Self-inquiry, Wednesday, June 7, 2023

Self-inquiry

June 7, 2023

With Mukesh Gupta

Esquimalt Gorge Pavilion

 

Six of us in total were present for this meeting at the lovely Gorge Park Pavilion. Mukesh Gupta from India was with us as a facilitator and support person. He asked participants to share what their interest was in such a meeting, which inspired interesting short stories of individual’s journeys through the realms of Advaita Vedanta, Vipassana, the formless, the opening to “emptiness”, and the experience of “just being”. A final question was asked to end the introductions: “Can we be meeting life freshly day by day, moment by moment?”

Mukesh mentioned that such explorations share a common “ground” in that the intellect can be useful but we can go deeper than knowledge and thought. We can invite a sense of love and affection. Self-inquiry can be an experience of deep meaning in the silence from which we listen and speak. We can slow down and connect with this living moment.

One dialoguer asked what it means to “be with” or “stay with” something and it was suggested that slowing down may be very helpful. This allows us to relate to “others”.

Mukesh guided us in an exploration of the source of thought, which was found to reside in memory and imprints of memories, both of which can be useful or not. It is important to discern what about thought is true or false. Mukesh suggested that “seeing” is most important and that seeing anything clearly brings liberation.

It was an interesting meeting with some new friends in attendance.