If you’ve been with me for a while, you might have noticed that I talk about two approaches here.
On the one hand, I prattle on about the fact that your true nature is that always present undeniable awareness and all you need to “do” is glimpse it and then keep glimpsing it until you can’t be swayed anymore.
That is the top-down approach. Basic Advaita, Zen, Dzogchen, kind of stuff.
In the top-down approach there is no seeking or path or progressive anything. The seeking urge is transformed into recognition of your non-dual nature right now.
Having a glimpse doesn’t need to take long.
What is it that is here before concepts confuse everything?
What is it that is here whether you’re happy, sad, loving, hateful, gentle, or furious?
What is it that is true no matter what you believe in?
What is it that is no matter what?
What has been undeniably here, ever since you can remember?
No need to put a word to it. You are it. Be it and that’s that.
If you believe it takes many years before you can have a taste of what you are, then you have bought into a belief and this belief might become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
Questioning your beliefs is the basic work that must happen and, if you’re reading this, is most likely already happening.
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Now this is all well and good but if you’re reading this, then that might not be enough.
You’re still trying to live a life in a complex society that doesn’t give a hoot about your true nature. And besides, your true nature doesn’t need you. Awareness doesn’t go anywhere.
Even if you have realized that the separate self you believed yourself to be isn’t actually actual, most likely there is still emotional suffering based on conditioning.
This is where the bottom-up approach comes into play.
The bottom-up approach concerns itself with dissolving all egoic suffering.
As you have probably noticed, we don’t have much choice in this matter.
All the emotional pain we experience daily is the phone that doesn’t stop ringing. It’s the pressure valve that wants to be opened.
We might call this the clean-up process.
Cleaning up is also more effective when you no longer identify as a person on a healing journey to perfection. Whatever you’re identified with can be cross-examined.
This process intensifies after you recognize awareness.
Many suppressive mechanisms no longer work when your identity is no longer fixed to the imagined separate person.
And guess what happens then?
Suffering intensifies.
That is why suffering in most cases increases before it gets less. Not because you are adding more suffering but because you are facing the suffering that was previously avoided.
And the seeing of and opening to the suffering is what dissolves the suffering. Simple but not always easy.
It’s not always easy because many of us doubt our ability to do this.
No matter how many instructions you receive, you might still feel like you’re missing a vital piece — a key that will finally unlock it all.
You can dissolve this as well by questioning its validity.
There is no secret knowledge you are missing. The belief that you are missing something is the mind’s excuse to keep seeking.
The goal is not to disappear into some divine realm where you can mingle with angels in eternal pleasure.
The goal is to fully arrive here and now, to enjoy being here as a human on planet Earth.
As long as you wish to be somewhere else, there is something to be unearthed.
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One thing to keep in mind is that you don’t need to wallow in your suffering. This might be one of the crucial misunderstandings.
Yes, sometimes you have to sit with an emotion longer or repeatedly to release it fully.
But releasing suffering doesn’t mean creating more suffering. Releasing suffering doesn’t mean giving in to the same old habitual thinking and feeling.
Releasing suffering is acknowledging and then letting it go. You become conscious of what you used to be unconscious of and then drop it.
You don’t need to bang the same old drum endlessly. In other words, you don’t need to keep rehearsing the mental story that keeps the suffering alive.
At some point it is time to turn toward what you do want.
And in that vein, one thing to do is to look at your desires.
By dissolving egoic conditioning you are also dissolving inauthentic desires. Inauthentic desires are the ones you have borrowed from family, friends, society, TV, social media, etc. It’s the stuff you believe you want because you’ve been conditioned to desire it.
But you have an authentic desire as well.
A simple way to identify your authentic desire is to look at the opposite of what causes you the most pain.
Essentially, we all want the same “thing” by different names — happiness, freedom, peace, and so on.
You might notice that while you can easily let go of inauthentic desires, your authentic desire keeps popping up.
One way to resolve that desire is straightforward. You fulfill it. You fulfill it by putting your attention on what you want.
As simple and difficult as that.
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There is another benefit to this.
While paying attention to what you want, all the limiting beliefs and conditionings (and the associated emotions) will surface to be dissolved.
All of this work is about releasing resistance to life.
Releasing resistance automatically leads to non-dual awareness, even if you never have a Gooroo pointing it out for you.
So if you still feel like you’re lacking practical tips and tricks on dealing with your emotions, here is one for you: Relax!
Any time you notice tension in any form, consciously relax. Do that all day long and see what happens.
In the top-down approach, anything that isn’t spelled A.w.a.r.e.n.e.s.s. or C.o.n.s.c.i.o.u.s.n.e.s.s. is often dismissed as unworthy of your attention.
But sooner rather than later we all bump into the icky emotional stuff. If you live in a cave high up on a mountain you might be able to avoid it. But we city- and suburb-dwellers are blessed to face it every day.
In the final analysis it doesn’t matter whether you come from top-down or bottom-up or left-right or all sides simultaneously. It’s all the same playing field.
Whatever your approach is the most important act is being honest and sincere with yourself.
Honesty and sincerity lead to truth.
And if you can enjoy and appreciate this one moment without an opposite then you are living from truth.
Luka
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Honesty is more important than effort. If it takes effort it’s not worth that effort.
Great post as always. A lot of your recent posts are timed well with what I’m exploring. I feel like I’m nose to nose with a big discovery as of late. Here’s to hoping I figure it out!
Indeed. I’m glad you’ve been finding the posts useful, Temperence.
Let the discovery burst forth!
Thank you for this, Luka.
You’re most welcome, Alyssa.