Be bold. Have confidence that my words to you point to the truth of whom you really are, my kin. You are not alone now nor will you ever be without me by your side. Know that in our presence together I will be here to guide you and help you and your service to others.
Keep your heart aligned with service to your brothers and sisters and the cessation of the ego’s desires. The fruit you will bear with your thoughts, actions, and words will carry the indelible mark of authenticity and sincerity. We do this not just for ourselves but for all, everyone, including our enemies and those who would undermine our purpose.
Pay no concern to the perceived attacks against us. Remember, variation is systemic and inevitable in this world and within the instantiations of the ego mind. The perception of attack is simply a constant in this world.
While I may not be able to explain love’s meaning, I can tell you that remaining aware of its consistent and permanent state will vanquish the attacker’s intent through access to unlimited compassionate forgiveness for ourselves and others.
Even our enemies are bathed in love, as we foolishly wage war, plot, and combat each other, Love remains ever-present, always waiting for us to surrender to its quiet peace. None can be denied this. Always remember, even those for whom you feel the most contempt are offered a home in eternity where what is real can never be destroyed. There is no harm that may come to what is real.
Refrain from fantasies of another world in which things will be better or problems don’t exist. I am telling you now the solution that you seek has always been available to you and does not require a massive change in the world around you. If you listen and practice this simple method, you can find peace without requiring the world around you to be any different than it is at this moment.
Be still and know that I am always with you, I would not ever have you feel alone or unwanted in this world.
Quiet your mind and ask for its healing. Do this as a matter of habit on a daily basis. I would have you recognize negative or judgmental thought for what it really is, a form of attack on yourself and your brothers and sisters. If you truly want to change the world, then let us start with our own mind. Sewing the seeds of love and peace quietly and wishing no harm on ourselves or anyone else.
Expect from the world not what it can show you, see it only as a catalyst for proper response. Each observation is an opportunity to respond with love and forgiveness. Each interaction with your brothers and sisters is an opportunity to be compassionate and joyful.
Don’t overthink the doings of the day. Do what you must to survive in this world. Make ethical and moral choices that seek to heal separations between you and your brothers and sisters and recognize the truth of our true self.
Avoid actions that separate yourself and others into tribes or cliques. Follow the example of the great teachers of this world that sought to unite human kind to a common cause. Our common cause is love and forgiveness, the healing of minds, and the cessation of attack.
To this very day I remain with you committed to our mutual cause. There is simply no place for me to go as to be without you is to not be truly myself. We cannot be what we are destined to be without one another and without all others. Know this, all have the capacity for awakening and the awakened present no danger to you or our loved ones.
When we respond with attack, we perpetuate a system that is doomed to create suffering and dissatisfaction. From this, there is nothing worthwhile that maintains its value for the possessor. The fleeting rush of victory soon fades and our proceeds remain closely guarded while we constantly prepare a defense for the onslaught we imagine will come. We cannot truly find peace and enjoyment that would make these pursuits beneficial, we reserve this only for another day. We find ourselves, huddled with our bounty, worried of how it may be seized, while our minds and bodies fall ill from our fears of the very world that provided the now tarnished object of our desires. The end is always the same, we survive for a time in a world of “shoot first and ask questions later”, “kill or be killed”, and “he who dies with the most toys wins”. The vast majority of our moments are wasted in worry and dread as we grow old, become sick, and leave this place losing everything and everyone we loved in the few unwasted moments we allowed ourselves to enjoy.
There is another way, by letting go of our desires, focusing our awareness on acceptance of the world as it is in this moment, and expressing love and forgiveness through positive action we can escape the endless cycle of attack and realize true liberation. Although the yearnings of our will may go unfilled, we can learn to see them for what they truly are, a prison that binds us with fear and distrust of our brothers and sisters. From the vantage point of desirelessness, love, and compassion we can see the struggle as it unfolds for others and learn to gently help them realize the truth about the source of their discomfort. Do not fall victim to the longing to punish those who seek glory in attack. In time, all of these lessons lead the observer to their own truth. Who knows what treachery occurs inside the chrysalis before the butterfly is born.
In my attempt to better myself I will write an account of my feelings at this moment. Uncertainty of who I am and what I should do right now. Apprehension for what is to come in the future.
How I perceive my inner guru responding:
Relax and enjoy this moment for everything you have known and will know has already transpired. You are living a script that has already been written, enjoy it. Remember, stay in the moment and know you are safe for there is nothing that can harm what you really are. Remember, the ride can always be fun if you keep the right perspective. I am with you always and by your side. Remember me when you make your choices in this world and we will make the best of this experience. Know that I love you, keep compassion in your heart for when you fail, it will provide a soft place to land in moments of pain.
Do not fear the uncertainty of the future for it is only a trial that you live a thousand times over. Be not wary of your brothers and sisters for even in their most delusional moments, they cannot hurt what you really are. There is nothing here that is ours individually, we are defined only by the moments that we share with each other. Truly you know that everything here is turning to dust. Everyone in form will get old, sick, and die; everyone who lives will lose everyone and everything they cling to. Give care to your actions and remain noble for this defines who you are and what remains when the dream of this life fades away.
In reality, we all exist within the same body. No one that you have known has ever been lost. Punishment only exists in the delusional thinking mind and illusory motion of things in this world. In reality, the attacks will fade away and what is left will be met with joyful laughter filling the entirety of our hearts. Enjoy the beauty of this world, even as I have respected the most careless and unskillful expression of creation for you to experience. It is measured only by the ego and will remain a profound odyssey of experience from which we will depart wiser. Know you remain with me always, have fun, and be in love.
The following I believe to be a teaching from my inner guru:
The ego rejects what it cannot observe or measure. As it is a mind whose very nature is so closely associated with the world, it is only natural that it too would be constrained to the limitations this world expresses. Many who live relatively happy and fulfilling lives never venture past this limitation, accepting only evidence presented that is manifested as observable phenomena and that which can be explained, measured, and repeated through process.
Do not judge your brothers and sisters who limit their perspective to only what the ego can validate. Each of you in this delusion of separateness will approach perception and understanding from a different viewpoint. This variation of view is an integral part of this world. It is neither something that needs to be fixed or overcome by the perceiver, it simply is as it is.
Those among you who have chosen to remain constrained to what they perceive as substantive fulfill a role among all others just as you fulfill a role in your experience. It is still possible to effectively demonstrate love, compassion, joy and peace in a boundless form. Remember this, individual incarnations of living form are of limited consequence. The real truth as you and all others will learn is beyond your individual experiences.
It is also important to respect the experience of those who have perceptions beyond the substantive that differ in explanation from yours. Remember this, your mind experiences this reality in a way that is unique to your individual egoic instance. Do not hold an attachment to how you believe true reality to be in this moment nor hold hostility to the views of others as you are made aware of them. You will do well to learn and grow as new truths are revealed to you and that which you previously believed falls away. A firm footing in that which lies beyond your understanding of this manifest world will serve you well as you learn, grow, and change moment by moment. Remember to breathe and quiet your thinking. I am always with you in this journey, continue to love with me, forgive yourself and all others, have fun, be generous, forthright, patient, joyfully enthusiastic, thoughtful, and reflective. There is nothing to fear and nothing to worry about. Enjoy.
The following is what I believe my Higher Power or Inner Guru is saying:
Open your hearts in moments of quietness and find me waiting there for you. During the protests of the ego, during feelings of clinging and aversion, focus on the heart of peace within yourself. Do not expect your thinking mind to be at ease with everything that is perceived. It is best to not give it the attention it desires. When you feel yourself being drawn to something or when you feel yourself being offended, look for the peace in your heart and take refuge there.
It is enough to share love and compassion with others and to rest in the heart. I will take care of the rest. Do not feel alone in this journey, for you have brothers and sisters who seek the respite of a peaceful heart. Don’t allow the inner cynic, critic, or bigot to take away a single moment of peaceful reflection and acceptance of the world as it is in this moment.
When we fall short and we allow the ego to lead us astray, remember that forgiveness of oneself is the path back. Using loving kindness and forgiveness of others and ourselves we will find our true home. Once the skill is mastered, you can always depend on it to bring yourself back to a place of safety, security, and peaceful reflection.
The following I believe to be a teaching from my inner guru:
When we first met I told you I would be with you always and I have kept that promise. Know that I am with you now and that I intend to stay as long as I am welcome. Do not let your heart break over things that have transpired. Recent events are not reflective of the love and peace yet to come to the manifest beings of this world. Rest, breathe, and know that there will be a time in which this day will be a distant memory. Find the core of truth in your heart and tell me honestly do you really not believe that I am speaking to you now? If you do believe, then let us proceed. Know that I have prepared for you to rest in the temple with me and that you will never be turned away. Know that this is true for all others, none can be turned away who come to me and ask for refuge.
It is time now for us to discuss pressing matters at hand. Do not waste your time fretting over the minor difficulties of this existence. Do not waste your time counting beans and worrying about future scarcity. I am here to tell you now this is not the purpose that I have for you. You are needed in a much more profound way. As are your friends and loved ones. Give to me now your heart and I shall share it with this world. Be generous with your time with others, do not question their value to you, only know that each one is as your brother and loved exactly as you. When you witness attack, and counter-attack, do not take sides, do not judge and do not attempt to determine right or wrong. Only feel the compassion in your heart and draw from your experience of pain and suffering to relate to the feelings and actions you observe no matter how heinous or despicable. There is no purpose or goal in finding fault with others, it is a pointless exercise and serves only to reinforce the separations that manifested long before humans walked in this world.
What I need from you now, is to find a way to join with others and to know that they are as you, as us. Let them know the truth of attack, that there is no one to receive the punishment but oneself. Do not be concerned with your brothers and sisters who remain in darkness, remember that each soul’s journey takes time, do not try to force them into a light that they are not ready for.
You can be of help to us, part of the greater whole. Focus only on love, compassion, forgiveness, sharing Joy with the world, and treating all equally. There is no toy, destination, sunlit view, or vista in this world that will serve you as well as the love we feel together when our hearts are as one. Know that there is a light that shines within you that cannot be extinguished.
When you see a brother or sister going astray, always let them know that you are there for them. Do not offer advice that is not asked for. Do not chastise or scold the decisions or actions of another. Simply let them know that you are there for them if they so need. Do not teach the unteachable, do not teach those who stand upon a pedestal. Do not preach from a position of elevated authority.
Take criticism with ease and offer no counter. Remember this, as you know, all actions are either love or a call for love, as is criticism. We criticize others from our own unskillfulness and our desire to separate. Do not acknowledge the separation with a counter criticism or explanation. Unskillfulness is inevitable and we will not overcome it in this form. With patience, we can learn to respond from a place of love and unity even when that response is silence. Silence is a far under used skill in this world and you would do well to embrace it and use it often.
We go on. Know now that I have no other motive but to find the peace within you that is within me. Do not fear that it will be taken for it can only be shared and joined together in a light that will call others to us to join. This is not a straightforward mission, there is no project plan, there is no timeline, it is simply about response in this moment. When you have a chance to love, then love. When you have a chance to forgive others and respond to attack with only silence and compassion, then do so. This is a thing that we do in this moment, it is not an attainment that we are working towards, it is a truth that we are learning to realize.
Everything you observe, in all mediums, whether scripted or unscripted are lessons in Love and forgiveness. Embrace every opportunity to express compassion, love, and understanding. When observing the unskillfulness of others, reflect upon the unskillfulness that you have experienced and embrace others in your heart filled with joyful laughter.
Do not get lost in the terrible pain and suffering that can be experienced by taking this world too seriously. Remember that this body is not who you are. This mind of logic and reason, this mind of planning and projecting, this mind of worry and regret is not you either. Take peace in the comfort that what you are is a light that cannot be extinguished, and know that I am always here with you to laugh with when things seem just too real to bear.
The skillful path is much simpler to follow than the unskillful path, there are far fewer rules and tactics. The skillful path is not always easier to follow for sometimes it feels counterintuitive to turn the other cheek. Simply allow it to feel counterintuitive and turn the cheek anyway. In the end we will laugh and see how silly the protestations of the egoic mind can be.
Do not be afraid to enjoy the pleasures of this world, for it is filled with immense beauty and that cannot be denied. Do not attempt to pluck the flower that can be observed in its natural state for it is but a bend in a stream and not eternal. Allow beauty to exist as is in the moment and let it pass away without regret.
In the book Man’s Search for Meaning, Victor Frankel, who survived the holocaust in a concentration camp, wrote about four ways that we find meaning to carry on in our lives.
1. Synchronicity – this occurs when meaningful coincidences arise between the outside world and the internal state of the mind. For example, while having thoughts about a departed loved one, a bird lands near you and rests for a while. To believe this is special in some way is synchronicity.
2. Meaningful work – regardless of the outcome or events that occur, even if all is lost, the continuation of meaningful work with a vision of its completion gives meaning in your life.
3. The people we love – Even the love we feel for people we are separated from or people who have passed on can give us meaning to carry on.
4. Facing suffering – Even when it seems everything is lost, it is still possible to face our suffering and carry on through acquiring new experiences of love. The appreciation of art and natural beauty. To remember! “How beautiful the world could still be”
The following I believe to be a teaching from my inner guru:
In this world, it may seem as though violence is part of the natural order. In fact, the forces that are used as foundational concepts include polarity, natural separation, attraction and repulsion. Atomic force is taught to either bind particles or expel them. Why then would we be surprised to see the same behavior happening on a human level, on a tribal level, or even a national level? It should be known that violence in its most simple form is judgment; in turn judgment is measure.
A woman decided to rank how much she was loved by each or her three children. She asked the children each to bring her a gift. By estimating the value of the gift, she would decide which child loved her the most. One child gave a jewel and this was valued the highest, another child gave a golden ring and this was valued almost as high. One child drew a picture of all of them happy and together and this was not valued as highly. This child who gave the drawing asked her Mother, why do you not love me as much? Even if she had valued the drawing higher, the other children may have asked the same question. You see, it was the Mother’s judgment, her measure of the value of gifts that caused feelings of being unloved among her children.
It is possible for us to let go of judgment. By letting go of our desires we can let go of the concept of measure and find peace. Although creation and destruction are constant in this world, nothing needs to be made or unmade, nothing needs to be transferred or stored, and nothing needs to be hidden or revealed in order for us to love completely. If you can, if just for a moment, try to liberate yourself from all desire you will come to understand this freedom and understand the fallacy of judgment. Without it, there is no attack, and without attack there is no violence. This liberation is waiting for you beneath the facade of the craving self.
The following I believe to be a teaching from my inner guru:
You may ask yourself, what are the limits of unconditional love? This is an understandable question that the thinking mind may ask. Let’s think about this differently, imagine yourself and your thoughts, this is the basis for your world view. There are others in your world and they have thoughts too. These thoughts may be fantasies, fictional worlds, observations of manifest reality which prove to be real when repeatedly observed from inside of the world. Some thoughts you share with others, and these shared observations form a shared identity. Imagine now that this is a system in which a measure of love exists. All of the theories of science, politics, and religion exist inside of this world. All of the fantasies and fictions and all of what appears to be real to everyone exists inside of this world.
What the world does not appear to have is an initial cause. To be certain there are theories, but as each theory comes into being, it poses more questions than it answers. This creates a world of unending questions and unending quests for more and more truth seemingly without end. This expands the world within the concept of measurement, but does nothing to resolve the cause of its existence. What a beautiful exhibition of complexity of thought. A world that becomes larger and more complex with each additional quest to understand its origin. This multiplies the complexity of the search without ever providing an answer. In the heart of this world lies the mind that thinks and searches endlessly creating more and more puzzles with each new discovery. This mind’s very nature is one of separation and measure, for greater love can only be known if it can truly be proven to be greater.
Imagine now that this world is a closed system appearing to grow larger but only from within itself. The concept of measure itself is an attribute of this world. Imagine that you could step outside of this world and find refuge, imagine a theater in which you could sit with someone and watch the beauty of endless complexity pass by. Imagine that this someone loves you beyond any limit. Remember you are outside of the world of limit and only observe the world of limit in which love is restricted and given only to those deemed worthy in controlled proportion. In the theater, with the one who loves you beyond all understanding, you can watch as beings try to withhold love, restrict compassion, deny joy, and search in vain for a conditional peace in which they each believe they are the ultimate victor. What a comedy it is as you sympathetically laugh with your loving guide in this theater of true liberation from the traps and pitfalls of the unloving world displayed before you.
You see your body, as it is now within this world. From here it is easy to love yourself completely, failings, shortcomings, defects, and all. Imagine watching death, forgetting, and rebirth as beings try and try again to love in a more equitable and fair way. This example explains the limitlessness of unconditional love. This theater is your true home and your loved one is all of us, together, realizing the insanity of this world of extravagance and scarcity. There can be no great measure without its inverse and in this lies the fallacy of negotiated love.
Know that you will exist in these forms. You are not at one, you are not separate, you are both at one and separate. The mind of the separate may never come to understand the nonexistence of limits. Rest assured, your mind in oneness does understand this. We have left this insane thought behind in our fully realized state. Limit as you must in this world of separation, but know you are loved beyond limits as your true realized Self. There is truly nothing worthy of fear, anger, hatred, and confusion for these exist only in a dream of a world that we watch together from peace.
Zen Momentum 