Notes to self.
Get in the flow of Awakening: There is no end-game. It’s an ever-going process. However, there are thresholds, and with some practice, we can be in the flow of awakening, where it will continue to ebb and flow, go forward and recede, on its own, and the movement will be towards a being who is natural, with a tendency to enjoy all experiences, and a tendency to act from fresh innocence instead of stale beliefs and fear.
Awareness: This is the magic which makes it all happen. With some practice, awareness is technique-less, unbidden, effortless, and choiceless. It is innate—it requires no thought or concept or belief to be. You can develop this by observing thought, meditating, being utterly in the Now, or simply by falling back in awareness. The short moments of awareness add up.
credit: justinlai
Release: learn a release technique which resonates with you, such as the beyond-karma release, the Sedona Method or EFT. Feel better right now, right here. Let go of the rubbish.
Learn: Read, listen, watch. Don’t get attached to any particular teaching or view of existence. See other articles here through search or the category button on the menu, External Resources, and you can also find excellent blogs through the comments.
Indulge in loving self-acceptance: Acceptance is not something we do. It is something we stop doing. Acceptance is when we stop resisting what already is. It comes about naturally when we learn to release.
Accept ebb and flow: Awakening will bring about periods of deep resonance, as well as turmoil and inertia. External life, career, work, goals, relationships, lifestyle, outlook and the body can change dramatically, often in uncomfortable and confusing ways. Our tendency is to control. It is in patience and allowing and watching that we can see that the low times are often the resistance of conflicting beliefs, and we can release.
“Do not seek Truth; only cease to cherish opinion.” What trips us up on our way to innocent and powerful awareness is the clinging to beliefs and concepts. Don’t let the mind fixate on any particular belief or idea or viewpoint. I’ve found that every bit of resistance I’ve encountered has come down to some form of clinging to a concept or belief.
Understand the mind. Come into the right relationship with the ego and the mind. You are not thought, ego, emotion, beliefs, desires, aversions, thoughts of the past, or thoughts of the future, or conditioning. I generally use the word “mind” to refer to these thinking processes. The book Power of Now is good start in understanding the mind and ego.
Develop a gentle honesty with yourself.
Develop a Toolbox: observe thought, meditate, be present, keep attention in the body when listening and interacting; release compulsive thoughts; light up your chakras; send up metta (loving-kindness-friendliness), learn release techniques, observe emotions…See How-to-awaken category.
Be compassionate. This Buddhist saying has stayed with me: Whenever I am angry or offended at someone, it is always because I am afraid of the same thing in me. It’s just so much easier to be compassionate and open.
Be patient. Awakening will ebb and flow in surprising ways. Allow it. Every bit of the process is the releasing of resistance, and sometimes this can be uncomfortable, but never beyond our capabilities. “When you don’t get what you want, sometimes it’s a wonderful stroke of luck.”
Forgive: Forgiving is moving on, releasing the painful chains of the past. It is that, but in the end it is an internal process of self-acceptance, the dropping of resistance. It is seeing that there is no one to forgive, and no one who can forgive, and no one who needs forgiveness. Know that everyone does absolutely the best they can under the circumstances of their conditioning.
Be grateful: If you look back at the moments in your life that were truly and naturally joyful, you may find that they were infused with a natural and uncontrived gratitude for being alive and conscious. Gratitude is the appreciation of existence.
Write: Keep a journal. If you’re not used to doing this, start with sending emails to yourself. Writing out your experiences helps not only understand them but it also helps maintain an awareness from a broader vantage point.
Try Rational Recovery to overcome addictions.
Eat mindfully: Diets do not work. The body knows best, but with the complex of conflicting beliefs we build in ourselves, we are far removed from the natural functioning of the body, and we are easily fooled by unnatural cues and heavy promotion of non-foods. Allow the body to do its thing, simply by paying full attention to how you feel before, while, and after eating. Simple rules: Eat when slightly hungry, eat whatever you want, stop when full, and pay full attention before, after, and during eating.
Enjoy easy movement. Enjoy walking, Hatha Yoga, Tai Chi or similar meditative movements. The secret to exercising all your life is not to exercise, but instead to relish in the joy of movement, every day, for the rest of your life.
Get plenty of sleep.
Get up early.
Be open to resonant purpose: For me, a love of writing and experiences with awakening have led naturally to writing about awakening. This purpose defines my life and makes decisions easy. Many of us are very concerned about finding our purpose or passion. It’s far more important to see that every being is the same Essence and every being’s inner purpose is to awaken. The purpose of life is simply to experience. When this inner purpose is realized, in this still presence, outer purpose will sometimes be invited.
Develop relationships: Family and friends are important. Be present and aware as a compassionate example. Take care of your personal agreements and social contracts. Sometimes agreements break, and relationships come to an end. Expand your purpose to include breakage with compassion.
Simplify. De-clutter your life and your surroundings. Pare down your commitments. Pare down your goals. Practice minimalism. Own as little as you’re comfortable with. Consume as little as you’re comfortable with.
Do less, enjoy more. Slow way down. Single task. If you really want to accomplish a goal, set exactly one goal at a time. Do everything that supports it. Avoid everything that resists it. Bring it down to the essentials.
Release the angst. We’re tempted to chase self-discipline, self-improvement, the law of attraction, positive thinking, optimism, motivation, passion, purpose, spirituality, the meaning of life and all the rest of it. We already know intuitively that living in flow cannot possibly this complicated. Develop awareness and face up to what’s negative in you, accept it, allow it, and release it, and you will find what’s left is positivity in abundance.
Go on news fast.
Go on a TV fast.
Go on an internet fast.
Travel as often as you can
Create as much alone time as you’re comfortable with
Simplify money. Think of money as energy. It helps us get things done. Money is a practical matter; don’t depend on money for completion. Be frugal. Get out of debt. Cut down on bills, cut down on credit cards, cut down the number of accounts. Own as little as you’re comfortable with. Consume as little as you’re comfortable with.
Be aware of non-sustainability of rigid structures. Many of humanity’s rigid structures are built on the collective ego. These will not sustain. We may be seeing the beginning of fundamental failure in many areas: the economy, ecology, fulfillment, religion, wars, nationalism, food and so on.
Send out compassion. Volunteer. Help others. The best way to change the world is by example of awakening. Inner peace is virally contagious.
Be friendly to the earth and fellow animals: Be aware of the institutionalized cruelty to animals. It’s a difficult subject, but we must be aware of the extensive institutionalized cruelty. Be aware of the unsustainable practices of abusing natural resources.
Be in nature as much as you can
No one can do this for you, but you are not alone: We have family and friends and books and resources, and now with the internet, there are many forums and blogs and people who are willing to help. We simply have to reach out and share. To explore more on any particular item, use the search box or the category button on menu at the top. Check out the External Resources page. Follow back to other blogs from the comments.