Awake to Awareness

Now there was a great wind, so strong that it was splitting mountains and breaking rocks in pieces before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake; and after the earthquake a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire; and after the fire a sound of sheer silence. - 1 Kings 19

We live in tumultuous times, and with all its drama it is all we can do to take our attention away from the outer conditions even for a moment. It is our addiction to drama that would bar us from the peace that passes understanding. It is so easy for us to get hooked by the appearances of the world, become identified with the stuff in our life, and fall asleep to our spiritual purpose. That purpose, as espoused by Jesus, Buddha, and other enlightened teachers, is to become spiritually awake. To be spiritually awake, in a word, means awareness. The more aware we are, without the clouds of assumptions, identifications, labels, and judgments, the more we will be at peace.

While religions point to peace, only awareness can get us there. It is pure consciousness that can witness all that arises in our world, or in our mind, and remain undisturbed. It is the part of you that is eternal, infinite, unchanging, imperturbable consciousness. It's the essential you, beyond self-image, or any other limited thought-forms.

When our goal is to become keenly aware, we are less interested in what is happening outside of us and able to turn our attention inward as the observer of our internal process. This is the process of being in the world, but not of it. We have the enlightened perspective when we have, as Jesus said, eyes to see and ears to hear. We can be present and responsive to life events yet keep enough distance to maintain objectivity in our perception; to not lose ourselves in the scenarios. For example, you have a body, but you are not your body. Your body could be in pain, or diseased, or wearing out, but the I am of you has none of these limitations. When you maintain awareness of your I am self, you can be at peace no matter what crisis is appearing in your world. This is the pièce de résistance of awareness.

Sound good? So how do we attain this pearl? The answer is surprisingly simple. For a moment simply stop focusing your attention on the contents of awareness and become aware of the screen of awareness that pervades the background of your experience. It is the pure light of consciousness that makes all experience knowable. To put our attention on the knowing sense of being is to unmask our true nature, the essence of Oneness and the abode of peace and happiness. Try it and you’ll find it startling effortless and despite being without object deeply satisfying.

Peace and blessings,

Rev. Larry