Katie Davis is a Satsang Spiritual Teacher of Advaita, Non-duality, Self-inquiry, enlightenment, spiritual awakening, the power of being now and presence. Since 1999, she has been traveling to offer satsang in communities worldwide. The Awake by Katie Blog is moderated by Katie Davis, author of "Awake Joy: The Essence of Enlightenment." http://www.AwakebyKatie.blogspot.com
When we shift attention from compulsive thinking into the physical body, we become more aware of how we are feeling emotionally. The emotion that we are currently feeling is always a perfect reflection of our thinking.
The mind is more than our superficial thoughts. It also includes unconscious patterns, mindsets and tendencies. They may never surface in the form of an observable thought, so it may seem difficult or even impossible to bring them into consciousness.
Yet, the body is the perfect tool. If you are willing to feel the body, it never lies. We bring the feeling or emotion into the light of consciousness and simply allow it to be. I am not suggesting that you try to change anything. That is resistance and just another form of violence that will perpetuate more negativity.
Neither do we need to analyze or interpret "why" the feeling is here or "what" the feeling means. The analyzing and interpreting mind is a good tool for many things, yet not the right tool for Self-realization.
When the emotion is allowed, we are no longer controlled by it, just like when we are watching our thoughts, they can no longer use us. We no longer have emotional takeovers. Instead, we are the witnessing presence that allows everything to be as it is.
This witnessing is a harmonizing and unifying factor. In the light of attention, the darkness of negativity cannot prevail.
I am not proposing that you act the emotion out. That is the emotional takeover that will more likely than not cause another emotional reaction; causing more suffering for you and others. Nor am I speaking of repression. Repression is a form of resistance that perpetuates suffering. I am only suggesting that you consciously feel the emotion in the body and allow it to be. Be the space within which it is appearing.
In your willingness to fully feel the body, all that remains unconscious within you will be revealed until all that remains is the simple joy of being ... and that is love.
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As this year drifts by in clock time, I would like to take a moment to express this gratitude.
You have shared so much beauty!
I am grateful for the visionary art, the photos that have reflected not only this love, but also stirred compassion for the seeming reality. You have creatively written poems, notes and blogs and even vigorously debated.
The shared videos have generated love and laughter with such beautiful music that sometimes it seems like the Heart is singing. It is fun getting to know you, through your event invitations, groups and pages.
There is such wonderment in that we have somehow 'connected the dots'; these relative points in consciousness that I call Heart Friends, family and friends. I look at "My Friends' Map" and you are everywhere! :)
Though most I have never physically met directly, I greet you as love during every Maui sunset.
I see you at midnight sparkling as moonbeams over the ocean as the full moon sets over the island of Lanai.
I sense the power of love in the breech of the whales, as they are now arriving to mate and calve their young.
Even the Monarch butterflies are joyfully dancing and whispering the language of love.
May we leave no footprints ~ All Love ~ Katie Davis
Saints Bowing in Mountains by Hafiz
From the Book I Heard God Laughing, Translated by Daniel Ladinsky
Do you know how beautiful you are?
I think not, my dear
For as you talk of God,
I see great parades with wildly colorful bands
Streaming from your mind and heart,
Carrying wonderful and secret messages
To every corner of the world.
I see Saints Bowing in the Mountains
Hundreds of miles away
To the wonder of sounds
That break into light
From your most common words.
Speak to me of your mother, your cousins and your friends.
This video is a meditation on Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi's teachings and the Holy Mountain, Arunachala. Verses are from Ramana's devotional, "Five Hymns to Arunachala" Produced by James Clark
As always, when we use a word such as "witness" or even the words "I am," one can never be certain where those words are actually pointing. Likewise, when someone reads them from their present reference point, they may "think" that the words are pointing to something altogether different.
For instance, the self-observer is generally watching its thoughts, feelings and body. It may even open to a personal "I am" and recognize that it is neither this nor that. Yet, it is still looking from within the dream body ... within the dream of form.
When I speak of the "I am the witness only," the witnessing consciousness, generally speaking a profound and spontaneous detachment occurs. The world of form, including the former reference point "I am the dream body," seems somewhat remote and almost like heat haze.
Having realized that it cannot find itself ANYWHERE within form, it surrenders deeper; the only thing that seems true is the subject-witness. Some are teaching from this reference point.
It is profound since being-consciousness-bliss is dynamically at the forefront, yet the dream body and its life situation have not yet fully transformed. Suffering is still possible for the dream body, but there is no one there to suffer. This is the witness, enlightenment has not yet "happened" and neither has Self-realization.
Detachment is not separation. It actually allows the energetic beauty of oneness which is why I call it the Beauty Trap. One does not have as much incentive to continue the inquiry when everything seems beautiful ... yet the dream body continues suffering ... and no one suffers!
For the witness, generally the personal "I am" of the self-observer has transcended to the impersonal "AM" of the witness.
The witness study is generally one of formlessness, hence that feeling of being "between two worlds." It witnesses a remote dream body and its dream but is more fascinated with witnessing formlessness. Its purpose is to eradicate the collective pain body. In other words, it still has an object of observation.. either "Heart" or "world of form."
The witness is meant to be only a bridge to cross over from form into formlessness. After all, in deep sleep, there is no witness and no objects. So for the witnessing consciousness, the inquiry continues.
Enlightenment is the disappearance of the universe and it is beyond consciousness and unconsciousness. The realization of Non-duality.
Self-realization is the CONSCIOUS recognition that "I AM THAT!" It is the complete integration of formlessness as all form.
YOU are beyond all and without contradiction ALL.
Yet first things first. One can only realize who one is ... and in due time, one will then realize what all else is.
Ramana Mahrshi is one of the most revered sages of modern day India. This beautiful and compassionate video, Abide As The Self, by Inner Directions is well worth the one hour viewing time. Even if you watched this before, you will find that it is well worth reviewing. This free advaita video highlights the essential teachings of Ramana Maharshi.
Here is the free Abide As The Self video description offered by Inner Directions:
Abide As The Self is a transforming video that takes you on an inner journey into the teachings of Ramana Maharshi and the path of Self-knowledge. Comprehensive film footage of Ramana comes alive, with emphasis on the teachings of Self-Inquiry and its practical application. A special collection of rare photographs enhances Ramana's presence and captures the compassion and grace of one of the most respected sages of our time. The inspired narration by Ram Dass provides an overview of Ramana's teachings. Also included are interviews with H.W.L. Poonja, Douglas Harding, Allan W. Anderson, and others.
In Abide As the Self, you will experience how the profound teachings of Ramana Maharshi can be easily applied in our daily life. This is a deeply inspiring video in which the sage Ramana speaks directly to your heart.
"Abide As The Self skillfully interweaves old and new still photographs, excerpts from Ramana's writings, interviews with longtime devotees, narration by Ram Dass, and, not least, rare and precious footage of Ramana from 1935 to 1949. Highly recommended."
Yoga Journal
"The presence of the great Indian sage Ramana Maharshi, his clear approach to Self-Realization, and the teachings of Self-Inquiry are beautifully presented. Interviews and exceptional film footage of Ramana Maharshi make this video an inspiring and transforming experience."
New Renaissance Bookshop
"The video concludes with the encouraging words of Ram Dass, who tells us that Maharshi's message is not Indian but universal: the peace that illuminates the heart and mind is always present. Anyone curious about this aspect of Eastern spirituality will find this informative and interesting video worthwhile and surprisingly accessible to general viewers. Recommended."
Video Librarian
"Bhagavan was always silent, that is everyone's true nature . . . In this quietness the mind will automatically return to its source and there will be a tremendous fountain of peace. All doubts are cleared and one remains quiet, in the heart."
You are here now and the eyes are reading. Are you also aware of the breathing? How delicate the air feels as it moves in and out your nose! Breathing is effortlessly happening all by itself. Just rest here for a moment and be relaxed and yet alert. Take a deep breath ... and just allow the body to relax a bit little more. No need to rush on with reading or all the other things of the day or evening. Is it possible to stop a moment?
Do you note that silent space at the end of each exhale? Are you aware of it? Just listen to it for a moment. When I say listen, perhaps listen with every cell of the body. That silent and still space at the end of each breath is an opening into organic being. There is no doorway to open, it already is. Are you noticing this?
Are you aware of the simplicity of being? Did anyone ever have to teach you this fundamental sense of "I am?" We may at sometime become confused with all of its attachments or extensions, such as I am a mother, I am angry, I am afraid or whatever the case may be. Right now, I am just pointing out that while all the roles, names, circumstances and descriptions change ... the "I am" is consistently the same. Not ... "I am this" ... or "I am that," ... solely "I am."
It may seem to some that these words, "I am," are only mental and therefore they seem flat and superficial. However, I am not pointing to the head. I am asking you to truly sense the aliveness that is existence. How does the body feel, when you are conscious of being? Just allow attention to rest as being. We are not trying to go anywhere or achieve anything. Watching is always enough.
Are you inwardly quiet right now?
Thoughts and emotions are welcome here as well. One could say that they are just Heart Friends passing through. Yet, I am not asking you to follow them. I am asking you to attend only the feeling sense of being that is within the body.
If the thoughts and feelings begin clouding the inner space, no worries. We allow that to be here as well. We are only being present with what is. In case you haven't noticed, thoughts and sensations always move on. They do so on their own accord. Trying to stop or control them is not the way. Just let go.
We are passively watching and relaxed, yet profoundly alert. What the thoughts are saying is not really important. Watch the analyzing and interpreting mind trying to go to work to figure out the thought content, judge and therefore try to change them or define what the thoughts means. So, we are just present with that as well ... and nothing more.
Since we are watching the thoughts, emotions and sensations, we are able to maintain a certain equanimity, so that we do not get carried away with them. Instead of jumping into the river of thought, it is more like just resting on the bank. The thoughts are more like autumn leaves floating on the surface of the river as they flow downstream and soon each one disappears. Then, we are present with that. Instead of attaching to thoughts or identifying with them, we allow them. We detach from them, so that they are free to go.
Are you still aware of organice being right now?
As you click out of this window, are you able to continuously be aware of being as you prepare this evening's meal or drive home from work? This is a simple movement meditation without anything to manipulate or become.
Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj is a brilliant sage and one of the most revered spiritual teachers of modern day India. Nisargadatta passed form in 1981 at the age of 84. His primary talks are compiled in the book I Am That.
A simple man, Nisargadatta Maharaj, was a householder and shopkeeper in Bombay where he lived with his family and four children. He had not been educated formally, but came to be respected and loved for his insights into the crux of human pain and the extraordinary clarity and power of his direct discourse. Hundreds of diverse seekers traveled the globe and sought him out in his unpretentious home to hear him. To all of them he gave hope that "beyond experience is not the mind, but the self, the light in which everything appears...the awareness in which everything happens.
Awake Joy is a guide to the Heart and is designed to be your companion throughout your journey to Self-discovery. Therefore, it emphasizes significant transitions to encourage the realization of a deeper consciousness, rather than residing in any sense of arrival. If you can decipher from this section your current reference point, you will have at hand the awareness that leads to a deeper surrender that will ultimately happen anyway! The awareness of your current reference point means that you are already beyond it, since you are aware of the point. The direction is always toward that which is aware. A point of reference is a general indicator to move beyond.
As an example of using a reference point, I might ask someone for directions to a certain address. If my search address is nearby, that person might first ask, if I know where the Post Office is. I am not looking for the Post Office, but the reference point is helpful in orienting. Likewise, I am not directing you to the reference points below. They are meant for general orientation. You might first review in more depth certain sections of this book and then proceed by investigating within that area.
The analogy that I am going to apply is a multi-layered chocolate cake. I further expand the nature of the bottom layers in Part I: The Dream and Part II: The Eyewitness. I develop the top layers in Part III: The Pure Being and Part IV: The Heart. Each dimension is parallel to the one above it and all exist simultaneously, while ultimately all being only Heart.
The body reference point is the bottom layer. I am the time based ego and I am identified with the dream of form. I am not aware that I am dreaming and that my world is the mental image that I am projecting. My attention is on you and I am not conscious that this focus is to primarily enhance or protect myself. My identity is my body and I am unconscious of being. This layer is the battlefield of conflict and I am the sufferer. I am also an illusion. As the ego-body, I believe that this is the only dimension and I am not conscious of
the layers above me.
The Eyewitness reference point is the next layer and I am the self-observer. The Eyewitness is a study of me, my form and my interactions with my world; the study of the false. I am still the ego, but I am progressing toward freedom of this state of consciousness. I continue to look out at you, but I am primarily interested in “me” for the broader purpose of self-understanding. I study my personal consciousness as the subject of my world. “I am the body” idea is at the forefront and I predominantly attend my inner objects of thought, physical sensation, mental images and emotions. I am becoming conscious of my personal
suffering and how it perpetuates.
The “I am” reference point is a layer that is beyond “you and me.” I am conscious of my being and I am attending the space around my objects in the world, as well as my inner space beyond my thoughts, mental images, emotions and body. My abode is the inner body, but I am not yet free of form. I enjoy a beautiful feeling of connectivity with all being and appreciate oneness within the world of experience. In unity consciousness, you and I are one and I am at one with all that I experience. I sometimes get lost in time fixation and therefore, I still identify with thoughts, but I can release them when I become aware of it.
Detachment is not a reference point, but it is a marker. It is a thin layer of icing that is applied before adding the next cake layer. Formlessness dynamically disconnects from the body and I am no longer identified with the idea of “me.” I am now consciously awake to the dream of form and the world is unreal. This shift is a universal transition and allows the bliss of Awake Joy to vibrantly emerge. The icing bestows the mystical phenomena that are commonly associated with awakening.
“I am the witness only” reference point is formlessness and I have no form. My being has transitioned to the pure being. I am the primal sense of being-consciousness-bliss and the substratum of form. I have surrendered conflict and I am now the playground of peace. I release subtle layers of the intellect and transmute the illusion of collective suffering. If thoughts are present, I have no sense that they speak in any real way and thus personal suffering is impossible. I am also conscious that the layers below me are unreal. I am not aware that duality persists. In other words, two subtle reference points endure. I am not conscious that I am still a reference point and that I will be eliminated.
“Pure I” has no reference point whatsoever and I am the final layer of our cake. “Pure I” is enlightenment and the fulfillment of non-duality. Not one word that I could say would be true.
The Heart is Self-realization and full embodiment and I am the Totality. The bad news is that we are not going to take this cake and eat it. The good news is that we are going to give it all away by serving it. The chocolate cake is not ready to selflessly serve without the fudge frosting! The frosting is the art of awake living.
The purpose of this chart of reference points is to assist your current perception. Once perceived, it is not calling for mental interpretation. Instead, we release the perception to open to the essential Essence to which they point. Interpretation will lead to analysis and theories, which will conceal and sabotage the purpose of the charting.
Throughout all of these transitions, the Pure Awareness that I am never changes. Whether I seem to take on form or not, in every case, I am the Eternal Now. I no longer differentiate between any of my dimensions and I am fully integrated as the Totality.
Below is a list of a few movies that I have enjoyed that are reflections (some more, some less) of the greater awakening story.
I notice today that most are comedy films and so perhaps this is a reminder that one need not take the daytime dream so seriously and that a sense of humor might indeed become handy during the awakening to the dream process; especially when observing the insanity of the dual mind.
Since I LOVE movies of the Heart, if you have a moment, I would appreciate your additional suggestions! :-)
Just the title of the movie is fine or you are welcome to share a comment why you feel this movie is a good parallel or reflection of the greater awakening or perhaps it is that radiant stillness became more consciously present through the sheer beauty ... as stillness IS ... sometime it writes and speaks in a mystical manner that carries the perfume of the deeper dimension ... that is beyond the superficial story.
Perhaps you have rented them for entertainment and as you watched, you began wondering whether the screenwriter either consciously or intuitively was using the movie it as a metaphor for spiritual awakening or was indicating a shift in consciousness.
Some of the movies, I watched before the awakening (now 23 years ago, so some are quite old!). When I watched them after the awakening, it was so surprising and quite humorous to discover that I had previously missed the truer storyline altogether!
Of course, none is more fascinating and adventuresome than the daytime dream of infinite possibilities that spontaneously plays day in and day out that some refer to as the "ordinary" life. It displays right before us as a mirror and can be free of the "star" of the show!
These are all Wikipedia links. Some trailers are on YouTube.
(Comedy) Even the title reflects the True-Man story. This is probably the best movie I have ever seen that reflects the entire awakening process; from the shift from real to the unreal and finally beyond, the unnoticed intermittent "commercials" point to the dream's unreality, the all powerful "movie director" above the stage setting dropping a stage light almost on Truman's head, the shift to self-observation, witnessing, sailing the sea of samsara (suffering) and finally falling out of his tiny boat of false identity to "walk on water" until Truman bumps into the screen upon which the movie is cast, opens the door and exits the dream to freedom.
(Musical ~ Based on a children's novel published in 1900) Dorothy's dream-state throughout the movie, "don't pay any attention to that little man behind the curtain," the search for the Heart, the mind, courage in the search and the yearning and longing to "go home." The beginning is in black and white and then transforms into full color as they adventure toward "freedom." In the end, Dorothy merely wakes up and discovers that she had only been dreaming.
(Comedy) John Cusack gets spontaneously "sucked" into a vacuum that is the void located behind a secret door in an office (story) that is on a half-sized floor (the small daytime dream) and lands inside the head of John Malcovich. Here he is a witness to John Malcovich's dream reality. Each time, John Cusack is suddenly cast out of the dream, shoots into the air and lands outside beside the freeway; much as those who get a glimpse of the "real" suddenly fall asleep again in the dream and the ego begins a hopeless and almost addictive search to grasp it once again. I enjoyed the representation of oneness or unity consciousness when John Malcovich begins seeing John Malocvich everywhere; the diner, the waiter, even the menu items. Touches on reincarnation.
(Comedy) Commercial exploitation by being asleep in the dream, Albert contacts two existential detectives (Tomlin and Hoffman) to realize what he calls "universal connectivity" that coincides with transcendentalism. The detectives spy on Albert, so he is always being watched (the witness). Albert learns how to disconnect his inner being from the problematic life situation, drama, misery and meaningless; climbing the ladder to pseudo-power to synthesize a non-thinking state of pure being. Albert "attains" enlightenment and the cosmic truth of everything. "We bring our own chains to human existence."
Fighting over the remote that controls the black and white television (daytime dream), Reese and Tobey "disappear" into the television and emerge in another black and white daytime dream reality named Pleasantville that is isolated from the rest of the world. The teens are unable to return to the "old world." A type of sexual revolution in Pleasantville begins as the characters discover sexuality and after their encounters, they emerge as full color beings, rather than as they were previously in black and white. I took this as perhaps a more commercially popular compromise to what might have been truly encountered ... the full color bloom of true love; such as when you get out of your mind and into the body, it seems like the body is sensing for the very first time and everything seems so vibrant and alive. The people in Pleasantville then begin to revel in new creative passions, new freedoms and hidden abilities. As the people transform, so does the world transform, as the entire environment begins to emerge in alive, full color.
Trivia question of the day ... are there others that you might recommend?
