Withdraw Any Expectation for Happiness from the World

If you’re expecting something in the world to give you the peace and happiness for which you long – that expectation is suffering – the space between what we have and what we want, the way things are and the way we want them to be. No teaching or teacher can give us what we long for. We are already fully equipped for peace and happiness. Everything is inside ourselves right now to find complete peace and happiness. To expect the world to provide happiness is to set ourselves up for failure. The bad news is nobody and nothing can make us happy. The good news is we are already that. Peace and happiness are the nature of being. Withdraw your demand for happiness from the world and your activities and relationships flourish. Come back to the simple fact of being aware; we bring joy to the world; we don't receive joy from the world.

A young man who is settling into a new home wants to make it a beautiful space and feels his happiness is now invested in that. Rupert suggests that he start with the qualities that he wants the place to express. Let them be the guiding principle as you create a space that reflects our true nature. And look to other places for inspiration.

A woman wonders about the ego using the teaching to perpetuate itself, by getting rid of feelings. Rupert suggests that she not worry too much about the desire to get rid of feelings. They get suppressed until the next situation arises, but by exploring the self on whose behalf they arise, or by turning towards these feelings, you uproot and dissolve them.

A woman, who has been in a dark period, asks how to give herself into God's arms. Rupert replies that she is already in God’s arms. God is infinite being and everything about you and your life is immersed in, held by and pervaded with God’s infinite being. You are in God’s lap wondering how to get into God’s lap.

A woman asks, 'What are Dreams?' Rupert responds that dreams are the emergence of our subconscious, the part of our mind not fully aware of or available in the waking state, emerging into our consciousness. Other dreams are the content of the collective unconscious. A third type, which is neither personal nor collective, is a direct message from our deepest being. He calls these luminous dreams.

A woman asks if it’s necessary to bring to the surface all the contractions, stories, traumas and patterns that create the separate self. Rupert suggests that what is necessary is to explore and recognise our true nature and then cooperate with the dissolution of the residues of the beliefs in the mind and feelings in the body of the temporary finite self. Some will become visible and others will be dissolved below the threshold of the conscious mind.

A man who had previously experienced depression realised that enlightenment cannot be chased. As a result, a shift in perception and an expansive recognition occurred. Rupert responds that the highest mystical experience there is is awareness of being. Don't be entranced by the exotic nature of the experience, as it is only one expression of the awareness of being which is present all the time. Don't expect it to come back again. It was extraordinary only in contrast to the depression.

A man says if he meditates in the morning then he feels happy during the day, but feels he needs to understand how to be happy without having meditated. Rupert suggests that during mediation he is directing his awareness to being instead of the content of experience. Continue with meditation, and then when you go into the world during the day, remain in touch with being. Meditation is not something that you do; it is who you are. Being is what you are.

A man who has experienced depression and anxiety, is concerned about solipsism, the idea 'there is only one.' Rupert responds that God is alone, but not lonely. Loneliness is the absence of the other, but there is no other to miss. There is no sense of lack, fear, otherness or loneliness. It is God's nature to express as a multitude, knowing nothing of the separate self.

A man asks about how to be in this world with all its darkness. Rupert suggests that we need not avoid it, but enquire as to why it is that there is so much darkness. As darkness seems to increase, it seems that the non-dual, perennial understanding seems to be more pervasive as well.

A question is asked about attention and a sense of agency about where it is directed, and is there a decider of attention. Rupert replies that giving your attention to being rather than to experience is an inaccurate phrase. Attention is like a beam of light. The lightbulb cannot shine upon itself, it is simply luminous by being itself. There are decisions and choices but no individual chooser.

A woman asks about the idea that separate selves don’t evolve but thinking does. Rupert suggests that an evolution of thinking is on the horizontal plane – the evolution of the separate self. There is another kind of evolution that no longer arises on behalf of a temporary finite self.

A woman asks if it's possible that more people are becoming aware of their true nature and, as a result, their thoughts and feelings and subsequent actions in the world are evolving in alignment with this understanding.

A woman asks if the use of the term 'collective unconscious' is a concession. Rupert suggests that what is referred to by the ‘personal’ or ‘collective’ unconscious is that region of the mind that lies below the threshold of our waking state mind. It’s not accessible to us in the waking state under normal conditions. We access it in dreams, visions and psychedelic experience.

A woman asks about the idea of God's awareness of the separate self. Rupert compares it to a dream in which you lose awareness of yourself and are aware of being, which is like God not being aware of the person. This is a clue to our own being. Awareness does not go to sleep or wake up.

A woman says she is feeling stuck and asks what to do about it. Rupert suggests that something in this meeting can or has shifted that sense of being stuck.

A man asks about the evolution of the separate self. Rupert suggests that the ego or separate self is a belief and a feeling that what we essentially are, pure awareness, is limited by the activities of thinking and perceiving. Using the metaphor of John Smith and King Lear Rupert further expounds. There can be the recognition 'I am awareness' with the continued patterns of thinking and feeling.

A woman asks about oneness and how it relates with belief. Rupert speaks of oneness and understanding and the expression of that in the world. There is no conflict between the understanding and your life in the world.

If you’re expecting something in the world to give you the peace and happiness for which you long – that expectation is suffering – the space between what we have and what we want, the way things are and the way we want them to be. No teaching or teacher can give us what we long for. We are already fully equipped for peace and happiness. Everything is inside ourselves right now to find complete peace and happiness. To expect the world to provide happiness is to set ourselves up for failure. The bad news is nobody and nothing can make us happy. The good news is we are already that. Peace and happiness are the nature of being. Withdraw your demand for happiness from the world and your activities and relationships flourish. Come back to the simple fact of being aware; we bring joy to the world; we don't receive joy from the world.

A young man who is settling into a new home wants to make it a beautiful space and feels his happiness is now invested in that. Rupert suggests that he start with the qualities that he wants the place to express. Let them be the guiding principle as you create a space that reflects our true nature. And look to other places for inspiration.

A woman wonders about the ego using the teaching to perpetuate itself, by getting rid of feelings. Rupert suggests that she not worry too much about the desire to get rid of feelings. They get suppressed until the next situation arises, but by exploring the self on whose behalf they arise, or by turning towards these feelings, you uproot and dissolve them.

A woman, who has been in a dark period, asks how to give herself into God's arms. Rupert replies that she is already in God’s arms. God is infinite being and everything about you and your life is immersed in, held by and pervaded with God’s infinite being. You are in God’s lap wondering how to get into God’s lap.

A woman asks, 'What are Dreams?' Rupert responds that dreams are the emergence of our subconscious, the part of our mind not fully aware of or available in the waking state, emerging into our consciousness. Other dreams are the content of the collective unconscious. A third type, which is neither personal nor collective, is a direct message from our deepest being. He calls these luminous dreams.

A woman asks if it’s necessary to bring to the surface all the contractions, stories, traumas and patterns that create the separate self. Rupert suggests that what is necessary is to explore and recognise our true nature and then cooperate with the dissolution of the residues of the beliefs in the mind and feelings in the body of the temporary finite self. Some will become visible and others will be dissolved below the threshold of the conscious mind.

A man who had previously experienced depression realised that enlightenment cannot be chased. As a result, a shift in perception and an expansive recognition occurred. Rupert responds that the highest mystical experience there is is awareness of being. Don't be entranced by the exotic nature of the experience, as it is only one expression of the awareness of being which is present all the time. Don't expect it to come back again. It was extraordinary only in contrast to the depression.

A man says if he meditates in the morning then he feels happy during the day, but feels he needs to understand how to be happy without having meditated. Rupert suggests that during mediation he is directing his awareness to being instead of the content of experience. Continue with meditation, and then when you go into the world during the day, remain in touch with being. Meditation is not something that you do; it is who you are. Being is what you are.

A man who has experienced depression and anxiety, is concerned about solipsism, the idea 'there is only one.' Rupert responds that God is alone, but not lonely. Loneliness is the absence of the other, but there is no other to miss. There is no sense of lack, fear, otherness or loneliness. It is God's nature to express as a multitude, knowing nothing of the separate self.

A man asks about how to be in this world with all its darkness. Rupert suggests that we need not avoid it, but enquire as to why it is that there is so much darkness. As darkness seems to increase, it seems that the non-dual, perennial understanding seems to be more pervasive as well.

A question is asked about attention and a sense of agency about where it is directed, and is there a decider of attention. Rupert replies that giving your attention to being rather than to experience is an inaccurate phrase. Attention is like a beam of light. The lightbulb cannot shine upon itself, it is simply luminous by being itself. There are decisions and choices but no individual chooser.

A woman asks about the idea that separate selves don’t evolve but thinking does. Rupert suggests that an evolution of thinking is on the horizontal plane – the evolution of the separate self. There is another kind of evolution that no longer arises on behalf of a temporary finite self.

A woman asks if it's possible that more people are becoming aware of their true nature and, as a result, their thoughts and feelings and subsequent actions in the world are evolving in alignment with this understanding.

A woman asks if the use of the term 'collective unconscious' is a concession. Rupert suggests that what is referred to by the ‘personal’ or ‘collective’ unconscious is that region of the mind that lies below the threshold of our waking state mind. It’s not accessible to us in the waking state under normal conditions. We access it in dreams, visions and psychedelic experience.

A woman asks about the idea of God's awareness of the separate self. Rupert compares it to a dream in which you lose awareness of yourself and are aware of being, which is like God not being aware of the person. This is a clue to our own being. Awareness does not go to sleep or wake up.

A woman says she is feeling stuck and asks what to do about it. Rupert suggests that something in this meeting can or has shifted that sense of being stuck.

A man asks about the evolution of the separate self. Rupert suggests that the ego or separate self is a belief and a feeling that what we essentially are, pure awareness, is limited by the activities of thinking and perceiving. Using the metaphor of John Smith and King Lear Rupert further expounds. There can be the recognition 'I am awareness' with the continued patterns of thinking and feeling.

A woman asks about oneness and how it relates with belief. Rupert speaks of oneness and understanding and the expression of that in the world. There is no conflict between the understanding and your life in the world.