Monday, July 22, 2013

Jeff Foster - A quiet revolution in spirituality

picture source  here

Jesus said to them:
“When you make the two one,
And when you make the inside like the outside
And the outside like the inside,
Then will you enter the Kingdom.”
- Gospel of Thomas 

A quiet revolution in spirituality is taking place. There is a growing sense that freedom cannot be found in philosophies, religions, ideologies; that it cannot be located in books, or reached through lifetimes of intense spiritual practice; that it cannot be passed on by enlightened or awakened spiritual masters; that it cannot be owned, cannot be taught, cannot be captured.
There is a growing sense that freedom is all there is, that it goes right to the heart of what you are, that it is constantly available and costs nothing. And that’s what this message, which I call Life Without A Centre, points to: the absolute freedom right at the heart of life. It’s a radical message, to be sure. And yet it is as soft and gentle as a kiss from a loved one.
This book is about is the possibility that the spiritual search, and indeed all the seeking of the mind, can come to an end, once and for all. And in the absence of that search, there can be a clear seeing that all there is, is Oneness. And in the clarity of Oneness, life loses its heaviness, and what is is always enough. Some people have called this “spiritual awakening”. But it’s not something complicated. It’s not reserved for the lucky few. It’s an awakening as simple and obvious as the sound of the rain splish-splashing up on the roof. It’s a bit like having a dream, and getting lost in it, and then waking up, and opening your eyes, and looking around and realising that yes, of course, it was just a dream…
There is no condemnation of seeking here, or of any religion or belief system. Seeking is nothing more or less than a longing for Home, a desperation to remember who you really are, beyond name and form, beyond thoughts, beyond concepts, beyond all beyonds. And the search plays itself out, as it must. This is not to condemn the seeking, but to point to the possibility that it can fall away, to reveal something far more explosive than the teachings of the world ever promised.
This is not a new set of beliefs, a fresh collection of ideas for the mind to chew on. No, this communication uses words to go beyond words, to point something that cannot really be spoken of. It is not a teaching, not a communication from individual to individual, but a sharing, from Oneness to Oneness. A sharing that ends in a revelation which completely transcends the dream of “me-and-you”.
And on some level, no more words are really necessary: it is already complete. Oneness is already perfectly whole, arising presently as the chair, the floor, the table, the body, the eyes, the nose, the arms, the legs, the heart beating, the breathing. All of this is Oneness, and nothing is out of place. And yet, for the individual, perhaps this cannot yet be seen. For the individual, there may be more reading, more effort, more going to spiritual meetings, and meditating, and trying to understand all of this. And that’s exactly as it must be. The teachings of nonduality will appear to be relevant as long as there is an individual there trying to grasp them. That is the only purpose of these words: to be there, in friendship and love, for that individual. To meet them exactly where they are.
But when that individual dissolves into clarity, when the search unravels, these pointers to the ineffable will fall away too, and there will only be the immediacy of what is, with nobody there to know it. There will be a robin singing in the tree, a car whooshing past on the road, a cup of tea in your hand, and it will all be the divine Mystery: you will never look for anything else ever again, and there will be a complete release from the burden of individuality. A perfectly ordinary life will be lived, but nobody will be living it. And, in joy and clarity, it will be seen that there has only ever been this freedom, and that all the seeking and suffering of a lifetime played out in absolute innocence. 


This is Part 1 of extracts from Jeff's book 'The Revelation of Oneness: Dialogues on Nonduality and Spiritual Awakening'.

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