The Fundamentals - 9th August 2016

Maybe first what we do is because I realized that it’ll be good to examine some of the terms that we speak about. And examine with direct experience, rather than conceptual understanding. Because mostly what happens is that we feel the understanding of something is good; when, 'I have a good concept about it'. But this is not the case. So, maybe we can go through the layers of this appearance, and ‘To What’ this appearance appears, and examine it together to remove any conceptual baggage about it. So, when we refer to things like mind, Consciousness, Awareness…, these terms; we don’t have to go back to concepts about them, but as they are heard in Satsang then you are following along with the direct Seeing of what is being shared rather than some idea about Consciousness or Awareness. So, shall we do this today? We are just examine all these things, so that we are clear about them; the fundamentals.

Okay, so what is it we mean when we say, 'the world'? Very often we say, 'the world' or 'this Leela' or 'this realm of appearances'. We use all of these terms. So, can we look now at this realm, at this world of appearances, without any conceptualizing? So, with our eyes, we can look at the objects around us, and just be with them. And if the labeling comes, let the labeling come and go; don’t try to stop the mind. You’ll see that the mind wants to come and label everything that is appearing for you; so you let it come and go without actually giving it much attention or belief. So, can we be with the objects around us, just as they are, without any interpretation, any concept? Can we truly meet the world in this way, and not meet an idea of the world? Examine it. Look at how we perceive the world. So, just let us very playfully and naturally just examine the world and see how this appearance is appearing. How are you perceiving this appearance? Notice how inherently nothing that is appearing has a meaning. All the meaning that something has, has been provided by our mind, by our thoughts. What is appearing is just appearing.

Now, all that is coming in this seemingly outer realm is what we refer to as ‘the world’. But it is not just that. We also refer to that which is appearing in this seemingly inner realm of appearances like memories, imagination, thoughts, sensations, in the same realm of appearances. Examine your next thought. How is a thought perceived? What is the size and shape of a thought? Do you hear your thoughts or do you see them? How are they perceived? Can we find out where it is coming from and where it is going? Where does a thought arise? Is it inside you or outside you? How is this energy of thoughts perceived? The appearance of a thought is the mind. That which we call the mind is nothing but these thoughts and similar energies. And in the space between thoughts is no-mind.

So, these thoughts are just one aspect of these internal ‘objects’. One type of these ‘objects’ are thoughts. There are other types of ‘objects’ also, like sensations. It is these sensations that seem so intimate. It is the intimacy of these sensations which makes it seem like, 'I am the body.' But the body is experienced just as a set of these sensations. To experience the body is to experience these sensations. Are these sensations inside you? Or are you within these sensations? What is your relationship with them? Experience the sensations in different parts of your body, and notice how they are just a different type of energy. So, it is these sensations, along with the visual representation, that we call the body.

Now, there is another type of sensations, another group of sensations, that which we call the emotions. See if it is possible to bring your attention to any emotion that might be present now. Examine this emotion; get a ‘taste’ for it. Observe that qualitatively an emotion is experienced differently than a thought. A thought is coming and going very fast. But an emotion can linger. This is what we mean by emotions.