mind ! I got the joke …… I’ve just finished a meditation session , what’s good on the TV to watch now ? ! !

Anyway getting back to more “ serious” matters ( only kidding ! ), could you please tell me what the difference is ( if any ) between “self-inquiry” and “investigation into the self centered idea of a me “ ?

And also I’m not quite sure of the difference ( if any ) between “awareness” and “ consciousness “ – a lot of non-duality ‘teachers’ use these terms about a lot and assume you know what they are talking about . I ( actually my mind ) would like a bit of clarity on the definitions please

Charlie: I don't know what's on TV but Fried Mind is always a good supper dish!

The difference between "self inquiry" and "the investigation"?

1. Semantics. 2 None. ;-)

Consciousness, the Absolute, Awareness, Advaita, God, Spirit, Dog! .... these  are all just WORDS. Remember the Tao? The Tao (SOURCE) that can be named is NOT the Eternal Tao.

Words only point. That gets repeated ad infinitum ... just so long as the mind tries to get  some "right words" for the Wordless. Source is Immovable and invisible, yet Present as I. I does not exist ... i.e. I is NOT a THING ... and yet That I moves it all and IS it All. All by it's Lonesome!

NOT Two .... another pair of useless words!

Consciousness is the Pure "I" (for want of a much shorter word!) Awareness is That which ALLOWS for the appearance of the Pure I. And remember there is NO such THING as EITHER Awareness OR Consciousness. The words point NOWHERE, at NOTHING. Which is also EVERYTHING.

That utter Paradox might serve to destroy "the false sense of me" (the mind-body machinery)  assumed ... hypnotically ... to be the "doer" once and for good! Then again ... maybe not! Who's in charge of that?? Not "me"! Then... WHO? Good question... maybe!

But just NOW forget all of that and have some nice Fried Mind on Rye Toast! Meanwhile if you like to meditate or self inquire, do it. I am all for whatever "doing" provides value for you. Just keep present the question: Is "me" (pointing at the mind-body apparatus) the REAL SOURCE of the DOING?

YOU know that YOU (The I) IS. The I is CERTAIN. All else is what? Ain't it endless and futile speculation and mythology. The Authentic I is beyond words. My kingdom for a shorter damn word!

The I that can be named is NOT the Real I! Full Stop.

A Challenge To The Fictional “Me”

A Challenge To The Fictional “Me”

Stay with facts; reject false assumptions.

What you are is a FACT. The sense of Being, Presence, the knowingness "I AM" is simply beyond dispute. Abide as I AM and the imaginary problems fade out... It is said, THAT, I AM, Thou Art ("Tat Tvam Asi"). The wholeness that You Truly Are is nothing but this ever-fresh Knowing, I AM. Full Stop! Your Real Self is Unborn Awareness ... Awareness is never born and never dies ... Awareness is the Changeless Reality Itself. You Are THAT.

What we point out is that the root cause must be ELIMINATED. Seeing the mechanism is a first step, for sure. But to challenge the mind's assertions of belief until that cause is DISMANTLED is what is said to be the "means"... “Give up all questions except, Who Am I?” And, “Refuse all thoughts except, I Am.” ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

“The thought 'who am I?' will destroy all other thoughts, and like the stick used for stirring the burning pyre, it will itself in the end get destroyed. Then, there will arise Self-realization.” ~ Sri Ramana Maharshi

The point is, if any suffering remains, it has NOT been fully exposed and dismantled! Where IS the "I" that makes THIS claim? Who says that suffering has been exposed? This claim is made by an ego that resists being REALLY seen and dismantled! Keep looking, dig down and locate the real Source of the I thought; that one thought "I" is the fixative and the fixation, the "glue" is that energy of belief going into a false self center that on earnest and committed investigation simply cannot be found! Root out that cause and the effects die on the vine of True Seeing.

Start from the one FACT you are certain of: I AM. Look for the SOURCE of this I AM-NESS that you know is so. No one can tell you, you are not. That sense of presence, of Existingness, is all you know by direct knowing rather than conceptualizing. Suffering can only consist and persist in conceptualizing self as a separate suffering thing ... "poor me", "woe is me", etc. Get real with this. Suffering is optional!

(Later)

Q: It couldn't be more obvious that the 'I' thought has no root or cause. That's been obvious for some 'time'. It's also been obvious that all there is is this, that is, what's currently manifesting.

C: I don’t buy that. If it’s really seen that way, there would be NO suffering!

Q: All else (i.e., thought) is an illusion and suggests past, preset, future, etc. Of course all appears now. Yes, you can not say that you are not and that is it. It is so simple and obvious.

C: So where is the problem? And for whom is there a problem?

Q: I agree that "if any suffering remains, it has NOT been fully exposed and dismantled!"

C: Please: DON’T AGREE or DISAGREE. LOOK INTO THIS for yourself!

Q: But who is to expose or dismantle it?

C: That “you that still says I, I am this person, I still suffer. That "you" that is only a passing idea, energy-sound in Awareness, yet that idea is being taken to be real. To be "you!" Challenge that! Don’t just buy into some “nondual platitude” like “there is no one so who will look”? That is a ploy the ego-ideation uses to avoid its own being outed as the fake it really is. The emperor doesn’t want to be found out to have no clothes. YOU are Naked Awareness. Any idea to the contrary needs to be investigated and dismantled. The search began in the mind so the challenge to our cherished assumption of “I am I, Me” MUST be taken on IN that very mind. This is a paradox to the mind that wants the security of an answer. The “Answer” there is no one will still leave you suffering, as you are admitting when you are being honest about your actual experience. In my experience the structure of conceptualizing consist in A) interpretations of what is, including judgments and evaluations of what “should be different” or “could be better” that what simply IS, B) the fixation that “what is appearing is a real happening and it’s all happening to ME, and C) the core assumption that I AM the THOUGHT-BELIEF I, Me, My Self in a World Out There which I am separate from, and D) there IS a location for ME and there is also TIME, a past and future, which constrains ME.

Q: What can I say??? This character continues to 'suffer' in numerous ways. I can only think that it is the constant coming back or staying with what already is that can end this suffering. But, is (“me”) ready for that? I don't see how he ever could be.

C: Clearly of you are looking at this you ARE ripe and ready. Just finish it

Q: What do you mean by dismantled?

C: To see what is false about “you” … to deconstruct that house of cards by getting underneath the assumed isness of a “person” (the persona, or mask) by deeply investigation what is real and what is unreal. ANYTHING that comes and goes is UNREAL. Is that much understood?

Q: Do you mean resting as you're true self moment to moment, untouched by anything in manifestation or un-manifestation?

C: NO! You are ALREADY That ... untouched Being. To try to “rest as that” is dualism ... it creates a false division between That and “one who would rest as That”. This is faulty logic! Who cannot see that what you always already ARE is empty, meaningless Being-Knowing Awareness Itself? Get UNDER the assumption “I am Me”!

Q: Of course, that's always the case. Again, what can be said? 'Some' appear to have dismantled … Others appear to be chasing their own tails.

C: Exactly where are those “others”? Only in your mind! You assumption of being a separate person drives a false perception/assumption “there are others out there who are NOT “me”; some “special persons” who have “attained some state”. That is all bullshit, a productive of a wrong perspective. All perspectives are false: what You Are is No-Perspective, No-Location, No-Time, just Being. No more or less than Being Itself.

Q: Calling it a 'cosmic joke' could not be more appropriate!

C: On who? On the false concept of a self that cannot be found!

Q: I would also say that a process of 'dying' is occurring - I just wish that it would hurry up! LOL. Of course, that's just another belief, albeit, a rather attractive one.

C: No process is needed for you to BE, as You Are … this bare presence-awareness.

Q: What would be real is getting beyond the words of it and actually living it, moment to moment forever and ever. The words also chase their own tails!

C: WHO? WHO makes these claims or wants what is not already here right now? WHO!?

Q: Nevertheless, it's so purifying to bathe in the clarity of one's own self (self recognizing self)...

That is just another “spiritual belief. What needs to be “purified”? Does your Being need purification?

No.

That is already utterly pure, open and naked. You are just stuck in some spiritual or psychological concepts which have NO inherent validity whatsoever.

Take it all apart.

Get really curious to actual understand the mechanics of your mental suffering. Dismantling the ego-assumption may APPEAR to be a “process” in “time” but you can see right now that it’s all a story told by a storyteller that is no more than imagination.

 See what’s REAL and take apart what’s false… that’s the job the mind must do to dismantle itself. Paradoxically.

Get down under the false beliefs and assumptions; seek the SOURCE of the “I” assumption. When you find there is nothing there your questions and assumptions can no longer trouble you.

As Sri Nisargadatta said, “All that can trouble you is your own imagination”. Find out for yourself if that is TRUE. In my experience, I KNOW that to be absolutely true.

That natural knowing came from looking deeply into this. I encourage you to get after it and resolve these issues for your self…and I mean Right Now.

From “You Are Unborn” p. 79-83

NEW Podcast for 7/6 ... What Is The SOURCE of Life and Living?

This one runs a little under one hour and is the essence of what we talk about here when people come or call.  Right Click on the Link below and choose Save to download to your computer. Or Click to play on line:  We talk on TWO questions herein: What Is The Eternal State? And, What Is The SOURCE of Life and Living?

Link: WhatIsSource?

Question 1. A little poke now: What Is Enlightenment?

Question 2. How does one GET it?

When there is the Final Answer to the first question ... the second question will make you smile!

Missing The Point ......

Dear Ones,

You who are trying to learn

The Miracle of Love

Through the use of reason,

I am terribly afraid

You will never see the point.

~ Hafiz

From "You Are Unborn: What Is, IS … Or Is It?

Q: Sometimes I realize I exist (not the conceptual I) and in those moments things are sweet and nice and what is, is! It’s like waking up to a beautiful dawn (of course there is no one to wake up). However, suddenly there is suffering and I am back to the little I being ME. I am back to seeking, etc.

C: But where IS this I”? In deep sleep “you” are not there, yet the life of that organism lives without your being there at all. The exact same is happening in the waking and dreaming states, with the trivial exception of a thought coming and going, which out of insecurity or fear we attach to and identify with. That “I” thought DOES represent something. What does that “I” point to? Undeniably, YOU ARE and prior to any thought, that Existingness IS. It's the most obvious clarity. Overlooking that in favor of a thought story of a fictional "I" is the cause of all suffering.

Q: I have been baffled as to how you do self inquiry. I know you can ask, 'who am I' but I still am unsure if it’s an intellectual question or if it’s something to drop into presence during still moments. After reading the chapter on, 'how do I do self inquiry' in your book 'Paradise Found'. I asked myself, 'who’s asking' and then tried going deeper but I come down to being just IT or the BRAIN. This is where I get stuck. There is the sense that I am the brain and operating consciously from that and observing its thinking. Any ideas?

C: Read your own message again. Watch your own mind go I-I-I-I-I-I! Listen to your story of an “imaginary bound-up identity” and look right now: Is it real? Or is it a THOUGHT? Can a thought do anything? That “I” cannot really do self inquiry! How could a thought find it is not real? It’s tail chasing. Where is an "it" or a "brain" without words, concepts? All of which just come and go in Infinite Awareness, which you cannot "know" because you ARE That...

Settle in with the pointers rather than try to “do” your way out. There is ultimately NO way out for a "you" that is unreal to start with! That said, if some inquiry or whatever comes up by itself, fine. This is not about rejecting practice, nor about the “I” understanding its true nature. The “I” doesn’t HAVE a “true nature”!

Again WHERE is this separate entity with the label “I” that “gets stuck”?

There is no one in there so who would “do” some “practice"? Look at this: When you assume that what you are is a limited finite person, which you represent in language as “I”, or “me”, you reinforce that assumed identity by taking up this or that practice to perfect this finite persona. But if that practice assumes you are a separate identity how could that practice allow you to transcend that false persona? That is like turning the dirty cop in the precinct out to catch the dirty cop in the precinct. And yet it appears to happen. That’s the paradox of this, which the mind cannot ever grasp because the “mind" is only a thought! Can a thought grasp thought?

Q: Also, I have been thinking of meeting you. I know you live far away (I am in MD) and was wondering if it is possible to meet you in person some day?

C: You are welcome to come any time. However there may be no particular advantage in a face to face ... I found on meeting John Wheeler that his writings were actually more potent in a way owing to the absence of perceptive distractions! Same for our phone talks wherein he set it all straight in relatively short order, ending a three decades long search that until meeting John, had produced only more suffering and endless frustration! But I am still always happy to hang out with John!.

Shall we keep this real simple? You say "I exist" but in actual FACT, can you find, in REAL and actual nonconceptual experience, any such existing entity? This is a deeper look into this. Where is any I that exists - ACTUALLY? In simply terms, "you" do NOT exist.

Yet existence appears as all of this - space and apparent content of space - in the timeless Dream Of Oneness.

The final question sometimes appears as "who is asking 'who am I'?" But that question has NO answer. That blankness you describe IS the actuality of infinite being, infinite space, and infinite love.

Who or what is claiming a flip flop, me-and-BE? These are but energy arising as thoughts in Silence and these are never apart from The Silence, are they? This Silence is the Heart, the Substrate, of Consciousness, arising as that life force that makes the body live. Your problem is that you persist in identifying Consciousness as that body-brain-mind machine with it's, thoughts, feelings, experiences, senses, and perceptions. Of course again we come to a paradox: You don't do that! If you were doing it you would assuredly STOP doing it as it brings suffering!

So WHO or WHAT IS doing all this? That is the unanswerable question. Ask YOUR SELF, "What is That which I don't know that I don't know"?

Ponder this from Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj: "What makes you consider yourself a person [with its flip flops etc.]? Your identification with the body. Will this individual personality last? It will remain only so long as long as the identification with the body remains. But once there is a firm conviction that you are not the body, then that individuality is lost. It is the simplest thing, as soon as you have this conviction that you are not the body, then automatically, instantaneously, it is realized that You (the Real One) have always been the manifest totality.”

That manifest totality IS your Original nature, already complete and Presencing as the space-like Awareness IN which all that is manifest appears. The point being that Space and Its Content are of Single Essence - Aliveness arising from Nowhere and translated by language as I am, I exist.

Ponder this: You do not exist, and yet, YOU ARE. Nothing/Everything, Wisdom/Love. And your Original Nature is that which is Prior to language. The closest language can come to That is, Being - What I don't know that I don't know. And what You ARE is the Know-ING of THAT.

One without a second, Not Two; pointers to what IS.

That is YOU in Essence.

Form Is Emptiness, Emptiness is Form… like The Man said!

\What is Enlightenment and how does one get it?

This was the topic of the Talks schedule for July in Oklahoma which were canceled due to illness. This MP3 is a distillation of the Talks (from my prep notes) and contains their Essence. Right Click and Save or Click to Play On Line:

What is Enlightenment and how does one get it?