Mysticism is direct experience with your god. No dogma required. You are a mystic when you enter the room-within and know that you and your god are inseparable, that you do not exist independently. You are not the clay pot on the potter’s shelf. You are the dancing that is the dance. You are the expressing that is existence. You are that which I AM. Mystics know this inwardly without outside rites or rituals.

You are that which I AM but the me of the body perceives separation. It senses objects that have time and distance between them. Your body and its personality appear to exist independently from all other entities. This appearance seems real as you maneuver between here and there amidst this and that. The mystic, however, realizes that this sense of separation is not real.

Mystics know that our world of perceived separation is not our reality. Our reality lies within. Herein we realize that we are one with all, that there is no absolute separation between us or between us and all that we consider as other than ourselves. I like to call our inner reality the whole of the all. Not only is it whole, but it also is complete, perfect, and eternal. It is the thing itself. It is that which I AM.

Humans have always conjured up gods to explain existence and the afterlife. The sum of these constructs is that a fundamental source underlies our world. Religions connect us to this source as a divine power to be worshiped. The result is a world filled with seemingly absolute truths as seen through dogmas and sacred practices.

For me, the thing itself is not an entity separate from myself to be worshipped. It is a mental formation of emptiness that is nowhere. This emptiness is an eternal field of infinite possibility. It is intelligent and aware. Many call it consciousness, although it cannot be described or named. It has no comparison. It cannot be divided into parts and pieces. There cannot be consciousness and something else. Consciousness is eternal whereas existence is transitory. One is real, the other is illusion. Reality is not physical. Consciousness is not something to behold.

Consciousness is a field of knowing expressing separation as existence. We know existence as the universe and the world in which we live. We experience existence as the me of the body. We perceive existence as a world of separation. Separation, however, is not real. Existence is an illusion of separation held in consciousness much like children dream of unicorns. To know consciousness in existence is to remember the unity of the whole of the all instead of accepting separation as real.

The me of the body appears as a fragment of the whole of the all. It is comprised of pieces of the universe called subatomic particles. You, as the me of the body, are one of countless perceptions of the whole. Think of yourself as a molecule of water in an ocean. As the me of the body your experience of existence is unique, but your awareness of existence is not. Like a single water molecule, you are discrete awareness in a continuous ocean of awareness. You appear to be a fragment, yet you are the whole. The whole of the all is a continuum of discrete awareness much like an ocean is water molecules.

The me of the body and all of existence is rendered by consciousness expressing a thought of separation. You are that expressing. You are the dancing that is the dance. You are the expressing in consciousness that manifests separation as existence. The world does not exist independently of you. Your world is a projection of your discrete awareness. There is one awareness in consciousness with countless perceptions of existence. The world, like a unicorn, exists because it is perceived. Nothing exists independently of your entanglement with consciousness. Knowing this, you can transcend the illusion of separation. Knowing this is the core of mysticism.

Who answers when you pray? The one who adorns your altar. That altar may lie within. The god within is your own true nature. It is your own voice answering your prayers. Listen. Your true nature knows the way. You, as the me of the body, do not. You are lost in ignorance and fear. You cry out for help. You hope for release. These actions are not your true path. You are eternally whole, complete, and perfect, not as your body or its personality, but as that which I AM. I AM is consciousness in existence. I AM is your true nature.

Do not add to the world’s confusion. You know that the world is not your reality. It seems real with pleasure and pain, happiness and sorrow, but this is not your true nature. Your truth lies within. Jesus called it the Kingdom of God. Hindus say it is Atman. There is the awakening of the Buddha. There is the natural flow of the Tao. Mysticism says to turn inward to know your god. That god is your true nature. It is the I AM that is consciousness.

You are that which I AM. You are the expressing of consciousness in existence. The world is stuck in the eddies of existence while you are the flowing that is its river. Move beyond the swirls of the world. Escape. Freedom awakens your senses. Eyes that see, ears that hear, and heart that knows are revived. Jesus went into the wilderness to hear the voice. The Buddha sat under the Bodhi Tree. Each entered the silence to find his way. Find your way within. Find freedom in its innocence. You are the river of life meant to flow freely.

Maybe you do not feel the flow. Maybe you may feel alone and afraid, rejected and inadequate; or maybe you feel connected and fearless, accepted and accomplished. Either way, these feelings are not you. They are not the flow. You are not your thoughts and emotions. These are the ways of the world. How you think of yourself brings pleasure and pain, happiness and sorrow, so choose your thoughts wisely. Your world is your thoughts. Do not let them strengthen the illusion of separation. Choose joy as your expression of the world instead of separation. Express joy as lovingkindness. Lovingkindness brings the world together. It does not separate.

Joy opens your heart to lovingkindness. The me of the body holds many sorrows. Do not harbor such inflictions. Push away from the rocky shores. Let the current within catch you. Float far from worldly ways by not attaching to judgment and hope. Do not let your thoughts of this and that trap you in the eddies of life. They are not you. Let the river carry you to the sea. Be the joy in the world that you are.

Joy does not cling to this and that. Attachment binds you to life’s constant cycle of gain and loss. To cling is to attach yourself to expectations. When expectations fail, you feel let down or even betrayed. Then resentment sets in. You are hurt and seek revenge, when all you truly want is pleasure and happiness. You want meaning in your life. Some purpose that makes you feel whole and complete. All that gives you meaning and purpose is temporary. You fear its loss. You seek tighter bonds. The losses become greater. What you do not cling to cannot be lost. So, do not claim the transitory world as your reality. Stop clinging to what you cannot keep.

You can release the world, but you cannot escape your true nature. Your true nature is the entirety of your existence. You are contained in its reality, and its reality knows no bounds. Embraced as you are by your true nature, there is no mystery, no separation. Only you as the whole of the all. You are consciousness in existence. You are grace adorning the altar of your own heart. Sit in the still silence of the room-within and listen to the voice that knows the way. It is your own. There is no separation. You are that which I AM.

Stop! You are getting nowhere. You are like a blind person walking in a dust cloud. Stand still. Let the dust of the world settle.

Your eyes have been shut. Now they are open. Just for a moment, let yourself be. Do not move forward by judging the past and putting hope in the future. Move forward by letting the still silence of the room-within embrace you and guide you.

To be in the moment is like breathing. When you breathe you are not seeking your next breath. You are not trying to make it happen. You are not trying to shape it into your idea of breath. You let that next breath come as it may. You do not judge it by those you have taken before. They have come and gone. The breath you take now is natural. You accept it as it is. You let it sustain you in the moment without judgment or hope.

From the room-within, let things be as they are. Come out from under the weight of Marley’s chains. Free yourself from its burden. You have the power within you. That power is joy. Joy is a choice. You can choose to love all without fear, or not. Just remember, joy in the world begins with you. Express joy in the world as lovingkindness.

Acts of lovingkindness keep you connected to the whole of the all. To know the whole of the all is to know no other. The other that you perceive is a product of separation. Your perceptions of this and that form in existence. As the me of the body, you perceive separation where there is none. Through ignorance and fear, you identify with false fragments of reality instead of with the whole of the all. The whole of the all is consciousness in existence. Choose its path and you will know joy as your true nature.

Lovingkindness is timeless. It exists in the moment. It cares not for the past. It leaves the future to the morrow. It cares not for itself or what you think of it. It has no desires or expectations. Lovingkindness is a gift of grace with no strings attached. Once given it is not drawn back. It has no requirements. It is given freely and received freely. Lovingkindness is the broad canopy of the tree that shades all in the noonday heat. Lovingkindness is the soft rain that falls on saint and sinner alike. Lovingkindness is the table set for all to eat together as one.

But be careful. Attempts at lovingkindness can become another form of attachment. Desire and expectation are tricky. Your expressions of love may contain requirements. Such expectations taint your love with fear. Lovingkindness has no fear. It has no desire or expectation. Lovingkindness is limitless. Expressing lovingkindness brings joy to the world as you act under the guidance of your true nature.

Release the me of the body with its fears, desires, and attachments. It does not know. The me of the body lives to survive. It struggles to find food, shelter, clothing, acceptance, and affection. Beyond that it seeks identity and purpose through achievement, attainment, and affirmation. All of this occurs during constant transition and change. Trying to control the transitory nature of your existence is futile. Failed expectations lead to increased suffering. The more that you are attached to the bonds of worldly desire and expectation the harder it is to relinquish control to the voice within.

Stop struggling! Relinquish control to your true nature. Find peace of heart within. With less fear, love is strengthened, your heart opens, and joy seeps into your life. Lovingkindness increases. Your world changes. You feel your connection to the whole of the all. You are grateful for life’s abundance. You live day by day, moment by moment. Joy endures in your heart. With joy, love is the natural state of your being. You reflect lovingkindness to all.

Lovingkindness is gentle rain nourishing a meadow. Lovingkindness is the bloom, the fragrance, the blue of the violet. Lovingkindness is joy in all of nature. You are lovingkindness. You are joy in the world.

Joy is your true nature. Amid all the noise of the world, remember that you are love untainted by fear. You are eternal and unchanging. You are the ember within lighting the way. You are the wise voice guiding all through existence.

Existence is the world as you know it. All of existence is embodied in consciousness. There is no existence without consciousness. Consciousness is the emptiness that is nowhere. It is intelligent and aware. Existence is a thought of separation in consciousness. You know existence as the universe. You experience existence as the me of the body.

Separation is not real. It is perception. Separation exists as an illusion in consciousness, like a unicorn in a child’s dream. You perceive separation in the same manner as the child imagines something that has no reality. Separation has no reality but without separation you cannot realize yourself in consciousness. To perceive your existence, you need consciousness and something else. That something else is separation. Consciousness cannot be differentiated without comparisons and there are no references for comparison without separation. You cannot know this without that. What is here without there? Who am I without you.

The more you perceive separation, the deeper you dive into existence as the me of the body. As the me of the body you learn to possess and hold onto thoughts and emotions. You attach to objects, family, friends, lovers, pets, places, etc. Attachment is natural in the world. It is encouraged and supported. To live without attachment is difficult for the me of the body, if not deadly. Letting go of attachments is hard work. The me of the body clings and grasps to sustain itself. When life does not go its way, it feels betrayed and resentful. When anger and revenge lift their heads there is little room left for joy. You feel separated from your true nature.

To exist is to separate. You desire this, but not that. Life is distributed into piles of happiness, sorrow, pleasure, and pain. You move among the piles seeking meaning and purpose where there is none. Your fulfillments are temporary. You live in an illusion of spacetime where all is in transition. The me of the body lives in constant fear of losing it all.

Liberation from fear comes from walking the path homeward to joy. Once on the path, you cannot stray. You might stumble. You might fall. But up you get again. The way is straight and narrow. It is lit by the ember within. With eyes that see you can step confidently into joy.

The path is not a distance to be traveled from here to there. The path is a journey within. It is remembering your true nature. Your true nature never left you. You have clouded your vision with fear. You grasp worldly desires to find your way. You are blinded by the dust of the world. It billows before you as expectations of this and that. You hope and dream. You feel lack and seek what you fear you do not have to sustain your existence. Desire keeps you in motion. It is the carrot pulling you forward but never reached. There seems to be more just ahead. Fulfillment seldom lasts. Failure loams like a storm cloud. Your attachments weigh you down like Marley’s chains. The weight on your heart can be unbearable at times. You are burdened with pain and sorrow when all you want is pleasure and happiness.

Joy awaits your return both in the deep wells of despair and atop the high peaks of happiness. Joy is the ember within to light your path in darkness. Joy is the beacon on the hill to show you the way through life.

Wait! Do not move. Let stillness overcome you. Let it guide you. Let it tell you when to go. Until then, remain lucid and awake. Contemplate the moment. Listen. You will know without knowing. You will find your way.

Position yourself perfectly in the moment. Act in concert with your true nature. You are joy. Joy knows the path. The me of the body does not. You are ignorant and fearful in form. You do not remember joy, but it awaits your return in the still silence. There is no end to joy. It never left you. Remember joy. Nourish yourself in its abundance. Rejoice, for you display its goodness in the world. Concentrate on this. Contemplate its power, for you are the force of good in all.

You are consciousness in existence. You are the whole of the all. Your roots run deep in the ground of goodness. Goodness knows neither sacred nor profane. These are constructs of separation. All exists the same in the whole of the all. Comparisons in the world bring about this and that. This becomes sacred. That becomes profane. Holy words may point the way, but they also keep you stuck at the crossroads. Leave the signpost. There is nothing extraordinary about words. To know this is to accept all as consciousness. Then you no longer separate existence into piles of this and piles of that. You see consciousness in all.

Consider consciousness. It has no boundaries. It cannot be limited or split into parts and pieces. As such, you are the energy of consciousness in existence. So be open to all. To be open is to give room to life’s events. Do not wrap them in fear, lest pain and sorrow haunt you. Make room for acceptance. Receive life with lovingkindness. If you extend lovingkindness to all, then joy will find its way into the world. You cannot make this happen. You must let the seed fall freely to the ground. Observe how it embeds with the nurturing earth. Witness its sprouting. Celebrate its growth. Bask in the fragrance of its flowering. You need to do nothing. You are joy’s flower seeded firmly in goodness. The nature of doing nothing is to receive openly the gift of your true nature.

The gift of your true nature is joy in the world. When you embrace joy, you have peace of heart always. If, instead, you embrace worldly desires, then you expect pleasure and happiness to bring you peace. When those expectations fail, you experience pain and sorrow. Desire is natural in the ways of the world. Yet, it hinders joy. It hinders the blooming of lovingkindness. Desire comes from fear. Fear taints love. It veils joy under a blanket of darkness. The me of the body seeks love in darkness. In worldly love it finds pleasure and happiness. But desires and expectations are transitory, so your expectations of love fall short. Too often you experience loss, rejection, and isolation. Feeling alone and deprived leaves little room in your heart for joy. Without knowing joy, peace of heart eludes you.

Joy is eternal. Pleasure and happiness are transitory. Your sources of pleasure and happiness are limited to your desires. Desire and its attachments chain you to the me of the body, whose limitations define you in existence. You use the me of the body to find your way in the world. You cling to its thoughts and emotions as if they were real. The me of the body is not the eternal you. If you possess the body and its personality as real, attach to worldly ways, and own your thoughts and emotions, then you feel let down when all fail you.

As the me of the body you have defined yourself in worldly terms. These fluctuate and change constantly. When the world betrays you, you feel resentment and loss. How can you remove the veil of darkness? By letting go of the me of the body and its world. When you are ready, enter the room-within. Sit quietly in the still silence. Joy will find you. Joy will guide you in bringing lovingkindness to the world.

Joy is love without fear. Fear is your perception of separation. It taints love with worldly desire and expectation. You cannot know joy as the me of the body. You perceive yourself as less than whole. You desire more to find completion. You have forgotten that you are whole by nature. You live in fear of loss and rejection. Remove fear’s veil of darkness. Reveal your light. See clearly that fear keeps you from joy.

Joy is your reality. Release it to the light. See through the illusion of your existence. The me of the body takes the world for real. Let go of this perception by quieting the mind. The mind is the source of thought and emotion. To live entirely in the mind is to own what you think and feel as real. You accept your thoughts and feelings as your reality. Your world reflects this acceptance. Where is the world if not in thought? Change your thoughts, change your world. Your world is transitory. The mind projects it as illusion. While you perceive your world as real, your true nature waits in the background. As you remember your true nature, your world recedes as your reality.

You are that which I AM. You are the expressing of existence in consciousness. You are the dancing that is the dance. You are the flowing that is the river. You have no form until you exist. To exist is to appear in consciousness as separation. Separation is the illusion in consciousness of this and that, here and there. You know the illusion as the universe, or spacetime. You perceive its existence as the me of the body. The mind extends your thoughts as your world. When the mind projects out through the body, objects and their names appear. Hold the mind in heart. Turn inward. See the world through I AM. Your true nature will guide you on the path.

In the beginning, the mind establishes you as a separate entity, or a personality in form. You learn that you are the me of the body. From that perception, all else arises. Your world becomes a projection of thought in mind. Without thought, you have no world separate from consciousness. How you think about things sets the stage for the world in which you live. Return to the beginning. Remember your true nature. Let I AM be your only thought. Let it absorb all other thoughts. Let your thoughts be like ponies romping in the field. Observe but do not ride. Do not own your thoughts. Do not attach to them as “my thoughts.” Let your thoughts remain with the me of the body. They are not your true nature.

Do not wander aimlessly in mindless thought. Focus! –and beware. By focusing your thoughts you give them strength, so seriously consider what you want to strengthen in your life. You have the power to change your world. If you choose to walk the way of the path, focus the mind on I AM. Remember, you are that which I AM. Strengthen this thought to the exclusion of all others. Release yourself from the me of the body. The me of the body lives in constant transition. It is never the same. The self, its world, its soul, its gods, and its afterlife are all figments of existence. You live in an illusion of separation. This is the nature of existence. To focus on I AM, enter the silence when ready. The sun will rise, grass will grow, flowers will bloom without you. Surrender to your true nature. Follow its course. You do not know the way alone as the me of the body.

From within, quiet the mind. There is no need for words. As you let thoughts of this and that drift away, you are left untethered to the shore, free to be swallowed by the sea. Words belong to the world. They bind you to existence. Forget all that you have learned. Act in concert with I AM. Let wisdom find you in the silence. Wisdom has no boundaries. It cannot be contained. Joy is its effect. Neither wisdom nor joy can leave you. Cut the cords of thought. Liberate your true nature. Let your world explode in joy.

I believe that people come together for the common good when left to their true nature. Then they join in loving relationships without fear or attachments. To live for the common good is to see giving and receiving as the same.

For eyes that see there is only the path. Be on the path. For ears that hear there is only the voice. Hear the voice. The path and the voice are not you or your existence. When you are on the path and hear the voice, you are beyond this world. You are an instrument of introspection, so get yourself in tune.

Think of yourself as a quiet pond in a meadow absorbing sunlight. Receive the light. Take it in as your own. Make no effort. Sit quietly in the stillness. Do nothing but receive. Do not judge. Do not hope. Do not think. A clear mind opens the way to receive a peaceful heart, one of unity and balance. So let looking inward be your natural state. Let harmony and joy find you on the path.

Allow your life to proceed on its own by following your true nature. Your existence does not last forever. The very nature of the body is transition from birth to extinction. Think of yourself as a flower offering beauty to the world. Do not wilt and die in the dust of desire. Do not possess. You will suffer from your expectations. Attachments will weigh you down like Marley’s chains. Remain open to possibility. Do not limit yourself to narrow ways. You do not know. Open your heart. Find balance through lovingkindness. Bloom for all to see.

To open your heart, enter the room-within when ready. Your inner nature knows the way. Its message is subtle. Stillness is its realm. Silence reigns supreme. Listen. There is never an end, nor a beginning, only eternal silence. Quiet the mind. Observe as the witness. Pay attention. Abide in the quietude of your true nature. You will find peace of heart in harmony with all.

Silence purifies. It embraces all who enter. It consumes you in the moment. Silence has no past or future. To be in the silence is to be fully in the moment. Feel the flowing that is your true nature. It sweeps away judgment and hope. It accepts all. Hold unity in mind. Do not wander about with thoughts of separation. Stir love into action without fear. From the silence within overcome fear and set love free of its worldly bonds. Be the joy in the world that you are.

Be true to your inner nature. You are joy, and joy knows no fear. Therein lies your power. Your power is lovingkindness. Lovingkindness is the power of joy. Lovingkindness is the expressing of consciousness in existence. To express lovingkindness is to live in all the world through your true nature. Lovingkindness is the glue of the whole of the all. It screams, “all are worthy!”

The silence of the room-within encompasses the whole of the all. It is consciousness in existence. Embrace its unity. Find peace in its stillness. Remember, this is your true nature. Your existence in the world perishes. The silence is eternal. Annihilate the self. Die to the world. Vanish inward as you surrender to consciousness. Stop worshipping self-centered desires. Place yourself on the altar of silence. You are its rock. Upon this stone rests your reality. You are the cornerstone of existence. You are the foundation of the world. The world is as you say. Your attitude determines the meaning of all that you encounter. You know the way. Open your heart. Reveal yourself as the whole of the all. Find unity in all for the common good.

Pondering the Observer

There is no self. No one to know. No one to be aware or awaken. See and hear without adding a self that says, “this is mine or this is my experience.” The self is an illusion of separation. Your true nature is the one who sees and hears without perceiving this and that. As the self perceives separation, you create a world from its perceptions. Desire and expectation arise. Judgment and hope ensue. Pleasure and pain, happiness and sorrow are experienced. A life, your life, is played out.

Do not own your experiences. They are not you. Observe your life with eyes that see without claiming what is seen. That which says, “I am seeing” is not there. It is part of the illusion of separation.

What is it in you that observes? Is it that which gives you a past and future? Can there be a life without the observer? Seeing as claimed by the self brings judgment and hope. Eyes that witness without owning do not see a past or future. They behold each moment as it is with peace of heart.

You are experiencing existence as the me of the body; that is, as a self. You cling to the self as you experience pleasure and pain, happiness and sorrow. These experiences become yours to own as a person. Experiences help to define you as a personality. Your personality is the me that you know in form. This is the self. As the self, you own your stream of experiences. The self is having the experiences. The observer is created by these experiences. It becomes their witness. You cannot witness what is not experienced. What is experienced is illusion. Self is an illusion of your perceived experiences. So is the observer.

Like the self, the observer is not your true nature. So, who are you if not the observer? The observer, like the self, is created by your experiences. In body, you are but an experience of illusion in consciousness. But somewhere in you, something is aware that knows you are aware that you are experiencing knowing. What is it that knows? To find it, you turn inward, but most often you find more things to know instead of the knower. You can struggle to know but you are not a knower in body. There is no knower separate from consciousness.

The knower is not the me of the body, its soul, or anything you can imagine. It is outside your awareness. The knower slips away when you identify with it. It cannot be separated out of consciousness as a self or an observer. Knowing is beyond your reach in existence because it is not a thing. It is not something that happens. Your awareness of knowing is but a signpost to the incomprehensible.

No matter what you experience, whether pleasure or pain, happiness or sorrow, there is an aspect of you that is not affected. This is your true nature. Your true nature is intact. It cannot be added to or subtracted from. It is whole, complete, perfect. The experience is transitory. The emotions it leaves behind are transitory. You are eternal. Observe each experience. Feel it. But do not act as if it is you, or that you have been affected. Allow your true nature to be in the experience with you. See the experience with eyes that see. Feel it with heart that is present. But do not own it as real. That experience is not your reality. You are not fragmented into experiences of this and that, here and now. You are the unity of the whole of the all. You are consciousness in existence.

Accept what comes into your life. Release it as it passes through. Cling to nothing. Without desire and expectation, you can maintain peace of heart in all situations. Be completely present in your life. Attend to each moment. Open your mind and heart to possibility. You are not limited. Do not bind your peace to any situation. Know your true nature and be free.

You are a small shop in a large city. Many visit. Many walk on by. Each day they are the same. Those who wander in seldom leave. Life is sweet. Then you grow old. There is beauty at the start. Then the bloom fades. You dream big. Then heave a sigh. Someone brings you gold. It is not real. You begin to wonder, “Where am I?”