Click here to go to the next issue
Highlights Home Page | Receive the Nonduality Highlights each day
How to submit material to the Highlights
#4323 -
The Nonduality
Highlights - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NDhighlights
http://thespiritualmind-holly.blogspot.com/
by Holly Barrett,
PhD
The ego's road to
enlightenment is at times not only a pathless path, but a
switchback between hellish dark nights and heavenly raptures.
The best psychological account of the hellish realms I have
read is Michael Washburn's The Ego And The Dynamic Ground. In
particular, Washburn describes the paranoia that besets the wee
uncomprehending human ego when confronted by the looming,
permeating Ground.
Examples of such fears
are the seemingly pathological apprehensions that one is going
insane,
that one is being
possessed by an alien force or entity, that one is transparent to
other people,
and that one is being
conspired against or manipulated by mysterious persons or powers
(p. 194).
I can personally vouch for all of these.
With every step of growth, there is a moment of terror when all
the underpinnings of identity are stripped. We wonder, who
am I if I'm not the person I thought I was? In
enlightenment we discover, in St. Catherine's words, "My Me
is God, nor do I recognize any other Me except my God
Himself." This is pretty tough to get our minds
around. So we suffer.
But this same truth is also responsible for our bliss states.
When we know we are nothing but God's avatars, we -- our
little selves -- are off the hook. We cannot do God's job.
We are surrendered. Our life becomes unfathomably
miraculous and we are joyfully absorbed by existence itself.
These swings between paranoia and bliss show up long before
anybody is called to step on the road. Think of the
soul-crushing burden of imagining oneself responsible for every
one's well being. Think, on the other hand, of those
moments of unselfconsciousness when it is enough just to be alive
and to love. At whatever level, we are never unaware of, or
not relating to, the Ground. We are either struggling with
its Presence, relieved at its Sovereignty, or pretending It
doesn't exist.
Scott Kiloby's
upcoming schedule in the
The Yoga Centre,
August 6th and 7th, 2011
For details contact 01200 429460
or go here: http://non-duality-north.com/contact_us.php
visit Non-Duality North.
August 9th,
August 10th,
PA centre in
www.philadelphia-association.co.uk
Contact Kiran: 07788 136 105
Peter Fenner's
upcoming free telecalls:
Nondual
Teacher and Therapist Training: Oct 2011 – August 2012
(Limited
places available)
FREE
intro telecalls
With
Peter Fenner:
· August 21st (
· or September 22nd (
Peter
is offering two introductory teleconference calls for anyone who
is interested in the next 10 month Nondual Teacher and
Therapist Training.
These
calls will give you an opportunity to connect with
Peter, engage in the type of dialogue he
offers and teaches, and ask any questions you have about theTraining.
Click
to Request the Telephone and Pin access
number here: