In meditation we discover a pure presence.
Before the beginning and after the end there is pure energy. This energy is not one, nor two, but all. Known to us as awareness, this energy manifests in a variety of forms. Images, sounds, tastes, smells, tactile sensations, memories, and feelings –the whole landscape emerges from this ocean of awareness like waves- not distinct or separate from the water in any way, but as playful manifestations of the water
. Pure awareness is wild. It is spontaneous; without the need to control. This is the mind of a child.
Once we come of age our initiation into society begins with our parental units consistently barking out strange noises as they point fervently at random objects in the immediate vicinity. Before long we learn that the objects being pointed at are closely associated with the noises being made, so the entire spectrum of experience is shattered into a million things- mommy, daddy, doggy, etc. (Squirrel! Squirrel!) Memory begins to collect not only the words and their intended meanings, but also the governing dynamics of language. So to meet the demands of those pesky adults who continually insist upon us using our words this operating system is booted up more and more, until eventually memory assimilates through repetition to the same dynamics.
Meditation is nothing more than seeing through the structuring of consciousness to rediscover pure awareness. In meditation we discover a pure presence. We begin to notice that something is aware of both thinking and the breath. We need not cling to thought nor reject it. There is a space that accommodates both sanity and insanity. Appearances arise and pass without any effort on our part. We are the space through which they pass.
Here is a talk by philosopher Ken Wilber
. In it he offers an in-depth, but practical answer to the question of being. Enjoy! And I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas.
