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What is it that isn't coming or going? That is you! Just take note of the actuality of this. You neither have to "let go" of anything or progressively destroy any sort of "karmic patterning." For if you center on those areas, you are focusing at the level of cause-and-effect, you will likely never discern That which is unequivocally beyond it.
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Awareness can neither be acquired nor avoided.
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I'm never comfortable with the word "emptiness" when it comes to describing the natural state. For the latter is a positive experience. And by experience, I here mean unchanging Beingness. There is no wavering or levels of intensity or "sense of" Beingness here. Just Beingness. And it is not a true experience because, among things, it does not come and go. And that is how it is for you right now: That is something that is appearing and disappearing, coming and going. What is that something?
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Two spiritual myths: Awakening is NOT the product of personal growth. And awareness doesn't need to be "expanded." Indeed, awareness is freedom and spaciousness itself! It is completely without bounds, and it is precisely what you are. Hence, there is nothing whatsoever that is personal about it.
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See the extraneousness of chanting, rituals, and practices. OM is there before OM is uttered. All the great sages point to this fact--that you are overlooking your fundamental nature. You just need to be more attentive to this point. You really don't have to do anything other than that. For the "doing" is in the understanding. But if you find joy in rituals and practices, then by all means enjoy them!
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To "look deep within" is all fine and good, but you really don't have to look that deep!
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The awakening to one's natural state can certainly occur. It happened with Nisargadatta Maharaj, Bob Adamson, U.G. Krishnamurti, and myself; and it continues to occur (though slowly) throughout the world. Some people choose to write and speak about their discovery, and some do not. It really doesn't matter. Further, there is nothing really magical in this recognition, though the innate serenity that one discovers does have a hint of enchantment to it. And yet, nothing could be more ordinary--or more beautiful.
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The "I" is an idea and convenience. It allows us to communicate with one another and to function in society. But this "I" is not your true identity. You are the serene and unchanging spaciousness behind the "I." See for yourself that there is indeed something behind and around that notion of a concrete "me." It may appear intangible and ambiguous. But that "something" is present nonetheless.
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You have to see the simplicity of this--the simplicity of what you are, right here and now. It isn't a question of your coming to this understanding at some later time when you are "spiritually ready" or when you can "give time" to some sort of quest or search. Those are blinders and postponements that the mind is creating. The mind has nothing to do with the reality of what you are, as you read these very words. So who is waiting for what?...Feel the pause and power of that pointer. Allow it to show you the tranquil and unmoving immediacy of your natural state.
News & Info
This blog appears every other Sunday.
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Fully Present is now available at the superb Powell's Bookstore, in Portland, Oregon.
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Fiona Robertson interviews Rodney on Nic Higham's NONDUALITY NETWORK!
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And click HERE to purchase Fully Present at Barnes & Noble.
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And go HERE for the press release for Fully Present.
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For Tami Brady's review of Fully Present in TCM Reviews, go HERE.
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"Fully Present is an elegant addition to the growing literature on nonduality as it is being uncovered, lived and understood in the modern West."
--Philip Goldberg, author of the best-selling American Veda: From Emerson and the Beatles to Yoga and Meditation--How Indian Spirituality Changed the West. Philip's Web site can be found at www.philipgoldberg.com.
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"Rodney Stevens opens his daily life and thoughts to us in these immensely natural and pleasant ramblings of one who is fully engaged in life, love, nonduality, and cinnamon muffins."
--Catherine Ann Jones, award-winning screenwriter, spiritual workshop leader, and author of The Way of the Story: The Craft and Soul of Writing. Her Web site is www.wayofstory.com
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Rodney is also the author of A Vastness All Around: Awakening to Your Natural State, a powerful and elegant collection of essays, discussions, interviews, and powerful pointers. It can be ordered directly from the publisher at Lulu Press.
Feel free to read a review of the Kindle Edition of Vastness on Amazon.
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Nonduality Magazine has published a discussion with Rodney about his work and book. The extensive and wide-ranging interview was done by John LeKay, the magazine's editor.
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"I like your approach in A Vastness All Around. The stories, thoughts and vignettes of your life seem wonderful ways to make people stop and pay attention to where they actually are right now, rather than in some imagined past or future. They show that you don't have to be some specially qualified person, preferably with a title and a name in Sanskrit, to pursue the spiritual quest. Your message comes across particularly well in such pieces as 'Sheerness of Being.'"
--Valerie J. Roebuck, Ph.D., Honorary Research Fellow, University of Manchester (England)
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I am now doing phone consultations via Skype! Each conversation will take about an hour, and a $25 donation will be greatly appreciated.
I am also scheduling teaching events at this time. If you would like to arrange something in your area, you may email me at: writerguy (at) fastmail (dot) fm
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This blog is generally updated every other Sunday afternoon, Eastern Standard Time.
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