“When there’s fire in the heart, there’s smoke in the head.”
The fewer impurities in the fuel, the ‘cleaner’ the fire burns and the less smoke rises from the flame. As you evolve, you purify and the heart fire burns cleaner so you think more maturely… i.e. less smoke in the head.
You do well to reflect upon how you think and behave when something triggers a fire in your heart. You do well to manage that wisely as you continue to evolve. At first, the management may require effort, keeping the fire in check with patience, humility, reflection, and self-honest exploration. As you work with it, and as you evolve, the process gets better and also easier. Working with this responsibly is called the path to wisdom. With wisdom comes success.
I have come to realize that when people hear me say, “All cards face up on the table” they think something is coming that they may not want to hear. That is not what I mean. “All cards face up on the table” means communion… that is to say, communication. It can be done in words or in an understanding, humble glance.
Life is all about communication…
Communication with your Self
Communication with Life…
with Nature…
with all Existence…
Communication with others.
All conflict arises from lack of communion… lack of communication.
We are all Divine.
Not seeing, hearing, feeling that in yourself,
and in others,
is the source of all disharmony.
To have “All cards face up on the table” means to communicate…
first with Self, then with others.
It is called the Art of Living.
It is the final frontier to unraveling the mystery of life… of existence.
It is found through wisdom.
Wisdom is found in humility.
Humility is not subservient… it is understanding.
Standing under… not standing over.
As it is said, when the mango tree is full of fruit, its branches naturally bow down and touch the earth in humility.
The Veda, the source of all existence, is born out of one, and only one, thing. It lies beyond relativity, beyond the realm of things, and it therefore is sometimes referred to as “no-thingness.” Some call it “pure Is-ness” or “pure Consciousness.” Others call it “the Unified Field” of physics. Others call it “God.” All things, including the Veda, are born out of the self-interacting dynamic of that Oneness… Pure Consciousness interacting with and becoming aware of itself, over and over again. It has been compared to the emptiness in the center of the seed (no-thingness) that births the seed (the Veda), that births the entire tree (existence). All Knowledge of the tree of existence is contained within that Oneness, that Is-ness, that Unified Field.
The self-interacting dynamic of pure Consciousness, the Veda, acts as a recording, eternally pulsating at the depth of existence. In ancient times, Rishis, or Seers, refined their physiology to the extent that they became a “record player.” Those Rishis were capable of allowing those pulsations to well up through their physiology all the way to the physical level. The process began from deep within the Rishi and went out through their vocal cords into the air as sound. Then that sound entered from outside the listener and went into the depth of their being.
Schools were created to train pandits, people to memorize what was being chanted by those Rishis. The pandits then functioned like tape recorders, saving the cognitions of the Rishis for people to hear throughout the ages. When pandits chant the Veda, the vibrations reawaken deeper levels within the listener. Therefore, when pujas and havans are performed with strict adherence to Vedic tradition, they become a powerful tool to facilitate the health and evolution of the listener.
Imagine the entire universe is a sandbox and the Unified Field (God) is continually sending a vibration through it. As a result, the evolution of species is propelled forward in a direction that, over time, more and more fully embodies the intelligence, order, harmony, and coherence inherent in the Unified Field itself. And where does that process culminate? It culminates with a species that fully embodies all of the intelligence inherent in the Unified Field. That species is humankind.
Ultimately, a new state of humanity will be achieved, bringing about changes exceeding those we’ve seen over the past several hundred years. It is essential to understand that this change is a new mode of human function. As we awaken to an intelligence within us that dwells beyond the grasp of any belief system, it will free us from the constraints of belief systems. It is the next major step in human evolution.
The fundamental pulse of our universe, from unity to multiplicity and back, is embodied by the human spirit. Our species can bring completion to that cycle. We dwell on the crest of the wave—the unification of all diversity within the awareness of an individual. Your greatest treasure is the potential to unify your awareness… Only then can you live in harmony with Natural Law.
It is not uncommon. I am giving a lecture and people are with me. They understand what I am saying, and from within their own selves, they know it is true. They can feel the truth of it deep within themselves. It is the great joy of every teacher to see the ‘light bulbs’ go on as they speak – to see the students light up with the fascination of inner discovery and knowing. As I continue to unfold the teaching with the natural and inevitable logical progression, the entire lecture hall fills with the joy of learning as the expansion of understanding continues to blossom.
Then at some point, it sometimes happens. The feeling in the room drops down several octaves. I can see it on their faces as clearly as I can feel it in the hall. I know that I took them too far. They may well understand my words. They may be following it along with their intellects. But it is no longer being assimilated. It is then that I know to stop… to not push it… to not force the issue. Pushing it further would not be True teaching, it would be indoctrination.
You see, there is a huge difference between understanding something intellectually and assimilating it from deep within. The expansion of ones ability to assimilate truth is the hallmark of human evolution. It is what human evolution is all about. It comes from inside, not outside, the person.
Even Real Truth is dropped due to the inability of the listener to assimilate. The listener may understand it intellectually, but the clarity at the depth of ones being is not sufficient enough to really assimilate the information. Unfortunately, that is where most people stop and reject what is being offered. Of course, most people are, from childhood, so indoctrinated into a belief system, that they consider it Truth. It is what is familiar. It is what they are comfortable with. What perhaps would have made no inherent sense to them has been taken on with such overwhelming power that their innate sense has been compromised. Their indoctrination becomes the filter they embrace to decide what is truth and what is not. That indoctrination is what guides their life… their decisions.
The point is that there is learning and there is True Learning. True learning means the expansion of ones ability to assimilate truth… to recognize Truth from deep within. Most people are so indoctrinated into their belief system that they are unable to see beyond it. They go through life projecting that belief system upon the world and judging everything from the perspective of that belief system. Where is the True Learning in that? There is none. What they then ‘know’ is not real Knowledge. It is indoctrination… It is the world of samskaras that Maharshi Patanjali spoke of.
That is what I mean when I say the world is ‘sticky’. It is easy to get stuck in your indoctrinations. Indoctrinations reach deep inside. Even when you see what lies beyond them, those indoctrinations are easily reinforced and can readily reclaim you. They are reinforced by the world you grew up in, by all your old friends and loved ones. It is very easy to slip back and once again reach out to those indoctrinations as truth. But once the Truth that dwells within you has been glimpsed, on some level, it is not forgotten.
Real Truth dwells deep within you, as you, at the very depth of your being. Evolution is about waking up to that. For this, meditation is your number one tool. It is the purpose of my lectures to facilitate the process. Truth is revealed to the Self, by the Self, and through the Self. A real teacher merely facilitates that process. Unfortunately, many teachers are indoctrinators. Even if real Truth is being offered, if it is taken on but not assimilated, it is just indoctrination. The connection is not there deep within the person’s Being. But let there be no mistake. The conviction, belief, and passion behind such indoctrination can be strong. It can be so strong as to not be seen for the indoctrination that it is and can be identified with as being Real Knowledge. Real Knowledge is only Real Knowledge when it transcends indoctrination and is an awakening to that which eternally dwells at the depth of your being.
“We can easily forgive a child who is afraid of the dark;
the real tragedy of life is when men are afraid of the light.” – Plato
Humans are such vulnerable creatures, particularly with respect to their inner feelings. The truth is that people are afraid of many of their feelings. They are even more afraid of expressing them. Instead, they suppress their feelings. They deny them, not only to others, but also to themselves. They are ashamed of their feelings. They are afraid what they might do or who they might become if they allowed themselves to feel their feelings.
Know that you can responsibly manage your feelings. Know that you do not become less of an adult by feeling them. In fact, you become more of an adult. Artistry in life is about feeling your feelings and dealing with them wisely. Bring your feelings into the light. Doing so requires a great deal of self honesty, which can at times require a great deal of courage, yet it is the light of awareness that heals and evolves you. It is not about impulsively acting out. It is about knowing, with the full light of awareness, what dwells within you and holding those things responsibly. As you do so, the psyche and physiology purify and you begin to live more and more in harmony with Mother Nature, your own true Divine nature.
Few people really understand that their true nature is Divine. They fear that it is not Divine. They feel they must not bring to light all that is within them. They feel that to do so is to release a beast. It is the suppression, the hiding away of what is within you, that causes the distortions and convolutions. As you work with the feelings within, you become more and more skilled at dealing with them all. You also become more free. It is about creating a healthy relationship with what dwells within. Suppression and denial is not healthy. This certainly does not mean that you act out whatever it is you are feeling. Those feelings are not necessarily your Truth. They are often just your personal issues. But to heal them, you must feel them. Then you learn how to deal with them responsibly and maturely. In time, you gain the ability to share the depth of your being with others. That is the greatest gift you can give to another and to the world. That is your own personal genius.
The art of living is being able to find a way to “put your cards face up on the table”. In other words, to share yourself with the world… to bring what dwells deep within you to the light of day. That is not done with reckless abandon. It is done with thoughtful insight and respect for yourself and others. It is about having a healthy relationship with your self, other people, society, and the world. It is the process of becoming no longer afraid of the light.
Perhaps it is the most common question I hear: “How do I know if I am being judgmental or discerning?” Considering that “the spiritual path is the path of discernment” (Adi Shankara), it is perhaps the most important question you can ask. Yet it is also the most difficult for you to answer.
Lady Justice wears a blindfold. The idea is that She is unbiased and objective. But let’s realize that the blindfold also signifies that justice is administered through oblivion. She is not objective alone. She is also subjective. Laws change as people change. A 5 to 4 Supreme Court decision molds social mentality often for decades to come… until the pendulum swings the other way. Is that system discerning or is it perpetually judgmental? Either way, it is simply the way of the world. History has proven that over and over again. Of course, every generation seems to consider itself to be the enlightened generation… the generation that finally got discernment right.
And who do you think you are? What molds your viewpoint? You can justify anything with the intellect, and you do according to your viewpoint. What molds your viewpoints? Do you place your thumb on the scale of your own inner justice? Or perhaps a better question is, are you willing, or able, to take a step back and see yourself? Consider how you hold the scale of self-evaluation. Judging yourself harshly is putting your thumb on the scale. Any issue you have puts a thumb on the scale. Issues with authority? Self doubt? Self-righteousness? Defiance? Fear? For any and all issues, you place your thumb on one side of the scale.
I suggest you consider placing a counterbalancing thumb on the other. Of course you may think to suggest removing the thumb from the scale. But if you see the thumb is there, it is already removed. Or is it? If you judge yourself harshly, I suggest considering the opposite. If you are self righteous, I suggest the opposite. If you see your own bias, I suggest your reaction to that realization compromises your understanding of it. Those who are instinctively kind to others are often the first to cruelly judge themselves as sometimes being unkind. Those instinctively judgmental of others are often the first to stand up for their self-righteous viewpoint.
Are you judgmental or discerning? It all comes down to the nature/tone of “your relationship with…” Your relationship with what? Your relationship with everything within and without you. With yourself, with society, with authority, with friends, with loved ones and so on. To overcome being judgmental and to become discerning, you must find balance within yourself. To do so, you need to consider your nature and the nature of all things.
Consider strengths and weaknesses. Look at world history, social history, and your history. When the scales tip one way, consider the other. In all situations, be open to seeing the strengths as well as the weaknesses within and without. To anarchists I say, consider the value of society and authority. To puppets I say, think for yourself. To the self critical, I say be kind to yourself. To the self righteous, I say be humble. It starts with your relationship with yourself. Find balance there first. Only then can you have a healthy relationship with what lies outside of you.
Do understand that discernment does not preclude passion. The more fully you find your Self, the more discerning you will be. You will know your wisdom and thereby find your true path in life. And your true path in life is filled with passion. It is the river that carries you to the ocean.
Yet judgment also can be most passionate, so life’s journey must begin within. Find your inner wisdom first. As Lord Krishna said to Arjuna, “Established in Being, perform action”.
Be you in conflict or comradery, always do your best to keep to the high road. There are no absolutes in the relative. Yet everything gravitates back to the Absolute, back to the Divine. That is the nature of existence. The path of discernment is the path of balance. You will fall. That is fine – just get back up. Your job is to do your best to keep your balance as you face the wind and go forward, forward, always forward.
For a book or movie to be successful, it has been said it must follow the classic story line… start with a content status quo, go into thrills and adventure, and return home to peace and contentment. It is said that is the formula that has worked throughout eternity. But why?
The other day I realized why. First there was wholeness. Then the universe manifested when Pure Consciousness perceived itself as other and multiplicity emerged… many thrills and adventures resulted. Over time life evolves, and one by one, human beings awaken to their true nature. They return home to peace and contentment.
Everything maps. Reading or viewing the classic story line touches that place deep inside where you already know everything. You are reminded of the nature of life, your life… your journey. The Classic Story Line works so well because it is the story line of your very existence… of all existence. It maps onto the story of all that is. It is the story of the universe and everything in it.
若我只ㄧ天兩次靜坐保持，這樣最後我能走到哪兒？還需要做些什麼嗎？
If I meditate twice a day to maintain (my energy,) where would I end up eventually? Is there anything else to do?
To which I respond:
Everything is born out of Oneness (Pure Consciousness, The Unified Field, God, the Transcendent) and everything returns to it. I discuss that process in detail many places (the manifestation of the universe, Darwinism/Creationism, etc.). Meditating twice a day accelerates the process of returning to Oneness. When you awaken to that Oneness, it is called Enlightenment.
Enlightenment is not a mood, attitude or philosophy. It is a state of being. When you awaken to that, you awaken to all the harmony, intelligence, wisdom, bliss, perfection, and peace that dwells eternally at the depth of your being and is your essence… who it is you truly are. You then spontaneously live in harmony with Nature… Mother Nature… your own true nature. It is a state of fulfillment… wakefulness to the root of all life and existence.
Meditation waters that root within you. It nourishes all levels of life including your energy. However, the root is not energy… it is consciousness. It lies deeper than mere energy. As the ancient seers have said, pure consciousness is the source of all that is. Every time you meditate you re-member with that source. It is what you long for… to return to your essence… the truth of the divinity of your own being. By meditating regularly, reuniting with that becomes a habit. As you awaken more and more to it, you live from it more a more, until you fully awaken to it and then it never leaves you. It is quite possible that you attain enlightenment this lifetime through regular meditation. But I can not guarantee that everyone will do so in this lifetime. What I can guarantee is that through regular meditation life becomes better, just as surely as by watering the root of a plant, the plant is nourished. Also, through regular meditation your life will gain a great momentum toward enlightenment that will carry you through and between incarnations until you gain full enlightenment…
The best you can do is to meditate regularly, read the blogs that I post, do not get distracted, do your best to stay very true to what you learn from the blogs, and if at all possible come and visit me at Mount Soma. The knowledge I offer is very profound and powerful, but it is also delicate. Take care… do not allow it to slip through your fingers.
I was asked the following question: “How it is possible to enjoy a beautiful sunrise when there is suffering in the world?”
To which I respond:
When the rose blossom gets larger, so too the thorns naturally get larger. The world will always need two poles to spin around. Up creates down. Left creates right. With fame comes infamy. When there is affinity, there is aversion. This is the way of relativity… relative existence. It is said that in this age (Kali Yuga) negativity dwells in the hearts of people. In other Ages, it dwells far away in the dark forests.
I remember over twenty years ago when I taught in another school. The students loved me. This elicited jealously and resentment in other teachers. Fearing I would take away their students when I left, other teachers spread vicious rumors about me.
Yes, such things hurt when dwelled upon. But do not fret. Yin will always create yang. There is real beauty in the way of the world. Find the beauty.
You exist on many levels. On the most superficial level, you are your physical body. Some would say the physical body has attributes like consciousness, thoughts, emotions, feelings, etc.
On a bit deeper level, you are a personality that is beyond the body. The body is just a vehicle.
Some would define themselves by their work.
Some by their family and relationships.
Some by their thoughts, emotions, and beliefs.
Now you may understand all of this, but that is not enough. Take a moment to reflect and to be honest with yourself. Who are you? How do you define yourself? Do not answer based upon a philosophy that you hold true to. Do not answer based upon what you think you should believe or intellectually know. Answer based upon what you feel. Answer based upon how you live your life. Answer based upon what you feel and experience from within your own life, not based upon what you have been told. On what level of life do you put most of your energy? What level are you invested in? To find the answer, do not just think, but FEEL. Also, look at how you live your life. The term for that is IDENTITY. What level of life are you most identified with?
Now, there are many more levels to you than the ones mentioned so far. Your being exists beyond your thoughts and emotions. Take a moment to feel into that. Who are you? What are you that lies beyond thoughts, emotions, beliefs, and the “story” of your life? What part of you lies beyond all of that?
It is quite normal and healthy for your attention to move from one level to the next. Sometimes your attention is mostly on your body. Sometimes your thoughts, sometimes emotions, sometimes the activity you are engaged in. At each moment, your ‘self’ is related to on a different level. That is fine.
But there is a particular level that you identify with as ‘you’ most of the time and put most of your life force into. What level is that? Do ponder this, but do not think you have to have an exact answer.
The value of the question is in the pondering of it, not in the answering of it.
Now, there is a level beyond all the levels we have discussed so far. It is the Transcendental basis of all the other levels of not only you as an individual, but of all life and all things. Just as the earth is the basis and the essence of all the plants, the one Transcendent is the basis, the essence, of everything. It is who you really are. The eternal you. The you that lies beyond space, time, thoughts, emotions, the story. It is the source of infinite bliss, harmony, intelligence, love, wisdom, and yet it lies beyond all of those things. It is pure Is-ness. It is one with all that is. You sense it inside yourself, though you may speak of it differently.
In the state of enlightenment, that is what you know your self to be. That is what you rest into, like the idle of an automobile. The engine is always running. It is always there. But the awareness naturally rests into that.
It is who you know yourself to be. You can still act with passion on all levels of life. But you are no longer identified with anything. You are in the world, but not of it. This is not an attitude or philosophy or belief. It is a state of consciousness. You simply see the world as it truly is. The deepest mystery of life is simply self evident, obvious. You spontaneously and naturally live your life accordingly.
"Take the time to reflect on what is said here. If you find yourself associating this material with things you have heard elsewhere, please take the time to diligently explore how they are different. This knowledge is elusive. I share it here because I have seen how much this knowledge helps people – the potential is enormous." – Michael Mamas
"True knowledge slips through the fingers of those not willing to ponder…" – Michael Mamas
"Take what I say and work with it to develop a deeper understanding of life, rather than taking what I say and forcing it into the mold of your current relationship with life." – Michael Mamas
"Evolution means change." – Michael Mamas
"Your disposition is the tone with which you hold yourself, your cells, your psyche, your beliefs. More than anything else, it determines your life." – Michael Mamas
The fewer impurities in the fuel, the ‘cleaner’ the fire burns and the less smoke rises from the flame. As you evolve, you purify and the heart fire burns cleaner so you think more maturely… i.e. less smoke in the head.
I have come to realize that when people hear me say, “All cards face up on the table” they think something is coming that they may not want to hear. That is not what I mean. “All cards face up on the table” means communion… that is to say, communication. It can be done in words or in an understanding, humble glance.
It is not uncommon. I am giving a lecture and people are with me. They understand what I am saying, and from within their own selves, they know it is true. They can feel the truth of it deep within themselves. It is the great joy of every teacher to see the ‘light bulbs’ go on as they speak – to see the students light up with the fascination of inner discovery and knowing. As I continue to unfold the teaching with the natural and inevitable logical progression, the entire lecture hall fills with the joy of learning as the expansion of understanding continues to blossom.
You exist on many levels. On the most superficial level, you are your physical body. Some would say the physical body has attributes like consciousness, thoughts, emotions, feelings, etc.
