Approaches to Self-inquiry, August 11, 2019

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Approaches to Self-Inquiry
Sunday, August 11, 2019
At KECC

These sessions held on the second Sunday afternoon of each month are intended to expose interested people to spiritual teachings that are felt to be in alignment with those of J. Krishnamurti and which may present a somewhat different but helpful lens for approaching the art of self-inquiry. In this case we looked at two half-hour video presentations by an unusual teacher, Fred Davis. In the first video, Fred turned a commonly heard statement upside down. It is often said that “I understand non-duality intellectually but I just don’t experience it.” Fred suggests that the opposite is actually the truth: we experience non-duality (because it is the very nature of things) but we don’t understand it intellectually (because the thinking mind can only function in duality). He goes into this perspective from a number of different angles.
The five participants present explored this koan or puzzle which was perhaps not immediately easy to grasp but which seemed to yield some fruit in the examining of it. Is there in fact any division, if we look purely without the separating habit of our thinking? Where is the actual boundary between me and you, me and an object of perception? The second video supported the same kind of seeing that Fred had introduced in the first and participants also found it both challenging and interesting.

Exploring Awareness, August 4, 2019

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Exploring Awareness
Sunday, August 4, 2019
At KECC

Seven people gathered for this Sunday afternoon session of guided meditations intended to give a direct experience of awareness and presence. Some new material was presented in the form of a slow reading of passages from the spiritual classic I Am That by Nisargadatta Maharaj. The readings have pauses between them to allow for quiet contemplation of the meaning. Participants expressed appreciation of the format and took the experience with them for a twenty minute walk on the lovely property. On returning to the location chosen on the front lawn, a choice was made between guided meditations by Adyashanti, Rupert Spira, and Mooji. We listened to a twenty minute meditation with Mooji and then discussed our experiences of the afternoon. People offered feedback that such exploration of awareness was very valuable and worthwhile.

Krishnamurti Study Session, August 4, 2019

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Krishnamurti Study Session
Sunday, August 4, 2019
At KECC

Five people were present for this Sunday morning gathering to study The Book of Life: Daily Meditations with Krishnamurti. The passage for study was the January 21 entry entitled “Authority Corrupts both Leader and Follower.” Before we looked into the text, one of the participants raised the questions, “Can the self get rid of the self?” and “Can we go beyond the self through thought and analysis?” It seemed to be an important inquiry for the individual and soon the whole group was involved with it, looking at the issue from different angles. It was suggested that in the very moment we are exploring a question we can be choicelessly aware of our thinking processes and seeing them clearly rather than getting further embroiled in analysis of the problem. Can there be a direct seeing which frees us from thought?
We had a fruitful inquiry which opened a space of Being different from identification with the thinking mind, Many felt we had entered a state of mind free of analysis, which gave a sense of freedom. We took a little pause to appreciate the “no-mind” state. It was then suggested we look at the text material. We began with investigating K’s use of the word “arduous” in relation to self-awareness and explored what the word meant to us and how we felt or didn’t feel the truth of it. The conversation kept moving deeper, with occasional slowing down to look at ideas that raised questions in the minds of participants. By closing time we felt ready to move on to the next daily meditation for our meeting on August 18.

Only One Enlightenment, July 26 – 28, 2019

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Only One Enlightenment
Weekend Retreat with Michael Mendizza
July 26 – 28, 2019 at KECC

Michael Mendizza is a filmmaker and author now living in Ojai, California, who has been very interested in education and child rearing. He has also been a long-time student of the teachings of J. Krishnamurti and has produced a variety of films about him and his understandings of the human mind. He has recently written a book exploring the similarities and differences between the core teachings of the Buddha and those of Krishnamurti. The book, entitled Always Awakening, features discussions between Michael and Samdong Rinpoche, a close associate of the Dalai Lama.
Michael was invited to present a weekend retreat at the Krishnamurti Centre of Canada in Metchosin, BC. Sixteen people plus facilitators were in attendance as Michael opened on Friday evening with a brief introduction to his background and his intentions for the weekend. He then invited all participants to share what had attracted them to Krishnamurti and what it is they are looking for in joining an exploration such as this. Many spoke of the relevance of K’s teachings to their own life experience, including fears and conflicts. Michael gave feedback and comments as appropriate. The evening ended with a video of K. speaking at Ojai in 1970 and investigating two different ways of perceiving – with and without an “observer”. We watched the video again the next morning and entered a rich discussion of what K was pointing to.
The rest of the weekend was spent in a deepening exploration of the ways in which psychological thought distorts our perception of reality and pretends to have solutions to problems that it itself has created. Videos of K with David Bohm and of interviews with people who knew Krishnamurti were included as we looked at issues such as image-making in relationship, division and conflict, the illusion of a separate self, and the possibility (and difficulty) of transforming our consciousness and finding freedom from conditioning or “the known”. Woven in with our inquiry into fundamental issues in self-discovery was material about the life of Krishnamurti and the qualities of his consciousness, which may be relevant in the attempt to understand his message. How was it that a
silent mind was K’s default mode, whereas for us a noisy mind is our ordinary state? Michael explained that, from his point of view, a shift in state of mind is central to what K is pointing us to. Michael explained some of the basic practices of Tibetan Buddhism and how they might relate to what K spoke of his whole life.
Many more questions were touched on over the weekend. The website alwaysawakening.com is a source of further information for further probing into the material of Michael’s book and the many interesting insights offered along the way. We very much appreciated Michael’s offerings and hope to see more of him in the future.

Krishnamurti Study Session, July 21, 2019

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Krishnamurti Study Session
Sunday, July 21, 2019
At KECC

For this session, our exploration of J. Krishnamurti’s The Book of Life: Daily Meditations with Krishnamurti began with the entry for January 20 entitled “Why Do We Follow?” K emphases the importance of understanding our craving for “an authority who can direct our conduct,” for dependence on authority obscures our capacity to see clearly and directly what is true. As we discussed his pointings many interesting insights were shared by the five participants and the inquiry was apparently meaningful for all of us. We spent the whole two hours of the meeting with the one selection as the exploration just kept opening up to further questions and perceptions.

Non Duality july 14

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Non Duality meeting was held on  July 14, 5 people attended in which two were on retreat.
Video: Rupert Spira
KNOW YOUR OWN BEING AS IT IS
Questions and Discussion:

Who is this “I” that is Aware of Being Aware, that Rupert talks about?
Discussion:
Awareness is never changing. “I” is the name that is aware of itself. Not your thoughts, perceptions, judgments, nor from your past understanding. This is what is meant by “ Know Thyself “

What does one do in understanding your experience?

Discussion: You do not need to reject experiences to find happiness. Your own being shines behind and in the midst of all experiences. The work is to not let experiences cloud the “I”.

Krishnamurti spoke of this when he said, “I don’t mind”. For his happiness was not molded in   experience.

Approaches to Self-inquiry, July 14, 2019 at KECC

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Approaches to Self-Inquiry
Sunday, July 14, 2019
At KECC

The monthly sessions called “Approaches to Self-inquiry” usually consist of watching a video of a spiritual teacher we feel complements the teachings of J. Krishnamurti but gives a somewhat different angle on the understanding of ourselves. Looking through a different lens may stimulate fresh insights into the nature of consciousness. On this occasion we looked at an interview with Ramesh Balsekar entitled “Who Wants to Know What?” The interviewer was very skillful in asking for clarification of Ramesh’s pointers as he explained how we mistake ourselves to be separate entities with choice and free will when in fact we are the instruments of the totality, the Whole, as it carries out the actions necessary for itself. The process of life and activity is an impersonal happening, according to Ramesh’s perspective. He goes into some detail about this and questions our conventional beliefs about our identity in a penetrating way. Sometimes what he says can seem difficult to follow when one has not come across his way of seeing or his flavour of teaching, but most of the seven participants appeared to experience the material to be of value and were able to find it relevant to their own self-inquiry process. (After the video we engaged in group dialogue and sharing of our impressions.) It was a somewhat out-of-the-ordinary exploration which activated some interesting questions and food for inquiry.

Exploring Awareness at KECC July 7, 2019

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Exploring Awareness
July 7, 2019
At KECC

This Sunday afternoon session is presented as an opportunity to experience what J. Krishnamurti and other teachers are pointing to in a manner that can be quite deeply experiential – perhaps in a different way than is enabled by discussion. The opportunity was only taken by three participants, but they all reported finding it of value. David guided the small group in a meditation exploring the sense of “Being”, or the “inner body”, as Eckhart Tolle calls it. The inner body was accessed by bringing attention to the sense of aliveness in the body and enhancing that sense with the breathing. Then there was an exploration of the awareness that was knowing the inner body experience, an entry into the effortless attention that Krishnamurti so often points to. In the meditation the thoughts can become very quiet and one can notice a wholeness that is our natural state. The active mind settles and awareness is no longer being dominated by the busyness of compulsive thinking.
The guided meditation was followed by a short reading from John Wheeler on the topic of seeing the root of our suffering

Krishnamurti Study Sesssion, July 7, 2019 at KECC

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Krishnamurti Study Session
Sunday, July 9, 2019
At KECC

Continuing with our study of The Book of Life: Daily Meditations with Krishnamurti, we explored the January 19 entry entitled “Liberation from Ignorance, from Sorrow”. In this passage K focuses on the necessity of self-knowledge if we wish to be free of suffering. Noone else can give us the understanding which will end sorrow. After reading the passage and having some minutes of silence to contemplate or look over the ideas, each of the six participants was invited to share with the group any impressions, insights, or questions arising for him or her. We then inquired further into the issues that were raised. The discussion took a creative form, with a variety of fresh questions and insights being contributed to the open space of looking and listening. It felt like a free-flowing process in which all were interested and engaged. As is often the case, it was felt that we entered a state of consciousness beyond a merely intellectual analysis of the teachings, and as such it seemed worthwhile and enjoyable for the participants.

Are You Aware?

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Are You Aware?

 

In this video Rupert notes that spiritual awakening is not an extraordinary experience nor an exotic practice. Every single human being on the planet lives in awareness every day. Discovering this does not require extensive meditational practices or devotions. If you ask any person on earth the simple question—‘Are you aware?’, they will say “yes” because they experience being aware. To answer this question a responder has to go to the actual experience of awareness to get the answer. This experience is the portal to spiritual awakening which we all have access to. The secret is to abide in awareness knowingly. Krishnamurti implied the same idea when he coined the phrase, the observer is the observed.