On Day 96, our tip pointed to a core problem:

We may think we value truth,
but what we really value is our thinking.

This is why we confuse our true Self with a false self. The false self is thinking, and we value thinking to the point that we are willing to see it as what we are.

Of course, Gentle Healing is a process of undoing this core problem. However, as we undo the core problem, we can’t ignore the fact that we are undoing something we have willingly valued above everything else, including truth. The value we have placed on thinking is the source of our resistance to undoing. We experience resistance to the degree that we still value thinking.

In other words, resistance is lighter if I don’t place much value on thinking anymore. It is greater if I still place great value on thinking.

The interesting thing about the level of truth that we are attempting to realize now is:

It is simple, obvious and there is nothing to fear in it.

The level of truth that we are attempting to realize now is the Second Principle of God, consciousness. Today’s reading calls it “I Am.”

If you take a break from thinking and simply look at the I Am presence that you are, you will see there is nothing to fear in it. You will see it is a simple, obvious fact. You will see it is naturally peaceful. You may even see that it is comforting to recognize yourself as “I Am.”

So, why is there resistance to simply claiming yourself as you are?

It is because of the value that is put on thinking. “I Am” is not thinking. Thinking is what today’s reading calls your illusions and your imagination.

Today’s reading provides guidance that helps us be with resistance so that resistance can be healed. Read today’s reading slowly and contemplatively. Learning to be with resistance in a way that heals it is important. As resistance heals, the value we put on thinking naturally weakens. As the value we put on thinking weakens, the awakening process gets easier, because there is less resistance as we value our thinking less.

In yesterday’s tip, we saw that we cannot go so deep into darkness that we exit consciousness or its benevolent intelligence. This is true for us, and this is true for everyone. When you look at the world and see people doing things that seem dark, confused or out of harmony with truth, those people and what they are doing are within the light—within consciousness and the realm of its benevolent intelligence.

For that reason, there is no cause for concern about the world or the choices of others. Everyone and everything is within the light and made up of the light. This is important to realize, because as long as we become concerned about the world and others—as long as we judge the world and others by our self-centered ideas of what should or should not be—we miss seeing the light.

The best advice for one who seeks Self-realization is:

Leave the world alone.
Let others be as they are.
Watch out for yourself.
See that you are seeking within.
Be of service by being tuned inward.
Everything else will take care of itself.

If you feel there is a world issue or family issue that needs your participation in order to resolve itself, look at the idea of that issue for a moment. Think about what is wrong now. Think about what needs to be done to make it right. Think about the current obstacles to change. Think about the others who will not do what you want them to do so that the issue can be resolved the way you think it needs to be resolved.

The longer you look at the issue that you think needs to be fixed, the more conflict you will find in yourself. That conflicted state is the state of separation. You cannot abide in the state of separation and know the truth. That’s why you need to leave the world alone. Only by letting everything else be—only by letting it be as it is and only by leaving it alone—can you see that everything is the light.

As you read today’s reading, contemplate this quote from Ramana Maharshi:

Take care of yourself. Let the world take care of itself. See your Self. If you are the body, there is the gross world also. If you are Spirit, all is Spirit alone.

Yesterday we noticed our desire for service and our desire for self-centered living. We acknowledged the presence of both, and we looked within to see which one represents our true desire.

If you realized that service is your true heart’s desire, and then you notice yourself making choices from self-centeredness, you may be tempted to judge yourself for going against your true desire. Today’s reading addresses this temptation. The reading says:

You are not separate, and so you can do nothing alone. All that you do, you do of Me.

What does that mean? Does it mean that I can indulge my self-centered tendencies and be in harmony with my Self?

No, it doesn’t mean that.

It means that everything is consciousness. To knowledge, which sees only consciousness, whether you are being kind or selfish, whether you are taking care of the body or hurting it, etcetera, you are still consciousness within consciousness, so consciousness is present in everything you do.

Think of the exercises we did with children’s molding clay. Whether you mold a little girl smelling a flower, a man killing a woman, one person helping another person or one person stealing from another person, they are all made out of clay, so clay is always present. From the point-of-view of clay, the only thing that ever actually exists is clay.

Consciousness is more than molding clay. Consciousness is intelligence. Since all things are consciousness, the intelligence of consciousness is always present. That means no matter what choices you have made, you have not left the realm of guidance. At any moment, whenever you are ready and regardless of what you have done, you can always ask for the highest vibrational choice and it will be available for you. You can’t go so deep into darkness that you leave consciousness or its benevolent intelligence behind.

If you cannot ever step outside of consciousness or its benevolent intelligence, is there a reason one should choose service over self-centered living?

Yes. The reason for choosing service over self-centered living is joy.

Although you cannot ever exit consciousness, you can go further and further out of harmony with your true heart. Joy comes from being in harmony with your true heart, so the further you are from being in harmony with it, the more you suffer.

As you read today’s reading, consider this quote from Ramana Maharshi:

Happiness is your nature. It is not wrong to desire it. What is wrong is seeking it outside when it is inside.

Today’s reading defines “service” as being in harmony with one’s Self. It is aligned with the definition of “service” as Ramana Maharshi used it when he said:

“Your own Self-Realization is the greatest service you can render the world.”

Prior to realization, service is seeking the light, seeking the light’s point-of-view and surrendering to the light’s guidance.

The opposite of service is “conflict.” Conflict is seeking one’s individual will, clinging to one’s individual point-of-view, and doing things “my way.”

One reason that individual will is conflict is because, as we have already seen, no two individual minds are exactly alike. Therefore, whenever we cling to our individual will, we eventually conflict with any other individual will that we come into contact with.

Another reason that individual will is conflict is because it conflicts with our own true heart. That is, it conflicts with our spiritual aspiration, which is what we want most of all.

Today’s reading says that service is joy. That’s because there is no conflict in service. When we are in service to the light, we are in harmony with ourselves and with the truth of all beings. We are in-tune with the natural benevolence of the universe. We are the presence of love by being in harmony with love through service.

As you read today’s reading, contemplate your desire for service over self-centered living. As you do, you may notice the part of your mind that clings to self-centered living. That is the part of your mind that is afraid of full and total service. It believes it loses something in service. It believes it loses itself in service. It holds onto itself through self-centeredness.

As you notice the part of your mind that resists service and clings to self-centeredness, you are noticing the part of your self that prefers conflict to love. Look at it as it shows up in your contemplation today. See it, acknowledge its presence, and then ask, “What do I truly want?” There are two wills in you now, but which one is your true heart’s desire?

Today’s reading is about a wish, a fog, and a shadow.

The Wish

The wish isn’t fully conscious in most humans, although it drives their behavior and decision-making processes. It is the wish to be something, commonly felt as the wish to be somebody. It is the wish for distinctness. It is the wish for identity. It is the wish for separation.

This wish is core to the human psyche. From the time that a child is a toddler, it begins seeking identity. At first, the child looks to its parents or caregivers for its identity. Whatever they tell the child it is, it believes. Later, the search for identity broadens. Identity comes from a wide range of “sources” including other people, media influences and most especially, one’s own developing mental chatter.

The Fog and the Shadow

Driven by the wish to be something, we each develop a view of the world and a sense of self. The fog is one’s view of the world. The shadow is one’s sense of self. They are completely illusory, decided upon solely by the individual mind. It is as Nisargadatta said:

The world you can perceive is a very small world indeed. And it is entirely private.

Since our world and individual sense of self is completely private and not shared with anyone else, they can’t be truth. They are individual made-up illusions.

As we learned on Day 85, we are free to maintain a false sense of self and a false sense of the world. We are not guilty for doing so. However, “the fog and the shadow” block truth as long as we cling to them. Even more, we typically suffer because of the fog and shadow we’ve made.

The Antidote

Since the wish to be something is the reason we made up an individual view of the world and self, a different wish (or different desire) is the antidote. That different wish is one’s spiritual aspiration.