Pointers

The pointers are generally updated at the beginning of each month.

Instead of speculating, guessing, and theorizing about this and that, why not simply get down to the task at hand? The way has been given. Your real being is there and beyond doubt. This, you know. But what that is, is for you to see now. There is no need for delays and comparisons with other teachings and teachers. These are all thoughts, doubts and concepts. In other words, these are all products of the mind. But can the mind really know what is prior to the mind? So drop these speculations. Instead, embrace the opportunity to see for yourself what is present. What is it that you are now coming to see about this glorious true nature of yours? Is there any issue of importance greater than this?

You speak of the attention going outward or inward. Who or what is making the distinction of “in” and “out”? Are these really valid reference points? Are you ever in or out of your true nature? Nail this down. You ARE your real being. This being clear, make sure you understand that what appears is also non-separate. The notion that there is THIS (true nature) and THAT (external world) as valid or real entities is only a concept. It is this concept that is the hang up. So this is not really an issue of some type of dichotomy between “in here” and “out there”. It is a matter of whether or not we are grasping at subtle dualistic conceptions as real. Once you see that the notions of “in” and “out” are only provisional concepts, not actual realities, then these concepts are released. The seeming content of experience is of the same nature as the nature of the one perceiving it. Both are one. Furthermore, the actual essence of reality transcends both. It is neither inside nor outside. The point is to release these dualistic notions and simply BE the non-conceptual itself, which is never bothered by artificial dualistic conceptions. Waves are seemingly something separate from the ocean. But in truth they are not divided. At the level of the element of water, the notions such as “waves” and “ocean” are not applicable, and there is no separation at all. The nature of the conceptual mind is to divide. But at the level of non-conceptual reality, no division is possible.

Keep in mind that reality does not depend on the focus of your attention! Wherever the attention might happen to be, you are still what you are, and the nature of things is still what it is. Clouds may wander to any location in the sky, but the sky remains exactly what it is. Let the body/mind do its thing, but you have not left your real nature at any time. Don’t leave the appearances intact as some kind of separate reality unto themselves. Just as YOU are THAT, so are the appearances. This is an important aspect of non-duality — the non-separation of appearances also. If all the appearances are also THAT, then who or what is ever leaving oneness? Is any drop of ocean water ever outside of the ocean, except notionally? Even to discuss appearances AND reality is a concept ultimately. For are not these only notional and being asserted conceptually? Apart from the notions of “appearance” and “reality”, what is really present without the concepts? Only THAT, the undivided reality. The point of all this is that the mind creates dualistic reference points and then starts seeking reality within that framework. But it is only seeking within its own conceptual divisions. Reality is not available in that framework, but precedes the artificial dualistic separation. Seeing this, there is simply a release of the conceptual division. Psychologically, that release or relaxation of attempting to grasp reality through the concepts is what peace or freedom is. It is not a new state or achievement, but the very texture of the non-conceptual, ever-present reality.

Keep in mind that all changes can only be in the mind content. You are not in the mind content. This is the simple secret of everything. Looking straight at the basic being-knowing of your real nature, you see that it is ever-free. It is never touched or compromised in the slightest. Overlooking this simple point was the root of all the seeking, suffering and doubt.

Resolving suffering won’t necessarily happen by simply “seeing circumstances as rising and falling in awareness”. It is certainly true that circumstances come and go in awareness, but this does not really explain the nature and cause of suffering, nor how to deal with it and resolve it. So these latter points must be understood also. It is unlikely that simply seeing things come and go in awareness would really address one’s suffering. One is going to have to look a bit deeper to see how suffering is created through identifying with self-centered concepts based on an erroneous sense of self, etc.

Be clear that there is no reality, happiness or identity in thoughts. Then you stop looking there. Thoughts are not the problem. But looking for yourself in them was the error.

You are your true nature always. It is not a matter of being aware “of” it. You “are” it. The thoughts, feelings and experiences are appearing “in” it. That is the only point to see.

The real point of all this is seeing what you ARE. In missing this, the mind has created a false image, identity or reference point. That is the false person idea. It is only a wrong assumption. There is nothing you must “do” with it. You don’t need to let it go or overcome it. It falls off naturally in seeing your real nature. So focus on the positive part, what you are. Then the issue of the wrong identity takes care of itself.

Keep in mind that just knowing there is “no self” is not the full answer. You must know and be clear on what you really are. The coin has two sides, resolution of the false and clarification of the true. Both are needed.

The real issue is you don’t know what your nature is. All problems will continue until that is resolved. Don’t deal with secondary issues. Raise the question “what am I?” and don’t stop till this is fully resolved.

Pointers only point. Your own being is what is being pointed to (at least by those who are straight and clear on this). So once you know where to look, the pointers are a bit redundant. Look at yourself for yourself and see for yourself. If any comments or questions come up about that, that is the purpose of dialog. Engaging in dialog regarding questions and experiences based on your own understanding is helpful. It is not passively listening to pointers, but clarifying and solidifying your own direct experience. At this point, you can drop theoretical matters. All discussions and questions (if any) should be about what you are finding out by your own looking and investigation.

At the end of the day, one’s “positive” identity must be clear. Knowing what I am not is good, but not enough, really. Note that you already are whatever you are. We just don’t want to be under any misapprehensions about what that is (you are).

What you are IS NOT in the mind, because the mind is in you. You must learn the art of seeing who and what you are without relying on the mind.

Of what value are so-called “spiritual” retreats? They are totally unnecessary to understand this stuff. They are primarily for the benefit of professional teachers as a means to raise more money! Turning this stuff into a profession puts a very unnatural spin on things. What are you really paying for, when your true nature is inherently present and available?

All manifestation appears in the mind; mind appears in consciousness; consciousness subsides leaving zero, or nothing; your real nature is prior to nothing.

As is sometimes said, you are “no thing” but you are not nothing! Your being is there, so you cannot really call it “nothing”, can you? You are present, aware, clear, unmoving, unaffected by the coming and going of thought, etc. These are just some pointers to get you rolling. There are many qualities and characteristics of your natural being. So don’t be seduced by the mind’s label of “nothing”. Of course, to the mind it appears as nothing, because the mind knows only concepts. But you are not a concept. You don’t really use the mind to be and know what you are anyhow.

Your nature is the basic space in which all experiences occur. But even external space is in that “space”. It is the space of consciousness within which all experiencing happens. The content is changing (body, mind, objects). But that conscious space is foundational. Clearly, you are not the objects in consciousness because they are coming and going. So at this level of looking, you must be the consciousness. That is not a thing you can grasp or see as an object, is it? Yet it cannot be denied, for it is a fact. So, a very powerful step is to notice this and let your sense of being return to the consciousness, rather than the objects we have assumed ourselves to be. Later, when you have stabilized a bit with this sense of consciousness, we can look more penetratingly into that also to see what is true or lasting about that. But that is not the final word either. You real nature is neither conscious nor unconscious, for both of these states happen to you, or within you, also. That is why all attempts to label and define your natural being finally must be let go of. You simply remain as what you are without the label.

Self-centered thinking drives the fear, worry, etc. The self-centered thinking is sustained by belief in the notional “self”. That is the cause. If the cause is active, you will have effects, such as the various self-centered fears. It is all mechanical. Without belief in the “I” reference point, the whole mechanism doesn’t really take flight. Once you look into this a bit, it should make sense. Without belief in the limited “I” at the root of the mind stories, how are you going to have the fears, anxieties, worries, seeking, etc. that arise based on those ideas? Many or most people in spiritual circles, even teachers, do not really address this issue accurately. That is why you see people with SOME aspects of clarity, but also obvious self-centered activity in play also.

Yes, there is “no person” here. But that is only negating what was never present anyway. All the self-centered mind states hung on that belief. So those are resolved. Still, your real nature is there. Make sure that is clear (as to what that is, what its nature is). If that is not fully nailed down, it will be easy for the mind to start going into subtle self-centered beliefs again. People often negate obvious reference points, but slip into other ones without seeing it. This is because the nature of the reality has not been clarified, and the mind is still attempting to grasp some conceptual identity. Anyway, there is a potential for confusion on both sides of the equation, that is, what we are not and what we are. So don’t settle for partial knowledge or understanding, as many do.

There is no need to try to cancel every concept. The core point that you are not a concept covers everything. However, there is a consciousness prior to concepts also. But you are still prior to that. There is that “nothingness” which is present in absence of consciousness. You are prior to that also! Reality is prior to the zero or no thing. These are all pointers. Use them and drop them! Basically, you cannot even frame a definition of yourself as the presence or absence of consciousness, much less any other grosser concept. For the record, Buddha used to teach that belief in a self is concept, but also that belief in no self is a concept. Both views are traps and lead to conceptual bondage and limitation. So it is funny when you hear people turning “no one here” into a new doctrine! It only shows that the subtleties of this stuff are being missed.

Essentially you lose interest in trying to verbalize what you are, because you see it is not available in language. You are, but you can’t say what you are. Many spiritual people are still engaged in defining reality in concepts and getting enamored with the concepts.

We are really talking about your being, your own existence. That is the basis that must be before any other thought or experience appears. Thoughts, feelings, objects, experiences, etc. are appearances. But you, your being, is something quite different. Look into what this being is.

Past a certain point, looking for practices and approaches is going back into the mind stuff, really. You speak of putting your attention on the thought “I am”. You said it: the thought “I am” is a thought. It is coming and going in consciousness. Why would you put your attention on a thought? That’s what you have been doing all these years and suffering on account of! You are aware of thought. In truth, that consciousness-presence which is aware of thought is the “I am”. It is really your consciousness. But even that is not what you finally are, because you are there in all conscious states and also the absence of them. In any case, this is NOT about putting your attention ON something. It is about UNDERSTANDING what you are. What you should be doing, if you care to do anything, is understand what you are more and more clearly. And also see what you are not (that is, the assumed separate “I” reference point). This is not some mechanical meditation of focusing on something, which would not get too far. But you must clarify and understand these points to your own satisfaction. If you find yourself returning again and again to the self-centered mind stories and concepts, then get to the root. The absence of seeking, suffering and doubt is the natural outcome of clear self-knowledge, because your real being has none of those.

There are different ways of pointing to what you are. But basically, if something comes and goes, changes in anyway, is dependent, is an object, is an experience, or is some type of state, it is not the abiding truth of what you are. What you are must be ever-present and always with you.

If the thoughts and concepts are not causing a problem, what is to worry about? Thoughts come and go, but you are. The mind has no idea of what you are, so its commentary about this is not important, is it? Reality is non-conceptual, so the mind is totally incapable of understanding what is being pointed to.

The mind may get “spaced out”, but you are still what you are. So don’t assume the mind’s activities as a description of your state or nature.

At the end of the day, it is our own interest and identification with thoughts that is the tie to them. The clarification about one’s real identity is what resolves it.

You are what you are. Mystical phenomena, “spiritual” experiences, “high” states, profound feelings, deep insights, — anything may arise. And they will pass also at some point. The considered wisdom on things like this is to not give them attention or interest. Sometimes when the old thought patterns and concepts are lifted, various energies are released at physical and/or subtle levels to express and harmonize in different ways. From the perspective of oneness, they are all patterns, like waves moving in the sea. From the perspective of the forms or patterns, there are seeming differences, but from the perspective of the ocean or the pure water, it is all the same essence, however things move. The potential pitfall with something like this is if the mind begins to subtly start creating evaluations, reference points, interpretations, etc. Best is to be bland and unconcerned. When you consider that all of manifestation appears and disappears in the “speck of consciousness” and that the speck of consciousness is like the light of a firefly flickering off and on in the space of the infinite being, experiences are not particularly interesting! Seeing the nature of what is, all experiences lose their boundaries, leaving just THAT and nothing else.

The mind is only concepts. Trying “work it out” at a mental level is not really what this is about. Basically, it just perpetuates the suffering. Clear self-knowledge and understanding is the point. You exist prior to the mind. That is why the mind is not used in seeing what you are.

Perusing books and podcasts is actually going back into the mind level. Why not follow the pointers and see what you are? Once you understand the need for this, you must move beyond pointers. Sitting around reading maps will never get you to your destination.

Thoughts are entirely passive and have no ability to grasp anything. The grasping is your own interest and identity with them. That ends when you really know who and what you are.

You may have questions or doubts about this subject. But with or without such questions, you still ARE. Your presence or being is evident. You are there, present and aware of the mind. The mind comes and goes TO you. It is an appearance. Basically, it is not what you are. It is not your abiding nature or presence. How can it be, when it is constantly changing all the time? Certainly, you cannot look into the mind to find yourself. See that you are present and aware of the mind. Establish this as a direct and evident fact. Once you have a feel for this point, then the thing to do will be to get curious to explore this fact of your own being to see what it really is. This is the looking I am talking about. It is not mental at all, and does not proceed by mental questioning.

Start with the universal factor that precedes all possible experiences — your own being. This is what is being pointed to. But you must explore it and see what it is for yourself. It is direct looking in experience to see what your being IS. It is not thinking or analyzing, but direct seeing.

The main point is seeing and being what you are. If you get dragged into the mind a bit, some inquiry is helpful to see what is going on and expose the identification. Then it (the identification and the inquiry also) naturally falls away, leaving you in your natural state. The more clearly you see what this natural state really is, the less energy will be going into the mind, because that activity is only driven by looking for yourself there.

When you have negated the false self, you have only negated something that was not there to begin with! But the discovery of what you really are, which has not been negated, is needed. The real point, after all, is who and what are you really? This aspect is different than just negating the false identity.

We often have a blind spot with seeing our true nature. Reading and thinking about it rarely resolves the issue, because those activities are at the mind level, and what is being pointed to is not at the mind level. It is, in fact, your own being, but this is too simple to be approached through thought. It is often easier grasp through dialog or direct pointing. On the other hand, you will laugh later when you see the simplicity of it all!

No matter what has been negated, you still are. Your being, nature, essence or whatever you wish to call it is there. It is not a thing or object that you can grasp, but it cannot be denied. Get into looking into this and seeing what it is. At the end of the day, this is the real point of it all.

Keep things in perspective. Whatever thoughts, feelings, perceptions, experiences, state, etc., may appear — all is only a vibration, an appearance in, on and of the non-conceptual reality. There is really nothing else present except THAT. In the sea, millions of waves arise and fall, but in the end there is nothing present except for the one substance of water itself. From that point of view, there is no separation — and in fact nothing has really happened at all. Any perception of separation, limitation, problem, duality, etc. is only put on at the conceptual level in the final analysis. Any expression of love (or anything at all really) without the conceptual interpretation is — in essence — only reality, which is your true being, what you are. Love free of labels is your own true Self. Here is the place where nothing is wrong and nothing needs to be modified, altered or corrected. Just “let it be” and all is perfect fullness and peace.