It may seem ridiculous to say this but everything we experience and the movement and energy behind them can be experienced as bliss. By that I mean deep, resonant happiness. Life is like an ice cream store with a nearly infinite choice of flavours. There is nowhere to go to get there. It is right here in who is experiencing.
If you’ve seen Gangaji give satsang, for example, she will guide a person suffering under their experience. Behind everything is always stillness or bliss. It’s deeply nourishing to know this directly, however we come to that experience.
The difference between suffering and bliss is just state of being. Are we caught within the form of the experience or in our reactions to events? Or do they flow by as a progression of events while we rest in being?
The difference is just where our attention naturally rests in the midst of life. And that is a direct effect of our stage of development. While we can make a mood of it or ignore our pain that’s just adding another layer masking heaven.
You may not consider your life experience as “suffering” but if it’s flavours of unpleasantness rather than bliss, there is work to be done. 🙂
There is no blame in any of this. We naturally contract from unpleasant experiences. And we naturally experience life as unpleasant when we’re out of touch with who we are.
Inversely, bliss arises naturally when we “cleanse the windows of perception” (William Blake), and let go of contractions. Contractions take so much energy to maintain and the noise mutes our life experience.
This process can take time and patience. Healing is likened to peeling an onion. Layer after layer is removed until we discover the light that hides behind the shadow, the bliss that moves through all experience.
Davidya
Just what I needed to hear this morning! Thank you.
So when one is aware of having contracted as a result of an event, how does one return to resting in stillness or in being?
There’s work to be done, indeed, on several levels – the apparent individual needs to peel off the layer causing the false perception so that clarity can be revealed and the situation in life rectified.
But how? The layers are going deeper and deeper and the revelation of patterns causing contraction are becoming more subtle. The mind keeps kicking in attempting to resolve the situation. Sigh…
Hi Eddie!
We return to resting by non-doing, by allowing. However, that’s not always so easy even if the ground of being is established.
There is the analogy of sleeping elephants (stresses). We can settle quite deeply and have a lovely period, then the old elephants wake up and rush around, kicking up dust. They’re on the way out but meantime, there’s some clouds.
If there is a difficult event, that experience may need to be processed and cleared. If there is some resistance to what is arising or the circumstance is ongoing and unresolved, it can continue and may even overshadow a bit.
Over time, we learn to be OK even in difficulties.
I would consider this an invitation to look at what is contracted and see if you can sit with it and digest it. Just occasionally for a few minutes and see if it’s ready. If not, put it aside and come back later.
As you note, this isn’t something the mind can figure out. It’s happening deeper than the mind and gets progressively more subtle. There is no “How” as that is a doing. There is only being, allowing, letting go.
And yes, the process goes deeper and deeper. It gets subtler and subtler. It also gets increasingly universal.
But this is actually a great sign. It means excellent progress.
Keep up the great work. 🙂
btw -you may find a need for extra rest when purifying. Do your best to give that to yourself.
Beautifully shared, lovely bliss, yes…I recall my practice for years, when shadow comes into awareness, I ask for divine truth of it to come into my awareness with acceptance, then it seems to shift. The amount of a shift, was relative of course…but a certain level of “bliss” could be felt. I use “bliss” in this context of the movement of consciousness (As Shakti) and depending how deeply the awareness of shadow to truth/pure consciousness I go, the bliss is felt along the way to even beyond the bliss… 🙂 that’s nice when that happens…some shadows take a longer more subtler path…lol…hence, resistance is a factor for me. Haha…
Thanks again David! Good reminder for me.
Hi Lindsey
Beautiful. The key part is being aware and allowing. Divine truth can be good but just be careful that’s not trying to manipulate it in some way, like how that’s supposed to show up.
Yeah – bliss beyond bliss as there is still a vehicle who is experiencing or knowing. The bliss body comes along for the ride. 🙂
And yep, resistance is there in all of us. And some of the big stuff takes longer. And some of it isn’t personal. While we’re attuned to it, the deep stuff can be shared. So when we clear it, we clear it for the group.
You’re welcome.
Yes, still purifying a lot, so I do love my rest…haha….
Yeah, rest helps with clarity too. It’s part of why my articles sometimes come in waves. Some days I’m better at editing than others. 🙂
Oh yeah, allowing is a better word for accepting. Being open to whatever arises…yes, manipulation alert gets more sensitive (so it seems) with more clarity…can be so subtle sometimes.
Yes, see how the “group” can also project the resistance too. 🙂 woohoo! 🙂
I really like what you say about shared stuff…feel this in my relationships…nice!
Okay, I am going to sleep 12hours tonight bc I can use lots of clarity…haha…
Yes – I was surprised how subtle our control memes can go.
And yes, we act as both a mirror and processor for those close to us. Sometimes one carries more of that in a relationship but the other might bring something else, like physical security or a place to unwind.
🙂
I can tell when extra processing is going on by the shift in sleep routines…
😀