What about fear?

The Course claims that we really only have two emotions: Love and fear. Fear can be defined as the absence of Love, which means fear isn't real.

If the topic of fear interests you, allow me to recommend a wonderful book: Feel the Fear (and Do It Anyway) by Susan Jeffers. The author claims that any emotion that we deem negative or self-defeating can be distilled to fear. And all fear can be summarized as "I'm afraid that I can't handle it." And THAT, claims Jeffers, is not true (illusion). The truth is that we can handle anything. People who seek advice from others are handling their fears. People who take drugs are handling their fears. People who kill themselves are handling their fears. In fact, it could be argued that all human doings are attempts to alleviate fear.

We humans are fearful creatures. We fear that bad things might happen, that bad events from the past may happen again, we fear that good things won't last, and we fear being proven wrong about our views. Usually, our biggest fears are death and suffering. We fear loss. We fear illness. We fear limitations. We fear scarcity. And, most baffling of all, are those moments when we feel fear and can't exactly figure out WHY!

If your life seems paralyzed by fear, you may want to try some of the suggestions on this blog. The promise of non-duality is that only the Real endures and that there is no fear in Reality. I can testify (there's the Mormon in me coming out) that my fear level has dramatically lowered since I began studying non-dualism and opening my mind to these ideas.

This is a gentle path. What better way to relieve fear than to realize that you're afraid of nothing? Think of a little child who's scared at night. That's us. We are afraid of things that seem real, but aren't.

Fear is illusion. Love is Real.

What if non-dualism is wrong?

Atheists will focus on the words I use (God, Christ, Heaven, Spirit, etc) and point out that none of these things can be objectively observed. Religious people will look at non-dualistic concepts and observe that I am mis-defining some words that are very important to them. But, as Jesus is quoted in the gospels, "He who hath ears to hear, let him hear." I present these concepts on this blog mainly to process all that I have learned from my years of study. If this blog helps other people in some way, I will be glad. If it just seems like nonsense as you read it, it's not your path.

But, let me address the question. As already mentioned previously, certain energy forms in the physical universe demonstrate the concept of non-duality. Darkness is not a thing; it is a word for the absence of a thing. Light is real; darkness is just light being blocked out. Heat is real; cold is just a word for 'not adequate heat.'

This is what I'm claiming in this blog. God is Real. Fear is just a word for what we feel when we block out God or don't perceive adequate connection with God. We think we've separated from God, so we wander in 'darkness' feeling the 'chill' of fear.

So what if I'm wrong? I'll just live my life and die, and this blog will be a testament to those crazy ideas Tony had. The beauty of non-dualism is that it doesn't require belief. I don't have to proselytize or convince anyone that I'm right. Truth needs no defense. If something is True, eventually it will prevail. If something is false, eventually it will disappear.

Only Truth remains at the end of time. While time endures, all we have is belief. Do I believe this stuff is true? In my present circumstances, it seems to be. I feel more inner peace at this stage of my life than at any other time before. Could I be deluding myself? I suppose it's possible. But, so what? I'm not hurting anyone, nor interfering in their lives in any way. I'm not sending out junk mail or knocking on peoples' doors to share my joyous message in the middle of their favorite TV show. I'm just writing words on my little blog.

If my words are interesting or helpful to you, great! If not, click on the little red X.

Is it wrong to ask God for help?

The whole point of non-dualism is that there is no "right" and no "wrong". There's only Truth. In this world, we are (deliberately) set apart from Truth. So, while we believe we are human, we have choices to make.

It's not wrong to ask God for help. But it is not optimal or efficient. Here's why:

First, you're not really talking to God, even if you think you are. When you pray from within a dream to a reality outside the dream, you're not truly communicating. God exists in Reality, not illusion. When we try to pray to God, we're trying to bring God INTO our illusion. God cannot enter illusion because God is Real. So our prayers here are directed to Spirit or ego. Spirit is the part of our mind that remembers God, while ego is the part that believes in separation.

Second, when we pray for help, we usually think we have correctly identified what the problem is and what needs to be done to solve it. That's a big mistake. The things in our daily lives that seem problematical are almost always defined as such by parameters set by our belief in ego. Since ego is false, our definition of our problems has to be false, too.

We have only one problem, and it's already been solved. Our only problem is that we believed separation from God was possible. It's not possible. Problem solved.

Now we just have to accept that fact. That can take a lot of time. Time is not a problem to God. To us humans, time seems very real. Saving time and doing things efficiently is important to us while we still believe in limitation. Praying to ego all the time thinking we're praying to God can set up more interference and thus takes more time to unravel.

Here's a more efficient way:

1) Check your peace awareness. Do you feel peaceful?

2) If not, direct your prayer to Spirit by admitting (confessing) that you must have made an error.

3) Express willingness to see the situation differently.

4) ASK for another approach or perspective.

5) Do all you can in your mind to be open to a new way of seeing things when it presents itself. (Which it will do!)

This is much more optimal than praying about the details of our dreary little lives.

How do I solve my problems?

As always, two answers. One based on relative truth, and one based on non-dualistic Truth.

In the world of contrast, problem solving is really what human life is all about. We are presented with problems and obstacles from the moment we are conceived. We then begin learning and developing tools and strategies for solving these problems. Some tools and techniques work better than others, and many individuals develop a personal perspective of how the problems of life work. Some become very confident in their ability to problem solve, while others develop a helpless attitude that ultimately culminates in the purchase and display of a bumper sticker that says "Shit Happens."

Actually, every single person is eventually presented with a problem (or two, or twenty) that is not solvable. What do we do in that case? Several possibilities. We learn to live with and work around the problem. We ignore the problem. We try to get others to solve it or at least alleviate it for us. We agonize over it. Or we simply stop defining it as a problem.

To lead into non-dualism, I will point out a very interesting phenomenon that is very public and well-known in the United States. People in the lower and middle socio-economic classes tend to distill all problems down to "lack of money." A great many of our problems could be solved if we had unlimited funds. Well, in this country there actually are people who have unlimited funds. High-paid CEOs, doctors, specialists, lawyers, authors, celebrities, inventors, etc. In the United States, rich people are very visible and admired by the populace because they are examples of the culmination of the 'American Dream.' (Interesting term.)

But, closer examination reveals a dark side. The more a person is able to solve the superficial problems, the more likely they are to gain a view of existential problems. And problems of existence can't be solved with money. So a great many wealthy people turn to substance abuse, masochism, and suicide. It seems that the more we use wealth, power, and education to develop our sense of self, the more likely we are to turn to those three avenues.

Viewed from the perspective of non-dualism, this is not surprising. All of our problems within human life are merely reflections and symbols of our real problem. Our real problem is that we believe we have successfully made a world and a universe based on the idea of differentiation. Our real problem is that we are utterly convinced that we exist. So the solution is to accept that life, as defined by us, can't be Real. If Perfect Oneness is Real, Separation and imperfection cannot be. Ultimately, the solution will be to accept Oneness. For now, the best approach is to at least begin to QUESTION.

Here are some helpful questions (based on a non-dualistic view) for the next time you have a problem.

~ Am I seeing this situation accurately?

~ Am I defining the problem accurately?

~ Have I ASKED for help?

~ Am I ASKing questions, or making statements?

~ What am I afraid of in this situation?

~ Would I rather be right or happy?

~ Am I willing to be taught a better approach?

~ Is there another way to see this?

~ After I ASK for help, can I set the problem aside for a while?

~ Can I see how separation has caused this problem?

~ Can I see any degree of union or oneness in this problem?

~ Can I think, say, or do anything to bring more unity to this situation?

Is non-dualism pessimistic?

If you're interested in optimism and pessimism, you really must read a book called Learned Optimism by Martin P. Seligman. He describes sociological and psychological experiments and then couples them with self-help ideas and suggestions.

One important ramification for the spiritual path is this: people who are optimists generally feel happier but see situations inaccurately; pessimistic folks see things more realistically and are usually more dreary. My dad is an example of the latter. He loves to state that if you're a pessimist, you're never disappointed!

A great many spiritual avenues start with disillusionment. This is a whole other topic, but is related here. We find a life path or thought system to be not representative of reality, and we feel the let-down, emptiness, and fear of disillusionment. The realization that we have been out of touch with reality. Now that we realize that, what do we do? Often, in these moments we finally ASK for help, and Spirit responds.

Back to the question. Non-dualism is not inherently pessimistic. But it can seem so to people who dabble in it rather than embrace it. A few of my close friends know that I hold no hope for the earth, the world, the United States, the human race, the environment, etc. All these things are, I'm fond of saying, DOOMED.

But that's not bad news. That's GOOD news!

You know, there is something beside pessimism and optimism. Realism. What about being concerned with Truth, rather than your feelings? What about pursuing the Real, and trusting that you will feel better when you're living life more authentically?

William Glasser asserts that all mental illness, the tall and the small, is caused by some degree of disassociation with reality. I find this to be true. And helpful. Each time I identify a neurosis lurking in my mindset, I ask myself where I've lost touch with reality. And each time, when I find and re-establish the connection to reality, I feel better.

So I would say that non-dualism begins with a somewhat pessimistic (but accurate) realization that life as we perceive it is just not workable. But the good news is that life is not really as we perceive it. It's our perception that needs help, not life.

Why do bad things happen?

In a world of duality, we must have events to evaluate as "bad" in order to have events that can be called "good." Everything here is defined by contrast and comparison. People are defined by what they are and by what they are not. Things are identified by their traits as distinguished from the traits of other things.

In non-duality, God has nothing to do with this world. God pertains to a realm of no contrasts, no comparisons, no distinctions, no individuals. Perfect Oneness, all-inclusive.

People ask all the time, "How can I believe in a God that allows this (insert unsavory event) to happen?" People who find this dilemma to be a stumbling block might do well to consider non-dualistic thought. God doesn't allow bad stuff to occur, and God doesn't make the good stuff happen, either. We are doing the whole show.

Incidentally, this is why we like dramatic story plots so much, too. We teach the kids in literature classes that you can't have a plot without a conflict. Wow. Very telling. We can't imagine a storyline that's worth our time unless there's duality involved. Literature is symbolic of human life. And human life is symbolic of ego. Ego is the belief that there is something OTHER than God.

So if we stopped believing in ego, would bad things quit happening? Eventually, ALL things will quit happening. (They're not REALLY happening NOW !) But I will assert that as you walk the path of non-duality, you will find it less and less necessary to constantly evaluate anything as 'good' or 'bad.' As you become more aware of the Peace of God, you begin to see the turbulence and drama of the world as the nonsense that it represents, and you will participate in it less. Your forehead will smooth out, you will smile more frequently, and you'll sleep better.

Hey, that's a pretty good deal. What could you lose by ASKing?

Mystical Experience: The Bookstore

It was the holiday season, and I was at Cottonwood Mall shopping for gifts. This was in the mid 90s, and I had yet to own a computer. My favorite store in the mall was, of course, the bookstore.

I walked into the bookstore and began to browse. To my right, as I entered the store, there was a display of best-selling books. The display was set up with small shelves attached to the wall, each shelf displaying one book only. The wall was covered with books.

When I looked at this wall, all the books on it were out of focus and blurry. I could see colors, and vague shapes. I knew they were books, but I couldn't see them clearly.

Except one.

There was one book that was centered in the display, and it was the one book whose title and cover design were clear in my vision. I unhesitatingly walked toward that book, picked it up, and opened it. The page I opened to proclaimed, "There are no coincidences."

At the time, I was agnostic and quite convinced that science was the best path to truth available to humans. Mystical things had a logical explanation, and cognitive psychology was the closest thing to spirituality in my awareness.

This experience dramatically shifted my paradigm. Something messing with my eyesight, something compelling me to pick up one specific book, to look at one specific page, with one specific message spelled out in black and white. Wow. Still makes me shiver a bit to remember.

I would, in the future, have many experiences with messages getting through to my consciousness in the form of printed words.

Makes perfect sense these days, knowing more about non-duality and how Spirit operates in the world. Spirit will communicate with you according to your degree of willingness and will utilize media that you value. Being intellectual, I've always valued words, both spoken and printed. Thus, Spirit has often gotten to my awareness with word usage.

The experiences were startling at first. But as I came to understand them, they ceased being so awe-inspiring and shocking, and became more affirming and comforting.

What is the Christ?

Before I tackle this question, a reminder: Don't get hung up on words and terms. Remember, they are symbols and, as such, what they symbolize is far more critical than the term used.

With that in mind, I would throw the question back at you. What is Christ to you? Is that word synonymous with Jesus? If so, you may want to stick with that definition for a while as you investigate non-duality further.

In my view, Jesus was the Christ. But so is every human, animal, plant, planet, grain of sand, and star. Okay, not literally. Because, remember that non-duality cannot recognize anything that changes and evolves as something that is real.

God is a word that symbolizes the Creative Force that is the Source of Reality. Christ is the word that symbolizes the eternal creations of God. In human terms, calling God the Father, and Christ the Son is a pretty good description, though the gender specificity gets in the way.

Can you find (somewhere in your identity) something Eternal, something Authentic, something that you sense will never die or change? For most humans, the thing that comes closest to this description is Love. Can you think of a person, object, situation, or circumstance toward which you feel a sense of Love that seems timeless? A feeling of no conditions, a feeling of complete acceptance and joy? Of course, it's not going to be pure, because everything here is symbolic. But human feelings of Love come pretty close to what I'm describing. This aspect of your True Self would be, in my paradigm, termed "Christ."

Christ emanates from God, is exactly like God, is just as loving and powerful as God, and just as perfect and eternal as God. The one and only distinction between the two is that God is That Which Has Always Been, while the Christ began WITH God. God is the Source, Christ flows from God.

Sounds abstract, huh? Keep in mind: when a person is insane, descriptions of a sane life seem abstract, intellectual, and extremely useless. We who are wallowing in duality are effectively crazy. No better definition of insanity than 'disassociation from your identity'. We are all Christ. And we don't believe it.

What about religion?

I'll start with the standard answer: Everything here is ego-made by default, and supports ego by default. But everything here can be utilized by Spirit, if offered willingly.

The one advantage religion has (as does science) is that it purports to be searching for and/or proclaiming truth. Any search for truth will ultimately succeed, because truth is all that exists.

So the question then becomes: Is religion helping or hindering? And the answer is, depends on how the individual is using it.

Most religious practices and traditions are obviously ego-based. Sermons, talks, posts, callings, offices, priesthoods, clergy, etc. all offer wonderful opportunities to 'serve' while still inflating the sense of separate self.

But in every religious faction you can find individuals who are honestly using their religion as a spiritual path. These individuals will not be obvious, because they're not going to be showy and ostentatious. In discussions about how 'true' their religion is, these individuals will become strangely quiet, recognizing that no one organization has all the answers for every separate individual.

One word of caution about religion: the ego offers several counterfeits for the Peace of God, and one of these is the peace of conformity. It feels good to be part of a group, to go someplace each week where people know your name and accept you as an individual. If your religion seems to offer peace, you need to ask if this peace comes from the teachings or from the culture.

What about mystical experiences?

They're just things that happen to us that we can't explain with our current paradigms. (I can think of several of my students to whom mathematics seems mystical!)

The better question is, "Are they useful?" And the answer (as always) is: "Sometimes."

If they help make your next steps on your path clearer and more conscious, they are helpful. But mystical experiences can sometimes lead us into other forms of illusion and deception.

How can you tell the difference? By your awareness of Peace. The more peace you feel, the more you are approaching the return to God. And remember, the Peace of God has no opposite.

I am going to write some entries about some of the mystical experiences that helped me on my path. Will they be helpful to other people? I have no idea. If you're reading this blog, I'd appreciate any feedback as to how helpful (or not) you're finding it to be.

What about the veil of forgetfulness?

Why can't we remember God, Heaven, True Identity, Reality, and anything before our physical birth.

Well, actually, we CAN. However, since God is non-coercive, this memory can't be forced on us. We have to accept it willingly, and achieving this willingness can take many years and many lifetimes.

Here's a great metaphor. Remember that old TV series, "Bewitched?" If Samantha truly wanted to be mortal to make her marriage work better, why did it never occur to her to cast a spell on herself that would simply make her not believe in her witchy nature?

Well, that's what we did when we invested in ego. By focusing our attention on something that is not God (and also not Real) we left the sphere of knowledge and entered the realm of perception. And here we are stuck until we can have the memory of God reborn. For most of us, this seems to be a process that takes place in very small increments over many, many years. Not to worry, though, because time itself is part of the illusion, too.

Just as Samantha would need help in beginning to believe (again) in her true nature and power, so do we. This Help seems to be external at first; but as the memory returns, we see that the Spirit is also part of God, as is Everything Real.

Does evil exist?

Yes, within the dualistic framework. Evil is manifestation of ego (as is everything here) but taken to an extreme as evaluated by consensus. In other words, evil is a relative truth; you can't find anything that every single person who has ever existed will agree is evil. It is pretty easy, though, to get the people who are in your close circle of proximity to agree with your view of what evil is.

Outside the dualistic experience, evil clearly cannot exist. Remember, in non-dualism, only God Is. Nothing can be Real that God didn't create, since God and Reality are synonymous. The idea of something opposing God is ridiculous and laughable. (This is why, incidentally, the symbolism of light energy is very useful. Grammatically, the opposite of light is darkness, but they are not really opposing forces in the physical world. Light is real energy, and darkness is just a word we made up to mean 'light being blocked.' Same with heat and cold.)

Sometimes students of non-dualism will take their previous experience with dualistic thought systems and try to reconcile the two thought systems by saying that ego is the devil. In a sense, this is correct. Ego does attempt to be our 'god' during our earth experience, ego is worshipped and served, and the vast majority of prayers offered by humans are actually prayers to ego, not to God. However, the best ego can do to usurp God is to temporarily distract us from Reality. It's a crazy idea, but the fact that you believe you are you and I believe I am me indicates that we bought it. In this sense, all humans are equally 'evil' because we all believed we were egos.

Do we have to believe in non-dualism?

I'm asserting that non-dualism is a Fact. I'm saying that it is a characteristic of Ultimate Reality. If so, then it is literally beyond belief.

You don't have to believe in a fact, but denying facts make things more difficult for you. The fact itself doesn't care if you believe in it. It merely IS. (I Am, that I Am, that I Am)

As I've mentioned several times, spiritual progress is made by steps that are taken WILLINGLY. You can't be coerced into anything in your spiritual journey. (Though sometimes it can seem that way for a time!)

If you're reading these words, I would encourage you to at least consider these ideas. If they will be helpful to you at your current stage of development, you will have some indication of that. If everything here just sounds like nonsense and intellectual noise, it's probably not time (yet) for you to embrace non-dualism.

But your time will come. God is Fact. God has no opposite. You can ignore Reality for a time, but it won't go away. You'll be back. We will all be back!

Is ignorance bliss?

If we just ignore the non-dualistic nature of Reality and focus on the dualistic lifetime we're currently living, will we be happier? We see many examples of people who know they're living a lie, but persist for one reason or another.

I guess it depends on your definition of happiness. To me, happiness means a sense of internal peace that transcends all the external drama of human life. The world offers happiness, too. Being close to family and friends, having health, having wealth, enjoyment of activity, etc. are all worldly forms of happiness. Nothing wrong with them at all. Except one problem: each situation can change in mere moments from a happy situation to a nightmare.

The Peace of God (spoken of by Jesus in the Bible) is not assailed by any of the goings-on of human life. In fact, there are some of us who believe that Jesus chose crucifixion as an extreme example of how inner peace can't be affected by anything.

If you're feeling that life is good enough they way it is, then have at it! Continue doing things the way you have been doing them. It won't last. Eventually, sooner or later, each person will have the realization that there has to be a better way to approach life. And when that realization hits, Spirit comes rushing in to help.

What about sickness and medicine?

Bodies get sick, injured, incapacitated, handicapped, and disabled all the time. Bodies die all the time. Our bodies are very fragile and limited. We get invaded by microorganisms, our chemistry gets out of whack, our metabolism slows down, and so on. Bodies, even by our own evaluation, are not perfect.

God only creates perfectly. As amazing as our bodies are to us, they can't be creations of God.

So where did they come from? Same place everything in our human experience came from: ego. Ego made this world and this universe to keep us focused on separation. Nothing like an illness or a physical challenge to keep us focused on the body. Taking medicine to alleviate symptoms that we don't like accomplishes the same purpose.

What about food?

Eating is symbolic, like all things here. Also, like all things, its 'default setting' is ego, but can be used by Spirit to help us wake up.

A seeming 'fact' of life is that we must consume life to maintain life. Taking lives in order to keep our own. Stories of vampires come to mind when it's put this way, and yet it's undeniable. Even vegetarians are taking lives.

A basic tenet in the separation belief is that someone must lose. If we're separate beings, we can't all 'win' all the time. Life centered in separation means that we must take life to have life. This is symbolic of the life we think we've stolen from God by making separate egos.

Spirit's interpretation is that life is only where God created it, not elsewhere. In Oneness, life is not differentiated and subdivided, so there is no taking of life. And, of course, life in God is eternal, not temporal as it seems to be here.

What about family?

Like all things in our earth experience, the default setting is ego. This includes family. There's nothing inherently divine about family life, just as there's nothing inherently divine about celibacy or monastic life. However, Spirit can use all of these devices, if we offer them.

Family is an ingenious illusion because it seems to offer a balance between separate self and oneness. The culture I was raised in really digs family life, and holds this lifestyle in very VERY high esteem. But, those of you who've been members of a family can easily remember many examples of discontent, fear, shame, disillusionment, and negativity associated with the family unit. It's like any other thing here in earth. Dualistic. Some people see it as a good thing, some as a bad thing, some as a harmless thing. My only question for you would be, "Is it a HELPFUL thing?"

If you seem to feel more peace in a family situation, go for it. If not, don't. But don't use it as a criterion for judgment. People who choose different lifestyles than you are not any more or any less enlightened.

What about dreams?

Science continues to be perplexed about the purpose of sleep and dreaming. But when you begin to consider non-dualism, dreaming and sleep become quite clear.

Dreams are great examples of how mind can project alternate realities. When we dream, an external world seems to exist. We participate in it. We have a sense of time, a sense of self, a sense of other selves, a sense of drama. And when we awaken, we see that all of it wasn't real. Great way to understand earth life, too. Of course, all metaphors have a breaking point. And the breaking point of this one is that in our nighttime dreams, we escape the dream each morning. But I'm NOT saying you will escape the dream of humanness when your body dies. If your mind is still enraptured with the dream of separateness, you will just project a new body and a new dream.

To awaken from this 'dream' we have to willingly relinquish separation and accept Oneness. This can take a lot of time. But time itself is part of the dream, too. So don't worry about it. Just focus on peace and keeping your mind as open as possible. ASK lots of questions, and don't get too attached to anything.

Look into lucid dreaming, too. That's another great symbol that can be helpful. An interesting aside: I always had terrifying nightmares as a child, youth, and young adult. When I first encountered the idea of non-dualism in the late 1990s, my nightmares vanished. I sometimes still have trouble sleeping, but now it's because of stress, not because of bad dreams. Weird, huh?

What about human life?

Remember the first time you tried on a Halloween Costume, or a costume for a play? Have you seen an infant getting used to clothing and social conventions? Remember the first time you tried a new food, or a new job, or a new relationship? Remember the first time you had sex? Remember the first time you rebelled against your upbringing, told a lie, or cheated on your spouse? Remember as a teen how you felt the first time you tried a new fashion or persona? Have you ever been in a theatrical production or performance situation?

All of the examples above are ego manifestations. Ego is the collection of some traits and the lack of others that (we believe) make us who we are. But when you look at the examples above, and I'm sure you can think of many others, you realize that you have been several different people just during THIS lifetime. And the people living around you can remind you of others you've been, too!

Of course, we don't want to believe this. We want to believe that there are some traits we choose and others we don't. But human life is just as authentic and just as artificial as a costume party or a high school clique. Harsh.

What about reincarnation?

If the idea of reincarnation seems to help you feel more peaceful, then use it. If it seems to increase your fear level don't use it.

How can you just decide which concepts to use and which ones to discard, you may wonder. What about truth? You're really asking if reincarnation really happens, aren't you?

Well, remember this: from a non-dualistic perspective Ultimate Truth does not pertain to this world and our human experience. All that we call truth is relative truth. Do I think that some humans believe they've been here before? Sure. Do I think that some humans think they're here now? Yep. Same mistake. There is no world.

Back to the suggestion of adopting beliefs or discarding them. That's what you're doing already. I'm just shining a glaringly white light of honesty on the practice.

What is Peace?

Peace is a very important symbol. In fact, when I'm discussing spiritual or psychological issues with others, I almost always ask about how much peace is in the awareness of the other person.

The Peace of God is symbolic of acceptance of Reality. Anytime we have something other than peace in our awareness, it's an indicator that we have chosen to believe in a concept that belongs to a substitute reality. You don't have to even be aware of what the false concept is; you just have to know that it's there, somewhere in your mind.

The more we accept the Real, the more we are aware of Peace.

Look at how different people react to the same crisis in their life. Different reactions indicate different individual levels of peace awareness.

The world offers peace, also. The peace of the world is a temporary sense of well-being, a feeling of 'things are okay, but that could change at any moment.' This peace is limited, individual, and temporary.

The Peace of God is not affected by the events of the world. This Peace is unlimited, universal, and eternal. It's always there for us to partake of, but can be blocked by our desire for worldly peace. Remember, God cannot coerce us. Willingness is part of our True Identity. When we willingly set aside the peace of the world and accept the Peace of God, we become aware of It.

How are these teachings helpful?

Actually, they're NOT helpful for everyone. As I've written before, that's the tricky thing about a world that believes in individuality: we have to find our own individual paths.

These teachings are helpful for you if they clarify things for you, answer questions for you, or cause you to think and formulate new questions. These teachings are helpful if they provoke further study, meditation, reflection, discussion, etc.

As you become more and more aware of a deeper sense of peace than you have known thus far, you will realize that whatever teachings you are currently reading or writing are somehow helping you. (Again, the teachings are not inherently helpful; they are merely symbolic of your accepting the Help that is offered by Spirit.)

What's the destiny of the human race?

We're doomed.

You don't have to watch the news everyday to know that we hover precariously on the brink of nuclear annihilation. You didn't have to ace your high school science class to know that the hydrogen in the sun won't last forever.

But beyond that, humanity is based on a flawed concept. Our race is a symbol of dualism. Since dualism can't be, we can't be.

(In Reality, there never was a human race.)

Does it matter what we believe?

Well, it matters while you're on earth. If you don't believe in gravity, you're not going to be here too long. If you don't believe in food, you won't last. If you don't believe in air, you're probably already unconscious!

Beliefs are simply useful or not. Don't get hung up on truth, or proving your beliefs to others. Just ASK yourself if they're useful. Do they help you or hinder you? If beliefs are hinderances, change them as quickly as you can.

Some belief systems are more efficient than others. Just as there are more optimal ways to publish words, do laundry, and cook a meal, there are also more optimal ways to get back to Truth. The quicker you come to accept Non-duality, the quicker you'll be back at peace.

Here's an exercise for you: Next time you encounter a belief that makes you uncomfortable (to any extent) instead of quickly ejecting the belief from your mind, consider it. You don't have to adopt it, just consider it. Spend five or ten minutes with it. Read up on it. Do some research. Take some quiet time just to think about it. Research has shown that we are very fast to filter out points of view that we think we don't agree with. The more diversity in the ideas you consider, the faster you will find the belief system that will be the most optimal for you in your current situation.

Does that matter? Ultimately, no. But here and now, of course it does. Each time you meet a person whose life just isn't working, s/he is carrying a belief system that is no longer appropriate. Don't be one of those people. If a belief isn't helpful, jettison it as soon as you're able.

Why do I feel alone in the universe?

The ego (separate self) wants to be alone. Well, it wants togetherness on its own terms. Relationships are okay, as long as boundaries are agreed upon. Physical proximity works for a while, but soon we have the realization that, "I need my space."

ASK yourself if a total lack of mental privacy is okay with you. Could you live with every person knowing your every thought? Of course not. Our individuality would cease to exist. And this is what we want to keep. Oneness is what we're fleeing from. Human life represents the attempt to compromise oneness and separateness, to find some kind of acceptable balance between the two. Each human being tries to find this, and fails. There is no compromise between oneness and separateness, because there can be no compromise between truth and illusion. Whether we like it or not, Oneness is Reality.

We can only find peace when we give up our sense of isolation. Of course, to give up isolation is to give up individuality, too. Is this bad news? Is it good news? Can you tell the difference between bad news and good news?

What about words?

Don't get hung up on terminology. This is another excuse the ego invents to not deal with the return to God.

Words are just symbols of concepts. And in this world, even our concepts are symbolic. Words are needed, but aren't as important as we think they are.

As you read this blog, if you find yourself objecting to something because of my word choice, try to keep this in mind: words are symbols of symbols. As such, they have no inherent value. They are only useful to the extent that they help us in our spiritual quest. If a word is not helpful to you, feel free to discard it and find a different symbol that works for you. The concept is important, the word is not.

Example: I use the word "God" frequently. This does not mean that I believe in an old white man in a robe who sits on a throne in heaven. This does not mean that I teach about a supernatural human who lives on Mt. Olympus and throws lightning bolts. When I use the word "God" I am referring to that which is changeless, eternal, perfect, loving, the source of all creation. (This is not something that exists in our cosmos and our human mind can't comprehend it.) It's important as you read this blog (as it is in ALL communication) that you not substitute YOUR definition of words for MINE. In order to understand these entries, you must understand MY word choice and MY definitions. Once you get the concept I'm describing, feel free to choose any other word that you deem more appropriate.

What is ego?

Ego is the separate, individual self that we earthlings believe is our identity. It includes the body, the brain, the mind, and all of their attributes.

The ego, being separate, limited, mortal, frail (etc) cannot have been a creation of God, since these attributes are not of God. Most religions explain this by teaching that we fell into this state because of sinful choices.

Actually, though, a creation that is even capable of falling into sin and separation is not a perfect creation. So the explanations of the above-mentioned religions is inadequate.

The ego is actually an illusion. It symbolizes our desire to separate from God. Separation from God cannot happen in Reality, so we had to LEAVE Reality and then forget about God to believe we had accomplished this.

This world is not Real. The ego is not Truth. Only God is Real.

Does God hear our prayers?

Depends on which 'God' you're praying to.

Most prayers in the part of the planet I live in are really directed to ego, though the word 'God' is used. Anytime a petition is made in prayer to deal with something in the illusory world, the petition is going to ego. God is not involved with illusion; God pertains to Reality.

However, when we begin to see this and are ready to leave an illusion behind, then our prayers are useful to Spirit. The Spirit is the memory of God that we all have in our minds. There is a part of our mind that knows that we are investing in egoistic dreams rather than shared reality.

If you've read my other posts, you know that I don't see God as a person or a being, but rather a word that symbolizes Ultimate Reality. A prayer from within a dream cannot reach Reality; however, a prayer in a dream can symbolize an attempt to reach Reality.

Difficult to understand this concept, if you still believe that you are real. But when you begin to see your life, your body, your identity as symbolic rather than real, you'll begin to get the picture.

Which is my Spiritual Path?

Coming from a 'one true church' background as I did, this question seemed important to me early in my quest. It is correct to view Truth as One. It is correct to view Fact as something that is not affected by belief. What is not correct is to assume that we are ready for Truth and Fact at any given point in our lives. To quote Jack, "You can't handle the truth!"

Your spiritual path is as individual as you are. As a member of organized religion, this used to drive me crazy. The point of being in a church, it seemed to me, was to align my beliefs with the doctrines and teachings of the church. However, most members seemed to be unable or unwilling to do so.

Looking back, I now understand why this must be. Our insisting on being individuals makes a situation where the Memory of God must dawn on us in an individual fashion.

One of my 'mystical experiences' took place on the Jordan River Parkway. I was contemplating this very question, wondering if the path I was traveling in my spiritual life was the correct one. While pondering that question, I came to a fork in the pavement of the parkway; I had to make a choice to go left or right, and there, at the fork in the road was a sign that reminded people to 'Stay on the Path.' It struck deep into my consciousness that being on a path does not mean that at times we don't have to choose to go left or to go right. We do have to make choices here. From my spot on the parkway it appeared that there were TWO paths, a left one, and a right one. But, if I could float up into the air, I would have seen that there really is just ONE path, with many small options of routes.

Which is my spiritual path? Focus more on your intention. Are you willing to learn? Are you willing to consider new ideas and concepts? Again, the fact that you are even reading this material indicates a greater willingness than most of the human population.

There is only ONE path. And you've found it. You actually never lost it. Are there some twists and turns that are more optimal and efficient than others? Sure. But who cares? We humans don't do anything perfectly. That's part of the human experience. Trust that things will be clearer as you go along your life.

How can I know this stuff is true?

If you've been reading my material carefully, you'll notice that the two most-important words in this question are words that I reserve for Heaven, our state of Oneness with God: Know and True. In plainer words, I don't believe a human mind EVER knows anything as true. What we call knowledge is a complex interaction between individual perception and collective consensus. And truth is relative to the person and the situation.

If this question is meaningful to you, ASK yourself why truth is important. Is it so you can convince others? Is it so you can justify your path to others? Or is it important for your own peace of mind?

You can not convince others of the validity of your spiritual path. You may be able to shut them up by out-arguing them, but 'a man convinced against his will is of the same opinion still.'

If, however, your concerns are solely for your own peace, here are some pointers:

• See if some concepts 'resonate' or 'click' with you. Are there any ideas that just seem right, even if you can't always explain why they do?
• Have you had any 'mystical' experiences that seem to point you in the direction of a certain path or line of thinking?
• Do any concepts answer questions for you or put certain issues to rest?
• Are you conscious of resistance? (We tend to resist ideas that we feel are more accurate, but perhaps we're not quite ready for.)
• Do you feel a sense of urgency in your quest? Or more of a sense of surety that the answers will come when the time is right?

Though Truth is my highest concern, I don't think it's a very useful concept for people just beginning a conscious spiritual path. I would advise to focus more on your awareness of Peace. The more that peace is in your awareness, the more 'true' that path is for you, at this point in time.

Do we agree?

Agreement is an interesting and important concept to examine. Separate humans agreeing with each other produces effects because it mirrors the Oneness of Reality. The more consensus we have, the more 'real' things seem. Probably the most obvious examples of this are gravity, time, and space. We are physically born already agreeing with those three ideas, even if we can't articulate them.

This is how the world defines 'fact' -- something that is seemingly true, regardless of your belief or non-belief. If you jump off a building, the earth will pull you down, whether you consciously believe in gravity or not. Your body will age regardless of your conscious view of time. Your physical self can only be in one space at one time (though interestingly, we can be elsewhere in our thoughts).

The world could be defined as a consensus reality. It seems real because so many of us agree on some basic parameters. Keep in mind, I'm talking about mind. Not brain. Your mind is outside of space and time, not confined to your brain. A newborn's brain doesn't have any programming yet about time, but his mind certainly has agreed to be subject to time.

What about exceptions? Are there any that we can point to? Well, depends on how open your mind is. How perception works is a whole other topic, but suffice it to say that if you are convinced that there are no exceptions to a rule, you won't find any. Are there examples of beings who don't agree with gravity, space, or time? You won't encounter any examples until you begin questioning reality as you understand it.

How can I find my spiritual path?

This question is a bit deceptive, because every person is really already on a spiritual path, whether they realize it or not. A more helpful version of the question is, "How can I become consciously involved in my spiritual path?" Consciousness increases efficiency. Time is illusion, but because we still believe in it, saving time is helpful to us.

So, back to the question. The key is willingness. Are you willing to question? Are you willing to consider ideas? Are you willing to adjust your thinking and paradigms? Are you willing to adjust your lifestyle? Are you willing to admit when you discover you are wrong about something? Are you willing to question your values?

The more willingness you have, the more efficiently your spiritual progress will go. An excellent practice is simply to use the phrase, "I am willing to be taught." Put it on a post-it on your mirror, on your fridge, on the dashboard of your car. Repeat it as often as possible. Spend five or ten minutes just sitting and breathing and repeating this little statement.

Human consciousness is deceptive, because here cause and effect are reversed. We want to believe that the things we do, think, or say are causes; actually, they are effects. The fact that you are reading these words right now is an effect of a choice your mind (outside space and time) has made. If you choose to do the little statement exercise in the previous paragraph, it's because your mind (not your brain) has chosen that.

But at the beginning, don't worry about cause and effect. Don't worry about determinism or reincarnation or freedom of choice or any other concept. Just focus on WILLINGNESS. Do all you can to open your mind to new ideas, new questions, and new concepts. Spirit is always ready to flow into a mind that is unimpeded by false ideas. Don't worry about figuring out which ideas are true and which are false; just focus on willingness for now.

What is Duality?

Duality is a word that describes reality as it seems to be in the earth format. Here, each thing seems to be defined by an opposite. On earth, how do we know what something IS? By also knowing what each thing ISN'T.

I am male (not female).

I am middle-aged (not young).

I am middle class (not wealthy).

I am Mormon (not Catholic).

I am white (not black).

I am Democrat (not Republican).

And so on.

Duality describes a situation where reality and separation can (seemingly) coexist.

But even here, we have a few things that are dualistic only from a grammatical point of view. Light, for example. Most people would say that the opposite of light, is darkness. But, science tells us that light is a real energy form, while darkness is just a word we made up to describe absence of light. When you leave your fridge door open, you are not letting the cold out (no such thing as cold); you are letting heat (real energy) IN.

These examples point to a different view of Reality, and it is this Reality that I am claiming is the Real One. Non-dualistic. No opposition. No separation. No limitation. No individuality. (Have you ever noticed that the word duality is right there inside the word individuality?)

Darkness does not truly oppose light. Darkness is simply not real. In the same fashion, all the things that we believe are not God, are simply not real.

In my view, the word "God" means "Reality." That which Truly Exists. All else is appearance.

What about Jesus?

The scriptures get some things right about Jesus, and many things wrong. Then the religious traditions take the scriptures and put their own twist on the situation, and we end up with a great many different interpretations of Jesus's life and mission.

Jesus was a symbol. Now don't get your knickers in a twist, because everything and everyone appearing in earth life is a symbol. Remember, only God is Reality. Earth life is illusion. But in the illusion, we have symbols that point to God and we have symbols that point to more illusions.

Jesus was a pure symbol of God, Heaven, Oneness, Reality, whatever word you want to apply to the Real.

Of course the other symbols that point the other direction (ego) were threatened by Jesus. (You can witness this same battle in your very own mind, each time you have a thought of oneness and unity, you will observe another thought slipping in to try to pull you back into separateness and individuation.) He was misunderstood, mistreated, and finally put to death.

But death itself is illusion. Creations of God are indestructible.

Jesus knew his True Identity. He is the Christ. The Son (Creation) of God (Creator). Because he knew this, he also knew that all power (real power) is his.

The mistake most Christians make is to believe in the divinity of Jesus but then to make him a special case. You are ALSO Christ. You are ALSO a Creation of God. You are ALSO part of the Oneness of Heaven.

Only problem is, you don't quite believe that yet. (Nor do I.)

Once we thoroughly are convinced of our True Identity, we don't have to appear as humans any longer.