I've been on The Path for just over seven years. It has been years of tiring, at times painful, physical symptoms of varying intensity (my entire body buzzing and vibrating, pulsing in my third eye and crown, overwhelming fits of energy and mania, insomnia, etc.). It can be extremely exhausting. As for "letting go" - you can only be filled once you are empty. Your life will empty out. Attachment to things. People. Beliefs. Conditioning. Yes, it can be terrifying. Add to that the feeling of homesickness, wanting to once again rejoin the One (Source, The Beloved, Universe, God - how ever you wish to refer to it). The mental exhaustion of constantly evaluating, analyzing, and questioning "reality". Becoming overwhelmed by ordinary interactions with people or nature because of their beauty, their essence, can feel like just too much. Yes, of course, the feelings of bliss and gratitude can be astonishing... but these are still "phases" for me that I come in and out of. I have not settled into a perpetual state of knowingness, becoming pure Loving Awareness. I feel as though I am not really 100% committed to this physical world and yet I am not quite yet able to drink deeply enough of the Spirit. The (physical) material world, the dream, is of course a part of everything that is as well (in non-duality) but interactions with people trapped in their victim narrative and lost in duality can leave you feeling alone. So, I don't talk about this stuff with anyone, really, but if someone were to ask me: "Should I want to awaken?" I would say, "no - just put it off until your next incarnation". lol. That said, I wouldn't have it any other way because there really is no going back. Once you hand over your ticket for this ride there is no getting off until it's done. Only, it's never done. It's Eternal. Infinite. And it's all here. Now. All love and light on your journeys, brothers and sisters.
Dear Phillip, of course our experiences aren't identical, but I can relate to nearly all you've described, as well. I appreciate your willingness to express it here. I relate, very much to your tendency to "not talk about this stuff with anyone." That is the state I tended to be in for the past decade - during which I was nearly impossible to find - until recently. Thus the current videos and blog, and meetings with people and groups, lately. I have a suggestion for you. Take it lightly, of course... just a notion from one brother to another. Rather than answer questions like "who should awaken today, and who should not," (which is clearly not for us to decide, anyway, right?) and rather than dwelling on the alone-ness of feeling different than those around you (yes, I can relate), may I suggest this: As you go through your day, meeting whomever you meet, strangers and friends and family alike, take a moment, just a fleeting instant will do... and look at them from that place you've described that is Eternal and Infinite. The place from within yourself that is wholly without judgment; that is still, and quiet, and steeped in all that is beyond this physical dimension. You need not say a word. Just look past all their narratives, past their stories; past all that has "trapped" them here. Look into them, past all that, to what is Eternal and Infinite within them. As it is within yourself. Even if they are not fully aware of such things, look past their blindness; their confusion, and victimhood. Recognize... try to see... that infiniteness you know within yourself. This is the essence of spiritual sight. it is also a way in which we can see and connect to our ultimate Oneness. It can be a practice for you (very much a part of the "advanced course!") that will bring the lived experience of that Oneness into your daily awareness more. And if you'd like a bit of an expansion of these ideas to ruminate more on, I invite you to pop over to my website (it's in the video description above) and find the article titled "Meeting Each Other, Equal to Equal." And feel free to be in touch! Lemme know how it goes... peace be wit'chu, good mah brothah! - Jonathan
I don't know if this helps at all but maybe because whenever Adam ate the fruit of forbidden knowledge his punishment was to have to work hard everyday.
Yup awakening at times is truely terrifying, the fear of loss, having nothing real to hold onto anymore… Questioning ones very existence and reality at levels that everyone would call you crazy as you unravel.
I 🙏can relate from my own experience; yes... having faced such fears over and over through the course of those years. Yet there came the time when they disappeared into nothingness like waves from the wake of a boat when the water returns to calm. Before that time, they seemed like impassable mountains. After... they faded into the nothingness without a trace of ever having been in the first place. I do remember, but the memory leaves no scar. There is no sacrifice at all, in the end. Amen! Peace be with you, friend! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
Beautifully put. This year has been like this for me. Disorienting and scary, evoking an existential crisis of sorts. There were days where I was so scared of it all, past traumas came up, and I even had dreams of dissolving. Life felt like I was suddenly free-falling. This correlated with some events in my life that deeply made me question the ideas and beliefs I had. I'm not sure what came first, to be honest, but all of them pointed me towards this. I'm still very much in the midst of all this, but the peace inside seems to become more and more my new residing place (or the new me). And as you said, the more that sheds away, the more letting go happens, and the more I recognize how illusionary "ego" is anyway. And meeting life where it is and going with the flow of that life force, which is you anyway, has been very liberating.
Rosentwig! From one musician (not really practicing, but still!) to another... Amen, mah brothah! Thank you for your comment. I'm so glad this found you. May your journey continue to unfold along its liberating way. In the end, we all go together, and I'm glad to count you among those that travel with me. Do feel free to be in touch. Peace be wit'chu! - Jonathan 😊🙏
in Germany we have the famous Brothers Grimm fairy tales, actually ancient folk tales. One of them is "Hans in Luck" (Hans im Glück) about a young journeyman .... who, after learning a craft for seven years and working hard under a master, wants to return home to his mother, and is being rewarded with a lump of gold as big as his head. As he is walking along he meets a rider and trades his gold for the horse thinking this might ease his way home. But the horse bolts and he is thrown into a ditch. Then he is thirsty and a cowherd comes by convincing him that with a cow he always has something to drink. Trade is done, only for Hans to find out that the cow is "dry" ... etc. Finally, Hans - carrying a heavy grindstone (for making good money) that he got hold of in exchange of a goose - sits down on the edge of a well, tired and exhausted, wanting to drink some water. As he is bending down the grindstone falls into the well: SPLASH! and Hans suddenly realizes that all these things that he had wanted and traded were nothing but burdens. So he happily went on the rest of the way, enjoying his new freedom ... .
Female 49. I am lucky that as from the age of 10 both my parents died in a car accident. For all the sorrow , mourning, grief and suffering I have next to zero ego and I have always known I'm not the narrative or the way I've presented myself or afraid of the truth. I've yearned for the truth . I didn't have much to loose so I went all in. I've died a thousand times yet here I am 😊 not afraid of death or the truth . Awake ? Yes I've hardly slept . But when I do it's amazing because none of the past matters it does not define me. What defines me is that one cell in my heart that has come many life times here, to school planet Earth ... The only thing that's important is that I know my place . I'm a tiny microscopic piece of the eternal puzzle trying to get home . That's all I am . Under the circumstances I'm lucky to know I'm just yet an other soul trying my best to keep my karma clean & that if I had an ego I'd be all over the place ... Being awake is three quarters of the way home so the more I know I'm just one cell in my heart with many co travellers that I'm very very grateful for and the more truth of atrocious nefarious lies that come out so much the better for us . Home or bust ! ❤
Vaphiadis, you've had quite a journey... It's quite a thing to try and explain (I can relate...) how one could have a dramatic past - even many "pasts" - full of all kinds of life-defining events; self-defining events; and still come to a recognition that "none of the past matters and does not define you." In a good way... I do understand. Funny how it is... Certainly, not one bit of it need keep us from going home. That's for sure. - Jonathan😊🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 Thanks ! I think all the rivers find the seas , no matter what we define ourselves . I'm quite happy with ally lessons learnt , good and bad and just look ward to making progress getting it right , not worrying about the pendulum but the result . I'd rather be awake and all it entails than in the old ways of being. That didn't work out well , did it ? So as hard as it is I'd give up all the past to make room for the new energy and frequencies that I find are encouraging , especially as obviously I'm not the only one noticing this open window for change , so your channel is doing so much good , keep up your hard work . So many people need it ❤️💯
@@vaphiadis1 I will keep up the good work, for sure. Thank you for the good vibes. At this point, I don't really feel I have anything better to be doing with my time! After all, as you've noted... the old ways are... just... can't go back. 😊🙏
Having had both kundalini and awakening, in the end it is an act of grace. It happens to you. Yes fear loss panic bliss all many times over, broken over and over again until the heart truly broke open. All needed to gain ultimate knowledge. There is no thing as a free lunch. Think about how all the elements come together to make it and then and only then can you sit to eat it. Cheers m
Indeed, over and over again... until something breaks, and falls away... and it's only after it has broken and fallen away that it's really possible to recognize that what broke and fell away was nothing more than a wisp, an illusory figment; a simple benign nothingness that needn't be given another thought at all. Amen! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
New subscriber, dear brother. I had nothing to lose when the ego came out from behind the illusion. You know "when you got nothing you got nothing to lose" scenario. So I gladly started working on dropping my egoic habits once it's falsity was evident. Things like being judgemental, practicing unconditional kindness, and loads of forgiveness work. I thank God for every minute of it. The upanishads read "give me sorrows oh Lord, so that I will not forget thee" in my case that's what worked. I know I'm not unique in that. God's love and goodness to you and your subs!!
Thank you for being here Seane! And here's wishing you the full embrace of that peace-that-passes-understanding, as the journey continues on... Am happy to walk with you, just a bit, even if in just this digital form. 😊🙏
Wow! So lovely! I'm struggling with existential fear since four years now. I KNOW something good is happening. The only thing I can do is to move forward, regardless of my own feelings and other peoples idea of what to do or not to do. Most of my friends are now gone, just two or three are still here. Thanks a lot Jonathan for your great work!
I should add that this fear started after void experiences during meditation and deep sleep. I was nothing or everything. I was the entire room where I was sitting. Strange feeling. This happened approxmately 40 times during a period of say 7 to 8 years.
Dear Peter, I do understand. Void experiences... "allness" experiences... can really put a "crack" in the typical, ordinary framework of awareness most people operate from. And I'll totally grant that it could be a bit disorienting from time to time as well. Nonetheless... to borrow a phrase... it is also the crack that lets the light in. Are you familiar with "Plato's Cave" allegory? I'd be surprised if you haven't already stumbled across it... but If not, I encourage you to give it a look. These experiences you are going through - although a bit unusual to most - are also still as old as mankind. Even in Classical Greece, mankind was encountering the ineffable states of awakening. And as noted by Plato, when one has been so long in the dark, the first glimpse of the sun could surprise, could frighten, or even momentarily be perceived as blinding and painful... and yet soon enough the eyes adjust and one is washed in the fullness of light that shines on all that is, and sees the truth clearly, brightly, and with a gentle, loving warmth. Keep going, my friend. Peace be with you on your journey, and feel free to remain in touch! - Jonathan 😊🙏
Running Nose. Fighting temptations and every time I make the right choice, FUNNY coincidences occur. Been socially isolated for 5+ years (with bumps) Body is changing. Face is looking more structured and looks like I have a strong foundation. New thoughts. Breaking family chains. Makes sense why God wants us to be around people…. Thank you.
Shortly after my invow to the Sacred and after a prayerful commitment, everything changed and everything was taken from me and all was lost in the journey that followed. It truly was terrifying and rough over the course of several years. It still is difficult, but it has been worth it. I wouldn't recommend my experience for hardly anyone I've known or know today.
I would say that people who have strong self-confidence, high energy, who are highly accomplished, capable and effective, successful and well adapted and who love themselves, will still want it, because they arent afraid of their lives falling apart, knowing they have the capacity to adapt and overcome any challenge. It is the disorganized, low energy, fearful, avoidant, isolated, highly attached non-achievers, who have a lot of self-doubt and no confidence that they can make a comeback, who wouldnt want it. Being one of the latter, I dont want it badly enough to make the sacrifices and the consistence efforts neccessary, and so my practice is weak, I dont make any real progress and I dont expect it to ever happen.
Dear alienloverlordsnow... I would humbly submit that in fact - as I attempted to note in the vid, tho perhaps not well enough - there is no sacrifice, in the end. The fears are erroneous. Awakening is for absolutely everyone, in due course, each in their own time. Recognizing truth can be done whether one is "brave" or not... and certainly, it is often in our times of greatest weakness and even devastation that we become ready to surrender to something beyond the hardened will of our ego. This is when spiritual transformation often has its greatest traction. Keep going, my friend! Seek truth with open mind and heart, and you will eventually find. And peace be with you on the journey! - Jonathan 😊🙏
I feel the opposite, an awakening seems to bring forth the things you lack as you face adversity ilans suffering in your own unique way. Such is the work of Carl Jung and why it is also known as the heroes journey.This is where I feel that there is no right or wrong necessary on the path, you’re on the path no matter what and it’s unfolding exactly the way it was always meant to. When I contemplate the infinite amount of variables back to the beginning of the universe that had to happen for me to be exactly where I am, it feels ridiculous to think “randomness” ever had a part in it…
I came to this through the bible, 2 deaths, one in 95 and again in 2018, awareness is the outcome and the only thing real, in other words, consciousness. I always remember the verse in Amos that says (paraphrasing) why seek the day the of the Lord, for the day of the Lord is darkness…and further on it says: it is like a man on his way to the market, escaping a lion only to torn to shreds by a bear. It is a fear and horror that is unutterable and unexplainable. And everyone, at their own time will experience this. I call it a beautiful terror that is important.
Interesting... I cannot help wondering how you might react/respond/resonate vis-a-vis some of the other attempts I've made to express such things. If you get a notion for it, I invite you to click over to AssistTheSpirit.com and have a look at the other articles and videos. I'd be quite curious to hear your thoughts. If you make it over there, let me know... In the meantime, peace be with you on your journey, my friend! - Jonathan
Nicholas... I got an email from and you and attempted to respond, but your email address "bounced." It failed. So... I will copy the message here instead! It was as follows: Nick! Nice to hear from you. Glad you've found some things that resonate. For starters, may I suggest you join me on Zoom tomorrow? I'm doing a small gathering there which only has 3 other people joining, and it would be a great forum in which to have that conversation. It's free and will commence at 6pm west coast time (PST). There are usually more people, but I'm often rather lax at the social media things... Here's the link to sign up: www.assistthespirit.com/events/zoom-gathering-july-12-2023/ If you can't make it, there's another one on Saturday morning, three days later. It's under the "Events" tab at the website too. It should also be quite small... I just checked and 3 people are signed up for that too. Come! And we'll talk. 😊🙏 - Jonathan
Kathleen m'dear, fear = struggle, yes... and... alternatively... see if you can look inward to find that clear thread that is cut from the cloth of deep peace... the one that likely prompted to you go on this journey in the first place... that original whisper that said "this is the way!" Reconnect with that... even for a moment... and see how it dissolves the fear. Not by fighting it, not by contradicting it or contending with it, but merely by looking past it to what is deeper, wider, and more all-encompassing, that simply renders it without real effect... and do feel free to let me know how it goes. - Jonathan 😊🙏
I do get you, Jonathan, when you point out that relinquishing the “false” self is not really a loss because it never existed to begin with. That makes sense theoretically, and is helpful. But I think I disagree. Since childhood I intensely studied human behavior to figure out how I could socially construct a “self” that contained my authenticity but was recognizable to the neurotypical dominant culture. I entered this process consciously with great intention and sustained focus over the course of many decades. And over time that “self” became embodied down to the cellular level. It dug deep grooves in my neurology and behavior patterns. It became woven tightly into my community, mediated by and made tangible through work I once loved to do. It was the self who paid the bills; who kept my child safe. That self was a lifelong project of love. Very valuable and very real. Losing that self has been devastating. But my body could not pay the price to sustain it anymore in a world that has turned upside down. The selves we construct and redesign along the way are valuable, necessary, even life-saving. They are the selves we needed in order to get us here to the place of unselfing. Whether that unselfing is by choice, or not.❤ As always, thank you for pushing my learning. It is my greatest passion. Please keep talking.
Hello Darby! I love your note and especially love your word: "unselfing!" That is a great word!! You've hit on something I have considered trying to express more about as well. As I went through the pivotal shift myself, there was a spectacular peace that settled in, seemingly permanently, which completely altered how I saw and moved through the world. Yet concomitant with this, I was also amazed... baffled... delighted... and often perplexed at how life carried on... I too, had a mortgage, bills to pay, relationships to attend and... all the rest of ordinary adult life. The clear seeing that the self was a fiction didn't - at all - mean that I wasn't also called upon to respond to the world around me, just like you describe. There were definitely ways in which I could say "life fell completely apart." Yet was also, amidst the chaos of that, filled with peace. There was dramatic change, for sure, yet still not a sense of "loss" that plagued me, as the losses didn't seem problematic to me, even though the eyes of the pre-shift "self" would have seen them as such. I couldn't explain any of this to anyone, or so I thought, which is among the reasons I have been essentially silent for a wee bit over a decade. There are so many that seek this shift, to which I am happy to be in service, if possible. And I recognize there are many, these days, navigating the post-shift tumult. I am happy to be in service to them, too, if possible. I also recognize that serving the former is a somewhat different task than the latter. I hope to be up to the task of both. In my case I have come, after more than a decade, to this place in which these are the only tasks that call to me at all, and I will do my best. The subtle inward prompt, that quiet inner guidance that comes from Source, gently reminds me, daily, I have nothing better to be doing with my time. So I try to listen. I am quite sure you know what I mean. And I appreciate your presence immensely, as we go along the way toward home, along with so, so many others. 😊🙏 - Jonathan
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 That peace and knowing you have is what I want to recognize - that which you received when you were dying after surgery. You knew all was, is and always will be well. That self I am grieving for (described above) was embodied. I don’t recognize a me without the context of my body, my community, my passions, my voice. I can’t speak, I can’t write. It’s like there is nothing important enough to say - or, maybe more accurate: trying to assign words to new learning falls so short of representing my truth that I just prefer the silence. Maybe this is the Rosentwig Music (another commentor here on this video) means by that free-fall, existential crisis. And what you mean when you ask if we would really want to follow the path to freedom if we knew it would feel like this?
Ah... Darby... I think I understand better what you meant now. That feeling of "I can't speak," ...I relate to. Something I rarely mention about my own journey: for over a year after my own shift, I was nearly mute. Except when strictly necessary, for family needs or similar... because there was simply no impulse to speak. I would occasionally journal, but there wasn't much writing either. For me, life did accommodate this quietude with much grace, for which I am thankful. Of course, most people are probably in circumstances where they would be called upon for more verbosity, but I must assume their pathway in that regard would still uniquely serve them, as mine uniquely served me. The notion of trying to put any of this into words, or to teach, seemed utterly absurd. So I just didn't! For a long time. I could write a whole book about it. (I... sort of... am! Once I get a draft, maybe you'll find it interesting...) Here's a couple things I learned along the way, which... I dunno if they'll be helpful right now, but here ya go: I recognized and surrendered to the reality that I'd reached some sort of point-of-no-return and I was going where I was going, regardless. I knew I couldn't go back, like when someone has jumped (or fallen) out of an airplane. There ain't no climbing back in, and your going where you're going. At first this was terrifying, but after awhile, there was nothing to do but accept it, and try to enjoy the view, and the breeze. Everything that seemed like a loss at first, turned out not to actually be a problem, or a loss at all, but this took some significant time to recognize. I knew I couldn't go back to the old ways, but I didn't understand what the new way was, very well. And so, instead of clawing my way back, I just had to stand and sit and embrace the silence... and listen carefully to the guidance, and direction that would come. Sometimes very patiently, and sometimes I struggled with this, but I can vouch for the fact that listening to the guidance that arises from that quiet wholeness is a skill that can be developed. It comes naturally to some extent, but it also grows with mindful attention to it. And sometimes the mindfulness had to be directed to how much I was actively resisting it. I suspect you are at a stage like that, where going back is not really an option, and that living into, and listening into, the stillness/silence/spirit... and building trust in what it offers, what it might say, and where or to whom it may direct you, will actually be a path of high grace, that brings you gently into this next phase of your being.
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 I have so much to say. I tried to reply but went “mute” again. Will keep trying. Till then, please know you are one of the only speakers and writers who I can hear.
@darbydelane4588 Darby...there is no need to force words onto the page. Just set the pen down for a moment and know you will have the option to pick it back up later, if you wish; if the impulse arises.. But in the meantime I encourage you to set down the pen, and direct your mind gently to the still place and simply sit with it. Be patient with it. Live into it. In due course - and not of your own machinating - the messages it has for you will tell you of themselves. It is the act of surrendering that brings them closer. While you await them, the outer world may still ask for your response, which is fine... you can go about the daily requirements on the outside - even if just the minimum - but inwardly remain still, enveloped gently and quietly in the stillness. And do feel free to continue letting me know how it goes when the clear inner instructions prompt you thus.
Just watched this again and yes, I'd like to hear a discussion on awakening in relation to "improving one's life circumstances" that you pointed out with on-screen text. When I started my journey it was all about wanting to know the deepest level of truth, e.g., why are we here? What's really going on? So yes, it's an interesting topic. BTW, have you seen how many views this video has gotten? Things are moving along, no?
Ms. Sweet... yes, I am frequently baffled about the ways of algorithms and social media. I have no real grasp of why one video "takes off" more than another, quite irrespective of their relative quality of content. And i will absolutely take to heart your request on the topic of improving life circumstances! Thank you for you note... 😊🙏
Awakening does not "often improve people's life circumstances" as you say for the simple reason that awakening does not often happen. It is extremely rare. It is like saying "Becoming the leader of the entire world often improves people's life circumstances" It astounds me how so many people think awakening is so simple and mundane. I have no problem if people want to use the term loosely to mean they have overcome addiction or reduced psychological trauma but for someone who is truly seeking liberation nothing could be a bigger obstacle.
I suppose the question is: Can we live without an identity.I think not. You can attenuate your attachment to it, but relinquishing it is neither possible nor desirable while negotiating living with other humans. Consciousness is a concept, and what you many consider successful abiding in it, is still an ego identity.
You've gotten at something quite important, and that is also frequently tangled up with the limitations of language and communication: how can we live in this world without some form of identity? We speak about the "death of self" and yet... well... I try to address that very point in another video called the Startling Truth Of Nondual Awareness: Death Of Ego? The salient point is at 10:25 in the vid. I would be curious about your thoughts on it, if you see it. And in the meantime, may these linguistic absurdities somehow still serve you well on your own journey! Peace be with you! - Jonathan 🙂🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 Hey Jonathan, I have concluded that language has created schizophrenia in us humans. The thought: "I" which is the observer, and " Me" the observed. e.g. " Sometimes I just hate myself ". My journey has made me realize this is all it illusory, and the I and ME are one, but I still live out this duality. I believe that humanity is fated to that system of thought. Naming things gives meaning to our experiences. In fact without labels we would just have sensations and not know what we were feeing. This realization has produced a sense of peace for me. I did watch your other video, and for me swapping the small self for the expansive Self is another identity. It may make one feel special if that's what ego thinks it needs. Namaste
Thank you Mario, I will absolutely do that. And one of these days, I'll look forward to being in Australia in person. May the vibes down under serve you well on your journey! - Jonathan 😊🙏
as a teenager i journaled alot and I asked to be wise insightful person I never know what a big ask it was in my ignorance I thought these was noble cause......not knowing that in order to be wise be insightful I need to go through very tough situations to gain those insights.......I do not ask for those things anymore I only ask for God to lead me keep me safe and fill me up with things I should have to come to me easy no mess no fuss ......
The road, here in this dimension, does seem rather guaranteed to be full of twists and turns... Here's wishing you continued peace on your journey, Michele... 😊🙏 - Jonathan
@jonathanvanvalin4518 thank you. The road is a journey enjoy its as its so so short. Enjoy the delishesness of now and keep going. - Michele. Wishing all fellow travelers wonderful fascinating peaceful journey.
Thank you for the good vibes, Waynzwhirled! I appreciate that you appreciate it. May it serve you on your own journey, and may you play on! Keep rockin' it. (from one musician to another!) 😊🙏
As a species we want certainty above all. That's why awakening may seem worse than illusion. We lack the exercise of freedom in any area of our life because we were taught that we belong to a community, with a sense of social belonging and therefore the sense that we don't have to exercise our freedom because we can rely on family, friends, society. Now it's a taught choice and many will just 'taste' it for their immediate needs not for the ultimate goal out of lack of spiritual maturity or health problems or age problems!
The irony is that awakening brushes away uncertainty about the biggest questions of existence, which is why it is so very quiet and peaceful regardless of age or health or... basically anything! Peace be with you on your journey, marinacocol! - Jonathan 😊🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 different awakened have reacted differently to non-duality so for some seekers that is disturbing, same with the 3rd eye opening and the kundalini energy. Everything is connected and without proper, honest guidance it's pretty understandable why so many look for immediate benefits and leave the rest for another life. Thank you anyway! 🙏
Awakening isnt about improving ones life circumstances, thats where the "self help" movement comes in. One can stay lost in that world for decades, thinking you are getting healed and spiritually improving, working toward your "enlightenment." Its all false. True awakening is an act of grace. The limited sense of person is gone, truly liberating. And yes, at times very confusing to the small self. Thank you for your sharing.
And thank you for listening, Beth. This topic of "Awakening isn't about improving ones life circumstances" does seem a rich place in which to dig for another video. I do intend to pursue it... Peace be with you on your journey! 😊🙏- Jonathan
Indeed they would be Paul, but the very good news is, none of these will be gone. They will simply be present from a different, "greater" perspective... a perspective which does not revolve around a "personal self" at the center, allowing that intelligence and understanding and love to be much, much freer, unencumbered by the limitations, fears, and burdens of that "personal self." Yet the fear of loss often crops up within, while on the journey towards awakening. So perhaps this video can help address that. Imagine what love without fear might be like... There is no sacrifice in the actual awakening. There is nothing of real value lost. Good news indeed! Here's hoping these words serve you on your journey... Peace be with you, Paul! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
After thinking about your words for a while, I felt the question inside me: Why does the Awakened One encourage the illusion of a self to awaken? Is this a process of disillusionment of the true self? Something like: Wake up and stop to hallucinate that you are a human?
It is ultimately simply the function of love calling itself back to love. Love is... loving. What could be more natural then, that love should call gently lift the veil - the illusions - that have seemed to blind what is seemingly (in illusions) separate from love to return to the awareness of loves presence? It is the illusions that reveal themselves as the halllucinations, whereas the love is revealed as the seat of Truth and Reality.... only in this sense is there a "disillusionment" or, a lifting of illusions... Peace be with you in your journey, my friend! - Jonathan 🙏
Do you live this life if so what is your day to day like? Ii find a huge value of my family? More than anything of "my own self/ value" other than thy Lord
Yes my friend, I live this life and continue to "put my pants on one leg at a time" just like everybody else. I keep busy with all the things to do and people in my life, as seems to be the general requirement in this If you'd like a more comprehensive answer to your question, I'd encourage you to have a listen to a video from a few years back, in which I try to address your question: ruclips.net/video/L5EWvrY7Sss/видео.html Let me know your thoughts if you see it! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
Ego arise in mind as a thought. The moment one says “I” all the memories of past experiences are compared with the present moment, trying to anticipate and fulfill the next moment. Mind is an useful tool for mapping information but not for anticipation. If you’re a master of the mind, ego will project coherence, if not - there will be only confusion. The problem with ego is in the lack of maturity. We need to develop characters in order to express beauty and truth, otherwise there is only emptiness. But if that character became mechanical and reactive there will be no beauty, no truth but only sorrow. The beauty of a flower is in the eyes of the observer.
If I could be so bold as to paraphrase y1our words with my own: You "lose" the seeming weight of what is revealed to have been nothing in the first place (illusions!) and "gain" that which was always there, already, eternally... or something like that! (words... words...) Peace be with you, friend. 😊🙏
Right you are Michele... Utah! I solo backpacked three days down Muley Twist Canyon in Capitol Reef Nat'l Park, although the video was actually shot not far from the main entrance to the park... 😁
I dunno if i'd agree it does so clearly... since even though it does say exactly what you've quoted, it also says many things that directly contradict that... Yet Jesus clearly looked upon the world with love. i would find that hard to contradict with other passages to my limited knowledge....
Yes Sarah, this is a very reasonable question! I questioned this, myself. The attempt is to "key in" to, to recognize, the fear patterns that soooo many people experience on their way toward awakening. For much of the journey, for the vast majority, there comes this approach/avoidance conflict to their own awakening in which they experience - quite directly and frequently - this fear concerning whether they really can/should/must go where the awakening journey seems to point. In my own case, I felt utterly compelled to keep moving towards what, at the time, I could not fully understand, and frequently terrified me, especially given that I was (erroneously) convinced it would lead to great sacrifice and basically the loss of any semblance of normalcy. It thought I would lose everything, basically. And yes, at the time, that seemed quite dramatic. So... the drama in the title was intended to reflect what seemed to me then, and to others going through this now, that same drama. It is a way of calling to them, meeting them where they are. I hope those who find this will listen all the way through and hear it's message.... that the fears they may feel gripped by now will be proven nothing, and they will be released entirely from them. Thus the encouragement to "keep going!" "Keep going!" A long answer to a very short question... here's wishing you peace on YOUR journey, Sara! - Jonathan :-) P.S... I also do wonder, often, about the "wisdom" of such things as social media algorithms. I have little grasp of how these things actually work. Social media has never been my natural habitat!
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 well, what I meant is that awakening results in humor -at one’s own self expense, indeed. Struggle means awakening is lingering.
I've been on The Path for just over seven years. It has been years of tiring, at times painful, physical symptoms of varying intensity (my entire body buzzing and vibrating, pulsing in my third eye and crown, overwhelming fits of energy and mania, insomnia, etc.). It can be extremely exhausting. As for "letting go" - you can only be filled once you are empty. Your life will empty out. Attachment to things. People. Beliefs. Conditioning. Yes, it can be terrifying. Add to that the feeling of homesickness, wanting to once again rejoin the One (Source, The Beloved, Universe, God - how ever you wish to refer to it). The mental exhaustion of constantly evaluating, analyzing, and questioning "reality". Becoming overwhelmed by ordinary interactions with people or nature because of their beauty, their essence, can feel like just too much. Yes, of course, the feelings of bliss and gratitude can be astonishing... but these are still "phases" for me that I come in and out of. I have not settled into a perpetual state of knowingness, becoming pure Loving Awareness. I feel as though I am not really 100% committed to this physical world and yet I am not quite yet able to drink deeply enough of the Spirit. The (physical) material world, the dream, is of course a part of everything that is as well (in non-duality) but interactions with people trapped in their victim narrative and lost in duality can leave you feeling alone. So, I don't talk about this stuff with anyone, really, but if someone were to ask me: "Should I want to awaken?" I would say, "no - just put it off until your next incarnation". lol. That said, I wouldn't have it any other way because there really is no going back. Once you hand over your ticket for this ride there is no getting off until it's done. Only, it's never done. It's Eternal. Infinite. And it's all here. Now. All love and light on your journeys, brothers and sisters.
Dear Phillip, of course our experiences aren't identical, but I can relate to nearly all you've described, as well. I appreciate your willingness to express it here. I relate, very much to your tendency to "not talk about this stuff with anyone." That is the state I tended to be in for the past decade - during which I was nearly impossible to find - until recently. Thus the current videos and blog, and meetings with people and groups, lately. I have a suggestion for you. Take it lightly, of course... just a notion from one brother to another. Rather than answer questions like "who should awaken today, and who should not," (which is clearly not for us to decide, anyway, right?) and rather than dwelling on the alone-ness of feeling different than those around you (yes, I can relate), may I suggest this: As you go through your day, meeting whomever you meet, strangers and friends and family alike, take a moment, just a fleeting instant will do... and look at them from that place you've described that is Eternal and Infinite. The place from within yourself that is wholly without judgment; that is still, and quiet, and steeped in all that is beyond this physical dimension. You need not say a word. Just look past all their narratives, past their stories; past all that has "trapped" them here. Look into them, past all that, to what is Eternal and Infinite within them. As it is within yourself. Even if they are not fully aware of such things, look past their blindness; their confusion, and victimhood. Recognize... try to see... that infiniteness you know within yourself. This is the essence of spiritual sight. it is also a way in which we can see and connect to our ultimate Oneness. It can be a practice for you (very much a part of the "advanced course!") that will bring the lived experience of that Oneness into your daily awareness more. And if you'd like a bit of an expansion of these ideas to ruminate more on, I invite you to pop over to my website (it's in the video description above) and find the article titled "Meeting Each Other, Equal to Equal." And feel free to be in touch! Lemme know how it goes... peace be wit'chu, good mah brothah! - Jonathan
I don't know if this helps at all but maybe because whenever Adam ate the fruit of forbidden knowledge his punishment was to have to work hard everyday.
Yup awakening at times is truely terrifying, the fear of loss, having nothing real to hold onto anymore… Questioning ones very existence and reality at levels that everyone would call you crazy as you unravel.
I 🙏can relate from my own experience; yes... having faced such fears over and over through the course of those years. Yet there came the time when they disappeared into nothingness like waves from the wake of a boat when the water returns to calm. Before that time, they seemed like impassable mountains. After... they faded into the nothingness without a trace of ever having been in the first place. I do remember, but the memory leaves no scar. There is no sacrifice at all, in the end. Amen! Peace be with you, friend! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 Many thanks for your words, perfectly timed synchronicity as it always is!
All to realize that everything we hold onto is all that is unreal. And everything we push away...we hold onto...and more
Beautifully put. This year has been like this for me. Disorienting and scary, evoking an existential crisis of sorts. There were days where I was so scared of it all, past traumas came up, and I even had dreams of dissolving.
Life felt like I was suddenly free-falling. This correlated with some events in my life that deeply made me question the ideas and beliefs I had. I'm not sure what came first, to be honest, but all of them pointed me towards this. I'm still very much in the midst of all this, but the peace inside seems to become more and more my new residing place (or the new me). And as you said, the more that sheds away, the more letting go happens, and the more I recognize how illusionary "ego" is anyway. And meeting life where it is and going with the flow of that life force, which is you anyway, has been very liberating.
Rosentwig! From one musician (not really practicing, but still!) to another... Amen, mah brothah! Thank you for your comment. I'm so glad this found you. May your journey continue to unfold along its liberating way. In the end, we all go together, and I'm glad to count you among those that travel with me. Do feel free to be in touch. Peace be wit'chu! - Jonathan 😊🙏
in Germany we have the famous Brothers Grimm fairy tales, actually ancient folk tales.
One of them is "Hans in Luck" (Hans im Glück) about a young journeyman ....
who, after learning a craft for seven years and working hard under a master, wants to return home to his mother, and is being rewarded with a lump of gold as big as his head.
As he is walking along he meets a rider and trades his gold for the horse thinking this might ease his way home. But the horse bolts and he is thrown into a ditch.
Then he is thirsty and a cowherd comes by convincing him that with a cow he always has something to drink.
Trade is done, only for Hans to find out that the cow is "dry" ... etc.
Finally, Hans - carrying a heavy grindstone (for making good money) that he got hold of in exchange of a goose - sits down on the edge of a well, tired and exhausted, wanting to drink some water. As he is bending down the grindstone falls into the well: SPLASH! and Hans suddenly realizes that all these things that he had wanted and traded were nothing but burdens.
So he happily went on the rest of the way, enjoying his new freedom ... .
Love it! 😊🙏❤
Many of us don't have a choice but to awaken. It came and got me I didn't seek it
Me too! I thought I was meditating for stress relief but the divine had other plans! Thank God
Same
Beautiful, thanks, and personally reassuring as I move through pain and fear towards simplicity.
Amen, my friend.... peace be with you! 😊 🙏
Female 49. I am lucky that as from the age of 10 both my parents died in a car accident. For all the sorrow , mourning, grief and suffering I have next to zero ego and I have always known I'm not the narrative or the way I've presented myself or afraid of the truth. I've yearned for the truth . I didn't have much to loose so I went all in. I've died a thousand times yet here I am 😊 not afraid of death or the truth . Awake ? Yes I've hardly slept . But when I do it's amazing because none of the past matters it does not define me. What defines me is that one cell in my heart that has come many life times here, to school planet Earth ... The only thing that's important is that I know my place . I'm a tiny microscopic piece of the eternal puzzle trying to get home . That's all I am . Under the circumstances I'm lucky to know I'm just yet an other soul trying my best to keep my karma clean & that if I had an ego I'd be all over the place ... Being awake is three quarters of the way home so the more I know I'm just one cell in my heart with many co travellers that I'm very very grateful for and the more truth of atrocious nefarious lies that come out so much the better for us . Home or bust ! ❤
Vaphiadis, you've had quite a journey... It's quite a thing to try and explain (I can relate...) how one could have a dramatic past - even many "pasts" - full of all kinds of life-defining events; self-defining events; and still come to a recognition that "none of the past matters and does not define you." In a good way... I do understand. Funny how it is... Certainly, not one bit of it need keep us from going home. That's for sure. - Jonathan😊🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 Thanks ! I think all the rivers find the seas , no matter what we define ourselves . I'm quite happy with ally lessons learnt , good and bad and just look ward to making progress getting it right , not worrying about the pendulum but the result . I'd rather be awake and all it entails than in the old ways of being. That didn't work out well , did it ? So as hard as it is I'd give up all the past to make room for the new energy and frequencies that I find are encouraging , especially as obviously I'm not the only one noticing this open window for change , so your channel is doing so much good , keep up your hard work . So many people need it ❤️💯
@@vaphiadis1 I will keep up the good work, for sure. Thank you for the good vibes. At this point, I don't really feel I have anything better to be doing with my time! After all, as you've noted... the old ways are... just... can't go back. 😊🙏
Having had both kundalini and awakening, in the end it is an act of grace. It happens to you. Yes fear loss panic bliss all many times over, broken over and over again until the heart truly broke open. All needed to gain ultimate knowledge. There is no thing as a free lunch. Think about how all the elements come together to make it and then and only then can you sit to eat it. Cheers m
Indeed, over and over again... until something breaks, and falls away... and it's only after it has broken and fallen away that it's really possible to recognize that what broke and fell away was nothing more than a wisp, an illusory figment; a simple benign nothingness that needn't be given another thought at all. Amen! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
New subscriber, dear brother. I had nothing to lose when the ego came out from behind the illusion. You know "when you got nothing you got nothing to lose" scenario. So I gladly started working on dropping my egoic habits once it's falsity was evident. Things like being judgemental, practicing unconditional kindness, and loads of forgiveness work. I thank God for every minute of it. The upanishads read "give me sorrows oh Lord, so that I will not forget thee" in my case that's what worked. I know I'm not unique in that. God's love and goodness to you and your subs!!
Thank you for being here Seane! And here's wishing you the full embrace of that peace-that-passes-understanding, as the journey continues on... Am happy to walk with you, just a bit, even if in just this digital form. 😊🙏
Wow! So lovely! I'm struggling with existential fear since four years now. I KNOW something good is happening. The only thing I can do is to move forward, regardless of my own feelings and other peoples idea of what to do or not to do. Most of my friends are now gone, just two or three are still here. Thanks a lot Jonathan for your great work!
I should add that this fear started after void experiences during meditation and deep sleep. I was nothing or everything. I was the entire room where I was sitting. Strange feeling. This happened approxmately 40 times during a period of say 7 to 8 years.
Dear Peter, I do understand. Void experiences... "allness" experiences... can really put a "crack" in the typical, ordinary framework of awareness most people operate from. And I'll totally grant that it could be a bit disorienting from time to time as well. Nonetheless... to borrow a phrase... it is also the crack that lets the light in. Are you familiar with "Plato's Cave" allegory? I'd be surprised if you haven't already stumbled across it... but If not, I encourage you to give it a look. These experiences you are going through - although a bit unusual to most - are also still as old as mankind. Even in Classical Greece, mankind was encountering the ineffable states of awakening. And as noted by Plato, when one has been so long in the dark, the first glimpse of the sun could surprise, could frighten, or even momentarily be perceived as blinding and painful... and yet soon enough the eyes adjust and one is washed in the fullness of light that shines on all that is, and sees the truth clearly, brightly, and with a gentle, loving warmth. Keep going, my friend. Peace be with you on your journey, and feel free to remain in touch! - Jonathan 😊🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 Lovely! Thank you very much Jonathan! 🙏
Running Nose.
Fighting temptations and every time I make the right choice, FUNNY coincidences occur.
Been socially isolated for 5+ years (with bumps)
Body is changing.
Face is looking more structured and looks like I have a strong foundation.
New thoughts.
Breaking family chains.
Makes sense why God wants us to be around people….
Thank you.
Keep going my friend... you're on the right track. 😊🙏- Jonathan
Shortly after my invow to the Sacred and after a prayerful commitment, everything changed and everything was taken from me and all was lost in the journey that followed. It truly was terrifying and rough over the course of several years. It still is difficult, but it has been worth it. I wouldn't recommend my experience for hardly anyone I've known or know today.
Perhaps they are not ready. In their own time, in their own way... 😊🙏 - Jonathan
I would say that people who have strong self-confidence, high energy, who are highly accomplished, capable and effective, successful and well adapted and who love themselves, will still want it, because they arent afraid of their lives falling apart, knowing they have the capacity to adapt and overcome any challenge. It is the disorganized, low energy, fearful, avoidant, isolated, highly attached non-achievers, who have a lot of self-doubt and no confidence that they can make a comeback, who wouldnt want it. Being one of the latter, I dont want it badly enough to make the sacrifices and the consistence efforts neccessary, and so my practice is weak, I dont make any real progress and I dont expect it to ever happen.
Dear alienloverlordsnow... I would humbly submit that in fact - as I attempted to note in the vid, tho perhaps not well enough - there is no sacrifice, in the end. The fears are erroneous. Awakening is for absolutely everyone, in due course, each in their own time. Recognizing truth can be done whether one is "brave" or not... and certainly, it is often in our times of greatest weakness and even devastation that we become ready to surrender to something beyond the hardened will of our ego. This is when spiritual transformation often has its greatest traction. Keep going, my friend! Seek truth with open mind and heart, and you will eventually find. And peace be with you on the journey! - Jonathan 😊🙏
I feel the opposite, an awakening seems to bring forth the things you lack as you face adversity ilans suffering in your own unique way. Such is the work of Carl Jung and why it is also known as the heroes journey.This is where I feel that there is no right or wrong necessary on the path, you’re on the path no matter what and it’s unfolding exactly the way it was always meant to. When I contemplate the infinite amount of variables back to the beginning of the universe that had to happen for me to be exactly where I am, it feels ridiculous to think “randomness” ever had a part in it…
I came to this through the bible, 2 deaths, one in 95 and again in 2018, awareness is the outcome and the only thing real, in other words, consciousness. I always remember the verse in Amos that says (paraphrasing) why seek the day the of the Lord, for the day of the Lord is darkness…and further on it says: it is like a man on his way to the market, escaping a lion only to torn to shreds by a bear.
It is a fear and horror that is unutterable and unexplainable. And everyone, at their own time will experience this. I call it a beautiful terror that is important.
Interesting... I cannot help wondering how you might react/respond/resonate vis-a-vis some of the other attempts I've made to express such things. If you get a notion for it, I invite you to click over to AssistTheSpirit.com and have a look at the other articles and videos. I'd be quite curious to hear your thoughts. If you make it over there, let me know... In the meantime, peace be with you on your journey, my friend! - Jonathan
Nicholas... I got an email from and you and attempted to respond, but your email address "bounced." It failed. So... I will copy the message here instead! It was as follows: Nick!
Nice to hear from you. Glad you've found some things that resonate. For starters, may I suggest you join me on Zoom tomorrow? I'm doing a small gathering there which only has 3 other people joining, and it would be a great forum in which to have that conversation. It's free and will commence at 6pm west coast time (PST). There are usually more people, but I'm often rather lax at the social media things... Here's the link to sign up: www.assistthespirit.com/events/zoom-gathering-july-12-2023/
If you can't make it, there's another one on Saturday morning, three days later. It's under the "Events" tab at the website too. It should also be quite small... I just checked and 3 people are signed up for that too.
Come! And we'll talk. 😊🙏 - Jonathan
And peace be as you Brother. ❤️
Thank you so much Kim! I sincerely appreciate the good vibes in return. 😊🙏❤
Surrendering to God..Everything! Pretty fearful! I am struggling. 😊❤
Kathleen m'dear, fear = struggle, yes... and... alternatively... see if you can look inward to find that clear thread that is cut from the cloth of deep peace... the one that likely prompted to you go on this journey in the first place... that original whisper that said "this is the way!" Reconnect with that... even for a moment... and see how it dissolves the fear. Not by fighting it, not by contradicting it or contending with it, but merely by looking past it to what is deeper, wider, and more all-encompassing, that simply renders it without real effect... and do feel free to let me know how it goes. - Jonathan 😊🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518
Thank You So Much! I will give that a Try!
Exquisite as usual. Thank you thank you Jonathan. 🙏
Steve, I'm sincerely glad this continues to resonate for you. And thank you in return, for the kinds words! Peace be wit'chu good brothah! - Jonathan
I do get you, Jonathan, when you point out that relinquishing the “false” self is not really a loss because it never existed to begin with. That makes sense theoretically, and is helpful. But I think I disagree. Since childhood I intensely studied human behavior to figure out how I could socially construct a “self” that contained my authenticity but was recognizable to the neurotypical dominant culture. I entered this process consciously with great intention and sustained focus over the course of many decades. And over time that “self” became embodied down to the cellular level. It dug deep grooves in my neurology and behavior patterns. It became woven tightly into my community, mediated by and made tangible through work I once loved to do. It was the self who paid the bills; who kept my child safe. That self was a lifelong project of love. Very valuable and very real. Losing that self has been devastating. But my body could not pay the price to sustain it anymore in a world that has turned upside down.
The selves we construct and redesign along the way are valuable, necessary, even life-saving. They are the selves we needed in order to get us here to the place of unselfing. Whether that unselfing is by choice, or not.❤
As always, thank you for pushing my learning. It is my greatest passion. Please keep talking.
Hello Darby! I love your note and especially love your word: "unselfing!" That is a great word!! You've hit on something I have considered trying to express more about as well. As I went through the pivotal shift myself, there was a spectacular peace that settled in, seemingly permanently, which completely altered how I saw and moved through the world. Yet concomitant with this, I was also amazed... baffled... delighted... and often perplexed at how life carried on... I too, had a mortgage, bills to pay, relationships to attend and... all the rest of ordinary adult life. The clear seeing that the self was a fiction didn't - at all - mean that I wasn't also called upon to respond to the world around me, just like you describe. There were definitely ways in which I could say "life fell completely apart." Yet was also, amidst the chaos of that, filled with peace. There was dramatic change, for sure, yet still not a sense of "loss" that plagued me, as the losses didn't seem problematic to me, even though the eyes of the pre-shift "self" would have seen them as such. I couldn't explain any of this to anyone, or so I thought, which is among the reasons I have been essentially silent for a wee bit over a decade. There are so many that seek this shift, to which I am happy to be in service, if possible. And I recognize there are many, these days, navigating the post-shift tumult. I am happy to be in service to them, too, if possible. I also recognize that serving the former is a somewhat different task than the latter. I hope to be up to the task of both. In my case I have come, after more than a decade, to this place in which these are the only tasks that call to me at all, and I will do my best. The subtle inward prompt, that quiet inner guidance that comes from Source, gently reminds me, daily, I have nothing better to be doing with my time. So I try to listen. I am quite sure you know what I mean. And I appreciate your presence immensely, as we go along the way toward home, along with so, so many others. 😊🙏 - Jonathan
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 That peace and knowing you have is what I want to recognize - that which you received when you were dying after surgery. You knew all was, is and always will be well. That self I am grieving for (described above) was embodied. I don’t recognize a me without the context of my body, my community, my passions, my voice. I can’t speak, I can’t write. It’s like there is nothing important enough to say - or, maybe more accurate: trying to assign words to new learning falls so short of representing my truth that I just prefer the silence. Maybe this is the Rosentwig Music (another commentor here on this video) means by that free-fall, existential crisis. And what you mean when you ask if we would really want to follow the path to freedom if we knew it would feel like this?
Ah... Darby... I think I understand better what you meant now. That feeling of "I can't speak," ...I relate to. Something I rarely mention about my own journey: for over a year after my own shift, I was nearly mute. Except when strictly necessary, for family needs or similar... because there was simply no impulse to speak. I would occasionally journal, but there wasn't much writing either. For me, life did accommodate this quietude with much grace, for which I am thankful. Of course, most people are probably in circumstances where they would be called upon for more verbosity, but I must assume their pathway in that regard would still uniquely serve them, as mine uniquely served me. The notion of trying to put any of this into words, or to teach, seemed utterly absurd. So I just didn't! For a long time. I could write a whole book about it. (I... sort of... am! Once I get a draft, maybe you'll find it interesting...) Here's a couple things I learned along the way, which... I dunno if they'll be helpful right now, but here ya go: I recognized and surrendered to the reality that I'd reached some sort of point-of-no-return and I was going where I was going, regardless. I knew I couldn't go back, like when someone has jumped (or fallen) out of an airplane. There ain't no climbing back in, and your going where you're going. At first this was terrifying, but after awhile, there was nothing to do but accept it, and try to enjoy the view, and the breeze. Everything that seemed like a loss at first, turned out not to actually be a problem, or a loss at all, but this took some significant time to recognize. I knew I couldn't go back to the old ways, but I didn't understand what the new way was, very well. And so, instead of clawing my way back, I just had to stand and sit and embrace the silence... and listen carefully to the guidance, and direction that would come. Sometimes very patiently, and sometimes I struggled with this, but I can vouch for the fact that listening to the guidance that arises from that quiet wholeness is a skill that can be developed. It comes naturally to some extent, but it also grows with mindful attention to it. And sometimes the mindfulness had to be directed to how much I was actively resisting it. I suspect you are at a stage like that, where going back is not really an option, and that living into, and listening into, the stillness/silence/spirit... and building trust in what it offers, what it might say, and where or to whom it may direct you, will actually be a path of high grace, that brings you gently into this next phase of your being.
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 I have so much to say. I tried to reply but went “mute” again. Will keep trying. Till then, please know you are one of the only speakers and writers who I can hear.
@darbydelane4588 Darby...there is no need to force words onto the page. Just set the pen down for a moment and know you will have the option to pick it back up later, if you wish; if the impulse arises.. But in the meantime I encourage you to set down the pen, and direct your mind gently to the still place and simply sit with it. Be patient with it. Live into it. In due course - and not of your own machinating - the messages it has for you will tell you of themselves. It is the act of surrendering that brings them closer. While you await them, the outer world may still ask for your response, which is fine... you can go about the daily requirements on the outside - even if just the minimum - but inwardly remain still, enveloped gently and quietly in the stillness. And do feel free to continue letting me know how it goes when the clear inner instructions prompt you thus.
Just watched this again and yes, I'd like to hear a discussion on awakening in relation to "improving one's life circumstances" that you pointed out with on-screen text. When I started my journey it was all about wanting to know the deepest level of truth, e.g., why are we here? What's really going on? So yes, it's an interesting topic. BTW, have you seen how many views this video has gotten? Things are moving along, no?
Ms. Sweet... yes, I am frequently baffled about the ways of algorithms and social media. I have no real grasp of why one video "takes off" more than another, quite irrespective of their relative quality of content. And i will absolutely take to heart your request on the topic of improving life circumstances! Thank you for you note... 😊🙏
a flower doesn´t begin to bloom in order to improve itself ...
Awakening does not "often improve people's life circumstances" as you say for the simple reason that awakening does not often happen. It is extremely rare. It is like saying "Becoming the leader of the entire world often improves people's life circumstances" It astounds me how so many people think awakening is so simple and mundane. I have no problem if people want to use the term loosely to mean they have overcome addiction or reduced psychological trauma but for someone who is truly seeking liberation nothing could be a bigger obstacle.
I suppose the question is: Can we live without an identity.I think not. You can attenuate your attachment to it, but relinquishing it is neither possible nor desirable while negotiating living with other humans. Consciousness is a concept, and what you many consider successful abiding in it, is still an ego identity.
You've gotten at something quite important, and that is also frequently tangled up with the limitations of language and communication: how can we live in this world without some form of identity? We speak about the "death of self" and yet... well... I try to address that very point in another video called the Startling Truth Of Nondual Awareness: Death Of Ego? The salient point is at 10:25 in the vid. I would be curious about your thoughts on it, if you see it. And in the meantime, may these linguistic absurdities somehow still serve you well on your own journey! Peace be with you! - Jonathan 🙂🙏
here's a link to the vid noted above: ruclips.net/video/9F14gwnMYEA/видео.html
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 Hey Jonathan, I have concluded that language has created schizophrenia in us humans. The thought: "I" which is the observer, and " Me" the observed. e.g. " Sometimes I just hate myself ". My journey has made me realize this is all it illusory, and the I and ME are one, but I still live out this duality. I believe that humanity is fated to that system of thought. Naming things gives meaning to our experiences. In fact without labels we would just have sensations and not know what we were feeing. This realization has produced a sense of peace for me. I did watch your other video, and for me swapping the small self for the expansive Self is another identity. It may make one feel special if that's what ego thinks it needs. Namaste
Wonderful content 🙏🏼
Thank you Corey, I appreciate your good vibes! May this stuff be of service in your own journey. Peace be wit'chu, brothah!
Thanks from Australia, Keep doing you're think it's a beautiful message.
Thank you Mario, I will absolutely do that. And one of these days, I'll look forward to being in Australia in person. May the vibes down under serve you well on your journey! - Jonathan 😊🙏
as a teenager i journaled alot and I asked to be wise insightful person I never know what a big ask it was in my ignorance I thought these was noble cause......not knowing that in order to be wise be insightful I need to go through very tough situations to gain those insights.......I do not ask for those things anymore I only ask for God to lead me keep me safe and fill me up with things I should have to come to me easy no mess no fuss ......
The road, here in this dimension, does seem rather guaranteed to be full of twists and turns... Here's wishing you continued peace on your journey, Michele... 😊🙏 - Jonathan
@jonathanvanvalin4518 thank you. The road is a journey enjoy its as its so so short. Enjoy the delishesness of now and keep going. - Michele. Wishing all fellow travelers wonderful fascinating peaceful journey.
Wonderful. Well done.
Thank you for the good vibes, Waynzwhirled! I appreciate that you appreciate it. May it serve you on your own journey, and may you play on! Keep rockin' it. (from one musician to another!) 😊🙏
As a species we want certainty above all. That's why awakening may seem worse than illusion. We lack the exercise of freedom in any area of our life because we were taught that we belong to a community, with a sense of social belonging and therefore the sense that we don't have to exercise our freedom because we can rely on family, friends, society. Now it's a taught choice and many will just 'taste' it for their immediate needs not for the ultimate goal out of lack of spiritual maturity or health problems or age problems!
The irony is that awakening brushes away uncertainty about the biggest questions of existence, which is why it is so very quiet and peaceful regardless of age or health or... basically anything! Peace be with you on your journey, marinacocol! - Jonathan 😊🙏
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 different awakened have reacted differently to non-duality so for some seekers that is disturbing, same with the 3rd eye opening and the kundalini energy. Everything is connected and without proper, honest guidance it's pretty understandable why so many look for immediate benefits and leave the rest for another life. Thank you anyway! 🙏
Awakening isnt about improving ones life circumstances, thats where the "self help" movement comes in. One can stay lost in that world for decades, thinking you are getting healed and spiritually improving, working toward your "enlightenment." Its all false. True awakening is an act of grace. The limited sense of person is gone, truly liberating. And yes, at times very confusing to the small self. Thank you for your sharing.
And thank you for listening, Beth. This topic of "Awakening isn't about improving ones life circumstances" does seem a rich place in which to dig for another video. I do intend to pursue it... Peace be with you on your journey! 😊🙏- Jonathan
Sounds right to me.
😊🙏- Jonathan
It seems to me, intelligence, understanding, love maybe, experience are valuable and a loss when you loose them.
Indeed they would be Paul, but the very good news is, none of these will be gone. They will simply be present from a different, "greater" perspective... a perspective which does not revolve around a "personal self" at the center, allowing that intelligence and understanding and love to be much, much freer, unencumbered by the limitations, fears, and burdens of that "personal self." Yet the fear of loss often crops up within, while on the journey towards awakening. So perhaps this video can help address that. Imagine what love without fear might be like... There is no sacrifice in the actual awakening. There is nothing of real value lost. Good news indeed! Here's hoping these words serve you on your journey... Peace be with you, Paul! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 ❤️🙏 Thank you Jonathan.
greetings from other awaken soul
Olá Rafael! Peace be with you, good brother!
Truth
Amen, and thank you for finding this. May Truth continue to buoy you on your own journey! 😊🙏 - jonathan
After thinking about your words for a while, I felt the question inside me: Why does the Awakened One encourage the illusion of a self to awaken? Is this a process of disillusionment of the true self? Something like: Wake up and stop to hallucinate that you are a human?
It is ultimately simply the function of love calling itself back to love. Love is... loving. What could be more natural then, that love should call gently lift the veil - the illusions - that have seemed to blind what is seemingly (in illusions) separate from love to return to the awareness of loves presence? It is the illusions that reveal themselves as the halllucinations, whereas the love is revealed as the seat of Truth and Reality.... only in this sense is there a "disillusionment" or, a lifting of illusions... Peace be with you in your journey, my friend! - Jonathan 🙏
Do you live this life if so what is your day to day like? Ii find a huge value of my family? More than anything of "my own self/ value" other than thy Lord
Yes my friend, I live this life and continue to "put my pants on one leg at a time" just like everybody else. I keep busy with all the things to do and people in my life, as seems to be the general requirement in this If you'd like a more comprehensive answer to your question, I'd encourage you to have a listen to a video from a few years back, in which I try to address your question: ruclips.net/video/L5EWvrY7Sss/видео.html Let me know your thoughts if you see it! 😊🙏 - Jonathan
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😊🙏right back 'atcha, Denise. Peace be with you on your journey! - Jonathan
Thank you for that, but perhaps change the subject title to "Spiritual Awakening - if you knew what it really was, you'll want it"!
I've wondered about the title too, and will keep that in mind! In the meantime, peace be with you my friend! - Jonathan 😊🙏
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😊❤🙏...right back 'atcha, good brothah. Keep strummin'...
Ego arise in mind as a thought. The moment one says “I” all the memories of past experiences are compared with the present moment, trying to anticipate and fulfill the next moment. Mind is an useful tool for mapping information but not for anticipation. If you’re a master of the mind, ego will project coherence, if not - there will be only confusion. The problem with ego is in the lack of maturity. We need to develop characters in order to express beauty and truth, otherwise there is only emptiness. But if that character became mechanical and reactive there will be no beauty, no truth but only sorrow. The beauty of a flower is in the eyes of the observer.
You gain nothing, but you lose nothing.
If I could be so bold as to paraphrase y1our words with my own: You "lose" the seeming weight of what is revealed to have been nothing in the first place (illusions!) and "gain" that which was always there, already, eternally... or something like that! (words... words...) Peace be with you, friend. 😊🙏
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😊🙏❤... right back atcha, bamboostu.
looks like Utha or Arazona?
Right you are Michele... Utah! I solo backpacked three days down Muley Twist Canyon in Capitol Reef Nat'l Park, although the video was actually shot not far from the main entrance to the park... 😁
my husband is from there we will be in time.....we waiting on my visa to travel....long process.
Christianity, for all its flaws, tells you clearly that this world is a valley of tears, hoe's that for awakening?
I dunno if i'd agree it does so clearly... since even though it does say exactly what you've quoted, it also says many things that directly contradict that... Yet Jesus clearly looked upon the world with love. i would find that hard to contradict with other passages to my limited knowledge....
Why so dramatic?
Yes Sarah, this is a very reasonable question! I questioned this, myself. The attempt is to "key in" to, to recognize, the fear patterns that soooo many people experience on their way toward awakening. For much of the journey, for the vast majority, there comes this approach/avoidance conflict to their own awakening in which they experience - quite directly and frequently - this fear concerning whether they really can/should/must go where the awakening journey seems to point. In my own case, I felt utterly compelled to keep moving towards what, at the time, I could not fully understand, and frequently terrified me, especially given that I was (erroneously) convinced it would lead to great sacrifice and basically the loss of any semblance of normalcy. It thought I would lose everything, basically. And yes, at the time, that seemed quite dramatic. So... the drama in the title was intended to reflect what seemed to me then, and to others going through this now, that same drama. It is a way of calling to them, meeting them where they are. I hope those who find this will listen all the way through and hear it's message.... that the fears they may feel gripped by now will be proven nothing, and they will be released entirely from them. Thus the encouragement to "keep going!" "Keep going!" A long answer to a very short question... here's wishing you peace on YOUR journey, Sara! - Jonathan :-)
P.S... I also do wonder, often, about the "wisdom" of such things as social media algorithms. I have little grasp of how these things actually work. Social media has never been my natural habitat!
@@jonathanvanvalin4518 well, what I meant is that awakening results in humor -at one’s own self expense, indeed. Struggle means awakening is lingering.
😊❤🙏Peace be with you, friend! - Jonathan