Creating More Space in a Fast Paced World

UVic Spiritual Awakening Meetup – February 22, 2018

Three of us made our way through the snow to enjoy a bit of meditation and discussion.  The topic was a great starting point leading to a rich sharing of different journeys that also seemed to converge.  While the group studied practices like Zen Buddhism, Course in Miracles, Vipassana and Transcendental Meditation, we all found ways to live from spaciousness ‘beyond the cushion’ in our day to day life. 

A recently discovered Krishnamurti quote points to the immense value of our inner openness:  “It is only when the totality of the mind is still, that the creative, the nameless, comes into being.”    

Some of ways this spaciousness seems to have propelled us along the way were shared, such as:

• Cultivating openness and ‘allowing’ (being guided rather that directing life’s flow) and creating from this flow. 
• Holding a stance of ‘hospitality’ or openness in the face of whatever is arising – for example, welcoming and even creating a sanctuary for agitated mental activity (or ‘the brain’) – allowing discomfort, and noticing how it naturally expresses and unfurls. 
•  We also talked about wonder – seeing through unfiltered eyes when looking at the world around us.  This looking without labeling can allow us to notice the small exquisite details in the expression of life all around us.  And at times, we may even see our own character antics from that same place – viewing  immature ‘acting out’ as poignant and even cherishing it – like a small child.

 Thanks to KECC for supporting this gathering!

The Stillness Within February Meetup explored shared experiences with loss – and possible links to personal and spiritual deepening. There were four of us who enjoyed a recently released Eckhart Tolle recorded talk on sudden change – of a job, a relationship, personal status or other forms (often leading to a sense of self diminishment).  Eckhart showed that for many of us, the egoic sense of self can be resistant to any change which challenges its sense of identity. When we experience a major loss however, it can offer an opportunity to question the concepts we have about ourselves and also our attachments to them.

The group discussed experiences with sudden job changes, shaken sense of security and even lost dreams or expectations. Some of the strategies that people found helped them were – being with others or seeing with new perspective of a friend, surrender/prayer, allowing time for healing/recalibration and finding ways to be of service to others… And if not yet able to love the new conditions, it may be possible to begin to accept the perceived loss (i.e. to be ‘ok with what is’, including feelings of not being OK with what is!)

Eckhart emphasised the inherent impermanence of our life circumstances, the people and situations that pass through – he suggested that deeply attuning to that impermanence can support a sense of ease with change, and a growing awareness of that which is unchanging, the source of inner beingness – emphasizing that this underlying spaciousness cannot be diminished by external change.

Krishnamurti also has explored impermanence, using somewhat different language but nudging us towards a similar discovery:

“So there is nothing whatsoever permanent…. To realise that may be very depressing, melancholic, but it’s not. When you see the fact that there is nothing enduring, that very seeing is intelligence. And in that intelligence there is complete security. There is not your intelligence or my intelligence, it is intelligence…. that intelligence, not being yours or another’s, it is the intelligence of something infinite.” J. Krishnamurti, Third Public Talk in Colombo, Sri Lanka, November 1980

Thanks to the group for wonderful contributions to this inquiry… And thanks to KECC for hosting us this month.

Inquiry Sunday at KECC
February 4, 2018

For the morning session the gathering of five people viewed a recent talk by Paul Hedderman. Paul is a bit of a rough diamond, but he puts across his points in an very original and effective way, often with humour as well as wisdom. One of the main insights he shares pertains to what he calls “selfing”. The human mind tends to create a fictional person or entity, which is actually not there, and then proceeds to act and relate as that fictional entity without questioning its nature. Such a way of living produces much conflict and suffering. The basic issue is the claiming of personal ownership and doership in regards to actions that are just happening as a movement of life itself. There is, Paul says, no self but only the activity he calls selfing, which gives the impression of a self acting. It is very much what many of the teachers say, expressed with its own unique flavour. Everyone found the presentation enjoyable and valuable and were planning to attend his upcoming presentations in Victoria some time in early April. The video was followed by some group discussion and further exploration of the perspectives offered by Hedderman.
The afternoon session included some shorter video clips featuring three different teachers. First we looked at J. Krishnamurti responding to a questions from his audience at a talk in Ojai, California. He discussed the nature of insight and intuition, pointing to a vital and alive clear seeing of the movement of life and thought. Intuition should be questioned as it may be a subtle or hidden desire for things to be a certain way. Interest then led us to look at a sample of Byron Katie’s way of working with an individual who felt that her partner should understand her better. Katie’s inquiry can be very effective in exposing assumptions and beliefs that are causing conflict instead of harmony. We then watched two clips of Scott Kiloby introducing his Living Inquiry method for working with addictions and compulsions and giving a short talk about the power of being fully present with our emotional experiences without moving away or escaping. Scott has a clear and compassionate manner of presenting very helpful pointers. This writer was struck by the great similarity between what Scott was promoting and what Krishnamurti often recommended in relation to the same issue. We discussed whatever was most significant and relevant to us in each video.

Victoria Church of Truth Krishnamurti Event
Friday, February 2, 2018

The monthly meeting at the Church of Truth in Victoria was entitled “Learning About Ourselves”. There were five of us in attendance and we began with viewing a half-hour video of J. Krishnamurti responding to a question at Ojai in 1981 about being free of our conditioning. He pointed out, among other things, that we must not resort to the idea of taking time to be free. The discussion that followed went into different aspects of our conditioning and what it means to look at it directly and with full attention. A couple of people were new to the meetings but participated with a depth of understanding and interest that complimented the contributions of the more familiar participants. After almost an hour the group discussion came to a natural silence which felt quite lovely. There was a handout from the Krishnamurti book Freedom from the Known which participants took home with them.

A Contemplative Winter Retreat
January 26 – 28, 2018

This residential weekend retreat at the Krishnamurti Educational Center of Canada in Metchosin was attended by ten participants, mostly from the Victoria area. Unfortunately one of the two facilitators, Lynne, was unable to attend due to health issues, leaving David as the sole presenter. He organized a program consisting of talks by J. Krishnamurti, Rupert Spira, Mooji, Adyashanti, and Clare Blanchflower on video or audio, guided and silent meditations, group discussions, and contemplation of significant questions about our experience of life and self. There was time for rest, walks, and quiet integration of the material presented. Most of the retreat was in silence other than while in the group activities. The central topic tying everything together was awareness and its fundamental place in spiritual practice and self-inquiry. The various teachers, the guided meditations, and the discussions all emphasized that effortless awareness is our very nature and can fruitfully be explored as the doorway to and essence of peace and well-being. The participants expressed an appreciation of the silence in the retreat and some would have liked more of it. All activities were optional, so participants could to a significant degree create their own blend of verbal and non-verbal engagement. The feedback indicated that the great majority valued and enjoyed the weekend greatly. Delicious meals were provided by Glenrosa Restaurant.