Don’t believe the hype

~ Tom Das ~ 7 Comments

street grafitti.jpg

Public Enemy were onto something. They really were. Their song title ‘Don’t believe the hype’ has profound ramifications when applied to our own beliefs. We have consumed so many ideas of what will fulfill us, so much propaganda.

The mind churns out all sorts of formulas for what will make us happy. Don’t believe any of it. It’s all rubbish. All of it.

I’m not talking of practical issues of survival or health, etc. I’m talking about wanting more than that. I’m talking about dukkha, that insatiable existential itch that always comes back no matter how many times you scratch it.

The mind comes up with endless and repetitive ways of scratching that itch. But everything you think will make you happy – none of it will fill that deep dark hole inside you. Yes, it may give you some temporary pleasure, perhaps even some longer lasting pleasure too, but that void inside of you that tugs and tugs away at your insides returns saying “I want more, I want more…“:

I want a girlfriend/boyfriend
I want a degree/job/skill/to be able to dance better
I want to get drunk/get high/fall asleep
I want a bigger/new/better/faster ____.
I want a house/car/other object
I want to look better/bigger/thinner
I want curly/straight/blonde/brown hair

It’s even worse when people are involved. Then the “If onlys” start:

If only he did it this way
If only she shut up a bit
If only he was more considerate
If only she did not complain so much
If only he talked less
If only she talked more

Worse still are the “shoulds“:

I should have done ‘x’
He shouldn’t have done ‘y’
I can’t believe ‘z’ happened. ‘z’ so shouldn’t have happened

When it comes to spiritual matters, it’s just as bad, more hype:

I want to feel good forever and ever and ever
I want God to protect me and make me feel good (forever)…
I want to pray/meditate/go to church/satsang more…
I want to be able to do those yoga poses
I want to know all those scriptures and read all those books
I want the ultimate Understanding
I want Enlightenment

See, it’s all bogus. Phoney. Whatever you attain can be lost. I’ll repeat that – whatever you attain can be lost.

Any conceptual understanding gained is a concept that can be doubted or questioned. Eternal Happiness is right here and now. It is ever-present, just waiting to be noticed. And how do you notice it? Just by noticing the truth that you have believed the hype and created your misery.

Don’t believe the hype – then the misery and nagging itch inside that longs for more – that all disappears. And ‘you’ disappear along with it all, for all ‘you’ are is a bundle of thoughts. And what is left when ‘you’ disappear? Ahh, the sweetness of it all…indescribable

So next time you want something really bad, next time you think you know what will make you happy, take my advice: think again. What are you looking for? Will that really make you happy? As I said, it’s all rubbish. See through it all. Remember: don’t believe the hype.

Zen: How should one approach enlightenment?

~ Tom Das ~ 7 Comments
lake reflection2.jpg
Can you smooth out this lake using your hand please?

Two great Chan (Zen) masters speak:

Zhaozhou: How should one approach enlightenment?
Nanquan: If you try to head for it, you immediately turn away from it.

Tom’s comments:
So, what to do?

 

The root concept

~ Tom Das ~ 2 Comments
Cirrus clouds fox.jpg
Is anybody here? Is anybody doing this?

It is the concept of a subject,
That gives rise to the concept of an object.
Or put another way,
The concept of ‘me’,
That gives rise to ‘not me’.

But look at your experience for yourself:

What was thought to be the subject
Is actually also an object.

The experiencing entity that we take ourselves to be,
Is actually something we are aware of,
and not the subject at all.

The person looking at and experiencing life,
Is just a part of life,
Totally inseparable from life.

The body,
thoughts,
emotions,
inner sensations,
intuitions,
visions,
dreams.
– all these are objects.
– all these are sensations.
– none of these are ‘me’.
– none of these are ‘mine’.

Sensations cannot themselves sense.
The perceived cannot perceive.

In fact, looking at our own experience,
Where is the subject at all?

Look!
-There are only sensations.
-There are only objects.
-There is only experience.
-There is never the experience of the subject.

Look!
Experience is a seamless whole,
One seamless happening,
And the so-called experiencer, the ‘me’,
Is simply part of that happening.

So what are we left with?
Just this.

Life simply happening,
All by itself.

Non-dual devotion, worship and prayer

~ Tom Das ~ 13 Comments

child praying.jpg

In advaita (non-duality), we know that the God which is devote ourselves to is not separate from us.

Also see:

Does Jnana (Knowledge) lead to Bhakti (Devotion) or the other way round?
Should I bow to Sri Ramana Maharshi?
Grace alone is of prime importance
Bhakti Yoga (love and devotion) as a complete path to liberation
Ramana Maharshi on those who mock Idol-Worship

For many purists there is no place for devotion and prayer in non-duality. But devotion has always had a prominent role in spiritual traditions, and for good reason: it can be a hugely purifying and uplifting part of spiritual practice with many positive effects on the body and mind and our relationships. (click here for how devotion can be part of a wider spiritual path)

Om! May Brahman protect us!
May Brahman nourish us!
May we have energy!
May we become illumined!
May we not hate!
Om, Shanti, Shanti, Shanti!
(A traditional invocation or prayer from the Upanishads)

Continue reading →

What you teach is not practical for most. I too am a spiritual teacher. Honestly, most people just need a hug and have their feelings validated. Although personally, your writings have helped me grow so much. You are more like a teacher for teachers. What do you think about that?

~ Tom Das ~ Leave a comment

This post hits the spot for me ❤ Thanks Atreya

So I’ve just started using twitter…@tomdas

~ Tom Das ~ 3 Comments

Hi everyone,

So I’ve decided to try to embrace social media and think I’ve got this twitter thing sorted out. Well, the basics at least anyway 🙂  Are any of you out there on Twitter? Please let me know or find me @tomdas. I’m regularly tweeting for now – let’s see how long it lasts for! Do you use twitter? What’s your experience of social media been?

I’ve also used a wordpress widget to add a twitter feed to the sidebar – please let me know if there are better ways I can use social media or twitter, etc, many thanks

Love, peace and joy to you all

❤ ❤ ❤

God is everywhere

~ Tom Das ~ Leave a comment

Maple leaf on stones.jpg

God is everywhere

– where is She not?

All there is is God. It is not right to say God is in all things, for that implies a duality between things and God. It is not right to say God is in you, for that implies you are a container for God and different to God.

There are no things, only God. The idea of separate things is illusory. There is just an interconnected whole. Call this wholeness God, or Life, or The Great Spirit, or anything you like. There is no room for anything else. Only God. No ‘you’, no ‘I’, just ‘Him’.

Is there even a single particle where ‘She’ is not? (Is She not omnipresent and infinite?)

Everything moves and has its being in Him. Everything that moves and has being (exists) is also Him.

All there is is God. All is God.

 

The Drama

~ Tom Das ~ 1 Comment

Here’s an article I wrote for naturalhealthstar.com about the stories we tell and how to deal with ‘drama’:

www.naturalhealthstar.com/general-wellness/the-drama/

[Update: the above link no longer works so I have posted the article in full below:]

I remember a great piece of advice a friend gave to me: “Drama” she said “Don’t go there. Just don’t go there. Always stay out of the drama!”.

And it was good advice. Another word that could have been used instead of drama is the word story. It’s easy to get caught up in someone else’s story or narrative. We often tell each other stories: in our interpersonal relationship, in the workplace and in the media where it is often exaggerated as spin. I’ve seen so many relationship issues that are caused by the stories people tell about each other. There is the story of blame, the how could she/he do that to me story. There is the you are a bad person story. There is the I am a bad person story, the nobody could like/love me story and the once I get promoted I’ll be happy story. Of course you could replace promoted with a few hundred other things. There is the story of victimhood , the story of perpetration, and the story of being a helper or rescuer.  I could go on.

Now, that is not to say that there are never perpetrators or victims, or that people are never to blame. There clearly are victims sometimes and sometimes people are incompetent and need to be held responsible for their actions. But being a victim, for example, is different to the drama or story of victimhood. These stories we so often tell ourselves and each other serve no useful purpose, but we can sometimes feel a sense of strength and certainty when we cling to them.

Who would we be without those stories? Would people walk all over me? Would anyone pay any attention to me? Would anyone love me?

Are any of these stories true? If so, where is the evidence, and if there evidence then is this evidence just another story? (Maybe it isn’t a story – only you know the correct answers to these questions)

So let me ask you: who would you be without your stories? Can you spot the times that you enter into other people stories about you and, for example, start to defend yourself? What stories do you tell about other people? What stories do you have about yourself?