Life Beyond the Image

Is it necessary to be dig deep and think up and let our negative thoughts pass? Can we not just let them be, not prod, and find a centre and let them go .Sort of like surrendering to the Universe and letting thoughts come and go rather than , probe ?

I am not saying anything needs to be done, but let’s look at this. You have not done anything already, right? You don’t prod, and you let them be. And this is where you are. If it were fine to be there, you would not ask the question of letting them be. Does that make any sense? If you were fine where you were, you wouldn’t ask anything.

So, the fact is, you ask if you can do the one thing instead of the other. But why? Why is there a need to change? Is it because of pain? Curiosity? (I am not saying you have problems and need to change!) But the humans of this world are ignorant of what goes on within them. And look at the world and see where we are. Is that something you wish to continue contributing to?

You said before that letting thoughts come to the fore is too much thought for your mind. Is that true? Can there be more thought in the mind than what is there? Is that possible? Could it be that you believe things should be different from what they are? You see reality but cannot accept it as it is, so you project your thought onto it to get it to match your beliefs of what should be? That is conflict.

The should be and reality can never meet. That is one of the greatest sources of misery in this world. We want them to come together. We want to try to perform this impossible magic trick of changing reality to what we think it should be, when actually, reality is whatever it is at any given time. It can never be anything else.

Does that make any sense?

You also mentioned finding a center and letting it go. But what is the center? Surely the center is the self. The self is the factory of problems. It can let go of problems, but if the self lets go, is anything really gone? It is very tricky to get one’s head around. If there is a continuation of the self, then there is a continuation of the problem. It is true, the problems might change or go away, but as long as there is a self separate from the rest of the world, it is only a matter of time before it explodes.

One can lead a very happy life from the center. It is probably best to forget about enlightenment and do your best in this world until you are gone. Do what you want to do and just live your life, but do it for the betterment of all.

There are techniques of letting go, and some ways of bypassing the self, as it were. One of them is called The Work ( http://www.thework.com/index.asp ). Another is The Sedona Method ( http://www.sedona.com/ ). It can help clear up some elementary particles that might be “in the way.” The good thing is, the info is available on the websites and you don’t have to buy anything. Just see what it is and go into it the best you can.

Do your best.

This comes from the comments on Fear, Security, and Earthquakes.

Is fear a mere projection? I don’t know. To a certain extend, yes. But, in some cases it may be natural to be fear, we are born with that, right? To feel that sth wrong is going to happen, so that we can response, be that fight or flight.

The normal response of the body to avoid danger is different from what I am talking about.

If you are walking in the woods and see a snake, what is it that makes you fear it? It is true, there could be some danger there, so we just walk around it. We avoid it and try not to upset the snake. But why should it be feared?

In order to fear the snake, I have to project my thoughts into the future; the snake “could” bite me, so there is fear. But it is only fear of what you are thinking, and not a fear of what is happening. There cannot be fear in the moment, because there is no interference of thought in the moment. No projection or projector.

Don’t fear the snake; just walk around it.

This comes from the comments on, The Importance of Finding Out for Yourself.

Could it be that understanding through knowledge is not enough? That “knowing it” is not the same as “living it”?

Do we “understand” through what we know? One’s definition of that word might be “to grasp with the intellect,” which would seem to imply, seeing with knowledge. But if one sees through intellect, or knowledge, what is being seen, other than a memory? If that is the case, then knowledge, and understanding, can only take us back to what we already know, and cannot reveal to us what is beyond it.

So, if we are in agreement so far, then what is to be done? There are several questions one could go into at this point; perception, understanding, knowledge, seeing, the “I” movement, and so on. I would take all of them, and more, in turn, and question them; find out what is at the core. I usually look up a word in a reputable dictionary to see the etymology and the various meanings. Then I see how it relates to memory, action, movement, stillness, etc.

But when I relate these things, I do not start from the idea that I am right. Or that I have the right idea that everything should be compared to. It is more of a matter of seeing how one’s mind works. How the knowledge contained therein is used, accessed, and stored; how our prejudices dominate over all things.

It seems daunting, and diligence IS needed, along with a certain amount of sincerity and seriousness. But if it is what you are interested in, go for it.

The time will pass anyway, so what would you like to do with it?