Carl G. Jung and the loving serpent

*note* Interesting article about the mysterious ring from Carl G. Jung's finger...quote" When asked about the ring on his finger during an interview, he said...

" It (the ring) is Egyptian. Here the serpent is carved, which symbolizes Christ. Above it, the face of a woman; below the number 8, which is the symbol of the Infinite, of the Labyrinth, and the Road to the Unconscious. I have changed one or two things on the ring so that the symbol will be Christian. All these symbols are absolutely alive within me, and each one of them creates a reaction within my soul."..

-added by Danny-

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World renowned Swiss born psychiatrist, Carl G. Jung (1875-1961), was one of the finest explorers of the ever mysterious human mind. He was a pioneer in the field of human psychology and an expert in interpreting the symbols that our subconscious brain uses when communicating with our higher, awakened consciousness. So remarkable was Jung’s insight into human psychology that his numerous books were translated in several languages and distributed around the world.

Carl Jung’s work introduced the world to the concepts of synchronicity and the three part psyche (ego, personal unconscious, and collective unconscious). Over the years, his books and articles have shared with us his deep understanding of aspects of human psychology and their relationships with spiritual nature.

According to Jung, the most fundamental symbols that our brain uses to communicate subconscious messages are known as Archetypes. Some of these primordial symbolic images are:

• the Ego (me, myself and I)

• the Anima-Animus (gender role playing)

• the Persona, (the image a person "acts out" or outwardly projects)

• the invitingly mysterious, yet inherently frightening, Shadow Self or veiled side of our Ego.

What this author finds most interesting about Carl Jung, the ’father of modern psychology,’ is that the serpent was one of the most important symbols that he ever discovered during his personal spiritual journey through life. To Jung, it was a reflection of the Omnipotent and Omnipresent power of "God" that lives within every human. In fact, the serpent was such an important image to him that, despite the social risks of bearing such a maligned and misunderstood symbol, he proudly displayed it on the ring that encircled his finger.

When asked about the ring on his finger during an interview, he said...

" It (the ring) is Egyptian. Here the serpent is carved, which symbolizes Christ. Above it, the face of a woman; below the number 8, which is the symbol of the Infinite, of the Labyrinth, and the Road to the Unconscious. I have changed one or two things on the ring so that the symbol will be Christian. All these symbols are absolutely alive within me, and each one of them creates a reaction within my soul."
C.G. Jung

from " Interviews and Encounters," W. McGuire and R. F. C. Hull p.468

Shamans around the world, by whatever cultural label they are called, have often spoken of how important the image of a serpent is in their worship of God and their visions of the "other side." Whether stirred from slumber by meditation or dreams, once this primordial living symbol within man is awakened, it can provoke extremely powerful emotional reactions of either paralytic fear or enduring fascination and love.

For many years, anthropologists have been puzzled as to why the serpent image was the most common symbol used by ancient man to represent the image of God. How is it that this wondrous creature came to play such a powerful role in human psychology and spirituality? Why did Carl Jung, Moses, the Freemasons, the Baptists and so many other groups of people throughout history looked upon the image of a serpent and, through handling the image without fear, represented it as a symbol of our our unquestioned love for God and our divine spirituality. Why are dreams of snakes, dragons, lizards or other reptilian animals seem so real and provocative at times?

The answer to these questions may be found in the fact that, according to evolutionary science, reptiles were at the root of a genetic matrix from which all land vertebrate life evolved. Millions of years of biological divergence from the trunk of the vertebrate "Tree of Life" resulted in a world full of back boned animals that, despite their dissimilar outward appearance, share the same parental lineage---an encoded past locked in their DNA. A code which we humans share with other land vertebrate life forms.

Considering the entire history of our human emergence into the animal world is forever recorded (repressed) deep within our genetic code, certain aspects of our ancient animal nature may lay dormant, just under the surface of our expression, ready to be drawn upon by accident or intentional focus.

By embracing the Gnostic (serpent symbolized) Christian faith, Carl Jung himself may have been intuitively drawing upon the very best of his own pre-human inheritance while searching for the source of the human soul. By spending untold thousands of hours studying tradition religions and symbolism, Jung just might have discovered why the Serpent / Dragon image was humanity’s most powerful psychological motivator; the spark that had the potential to illuminate the face of one’s own inner ID-Entity.

The ancient tenet of "Know Thyself," to "Seek the Kingdom of God within" and even the modern word "Insight" all point those on the spiritual path in the same direction: inwards. By recognizing or re-imagining ourselves as descendants of the ancient reptiles, we might be able to rekindle a relationship between who we are today and the animal we used to be, but have been conditioned to fear, namely the reptiles of the ancient past.

Could Carl Jung have realized through his studies that the ancient Hebrew, Egyptian, Aztec, Hopi and Far Eastern priest-kings (amongst others) either knowingly or unknowingly evolved snake symbolism so as to promote psychological and possibly psychical stimulation? Although we may never know for sure, the symbol of a serpent on Jung’s ring and his own comments as to their meaning in his life quite obviously touched something deep within him and spiritually propelled him along his journey though life.

Carl Jung rejected the traditional (old fashioned) interpretation of the serpent’s role in Christian religion and embraced it as a symbol of the power of Jesus within his soul. Could a man so educated in human psychology and religious symbolism, so respected throughout the world by millions of people, have been secretly entertaining evil in his heart? No, it’s much more than that. Jung found a secret that religious leaders and secret societies have withheld from the ’common man’ for far too long. His peaceful, patient nature, along with his courage to search beyond the borders of entrained perception, provided him a window through which he leaned the benefit and powerful side of our mysterious and provocative reptilian subconscious.

It is interesting to note that, according to the ancient Tibetan Book of the Dead, the darker side of one’s own nature (their "Shadow") sometimes reveals itself in the serpentine form in the afterlife. It becomes a form of mirror through which a person can encounter the feelings or thoughts they repressed when alive. In other words, the frightening serpentine forms we see in the afterlife, are not symbols of evil, as western tradition has conditioned us to believe, but they are symbol of all that we fear to see in ourselves.

Tibetan priests teach people who are about to die that, unless they act neutral or passive towards these reptilian forms in the afterlife, they will become engaged in conflict with something that can never be ignored or destroyed and they will forever be trapped in that particular stage of the afterlife.

"You will hate them! You will panic! You will faint! Your own visions having become devils, you will wander in the life cycle."
The Tibetan Book of the Dead

Translation: Robert Thurman, Bantam 1994. p162

If this psychological mirroring is true after death, then it might also apply to our "Dream life." So, if you or someone you know constantly dreams of dragons, snakes, lizards, or even Reptoids, it might be wise to follow this ancient Tibetan advice. Don’t fear these reptilian images, but rather recognize them, not as foreign or independent life forms, but as reflections of your own Self ID-Entity which must be embraced to reach total spiritual balance.

When our conscious mind shuts down during sleep, our subconscious reptilian ’R-Complex’ brain (which regulates respiration and heart rate) rules the darkness of our dreams. It could be that in some dreams we have, the most powerful, healing and loving archetypal symbol that Jung discovered occasionally stirs to life, emerges from the cave of our subconscious and acts as a stimulant to psychological and spiritual transformation.

There is no greater form of personal transformation than from a physical reality to a non-physical afterlife. In considering this remarkable journey in which we all will embark one day, two things come to this author’s mind:

First, the scientific fact that free energy in a vacuum never travels in a straight line. It always moves forward while oscillating as a waveform. This forward, oscillating motion results in an elongated spiral or vortex of energy. The ancients somehow intuited this knowledge and symbolized it as a serpent moving along the deep waters of space.

Secondly, numerous ancient cultures picture the "Tree of Life" as having serpents entwined around its trunk or at its roots. While the leaves reach out to receive the energy of the sun, the roots receive the nutrition of the soil and water. One cannot exist without the other. In life we often acknowledge the leaves, but ignore the roots of our existence.

So, as Carl Gustav Jung exhaled his final breath, his life energy was released from his physical form and he embarked on an even more fascinating journey than life. He ventured forth, at peace knowing that...

The image of the serpent has been corrupted by the will of man,
yet beyond the scope of his vision, it readies itself at his root,
preparing to return him to the Godhead upon his death.

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*note*...beautiful spiritual T-shirts!....hahaha
-added by Danny-
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But Ramesh wasn’t kidding

*note* funny encounter ...Steven Sashen visits Ramesh Balsekar,the guru who gives you nothing(as he explains) but people visit him to get it.To get the ,,nothing,, I mean..lol
quote"Ramesh is a former president of the Bank of India who, for the last 20+ (maybe 30+) years has camped out in a chair in a corner of a room in his million-dollar flat and, at 9:00 am sharp (the only thing that started on time in India) taught/lectured to the mostly-Western seekers who squeeze into the tiny room."
-added by Danny-
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In January of ‘06, my wife and and were in Mumbai, India (as if there’s another Mumbai you would confuse it with. “Does he mean Mumbai, Kentucky?”) for a friend’s wedding. And, btw, if you ever have a chance to go to India I can’t recommend enough going for a wedding put on by a well-to-do Indian family. But that’s another story.

Knowing that we’d be in Mumbai, a couple of big-time spiritual seeker friends (that is, they’re searching big-time and they’re well-known for doing it) said, “Oh, you must meet Ramesh Balsekar when you’re there… here’s his phone number.”

Ramesh is a former president of the Bank of India who, for the last 20+ (maybe 30+) years has camped out in a chair in a corner of a room in his million-dollar flat and, at 9:00 am sharp (the only thing that started on time in India) taught/lectured to the mostly-Western seekers who squeeze into the tiny room.

What does he teach? Well, he’s in the lineage of the Advaita (”not-two”) Vedanta teachers, Ramana Maharshi and Nisagardatta Maharaj, if that means anything to you. If not, perhaps what happened at the very end of the 3-hour meeting will ’splain it.

But before I get to that part, I want to tell you how weird it was to be crammed into a tiny room in downtown Mumbai with 30 people — some 1st timers and some who’ve been in the same room every day for months or years — who really wanted something that, they thought would make them happy finally. The weird part wasn’t all the wanting, it was that I’ve been in the exact same room in Boulder, in Santa Fe, in Marin in Boston, in… EVERYWHERE.

I don’t know why I imagined that with a bona-fide “Indian spiritual teacher” in India would be different than what I’ve seen (and grown weary of) everywhere else I’ve travelled but, oh well, here it was again.

So check this out. Ramesh starts out by saying, “If you believe that by becoming ‘enlightened’ you will become free of unpleasant experiences or emotions, you’re mistaken. You will not get special powers, your personality will not change to that of a saint, you will not become well-liked or loved, you will not live in some imagined state of bliss. You will get nothing. Nothing.”

I laughed, thinking of all the times I nodded my head at the idea that spiritual growth or it’s goal, awakening, would give me ALL of what he just described (and how, after no longer nodding at that idea, I was happier than I ever was when I was on “the path” to get, well, happy). But nobody else was laughing. They were all deadly serious, as if they were waiting for Ramesh to become a California teenager and reveal that he was kidding with a big, “NOT!”

But Ramesh wasn’t kidding.

Why didn’t everyone stand up and leave, I wondered. The only reason I stayed was I was curious to see how he followed this great take-away… and that I had come with someone who I saw was now ready for the teaching about how to get everything Ramesh said you wouldn’t get!

Okay, so at the one hour mark, someone asked, “How did you come to this realization you have?” Ramesh replied, “Oh, I was born with the understanding of determinism in my blood.”

I looked around the room again, to see if anyone really heard what he just said. The guy — the “teacher” — just said that he didn’t do anything to become whatever or whoever he is, that he was just born this way. It was his natural tendency, his innate something-or-other. Something that was completely out of his control. Again, I couldn’t for the life of my figure out why half the room didn’t stand up and leave — after all, if he did NOTHING to get what you think you want, why do you think you can do something to get it?

Well, Ramesh is a pretty funny guy (though I seemed to be the only one laughing at the jokes), so I stuck with it.

Finally, as things are about to wrap up, I said, “Can I try to sum up what you’ve been saying for the last few hours?” “Certainly,” Ramesh replied staring me down.”

“Okay, there’s a thing you’re calling ‘enlightenment’ which you describe as the 100% complete conviction and understanding that there is no inherent ‘do-er’ in our life. That we are not the instigators of our thoughts and actions but, instead, we and everything about us is merely an expression of some un-name-able something which is all of existence.”

He nods. I continue.

“So, if there is no ‘person’ who is doing any thing, if we are not the causes but, instead, the effects… then there’s nothing we can do to make this understanding/awakening thing happen. No amount of meditating, no amount of spiritual practice, no amount of sitting here with Ramesh Balsekar will guarantee it happening, or accelerate when it happens. And no amount of not practicing or acting ‘non-spiritually’ will keep it away. If it’s going to happen, it’ll happen and if not, then not. And there’s nothing to do be done about it either way.”

“YES! That’s it,” he laughed… and I laughed with him… but I looked around the room and nobody else was laughing. In fact, they all looked like they were thinking “If I could really understand that point, then that would lead to my enlightenment!”

Oh, well.

“If you want something to do while you’re waiting to see if it happens or not, I have something for you,” Ramesh offered to the group. “At the end of the day, sit down and relax — if you need a beer or two to relax, do that. Then think of something you did that day, something you know that you did, something where you know you had control over it… and then examine that carefully.”

This is very similar to something I teach people to do (something I picked up from my friend Byron Katie). Take a look at all the things you do without any awareness at all? Did you consciously decide to put your arms or legs in that position? And if so, take a look at the thought that preceded your action? Did you make that thought happen? Were you sitting around doing nothing, and think, “Okay, I’ll have the thought about going to get some ice cream in … 5… 4… 3… 2… and NOW!” or did you just notice that you had the thought? Or notice that you must have had the thought because you now find yourself on the way to get some Chunky Monkey?

If you force yourself to think about an elephant, did you consciously make it exactly that size, that color? Did you plan to put those rough hairs on the elephant’s feet (or had you not even thought about it until I said it, at which point it showed up, fully formed without any effort)?

“Do this for about 30 minutes each night,” Ramesh suggested. And one day, you’ll be blinded by the total, complete understanding… and it’ll all be done.

Oh, crap. When push comes to shove, even the guy who spent 3 hours (and 30+ years) saying there’s nothing to do that will get you where you think you want to go, gives something to do to get you there! Hmmm…

As I was leaving, some of the “regulars” stopped me to say hello. “It was so nice to have you here. To hear someone laughing and bringing your energy; we’re glad you made it.” “Thanks,” I said, “it was fun.”

“Are you coming back?” they asked.

I was a bit shocked by the question.

“Why? Didn’t you hear what he said? It’s all taken care of. No reason to come back or not come back. He’s a nice, smart, funny old guy, but I’m here for a wedding. I’ve got shopping and eating to do.”

They looked like they kinda got what I was saying but couldn’t quite believe I’d pass up the oppurtunity to hang out with a guy who admits there’s no reason or benefit for hanging out with him.

In fact, I noticed that while all the seekers where hanging out in the foyer, Ramesh was just wandering around the flat. So, I walked back to say hello and thank him for an entertaining morning. He gave me a big hug, showed me around the place, and we had a picture taken of the two of us. Cute old guy.

BTW, did you notice the little bombshell Ramesh dropped (and I mentioned) about determinism? That’s his big thing. Not only is there nobody doing anything, but it’s all pre-determined. If you were supposed to become enlightened (or a good golfer, or the one who should be fighting with his spouse over money), then it will happen to you. It’s pre-determined so there’s nothing you can do about it. Once you understand that, he says, there’s on need for guilt or blame or shame because you’re all merely doing what God set you up to do.

I won’t get into all the problems with this line of thinking, but I will point out 2 simple ones:

First, if you’re not the one running your life, you don’t need some mega-being who is. Life can unfold with probabilities and chance and randomness just fine. It doesn’t need a universal map that accounts for the position of every particle over all time.

Related to that is #2: If your life is merely the play of some pre-determined plan, then so are the lives of your parents, and their’s and so on and so on… follow that back long enough and you will either never find an initial cause, a moment that set everything else in motion… or you will conclude that there was one moment, BILLIONS of years ago, when the great Planner in the Sky decided what time this morning you would go to the toilet.

While I find determinism a bit more close to my actual experience (especially when I notice that I did nothing to have the thought “Time to write about Ramesh now”), it’s also yet another belief I can nod my head at as a way to add some “meaning” to a life that is much more rich, fun, and full of possibilities without this theory.

It and I were one..

*note*..Interesting Mystical Experiences of Noted Persons(some of them I never heard about,but they are interesting..the experiences,not the persons..lol)
This one is from Berenson ..click on the link above for more of them.
-added by Danny-
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American art critic and connoisseur of Italian art, Bernard Berenson, writes in his autobiography, Sketch for a Self-Portrait, about his mystical experience:

"It was a morning in early summer. A silver haze shimmered and trembled over the lime trees. The air was laden with their fragrance. The temperature was like a caress. I remember---I need not recall---that I climbed up a tree stump and felt suddenly immersed in Itness. I did not call it by that name. I had no need for words. It and I were one."

Mountains are really mountains, waters are really waters.

*note..nice explanation of ,,Thirty years ago, before I began the study of Zen, I said, 'Mountains are mountains, waters are waters.' After I got insight into the truth of Zen through the instructions of a good master, I said, 'Mountains are not mountains, waters are not waters.' But now, having attained the abode of final rest, (that is, Enlightenment) I say, 'Mountains are really mountains, waters are really waters.'
-added by danny-
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The following discourse is attributed to the Chinese Zen master Ch'ing yuan Wei-hsin of the T'ang Dynasty and provides a window into the understanding of Zen:

Thirty years ago, before I began the study of Zen, I said, 'Mountains are mountains, waters are waters.' After I got insight into the truth of Zen through the instructions of a good master, I said, 'Mountains are not mountains, waters are not waters.' But now, having attained the abode of final rest, (that is, Enlightenment) I say, 'Mountains are really mountains, waters are really waters.'

He then asks:

'Are the three understandings the same or different?'

Over and over in Zen and Buddhism something like 'All is illusion' or 'The world is delusion' is presented. The problem with such understandings if presented as being true or otherwise representitive of reality, absolute or otherwise in the final sense, is that any and all persons presenting the statement and any and all persons recieving the statement would be themselves immersed products in that self-same illusion or delusion. Offering or making decisions on anything at all from that illusional or delusional position would be questionable, inturn totally undermining any credibility on such a statement, understanding, or belief.

Saying 'All is delusion' or 'The world is delusion' is by implication saying illusion/delusion IS, that is, that it exists, that it has it's own independent existence, existing independently without need. Dependent Origination on the other hand, implies there can be absolutely nothing whatsoever that is real or eternal behind this actual world and beyond the interdependence of everything. Because of that interdependence all that exists is inherently empty. It can be argued on the conventional level there is causation that could or would back up illusion/delusion, but because causation has no inherent existence either, neither then could or would illusion/delusion. To perceive that causation DOES have inherent existence is what is called ignorance. Perceiving that LACK of causation in inherent existence is wisdom.

Almost everybody that reads a little about Zen starts thinking that NOTHING exists because everything is inherently empty, so what we perceive as reality must be delusion. But emptiness is the absence of independent existence. What that means is SOMETHING must exist and one of the qualifications of that existence is emptiness...the absence of independent existence is only possible because there is SOMETHING that exists...otherwise there would be no 'need' for the absence of independent existence, and if there was no absence of independent existence, then everything would not be empty. (source)

Wei-hsin's the mountains are mountains, waters are waters discourse, to the uninitiated and many others perhaps, seems to outline a definitive lineral progression, step-by-step process or series of stages approach toward the enlightenment/awakening experience. However it is more of a presentation of language problem than a Zen problem. The discourse is simply layed out in such a fashion that it is comprehensible in the written or spoken word. The 'steps' or 'stages' are presented in such a fashion that linguistically through the way words are used, that steps seem to be indicated, when in reality the steps do not exist as steps per se'. The 'third step' may transpire simutananeously with the 'second step' and the third and final step includes the first and second step, for example. It is extremely rare in Zen that such a step-by-step discourse is layed out so clearly for both the Zen adept and the novice to experience. That said, for our purposes here the term 'steps' will be used......

The 'first step' then, is before Wei-hsin studied or practiced Zen. The 'second step' after he studied and came to a certain insight. The 'third step' equals Satori.

In the first 'mountains are mountains, waters are waters' step Wei-hsin and the mountains are two, he is separtating himself from the mountains, the mountains are over there, he is over here. He is differentiating between himself and the mountains, setting up the classical subject (him) / object (the mountains) split, typical dualism of the everyday, conventional Samsara world.

In the second 'mountains are not mountains, waters are not waters' step there is a 'not this, not that" negation from the understanding of the first step. The conceptual distinction, or differentiation, of the mountains, waters, self, and others disappears. However, in the process, a higher level differentation is implied. In other words there becomes a differentation between the type of differentation of the first step and the 'disappeared differentation' or 'no differentation' of the second step. Just as the first step differentation was negated, the implied higher level differentation of the second step must also be negated in order to realize ultimate reality. When that happens there is a break through to the third step...the classic Zen bottom of the bucket break through (see), known in Zen lore as Smashing the Black Lacquer Barrel in an AN UNIMPEDED INTERDIFFUSION OF ALL PARTICULARS. Here 'mountains are really mountains', no more, no less; 'waters are really waters,' no more, no less. What happens is a negation of negation which is nothing less than an affirmation, albeit not in the relative sense but in the absolute sense. There is NO illusion/delusion, and although all remains truly unnamed in the greater realm of undifferentiated reality, the mountains are REALLY mountains, the waters are REALLY waters. That is why a Zen adept needs to breath air, drink when thirsty, eat when hungry, rest when tired, and put on extra flannel when cold.

Beyond beliefs

*this is the best poem I have ever written ...
love,danny
Lead me from dreaming to waking.
Lead me from opacity to clarity.
Lead me from the complicated to the simple.
Lead me from the obscure to the obvious.
Lead me from intention to attention.
Lead me from what I'm told I am to what I see I am.
Lead me from confrontation to wide openness.
Lead me to the place I never left,
Where there is peace, and peace
- The Upanishads
http://kriptodanny.blogspot.com/

Beyond beliefs

Sahaja yoga is just bliss
The inner joy,the one you miss
Sahaja yoga is above
The petty struggles..it's just love
It doesn't make you drink more beer
Your mind becomes so crispy clear
It is above the confrontation
It is about emancipation
It is your spirit shining though
Your heart,your eyes..your fingers too
It is with self a love affair
You breathe the joy ,not only air
You are a rainbow butterfly
You raise your wings..and go high..high..
You are alone and yet collective
Whatever you do..you're protected
You are reminded who you are
The God Almighty's sparkling star
My dear friend,the life is short
Don't let your soul become too old
Just feel the sunshine..it's not cold!!
Beyond beliefs..open your eyes
To inner kingdom's paradise!!!

Learn how mighty Brahman plays with himself

*abviously this guy was realized.,,check out his words,,(Robert Adams) in his talk named,,Stillness,,
So there is Brahman. When Brahman gets tired of being Brahman, it begins to play with itself and becomes personified. That personification is called God. God is what we call the first principle, the controlling energy of the universe.
When God had fun and created everything, he became consciousness. So Brahman becomes God. God becomes Consciousness. Consciousness becomes Brahman again. What a waste of time. Why would Brahman want to do all this? Why would Brahman want to play with himself or itself or herself? Does Brahman become tired? Well, we need an explanation of creation. So that is as good as any. It's better than Adam and Eve (laughter).
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-added by Danny-
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Robert: Good afternoon. I welcome you with all my heart. It's good to see most of you again (laughter).

We have some new faces here today. If you're coming here to hear a great lecture, forget it. If you're coming to hear a sermon, you're in the wrong place. If you're coming to compare the speaker to other speakers, well, I won't say what I think of that (laughter).

You have a reason for coming here. That's the first mistake you made. There should be no reason. There should be no attitude. There should be no need. There is no thing I can give you that you don't already have. There is really nothing I can do for you, unless you realize who you are.

Who are You? The wisest answer would be "I don't know". For if you think you know who you are, you're on the wrong track. A self-realized person has no idea who they are, because the I, and they, have been removed. There is no "I" to know anything. If you say I am this and I am that, you're not really this or that; the I has just made the statement. When the I is gone, there is no one left to do anything or to be anything.

So again, think. Why did I come here today? To get out of the sun? To leave my screaming family? I saw all the movies in town and I have nothing better to do. Somebody told me to come. They're all the wrong reasons. There is no reason whatsoever. Everything should be spontaneous. Do not plan anything in your life. When you do not plan anything, your life will go smoother. Sounds strange, but true. There is a power that knows the way. When you get your little ego out of the way, this great power will take over and lead you into itself. What is this power? What is the undifferentiated power that is the substratum of all existence?

Some people call it Brahman. What is Brahman? There are no words to describe. For any word you use spoils it. Some people say Brahman is the un-manifest energy that runs the universe. But those are just words, not the truth. The finite mind can never know the Infinite.

So there is Brahman. When Brahman gets tired of being Brahman, it begins to play with itself and becomes personified. That personification is called God. God is what we call the first principle, the controlling energy of the universe.

When God had fun and created everything, he became consciousness. So Brahman becomes God. God becomes Consciousness. Consciousness becomes Brahman again. What a waste of time. Why would Brahman want to do all this? Why would Brahman want to play with himself or itself or herself? Does Brahman become tired? Well, we need an explanation of creation. So that is as good as any. It's better than Adam and Eve (laughter).

Those of you who are taking notes, turn the page, keep it blank (laughter). The blankness is the reality. Everything else is really a waste of time. How many teachers have you seen in your life? How many notes have you taken? How many tapes have you purchased? How many books have you read, and you're still here. Sometimes it's better if you never read a book in your life, if you never heard a tape, or ever seen a teacher.

You are what you've been looking for. The answer is always in you alone. There is nothing in the external world. For the external world is an emanation of your own mind, your own thinking and your own imagination. You created this world. Are you proud of yourself? (laughter). Look at what you've done. You caused man's inhumanity to man, wars, pestilence, tornados. Why would you want to do that? Shame on you. Repent (laughter).

Anyway, there's something interesting I must be able to say. There is a great statement that I'm going to make, very profound. I'm going to think of it first (laughter). O.K., here it is:

Consciousness is the only power, and there's no power in the effect.

Think about that. Consciousness is the only power, and there is no power in the effect. In other words, effect is the world and everything in it. All of your problems, so called, all of your needs, all of your wants, all of your desires, have no cause. They're all effects. There is no power in the effects, because effect is like a dream. It doesn't exist for real. Think of all the things that have been disturbing you. Illness, lack, limitation, they do not exist. Those are effects, and there's no power in effect. The same thing is true of the good things in your life, so to speak. All of your so called material happiness, family, friends, job, income, car, all are effect. It has no cause. In other words, nothing created it. There is no thing to create anything.

Consciousness is the only power.(*note-he means,,awareness,, not the human consciousness.-added by danny)

Consciousness is self-contained absolute reality. You have been identifying with the world of effect. This is why things appear as they do in your life. You're trying to exchange negative for positive, bad for good. But they're two sides of the same coin. And they both have to go.

Do not take the universe seriously. Nothing is ever as it appears. Nothing can hurt you when you realize your infinite nature. You are not your measly body that was born, and goes through experiences, and then appears to dissolve or die. That is not you. You have nothing to do with this world. This world does not exist the way it appears. But as long as you believe you are the doer, that you are the body/mind phenomena, the world is very real for you, as most of you know.

Where did this world come from? I just told you. It didn't come from anywhere. Why do you keep asking the same question? Where does a dream come from? The dream appears very real, doesn't it? Most of you had a dream or two last night that you can still remember. How did the dream begin? Did it begin with Brahman creating the universe? Did it begin with God and Adam and Eve?

The dream just began in the middle and it ended when you awoke. Is there such a word as awoke? Awaken, awoken, awaken, they're both lies. And then you found yourself outside the dream. Your body, your mind, your self, was as it always was. In the dream you may have dreamt that you got hit by a car, you had to have your legs amputated, and so forth. Yet when you awake, it's not like that at all.

Think of the things that have happened to you in your life now. You appear to be getting older and older. Things come into your life, as it appears. You try to exchange wrong for right, good for bad. Yet you refuse to acknowledge that this too is a dream. You want to continue playing the game. You want to play hide and seek by believing there is a God somewhere, and if you find this God, all your problems will be over. So you keep searching.
You can never find your reality by searching.

Reality is where it's always been, right where you are at this moment. It is you.

There is not reality and you. You are not in the body of God; God is not in you. For there is no you. There is no body. There is no God. You are perfect pure awareness just as you are now.

There is really no thing you have to do. You simply have to wake up. Why will you not awaken now? Even while I'm talking to you, many of you are thinking, thinking, thinking. Can't you see by now, that this is what is holding you back from your freedom, from your bliss, from your joy? It is your thoughts.
Where did your thoughts come from? They really didn't come from anywhere, for they do not even exist. Yet unfortunately most of us believe that thoughts exist, for we are bombarded by them day and night.

So sages come along and invent methods, means, in order to obliterate the thoughts. Meditation was invented for that purpose. Self-enquiry, all of these yogic exercises, pranayama, mantras, kriya, they're really used to stop your thoughts from blossoming, to keep your mind from thinking.. All of these procedures are to make your mind quiescent, quiet, still. If you're able to do this without the methods, then you would be realized. You would be your self. You would be liberated. But you refuse to do this. You want a teacher to give you methods to wake you up.

But I say to you, wake up now. Awake. The methods will keep you back because you get stuck with the methods. But it makes no difference what I say. You are still going to identify with the world, with conditions, with your body, with your mind. We therefore have to think of a way, the quickest way for you to awaken. Of all the methods I, know, self-enquiry is the fastest if you are mature enough to be able to handle it. You begin to understand that the I is only a thought; it is an idea called the I-thought. It is the I-thought that dominates your existence. True?

How many times have you said "I" today? “I” am going to hear Robert. "I" am going to eat breakfast. "I" am going to take a nap. "I" don't think I feel too good. "I" feel great. "I" need this. "I" need that. The first person pronoun I, dominates your entire existence.

Yet it has been known by Sages, if you were only able to annihilate the I, destroy it, kill it, you would be free. The I is attached to all of your thoughts. Therefore, begin to follow the I to its source. I have to tell you in truth and in reality, there is no I and there is no source, but you will not believe me. You want to play with I. You therefore follow the I to the Source, and when the I has been dissolved into the source, you become free.

You do this of course by enquiring "to whom do these thoughts come?" Or, whatever is disturbing you, you enquire "to whom do they come? Who is experiencing this? Who is going through this? Who thinks they are human? Who feels depressed? Who feels discouraged? Who feels there is a difference between birth and death? “I do." Can't you see now, that if you get rid of the I, all those feelings, depression, and worry would disappear?

So you ask, "Who am I? Where did this I come from?" You never answer that question. When thoughts come to you, you enquire "To whom do they come? To me? I think these thoughts. Who am I?" You do not answer. As you continue to do this process, you find that your mind is becoming quieter and quieter. The confusion stops. You begin to feel happier and happier. You are no longer reacting to person, place or thing. You become spontaneous in everything you do.

You live in the now, but you're not doing that. It's doing you. In other words you have not decided, "I'm going to be spontaneous from now on. I'm going to live in the now." As you are aware, how many times have you tried that without avail? You can't make up your mind that you're going to be spiritual, that you're going to be consciousness, that you are absolute reality. How many times have you tried to do that, and the first thing that comes into your life, you become upset? You react. Something bothers you. Or something good comes into your life and you become elated. You react in a positive way. They're both impostors.

Remember you're not trying to change bad into good. You want to transcend everything, and become absolutely free. See how you're thinking? Your mind won't stay still, will it? Whose mind is it that won't stay still? Do you really have a mind? Are you the mind? Who told you this? There is no mind, there is no body, there are no thoughts. Accept this if you want to. All it can do for you, is liberate you. We listen to the birds, we see the beautiful trees. Who sees? Who listens? Why, I do. You're caught in the trap again. For many of you believe, if I behold the beauty of the world, that's good. It's better than beholding death, I suppose.

But the world is an illusion. It is not real. The so called beauty is here today and gone tomorrow. Change is the only permanent thing of the relative world. Everything changes continuously.

Therefore as you go through the vicissitudes of life, and you get rid of your dogmatic thinking, you open your heart, you begin to feel something different. You begin to loosen up.

The first thing to understand is that everything that has transpired in your life has been necessary. No matter how it looks. No matter what has happened. Everything has been necessary.

The second thing to understand is, everything has been preordained. In other words, everything was supposed to happen the way it happened. There were no mistakes.(*note* here he talks about karma being preordained,not the rest.If he was that stupid to believe that after realization he is still bound by karma,then too bad for him..If he was alive,I could have proved him wrong-added by Danny..the only reason he was still bound by karma was he didn't care one iota about it,not because he could not change it)

The third thing to understand is that the first two things are a pack of lies. For these things don't even exist in reality. Everything is preordained, as long as you believe you are the body. Everything is karmic, as long as you identify with the world and believe you are the doer.

But as soon as you start to turn within, as soon as you begin to listen to the still small voice within you, as soon as you start to practice self-enquiry, your life begins to change drastically. You become happy. You no longer search for happiness, for you are beginning to realize that you cannot find it externally. You may appear to find it, but it does not last.

In other words, you may get married and you believe this is great, I found what I always wanted. Then you may get divorced and you say, this is great, I finally got rid of that person. You win the lottery and you say this is great, I'm rich. The IRS comes down on you, and you wind up in San Quentin. And then you say, this is no good. Well, all of these different things take place in your life. The world is not your friend. The world is a phenomenon that belongs to a dream.

You've got to be mature enough to ask the question, "To whom does this world belong? Who lives in the world? Where did the world come from?" And your answer to all the questions begins with I. "I" live in the world. "I" partake in the world. "I" see the world. And we're back to I again. You finally get the idea that the whole world is hanging on I. The I has to be transcended.


You begin early in the morning when you first wake up. Before you become aware of I, you know that you are in a state of peace, of joy, even if only for a few seconds. "I" was not present. You are not aware of the world. Catch yourself tomorrow morning. It only happens in a flash, in a few seconds. Yet all of a sudden the world becomes real for you. I, has awakened. Where did the I come from? If you investigate, you will see that your spiritual heart center is in your right side of your chest and the I has come out of your chest, out of your spiritual heart, out of the source, becoming more powerful as it emerges and goes into your brain.(*note*maybe the right side of my dick,not my chest..this is pure nonsense,since the pure spirit within is not localized on any part of the body-added by Danny)

Then you become more aware of your body and you say: I am alive. Once you become aware of your body and your mind, you become aware of the world, and then the Universe. Therefore the wise person catches the I before it goes any further. In other words as the I emerges from your chest, you abide in the I. To the extent that you can abide in the I or focus on the I, something phenomenal will begin to happen. The I will reverse its course and begin to return to its source. I will repeat this again.

To the average person, the I begins to become stronger and stronger when you wake up in the morning. It emerges from your spiritual center and heads up your spine to your brain where you become cognizant of the world. But for the spiritual aspirant who practices self-enquiry, you begin to watch the I doing this. You abide in the I. As you begin to abide in the I, it will reverse its course and head back to the center. When it heads back to the center, it will rest in the circumference of the center. This is as far as you can go by yourself. You will be in an effortless thought-free state. You will be in the Void as it tells you in Buddhism.

Yet most Buddhists think the void is self-realization. This is a mistake.

The Void is when your I is resting on the circumference of the center. When that happens you've come a long way. Yet the self has to pull the I inside to become liberated.

This is very rarely done by the small self alone. Only a very few will go directly into the heart center and be extinguished. This is why Sages are necessary. This is why Satsang is necessary.

For the Sage who may be a 1000 miles away from you, as long as you have a direct line to the Sage mentally, the Sage is omnipresent, all-pervading. Therefore the sage, the self, the guru and God are all one.

Even if you are away from the sage, if you have a close association, that particular sage is your guru. The self, which is really the sage, will pull the I into the heart, and you will be liberated.

That's how it appears to work. The rest is up to you.

funny song..no bau-bau exists..hahaha

*funny song..originally sang by Miruna Oprea, In loose translation,it means,,
When the kid is not behaving
What more else you always do ?
Want the kid in proper shaping..
Say,,the boggie man will get you!

(refrain)
..I'm not afraid ,not afraid
Of the boggie man..not afraid
He never exists.
-added by danny-
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He who with sincerity seeks his real purpose in life is himself sought by that purpose

*note* more wisdom from Hazrat Inayat Khan.
-added by Danny-
..................

Commentary by Pir-o-Murshid Inayat Khan:

One may ask, 'What is the best way for a person to understand his life's purpose?' If one follows the bent of one's own mind, if one follows the track to which one is attracted, if one follows one's own inclination, which is not satisfied with anything else, one feels, 'There is something waiting for me (which one does not know at the time), which will bring me satisfaction.' Besides, if one is intuitive and mystical, it is easier still, because then one is continually told what is the purpose of one's life. For nature has such a perfection of wisdom. One sees that the insects are given the sense to make their little houses and to protect themselves and make a store of their food. The bees, who have the gift of making honey, are taught how to make honey. So nature has taught every soul to seek its purpose. It has made every soul for that purpose, and it is continually calling that soul to see that purpose. If the soul does not hear the call and sleeps, it is not the fault of nature, which is continually calling. Therefore, if I were to say in a few words, how to find one's purpose, I would say: by waking from sleep.


Every being has a definite vocation, and his vocation is the light which illuminates his life. The man who disregards his vocation is a lamp unlit. He who sincerely seeks his real purpose in life is himself sought by that purpose. As he concentrates on that search a light begins to clear his confusion, call it revelation, call it inspiration, call it what you will. It is mistrust that misleads. Sincerity leads straight to the goal.


That way is best which suits you best. The way of one person is not for another person, although man is always inclined to accuse another person of doing wrong, believing that he himself is doing right. ... That purpose is accomplished when a person has risen above all these things. It is that person then, who will tolerate all, who will understand all, who will assimilate all things, who will not feel disturbed by things which are not in accordance with his own nature or the way which is not his way. He will not look at them with contempt, but he will see that in the depth of every being there is a divine spark which is trying to raise its flame toward the purpose.

When a person has arrived at this stage, he has risen above the limitations of the world. Then he has become entitled to experience the joy of coming near to the real purpose of life. It is then that in everything that he says or does, he will be accomplishing that purpose. ... We come to understand by this that the further we go the more tolerant we become. Outward things matter little. It is the inward realization which counts. However sacred duty may be, however high may be the hope of paradise, however great the happiness one may experience in the pleasures of the earth, however much satisfaction one may find in earthly treasures, the purpose of life is in rising above all these things. It is then that the soul will have no discord, no disagreement with others. It is then that the natural attitude of the soul will become tolerant and forgiving. The purpose of life is fulfilled in rising to the greatest heights and in diving to the deepest depths of life: in widening one's horizon, in penetrating life in all its spheres, in losing oneself, and in finding oneself in the end. In the accomplishment of the purpose of life the purpose of creation is fulfilled. Therefore, in this fulfillment it is not that man attained, but that God Himself has fulfilled His purpose.

George Carlin died at 71 years old

*note*he died at 71 yo.This is the most humorous clip of him..enjoy.
-added by danny-
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How Ajaan Lee never got maried?..read and learn...hahaha

*note*..the amazing buddhist monk named Ajaan Lee explains why he never got married.
However..it NEVER came to his turtle brain that he created his own reality...so he imagined the worst,concentrated on the worst,and all he got was the worst...
Form is emptiness..emptiness is form...but Ajaan Lee never understood that the consciousness creates REALITY...he NEVER understood that WE are GODS in making.
The awareness is primordial,with no form or shape.This awareness created consciousness ...and this very consciousness then created the whole universe...read my lips,Ajaan Lee.You project the worst,that's all you get,dear..the above link is his autobiography as a forest monk...it's a good reading.What is really funny is that after he died,his disciples mummified him,and now they are praying to him for,,guidance,,even after his death.He still sits in the lotus position,like a carrot..marvelous Ajaan Lee!..even after death he didn't stop deluding people,even though his intentions were innocent,and true.So we can't blame him he didn't try,really.
-added by Danny-
.........................

So late in the quiet of a moonlit night, I climbed up to sit inside the chedi and asked myself, "If I disrobe, what will I do?" I came up with the following story.

If I disrobe, I'll have to apply for a job as a clerk in the Phen Phaag Snuff and Stomach Medicine Company. I had a friend who had disrobed and gotten a job there earning 20 baht a month, so it made sense for me to apply for a job there too. I'd set my mind on being honest and hard-working so that my employer would be satisfied with my work. I was determined that wherever I lived, I'd have to act in such a way that the people I lived with would think highly of me.

As it turned out, the drug company finally hired me at 20 baht a month, the same salary as my friend. I made up my mind to budget my salary so as to have money left over at the end of each month, so I rented a room in the flats owned by Phraya Phakdi in the PratuuNam (Watergate) section of town. The rent was four baht a month. Water, electricity, clothing and food would add up to another eleven baht, leaving me with an extra five baht at the end of each month.

My second year on the job my boss came to like and trust me so much that he raised my salary to 30 baht a month. Taking out my expenses, I was left with 15 baht a month. Finally he was so content with my work that he made me supervisor of all the workers, with a 40 baht salary, plus a cut of the profits, adding up altogether to 50 baht a month. At this point I was feeling very proud of myself, because I was making as much as the District Official back home. And as for my friends back home, I was in a position way above them all. So I decided it was time to get married so that I could take a beautiful young Bangkok bride back home for a visit, which would please my relatives no end. This was when my plans seemed to take on a little class.

So now that I was going to get married, what sort of person would she be? I made up my mind that the woman I married would have to have the three attributes of a good wife:

1. She'd have to come from a good family.
2. She'd have to be in line for an inheritance.
3. She'd have to be good-looking and have a pleasing manner.

Only if a woman had these three attributes would I be willing to marry her. So I asked myself, "Where are you going to find a woman like this, and how will you get to know her?" This is where things began to get complicated. I tried thinking up all sorts of schemes, but even if I actually did meet such a woman, she wouldn't be interested in me. The women who would be interested in me weren't the sort I'd want to marry. Thinking about this, I'd sometimes heave a heavy sigh, but I wasn't willing to give in.

Finally it occurred to me, "Wealthy people send their daughters to the high-class schools, like the Back Palace School or Mrs. Cole's. Why don't I go have a look around these schools in the morning before classes and in the evening when school lets out?"

So that's what I did, until I noticed an attractive girl, the daughter of a Phraya. The way she walked and the way she dressed really appealed to me. I arranged so that our paths crossed every day. In my hand I carried a little note that I threw down in front of her. The first time, she didn't pay me any attention. Day after day our paths crossed. Sometimes our eyes would meet, sometimes I'd stand in her way, sometimes she'd smile at me. When this happened, I made it a point to have her get my note.

Finally we got to know each other. I made a date for her to skip school the next day so that I could show her around town. As time passed we came to know each other, to like each other, to love each other. We told each other our life stories -- the things that had made us happy and the things that had made us sad -- from the very beginning up to the present. I had a salaried job at no less than 50 baht a month. She had finished the sixth year of secondary school and was the daughter of a very wealthy Phraya. Her looks, her manner and her conduct were everything I had been hoping for.

Finally we agreed to become married secretly. Since we loved each other, I got to sleep with her beforehand. She was a good person, so before we were to be officially married, she told her parents. Furious, they threw her out of the house.

So she came to live with me as my wife. I wasn't too upset by what her parents had done, for I was determined to work my way into their affections.

We went to rent a flat in a better district, the Sra Pathum Watergate area. The rent here was six baht a month. My wife got a job at the same company where I was working, starting out at 20 baht a month, but she soon got a raise to 30 a month. Together, then, we were making 80 a month, which pleased me.

As time passed, my position advanced. My employer trusted me completely, and at times would have me take over his duties in his absence. Both my wife and I were determined to be honest and upright in our dealings with the company, and ultimately our earnings -- our salaries plus my percentage of the profits -- reached 100 a month. At this point I felt I could breathe easy, but my dreams still hadn't been fulfilled.

So I began to buy presents -- good things to eat and other nice things -- to take to my parents-in-law to show my good intentions towards them. After a while they began to show some interest in me, and eventually had us move into their house. At this point I was really pleased: I was sure to be in line for part of the inheritance. But living together for a while revealed certain things about my behavior that rubbed my parents-in-law the wrong way, so in the end they drove us out of the house. We went back to live in a flat, as before.

This was when my wife became pregnant. Not wanting her to do any hard work, I hired a servant woman to look after the house and help with the housework. Hired help in those days was very cheap -- only four baht a month.

As my wife came closer to giving birth, she began to miss work more and more often. I had to keep at my job. One night I sat down to look over our budget. The 100 baht we had once earned was probably as much as we'd ever earn. I had no further hopes for a raise. Our expenses were mounting every day: one baht a month for electricity; 1.50 baht for water; charcoal and rice each at least six baht a month; the help, four baht a month; and on top of it all, the cost of our clothing.

After my wife gave birth, our expenses mounted still higher. She wasn't able to work, so we lost her percentage of the profits. After a while she became ill and missed work for an extended period. My employer cut her salary back to 15 baht a month. Our medical bills rose. My wife's salary wasn't enough for her needs, so she had to cut into mine. My old salary of 50 baht was now completely gone by the end of each month.

In the end, my wife's illness proved fatal. I had to borrow 50 baht from my employer which, along with my own savings of 50, went towards her funeral expenses, which totaled 80 baht. I was then left with 20 baht and a small child to raise.

What was I to do now? Before, I had breathed easily. Now it seemed as if life was closing in on me. I went to see my parents-in-law, but they gave me the cold shoulder. So I hired a wet nurse for the child. The wet nurse was a low-class woman, but she took awfully good care of the child. This led me to feel love and affection towards her, and ultimately she became my second wife.

My new wife had absolutely no education -- she couldn't even read or write. My income at this point was now only 50 baht -- enough just to get by. After a while my new wife became pregnant. I did my best to make sure that she didn't have to do any heavy work, and I did everything I could to be good to her, but I couldn't help feeling a little disappointed that life had turned out so differently from my original plans. After my new wife gave birth, we both helped to raise the children until both my first wife's child and my new wife's child were old enough to feed and take care of themselves.

This was when my new wife started acting funny -- playing favorites, giving all her love and attention to her own child, and none to my first. My first child started coming to complain to me all the time that my new wife had been unfair in this way or that. Sometimes the two children would start fighting. At times I'd come home from work and my first child would run to me with one version of what had happened, my second child would have another version, and my wife still another. I didn't know whom to side with. It was as if I was standing in the middle, and my wife and children were pulling me off in three different directions. My new child wanted me to buy this or that -- eventually my wife and children started competing with one another to see who would get to eat the best food, wear the best clothes and squander the most money. It got so that I couldn't sit down and talk with any of them at all. My salary was being eaten up every month; my family life was like falling into a thorn patch.

Finally I decided to call a halt. My wife wasn't what I had hoped for, my earnings weren't what I had hoped for, my children weren't what I had hoped for, so I left my wife, was reordained and returned to the contemplative life.

When I came to the end of the story, my interest in worldly affairs vanished. The sense that life was closing in on me disappeared. I felt as free as if I were up floating in the sky. Something inside me sighed, "Ah!" with relief. I told myself that if this was the way things would be, I'd do better not to disrobe.