Take a Break in Being

Consider your fundamental experience, ‘I’. Let all aspects of ‘your self’ arise – thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations. Discard what’s temporary; your self remains. This self is awareness, not confined by experiences. In removing the inessential – sounds, sights, sensations – ponder what’s left. Like emptying a room, even demolishing its walls, space remains, unchanged. Similarly, stripping away experience reveals your self: aware, present, silent. This self isn’t affected by changes in thought or emotion, just as a room’s space is unchanged by its contents. A self cannot be enlightened or unenlightened; it simply is, eternally peaceful and open. Without these sense perceptions or the sense of a body, our self has no size or shape – it’s beyond characteristics. There’s nothing to do to become this self; it is already what we are. If our self could speak, it would say it is at peace; lacking, seeking and knowing nothing.

A man asks a five-second silent question. Rupert replies with a five-second silent answer.

A woman, using the analogy of King Lear and John Smith, asks about the nature of spiritual experiences. Rupert explains that in the analogy, there is only one true spiritual experience, the most obvious intimate experience there is, and that is the experience of being John Smith; in other words, the experience ‘I am’.

A woman enquires about the effort involved in overcoming deep-seated mental habits – a challenge she perceives as a lifelong journey. Rupert suggests that recognising our true nature doesn’t always require clearing all conditioned habits; rather, it involves making the effort to disentangle ourself from experience and return to our essential self when needed.

A man facing financial uncertainty seeks guidance on how to discern and act upon his thoughts, particularly those concerning potential entrepreneurial opportunities. Rupert suggests embracing increased thinking without considering it a failure, and he emphasises the importance of granting his mind complete freedom.

A woman seeks advice on how to maintain a state of peace, calmness and quietude amidst life’s challenges. Rupert emphasises the significance of taking a break in being, going back to our being, likening it to going home to experience a tranquil lunch break during a hectic workday. Rest in being throughout the day, not just through intellectual reminders but in the smaller moments as well.

A man reflects on his friend who chose to end her life because she was facing impending blindness from a degenerative eye condition. He asks how we should look at this situation from a non-dual perspective? Rupert encourages a careful and respectful approach to the friend’s decision to end her life. From a non-dual perspective, however, the true self doesn’t experience birth or death.

A woman describes a dream in which she is told she has six months to live and that she has to use every minute of it. Rupert gives his interpretation of the dream and suggests that it might be the expression of a deep intuition. He advises her to take it seriously.

A man asks if the idea that ‘everything happens by itself’ implies that events in our life are predestined. Rupert suggests that God is more like a jazz musician than a classical musician, enjoying improvisation and spontaneity.

A woman facing a crisis in her living situation, seeks advice on how to manage her emotions and decide whether to move. Rupert advises that regardless of the reason for conflict or hostility in the housing situation, she should make decisions about moving or staying from the deepest place in her self rather than from anger, resentment or feeling like a victim.

A man enquires about the aspects of the Pathless Path, specifically addressing deep longing and patience, and asks which one Rupert prefers. Rupert replies that both aspects pertain to the mind, not to our true self, and they are both directed towards King Lear. We are not King Lear, but rather John Smith. How long do we have to wait to truly be our self?

A woman explains that she followed Rupert’s advice of becoming the space through which all experiences flow. She asks if there is anything to do with her thoughts. Rupert answers that by asking ‘Who am I really?’ and realising one’s true nature as open awareness, where thoughts flow through like birds in the sky, she has already done what is needed with her thoughts.

A man asks, ‘If time is an illusion, how can we know the truth in experience?’ Rupert replies that the experience that is absolutely reliable is not filtered through mind. When you remove thought and perception, where are time and space? From the point of view of being, every experience is the first one.

Consider your fundamental experience, ‘I’. Let all aspects of ‘your self’ arise – thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations. Discard what’s temporary; your self remains. This self is awareness, not confined by experiences. In removing the inessential – sounds, sights, sensations – ponder what’s left. Like emptying a room, even demolishing its walls, space remains, unchanged. Similarly, stripping away experience reveals your self: aware, present, silent. This self isn’t affected by changes in thought or emotion, just as a room’s space is unchanged by its contents. A self cannot be enlightened or unenlightened; it simply is, eternally peaceful and open. Without these sense perceptions or the sense of a body, our self has no size or shape – it’s beyond characteristics. There’s nothing to do to become this self; it is already what we are. If our self could speak, it would say it is at peace; lacking, seeking and knowing nothing.

A man asks a five-second silent question. Rupert replies with a five-second silent answer.

A woman, using the analogy of King Lear and John Smith, asks about the nature of spiritual experiences. Rupert explains that in the analogy, there is only one true spiritual experience, the most obvious intimate experience there is, and that is the experience of being John Smith; in other words, the experience ‘I am’.

A woman enquires about the effort involved in overcoming deep-seated mental habits – a challenge she perceives as a lifelong journey. Rupert suggests that recognising our true nature doesn’t always require clearing all conditioned habits; rather, it involves making the effort to disentangle ourself from experience and return to our essential self when needed.

A man facing financial uncertainty seeks guidance on how to discern and act upon his thoughts, particularly those concerning potential entrepreneurial opportunities. Rupert suggests embracing increased thinking without considering it a failure, and he emphasises the importance of granting his mind complete freedom.

A woman seeks advice on how to maintain a state of peace, calmness and quietude amidst life’s challenges. Rupert emphasises the significance of taking a break in being, going back to our being, likening it to going home to experience a tranquil lunch break during a hectic workday. Rest in being throughout the day, not just through intellectual reminders but in the smaller moments as well.

A man reflects on his friend who chose to end her life because she was facing impending blindness from a degenerative eye condition. He asks how we should look at this situation from a non-dual perspective? Rupert encourages a careful and respectful approach to the friend’s decision to end her life. From a non-dual perspective, however, the true self doesn’t experience birth or death.

A woman describes a dream in which she is told she has six months to live and that she has to use every minute of it. Rupert gives his interpretation of the dream and suggests that it might be the expression of a deep intuition. He advises her to take it seriously.

A man asks if the idea that ‘everything happens by itself’ implies that events in our life are predestined. Rupert suggests that God is more like a jazz musician than a classical musician, enjoying improvisation and spontaneity.

A woman facing a crisis in her living situation, seeks advice on how to manage her emotions and decide whether to move. Rupert advises that regardless of the reason for conflict or hostility in the housing situation, she should make decisions about moving or staying from the deepest place in her self rather than from anger, resentment or feeling like a victim.

A man enquires about the aspects of the Pathless Path, specifically addressing deep longing and patience, and asks which one Rupert prefers. Rupert replies that both aspects pertain to the mind, not to our true self, and they are both directed towards King Lear. We are not King Lear, but rather John Smith. How long do we have to wait to truly be our self?

A woman explains that she followed Rupert’s advice of becoming the space through which all experiences flow. She asks if there is anything to do with her thoughts. Rupert answers that by asking ‘Who am I really?’ and realising one’s true nature as open awareness, where thoughts flow through like birds in the sky, she has already done what is needed with her thoughts.

A man asks, ‘If time is an illusion, how can we know the truth in experience?’ Rupert replies that the experience that is absolutely reliable is not filtered through mind. When you remove thought and perception, where are time and space? From the point of view of being, every experience is the first one.