We will all, eventually, escape the illusion; the consensuses reality created by our thoughts. The time honored method, taught from ancient times until now, is to go below your logical mind and find that place of eternal peace. Most of us suffer from an unending stream of thoughts that constantly vie for our attention. These thoughts are of the past or future and rob us of attention to the now.
The ways out of the illusion are: being in the now; giving up judgement; and staying in unconditional love. If you do anyone of these, the other two are automatic.
I would like to discuss staying in the now. Before I do so, I should mention that these are very difficult, because they set up a challenge to your ego and the group ego. But, please, don't despair. Your intent is very, very important. It contributes energy towards the goal. Every time you fall back, try again; like riding the proverbial horse.
I have not yet achieved staying in the now, except for a moment usually when I am meditating. I guess I have had a few brief moments at other times when the stream of thoughts are not present and I am very peaceful. I can stop most times and close my eyes and find some semblance of peace; but not, when my ego is engaged, and I would really like to.
Krishnamurti taught his pupils to stay in the moment by paying strict attention to everything the senses picked up; such attention that there is no room for thoughts. Paying absolute attention to what you perceive, short circuits the logical mind and you begin to perceive outside the illusion. Try focusing on something exclusively, you will find your mind quieting. I like to use both the time honored method by meditating at least once a day and the Krishnamurti method when I am doing my chores, dishes etc.
I have not achieved success in getting out of the illusion but I have experienced relative peace. Often when I am doing the chores I will find myself, commenting on myself, in the third person. Instead of just observing what I am doing, I will say to myself, "he is picking up his container of water and loading it on the toboggan. Now he is picking up the rope and he is beginning to pull the toboggan to the barn." That is not exactly how it is, but close. I replace the stream of past/future thoughts with an ongoing scenario of my activity. It is more in the now and it is more peaceful, but not below the logical mind. I spend a lot of time, caught up in thinking about the 'now' but not being in the 'now'. It's a tricky business.
The moments when I am aware, of being in the now, occur when I am not thinking about it at all. I am just being; I might be sitting, I might be driving, I might be walking toward the barn and I am aware of a flood of loving energy and great peace; I am suddenly aware that I am thinking of nothing. Then, of course, I think about the fact that I wasn't thinking and I ruin it. But it does give me a glimpse of how it can be, all the time.
The stream of consciousness that occupies our minds has no value. It often consist of worrisome things that already happened, and that you can't do anything about, or things that might happen, that you can't do anything about now. If you can be at peace now, you will be able to deal with those things when they are here, 'now'. Even if you cannot be fully in the 'now' now, you can interrupt the chain of thoughts every time
you become aware of them. You will be amazed at what you will learn and you will discover intervals of genuine peace.
Well, I have a sink full of dishes to meditate over.
Love and Peace, Gregg
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