True Awakening Is Recognizing Our Being
- Duration: Video: 1 hour, 58 minutes, and 31 seconds / Audio: 1 hour, 58 minutes, and 31 seconds
- Recorded on: Aug 10, 2023
- Event: Webinar – Thursday 10th August
The essence of our existence lies in the experience of simple being, which underlies all our thoughts, actions and perceptions. Often overlooked amidst our fascination with activities, the presence of being is neglected. Just as we take no notice of the space in a room due to our focus on its contents, we overlook our own being in the midst of experiences. This results in a disconnection from the innate tranquillity and joy of our essence, prompting a fruitless external search for these qualities. True awakening is recognising our essential being – an ever-present, serene state. In spiritual practice, reaching a state of resting in being is the goal. This being pervades all actions, including thinking. Remaining aware of this constant being amidst life’s actions is akin to a continuous prayer, aligning with the Orthodox tradition’s concept of unceasing prayer.
A woman asks Rupert for a practice to remain in being, as her desire to do so seems to take her from it. Rupert suggests that it is not inappropriate to desire to change a situation without letting that desire obscure the background of peace. There is an inevitable impulse in us to restore harmony, peace and friendship. This isn’t a personal impulse; it is a universal impulse in us.
A woman, who shares her desire to contact a man that she met two years ago, asks, ‘Is this real love?’ Rupert suggests that, because it has stood the test of time, her desire comes from love. The strength of it comes from her initial feeling that she has ‘known him forever’. You have been one forever. He suggests that she reach out to him.
A man asks whether activities like playing the piano are an escape from being or an expression of being. Rupert suggests that, whatever the motive, he should keep playing the piano; that he not sabotage his creativity over concerns of aligning with the non-dual understanding.
A woman asks about an emergency that pulled Rupert away from an event some weeks ago. Rupert shares that there had been an urgent situation with his mother, but she has recovered now.
A woman, who has recently completed her memoir, asks about how it is that humans communicate using symbols such as music and words. Rupert replies that he shares her wonder that such communication is possible. This is the art of expression.
A man asks why there’s a continual back and forth between being and the content of experience. Rupert suggests that in the beginning of exploring the non-dual understanding, there seem to be many steps back to true nature. After a while, you can go back in one step. In time, it’s not even a half-step back. ‘Back and forth’ loses its meaning. Rupert describes it as the veiling and the revealing of one’s self.
A woman asks Rupert how to find peace amidst waves of anxiety, which she continually experiences. Rupert affirms that it is good that she is seeking therapeutic help, which aims at coping with and healing this tendency in her. In the non-dual approach, what she essentially is, is inherently free. We emphasise the ‘I am’, the fact of being, in the midst of doing.
A man, who is new to Rupert’s teaching, asks how to apply non-duality to the experience of physical pain. Rupert suggests that while there are implications for the body from this understanding, not all pain is caused by physical or psychological resistance. While the understanding doesn’t nullify the experience of pain, such non-resistance-based pain is considered a sensation.
A man shares that he suspects he’s damaged a relationship due to his sense of separation. He wonders if, in attempting to heal it, he is also acting from separation. Rupert suggests that he is acting out of love, kindness and dignity. It is a gesture of love and understanding. If it is not well received, then there is nothing more you can do.
A man shares his experience of giving money to those who need it and asks, ‘Why do acts of kindness bring us joy?’ Rupert suggests that in acts of kindness, we transcend ourself. We give ourself away. The separate self or ego only exists through identification. If we give away that with which we are identified, the separate self is diminished. To the extent that it is, the joy of our being shines forth.
A woman shares her experience of oneness and wonders how to bear the pain of separation. Rupert suggests that the pain of separation arises in direct proportion to the intensity of the love experienced. The pain of separation is love’s shadow in the mind. It is a kind of sacred sorrow. We allow the sorrow to take us back to the love.
The essence of our existence lies in the experience of simple being, which underlies all our thoughts, actions and perceptions. Often overlooked amidst our fascination with activities, the presence of being is neglected. Just as we take no notice of the space in a room due to our focus on its contents, we overlook our own being in the midst of experiences. This results in a disconnection from the innate tranquillity and joy of our essence, prompting a fruitless external search for these qualities. True awakening is recognising our essential being – an ever-present, serene state. In spiritual practice, reaching a state of resting in being is the goal. This being pervades all actions, including thinking. Remaining aware of this constant being amidst life’s actions is akin to a continuous prayer, aligning with the Orthodox tradition’s concept of unceasing prayer.
A woman asks Rupert for a practice to remain in being, as her desire to do so seems to take her from it. Rupert suggests that it is not inappropriate to desire to change a situation without letting that desire obscure the background of peace. There is an inevitable impulse in us to restore harmony, peace and friendship. This isn’t a personal impulse; it is a universal impulse in us.
A woman, who shares her desire to contact a man that she met two years ago, asks, ‘Is this real love?’ Rupert suggests that, because it has stood the test of time, her desire comes from love. The strength of it comes from her initial feeling that she has ‘known him forever’. You have been one forever. He suggests that she reach out to him.
A man asks whether activities like playing the piano are an escape from being or an expression of being. Rupert suggests that, whatever the motive, he should keep playing the piano; that he not sabotage his creativity over concerns of aligning with the non-dual understanding.
A woman asks about an emergency that pulled Rupert away from an event some weeks ago. Rupert shares that there had been an urgent situation with his mother, but she has recovered now.
A woman, who has recently completed her memoir, asks about how it is that humans communicate using symbols such as music and words. Rupert replies that he shares her wonder that such communication is possible. This is the art of expression.
A man asks why there’s a continual back and forth between being and the content of experience. Rupert suggests that in the beginning of exploring the non-dual understanding, there seem to be many steps back to true nature. After a while, you can go back in one step. In time, it’s not even a half-step back. ‘Back and forth’ loses its meaning. Rupert describes it as the veiling and the revealing of one’s self.
A woman asks Rupert how to find peace amidst waves of anxiety, which she continually experiences. Rupert affirms that it is good that she is seeking therapeutic help, which aims at coping with and healing this tendency in her. In the non-dual approach, what she essentially is, is inherently free. We emphasise the ‘I am’, the fact of being, in the midst of doing.
A man, who is new to Rupert’s teaching, asks how to apply non-duality to the experience of physical pain. Rupert suggests that while there are implications for the body from this understanding, not all pain is caused by physical or psychological resistance. While the understanding doesn’t nullify the experience of pain, such non-resistance-based pain is considered a sensation.
A man shares that he suspects he’s damaged a relationship due to his sense of separation. He wonders if, in attempting to heal it, he is also acting from separation. Rupert suggests that he is acting out of love, kindness and dignity. It is a gesture of love and understanding. If it is not well received, then there is nothing more you can do.
A man shares his experience of giving money to those who need it and asks, ‘Why do acts of kindness bring us joy?’ Rupert suggests that in acts of kindness, we transcend ourself. We give ourself away. The separate self or ego only exists through identification. If we give away that with which we are identified, the separate self is diminished. To the extent that it is, the joy of our being shines forth.
A woman shares her experience of oneness and wonders how to bear the pain of separation. Rupert suggests that the pain of separation arises in direct proportion to the intensity of the love experienced. The pain of separation is love’s shadow in the mind. It is a kind of sacred sorrow. We allow the sorrow to take us back to the love.