The Inner Self, Who We Are and How to Find Out
The Inner Self and the 'Natural Way'
This article discusses some of the perceptions of our human consciousness relating to the Inner Self, explaining the various aspects of this consciousness, as well as providing information about the experience of travelling within to better know 'self' and discover an inner balance with all things.
The Inner Self
The word 'Inner Self', refers to a combination and collective of aspects of our consciousness, which include the subconscious mind (also known as the 'child self', 'basic self' and 'lower self'), the super-conscious mind (also known as the 'higher self' or 'true self'), but it is more than just this... the Inner Self also refers to the gateway or window
through which we re-connect to these aspects of self, as well as referring to the inner communication and guidance that comes from these aspects of our consciousness once we reconnect to them.
The truth of the Inner Self is that our consciousness is a unity, connected to all life, all unity, throughout the reality and all the way back to the fundamental conscious life force of the universe (also known as Chi / Ki / Prana / Energy/ God / Spirit). Our consciousness is our human soul, the part of us that cannot die; cannot end: the part of us that remains conscious no matter if it is before birth, during a life, or even after death. Our human soul is our ultimate true self!
Of course as humans, we love to label and categorise everything, even aspects of our own consciousness; we do this so that we can understand. The part of us that does this is known as the conscious self, the rational mind (also known as the ‘middle self’ or ‘adult self’). In
terms of understanding our limitless and infinite consciousness or soul, the conscious rational self (the part of you reading this page) breaks down our consciousness into smaller fragments that we can categorise and understand. Thus ancient cultures have labelled these fragments of our consciousness in various languages.
The conscious rational self of a human being will often remain unaware and asleep in terms of understanding its nature, true self, larger big picture of the universe and its connection to it. A good metaphor for understanding the nature of the conscious rational self would be to say that the conscious self is like a human that has amnesia. When a human has amnesia, there is much that they cannot remember about them self, such as their name, who they are, why they are where they are, who their family and friends are, where they grew up etc. However, there are also many things that they do remember, for example, how to speak in the language they speak, and how to walk and perform certain actions. Ironically, like a human with amnesia, the conscious self is the least conscious aspect of our consciousness. It may know certain things about its current personality, but until it goes through an internal awakening, it will remain unaware and out of touch with other aspects of its consciousness or greater awareness. The un-awakened conscious self cannot remember who it really is, its true nature or true self (the infinite soul and true personality); it cannot remember that it is actually a part of a greater whole and connected to all things in unison, thus it feels separation, individuality and loneliness. It cannot remember its life purpose and why it has chosen to incarnate. It cannot remember its soul connections and relations (other souls incarnated with). It cannot remember its collective experience from all its previous incarnations in previous forms. Indeed, it may not even know or believe that such things are possible. And yet, there lies dormant within the conscious self, a key to all the answers to these questions, as the conscious self is connected to other aspects of its awareness that do remember, such as the subconscious and super-conscious mind. The conscious self has the ability to go through an awakening where it can begin to become ever more aware of these other aspects of consciousness.
As a human walks a path towards expanding its awareness or consciousness, it goes through stages of reawakening and thus becomes more self-aware. At first the human conscious rational self will become aware of other aspects of its self, such as the subconscious mind or child self and the super-conscious mind or higher self, however, it will experience and understand these aspects as a separation (fragments) of itself, and thus will experience the (conscious) communication with these aspects of the Inner Self as it would a communication with an outside being. As the human continually expands their awareness through whatever purpose, experience, technique or pathway, they will come to a further awakening where they can comprehend and experience the paradoxical nature of the human soul as the unity it actually is. Thus the conscious self will merge in unison with the subconscious and super-conscious self, once again becoming their true self, only in human form. So, the Inner Self refers to all these components as well as to the path towards awakening and enlightenment. Another term for these aspects of our consciousness is 'the three selves'.
The 'three selves' or 'three souls' are terms that are used by various indigenous cultures to describe these aspects of our consciousness and the basic personalities they appear to have. Each human has within them these three selves, or basic levels of consciousness; the subconscious; the conscious and the super-conscious. Indigenous peoples who understand these basic levels of consciousness have been known to depict the three selves with animal symbols. The animal symbols used are different within various cultures, however, they can be similar, for example; as the subconscious mind is understood as having a close relationship to the earth, it is usually depicted as a creature that moves across the earth on its belly such as various types of snakes. The conscious rational self (the main aspect connected with the un-awakened human), is depicted by a creature that walks across the land on all fours. The symbols used for this aspect could be a big cat, wolf, or dog, but could also be any creature that exists within the indigenous culture’s land. As the super-conscious self or Higher Self is understood to be in touch with higher levels of awareness and has the greatest vision, being able to see far into the past and future of the conscious self (middle self or soul), it is often depicted as a bird of some kind (usually an eagle). The Inner Self relates to the collective of all three of these aspects working together in unison to provide clear inner guidance, becoming the inner teacher.
When someone strengthens their connection to the Inner Self, they experience the reality in a very different way, no longer feeling completely separate from everything. The more they can integrate with their greater whole, the more they can awaken certain abilities linked with the Inner Self, such as: higher intuition, inner knowing, internal guidance and
direction, utilisation of life force, greater understanding and compassion. As they integrate with their greater whole, they also unlock all potential and inner talents brought with them or chosen to possess within this physical incarnation. From this point on, the reawakened human consciousness can continue to grow and expand through further stages of awakening, continually understanding a greater portion of the reality, and releasing more of its infinite potential as it continues to expand.
How does anyone know any of this information to be true?
I feel this is a good left-brain question, and there are a couple of ways we could try to answer this question. Firstly, we could follow the traditional pathway of learning, which is the logical left-brain study of previous knowledge and history to gain insight and understanding. So, we could look at our human history... Throughout our history, many ancient cultures have believed such things about our consciousness to be true and have discussed them in their various languages in one or another shape or form. As we look at these cultures and study information about them, we can learn something from their knowledge and belief systems. If we look back into the spiritual practices and beliefs of ancient cultures, religions and spiritual paths such as the Coptic’s (early Christians), Essene's, Buddhist’s, Hindu’s etc. We find that many had similar ideas about the human soul and its evolution in consciousness towards an ascension or enlightenment. Furthermore, if we look even further back beyond civilisation into our indigenous ancestor cultures that have existed for aeons upon this earth, living closely with the earth itself, we also find a great source of knowledge within the similarities in their natural way of understanding the human soul, its unity to all things, and its evolutionary journey. While this path of left-brain research is interesting, informative and can provide much confirmation on such things, for most people it can often lead to a dead end, as it does not always satisfy and convince the left-brain how anyone can really know such things to be true. for example, how did the very
first people understand these levels on consciousness and how to evolve with them? How did they know what they knew? Often the beliefs of such ancient peoples, cultures, spiritual pathways or interpretations, are based upon the beliefs of previous generations who have simply taught future generations to believe such things and to have faith in them, so it becomes a challenge to our left-brain in understanding if any of this is true or just ancient belief in legends and myths. However, what we also find when researching history is that
if we trace back and look at the very beginnings of these belief systems, they are usually based upon the teachings of someone, or a group of people who claim to have actually attained such knowledge through internal exploration. So, many of these ancient pathways tell us that one has to look within to find the answers...thus bringing us back to the Inner Self.
For many people, the path towards self discovery and the development of the Inner Self will begin with the left-brain approach of asking questions and then studying historic pathways, spiritual / psychological knowledge and techniques in an attempt to find the answers.
However, at some point, one would need to use a different approach to truly understand, as the left-brain has a real problem with understanding things of a paradoxical and unity based nature. For other people, the path towards the development of the Inner Self may begin with a more right-brain approach. As crazy as it often sounds (to the left-brain), the right-brain approach to understanding these things is just to know and to be. Where as the left-brain understands information, the right hemisphere of the brain, just knows. This
knowing is based in intuition and instinct, which when experienced, can be an incredibly powerful force and source of knowledge. This is why throughout history there have been those who have opened and released the knowledge from within the Inner Self. A part of them knew what to do instinctively. It is this instinct and intuition that are part of the right-brain approach to finding, understanding and learning knowledge.
So, the other way we can answer the question of how anyone can know these things to be true, would be to understand the nature of the right-brain and the subconscious mind.
(cont'd below)
Replies to This Discussion
-
Permalink Reply by Des on
-
(cont'd)
The Human Brain
Our human brain is split into two hemispheres, the left and the right. When we look at the brain, the two cerebral cortices are literally in two halves and separate from one another, only connected at the bottom by the corpus callosum and the spinal cord. The two hemispheres work and think very differently from each other, so differently in fact that they actually act as two separate brains, communicating in certain ways together through the corpus callosum. Each brain understands and processes information about the reality in such a different way that it is almost as though they are two completely different personalities that are concerned with and think about different things. In terms of computers, the left brain functions like a serial processor and the right brain functions like a parallel processor. Everyone uses both hemispheres of the brain, however, people tend to be predominant in one or the other, thus we have left-brain people and right-brain people.
The left-brain is masculine in nature. It thinks linearly and methodically. It is analytical, calculating, logical and statistical. The left-brain is concerned with the past and the future. It is designed to pick out an incredible amount of details from the present moment, categorise, label and organise these details, associating them with everything we have ever learnt in the past, and then projecting into the future all our possibilities. The left-brain thinks in language. It is the ongoing brain chatter that links our internal world to the external world. The language of the left-brain is the calculating intelligence that creates our thoughts and reminds us of everything we need to do in order to function properly. The left-brain is linked to the ego; in the respect that it is the part of us that says I AM this or that. It is the part of us that gives us our individual identity. In this functional process, the left-brain keeps our understanding of ourselves as solid individual beings, separate from all other things in the reality. Even though science has now shown that all things are connected, that everything is just energy vibrating at different frequencies, and all of it is connected, including each one of us; our left brain keeps us separate from experiencing that unity.
The right-brain is feminine in nature. It is always concerned with this present moment. The right hemisphere thinks in pictures. It is imaginative, creative and artistic. The right-brain learns kinaesthetically through the movement of our body. As information in the form of energy, floods in simultaneously through all our sensory systems, it then forms an enormous montage of what this present moment looks like, sounds like, smells like, tastes like, and feels like. The right-brain understands and experiences us as a part of a collective energy and consciousness in pure unity. It sees us as an energy being that is connected to all the energy and consciousness around us. It does not see us as separate from anything in the reality. The right-brain is intuition, instinct, and perpetually lives in the now.
No matter if you are predominantly a left-brain or right-brain person, we can all understand things in either a left-brain way, a right-brain way, or a balance of both. The human being is an amazingly complex and beautiful being. Our consciousness not only exists within our brain, but also within our heart, body, and soul. The collective consciousnesses of the three selves are spread out throughout this whole system, and our body is the vehicle through which we experience this 3D reality.
Within all of us, lay the keys to knowing the truth about human consciousness as well as the answers to all things. To help explain this, we could return for a moment to the metaphor of the human with amnesia. One way to gradually awaken the human from the state of amnesia is to surround them with familiar things from the past, including faces and facts about their life. This can often have the affect of jogging their memory as flashes of their truth eventually flood back into their traumatised consciousness. The human with amnesia, knows on some deep level within them, that which is true, because of their subconscious mind. Likewise, the aspect of us that has a type of amnesia (the conscious self) also knows what is true, as even if only on an unconscious level, the conscious self is in direct communication with the subconscious mind, and the subconscious mind is very aware of the true nature of itself. After all, it is often our subconscious mind that pushes our left-brain to ask the questions and seek the answers in the first place.
The Subconscious / Child Self
The nature of the subconscious mind is that it is literally the body. Unlike the conscious self or rational mind, the subconscious mind never sleeps. The subconscious mind exists within the first three lower chakras of the body, which are energy centers concerned with the basic instinct of survival of the self, thus it is also called the lower self and basic self. The subconscious mind is also known as the child self for a couple of reasons. Firstly its needs are like that of a child’s; basic, primal and survival based, needing love, security, nourishment and attention. It is also known as the child self because when we are born, before our body and brain grows and develops the personality behind the conscious rational self, we are mostly just the subconscious self concerned with very basic needs of survival. In this way, the subconscious mind is the foundation for the soul's journey in life. The subconscious mind cares for and protects the physical body and mental health of the human in cooperation with the other aspects of our consciousness. It grounds us to the earth, like the roots of a tree. The subconscious mind speaks in the language of symbols, intuition and feelings, often using the dream state to convey its communications to the conscious mind through the right-brain as the conscious mind sleeps. The subconscious child self understands things like colour, plants, animals and all things connected to the earth. If one wishes to develop a connection and communication with the higher true self (the super-conscious mind), one first needs to work (and play) with the child self, as it is through this basic self that the conscious mind speaks with the higher super-conscious mind.
Another way to understand the subconscious mind is to talk about instinct. Within the animal kingdom, many species are born with strong instinct in the form of genetic memory. For example, when a Joey (baby kangaroo) is born after a gestation period of only 35-38 days, it is less than an inch long, is born naked (without fur), blind and deaf. It is basically a foetus, only a foetus that has actually been born. In this vulnerable state, it must make its way from the birth canal to the pouch, unaided by the mother Kangaroo. Through instinct alone, this tiny little creature knows its survival lays in climbing a great distance through the fur, up the belly and towards the top of the mothers pouch, crawling over the edge, and then climbing back down inside the pouch to reach the mothers teat, even though it cannot see the way, or hear its mother. Once it reaches the teat, the Joey’s mouth swells so that it cannot let go for around three months until it has further developed and can safely leave the pouch. The Joey can only survive a few minutes outside the pouch directly after birth, so if it does not make it to the inside of the pouch within 10 minutes, it will die. This is an incredible journey for a foetus to undertake, and is an amazing case of instinct, but many other creatures also display instinct without ever being taught. Our subconscious mind and right-brain processes are the same way. It is only our un-awakened conscious rational mind and left-brain processes that block our natural instinct and intuition.
My personal experience is that, as a child, I had always known aspects of this information, albeit in a very simple form, and often seeming to be a great puzzle that I have needed to solve. Within my childhood, I was very aware that I had always existed; that I had lived before; that this was just my current form, and that I was here for a purpose, although I could not remember what that purpose was. I did not know how I knew these things as no one had ever told me; I just knew. In fact, I never even questioned it; I just accepted this to be true and naturally thought everyone knew these things. However, as I grew older, I began to form questions. The very fact that I just knew puzzled me. What also both puzzled and frightened me was that others around me did not seem to know. Does this make me special in any way? Not at all, in fact many people have had the same experience, and have for some reason, just known certain things about life and their true selves since their childhood, without ever being taught. I would say that up until a certain age (usually around 8 years of age), most children do. It's just that many children gain even more amnesia, becoming ever more unconscious as they grow towards adolescence, thus forgetting they ever knew such things.
So, why do some people retain portions of this knowledge / memory, and others forget? Well, once again, it has to do with the subconscious child self and life conditioning. The subconscious mind or child self is a part of the True Self. When we are born, all that we are is the subconscious child self. As we grow, our body and brain develops, and along with it comes the life conditioning from our surrounding environment; this all develops the conscious (middle / adult) self. There are many reasons why we lose touch with our Inner Self. For many people, they will move further and further away from the child self, forgetting to play and have fun, moving ever closer to the serious and cynical adult self. It may be the natural process of the teen going through hormonal changes and wishing to be an adult that leads them to an unbalance with the child self. It may also be that someone is raised within an environment where they are pushed towards 'growing up' too quickly. It is also common in our modern day lives for us to become disillusioned and distracted by our modern surroundings and technology, and thus lose the connection to the child self in this way. I believe a highly probable factor is that for many, we lose our connection to nature. Nature plays a very important role with the subconscious child-self mind. One can clearly see a difference between adults raised in countries within modern civilisation, and adults raised within indigenous cultures in nature. The adults of indigenous cultures are very much in touch with their emotions, who they are, their true selves, and especially their child selves. Indigenous adults are very much like older children rather than how we understand adulthood in the modern world. The joy, playfulness, open heart and naivety of the child self are all still present, even though they also possess wisdom and responsibility. The indigenous adult can move quickly from the child state to the adult state to the warrior state, as the situation requires. It is also interesting to note that indigenous cultures believe that there is only one subconscious mind and that we share our subconscious mind with each other and also with the Earth itself; that this one subconscious mind is actually the subconscious mind of the Earth. In their belief and understanding, we are all connected to the mind and consciousness of the Earth through our subconscious mind, so that we share our subconscious mind both with each other and the Earth.
When the conscious rational mind loses its balance with the child self, it becomes more disconnected, so that only on an unconscious level, is the conscious mind really aware of its needs and emotions. People can become so emotionally shut down in life, that they have no idea what they are feeling, what they want, or what they need. Emotional traumas during childhood also serve to shut down the all important emotional heart center, and thus cause us to enter a deeper state of self amnesia, where we are so unaware of who we are and what we are actually feeling.
It is an interesting fact that within most of the ancient spiritual and religious practices in our world, it is often stated that to reach enlightenment, enter nirvana, paradise or heaven, one has to become like a child again! Becoming a child again is stressed as being so important to the evolution of ones spirit and consciousness. Becoming the child does not mean being irresponsible or immature, it means finding that clear open heart, playfulness and joy that you once possessed when you where a child. When you look into the eyes of a child, you see clarity of heart and spirit, untouched by the harshness of life. The eyes of a child are pure and innocent. When you look into the eyes of most adults, you see an internal fog of cynicism, issues, agendas, hurts and pain. They say that the eyes are the window to the soul, and I find this to be true. We are very adept at wearing masks and covering up who we really are and what is really going on inside our minds, but it’s much harder to hide that from appearing in our eyes. Becoming the child again, involves healing the emotional traumas of our life, finding the joy and playfulness in all things, finding humour and fun in all situations and experiences, feeling love, compassion and empathy for others and their situations without judgement.
I find that playing with and nurturing the Child self, listening to the inner wisdom of the Higher self, to be a completely rewarding, fulfilling, nurturing and healing experience that has made life so much more fun, interesting and magical. It transforms the way we look at and experience the world around us. Letting go of judgements, opening up greater compassion, self-healing, understanding and perception, whilst also releasing inner potential in the form of limitless talents and abilities. One can experience how all things are connected, and truly live that experience in daily life.
It seems the purpose and reason for life is simply experience; and the goal, to once again become the child self, and thus also the true self!
The 'Natural Way'
During my early experiences with meditation and my personal quest to understand my self and the world around me, my internal instinct and intuition (internal guidance), led me on a journey towards a path of internal self discovery. Amongst other things upon this journey, I was led to the internal discovery of something I now refer to as the 'Natural Way' and the state of 'no-mind’. At the time, I believed I had coined the terms 'natural way' and 'no-mind' to describe the philosophy, processes and internal experience of this state of mind achieved through meditation, however, with years of left-brain research added to my personal quest, I have since found that these exact same terms have been used by many throughout history who have experienced the same internal states as well as the properties, potential, skills and talents they unleash. In fact, the term of no-mind is particularly well known within Japan and China. So all I had done was tap into something very natural and ancient within us all and come up with the same name for these things that have been used by many before me.
So what is the Natural Way? Well, for me, the Natural Way is a philosophy, process and approach to intuitive speed learning. There are many ways in life to learn or do things, but for everything in life, there is also a natural way. If you can discover the natural way of something, you will learn faster than just approaching things from the standard logical left-brain process of learning that the majority of the world uses in current educational systems.
The Natural Way involves learning through the right-brain. It is an intuitive (feminine) way of learning through connecting to your intuition, instinct, feeling, and breathing (elements of the Inner Self), being totally and utterly present in the NOW, allowing your inner guidance to teach you rather than just the words of an external teacher or book (that may have limited or distorted perceptions on the subject matter). Each of us has an inner teacher, which is an aspect of Inner Self. The inner teacher is just you on another level (the subconscious and super-conscious mind). As you open up to the natural way, you also open up to the inner teacher of the Child and Higher self aspects of consciousness, thus developing them and moving closer to becoming the true self.
The key to learning in this right-brain manner is not to replace all logical left-brain (masculine) learning, but is to create balance and speed of learning by using both the intuitive and logical systems together. By listening to the words of the external teacher or book, whilst simultaneously listening to the subtle feelings and thoughts/ images of the inner teacher, one has a deeper insight and skill within the learning process. By learning in this way, one encourages the two distinct personalities of the left and right brain to merge harmoniously together to become hemispheric, and to function at full capacity, thus releasing full potential. This process of intuitive speed learning is an aspect of something known in meditation and martial arts as 'no-mind'. Within the state of no-mind, one can find the natural way of anything and will seemingly download the information on how to do and be that thing.
The state of 'No Mind'
The state of no-mind is most commonly known within Zen Buddhism and the martial arts as a mental state into which highly trained martial artists enter during combat. The Japanese word for this state is Mushin, while in China this state is known as Wu-hsin (same meaning). The Japanese term 'Mushin' is shortened from 'mushin no shi', a Zen expression meaning 'mind of no mind'; translated as meaning a mind not fixed or occupied by thought or emotion and thus open to experiencing everything.
Within martial arts, the state of no-mind is achieved when a martial artist feels no anger, fear or ego during combat, but instead is calm, centred and completely present within the moment. There is an absence of thought, and so the martial artist is totally free to act and react towards an opponent without hesitation. At this point, a person relies not on what they think should be the next move, but what is felt intuitively and instinctively.
The famous and legendary Japanese Zen master Takuan Soho reportedly said about the state of no-mind:
"The mind must always be in the state of 'flowing', for when it stops anywhere, that means the flow is interrupted and it is this interruption that is injurious to the well-being of the mind. In the case of the swordsman, it means death. When the swordsman stands against his opponent, he is not to think of the opponent, nor of himself, nor of his enemy's sword movements. He just stands there with his sword, which, forgetful of all technique, is ready only to follow the dictates of the subconscious. The man has effaced himself as the wielder of the sword. When he strikes, it is not the man but the sword in the hand of the man's subconscious that strikes".
Traditionally, it is mostly believed that a martial artist would have to train for many years to be capable of entering the state of no-mind, as a great amount of time is needed for combinations of movements and techniques to be practised repetitively many thousands of times, until they can be performed spontaneously, without conscious thought. However, this is only the case if the movements have been studied in the regular left-brain approach. The state of no-mind can be achieved if one understands and enters a right-brain approach to study, as the state of no-mind is a direct aspect of the right-brain itself; the ability to become totally and utterly present and aware within the present moment without the disruption and distraction from the internal chatter of the logical left-brain. Within higher levels of martial art training, once Mushin is attained through combat or kata (forms), the objective is to then attain this same level of complete awareness within all other aspects of the practitioner's life.
Although Mushin is most commonly known within the study of martial arts, training in martial arts is not the only way to achieve and experience the state of no-mind. No-mind can be achieved through many other practices that develop and refine the mind and body, such as practices that involve an element of meditation. In fact, it is the tool of meditation that awakens and centers one within the experience of no-mind in the first place, even within martial art training. Meditation is not just a tool or practice that is done with the eyes closed whilst sitting still. Meditation can be practiced at any time with eyes open. In fact, the goal of meditation is to be able to meditate in all aspects of life and within any practice or action, whether it is walking, talking, cleaning, running, writing, drawing, martial arts, absolutely anything.
The original martial arts actually stemmed from the meditative practices and exercises of spiritual disciplines such as Buddhism and Taoism. These original practices were about much more than just combat and defence; they were about training and developing the Inner Self. The original founders and practitioners of the martial arts did not go to a local club to study techniques that were taught in the logical left-brain manner that they are now taught in. The original founders of martial arts were simply spiritual monks who practiced meditation. They studied martial arts in a right-brain approach by connecting to their own higher aspects of consciousness through meditation and connecting with nature in a natural shamanic way, thus downloading the information on the movements and techniques as they meditated and observed the ways and movements of creatures in nature. The monks studied these exercises as a way of understanding nature and increasing their own abilities to endure deep meditation, as well as strengthening their inner guidance and developing the Chi power within. Secondary to this, they also applied this internal science as a way of defence. The movements that are now involved in martial arts were originally created through the right-brain approach of no-mind, however, in time the original teachings were spread to non-spiritual disciples and eventually the spiritual and meditative core and basis of martial arts was mostly lost and forgotten, so that martial arts became more about fighting and combat. As martial arts was eventually taught in the west, the key spiritual elements were lost even further, often left out altogether from the teachings. Only the internal martial arts systems such as systems like Tai Chi, still practice meditation and spirituality as the core primary element.
An aspect of the state of no-mind is the ability to tap into the internal teacher of the Inner Self and download information from a higher source. I say download, as the experience of learning information in this right-brain approach can be likened to the way in which one can now surf the internet and download information directly to their hard drive. It is a good metaphor for the experience of finding the natural way within the state of no-mind. When entering this trance like state, it feels as though ones consciousness moves backwards and almost out of the body, disappearing into the back of the mind where one then seems to simply witness what their body is doing, witnessing movements as if observing the movements of someone else. Within this state, there is still an awareness, however, ones mind ceases to think, but instead just flows, almost with an emptiness of thought, thus the term no-mind. The mental chatter of the left-brain ceases to a minimum, or can just completely stop. In this state one finds that they just move and react without thought, (what I call no-mind reaction). When using this state of mind to study a practice that involves the body in some way, one finds that their body just starts to do the action in the correct way, the natural way, without previously and consciously knowing how. It is as though one downloads the instructions and movements from the Inner Self. One simply knows, through instinct and intuition. This way of downloading information and knowledge can be applied to all things.
What is actually occurring is that the practitioner of no-mind has actually allowed their consciousness to enter and experience the right-brain, more so than the left-brain. The left-brain may still be functioning, but it takes a back seat to the right-brain. Within the right-brain is the world of imagination, creativity, kinaesthetic feeling, instinct and intuition, all happening whilst being totally present within the NOW.
As experiencing the state of no-mind and learning in the natural way involves kinaesthetic processes, it is very difficult to teach in the form of a book or mere words alone, it must be directly experienced. Thus I teach this state and process of learning through one of the self-development workshops I present which is called "Spiral-Hands System of Inner Training". If you are interested in learning more about the Natural Way of intuitive learning, the state of no-mind, or developing the Inner Self and embracing the inner teacher, you can find out more about this system of training in the Workshops & Classes section of this website. The main purpose of the Spiral-Hands system is to awaken within, and allow the individual to experience the state of no-mind, as well as the Natural Way.
So, coming back once again to the question of how anyone can know if any of this information regarding the Inner Self is true, or indeed, know if anything is true; I find that there is only one way of ever truly knowing whether any of this is true, and that IS to look within and find the natural way. Download the information yourself. Test it, explore within yourself. Use both the left-brain and right-brain approaches to learning. Use the left-brain approach of gathering information about the past experiences of others, but ultimately use the right-brain approach, involving direct tangible experience through a type of meditative exercise that involves breathing and feeling out your internal truths. Live in and be completely present within every single moment. To look within, meditate, play with the child self... this is the only way anyone can ever truly know and develop the Inner Self, thus becoming once again, closer to experiencing the true self.
There is a wonderful saying that I love and have found so true in life: "we do not stop playing because we grow old... we grow old, because we stop playing".
© Anarion MacIntosh 2008
http://heartmindbodyspirit.com/article_innerself.html -
-
Permalink Reply by joni on
-
we could all write dissertations on brain functions but that is not the answer.
-
-
-
do you ever think we try too hard 2 find what is real...do you ever think that if we just tune into the universe and those around us we dont need such deep thinking?
-
-
-
Heya twista, sounds like my article struck a note with you...
Yes, I think we do try to find out too hard what is real, and that's exactly what the article is about twista - it tells us that the answers and confirmation are to be found within. It also explains how our left brain breaks things down so it can understand the nature of reality. I think we need both sides of the coin dear twista - the ability to perceive intuitively, balanced with a lil bit o logic from the left brain. Its when that balance is lost that we end up lost in space....
Hugs n Love
Dessy. -
-
-
ya it did strike a chord...and yes we need to integrate both sides of the brain in order to find balance...but if we think with our heart first the brain can step back and learn :)
luv ya des
remember this? -
-
Permalink Reply by gunilla caisson on
-
Yes joni we have to integrate both sides of the brain. Some times i can feel that I think and analyze to much. Yes I feel to much too. But I'm more in the brain than in the body :)
Dancing is what I need to maybe find that balance... *'smile* -
-
-
I think you're right, that when we try to hard, we shut off our natural intuition. I don't think that too much thinking, gone out of control is a problem though. If we just tune in, am sure we'll get answers for ourselves, an understanding of what we need to know, but we're all at different levels, and a lot of people will learn about spirituality first, from reading a book, or from someone explaining some description of things to them - then I think, its up to us to find our own way and build our own reality, and each one of us will have a different picture/image/description of how things work. One common thread I have noticed though, is the science/art of visualization, or whatever we want to call it - it seems to have a common presence, that predates all religions, and some say, all the sciences/treatises/books/religions were dreamed up by the priests/leaders etc to "hide" the art of visualization e.g., they thought to themselves "let's make up all these complicated explanations for things, and confuse the people, and we can keep the art of visualization for ourselves"....that's what I believe anyways, that visualization is a key to understanding things and connecting with all that we are and have been.
-
-
-
Thank you Des for sharing this long article with us. Now I know what to do this weekend; read and try to understand :)
Seems interesting...I will be back *smile* -
Welcome to
iPeace.us
Latest Activity
© 2024 Created by David Califa. Managed by Eyal Raviv.
Powered by
