Perception and Distortion from the media Perception Colours What We See
A man asks about perception and distortion. Rupert says that he used that word in relation to William Blake’s poetry. Just like wearing orange-tinted glasses, all perceptions colour what we see. Perceptions are limited by the faculties that perceive. We don’t create reality itself, but our senses make it look the way it does to us. Our senses make reality look as if there are many, and we forget this.
- Duration: 9 minutes and 29 seconds
- Recorded on: Oct 13, 2022
- Event: Seven Day Retreat at Garrison Institute – 9th to 16th October
A woman asks about a passage of Rupert’s about relationships and wonders if they are a mechanism for bringing us home. Rupert suggests that one function of a relationship is to grow spiritually, but the highest function is to celebrate the one. However, if the one has not merged in the relationship, then it can be approached through the relationship. Grief is the echo of love.
A woman wonders if God and awareness are synonymous and asks about what devotion is if there is only one. She says, ‘Show me your God’. Rupert responds that he'd been trying to do that for years. For him, the word 'God' has always been pregnant with meaning and encapsulates the highest truth. However, it doesn't for everyone, so he uses different words at different times and contexts. If God is separate from our being and everyone and everything else, then God is not God. Another way to refer to God is infinite, aware being.
A woman asks about art and creation. Rupert says that one way to proceed is to convey the reality of what you're seeing – objects to light to seeing to knowing. Then when the viewer looks at the painting, they don’t see objects, they see the knowing or true nature. This is self-enquiry via perception. He shares that when he views art, he surrenders his senses to be taken on a journey.
A woman asks how improvisation figures into the creative process. Rupert suggests that an artist’s work has to come from inspiration. The faculties of mind have to be informed by something beyond the mind, with an influx of spirit. Without inspiration, we merely reformulate the past. Practice is required in time, but the real content of the work comes from inspiration or, in the least, from the collective unconscious. Ideally, it would come from pure being. Inspiration comes from behind the mind on the vertical line, improvisation comes from the skills that we've acquired along the horizontal line.
A woman, who is a memoirist, asks how synchronicities fit into this understanding. She says she is scared that she's spending too much time examining her life. Rupert responds that looking back on your life is not incompatible with this understanding. It's all about healing, and the ultimate healing is the recognition of our true nature. The story can be a way toward that recognition. In regard to synchronicities, things don't happen so that we can grow, but they are an opportunity for us to grow spiritually.
A man asks about perception and distortion. Rupert says that he used that word in relation to William Blake’s poetry. Just like wearing orange-tinted glasses, all perceptions colour what we see. Perceptions are limited by the faculties that perceive. We don’t create reality itself, but our senses make it look the way it does to us. Our senses make reality look as if there are many, and we forget this.
A woman speaks of having a taste of awareness during this morning's meditation, but she hasn't 'made the leap' to knowing that she is made of awareness; she doesn't feel it. Rupert guides her in self-enquiry to guide her toward an experiential understanding of being and awareness. The 'I' that knows is the same 'I' that knows 'I am.' Knowing and being are the same fundamental experiences. That's what awareness means – knowing, being.
A woman asks about guilt and her perception of being unfairly treated as it relates to her relationship with her daughter. Rupert suggests that she recognise and acknowledge the things that she has done. Let her know that you love her and are available. Then leave it there. If there is a change in your mind there will be a change in her mind, but there mustn't be any expectation.
A man asks how to align his actions with his understanding. Rupert suggests he ask if his actions are expressing this understanding. Are they motivated by friendship or conflict, for instance. Are relationships motivated by truth or by a sense of lack or hurt? Thoughts that arise on behalf of the separate self can be discarded. Does a thought or action promote the qualities inherent in being? You may not know what God's will is, but you know the qualities of infinite being, so use that as a guide in your actions.
A woman who is experiencing a lot of disruption in her life says that she feels happy and unhappy at the same time. She is happy being unhappy. Rupert suggests that when she goes deep in herself there is peace, and these two things coexist. This is kissing the toad. When there is intense suffering, we can only surrender, and in that, there is peace.
A woman asks about Rupert's comment about 'shaping bowls with words' and wonders what happens to creativity. She wonders if he made concessions in shifting away from pottery and moving into teaching. She feels she has made a concession that feels dark and negative. Rupert replies that he was refining his bowls over the years, and the same thing seems to happen with his words and in teaching.
A man says he is always listening to something – a podcast, the radio – but when he stops, anxiety rises. He wishes he could stay silent for just a minute in peace. Rupert suggests that instead of listening to the other things, that he now listen to the ‘anxiety podcast’. Listen to your anxiety just the way you listen to podcasts and radio. Don’t try to get out of it; listen to it. By avoiding it, we collude with it.
A woman asks about a passage of Rupert’s about relationships and wonders if they are a mechanism for bringing us home. Rupert suggests that one function of a relationship is to grow spiritually, but the highest function is to celebrate the one. However, if the one has not merged in the relationship, then it can be approached through the relationship. Grief is the echo of love.
A woman wonders if God and awareness are synonymous and asks about what devotion is if there is only one. She says, ‘Show me your God’. Rupert responds that he'd been trying to do that for years. For him, the word 'God' has always been pregnant with meaning and encapsulates the highest truth. However, it doesn't for everyone, so he uses different words at different times and contexts. If God is separate from our being and everyone and everything else, then God is not God. Another way to refer to God is infinite, aware being.
A woman asks about art and creation. Rupert says that one way to proceed is to convey the reality of what you're seeing – objects to light to seeing to knowing. Then when the viewer looks at the painting, they don’t see objects, they see the knowing or true nature. This is self-enquiry via perception. He shares that when he views art, he surrenders his senses to be taken on a journey.
A woman asks how improvisation figures into the creative process. Rupert suggests that an artist’s work has to come from inspiration. The faculties of mind have to be informed by something beyond the mind, with an influx of spirit. Without inspiration, we merely reformulate the past. Practice is required in time, but the real content of the work comes from inspiration or, in the least, from the collective unconscious. Ideally, it would come from pure being. Inspiration comes from behind the mind on the vertical line, improvisation comes from the skills that we've acquired along the horizontal line.
A woman, who is a memoirist, asks how synchronicities fit into this understanding. She says she is scared that she's spending too much time examining her life. Rupert responds that looking back on your life is not incompatible with this understanding. It's all about healing, and the ultimate healing is the recognition of our true nature. The story can be a way toward that recognition. In regard to synchronicities, things don't happen so that we can grow, but they are an opportunity for us to grow spiritually.
A man asks about perception and distortion. Rupert says that he used that word in relation to William Blake’s poetry. Just like wearing orange-tinted glasses, all perceptions colour what we see. Perceptions are limited by the faculties that perceive. We don’t create reality itself, but our senses make it look the way it does to us. Our senses make reality look as if there are many, and we forget this.
A woman speaks of having a taste of awareness during this morning's meditation, but she hasn't 'made the leap' to knowing that she is made of awareness; she doesn't feel it. Rupert guides her in self-enquiry to guide her toward an experiential understanding of being and awareness. The 'I' that knows is the same 'I' that knows 'I am.' Knowing and being are the same fundamental experiences. That's what awareness means – knowing, being.
A woman asks about guilt and her perception of being unfairly treated as it relates to her relationship with her daughter. Rupert suggests that she recognise and acknowledge the things that she has done. Let her know that you love her and are available. Then leave it there. If there is a change in your mind there will be a change in her mind, but there mustn't be any expectation.
A man asks how to align his actions with his understanding. Rupert suggests he ask if his actions are expressing this understanding. Are they motivated by friendship or conflict, for instance. Are relationships motivated by truth or by a sense of lack or hurt? Thoughts that arise on behalf of the separate self can be discarded. Does a thought or action promote the qualities inherent in being? You may not know what God's will is, but you know the qualities of infinite being, so use that as a guide in your actions.
A woman who is experiencing a lot of disruption in her life says that she feels happy and unhappy at the same time. She is happy being unhappy. Rupert suggests that when she goes deep in herself there is peace, and these two things coexist. This is kissing the toad. When there is intense suffering, we can only surrender, and in that, there is peace.
A woman asks about Rupert's comment about 'shaping bowls with words' and wonders what happens to creativity. She wonders if he made concessions in shifting away from pottery and moving into teaching. She feels she has made a concession that feels dark and negative. Rupert replies that he was refining his bowls over the years, and the same thing seems to happen with his words and in teaching.
A man says he is always listening to something – a podcast, the radio – but when he stops, anxiety rises. He wishes he could stay silent for just a minute in peace. Rupert suggests that instead of listening to the other things, that he now listen to the ‘anxiety podcast’. Listen to your anxiety just the way you listen to podcasts and radio. Don’t try to get out of it; listen to it. By avoiding it, we collude with it.