Ego and meditation.

October 16, 2007

Hi and all,

A thought or two I just had on ego, meditation, liberation and That

Which-Is. :-)

Of recent, the thought: " Let it go, and meditate some more " has been going

through my head every time some conceptual or emotional event arises to block

the natural flow of things - the Tao. It is clear to me now, the ego is nothing

but a blockage or aggregate of tension in the infinite flow that-which-I-am. It

causes my attention and awareness to be limited and confined to an artificial

conceptual and energetic self-delineation. It is self-referential and

-perpetuating. It is conscious because I am fundamentally conscious - pure

undefined awareness. In this condition, It is - and I am - I caught in a

feedback loop. The way out, according to this intuition - non-linear,

trans-rational - insight is to simply 'let it go and meditate some more' every

time we notice we have become agitated and or fixated on some thing or another.

Thus, releasing us from our own perceived entrapment (or ego-consciousness),

opening up a space for the noticing of that which IS and always was - the

spontaneous flow of joy, peace and conscious infinity; or the Tao of Being

as-it-is.

I think I will take my own advice / intuitive realisation! ;-) But how long

before I forget it, and fall back into habitual ego entrapment? Ahh... let it

go, and simply meditate some more. It is the ego that asks this kind of

question in a disguised attempt at attempting to manage, manipulate and control

- yet another attempt to perpetuate itself in continued survival. For

fundamentally, as we know from many of the worlds traditions and through much

personal examination and absorption, it has no independent existence; thus, by

definition, the ego state is dependent. And that which is contingent is not

self existent; therefore, it must fight for its continued survival, else it

ceases to be. Whereas, that which is truly independent of all conditions and

causes is self-existent, it IS and always was - uncreated and eternal - the

great acausal mystery. It need not do or strive; it need not grasp, attach, or

control. Therefore, when we let go, we simply allow ourselves to be as we

naturally are - the fundamental essence or nature of reality. Whatever that IS.

However, it is clear to me, I am it; while being by definition, beyond

delineation. We could say in attaining glimpses if IT, I am emptiness,

awareness and intrinsic joy; yet that is not it. Oh that's right, caught back

in the alluring and subtle trap of habitual conceptualisation and attempts at

artificial definition - otherwise known as ego-consciousness - and its

fundamental attributes of limitation, self-referential contingency and lack of

basic of independent existence. And where there is no essential independent

reality to one's existence there is fear and existential angst; and where there

is fear there are attempts at control. In this way we can see the cycle of

habitual self-perpetuation loops endless in support of itself - otherwise known

as karma.

What can we do to break the cycle? Let go and meditate some more. For in

meditation we drop the habitual cycling of ego-consciousness. The conceptual

frameworks are transcended - the bottle-necked energies are released and

self-liberate. A clear and vast expanse of groundless base opens before us, as

us - as IT. We enter transcendent states of consciousness, and no

consciousness, for there is no other. However, this awareness is not truely

transcendent at all, merely from the point of view of ego-consciousness or

duality. In actuality, it seems to be the natural open sky of BEING as we

really are, as IT really IS.

There just IS without definition, as it always was... or so it seems to me.

:-)

In kind regards,

Adam.

October 16, 2007

Hello Adam,

A fine discernment Adam! Remember where you are and " why "

you are. Meditation is twenty four seven. - my take on your excellent

food for thought -

, " Adam West "

<mradamwest wrote:

>

> Hi and all,

>

> A thought or two I just had on ego, meditation, liberation and

That Which-Is. :-)

>

October 16, 2007

Ahhhh, the ego cycle. Dear Adam, you had me laughing so hard while

reading this because it is so true - that demon we all live with and

often feel like we are in perpetual struggle with. THEN, our ego-

selves think we are strong enough to overcome this bad guy. It is

really humorous to see when spiritual ego steps in disguised as a

good guy - lol. This post reminded me of the writings of Michael

Langford; ever read him?

Much Love,

Melissa

, " Adam West "

<mradamwest wrote:

>

> Hi and all,

>

> A thought or two I just had on ego, meditation, liberation and

That Which-Is. :-)

>

> Of recent, the thought: " Let it go, and meditate some more " has

been going through my head every time some conceptual or emotional

event arises to block the natural flow of things - the Tao. It is

clear to me now, the ego is nothing but a blockage or aggregate of

tension in the infinite flow that-which-I-am. It causes my

attention and awareness to be limited and confined to an artificial

conceptual and energetic self-delineation. It is self-referential

and -perpetuating. It is conscious because I am fundamentally

conscious - pure undefined awareness. In this condition, It is -

and I am - I caught in a feedback loop. The way out, according to

this intuition - non-linear, trans-rational - insight is to

simply 'let it go and meditate some more' every time we notice we

have become agitated and or fixated on some thing or another. Thus,

releasing us from our own perceived entrapment (or ego-

consciousness), opening up a space for the noticing of that which IS

and always was - the spontaneous flow of joy, peace and conscious

infinity; or the Tao of Being as-it-is.

>

> I think I will take my own advice / intuitive realisation! ;-

) But how long before I forget it, and fall back into habitual ego

entrapment? Ahh... let it go, and simply meditate some more. It is

the ego that asks this kind of question in a disguised attempt at

attempting to manage, manipulate and control - yet another attempt

to perpetuate itself in continued survival. For fundamentally, as

we know from many of the worlds traditions and through much personal

examination and absorption, it has no independent existence; thus,

by definition, the ego state is dependent. And that which is

contingent is not self existent; therefore, it must fight for its

continued survival, else it ceases to be. Whereas, that which is

truly independent of all conditions and causes is self-existent, it

IS and always was - uncreated and eternal - the great acausal

mystery. It need not do or strive; it need not grasp, attach, or

control. Therefore, when we let go, we simply allow ourselves to be

as we naturally are - the fundamental essence or nature of reality.

Whatever that IS. However, it is clear to me, I am it; while being

by definition, beyond delineation. We could say in attaining

glimpses if IT, I am emptiness, awareness and intrinsic joy; yet

that is not it. Oh that's right, caught back in the alluring and

subtle trap of habitual conceptualisation and attempts at artificial

definition - otherwise known as ego-consciousness - and its

fundamental attributes of limitation, self-referential contingency

and lack of basic of independent existence. And where there is no

essential independent reality to one's existence there is fear and

existential angst; and where there is fear there are attempts at

control. In this way we can see the cycle of habitual self-

perpetuation loops endless in support of itself - otherwise known as

karma.

>

> What can we do to break the cycle? Let go and meditate some

more. For in meditation we drop the habitual cycling of ego-

consciousness. The conceptual frameworks are transcended - the

bottle-necked energies are released and self-liberate. A clear and

vast expanse of groundless base opens before us, as us - as IT. We

enter transcendent states of consciousness, and no consciousness,

for there is no other. However, this awareness is not truely

transcendent at all, merely from the point of view of ego-

consciousness or duality. In actuality, it seems to be the natural

open sky of BEING as we really are, as IT really IS.

>

> There just IS without definition, as it always was... or so it

seems to me. :-)

>

> In kind regards,

>

> Adam.

>

October 18, 2007

Hi Melissa,

Sorry about the delay in my reply - I've been busy with work. :-) I am

familiar with Michael, but I have not given much attention to his work on ego;

however, I am generally familiar with that position. It is consistent, as I

understand it, with the Adviata, Dzogchen and Zen views of ego. As a side note,

I have found his description of meditation - watching one's own awareness - to

be both a profound simplicity of truth and intuitively accurate. It is in my

view and experience so far, " the path to full liberation and awakening! " I

agree with everything he says about it, and find it consistent with other

traditions and years of personal experimentation. Check it out if you haven't

already! As far as far as the ego thesis and others go, I have tried not to do

too much reading on these various positions, for they are really just concepts

and beliefs until we experience and realise their truth for ourselves, as it

seems to me. Yet I am certainly as guilty as most others insofar as I spend far

too much time reading and talking philosophy, instead of simply meditating. I

am convinced that if I had spent all my spare time in meditation rather than

interlectualisation and research I would be fully awake by now. However, I

could only know this now after the fact (even as I sensed it before); for that

is the nature of experience as a neutral catalyst for growth. Therefore,

nothing can be regreted, taken back or changed even if we could, for we would

not be what we are today were it not for those past experiences. The question

is, can I accept now what I have intuatively realised years ago? And further,

if I accept the truth of my realisations, can I have the personal disipline to

break past patterns - to let them go - and actually step into our power and live

them here and now, rather than putting them off to some mythical ideal future

circumstance?

I suspect, mostly, we all know what we ought to be doing (or not doing, as

the case may be). To get out of our heads, from the plane of intellectualism or

emotionalism and re-enter fully present into reality as it is right now. If we

recall back to when we were children the days seemed to go on for ever and

holidays were almost a lifetime, and all was a fascinating wonder in an

apparently ongoing eternity of now. There was joy and peace, there was this

pure witnessing consciousness. There was none of the habitual mental rumination

or artificial distinctions and analytical categorizations of our experiences -

be they temporally sourced anxieties or aspirations - there just 'was' in terms

of a direct first-order experience of the present. To allow this seems to be the

great challenge. Yet intuitively it seems to be the most natural and easy of

thing possible; we just need to get out of our own way. Coming from a

background in academic (analytic) philosophy, I am very familiar with the

usefulness and functionality of intellectual training in critical analysis and

the accumulation of knowledge and self-understanding; however, beyond these

obvious benefits is yet another trap of circular intellectual enchantment - as

the pattern and cognative structure of ego-experience is further supported and

perpetuated.

I very much like the Zen idea of (figuratively) burning all the books and

conceptualisations; thus, opening a space for direct cognizance of

that-which-is. :-) I, by predisposition, am agnostic (or neutral) to all ideas

- and certainly there is enough to amuse us for an unlimited number of

lifetimes, given their perpetual production - such that, they are so much grains

of salt. ;-) We all know salt is very tasty in the right proportions, and it

certainly plays an important function on several levels of life, yet its

relevance and worth beyond this is quite limited. In the same way do I see

conceptual representations of the nature of things - be they the empirical

world, our psychology or general metaphysics. I suppose the best way to 'cut

through' is let it all go and meditate some more! ;-) It doesn't really matter

if it's true or not, does it? Whatever " it " is.

Thanks for you post, it is very nice to speak with you!

In kind regards,

Adam.

October 18, 2007

Adam,

What a great post!

" I could only know this now after the fact (even as I sensed it

before); for that is the nature of experience as a neutral catalyst

for growth. Therefore, nothing can be regreted, taken back or changed

even if we could, for we would not be what we are today were it not

for those past experiences. "

I just wanted to say - this is so true ... I paraphrase the above

often, when I have to defend myself to my husband ... : (

Blessings,

Fenix

, " Adam West "

<mradamwest wrote:

>

> Hi Melissa,

>

> Sorry about the delay in my reply - I've been busy with work. :-

) I am familiar with Michael, but I have not given much attention to

his work on ego; however, I am generally familiar with that

position. It is consistent, as I understand it, with the Adviata,

Dzogchen and Zen views of ego. As a side note, I have found his

description of meditation - watching one's own awareness - to be both

a profound simplicity of truth and intuitively accurate. It is in my

view and experience so far, " the path to full liberation and

awakening! " I agree with everything he says about it, and find it

consistent with other traditions and years of personal

experimentation. Check it out if you haven't already! As far as far

as the ego thesis and others go, I have tried not to do too much

reading on these various positions, for they are really just concepts

and beliefs until we experience and realise their truth for

ourselves, as it seems to me. Yet I am certainly as guilty as most

others insofar as I spend far too much time reading and talking

philosophy, instead of simply meditating. I am convinced that if I

had spent all my spare time in meditation rather than

interlectualisation and research I would be fully awake by now.

However, I could only know this now after the fact (even as I sensed

it before); for that is the nature of experience as a neutral

catalyst for growth. Therefore, nothing can be regreted, taken back

or changed even if we could, for we would not be what we are today

were it not for those past experiences. The question is, can I

accept now what I have intuatively realised years ago? And further,

if I accept the truth of my realisations, can I have the personal

disipline to break past patterns - to let them go - and actually step

into our power and live them here and now, rather than putting them

off to some mythical ideal future circumstance?

>

> I suspect, mostly, we all know what we ought to be doing (or

not doing, as the case may be). To get out of our heads, from the

plane of intellectualism or emotionalism and re-enter fully present

into reality as it is right now. If we recall back to when we were

children the days seemed to go on for ever and holidays were almost a

lifetime, and all was a fascinating wonder in an apparently ongoing

eternity of now. There was joy and peace, there was this pure

witnessing consciousness. There was none of the habitual mental

rumination or artificial distinctions and analytical categorizations

of our experiences - be they temporally sourced anxieties or

aspirations - there just 'was' in terms of a direct first-order

experience of the present. To allow this seems to be the great

challenge. Yet intuitively it seems to be the most natural and easy

of thing possible; we just need to get out of our own way. Coming

from a background in academic (analytic) philosophy, I am very

familiar with the usefulness and functionality of intellectual

training in critical analysis and the accumulation of knowledge and

self-understanding; however, beyond these obvious benefits is yet

another trap of circular intellectual enchantment - as the pattern

and cognative structure of ego-experience is further supported and

perpetuated.

>

> I very much like the Zen idea of (figuratively) burning all the

books and conceptualisations; thus, opening a space for direct

cognizance of that-which-is. :-) I, by predisposition, am agnostic

(or neutral) to all ideas - and certainly there is enough to amuse us

for an unlimited number of lifetimes, given their perpetual

production - such that, they are so much grains of salt. ;-) We all

know salt is very tasty in the right proportions, and it certainly

plays an important function on several levels of life, yet its

relevance and worth beyond this is quite limited. In the same way do

I see conceptual representations of the nature of things - be they

the empirical world, our psychology or general metaphysics. I

suppose the best way to 'cut through' is let it all go and meditate

some more! ;-) It doesn't really matter if it's true or not, does

it? Whatever " it " is.

>

> Thanks for you post, it is very nice to speak with you!

>

> In kind regards,

>

> Adam.

>

October 18, 2007

Nice post Adam. The hall is rented, the stage is set, now its time to

dance! -

October 18, 2007

Hi Chrism,

" Nice post Adam. The hall is rented, the stage is set, now its time to dance! -

"

Thanks! I just wrote on that - I am ready! :-P

In kind regards,

Adam.

October 18, 2007

I also enjoyed Adam's posting re. the 2 way street - spiritual

deepening by conceptualising (ego demolition, etc) as opposed to

running with unfiltered intuition and feelings.

Over the years, I've had long tries at both. Trial and error leads

me to think that the emotional make-up of the mind is a strong lead

as to which of these 2 Kundalini acceleration paths will be most

successful for any one person. Just as some are drawn to devotional

yoga practices (Bhakti) and others to analytical (Jnana) - it seems

that Kundalini blockages can be most easily removed by understanding

what sort of person you are, perhaps on a day-to-day basis.

Now, my own leanings are split both ways - I'm not sure whether it's

biorhythms or just serendipity, but going in one direction creates

tensions in deprivation of progress in the other. I do know that my

meditation is always more satisfying when the right hand side of my

brain is setting the pace (opening up to feelings) - yet this can

also be fighting against a foggy windscreen when the positive

energies aren't flowing. I then try to move up a cog to tension-

clearing processes such as detoxing into music and poetry. But again,

this doesn't always work so I change lanes and go into the " I am not

this/I am not that " bypass, until I get tired of the struggle.

I'm guessing that this Group is very right-side-of-the-brain

motivated as many have psychic insights, OBE's etc even pre-

awakening. There is also an extraordinarily large number of artists

and writers - far more on my reckoning than in other Kundalini Group

memberships where typically greater emphasis is placed on conceptual

discussion and Hatha Yoga style Kundalini preparation.

This may be old news now - but here the local media has given us an

instant test for brain patterning:-

http://www.news.com.au/dailytelegraph/story/0,22049,22535838-

5012895,00.html?from=mostpop

If the link (it's a long one) doesn't respond, I suggest copying and

pasting it into the address rectangle at the top of your browser.

See how you go !!

=========================================

Adam wrote:

" Hi Melissa, Sorry about the delay in my reply - I've been busy with

work. :-) I am familiar with Michael, but I have not given much

attention to his work on ego; however, I am generally familiar with

that position. It is consistent, as I understand it, with the

Adviata, Dzogchen and Zen views of ego. As a side note, I have found

his description of meditation - watching one's own awareness - to be

both a profound simplicity of truth and intuitively accurate. It is

in my view and experience so far, " the path to full liberation and