"Several years ago, Eckhart Tolle sat on a park bench and very few knew him. Today he is well known and regarded as an enlightened person. How would it have been like to hang out with him in those early years?" ~ Ordinary Enlightenment
A new movie entitled Ordinary Enlightenment is in production by Video Dynamics and they have launched the Ordinary Enlightenment Website. The website will be offering monthly video clips and uplifting quotes of people who are living in that "state of enlightenment." Each clip will be about 3 to 5 minutes long and the purpose is to assist in dissolving the false beliefs in who we think we are. The first video segment is now posted and features:
Katie Davis, author of Awake Joy
Sundance Burke, author of Free Spirit
Ramesh Balsekar, author,The Ultimate Understanding
Jeddah Mali, mentor and advisor
James Stelzenmuller, teacher of consciousness
Isa, mother
David Hardgrove
(please note: Katie Davis is the author of Awake Joy: The Essence of Enlightenment and not David Hardgrove as subtitled)
Nick Roach, author, Enlightenment
Andy Rymer, teacher, Self-inquiry workshops
We will be featuring the videos in our free issues of Friends of the Heart.
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To enjoy the first video, please click www.ordinaryenlightenment.com
Friday, December 26, 2008
Friday, December 19, 2008
Self-Inquiry is the Direct Approach to Enlightenment by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
The Self-inquiry teachings that Katie Davis, author, Awake Joy offers are consistent with the Self-inquiry teachings of Adi Shankara and Ramana Maharshi, who is one of the most revered sages of modern day India. Most of Ramana's teachings were offered in silence, while simply being Heart; the still radiance. In addition, he shared that Self-inquiry is the most direct approach.Silent "teachings" may be the most valuable for the aspirant. Without words, the ego is never engaged. Concepts and information are not really helpful for Self-realization. Yet, appropriate understanding of all that you are not is also recommended.
Katie Davis offers Silent Joy Satsang which is a full hour of silent sitting and other evenings offers regular satsang which includes meditation, Self-inquiry, a talk and an opportunity to ask questions on the teachings that were presented.
There are many other practices that are recommeded by teachers and some may be helpful, however practices require a "doer" who is the practitioner. For instance, chanting and kirtan can be so beautiful and when coupled with divine devotion, the mind shifts into harmony and peace, however the effect is usually only temporary. The one who is chanting is the ego "I" is the apparent obstruction between the pure consciousness that you are and the body. Chanting is exhilarating, divinely fun and pleasant indeed, however the misidentification with the "I" thought remains.
Likewise, while we are practicing meditation, the meditator is the ego "I." Meditation is excellent for bringing the restless mind into harmony and peace and it can be excellent for stress and our physical health. However, even after 20 years of practicing all of the profound levels and different techniques, the meditator remains ... the ego "I."
Plus which, the Heart is not a concept. It not an object upon which you meditate. That would mean that "you" are separate from formlessness. If you do practice meditation, please notice below in the article "Wisdom at Work" the form of meditation that I suggest. One can only BE the Heart.
It is true that as you become more and more conscious of the space within the world of form, you will also notice an ever increasing expansiveness within. We refer to that as space consciousness. The Heart is beyond both space and time, however when space consciousness begins arising, it is a sign that the altered state of consciousness is dissolving into the wisdom of the Heart.
Some recommend the practice of detachment from objects. This is nearly impossible for the ego "I" since its very purpose is to project out into the world of form to attach to other objects. Once again, the one who is practicing detachment is the ego "I." It must be seen that the false "I" thought is itself an object. This means it is merely an attachment itself. The ego "I" has no means of surrendering itself. In other words, the ego cannot surrender the ego. Detachment will profoundly, radically and spontaneously occur by itself, rather than something contrived and enforced by the ego.
In fact, as we have discussed, there is a purpose for holding onto to the "I" thought; the altered state of consciousness that we call the ego thought. This ego "I" thought projects from the Heart and as an analogy, I might say it leaves a "trail of bread crumbs" as it projects outward. If we will bring our attention directly to that "I," "I," "I," and then inquire, "who am I?" the ego disappears. It is like removing the "man" that never was in the first place. We seek the "I" and follow the "bread crumbs" home to the Heart. We are then able to rest as deep peace and as we are willing to continue inquiring, we will find ourselves able to rest for longer and longer periods of time as the Heart. This is the beginning level of Self-inquiry.
Eventually, all the forms of practice will finally arrive at the final question, "Who is 'I?" "Who am I?" So, the direct approach begins where all other paths stop. Why not let this be the first question and go directly?
In the beginning of the awakening, we do indeed use breathing and sensing so that we wake up out of time and get out of our heads and into the body. This is the pathway to the inner formlessness within. In the end however, it is a misperception when we refer to "within" the body and "outside" the body. That "inner" and "outer" is another mental construct that will be surrendered. It is the beginning, but it is not the deeper knowing.
Pure consciousness is indivisible and it has no parts. It has no form in order to call it inside the body or outside the body. All is appearing within the Heart and it includes everything. There is nothing separate from it. There is nothing that is not It. We could say that the body is a projection of the mind to which we are misidentified and the mind is a pale reflection of the pure consciousness or intelligence that it genuinely is.
We initially use witnessing to discriminate between that which is impermanent, coming and going or in modification. I am the only "thing" that is permanent and therefore, if I am still and permanent, I am able to discern finer and finer layers of the intellect that seem to be true and yet when modification is noticed, they too are released. Even the subject-witness itself will be surrendered and that is Self-realization.
Since you believe yourself to be your body, it seems like you are coming and going everywhere; another misperception. YOU never go anywhere ... as the body seems to move about in the world. You are not in the mirror of life; that is, the world of form. You are That which sustains all appearances; the Life that supports all living.
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Free e-books include another excerpt from Awake Joy, student dialogues and essays that have been published in the United States, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom.
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To get Awake Joy or Free Spirit in Katie's Store: Click Here
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(If you have already read this book, please consider writing a review)
To get Free Spirit at Amazon(U.S.): Click Here
(If you have already read this book, please consider writing a review)
Katie Davis Website: www.KatieDavis.org
Sundance Burke Website: www.SundanceBurke.org
Go to: Free Downloads
Enjoy free downloads on spiritual awakening, Non-duality, Self-inquiry, enlightenment, Self-realization, meditation and living now as presence.
These downloads include:
1. Two free chapters of Awake Joy by Katie Davis (12 pages)
2. Free chapters from Free Spirit by Sundance Burke (42 pages)
3. Free E-book, Self-Inquiry and Self-Realization (28 pages)
4. Free E-book, Spiritual Awakening (16 pages)
5. Free E-book, Awake Living (20 pages)
Free e-books include another excerpt from Awake Joy, student dialogues and essays that have been published in the United States, Canada, Japan and the United Kingdom.
You may also sign up to receive one email monthly that is a free Friends of the Heart Newsletter that includes new articles on awakening, Non-duality, Self-inquiry, enlightenment and Self-realization by Katie Davis, author, Awake Joy and Sundance Burke, author, Free Spirit, other non-dual authors and teachers, ecstatic poets, artists and musicians.
New selections will be added periodically to this Free Download Library, so that the wide selection will always be fresh. You may return to these pages to enjoy any time that you wish.
If you enjoy your visit, please let your friends know about the page.
Go to Free DownloadsAlso available on this website is a Free Video Library with over 20 videos on spiritual awakening, Non-duality, Self-Inquiry, Living Now as Presence, enlightenment, Self-realization and meditation. The videos include satsang videos, interviews, television shows, radio podcasts with slideshows.
Go to Free Video Library
To get Awake Joy or Free Spirit in Katie's Store: Click Here
(Better Together Discount 20%)
To get Awake Joy at Amazon (U.S.): Click Here
(If you have already read this book, please consider writing a review)
To get Free Spirit at Amazon(U.S.): Click Here
(If you have already read this book, please consider writing a review)
Katie Davis Website: www.KatieDavis.org
Sundance Burke Website: www.SundanceBurke.org
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Wisdom at Work ~ Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
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Wisdom at Work by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
In the beginning of spiritual awakening, energetically we may feel totally stunned by this extraordinary "new" frequency of being. It is appropriate that attention turns naturally inward. This is quite a long "journey" for most and waking up to the present moment is only the beginning.
In present moment living, our senses become so alive and we feel genuinely vibrant and grateful. If we shift into time, we suddenly find ourselves once again misidentified with the ego "I" thought and all of its attachments. As soon as we become aware of the fact that we are compulsively thinking, we are back and conscious! Take just a moment for a conscious breath or two and you will be resting once again timelessly present.
It is also appropriate in the beginning to set aside a certain amount of time each day to just sit silently. We could call this meditation. There are many different types of meditation and some suggest that you use an object such as a candle to focus your attention or to focus attention on the formlessness within. Both are objects and this is not the type of meditation that I suggest. Simply rest as "I am." If a thought comes up and you identify with "I" just ask the Self-inquiry question, "Who am I?" Then simply rest as "I am" once again.
Soon, meditation will leave your silent meditation place in your home and you will be able to consciously BE all day long; a day long meditation while the body moves about:
Silent being ... driving ...
Silent being ... washing the dishes ...
The distractions in the world of form are many, so for awhile you will find yourself getting lost in the mind and its time, since the mind's habit is to turn outward. When this happens, you can no longer be conscious of simply being. Just as you did in your meditation place at home, once you notice it, ask this essential question, "Who am I?" and you will once again realize conscious being.
The initial awakening will continue to deepen and deepen. There are no "levels" in Pure Awareness. The sense of deepening is because all that is false is surrendered. There are so many layers that will be surrendered and there is this sense that, "you mean this can go too?!"
You do not need to "do" surrender. Through silent watching, the false will be noticed and the deeper surrender happens by itself. The tool of Self-inquiry will be the right tool throughout this deepening process.
The moment of enlightenment is beyond experience. I realize that the ego would like to add it to its long list ... this time being the nirvana experience. However, enlightenment is not an attainment of the ego "I" that has its idea of becoming. The false "I" is the only apparent obstruction. Instead, through Self-inquiry the divided mind dissolves into the pure bliss and consciousness of Pure Awareness.
Upon enlightenment, we are not really functional in the world or for that matter even aware of it. Once the world appears again, the illumined mind is a perfect reflection of pure consciousness.
The path still may not be over. So, I suggest never to have any sense of arrival. That one is the ego "I" calling you back to form and its suffering consequence with its sense, "I" have arrived. So, we still have our companion of Self-inquiry. Slowly, this altered consciousness will permanently settle in the Heart as Pure I alone.
No "doer" remains. I am frequently asked about this, "well, how does anything get done?!" My answer, "just as it does now." The ego likes to think that it is the doer of action. Remember, it possesses things and calls everything "mine," unless it does not like what is happening ... and then it calls it "yours." No "doer" of action simply means that everything is happening by itself and does not need "your" control, manipulation or guidance. Just wait and see ...
There are many misconceptions about Self-realization. In fact, some may still have an image of a monk sitting in a cave or at the top of a mountain. However, this just is not so. One could say, I am neither in this world, nor not of it.
Here is an example using a well known and often used expression:
In the old world of ego:
"I (ego) chop wood and carry water."
In the new world:
"Pure 'I' chop wood and carry water."
Wisdom is not in conflict with either work or play. There is simply this vast well of creativity flowing through, since pure perceiving is no longer clouded by the psychological sense of self. Spontaneity comes to the forefront and we realize pure efficiency. The psychological self is not there debating about what it should "do" next. We simply allow wisdom's work.
Please write a book review for Katie's book, Awake Joy by clicking: Awake Joy
Katie Davis Author Facebook Page www.facebook.com/KatieDavisAuthor
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Wisdom at Work by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
In the beginning of spiritual awakening, energetically we may feel totally stunned by this extraordinary "new" frequency of being. It is appropriate that attention turns naturally inward. This is quite a long "journey" for most and waking up to the present moment is only the beginning.
In present moment living, our senses become so alive and we feel genuinely vibrant and grateful. If we shift into time, we suddenly find ourselves once again misidentified with the ego "I" thought and all of its attachments. As soon as we become aware of the fact that we are compulsively thinking, we are back and conscious! Take just a moment for a conscious breath or two and you will be resting once again timelessly present.
It is also appropriate in the beginning to set aside a certain amount of time each day to just sit silently. We could call this meditation. There are many different types of meditation and some suggest that you use an object such as a candle to focus your attention or to focus attention on the formlessness within. Both are objects and this is not the type of meditation that I suggest. Simply rest as "I am." If a thought comes up and you identify with "I" just ask the Self-inquiry question, "Who am I?" Then simply rest as "I am" once again.
Soon, meditation will leave your silent meditation place in your home and you will be able to consciously BE all day long; a day long meditation while the body moves about:
Silent being ... driving ...
Silent being ... washing the dishes ...
The distractions in the world of form are many, so for awhile you will find yourself getting lost in the mind and its time, since the mind's habit is to turn outward. When this happens, you can no longer be conscious of simply being. Just as you did in your meditation place at home, once you notice it, ask this essential question, "Who am I?" and you will once again realize conscious being.
The initial awakening will continue to deepen and deepen. There are no "levels" in Pure Awareness. The sense of deepening is because all that is false is surrendered. There are so many layers that will be surrendered and there is this sense that, "you mean this can go too?!"
You do not need to "do" surrender. Through silent watching, the false will be noticed and the deeper surrender happens by itself. The tool of Self-inquiry will be the right tool throughout this deepening process.
The moment of enlightenment is beyond experience. I realize that the ego would like to add it to its long list ... this time being the nirvana experience. However, enlightenment is not an attainment of the ego "I" that has its idea of becoming. The false "I" is the only apparent obstruction. Instead, through Self-inquiry the divided mind dissolves into the pure bliss and consciousness of Pure Awareness.
Upon enlightenment, we are not really functional in the world or for that matter even aware of it. Once the world appears again, the illumined mind is a perfect reflection of pure consciousness.
The path still may not be over. So, I suggest never to have any sense of arrival. That one is the ego "I" calling you back to form and its suffering consequence with its sense, "I" have arrived. So, we still have our companion of Self-inquiry. Slowly, this altered consciousness will permanently settle in the Heart as Pure I alone.
No "doer" remains. I am frequently asked about this, "well, how does anything get done?!" My answer, "just as it does now." The ego likes to think that it is the doer of action. Remember, it possesses things and calls everything "mine," unless it does not like what is happening ... and then it calls it "yours." No "doer" of action simply means that everything is happening by itself and does not need "your" control, manipulation or guidance. Just wait and see ...
There are many misconceptions about Self-realization. In fact, some may still have an image of a monk sitting in a cave or at the top of a mountain. However, this just is not so. One could say, I am neither in this world, nor not of it.
Here is an example using a well known and often used expression:
In the old world of ego:
"I (ego) chop wood and carry water."
In the new world:
"Pure 'I' chop wood and carry water."
Wisdom is not in conflict with either work or play. There is simply this vast well of creativity flowing through, since pure perceiving is no longer clouded by the psychological sense of self. Spontaneity comes to the forefront and we realize pure efficiency. The psychological self is not there debating about what it should "do" next. We simply allow wisdom's work.
Please write a book review for Katie's book, Awake Joy by clicking: Awake Joy
Katie Davis Author Facebook Page www.facebook.com/KatieDavisAuthor
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Katie Davis Published In Star People in Tokyo, Japan ~ Author, Awake Joy
Katie Davis Website: www.KatieDavis.org
Katie Davis Official Daily Blog: Awake by Katie at www.AwakebyKatie.blogspot.com
Katie Davis, author, Awake Joy is just published in Star People Magazine in Autumn 2008 Volume 27. This beautiful 128 page publication is published by Natural Spirit, Inc in Tokyo Japan with a lovely quality, durable cover, full color and heavy glossy paper throughout. Every page includes interviews and spirituality articles from master guides and spirituality messengers from around the world and Hawaii.
The two page spread by Katie Davis includes a Japanese translation of her article "The Adoration of Enlightenment" plus an interview and biographical information.
Also included are others such as Amma, Alan Cohen, Brandon Bays, Drunvalo Melchizedek, Chris Griscom and a long list of others who offer the Essence of Spirituality with beautiful articles such as One Ocean, One People by Kanako Uchino.
Katie Davis has been invited to offer satsang in Tokyo, Japan in 2009. If you know people who speak Japanese, please let them know that Star People for Ascension 2012 is now available at:
Amazon Japan - Star People
Natural Spirit, Inc - Star People
Awake Joy by Katie Davis is now available at Amazon Japan:
Amazon Japan - Awake Joy
Katie Davis Official Daily Blog: Awake by Katie at www.AwakebyKatie.blogspot.com
Katie Davis, author, Awake Joy is just published in Star People Magazine in Autumn 2008 Volume 27. This beautiful 128 page publication is published by Natural Spirit, Inc in Tokyo Japan with a lovely quality, durable cover, full color and heavy glossy paper throughout. Every page includes interviews and spirituality articles from master guides and spirituality messengers from around the world and Hawaii.
The two page spread by Katie Davis includes a Japanese translation of her article "The Adoration of Enlightenment" plus an interview and biographical information.
Also included are others such as Amma, Alan Cohen, Brandon Bays, Drunvalo Melchizedek, Chris Griscom and a long list of others who offer the Essence of Spirituality with beautiful articles such as One Ocean, One People by Kanako Uchino.
Katie Davis has been invited to offer satsang in Tokyo, Japan in 2009. If you know people who speak Japanese, please let them know that Star People for Ascension 2012 is now available at:
Amazon Japan - Star People
Natural Spirit, Inc - Star People
Awake Joy by Katie Davis is now available at Amazon Japan:
Amazon Japan - Awake Joy
Friday, December 12, 2008
Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds ~ Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
Katie Davis Website: www.KatieDavis.org
"Lucy In the Sky With Diamonds" by Katie Davis
Nature and experience ...
This morning, a spiritual friend on the East Coast wrote to joyfully express that a new blanket of snow covered her area and that the full moon was glistening across the fields.
Before dawn, this encouraged a walk to the beach ... and there was the lovely one ... suspended in quietude ... Lucy in the Sky surrounded by all her twinkling diamonds.
"Moonbeams" danced across the ocean, while the radiant, golden globe began to descend just off the island of Lana'i.
Deep peace ...
Then, the mind reflected for a moment how beautiful it is that as Heart Friends who are apparently sprinkled all over the world and yet we gaze at the same full moon.
Just as extraordinary is the fact that from all over the world, we come to share, express and point to the radiant Heart within us that is beating its rhythm of Love as the same pure consciousness.
We seem far away ... and yet we are so intimately near ...
I am fascinated this morning about your "ordinary" experience.
Do you have a moment to look out your window or better yet, step outside into nature?
Do you have just a moment and post what you are experiencing?
Can you see the full moon?
Is it slightly drawing out the wild child within you?
Is it pulling the tides making the waves more powerful? How does that power speak?
Is there snow on the trees of the forest? What does it sound like?
Is it raining on the streets of Paris? How does the body feel if you take a chance and stand there in it?
Has the cloud cover lifted so that Mount Rainier is out in all her glory? How is she speaking to you?
Are there morning birds singing in Spain and how do you feel when you truly listen?
Is the wind blowing your hair?
What does the creek or river sing to you this morning as it babbles through the day?
What is reflecting in the pond or the lake? Does that reflection quietly tell you a story?
How is the chill from the freeze make a difference to your breathing? What are you noticing?
Where are you? How is nature? How are you experiencing it?
I am truly fascinated to know ...
Only Love ~ Katie Davis
Katie Davis Blog Archives are at Awake by Katie
You may also access the Katie Davis Blog from her website at www.KatieDavis.org
Comments on this blog are moderated by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Crimson Morning and Mystical Rainbow ~ Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
The stillness of dawn is upon us ...
The profound sacredness resonating ... OM ...
... as it mysteriously powers the appearance of THIS ...
Just now, the rays of the morning sun are starting to peek over the island's beloved mountain, Haleakala ...
The subtle light brilliantly dresses the entire sky in mystical crimson ...
No direct morning sun ... simply the secret proclamation that the New Dawn is imminent ...
... OM ...
Tears of joy and gratitude brim the wonderment of these human eyes ...
Hmm ... the sky too now weeps, while the splendor of a rainbow appears over the expanse of the Pacific ... free of purpose and ambition.
More splendidly vivid where the sky meets the sea, the rainbow arches over the clouds ... disappears half way ... already perfect completion ... just the way that it is ...
... OM ...
Effortlessly, a morning egret gleefully glides by, while its snow white wings timelessly ride the Kona winds ... and the sound of silence ... on its way to nowhere ...
Words are here now to share with you, Heart Friends ... still ... just pure perceiving ...
While these words may be a close relative ... nothing comes close to expressing it ... and yet it begs its expression ...
Quite so! ... a tremendous clap of thunder ... the sky opens and the clouds are outpouring ...
Even from a former Seattleite's drizzling viewpoint, I must say that once it finally begins, it really knows how to rain here!!
As the tears quench the island's year long thirst, they blanket the island in forever green ...
A symphony of birdsong expressing pure delight ...
... OM ...
Sacred Being ... Being OM ... Being Sky ... Being Living Earth ... Being you ...
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
The Adoration of Enlightenment by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
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The Adoration of Enlightenment by Katie Davis
Devotion is attending the sacred flame in our Heart, rather than mindfully wishing to change what already is. Upon awakening, one could say that we are in prayer all day long, during all that is appearing or being done. The still center point of our spirit is the permanent factor underneath all of our impermanent experiences. In this manner, life seems pristine and sanctified, regardless of how the mind and its time might judge it. Ultimately, the adoration of enlightenment is being the sacred flame and we are effortlessly faithful to being the glowing light.
In Self-realization, we realize that every life encounter is flowing from the fullness within and we profoundly appreciate the sacred Essence, within which all is appearing. We are very much present to life, but our attention is resting as the Heart, instead of projecting into the mind's life and its problematic situations and conflicts. We have directly realized that we are not separate from our divinity and therefore do not objectify this dimension as a separate power, such as in duality. What greater prayer is there than to humbly rest in sacred unity and simply allow wisdom to do its work?
This inner vigilance has a feeling of objectless worship and reverence. We sense our heart overflowing with gratitude and divine appreciation. Vigilance prevents the confusion of our outer, conditioned existence from invading our inner space. Attention "protects" our Heart's flame, much like we would protect a candle from the wind. Witnessing keeps our inner space open, free and clear. Through silent and still watching alone, we are then able to recognize the slightest nuance of emotional contraction, so that we are free of reaction, when things go wrong or other than expected.
We are able to be gentle, patient and compassionate with ourselves and others. When we are silently witnessing grief and suffering, this conscious allowing transmutes the negativity into the precious fuel for unconditional love, while the light glows brighter and thrives. By being consciously present, the sacred loving burns everything into itself and only the love prevails. Conscious suffering may not be comfortable, but it does have an end, so we are no longer afraid of suffering or trying to escape it. When we allow our heart to crack open, we transcend into the perfect peace that we truly are.
Forebearance is one of the last gatekeepers to enlightenment and perhaps best described through my father's words. When I was very tiny and crying, he would often repeat the well known saying that every cloud has a silver lining. Yes, we may presently be sorrowful, but our primary focus is on the shining that surrounds it. This attentive light dissolves our misery, just like the morning sunlight gently parts the clouds. Forbearance is the patient acceptance of how we presently feel, with the deeper knowing that we are safe and out of harm's way. We are able to maintain a sense of equanimity and innocence. This field of innocence is within you right now and it is the pathway to Self-realization; the only true answer to enduring fulfillment. Self-realization is love's conscious completion and is the end of psychological suffering. At last, the lion lies down with the lamb.
The invitation of these teachings is to devote to being love's light, instead of tending to the phenomenal display called life experience. If we deny this light, we will suddenly find ourselves in the world again and get lost in the struggle. When this occurs, we merely shift attention back to being the open flame and we regain our quietude and tranquility. In this manner, we might even be able to welcome the opposition of others as a rising teacher for the freedom of our inner space.
When we are able to consciously rest as the pure being within, we are an open window for the unconditional love to flow into our lives and into the world. We unconditionally accept life as it is, without getting lost in the mind's resistance. In the refuge of our timelessness, the past fades away and we respect life for the miracle that it genuinely is. This sacred dimension allows a sense of continuity and security in our lives. We are able to accept, welcome and honor the ever changing conditions and seasons of the life situation. Free of resistance, life is graceful and we experience an ease in living.
Resistance seems unique to the human being. Nature provides many examples of yielding to life, rather than resisting. In a tropical storm, a palm tree yields to the wind and then regains its graceful sway. A river yields to its gravitational force as it descends a mountain to enter the ocean. Winter yields to spring, just as the ocean yields to the tides. A bear surrenders to hibernation, rather than weathering the snows. An eagle soars in the sky and yields to the wind. Daytime gracefully surrenders to the intimacy of the night. Thought free, nature meets life as it is and never slips into time.
Surrender is a powerful transformer of negative energy, so that we become more present for genuine living. We surrender our anger, fears and desires to the Grace that knows the way. When we let go of these contracted burdens in this manner, we regain a gentle lightness of being and an outpouring of peace that is simply beyond the mind and its ideas. The mind-made self and its delusion of control and manipulation are finally finished. Since we have stopped feeding our thoughts, we are also free of the emotional body and its suffering. Instead of trying to make life conform to our ego's wants and need-based insecurities, we rest in "not knowing" and every life experience becomes a mysterious adventure. Uncaused joy surfaces and comes to the forefront and we discover that life, with all of its idiosyncrasies and what the mind might call its imperfections ... it is perfection.
I invite you to be as still as your meditation or church alter, while all of life's complexities, struggles and failures are passing by. They are begging for your forgiveness and in the light of your consciousness, darkness cannot prevail. Be present when they arrive, compassionately allow them while they are here, and notice that after their passing, only the love that you are remains. In this willingness, life's greatest nourishment is adoration.
KATIE DAVIS is author of "Awake Joy: The Essence of Enlightenment" and her husband is Sundance Burke who is author of "Free Spirit: A Guide to Enlightened Being." They awakened in 1982 and 1986 before they met one another. Their books just published this year.
To "Look Inside" these books and receive a Better Together 20% Discount, please click:
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The Adoration of Enlightenment by Katie Davis
Devotion is attending the sacred flame in our Heart, rather than mindfully wishing to change what already is. Upon awakening, one could say that we are in prayer all day long, during all that is appearing or being done. The still center point of our spirit is the permanent factor underneath all of our impermanent experiences. In this manner, life seems pristine and sanctified, regardless of how the mind and its time might judge it. Ultimately, the adoration of enlightenment is being the sacred flame and we are effortlessly faithful to being the glowing light.
In Self-realization, we realize that every life encounter is flowing from the fullness within and we profoundly appreciate the sacred Essence, within which all is appearing. We are very much present to life, but our attention is resting as the Heart, instead of projecting into the mind's life and its problematic situations and conflicts. We have directly realized that we are not separate from our divinity and therefore do not objectify this dimension as a separate power, such as in duality. What greater prayer is there than to humbly rest in sacred unity and simply allow wisdom to do its work?
This inner vigilance has a feeling of objectless worship and reverence. We sense our heart overflowing with gratitude and divine appreciation. Vigilance prevents the confusion of our outer, conditioned existence from invading our inner space. Attention "protects" our Heart's flame, much like we would protect a candle from the wind. Witnessing keeps our inner space open, free and clear. Through silent and still watching alone, we are then able to recognize the slightest nuance of emotional contraction, so that we are free of reaction, when things go wrong or other than expected.
We are able to be gentle, patient and compassionate with ourselves and others. When we are silently witnessing grief and suffering, this conscious allowing transmutes the negativity into the precious fuel for unconditional love, while the light glows brighter and thrives. By being consciously present, the sacred loving burns everything into itself and only the love prevails. Conscious suffering may not be comfortable, but it does have an end, so we are no longer afraid of suffering or trying to escape it. When we allow our heart to crack open, we transcend into the perfect peace that we truly are.
Forebearance is one of the last gatekeepers to enlightenment and perhaps best described through my father's words. When I was very tiny and crying, he would often repeat the well known saying that every cloud has a silver lining. Yes, we may presently be sorrowful, but our primary focus is on the shining that surrounds it. This attentive light dissolves our misery, just like the morning sunlight gently parts the clouds. Forbearance is the patient acceptance of how we presently feel, with the deeper knowing that we are safe and out of harm's way. We are able to maintain a sense of equanimity and innocence. This field of innocence is within you right now and it is the pathway to Self-realization; the only true answer to enduring fulfillment. Self-realization is love's conscious completion and is the end of psychological suffering. At last, the lion lies down with the lamb.
The invitation of these teachings is to devote to being love's light, instead of tending to the phenomenal display called life experience. If we deny this light, we will suddenly find ourselves in the world again and get lost in the struggle. When this occurs, we merely shift attention back to being the open flame and we regain our quietude and tranquility. In this manner, we might even be able to welcome the opposition of others as a rising teacher for the freedom of our inner space.
When we are able to consciously rest as the pure being within, we are an open window for the unconditional love to flow into our lives and into the world. We unconditionally accept life as it is, without getting lost in the mind's resistance. In the refuge of our timelessness, the past fades away and we respect life for the miracle that it genuinely is. This sacred dimension allows a sense of continuity and security in our lives. We are able to accept, welcome and honor the ever changing conditions and seasons of the life situation. Free of resistance, life is graceful and we experience an ease in living.
Resistance seems unique to the human being. Nature provides many examples of yielding to life, rather than resisting. In a tropical storm, a palm tree yields to the wind and then regains its graceful sway. A river yields to its gravitational force as it descends a mountain to enter the ocean. Winter yields to spring, just as the ocean yields to the tides. A bear surrenders to hibernation, rather than weathering the snows. An eagle soars in the sky and yields to the wind. Daytime gracefully surrenders to the intimacy of the night. Thought free, nature meets life as it is and never slips into time.
Surrender is a powerful transformer of negative energy, so that we become more present for genuine living. We surrender our anger, fears and desires to the Grace that knows the way. When we let go of these contracted burdens in this manner, we regain a gentle lightness of being and an outpouring of peace that is simply beyond the mind and its ideas. The mind-made self and its delusion of control and manipulation are finally finished. Since we have stopped feeding our thoughts, we are also free of the emotional body and its suffering. Instead of trying to make life conform to our ego's wants and need-based insecurities, we rest in "not knowing" and every life experience becomes a mysterious adventure. Uncaused joy surfaces and comes to the forefront and we discover that life, with all of its idiosyncrasies and what the mind might call its imperfections ... it is perfection.
I invite you to be as still as your meditation or church alter, while all of life's complexities, struggles and failures are passing by. They are begging for your forgiveness and in the light of your consciousness, darkness cannot prevail. Be present when they arrive, compassionately allow them while they are here, and notice that after their passing, only the love that you are remains. In this willingness, life's greatest nourishment is adoration.
KATIE DAVIS is author of "Awake Joy: The Essence of Enlightenment" and her husband is Sundance Burke who is author of "Free Spirit: A Guide to Enlightened Being." They awakened in 1982 and 1986 before they met one another. Their books just published this year.
To "Look Inside" these books and receive a Better Together 20% Discount, please click:
AWAKE JOY
Katie Davis Website www.katiedavis.org
Friday, December 5, 2008
Friends of the Heart December Issue ~ Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
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Friends of the Heart December Issue
Katie publishes every month issues of "Friends of the Heart" with articles on being now, spiritual awakening, Self-Inquiry, enlightenment, Non-duality, Advaita and Self-Realization.
In This Issue:
"You Are The Goal of Self-Realization" by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
"Ramana Maharshi - Abide As The Self"
Free 1 hour video on the Self-Inquiry teachings of Ramana Maharshi with beautiful footage and a tribute to one of the most revered sages of modern day India.
"Gifts of Joy and Spirit"
Better Together 20% Discount
Awake Joy by Katie Davis and Free Spirit by Sundance Burke
"Bliss of Surrender" by Kip Mazuy, Founder, Bliss Music
"Only The Self Is Love" by Sundance Burke, Author, Free Spirit
To enjoy, go to www.KatieDavis.org/FriendsoftheHeart.html
Sign Up For Katie's Mailing List
Receive a message directly from Katie that is limited to once a month and protected by SafeSubscribe
Awake by Katie Blog Archive: www.AwakebyKatie.blogspot.com
Katie Davis YouTube Channel
Friends of the Heart Katie Davis Facebook Group
You are invited to share daily directly with Katie and hundreds of people worldwide who are awakening to ask questions or share your deeper insights.
Friends of the Heart December Issue
Katie publishes every month issues of "Friends of the Heart" with articles on being now, spiritual awakening, Self-Inquiry, enlightenment, Non-duality, Advaita and Self-Realization.
In This Issue:
"You Are The Goal of Self-Realization" by Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
"Ramana Maharshi - Abide As The Self"
Free 1 hour video on the Self-Inquiry teachings of Ramana Maharshi with beautiful footage and a tribute to one of the most revered sages of modern day India.
"Gifts of Joy and Spirit"
Better Together 20% Discount
Awake Joy by Katie Davis and Free Spirit by Sundance Burke
"Bliss of Surrender" by Kip Mazuy, Founder, Bliss Music
"Only The Self Is Love" by Sundance Burke, Author, Free Spirit
To enjoy, go to www.KatieDavis.org/FriendsoftheHeart.html
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Analysis and Interpretation ~ Katie Davis, Author, Awake Joy
Please visit the Katie Davis Website at www.KatieDavis.org
Katie Davis is author of Awake Joy: The Essence of Enlightenment and spontaneously awakened in 1986. She has been offering talks in spiritual gatherings since 1999. Awake Joy was directly encouraged by Eckhart Tolle.
Analysis and Interpretation by Katie Davis
Analysis and interpretation are excellent tools for balancing the checkbook, determining probabilities and all sorts of likelihoods. However, in any analysis, if the primary assumption is wrong in the first place, no amount of analyzing or interpreting will bring us, even mathematically, to the right answer.
The only essential question on the spiritual quest is, "Who am I?" We were taught and therefore assumed that the word "I" is pointing to the body. This is the primary delusion that casts us into apparent separation and is the cause of all misery and sorrow.
If we are misidentified with the dreaming "I" or what I call the ego, the mind-made self, or the "I am the body idea," no amount of analysis or interpretation will bring us to Self-discovery. They simply are the wrong tools, because the primary assumption is false. The "I" thought points to the body of course, but infinitely more.
Analysis and interpretation are very good tools for the mind. Tools of the mind just cannot remove the mind. Now, I am not suggesting that the mind is a bad thing. Hardly true! Thought is an extraordinary power. It is just that when we mistake thought for who we are, thought uses us and we suffer.
The opportunity of spiritual awakening, enlightenment and Self-realization is that what we call mind is stilled. Since we are no longer misidentified with thought as our true identity, thought (ego) can no longer use us. The ego and its push and pull strategies are finished. Instead, the altered state of consciousness that is ego, dissolves into the pure consciousness that it genuinely is. The mind then becomes the willing hand-maiden to Truth; the Heart of unconditional love and perfect peace.
Further, analysis and interpretation are always based on the known. What is known is always past. Since I am suggesting that we may not yet realize who we are as our essence, that is, beyond our given name and form, we must consider the unknown.
When we analyze and focus on our conditioning, such as why we feel the way that we do or what we are worried about in the future, we may indeed come to a clearer understanding of the conditioning and how it is functioning, but it cannot take us beyond that which is free of all conditioning.
Let's take two examples. First, you are feeling angry and you do not really know why. The analyzing mind will go to the past and reflect upon what has happened that made you feel angry. Perhaps you will remember the past incident, but it will not remove the fact that you feel angry. Another example, you are feeling anxious. In this case, the analyzing mind is likely to shift to the future. You may discover what you are worried about, but it will not change the anxiety.
In both of these examples, we are dealing with time fixations. Our first step is therefore to step out of time. We can become aware of our breathing or what the body is sensing and we will suddenly find ourselves aware of the present moment.
Once we are present and free of time, we have the tools of self-observation and witnessing. Whatever past conditioning we are holding will arise in the present moment as discontentment or unease. If we are observing, we become conscious of how the ego is functioning. We become conscious of its structure and how it operates within us. What was previously unconscious is transformed into consciousness. This surrender of the false happens by itself when you are willing to be the consistent watcher.
Wisdom's tool is Self-inquiry and it is the Direct Approach to enlightenment and Self-realization. Self-inquiry instantly removes the ego that resides as a thought in the head and brings us home to the Heart.
To review Self-Inquiry, please refer to one of Katie's earlier posts by clicking:
AWAKE BY KATIE
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The Now over the Sea ~ Part II Excerpt Awake Joy by Katie Davis
Visit the Katie Davis Website at www.KatieDavis.org:
Free awakening videos and free Friends of the Heart Newsletters with articles on being now, awakening, meditation, enlightenment, Non-duality, Advaita and awake living; Katie's satsang schedule and event testimonials; photo gallery, awakening groups and how to contact Katie for a private appointment or to invite her to your area.
The Now over the Sea by Katie Davis
In attention to the here and now, you enjoy the sky over the sea of emotion. That is to say, you are free of the negative impact of your thoughts and their automatic constellation into negative emotion. When you sense the aliveness of simply being now, joy transpires. In the now, the time required for thought’s progression does not exist. Therefore, there are no thoughts to cause emotional contractions within your body. Mind can only do one thing at a time. When it is in still attention, it can not think.
This is not to say that life is then listless or lackluster. In lieu of the never-ending emotional roller coaster, you experience a changeless joy, which is gleefully energizing. Free in the sky of now, you are free of your self-created emotional reactions.
By observing, you discover that virtually all psychological suffering is due to your continued relationship with the past and the storyteller. This view is based on your psychological memory, which is the story that you are maintaining about a past incident. You can not get rid of your pain and keep your painful story. The result of psychological memory is that you live your concept of the past in the present moment.
We misconstrue the now to be a fleeting instant that is insignificantly squeezed between the past that we are trying to get over and the future that we are trying to reach. If we would examine more carefully, we would realize that the continuous now is virtually all there is. The Now is outside of time and therefore, it is the refuge of timelessness. Timelessness is eternal. There is nothing fleeting in forever.
Through self-observation, the emotional aspect of the mind can not use you. Instead, you become aware of your conditioning. This conditioning is the past alive in you. It is always earmarked by some sort of unease that surfaces as an emotional reaction. This is why it is unnecessary to process the past in order to be free of the past. A past fixation can only create more pain. Contrarily, when you are free of your conditioning in the present, you realize freedom from the past.
Releasing your conditioned behavior is not an external action. You release it through silent and still inner watching. You become conscious of your repetitive thinking and how it is linked to your emotions. Because you are observing, you no longer tend to identify with your thoughts, which source your emotional reactions. Through self-observation, you are distanced or detached from the troublesome inner dialogue. It is when you are distracted from the here and now that you identify with complicated circumstances. You are then mechanically tossed about by the waves of your past.
Of course, Now always is, whether you attend to it or not. I am saying that it does not really matter. In truth, you are always free and always Now. However, to realize this emotional freedom, you watch your inner dialogue to be present with your emotions. Instead of resisting the push and pull, you welcome the emotions as you observe and feel them. You become conscious of your mind activity and its attempt to add intensity to emotional situations. In doing so, you become aware of the internal mechanisms of perpetuation.
During self-observation, I am not asking you to change anything. I am asking you to simply watch. In Presence, you will find that you are not your mind, nor the emotional aspect of mind, your emotions. This is not to deny your emotions. In fact, by fully experiencing them consciously, you realize true freedom. Through uninvolved attention, you are liberated from the unconscious tendency to judge, label and categorize outer circumstances and inner feelings. Initially, your emotions are reduced to mere waves of sensation through your physical form. Subsequently, you notice that you are here before, during and after every emotion. While the sensations are impermanent, you realize that the one watching is absolutely still, permanent and free. In this discovery, you are joyfully unbound in the Sky of Now.
Read more at "Look Inside" Katie's Book, Awake Joy, by clicking:
AWAKE JOY
Free awakening videos and free Friends of the Heart Newsletters with articles on being now, awakening, meditation, enlightenment, Non-duality, Advaita and awake living; Katie's satsang schedule and event testimonials; photo gallery, awakening groups and how to contact Katie for a private appointment or to invite her to your area.
The Now over the Sea by Katie Davis
In attention to the here and now, you enjoy the sky over the sea of emotion. That is to say, you are free of the negative impact of your thoughts and their automatic constellation into negative emotion. When you sense the aliveness of simply being now, joy transpires. In the now, the time required for thought’s progression does not exist. Therefore, there are no thoughts to cause emotional contractions within your body. Mind can only do one thing at a time. When it is in still attention, it can not think.
This is not to say that life is then listless or lackluster. In lieu of the never-ending emotional roller coaster, you experience a changeless joy, which is gleefully energizing. Free in the sky of now, you are free of your self-created emotional reactions.
By observing, you discover that virtually all psychological suffering is due to your continued relationship with the past and the storyteller. This view is based on your psychological memory, which is the story that you are maintaining about a past incident. You can not get rid of your pain and keep your painful story. The result of psychological memory is that you live your concept of the past in the present moment.
We misconstrue the now to be a fleeting instant that is insignificantly squeezed between the past that we are trying to get over and the future that we are trying to reach. If we would examine more carefully, we would realize that the continuous now is virtually all there is. The Now is outside of time and therefore, it is the refuge of timelessness. Timelessness is eternal. There is nothing fleeting in forever.
Through self-observation, the emotional aspect of the mind can not use you. Instead, you become aware of your conditioning. This conditioning is the past alive in you. It is always earmarked by some sort of unease that surfaces as an emotional reaction. This is why it is unnecessary to process the past in order to be free of the past. A past fixation can only create more pain. Contrarily, when you are free of your conditioning in the present, you realize freedom from the past.
Releasing your conditioned behavior is not an external action. You release it through silent and still inner watching. You become conscious of your repetitive thinking and how it is linked to your emotions. Because you are observing, you no longer tend to identify with your thoughts, which source your emotional reactions. Through self-observation, you are distanced or detached from the troublesome inner dialogue. It is when you are distracted from the here and now that you identify with complicated circumstances. You are then mechanically tossed about by the waves of your past.
Of course, Now always is, whether you attend to it or not. I am saying that it does not really matter. In truth, you are always free and always Now. However, to realize this emotional freedom, you watch your inner dialogue to be present with your emotions. Instead of resisting the push and pull, you welcome the emotions as you observe and feel them. You become conscious of your mind activity and its attempt to add intensity to emotional situations. In doing so, you become aware of the internal mechanisms of perpetuation.
During self-observation, I am not asking you to change anything. I am asking you to simply watch. In Presence, you will find that you are not your mind, nor the emotional aspect of mind, your emotions. This is not to deny your emotions. In fact, by fully experiencing them consciously, you realize true freedom. Through uninvolved attention, you are liberated from the unconscious tendency to judge, label and categorize outer circumstances and inner feelings. Initially, your emotions are reduced to mere waves of sensation through your physical form. Subsequently, you notice that you are here before, during and after every emotion. While the sensations are impermanent, you realize that the one watching is absolutely still, permanent and free. In this discovery, you are joyfully unbound in the Sky of Now.
Read more at "Look Inside" Katie's Book, Awake Joy, by clicking:
AWAKE JOY
Monday, December 1, 2008
The Sky of Now ~ Excerpt from Awake Joy by Katie Davis
Visit the Katie Davis Website at www.KatieDavis.org:
Free awakening videos and free Friends of the Heart Newsletters with articles on being now, awakening, meditation, enlightenment, Non-duality, Advaita and awake living; Katie's satsang schedule and event testimonials, photo gallery, awakening groups and how to contact Katie for a private appointment or to invite her to your area.
The Sky of Now by Katie Davis
Awake Joy is the radiance that strings the happy and unhappy moments of the life situation together like the pearls of a necklace. In the direct realization of this radiance, the pearls dissolve into the precious freedom of conscious joy. Sensibly, inherent joy can not be given to you, nor can it be taken away. In essence, it is who you really are. If you are searching for joy, you are what you are seeking and in seeking, you can not realize your radiance.
I am not a therapeutic guide, who changes your life story, so that you can be more joyful. I am suggesting that you leave the story alone for awhile and turn your attention to the storyteller. In your willingness to surrender the teller of tales, joy naturally emerges. The life story then effortlessly transforms to reflect that joyful transcendence.
Of course, the conditioned mind does love repetition, so it is persistent. If you have ever read books to small children, perhaps you have noticed that they love reading the same stories over and over. They cherish the security of knowing the storyline and they adore the anticipation and expectation of what is already known. This is similar to repetitive adult storylines as we anticipate more of the same. The ego loves the known, because it is based upon it. Ego freedom is the end of psychological suffering and the conscious realization of ever-present joy.
Waves of Emotion
When you are identified with your story, you believe that outside circumstances cause your emotions to change. For example, someone does something that you either love or hate, so you feel either happy or angry. This translates that if you are happy, somebody can take it away and if you are angry, somebody else should fix it. By surrendering your true power in this manner, you helplessly ride the waves of emotion. You remain subject to their merciless push and pull. Your opportunity is to turn attention inward in self-observation to attend to what remains pristine and untouched by emotion.
At first glance, you begin realizing that your attitudes about past situations are linked to present emotional reactions through conditioned thought. Based on past experience, this conditioned linkage is the actual cause of your emotional storms. This is self-inflicted psychological suffering. You can not learn the Joy of Being, but you can observe how you deny this truth through self-observation.
You can observe how you drain your life force as you willingly perpetuate negative emotions through storytelling. You can even become aware of the instant, when you choose to do so. Meanwhile deep within, constant joy is, without the need of any condition or circumstance. My invitation is to look deeper than the storyteller for its discovery.
(continued in tomorrow's post)
In 1986, KATIE DAVIS radically and spontaneously awakened without practices or teachers. The spiritual realization integrated twelve years and she began sharing her message of conscious freedom and causeless joy in 1999. Her new book, Awake Joy, published in 2008.
To "Look Inside" Katie's book, Awake Joy, or to enjoy reviews or get this book, please click:
AWAKE JOY
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