The End of Suffering

 “Who is the doer and what is done? Is the end of the quest the end of the question?
You think you are the teacher and find you are the taught.
You think you are the seeker and find you are the sought.
Just sing a song of glory and you will be the glory!” 

 The Sufi Choir

Anyone who claims “I have achieved enlightenment” is dishonest or stupid or insane.

As long as there is an individual in search of an experience, the struggle continues: suffering is inevitable.

Stop struggling.

The end of suffering is the end of the experiencer.

"There's no such thing as enlightenment. It's a completely extraneous pursuit. To realize conclusively that the Buddha Mind you have from your parents innately is unborn and marvelously illuminating—that's enlightenment. Not realizing this makes you deluded. Since the Original Buddha Mind is unborn, it functions without thoughts of delusion or thoughts of wanting to be enlightened.

 As soon as you think of wanting to be enlightened, you leave the place of the Unborn and go counter to it. Because the Buddha Mind is unborn, it has no thoughts at all. Thoughts are the source of delusion. When thoughts are gone, delusion vanishes too. And once you've stopped being deluded, talking about wanting to attain 'enlightenment' certainly is useless, don't you agree?"Zen Master Bankei (1622-1693)

Break through the hypnotic illusion of a personality projected in space and time: it does not exist.

There is nothing to do and no one to do it.

Every human being is born with a natural clarity of being. 

It just gets covered up in layer upon layer of muck.

Clean it all off: return to the clear, unblemished sky of awareness at your very core.

That still mind is your original mirror mind – your Buddha nature.

Just be that.

Like a plant grows, a bird flies or a fish swims, live naturally – right here, right now.

Liberated from the grip of egoism, like the moon after the eclipse, full, ever blissful, self-luminous, one attains one’s essence. – Adhyatma Upanishad

Enjoy the Feast

 “When a man knows God, he is free: his sorrows have an end, and birth and death are no more. When in inner union he is beyond the world of the body, then the third world, the world of the Spirit, is found, where the power of the All shines, and man has all—for he is one with the One.” KrishnaYajur Veda, Shvetasvatara Upanishad 

In every moment, you make a choice:  between joy and misery, contentment and craving, peace and suffering. When you choose to pursue the dream of this world, you choose suffering. Sooner or later, when this makes you hunger for love, for solace and comfort, you  turn in desperation to God. 

Who is this God? Where is He?  Does He even exist?

Observing the exquisite perfection of the natural universe, the incredibly complex design of microcosm and macrocosm, a creative intelligence is undeniable. Call Him the Tao, the Void, the Absolute, Brahman –  He is the substratum of reality that is the foundation and substance of all that exists. He is pure, abstract, self-aware, intelligent Consciousness. He shines as the very core of being in every living thing. Eternal, infinite, omnipotent, He is the Self that is reality- awareness-bliss. 

To know Him is to be Him. Once you taste His perfection, nothing else will ever satisfy you.

“Having annihilated the delusive mind which always dwells upon worldly things, having killed the restless ego, and having completely erased the worldly vasanas, shine as Shiva, the pure consciousness itself. Do not wander outside, eating the scorching sand of worldly pleasures; come home to the Heart where peace is shining as a vast, everlasting, cool shade, and enjoy the feast of the bliss of Self.” Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharishi

Once you discover the inner joy that is your divine core, you will gladly turn within and seek the light that is your true being. Deeply rooted in the Self, your life will be transformed miraculously in ways that cannot be defined. Reborn in God, you will rejoice in the bliss of the Self.

Happiness is your birthright.

Dive within, let go and dissolve in the Self in total, loving  surrender.

Drink deep of the nectar of blissful, infinite, peace.

Enjoy the feast.

You Are That

 “With whichever vessel you go to the ocean you can get only that much water. If it is merely a cup, you will get a cup of water. If it is a bucket, you will get a bucket. Empty yourself of everything else and you can  loot the whole ocean!” Bhagavan Ramana Maharishi, speaking on Guru’s grace.

Listen, I will tell you a secret : the greatest treasure is within you!

Throw away all your worldly baubles and make space for that which is most precious, the priceless gift of Grace.

Why is this gift the most valuable? Is it because it grants immortality and infinite joy?

Or because it bestows upon you that deep and perfect peace that is beyond all understanding?

It is because it reveals the astounding truth of who you really are: God dwells within you as you!

In this infinite universe, there is only One that is the source and the substance of all that exists.

You are that One.

Only remember: this same truth applies universally to every living creature.

So treat all life with deep love and respect.

All that you see is sacred. 

All that exists is pervaded by the Divine.

Live accordingly, and all will be well.

“Empty yourself of everything.

Let the mind become still.

The ten thousand things rise and fall while the Self watches their return.

They grow and flourish and then return to the source.

Returning to the source is stillness, which is the way of nature.

The way of nature is unchanging.

Knowing constancy is insight.

Not knowing constancy leads to disaster.

Knowing constancy, the mind is open.

With an open mind, you will be openhearted.

Being openhearted, you will act royally.

Being royal, you will attain the divine.

Being divine, you will be at one with the Tao.

Being at one with the Tao is eternal.

And though the body dies, the Tao will never pass away.” 

Lao Tsu, Tao Te Ching.