Tagged: no-i
Let go of the story of “I.”
Every Life has a story. We refer to that story as “ups” and “downs” because that is what we are conditioned to believe; but ‘ups’ and ‘downs’ are together like day and night. Humans feel elated when things go their way (ups) and will suffer when things go the way they don’t want (down.)
The main character of that story is “I.” However, just as “up” go together with “down,” similarly “I” goes together with “no-I.”
We don’t know about “no-I.” Society and their teachers and gurus haven’t taught us about that, so we cannot throw the label loosely, in the next spiritual conversation. There are no “best sellers” yet, dealing with the philosophical “problem” of “no-I” and the “methods” to “achieve” it.
Our society, our beliefs and conditioning are so strong that will not allow us to see that there is nothing static about that which we call “I.”
The “I” is a container of memories, like a glass with water. Life will put different levels of water in that container. Until the last drop making the spill, will arrive. That will only show us the limits of the container.
Beyond the glass and its memories (“ I ”) there is “no-I,” air. An empty glass.
Yes, there are moments when we can believe to be the glass with water. But there others, when we could be air, in that way the “ups” and “downs” in Life, no longer will be. That movement is called a dance in Life.
When we hear “we should dance with Life,” it does not mean that “I” have to let “myself” be taken by “my” dancing partner, Life. Then is when we hear the teaching of “surrendering to Life” or “giving up.” That is the typical meaning when we believe to be the glass with water.
Now, we have a different perspective: It is to be the water and then to be air. Life is not a partner to dance with. Life is US, the containers, water and air. ALL at the same time. Because Life is movement, it is continuous change, the dance is to BE and not to BE.
BE water and BE air.
Many seekers ask “who am I?” They will make that into a “problem” to resolve. “What is the purpose of Life?” That is another subject for discussion… Drop that “I.” Drop the glass with water, drop the story of memories limiting who you believe to BE, then the question: “who am “I”? will be an utterly senseless question. “What is the purpose of Life?” It will be reworded as a different question: What is the purpose of “I” and “no-I”?
And then… we will realize that our society has pushed this idea that everything has to have a purpose, an objective to exist with some sort of “value.” Drop that “teaching” as well.
To BE is the purpose, which it happens to be no purpose at all.
BE… BE something and BE nothing…. ”I” and “no-I.”
Drop everything you think you know, to discover what you don’t.
Will be taking a short break from writing until August 30.
The website address of this site is: Explore7.wordpress.com
The name Avyakt7.com will be dropped next year.
Going into “No-I”
“Spirituality” as it has been taught for many years, targets an infantile consciousness. It is the popular “Monkey sees, Monkey does.”
It is understood that we learn by imitation like a 5-year-old child. That is the need for “role models.”
Have you seen a 50-year-old with the consciousness of a 5-year-old?
They may know a lot about the “office world.” They know how to “make money,” how to be “ahead.” They know that “I” is different than “you” and different than Life. They know how to look out for #1.
Life is for ME to make what “I” want of it. Life is for ME, I and MYSELF.
What a dingy bird!
What type of spirituality will be “good” for that? Do this. Don’t Do that. If you do it, you will get punished; but if you follow the instructions, if you copy the “role models,” then you will be “good.” “God” will have a special place for you when you die while a monument will be built on Earth after you. You will be eternal.
That is all about the “I.”
With that kind of spirituality, “I” have to become something better, “I” have to achieve something special, “I” have to show others my value, my capacity… “I” will continue on even when “I” am no longer here. “I” need to achieve heaven and join the political party of angels and saints…
“I” need insurance for the afterlife.
That type of consciousness is not ready yet for “No-I.” That is the other half of your 24-hour day…
Although we may be awake, we are asleep trapped in the routine of “another day at the office.”
When “I” sleep sound and deep, who am “I”? Where am “I”?
When thoughts come into “my” mind, who sent them? Wasn’t it “me”? Why can’t “I” stop them?
The “problem” is that I call that experience “MY” mind.
“I” have not been trained to OBSERVE the mind as when a bird passes flying on the sky. Do I say “my” bird is flying now? 🙂
What are those things that build “ME”? …. “MY” body.
Definitely, but can I observe that IT is getting older without “MY” permission? Nevertheless, emotions, thoughts, beliefs, conditionings have me wrapped up in MY identification of ME.
Enjoy your body! Only know that it is not yours or you… unless your consciousness is still there with that song… Then, embrace that. Acknowledge it … You are not ready for “NO-I” yet, otherwise it will be a dull belief, another “reason” to be dishonest with yourself. …but it doesn’t mean that “No-I” is nonsense. It just means that “I Am” not there yet.
Emotions, thoughts, beliefs, conditionings are shaping ME, for through them, through that filter, “I” perceive the world and “Myself.”
Take those away, who am I?
Wait a minute, that is not easy! I cannot take those away as “I” take my coat off.
No problem. Life DOES IT. 5 years from now, “I” will not be the same.
All it links ME to the idea of ME, are labels: My name. All the rest will have changed at different percentages which “I” cannot control.
Who am “I” then? 🙂
“No-I” and “I” are 2 sides of the coin. “I” can BE and at the same time, “I” cannot BE. Thus, when “I” need to BE… I AM. When I don’t… I AM NOT.
Who am I? 🙂
What I AM NOT and what I AM. Senseless, illogical, irrational stuff. Perhaps the “truth.” 🙂
What is the mind and no-mind?
When we become aware of our inner state, we start understanding “what makes it tick.” If we want to communicate those findings to another, then a particular language is invented to describe the experiences.
Those listening or reading the explanations but without the experience, will be caught up with just the words.
For instance, if a religion talks about “being soul conscious,” immediately there is a misunderstanding from those without the experience. Then, those individuals want to “achieve soul consciousness,” they want to “work on it,” etc. That only shows their conditioning.
If Ahnanda mentions “No-I,” it is the same as the Buddhist “emptiness,” and the same as “soul conscious.”
Readers caught up with words but unable to look at their inner experience, will try to intellectually understand what “no-I” is.
You cannot. For “I” am denying that which you think you are.
Thus, another word that may convey a similar experience is “no-mind.”
However, the question now becomes: “What is the mind?”
Here some “definitions:”
1) The mind is a set of cognitive faculties including consciousness, perception, thinking, judgement, and memory.
2) The element of a person that enables them to be aware of the world and their experiences, to think, and to feel; the faculty of consciousness and thought.
3) In common parlance, ‘the mind’ most often refers to the seat of human consciousness, the thinking-feeling ‘I’ that seems to be an agentic causal force that is somehow related but is also seemingly separable from the body.
Those definitions are only pointers to know that we are talking about a “table” and not an “apple.” Unless you look at your own table, you will not know ‘table.’
Your emotions, your conditioning, your traumas, your expectations, your taboos, your beliefs all of that is the mind.
All of that will give you a unique identity which is different than anyone else.
Therefore, unlearning, healing, dissolving, surrendering that mind… all of those “spiritual key words,” mean the same thing, or rather: It “is pointing to the same experience.”
When we use the mind, we are caught up with dictionary definitions, concepts, methods, analysis. We wish to understand our mind by using those things. That will not happen.
As the mind surrenders, there is “no-mind.” As there is openness, there is integration with all that is.
Call that soul consciousness, call that emptiness, call that no-mind, no-I, call that oneness, call that God…
Labels and more labels.
Some readers love a particular label used by a Spiritual Guru. If another uses a different label, then that becomes “false” for them. The mind entertains in those debates, meaningless “theory.”
You will know that the mind is going away, when enjoyment of Life arrives, you become relax, you will “go with the flow”… until then, relentless pursue your dreams, stress yourself out, strive to make “a difference,” be “number 1,” experience the accomplishments taking you nowhere, experience the “hamster wheel” of the mind…
Once the mind is tired, frustrated, it gives up… then you can finally sit down and observe… You will understand without trying to. 🙂
The “office world” does not teach that.
The Spirituality of “No-I.”
The experience of “no-I” changes everything.
Yes, we are One. Yes, we are God, Life, the Universe… but Yes, “we” are not.
We are nothing. We are everything.
Simple language cannot express, but poetry can express… but not what “is.”
What is “karma” in the “I” and the “no-I” realm?
As explained by traditional religious spirituality, it is an action of the “I.” That action, has a “reward” or “punishment” for that “I,” according to how “good” or “bad” that action was. After all, “I” performed the action with my “free will.”
In the “No-I” realm, all of the above is “pure” nonsense. Rubbish.
If there is the experience of heat, there will be the experience of cold. Some may label heat as “good” and cold as “punishment.” The “I” creates guilt and shame through that view of an “I” performing “karma.”
The experiences of the opposites are together. It is duality 101.
The “I” with his “free will” pretends to separate from the Totality, but “we” are everything, the Totality. There is no separation, no parts.
Life experiences, manifest through physical bodies. It is how Life changes. Behind physical bodies there is a realm, which we are not aware of. Life moves through “us.” That movement is possible through the appearance of complementary forces, which the “I” perceives as opposite and labels: Good and bad, moral and immoral, right and wrong…
Chaos is not the opposite of Order. Chaos and Order are the same energy at different stages of movement. One will bring the other, without “our help.”
Observe how day changes into night. There is continuous change, imperceptible for an unaware being. Neither day or night are the “end product,” it is a continuous.
Then, the mind appears: “It is 5 pm called day or night?”
Stupid question. 5 PM does not exist. “How shall I call 6:39 PM? Is that day or night?” The nonsense from the mind goes on… All because the “I” has a watch.
“What was “created” first, day or night?”
Stupid question again.
“Well… There are not stupid questions, but stupid answers… “
The answers are bound to follow the questions, otherwise, you will say: “ You are not answering my question.”
The “I” dwells in the mind. The mind is unable to perceive, to be aware of without comparing, analyzing, contrasting.
Fully observe, be aware of how day changes into night, and you will know the answers, without looking for them.
The “I” struggles to know “answers,” but the answers in Life are not of the mind.
The art of surrendering
Many may ask: What is that state of “no-I” that you talk about? How do you become egoless?
Many want an explanation and a method to practice.
Few will realize after all these articles shared here, that before being egoless, we need to experience the utmost ego that we are capable of experiencing.
That is the principle of polarity in action. Your Ego has to be mature, ready to die. Without that requisite there is no surrender.
In other words, until you have not reached the point of saturation of ego in your Life, to be ego-less is out of the question.
As a matter of fact, any method that we may practice in the meantime, is meant to increase the size of the ego.
For instance, if you join a religion as a method to become free from ego, that in itself is building your ego. That is not “bad” at all. By being in that religion we may feel to be “special,” a “chosen one,” that is enhancing our previous ego. That is wonderful! 🙂
Many do not realize what is actually happening until the polarity changes.
When the ego has inflated itself to the utmost, it will explode like a balloon, then through that explosion; the ego will dissolve little by little. That is a process as well.
That process of inflating the ego, is painful. It brings suffering to our ego, until we give up.
That giving up, giving into something new is the meaning of surrendering.
What do you give up?
Yourself. That ego which believes to be you.
That surrendering could be to a Guru, a God, a loved one, etc. What is important is the process of surrendering not to who you surrender to. It is through that surrendering how something new, a new Life could be experienced.
Our ego will delay that experience of fully surrendering until the ego is fat enough to explode. Therefore, only those who have reached the pinnacle of suffering due to their ego are the only ones who could be ready to surrender and become empty of themselves.
For the rest, any path they may take, whether a Godly or a Devilish path… all of those paths are just methods to increase the size of their own egos.
That is why, there is not a “bad” path.
When you surrender, someone else takes control of your Life. You are not in charge anymore. It is through that experience how someone else, can appear in you instead of the same old ego.
To surrender the ego is an act of love, manifested through the death of that one who was there before.
That is how Love comes out of Death, just to manifest in Life. Life and Death are together.
Without the experience of having surrendered completely to become one with someone, there cannot be love between humans, for there will be only 2 fighting egos trying to possess or to boss around the other.
Eventually it becomes the relationship of the master and the slave. There is a dependency between both roles, there is a hierarchy.
The possibilities in a relationship with someone are as follows:
One ego plus another ego equals the duality of love and hate. That is the typical relationship nowadays. It is about having “security” and that kills love.
One ego plus a surrendered individual means the possibility for 2 to be one.
However, the remaining ego will give the tune to the relationship. This is the model of relationship of the 1800’s when the woman surrendered to her husband.
The surrendered person will lose her ego, her previous Life. The one who did not, will be reflected through her. Lesser ego means to be closer to a “0” a “nothing” so, 0+0 will be nothing, “0.”
That is love. That is freedom. That is death.
Love is no longer a duality, but something to be discovered at every second.
Finding the “I.”
Many do not know what I am referring to when I say the “I.”
Why is it important to know about that “I”?
Because that “I” causes separation when there is none. That “I” will give us a perception which is deceitful; and from that point, we will build a society based on a mirage.
The “Office” world, what most individuals call “life,” is not truly Life but a creation of that mirage.
For practical purposes, the “I” is that little internal voice speaking to us, verbally or non-verbally. Many will call that voice “me,” in fact; it is not you, but it is the mind which is made up of previous experiences, beliefs and fears from this life time and beyond. The collective mind, that is the traditions which we have been exposed to, are part of that mind.
For example, many individuals do not feel comfortable caressing their own bodies. As a matter a fact, there is an ambiguous phrase used: ”touching yourself,” which has the connotation of something “sinful.”
Where did we learn that idea? Perhaps when we were babies exploring our own bodies, we touched our sexual organs among other things, and that was something discouraged by our parents. As babies we learned that something was “wrong.” As we grew up, we learned about the “double standards” of a sexually repressed society; repressed because the capacity for enjoyment has been cut off for we use the mind to enjoy pleasure and the mind only knows about repetition, “I want this in the future as well.” Thus, it does not matter how “liberal” we think we may be. The mind will not allow for fulfillment out of an experience.
How is that?
A taboo or a qualifying thought such as “sinful” will appear as we lose ourselves in for example, the enjoyment of pleasure.
Since our society is based on the cultivation of the mind and thinking, any activity that entails “forgetting yourself,” such as the experiences of pleasure, love or just being silly cannot be fully enjoyed, for the mind and its collection of “teachings,” right behaviors and taboos will appear.
Here is a “formula”: More thinking, more mind means less enjoyment of Life.
For example, the phrase: “Sex is mental,” is truly an invention of a society lost in the mind. Actually, less mind means greater fulfillment. For that we need to learn to “lose ourselves,” to be vulnerable, open, to surrender, to allow for things to happen. The “I” showing up as thoughts from the mind is the barrier, the obstacle (ego) which will not allow us to know other than intellectual things, words. Everyone could talk about love, but without knowing that love entails that “you” are not there… Love is just another pretty talk.
A person who hasn’t been able to recognize his mind, cannot know what “silence” is, in the “spiritual” realm.
Most are afraid of physical silence as the absence of outside noise. A background noise such as the TV on or some music is typically needed by many. This does not mean that to have background noise is “bad,” it just means that we have made it a necessity. These individuals are not familiar with BEING quiet, thus the mind will move continually from one dream into another even while “awake.”
The internal noise, the noise of the mind; is the layer to be aware of in order to experience inner silence. That is what is referred to as “no-mind.”
A basic experiment to discover the “I” could be done in your own bathtub. Take a warm bath at night with all lights off so it is pitch dark, without any music or background noise. If you ARE in this completely; you will observe your fear to darkness. That is a learned fear, a collective fear, a tradition which has remained with us. The mind will protest. Many thoughts will appear perhaps with horror stories… That is the first observation. That is one form of that “I.” The other form is the movement of the mind through our thoughts. Observe how the speed of thoughts will not allow us to relax, unwind and enjoy the warm water, the “now.” That is the anxiety of the mind which most every individual experiences every day without noticing it. Anxiety is considered to be “normal” nowadays.
How does this anxiety work? You will not be able to enjoy doing “nothing.” There is something which needs to be done: Eat and listen to music. Call someone at the same time. A minute later, do something else before becoming “bored.”
It is just the mind moving your Life in different directions, while looking for a “ghost” meaning.
Once we realize the work of the mind, we could experience moments of “no-mind.” It is that experience which will move your consciousness into a different realm.
“Mindfulness” will no longer be “practiced,” for the mind cannot center anyone into the “now.” The mind can only go to the past or to the future, but to be in the “now,” there is a need of “no-mind.”
To be timeless: “No-I.”
It is in that emptiness how fullness, satisfaction appears.
Life is completely paradoxical. It cannot be understood by thinking, logic and the works of the mind. It is in “no-mind” how understanding comes through the experience of fullness.
At that point, you may be able to live with yourself without hurting yourself. When we learn that, we will be incapable of hurting others.
Now do we see how silly it may be to hear: “God will punish you if you hurt others. You will go to hell.” How elemental, how basic such a teaching of fear could be…
Don’t want to hurt others? Don’t hurt yourself.
Don’t want to hurt yourself? Be AWARE of the workings of your mind.
It is in that observation, how silence, peace could be experienced… “no-mind.”
It is through “no-mind” how there is no longer separation.
If there is no separation, who are you going to hurt?
Nobody.
… and so are “you.”
The “I” and the no “I”: Different worlds, different consciousness
“I” rhymes with “God.” “I” rhymes with “doing.”
“I” rhymes with guilt, shame and sorrow…Isn’t it a bit hollow?
“No-I” rhymes with nothing and thus, there is freedom and joy without looking for it.
“Nothing” rhymes with “Everything.”
“You” are not doing anything. “You” are not deciding anything. As a matter of fact, that static “you” don’t even exist… There is existence as there is the sky… but the sky has no “I” to single itself out.
“That is a lie! “I” am here. “I” think therefore, “I” exist…”I” can decide, “I” can change… “I” can do so many things!”
Never mind that “I” don’t know how I became corrupt. Never mind that “I” do not know how “I” became a sinner. What is important is to change, “now”!!
Life is like a roller coaster. Would you say that it is “you” who is moving the little cart? The cart goes up and so “you.” The cart goes down and so “you.” When you are “down,” it is evident that you will go “up.” Perhaps “you” want to say that it is “you” the one “making effort”?…the one deciding to “go up”?
That is the “I.” You will truly pray when you are down. When you are not down; if you pray, it will not be praying… but acting.
Up and down, just like left and right, just like north and south, just like good and evil, just like right or wrong, fat and thin, cruel and compassionate, virtuous and sinner… Do you see the game?
No?? 🙂
The cart goes up and the little kid is there enjoying “going up.” Then… the cart stops and whooom! It goes down… Shall the kid cry and get upset? Isn’t to be in the tracks of the roller coaster of Life, the name of the game?
Going down is the opportunity to go up. Once “up,” you’ll go down…
“But what is the meaning of all of that? What is the purpose? What do I need to do in Life?
How can I be all the time “up” and not “down”? What is the method? Who is the true God that could help me? What is this Life trying to teach me?”
NOTHING. 🙂 But the “I” could make up the teachings…
Just enjoy the ride….Allow for the inner kid to smile.
There is “No-I” in that. No rhyme or reason…
Exploring the Depth of Living 