Time travelling faster with age.

See blog 'Life as an abstraction' Feb 2006. Time appears to pass more quickly with advancing age. When we're fifteen years old we may have a memory that goes back a dozen years and during that time remember, say, a thousand memories. When we get to, say, sixty years of age we may still have the same thousand (more or less) memories abstracted out but spread over fifty five years or so. So with the same amount of memories but more time passing it gives the impression that time is passing more quickly.

Not thoughts but the space they appear in.

When you are involed in thoughts you give energy to them and derive an identity. When it is seen that your identity is not tied to the thoughts then thoughts gradually reduce and long periods of silence follow.
Roy.

All there is is everything.

All there is is everything. And that everything is in a continuous, seemless change. This manifestation is dualistic by it's very nature. Nothing exists without it's opposite, or at least a contrast. Animals hunt when hungry and sleep when tired and not according to the clock. They don't have the concepts of duality. Humans, on the other hand, have an intellect. Their intellect is capable of producing concepts and to understand duality. With seeking and learning about Advaita and non-duality there is the suggestiong that duality is the problem however it's not. The problem occures where the intellect has developed a 'me', or a belief in a me. Because the me, or the mind sees duality but chooses to identify with one half and rejects the other half. For most people there is no questioning in the dualistic nature of existence - they merely choose the better half of being right/wrong or good/bad and that choicless choice on their part maintains the dualistic swing of the mind and their involvement in it.

Surrender.

Surrender is needed. Without surrender the ego is in full flight. Even during it's quiet time it is still the ego believing it's in control. As long as the ego believes it's in control there is no surrender because it's not for the ego to surrender but that it is that surrender happens, impersonally. As long as we think that we have to surrender then it is ego believing it's in control and believing that surrender can be achieved. It takes the degree of surrender that happens with the awareness of the possibility that enlightenment may never happen to this person and to accept it without a fight.

The balanced duality.

We live in duality and it is the nature of the mind to cling to one aspect of the duality and to reject the other half. The mind will then tend to believe in it's chosen half exclusively. It's this exclusivity that causes arguments, fights and wars. The personal identity comes from believing in one half of each of the myriad of concepts in duality. Balance is restored when we start to learn that duality is inherent in lifes system and needed for everything to exist then we see that neither half of day/night nor up/down is better than the other, that they are simply opposites and different. Once this is seen we slip up a cog, as it were, and we simply see the balanced world of duality of existence on the one hand while on the other we see the everything/nothing of the whole manifestation. Enlightenment is the release from the world of duality and conflict into the understanding of a higher level of everything/nothing without losing the worldly view that is dualistic.

The 'me' is an assumption only.

The 'me' is an assumption, an identity, a belief without substance. On close inspection it weakens and starts to collapse. The moment of realization of our true self, ie that we are awareness and not any of the objects appearing in awareness brings about enlightenment. Dispite the minds ideas, enlightenment is not the final, fixed state of bliss since that would be stagnation. No, understanding continues to evolve. Advaita is a system of pointers that talks about non-duality and brings about the intuitive apperception that I am awareness. It brings about the end of the journey of separation. But saying that I am awareness and not the content of awareness is dualistic and separating in itself. This understanding evolves until it is seen that even the contents of awareness are also made of awareness - non-duality. The fragmenting mind settles down and puts less effort into separating, catagorising and labelling and it is more frequently seen that any dualistic labels, up/down, day/night etc. are merely labels and have no connection with reality. It is the dividing mind that says day or night when in fact there is no demarcating point between them. It is one seemless continuum. The ever changing face of existence. There is no need for the label day or night except in language. Life can now be enjoyed for what it is without the ever present dividing mind labelling, judging, comparing and choosing. This continual mental activity brings anguish and suffering.

Duality into non-duality.

We use duality in an attempt to describe non-duality. We ask 'who am I' in an attempt to know our true nature. But how can you divide in non-duality? That which we are is both nothing and everything and language is never enough. Ramana Maharshi was said to use the concept of taking a thorn from a tree to use as a tool to remove a thorn embeded in the skin. When the thorn is removed both thorns are thrown away. Language is part of the duality of life and so we have to use it but inherent difficulties arise when we try to describe non-duality. The term 'poiters' is used instead of 'truths'.

Everything and nothing.

Self realization is different to enlightenment although both words are often used interchangeably. Self realization is easy to describe as it's the sudden intuitive realization of your true nature. Enlightenment, however, is the effect of self realization and describing this is where language falls short. From an enlightened perspective you are at first seen as pure awareness but later as both awareness and it's expression. The experience of being human continues but not exclusively as a human. Now is added the inclusive understanding that while the human experience continues - we are the awareness of the human experience. Or you could say we are everything and no-thing.

Experience but no experiencer.

I spent the best part of my life thinking of myself as someone experiencing life. Now I know there is no 'me', to do anything, to experience anything, that in fact there is only the experience. The experience goes on but there is no 'me' to interfere - to think of itself as in control. How simple.