The entirety of the realization process can be simply put as being able to distinguish between what is actual and what is conceptual—between reality and imagination.
This distinction implies a natural shift in identification, leading to a broader understanding of what we are and the nature of reality.
In theory, this is simple and easy because nothing needs to be done—reality already is, and we are in contact with nothing else. Imagination, being nothing and our own making, should be easily seen for what it is. Since we already are what we are, nothing needs to be done to become anything else. Moreover, no time is needed as this realization pertains to evidence that already exists, making the process instantaneous.
Nevertheless, in practice, this simple realization often appears complex, difficult, and unfolds over time. In response to these difficulties, useful means are often needed to help step out of the confusion of our own making. These useful means take the form of conceptual frameworks, exploration, and direct pointing.
The description I provide here about this process is one of those useful means. It is a conceptual framework designed to support the natural process of the student. It does not represent the truth but offers a map that can guide one in exploring the territory of their own direct experience.
Due to the nature of language and writing, information is conveyed in a linear way. Therefore, it may appear as if these stages are taken one after the other. In practice, however, these steps unfold simultaneously within us and never truly end.
It can be interesting to approach this process like an art form. You always learn and improve, but you never reach a final state of completion. You do it for the pleasure, and the pleasure is your reward.
This article is part of the realization process - click here to know more
Discrimination – Concept and identity
The exploration of discrimination, concept, and identity involves understanding the interplay between our minds and the nature of reality. The mind, with its capacity to generate abstract objects like concepts, words, and mental images, overlays these abstractions onto the actual reality, which remains undivided and whole.
Discrimination involves recognizing the mind's propensity to fragment reality into separate pieces. This fragmentation helps us make sense of our experience but also leads to a significant misunderstanding: the belief that these abstractions are accurate representations of reality.
To address this, the first step is to cultivate the ability to distinguish between direct experience and the conceptual interpretations imposed by the mind. Concepts and mental images are not reality itself but are tools the mind uses to interpret and make sense of reality within its limitations. Realizing that these representations are inherently limited is crucial because they can never fully encompass the totality of reality.
This recognition leads to a deeper understanding that our collective beliefs, rooted in these mental constructs, often create a world that exists primarily in our imagination. Therefore, understanding the limitations of the mind is essential. While concepts are foundational for communication, their hypnotic power can lead us to confuse them with reality.
This discrimination can trigger a profound existential inquiry into the meaning of life, the nature of reality, and our true identity. This process often leads to a reevaluation of who we are, highlighting the necessity of distinguishing between the mind's interpretations and the reality that lies beyond these mental constructs.
Integration – Therapeutic work
Our attachment to our conceptual world originates from its ability to distract and numb us from negative emotions and uncomfortable sensations. The drama of the individual self serves as a story we use to divert our attention from deeply rooted emotions that remain unaddressed within the body.
When we begin to step back from this world of abstractions and connect more with our direct experience, the first thing we notice is the discomfort of simply being with our sensations. We also start to feel the latent emotions within us that had previously gone unnoticed. These emotions, which may have been repressed for years or even decades, often transform into physical tensions, postures, and behavior patterns that shape our bodies and activities.
Although achieving harmonious emotions is not the ultimate goal of this process, it is important to reach a state of equilibrium that allows emotions to be present without the need to distract ourselves through thinking. Learning to stay with intense emotions enhances our sensitivity and teaches us to approach our experiences in a more direct and intelligent way.
Over time, this heightened sensitivity will naturally deepen, revealing that emotional states are merely superficial agitations—ripples on the surface of an ocean of sensation.
Inclusion – Dissolving experience
This process is not a theory disconnected from our experience. On the contrary, it allows our experience to be seen in a new light and felt in a new way. It is essential to explore our experience directly to discover for ourselves the richness of what is here.
In our confusion, we often believe that we need to change or modify our current experience to reach some kind of ecstatic state, as if the present experience is a barrier to a better future experience. However, these are naive ways to approach what is here.
In clarity, we understand and feel that the experience of the moment is the only place and possibility available to us. The present condition does not need to change for us to recognize what it truly is. The peace and joy we seek are found in this recognition. Fortunately, this recognition is available to us at all times, with no requirements.
Instead of trying to change, improve, or alter our experience, we focus on what the experience is in the moment. With great listening and sensitivity, we explore each aspect of this amazing phenomenon we call experience.
Sensing, perceiving, thinking, and an infinity of other, unnameable, subtle vibes are present in this instant. They all exist together at this very moment, constituting this very moment. They appear as infinite patterns of experiencing, like an ever-changing fractal. The localized perspective you have at this very moment is nothing else but that.
We no longer try to reach some other experience. Instead, we dive deeper and deeper into what is present, dissolving self-imposed demarcations and boundaries, and accepting reality as it is.
WHAT IS – falling into unknown
At this stage we dive deep into the two fundamental facts of what is actual: Presence and Experience. These words point toward the same underlying actuality, representing two ways to frame the same actuality.
Presence refers to the state of simply being, regardless of the specific content of experience. It is the ever-present "I am" that is aware of everything that happens.
Experience encompasses all the phenomena that occur within the field of Presence. This includes sensory perceptions, thoughts, emotions, and any other form of activity or manifestation that arises in it. In essence, Presence is the unchanging awareness that witnesses Experience, while Experience is the dynamic flow of events and sensations that are perceived. Each points to what is actually here.
Reality (or WHAT IS) has the capacity to sustain conflict, contradictory conclusions, and apparent separation without dividing itself. When we search for Experience, we find Presence. When we search for Presence, we find Experience. We are that which knows and simultaneously that which is known. Being at ease with this paradoxical aspect of Reality is a big part of this stage.
Although I use words such as presence, awareness, and experience, there is no possibility of stepping back to know anything with certainty. Ultimately, WHAT IS is an unresolvable mystery. There is no gap between anything that allows time or space for analysis or knowing. The deeper step of the process is the opposite of a conclusion: it is a complete falling into the unknown of WHAT IS.
Instead of reaching some bottom or ending, we find ourselves falling into a completely open, limitless, ungraspable, radiant presence.
Return to the Ease of Being
The 4 month online course I have build use this framwork and aims to offer a comprehensive and coherent map for exploring the profound realization of WHAT IS.
By providing clarity and supporting autonomy, this curriculum seeks to guide individuals on their Journey towards deeper understanding and direct experience of what is here, embracing the mystery of WHAT IS with sensitivity and intelligence.
If you want to to know more about it I invite you to read this page : Return to the Ease of Being
Or to contact me directly.
The nature of reality currículum
Nothing can be said about reality. The best we can do is use words to invite and inspire in the reader the sense of this unfathomable mystery. You can find my feeble attempt to do so in this article: "The 8 Qualities of WHAT IS."
Another curriculum specifically oriented toward exploring those qualities is planned. If you are interested, let me know.
Comments