What is the Real World?

Our new special theme begins by saying, “The real world is a symbol, like the rest of what perception offers.”

What is a symbol?

According to my dictionary, it is “a thing that represents or stands for something else, especially a material object representing something abstract.”

The world you see is a symbol. It is a thing that represents something abstract. It is a representation of what you believe is true. As NTI says, the world, as you see it, is a reflection of your mind.

Let’s begin our contemplation of the real world by looking at the world as we see and experience it right now.

How do you describe the world as you see and experience it?

Spend today with this question. Write down answers as they come to you. Tomorrow we will take the next step in this contemplation.

This is a day of stillness and of peace.

Today’s lesson speaks of the mind that sees the real world. A mind at peace experiences a holy world. It reminds me of a song by Peter Mayer, “Holy Now.”

The lesson confirms what we are contemplating today—the world we see is a reflection of our mind. When our mind is at peace, we offer “the same vision to the world.” However, if our mind is not at peace, that is the vision we offer to the world.

You’ve already been asked to describe the world as you see it today. When you do that, please describe the people in the world as you see them. Describe yourself as you see yourself. Describe your financial situation as you see it, your pets as you see them, etcetera. Really look around today, and describe what you see as you see it.

Each time you write down a description, follow it up by remembering today’s workbook lesson, “This is a day of stillness and peace.” Let today’s lesson remind you that a still mind sees the world through peace. Accept in your heart that if you see anything that is upsetting, stressful, fearful or agitating to you, it is because of something you believe in the mind. If you are upset in that moment, take a deep breath and repeat these lines from the prayer in today’s lesson:

Father, guide [me] along the quiet path that leads to You. Let my forgiveness be complete, and let the memory of You return to me.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation today, I recommend this meditation:

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You might also enjoy listening to this song: Holy Now, by Peter Mayer

What is the Holy Spirit?

Spiritual intuition mediates between illusions and truth. It bridges the gap between reality and dreams by reinterpreting perception, so that even dreams point toward truth. Everything in time has a different purpose under the guidance of spiritual intuition than it does with the chattering thoughts of the ego.

The goal of spiritual intuition is awakening to truth. To meet this goal, spiritual intuition acts as the inner teacher for anyone who will listen. Sometimes subtle and sometimes bold, spiritual intuition will guide you using any means that you will pay attention to.

In reality, you are awake consciousness, which is the source of spiritual intuition. Therefore, when spiritual intuition has accomplished its goal, you will have awakened to your Self, which is beyond spiritual intuition. In this way, spiritual intuition is a bridge from what you think you are—your false self—to what you truly are.

Those who recognize the calling to awaken to the true Self realize that spiritual intuition is the means they must surrender to until the goal is accomplished. Those who remain interested in the ego thought system perceive spiritual intuition as a threat. Because they are afraid of it, they repress its guiding intuition. Those who are transitioning from interest in the world to the call to awaken must bring intuition out of repression by following it whenever they recognize its guidance.

Spiritual intuition reinterprets every tool the ego thought system uses for its purpose in order to awaken you to truth. Spiritual intuition uses doubt, desire, attention, thought and judgment as well as time, relationships, contrast, comparison, and even separation (solitude) for its purpose of bringing you back to your truth.

Spiritual intuition leads you to let go of dreams by letting go of the ego thought system, which is the creator and interpreter of dreams. It provides you with another choice, another way to be within dreams—a way that provides the security you think you need without teaching you that you are one who needs protection. In this way, spiritual intuition does not teach fear. It teaches unaffectedness, which is truth.

Accept spiritual intuition as your guide now. Realize that the ego thought system has nothing to offer you. It isn’t needed for anything. Spiritual intuition can and will guide you through every situation you face. It will not leave you comfortless. It will teach you about your truth.

My present happiness is all I see.

When we look at the world through the ego thought system, we see what isn’t there. Here is a story to illustrate that point:

Sally and Moose were high school sweethearts who married and had three children together. Sally was a homemaker. Moose was an athlete who was away from home much of the year.

Sally perceived herself as plain and boring. She knew Moose had many attractive female fans, many of whom had lives that she thought were much more exciting than hers.

Moose worried that Sally was unhappy, because he was away from home so much of the time. He saw himself as an absent husband and father, and he felt guilty for it. He longed to spend more time with his family, but he felt inadequate, like a big, dumb athlete. He didn’t think he had the intelligence to find another way to support his family.

One evening, while Moose was on the road, he and Sally talked on the phone. Moose commented about a friend of his, who had recently married a fan and was planning a honeymoon trip to Hawaii as soon as the current sport’s season ended.

Sally glanced at the family room where she was sitting. Toys were strewn about. It crossed her mind that Moose was envious of his friend, because she and Moose did not take exotic vacations together.

Sally became defensive. She said, “We have a pretty good life right here at home, but you wouldn’t know that, because you are never around.”

Her words cut through Moose like a knife. She had touched on what he feared the most, that he was an absent husband and father. Feeling guilty, he shot back, “I have to support you, you know. I’m not free to do whatever I want to do.”

Sally thought Moose saw her as a burden, something he wished he could be free of. Her voice was clearly agitated. “We don’t need you. Don’t you think we can get by without you? We do it all of the time!”

And the fight continued.

Sally felt unworthy of her famous husband. Moose felt unworthy of his loving wife. Neither saw the misperceptions caused by their thoughts. Six months later, Sally filed for divorce.

This story is fictional, but it is based on misunderstandings that I witness all of the time. These misunderstandings happen, because people see through the filter of their thoughts, and they are blind to what is really there.

Today we commit to slowing down. Whenever you notice that you want to react to something that someone else says or does, pause and look at your thoughts. What thoughts are coloring your perception? Why are you upset?

When you see without the distortion that is caused by the ego thought system, seeing is clear; you feel happiness and love, because happiness and love are what you are. If you are upset, it is a sure sign that ego thinking misleads your perception. Inquiry is needed.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

Our special theme says, “The Holy Spirit understands the means you made, by which you would attain what is forever unattainable. And if you offer them to Him, He will employ the means you made for exile to restore your mind to where it truly is at home.”

The ego is thought and judgment, so many spiritual teachings encourage the spiritual aspirant to let go of thought and judgment. Yet, spiritual intuition uses both thought and judgment to lead us toward awakening.

Let’s look at thought first. Most thought is clearly ego. Ego is best recognized by its ‘chatter’ quality. However, not all thought is chatter. There are two additional types of thought.

• Practical thought, such as the thought I am using now to select words that best communicate what I want to say. I will also use practical thought to proofread this after I finish typing it.
• Inspired thought, which comes from intuition. Inspired thought can come from everyday intuition or from spiritual intuition.

Spiritual aspirants do well to discern between the three types of thought, and then to let go of chatter and follow both practical and inspired thought. Interestingly, discerning between the three types of thought and then deciding to let go of a thought or to follow a thought is judgment. According to my dictionary, judgment is “the ability to make considered decisions or come to sensible conclusions.”

Just as spiritual aspirants are encouraged to let go of thought, spiritual aspirants are encouraged to let go of judgment. However, just as there are three types of thought, there are three types of judgment: judgments that come from ego chatter, practical judgment and inspired judgment.

• An example of judgment that comes from chatter is, “She’s stupid,” or “I’m smarter than her.”
• An example of a practical judgment is, “It will make things a lot easier if I take the time to learn how to use this App.”
• An example of inspired judgment is, “I’m becoming attached to an outcome. I need to step back and trust whatever unfolds.”

Humans have brains, and brains are made for thinking. However, listening to, believing and blindly following ego chatter is not thinking. Real thinking is using the brain’s judgment or discernment capability to decide when to listen to and follow a thought and when not to. Real thinking is the hallmark of wisdom.

The past is over. It can touch me not.

Today’s lesson talks about the past. It says, “Unless the past is over in my mind, the real world must escape my sight. For I am really looking nowhere; seeing but what is not there.”

What is the past?

According to my dictionary, it is “gone by in time and no longer existing.”

If one looks clearly for a moment, one can see that the past is not here now. It is impossible for the past to be here now. The past has already “gone by in time” and it is “no longer existing.”

The past that humans hold onto is in thought only.

The past is thought. It might have been actually experienced once, but now it is only thought.

Since the past is thought, let’s look at it as thought.

Which category of thought does the past fit into? Is it ego chatter, practical thought or inspired thought?

If you look carefully, you will see that the past can fit into all three of these categories.

• An example of the past as ego chatter is, “I’m not looking forward to seeing mom today. All she does is judge me.”
• An example of the past as a practical thought is, “Sometimes there is traffic on the highway this time of day. It might be good to leave a little early.” Another example of the past as practical thought is knowing to stop when you come to a stop sign.
• An example of the past as inspired thought is, “Last time I felt nervous like this, it turned into full blown fear. It’s a good idea for me to take a break now and inquire into these thoughts before they get worse.”

Which type of past thought is today’s lesson talking about when it says, “Father, let me not look upon a past that is not there”?

It is the past as ego chatter that is a block to clarity. Practical thought and inspired thought are not obstacles to clear seeing, even if the past is a component of those types of thoughts.

I would like to point out that there is a difference between the past as ego chatter and memory. A smell can invoke a memory. A sight or a sound can invoke a memory. Memories arise. As long as a memory does not become ego chatter, memories are simply passing phenomena that are witnessed by awareness.

Notice your thinking today. If your thinking is ego chatter, choose to let it go. Ego chatter is not at all beneficial. It is thought that you can live without. Interestingly, most thought is ego chatter, which means that you can live without the vast majority of your thoughts.

If your thinking is genuinely practical or inspired, listen to it. These thoughts either make your life easier or guide you toward awakening. Both are beneficial.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

Our special theme says, “The Holy Spirit understands the means you made, by which you would attain what is forever unattainable. And if you offer them to Him, He will employ the means you made for exile to restore your mind to where it truly is at home.”

The ego uses our attention to keep us absorbed in illusion and ignorance. Our attention is usually focused outward on the ego’s ideas (thought) and perceptions (the world as perceived through thought).

Spiritual intuition uses the same tool that the ego uses—attention. However, spiritual intuition guides us to keep attention focused inward instead of outward. We are focused inward as we ask intuition, “What am I to do now? How am I to see this?” We are also focused inward as we practice awareness-watching-awareness or loving consciousness meditation.

Outward focused attention is guided by ego.
Inward focused attention is guided by spiritual intuition.

There is a third type of attention. It is fully involved in the moment with no “I” or self in it. Examples include being absorbed in creativity or being absorbed in nature.

When we are fully in the moment without ego chatter about “me,” we are in presence. We might call that merged attention instead of outward focused attention, because instead of the idea of me as a person looking outward at a world through “my” thoughts, it is awareness and scenery all merged into one happening.

Therefore:

Outward focused attention is guided by ego.
Inward focused attention is guided by spiritual intuition.
Merged attention is presence.

Let me forget my brother’s past today.

Which type of attention is active when there is a grievance? Is it outward, inward or merged attention?

The answer is outward attention. Outward attention is attention that looks outward through thought, or more specifically, through the ego thought system. Outward attention looks at our brother through the ego’s chatter about the brother and what he did to me, or what I don’t like about him, etcetera.

If we focus our attention inwardly, we will find another thought system. It is the thought system that points toward truth. It may guide us to see our brother differently; it may guide us to inquire into our thoughts in order to see them differently; it may guide us to practice the Loving All Method with our brother and the situation; it may guide us to notice our self as unaffected awareness, etcetera. The specific guidance will vary, but the guidance will always be toward truth and away from untruth.

If our attention is merged, there will be no thought about our brother’s past and there will be no current judgments about him. There will only be this moment as it is in joy.

As you look at the three paragraphs written above, you might notice that inward focused attention is the bridge between outward focused attention and merged attention. Said another way, spiritual intuition is the means to one consciousness, which is awareness and happening as one (not “me” and other than me).

Today, whenever you notice that you are involved in outward attention, shift inward using surrender as it is taught in The Teachings of Inner Ramana.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

Our special theme says, “The Holy Spirit understands the means you made, by which you would attain what is forever unattainable. And if you offer them to Him, He will employ the means you made for exile to restore your mind to where it truly is at home.”

Yesterday we looked at the positive use of doubt. The Holy Spirit uses doubt, which is part of the ego thought system, to doubt the ego thought system itself.

Likewise, desire is part of the ego thought system. There is no desire in consciousness. But the Holy Spirit (i.e., spiritual intuition) uses desire as a means of directing our attention toward reality. We begin to desire truth, or we desire freedom from suffering, or we experience some other desire that turns attention from the world and places attention inward. In this way, desire is employed to restore us to truth realization.

As we have seen repeatedly since the beginning of Gentle Healing, desire is an important tool of awakening. That is because desire is an integral part of the ego thought system. Until we awaken, desire is activated. We could desire a new relationship, a bag of potato chips, more money, a different place to live, a new job, new shoes or anything, but the ego always desires. So the Holy Spirit takes what is there—desire—and turns it around so that it takes us to truth instead of more fully into illusion.

Here are two quotes about the importance of desiring truth:

“The desire for enlightenment is necessary because without it you will never take the necessary steps to realize the Self. A desire to walk to a particular place is necessary before you take any steps. If that desire is not present, you will never take the first step. When you realize the Self, that desire will go.” ~ Sri Annamalai Swami

“Merely to trust is not enough. You must also desire. Without desire for freedom of what use is the confidence that you can acquire freedom? Desire and confidence must go together. The stronger your desire, the easier comes the help.” ~ Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj

Some people have learned intellectually that there is no desire in consciousness, and then the spiritual self-image leads them to claim not to have any desires now. However, typically that is only a form of denial. They aren’t noticing their world-based desires, even though the world-based desires are there, talked about and pursued, and they aren’t allowing the desire for truth to become strong. Their denial of desire is an ego preservation strategy.

It is not helpful to deny desire. It is helpful to engage all of the power of desire for the purpose of awakening by realizing over and over again that your spiritual aspiration is all you truly want.

You are my goal, my Father. Only You.

Today’s lesson asks questions, which help us invoke our desire for truth. It asks:

Where would I go but Heaven? What could be a substitute for happiness? What gift could I prefer before the peace of God? What treasure would I seek and find and keep that can compare with my Identity? And would I rather live with fear than love?

Use today to inquire about desire. What are your world based desires? Notice them. Will those desires, if achieved, bring everlasting peace, happiness and clarity? What is your spiritual aspiration? Will it, if achieved, bring everlasting peace, happiness and clarity? What is your strongest heart-felt desire? What do you want above all else?

I recommend taking time to answer the preceding questions through journaling. Reading my tips is a wonderful first step, but if you merely read my tips without following the practice recommendations in the tips, you are probably not taking steps toward your spiritual aspiration. Reading, but not practicing, is another ego preservation strategy.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

The Teachings of Inner Ramana says:

When one is not world-focused, guidance within the world occurs naturally. Non-attached activity within perception is not a hindrance to awakening. Attached activity is a means of clinging to the dream.

In The Teachings of Inner Ramana, world-focus and attachment are synonymous. World-focus and attachment occur when we believe our thoughts. Believing our thoughts is a hindrance to intuition, because when we believe our thoughts, we think we are right. When we think we are right, we are not open to intuition.

Our special theme says, “The Holy Spirit understands the means you made, by which you would attain what is forever unattainable. And if you offer them to Him, He will employ the means you made for exile to restore your mind to where it truly is at home.”

Doubt is part of the ego thought system. It does not exist in consciousness. However, spiritual intuition has a positive use for doubt. Doubt can be used to doubt our thoughts. We can doubt them enough to bring them to inquiry, or we can doubt them enough to disregard them altogether.

When we doubt our thoughts, we are open to guidance that comes from intuition.

The hush of Heaven holds my heart today.

Today we practice the positive use of doubt. As we doubt our thoughts, they grow quieter. They grow quieter because we are not giving them our believing-attention.

When we live in the world with a quiet detached mind, we see the miracle of unfolding. We discover that we do not need to think about everything and figure everything out. The miracle of unfolding takes care of everything. Or, as our lesson says, “In [God] is every choice already made.”

Today we doubt our thoughts, but we do not doubt the path we are on, our intuition or “the end which God Himself as promised us. We trust in Him, and in our Self, Who still is One with Him.”

Choose to doubt wisely today.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

Our special theme says, “From knowledge, where He has been placed by God, the Holy Spirit calls to you, to let forgiveness rest upon your dreams, and be restored to sanity and peace of mind.”

Or, as The Teachings of Inner Ramana says:

World-focused thought is always an error. It is attachment. Therefore, it is dreaming or remaining deluded.

To help people with world-focused thoughts by providing world-focused solutions is assisting one to dream. Therefore, the Awakened One, who has accepted the role of continuing the awakening, will not assist in world-focused concerns by providing world-focused answers. The Awakened One will assist world-focus by observing the filter with the one who has a desire to awaken.

In an earlier tip, I wrote about the difference between everyday intuition and spiritual intuition. This difference is not something we need to analyze. For example, if we have a feeling to talk to someone, we do not need to analyze whether that is coming from everyday intuition or spiritual intuition. It is always good to follow intuition, so we can simply follow the intuitive feeling in trust.

However, it is helpful to know there are two types of intuition. Everyday intuition makes life in the world easier. Spiritual intuition is the intuition that awakens us from the world entirely.

Since spiritual intuition has a very specific purpose, it also has a very specific focus. It’s helpful if we respect its focus. For example, it is a mistake if we ask spiritual intuition, “How can I make more money?” or “Should I stay in this relationship or leave?”

These questions are world-focused questions. Spiritual intuition has the function of awakening you from the world entirely. It cannot awaken you from the world and guide you in the world too. That would be confusing its purpose.

As The Teachings of Inner Ramana says, “The Awakened One will assist world-focus by observing the filter with the one who has a desire to awaken.”

“The Awakened One” is a synonym for the Holy Spirit and spiritual intuition. The “filter” is a synonym for the mind and thought. So, Inner Ramana teaches that spiritual intuition responds to world-focus by helping you observe, or inquire into, thought.

If you ask spiritual intuition a question, and you want a world-focused answer, spiritual intuition will remain silent. If you are really interested in an answer to your question, the ego will step in and fill that void. In other words, it is the ego that answers world-focused questions.

You can receive clear answers from spiritual intuition if you ask questions that are focused on its purpose.

For example, instead of asking, “How can I make more money?” you might say, “I feel unsafe. How shall I look at this?” Other good questions are “What will you share with me about this?” and “What is it that I need to see in my mind?”

Instead of asking, “Should I stay in this relationship or leave?” try describing how you feel in the relationship, and then ask, “What guidance do you have for me?”

When you seek an answer from spiritual intuition, it is good to ask open-ended questions. Don’t attempt to lead spiritual intuition by putting a possible answer in your question. For example, don’t ask ‘yes’ or ‘no’ questions.

Spiritual intuition is the inner teacher, so its answers have the focus of teaching and pointing toward truth.

Everyday intuition is different. Everyday intuition provides world-based intuitive information and guidance in the moment. If you ask, “What am I to do now?” it will answer. If you ask, “What am I to do next month?” it will not answer. It will remain silent. Again, if intuition remains silent and you really want an answer to your question, ego will step in and fill the void.

Both forms of intuition are there to guide you, and it is helpful for you to follow both forms of intuition. Just remember that spiritual intuition is the inner teacher with the purpose of helping you awaken, and everyday intuition only responds to questions about right now. If you keep these simple rules in mind, it will help you to invoke intuition instead of ego.

Note: Occasionally guidance comes in, uninvited, that sets a goal or direction for you. If this type of guidance comes, you will recognize it. It has a distinct feeling to it that is different from ego. However, it is always best not to ask for future-based guidance. Your role is to stay focused with now.

My holiness shines bright and clear today.

Our lesson says, “Today I wake with joy, expecting but the happy things of God to come to me. I ask but them to come, and realize my invitation will be answered by the thoughts to which it has been sent by me. And I will ask for only joyous things the instant I accept my holiness.”

If you look carefully at today’s lesson, you will see that it indicates we will receive based on our identity.

If I see myself as a vulnerable person in the world, and I believe the thoughts in the mind are my thoughts, my experience will be based on that identification.

If I see myself as the unaffected witness, my experience will be based on that identification.

What we identify with is the most important decision that we make in each moment.

I am able to comfortably identify with the unaffected Self now, and that identification feels genuine for me. However, it didn’t always feel genuine. There was a time when I would have felt like a fake if I had identified with unaffected awareness as myself.

It’s not helpful to identify with the idea that you are an affected person, so if you are not yet to the place where it feels genuine to identify with unaffected awareness, what are you to identify with?

The Teachings of Inner Ramana has a recommendation:

The one who chooses to listen to me and follow me is the awakening of your true Self, so do not doubt your willingness to listen and follow me. That is you. And by listening to that desire, you listen to your Self.

In other words, Inner Ramana suggests that we identify with our willingness to awaken as we transition from identification as a person to identifying with the unaffected Self.

As you go through the day today, if you feel genuine identifying with the unaffected Self, please do. However, if that feels like too much of a stretch for you, identify with your willingness to realize truth. Let, “My holiness shines bright and clear today,” be a reminder to identify with one or the other in lieu of identifying with the ego experience.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

The Teachings of Inner Ramana says:

Fear comes simply from not knowing reality. Therefore, the only answer to fear is to let go of what is false and to remember reality as true. Discarding the world is as simple as remembering that it isn’t true. This is as simple as living from within instead of from without. One who is forgetting the world takes his cues from within.

“Discarding the world” is the same as seeing that we are unaffected by it. It is the same as being in the world, but not of it. It is also what our special theme means when it says:

If you but knew how much your Father yearns to have you recognize your sinlessness, you would not let His Voice appeal in vain, nor turn away from His replacement for the fearful images and dreams you made.

Although this language is highly symbolic, our “sinlessness” in this context is our unaffectedness. The previous paragraph from our special theme could be translated into less symbolic language in this way:

Your yearning for truth is the yearning to know your unaffected Self, which is your truth. When you realize how strong this yearning is in you, you will cease to listen to ego; you will listen instead to spiritual intuition. You will let spiritual intuition guide you to the realization of your Self. You will stay in the awareness of your Self, and see all things through the lens of truth. In this way, all you will see is truth, and you will rejoice at what you see.

As The Teachings of Inner Ramana says, “This is as simple as living from within instead of from without.”

If we look at the world as a movie or a play, we can also say that it has two directors. One director is the ego. When the actor is too caught up in the play of the world, the ego shouts its directions, and the actor blindly follows. This actor has forgotten that the play is a play and believes s/he is affected by everything that is happening.

The other director is intuition. In order to hear this quieter director, who whispers instructions quietly from within the actor, the actor must remember that s/he wants to hear the director’s instructions. To do this, the actor must be more focused within than on the play. Certainly, there is awareness of the play, but the actor is turned inward to discover what s/he is to say, do, not say or not do as the script of the play unfolds.

I can elect to change all thoughts that hurt.

Today’s lesson says, “Loss is not loss when properly perceived. Pain is impossible. … This is the truth, at first to be but said and then repeated many times; and next to be accepted as but partly true, with many reservations. Then to be considered seriously more and more, and finally accepted as the truth. I can elect to change all thoughts that hurt.”

The thoughts that hurt come from the ego. They are thoughts that rise up from the belief that we are affected by the world.

In order to change all thoughts that hurt, we must change directions and directors. Instead of being focused outward, we change direction and focus inward, always inward.

Outward results in fear and suffering.
Inward realizes wisdom, peace and trust.

Remain focused inward today by practicing surrender as it is taught in The Teachings of Inner Ramana.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

The Holy Spirit is a term that points to spiritual intuition. Yesterday we read about spiritual intuition in an excerpt from The Teachings of Inner Ramana. That excerpt said:

One who listens to guidance … realizes truth even as he experiences perception. He listens to knowledge because he knows that one who sees perception cannot truly see, but one who is not attached can be guided. Non-attachment and realization are one.

While contemplating our last special theme, we learned about equanimity. Equanimity is abiding in the qualities of Christ-consciousness—acceptance of what is, openness, non-attachment, and unconditional trust.

When we accept that we are consciousness, we abide in equanimity, because we realize we are unaffected by the outside world.

When we abide in equanimity, we are able to feel spiritual intuition more easily, because “one who is not attached can be guided.”

I live in the high desert of Colorado. Tumbleweeds are common here. However, we only see tumbleweeds in the winter. During the summer, tumble weeds are rooted firmly into the ground. The wind cannot blow the tumbleweeds about when they are attached to the ground.

In the winter, the tumbleweed’s roots die. That frees the tumbleweeds from the ground, and then the wind can blow them about freely.

Spiritual intuition is like the wind. When we abide in equanimity, we are like the tumbleweeds in the winter. We allow spiritual intuition to guide us without any attachment to the ground of our thoughts.

This is the goal of the Holy Spirit’s teaching. It is to free us from attachment to our thinking.

Once we are freed from our habitual thinking, we can be guided by spiritual intuition, and the Holy Spirit “becomes the means to go beyond itself, to be replaced by the eternal truth.”

As we’ve already seen, the Holy Sprit is the means to awakening. Once we awaken to truth, we are beyond the Holy Spirit. What we are is the home of the Holy Spirit. Spiritual intuition emanates from awakened consciousness.

Although what we are is the source that spiritual intuition emanates from, until we genuinely awaken to our Self, we do well to be surrendered to spiritual intuition. Through surrender, we let our true voice guide us back to the realization of what we are.

One mistake that people make when they understand intellectually that the Holy Spirit is their true voice, but they don’t have the genuine experience of themselves as consciousness, is listening to the ego thought system while saying, “But the Holy Spirit is me.” In other words, they think their thinking and their will is the same as the Holy Spirit’s thinking and its will.

Your thinking and spiritual intuition are not the same thing. Thinking is the voice of the ego, and it will keep you attached to the idea that you are a person in a body.

If you really want to awaken to your truth, it is critical that you put your own thinking aside and tune into spiritual intuition. Spiritual intuition is the means to awakening, not your thinking. You need to free yourself from the ground of your thoughts in order to genuinely follow spiritual intuition.

My true identity abides in You.

The prayer in today’s workbook lesson begins with, “Father, I made an image of myself, and it is this I call the Son of God. Yet is creation as it always was, for Your creation is unchangeable. Let me not worship idols.”

Most people do not call themselves the “Son of God.” Most people in the world today think of Jesus as the “Son of God.” Yet, they may think of themselves as the children of God.

Why is it an error to think of yourself, the person, as the Son or child of God?

When you think of yourself, the person, as the Son or child of God, you remain identified with yourself as the person. You remain identified with the mind’s thoughts as your thoughts. You are not the person, and the mind’s thoughts are not your thoughts, so the error is a mistake in identification.

It is much more helpful to think of yourself as consciousness, and to realize that consciousness is the Son or child of God. Consciousness is the direct creation or extension of the source.

Nisargdatta Maharaj said:

Keep on remembering: I am neither the mind nor its ideas.  Do it patiently and with conviction and you will surely come to the direct vision of yourself as the source of being—knowing—loving, eternal, all-embracing, all-pervading. You are the infinite focused in a body. Now you see the body only. Try earnestly and you will come to see the infinite only.

Today, we will take Nisargadatta’s advice and “keep on remembering” by noticing repeatedly throughout the day that we are awareness.

We will also practice the Loving All Method today. As we do, we will remind ourselves that the essence of everything is the essence that we are. As our lesson says, “Now are we One in shared Identity, … And so we offer blessing to all things, uniting lovingly with all the world, …”

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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What is the Holy Spirit?

Our special theme says, “The Holy Spirit mediates between illusions and the truth. Since he must bridge the gap between reality and dreams, perception leads to knowledge through the grace that God has given Him, to be His gift to everyone who turns to Him for truth. Across the bridge that He provides are dreams all carried to the truth, to be dispelled before the light of knowledge. There are sights and sounds forever laid aside. And where they were perceived before, forgiveness has made possible perception’s tranquil end.”

Today, I would like to share how The Teachings of Inner Ramana shares the same teaching:

Fear comes simply from not knowing reality. Therefore, the only answer to fear is to let go of what is false and to remember reality as true.

Discarding the world is as simple as remembering that it isn’t true. This is as simple as living from within instead of from without.

One who is forgetting the world takes his cues from within. When observed, he may seem to respond to without. He may even seem to respond to his thoughts, which are still without, but this is only if you observe him from without. Without will see without. Within will see within.

One who is awakening to truth is also discarding the world, which includes discarding his thoughts about the world, so this one is learning to take all of his cues from within . . . from beyond the clouds of his thoughts.

True perception is a bridge. Guidance is a bridge. To feel that one is awakened or living outside of mind when one is experiencing perception or guidance is an error. To say that one lives outside of mind when one experiences perception is to remain deluded.

But to listen to guidance and to say that one is guided by mind outside of mind is not to be deluded. It is merely to describe the experience in words. It is merely to recognize that mind is needed to experience perception, but guidance is the echo of knowledge filtered through mind.

One who listens to guidance may be said by others to be awakened, but this one will only say he is realized, because he realizes truth even as he experiences perception. He listens to knowledge because he knows that one who sees perception cannot truly see, but one who is not attached can be guided. Non-attachment and realization are one. Seeing truth is to be awakened.

World-focused thought is always an error. It is attachment. Therefore, it is dreaming or remaining deluded.

To help people with world-focused thoughts by providing world-focused solutions is assisting one to dream. Therefore, the Awakened One, who has accepted the role of continuing the awakening, will not assist in world-focused concerns by providing world-focused answers. The Awakened One will assist world-focus by observing the filter with the one who has a desire to awaken.

When one is not world-focused, guidance within the world occurs naturally. Non-attached activity within perception is not a hindrance to awakening. Attached activity is a means of clinging to the dream.

Tomorrow, we will begin looking more closely at these words from The Teaching of Inner Ramana.

I will not be afraid of love today.

“Love” is a symbol for the openness of consciousness and its source. It is also a symbol for the oneness of consciousness and its source. The ego is afraid of openness and oneness. The ego is more comfortable with control and individuality, although the ego is never completely comfortable. Fear is an inherent component of the ego. As the previous excerpt from Inner Ramana teaches, “Fear comes simply from not knowing reality.” Since the ego does not know reality, fear lies at its foundation.

Regarding, “I will not be afraid of love today,” our special theme says, “This the decision not to be insane, and to accept myself as God Himself, my Father and my Source, created me.”

Basically, we have two choices: We can identify with the ego or we can identify with life-awareness-presence (consciousness). Whatever we identify with, we also act and speak from.

This is not the first time we have contemplated the question, “What will I identify with?” This question is contemplated repeatedly because one who is identified with ego is afraid to identify with awareness, even if there is a desire to do so.

The ego will not tell you that it is afraid of your truth. It will not separate itself from your truth in that way, because then you will see that the ego isn’t your truth. In that seeing, you are set free.

Instead, the ego will provide everyday objections to identifying with awareness. For example, it might say:

• People will think you are weird.
• People will think you are egotistical, pretending to be something you aren’t.
• You aren’t ready. You need to learn more first, or you need to have mystical experiences first.
• You won’t be able to take care of everyday responsibilities. You will be out of touch with everyday life.
• It’s simply not true. That’s not who you are. This is who you are. Spiritual teachings are mere fantasy.
• You don’t have time for this. There are important things that require your attention.

All of these objections, and other objections similar to them, are expressions of the ego’s fear of love.

When we decide, “I will not be afraid of love today,” we decide to be our Self. We decide to abide as life-awareness-presence instead of the body-personality-mind. We also decide to listen to and follow intuition instead of giving excessive attention to the chattering mind.

If you have 30 minutes for meditation, I recommend this meditation today:

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