Who We Really Are?

I was asking whether we are all ready for Freedom. Okay let’s (because we’ve had a bit of a break) let’s maybe share liZle details, like a bit of a refresher. So, what is this Freedom thing, Freedom from what? (Let’s make it a liZle interacHve) Freedom from what? S1: Doing and not doing. S2: From our cravings, desires and so-called negaHve qualiHes such as jealousy, hatred, anger…

Jealousy, hatred, desire, aversion; all these opposites, doing-not doing. Freedom from that, what else? S3: Freedom from ignorance. S4: Belief that you are the separate body-mind.

Now the interesHng thing about this one is that all the others seem to rely on this one. And ignorance also same thing, the ignorance that I’m a separate body-mind enHty or there is a separate one that I am ‘specifically’ or ‘specially’. Isn’t it? This one seems to be the ground for everything. ‘I am the doer’ or ‘I didn’t do that, I am not the doer’, you are referring to a separate one. ‘I want or I don’t want’ refers to the same separate one. So, all our desires, aversions, doership is tangled with this duality of separaHon, this idea of there being a separate enHty that I am. So, this path (seeming path) to Freedom is called Advaita Vedanta. Advaita means there are no two. So, this separate one is invesHgated and looked at and found that it doesn’t exist, there is no existence of such a separate one and in the invesHgaHon into who we really are we find there is One which is beyond all conceptualizaHon or percepHon. (Jumping too fast?) So the invesHgaHon reveals that not only is the false separate one - not present; it also reveals that which just is. And this is what the revelaHon is about. Once you see yourself to be this One you will see that the noHon of even Freedom and especially the noHon of bondage does not apply to you. So this is the Freedom that we are here to talk about. So free from this separate idenHty, this feeling of separaHon, belief in separaHon to that which is called the ego. And m y primary role in this inquiry as we are looking for the Truth and ge^ng away from this ignorance of separaHon, my primary role is to tell you what not to do. Secondarily it is to tell you what to do. But if you follow what not to do, I feel that much will take care of what to do also, but let’s see.

This one is the Presence of the Being which we call the Master or the Satguru or whatever term we want to use, that which is poinHng you to your Reality… is called the Guru. That which is poinHng you to the separate one is called the mind. So when I’m saying, ‘My primary role’ it is that as a teacher or most of you call me Father, as a Father - what is my role? It is to tell you what you are not to do and for what? So that we can come to the same discovery of the one Being that we are. The one Self, even beyond Being, that we are. So, it is not about a separate Ananta, who is on a pedestal or it is specially something happened to him, it is nothing to do with any of that. It is just this voice which is seems to be using this body as an instrument at the moment, poinHng you to your greater Reality. So, when I’m saying that ‘it is my role’, it is my role as this voice to remind you of your greater Reality than what you may be presently thinking yourself to be. So, what is it that we are not to do? The first thing is to understand that no maZer how much you think, you see, no maZer how much you think, the Self is not going to be a product of your thinking. So, in the beauHful scripture, Guru Granth Sahib, it is wriZen, ‘Sooche soch na hove, jo sooche lakh var’, so you may think about it a hundred thousand Hmes but just thinking about it you are not going to come to this recogniHon of the Truth of what you are. So empty of this conceptual aZempt to capture it as a thought or belief system, it will be much more simple, it will be much more direct. So, the highest that our intellect can understand when it comes to this search is that ‘our intellect cannot understand’, that this box is too small to contain God or the Self (This box of the intellect) So don’t try to figure (points to his head) it out, don’t try to figure out the Self, don’t try to figure out God, don’t try to figure out your Truth. This part is clear? And I’ve emphasized that a lot over the last few months probably that even in the highest construct, highest thought construct, God is not contained or captured or the Self is not contained or captured. So, given up on that aZempt? To try and capture it in some thoughts or some ulHmate thoughts? The second thing not to do is to try and get an experience of It. This seems a liZle more sHcky [Chuckles]. We feel like ‘Seeing is believing’, so this is the way of the world isn’t it? Okay so many thoughts, we understand that many thoughts can be wrong and we’re used to giving up on these thoughts but we say that ‘Seeing is believing’ or to perceive it or to experience it in a perceptual way is a greater way to know something. So we step away from these thought constructs and then we go searching for, or longing for some sort of (experienHal) perceptual sort of experience. But it will not be found in that way. So how many of you feel a bit disappointed about that? [Chuckles] All that is going to be experienced, at least that much of Vedanta all of us know that ‘that which comes and goes’ is not what the Sages are poinHng to. All experiences they come and go, so if you’re looking for the Self as another experience then know that if it can come then it will also go, therefore it will not be the Reality or the Truth that we are looking for. So, not a product of our thinking, not a constrain or not to be found as a perceptual experience also. This is the strange Truth that we are talking about. Strange in relaHon to how we are used to living otherwise. That’s why this journey can seem very different. So when I say like this (snaps his fingers), ‘Before the sound of the click you’re free’, you’ll say ‘But I didn’t think anything special and neither did some fantasHc experience come to me, so what is this sought of freedom that he is poinHng to?’ But go along with me for a bit, go along with this for a bit. So how many of you feel like, ‘If it is not a special experience that I will have, then I don’t know what I’m doing here and maybe it’s best that I leave’ or something. How many are so aZached that it must be some sort of an experience. Or maybe you’re aZached to some sort of stale experience from years ago where you felt like, ‘That was God’, and in that staleness you’re missing fresh God which is available right here and now. Then, then we may not have such a good relaHonship. [Chuckles] because our relaHonship will be full of conflict because you are wanHng something which is not what I’m poinHng to; I want to be clear and upfront about that, if you’re looking for just another experience or you think you had the ulHmate experience and you only want that again, or you want that to conHnue forever then this is not what I’m talking about. Here what we are talking about is no expectaHon (Okay so that was about the third thing I wanted to say). The first was, don’t expect to think about it and get it. Second was don’t expect to have some experience which will be the Truth. And the third is don’t expect anything that this discovery of the Truth must do for you. That it is going to change my life in this way; or I will only have bliss; or anything that you may think of. Don’t expect any outcome to come from this because it has nothing to do with any outcome. The Truth has nothing to do with any phenomenal outcome. How many of you sHll interested? Not a thought; not an experience; and no expectaHon for anything to change as a result of it. SHll interested? (Looks around the room) I’m impressed. All of you online also sHll interested? If you’re sHll here, empty of trying to think of this, trying to experience this and trying to figure out some meaning that the Truth must bring into your life, I’ve told you what not to do now, and empty of these aZempts to do, my simple proposal to all of you is that, empty of any of this, this Truth which all of us are searching for is just apparent to you, it is already clear to you. Remember it is not a thought, it is not a percepHon and it doesn’t have to mean anything to your life.