10.26.07
The Source of All Things
You are the source of all things. Any thing which can be observed is an experience. The experiences in life are supported by you. When I speak of the “you” I’m not talking about your personality, body, mind or spirit. I’m talking about the real you, the you that is eternal and changeless, the you that is beyond conditions and conceptualization.
This “you” cannot be described. All that can be said about it, is what it is not, and that is really no way to understand something. To fully grasp your real self requires that you be it. Since you are it all the time, no effort can bring this about.
So what’s the problem? If you are your self all the time, why bother trying to “be” your self? That in itself is precisely the problem. People spend their time trying to be themselves or to find themselves. You are your self. So there is nothing you can do to be it, nor is there any secret map directing you to its location. This whole matter isn’t really about being or finding, it is about knowing. Confusion is the problem. On one hand there is confusion about what and where you are, and on the other there is the confusion about how to go about getting settled in the knowing of your self.
Many theories and practices have risen to help with this dilemma that affects humanity. Most of these fall under the umbrella of religion and spirituality. Let me throw out the idea that although religion and spirituality is very helpful for the beginner, the source of all things goes beyond these two sources of conditioning.
Part of the process of fully knowing your self requires the shedding of beliefs when the time comes. When we are children, it is alright to think as children. As we grow up we learn that certain actions and systems of thought no longer work. So, hopefully, we evolve, learn what does work and apply the changes to our life situation.
When first undertaking the task of spiritual growth and self-realization most people have the idea that there is a power or force beyond them that if they appease or worship approptiately will do the work for them. This is alright at first. It carries the proper intention, that to go beyond former conditioning. As the person grows and becomes firm in their worship of this “divine other” the life begins to change. The original intention of growing to spiritual maturity begins to sprout. The person may begin to think of things differently. They may question the way they’ve been living. All of this is the self becoming clearer and more knowable.
Sometimes people don’t like this change. They fight it and try to remain fixed in their way of thinking and living. Here is where problems first arise. To know your self requires and openness to change and development. Because even though you are always your self and you are never lost, there is the wrong identification with what you are. So the changes that occur are actually the realignment of your attention with what you really are, and not the things you observe.
The difference between a person who knows what they are, the source of all things, and the person who doesn’t, is that the first person doesn’t get caught up in the observable world and think that when change occurs, something has died. The first person knows that they are eternal. They experience that eternal being in all changes. Changes come and go, the self remains. The second person is not fully aware of this eternal nature of their real self, so when things change, they freak out. Why? Because they are confused. They think that which they observe is what they really are. It’s a hallucination really.
There is also the confusion that what you are is something that can be observed. Examples to this effect are love, peace, or similar pleasant states. Remember, that which rises will also fall. In the beginning it may be helpful to imagine that your true nature is eternal love or eternal peace, but really peace and love are conditions. If they can come and go, they are not real. Enjoy them so long as they are useful, but be open to going beyond them.
You exist free of conditions, and you are the source of all things. If you want to know what all this means in experience rather than conceptually, good for you. Thinking about things can only take you so far. Eventually you will need to start embodying what is understandable with the mind. Then it goes beyond the mind.
To do this, one practice common to all authentic “enlightenment” traditions is most helpful. (Now why did I put quotes around enlightenment? Because it is just a word. It’s good for a reference point, but don’t get too hung up on what you think it might mean.) This is the practice of concentration. Learning to fix your mind on a thought or idea, strengthens the mind. When the mind gets stronger, thousands of random useless thoughts no longer invade and run wild. When this occurs, the mind can in time be fully silenced and you can then more easily know what you are without interference.
