Today’s reading is an interpretation of three of Jesus’ parables. You can read those parables at this link.

There is an idea that is accepted as fact by nearly every person alive. The idea is, “I am a person, living and moving independently, in a world that is separate from me and bigger than me.”

This idea is a perception. It is not true.

Interestingly, I got caught up in this mistaken perception recently while reading from I Am That, Talks with Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj. It might be helpful to listen to that audio today, if you have time. It is a 1-hour audio. In the audio, you will hear how I moved from confusion to clarity.

Link to the audio

It’s important to realize that the true Self has never been lost. It isn’t something we need to acquire or earn. It is present as us right now.

Our challenge is not one of finding something that is lost. Our challenge is letting go of something that we cling to, something that obscures the true Self. That something is the mind.

It’s important to be clear that if it were not for the mind, our truth would be obvious to us. This is important, because humans tend to value their mind above everything else that they value. That means that we put the obstacle to truth above everything else in our list of ‘What Is Important to Me’.

That’s what needs to change.

I mentioned that I got caught up in confusion while reading I Am That. What does, “I Am That” mean?

“I Am That” means I am the essence that is everything. I am consciousness. Using an example from some exercises we imagined earlier this year, I am the clay.

It isn’t true that I am a person living and moving independently in a world that is separate from me. That is a misperception caused by the mind.

It also isn’t true that I am a part in a bigger world of many parts, which are all connected into one.

I am the essence itself. I Am That.

Realizing this is awakening. Realizing this is also what Jesus called “eternal life,” because we realize that we are that which is eternal instead of this temporary personality-body-mind.

Today’s reading gives us a thought to accept. That thought uses a stepped process to step away from misperception. One who believes she is a person in a world accepts that she is within the Spirit of God and not separate from it. Once this is realized, she takes the next step to realize she is the Spirit of God.

The same idea can be contemplated this way:

Existence is one.
Nothing exists that is outside of existence.
I exist, and so I must be within existence.
I exist, and so I must be one with existence.
I exist, and so I must be existence.

Instead of just saying these words, you can look and see if this is true. Are you existence?

Here is another way to contemplate that idea:

Consciousness is one.
There is only one consciousness.
Minds differ, but consciousness is always the same.
Every conscious being experiences the same consciousness.
I am conscious, and so I experience the one consciousness.
One who experiences the one consciousness is the one consciousness.
I am consciousness.

Again, you can look to see if that is true. Are you consciousness? Isn’t it true that consciousness is more intimately you than the body or the mind?

Prayer

Prayer is typically associated with a spiritual or religious path, and prayer can be a very useful practice. However, not all prayer is useful. Prayer is useful when it is used to:

• Empty the mind of concerns and desires (e.g., Thy will, not my will)
• Assist one to look at his thoughts and emotions soberly
• Open the heart, spark gratitude, reignite faith or inflame willingness
• Quiet the mind
• Sense and get in touch with the current high vibration

Our Judgment of Others

We have already seen that ego judgment compares, and then favors or rejects. This type of judgment is the cause of the sense of separation.

Let’s look at an example:

Imagine I have two friends. On several occasions, I have made plans with these friends. One friend typically shows up promptly for our engagements. She is happy and excited to spend time together. The other friend is typically late. Occasionally, she doesn’t show up at all. There have been a few times when she was so late that we thought she wasn’t coming, so we left without her. When that happened, she got angry and held a grudge. She would be more prompt for a while, but she’d arrive making a comment like, “I’m here on time so that you two won’t go without me.”

A situation like the one described above provides the opportunity for judgment. The judgments that you or I make are based on the filter of our minds, so we might not make the exact same judgments. However, most people would make some judgments in a situation like this.

The judgments that we make create a sense of separation. One or two people in the story are favored, and one or two people in the story are rejected.

When we reject someone (or something about someone), we close our heart. We attempt to keep them outside of our being, because we believe we are protected if we can keep them outside of our self. The problem is that they are already inside of our being. If they weren’t already inside, we wouldn’t be aware of them.

When we close our heart, we imprison our judgment of them inside of our consciousness. In other words, we hold onto anything we reject. In this way, we cling to our mental images of others as separate, which strengthens our own sense of separation. Anything that strengthens our sense of separation also unconsciously strengthens our sense of guilt and unworthiness. That means judgment as a defense mechanism backfires every time it’s used. It’s the one who judges that gets hurt by judgment. That’s why Jesus said:

Do not judge, or you too will be judged. ~ Matthew 7:1

Do not judge, and you will not be judged. Do not condemn, and you will not be condemned. Forgive, and you will be forgiven. ~ Luke 6:37

How can the story I’ve told above be seen without judgment?

Watch the wind blow through the leaves of trees. Notice how each leaf is unaffected by what the other is doing. … This is because they do not know any separateness. … They blow in the wind and are perfect in their natural state. Your natural state is perfection. Do not look beyond this, and you will know freedom from the ego. ~ Inner Wisdom through Lanae

In other words:

One friend typically arrives on time and happy. One friend is more often late. Sometimes she doesn’t come at all. Sometimes we are confused about whether she is late or not coming, and we go without her. Sometimes she gets mad about that. Leaves blowing in the wind.