Missing the Obvious
A spiritual journey driven by yearning for truth can lead seekers to pursue profound or miraculous experiences. We might find ourselves drawn to subtle states of mind, or ecstatic or blissful experiences. A fascination with prophetic or mystical visions can arise. The interpretation of body-mind manifestations can be seen as signs of progress. While these experiences may hold a certain allure and even offer glimpses beyond ordinary perception, they are easily mistaken for understanding. In fact, the very pursuit of such states can become a subtle trap, obscuring the ever-present reality that is here in plain sight.
The core of nondual understanding points to awareness itself as the fundamental truth—the unmoving, changeless ground of all experience. This awareness is not something to be attained, for it is the very "is-ness" that precedes and underlies every thought, feeling, and perception. In its essence, awareness is utterly simple, effortlessly present, and devoid of any inherent qualities or characteristics to which the mind can attach.
With this recognition of the reality of awareness, there is no story, no spectacle, no dramatic transformation. It is simply awareness recognizing itself, and resting in its natural being.
Awareness is not a state that comes and goes. It is the ever-present backdrop, the unmoving screen upon which life unfolds. It is the “I am” that precedes all qualifiers. To truly recognize this is to step out of the cycle of seeking and resisting. It is to rest in the effortless, unchanging peace of what is already the case.
The invitation of nonduality, however, is not to turn our attention away from the captivating drama of our thoughts and experiences and to only rest in awareness. When we see the world as an expression of oneness and know that the witnessing presence is infinite awareness, the world takes on a whole new dimension. It is to recognize the “no thing” that is everything, the silent ground that holds it all.
