Category Archives: Freedom

Gateless = Freedom

It’s been a year today since I completed a “sort of” course called Liberation Unleashed. How I found out about it..I don’t remember exactly…..maybe through a long stream of events that started with Eckhart Tolle’s  “New Earth”.

The whole idea to me revolves around the Zen concept of the Gateless Gate.  It’s based on the notion that we all are looking for a way to find the Gate that will open up the path of peace, happiness with no suffering. We all look for a way to find that Gate and, more importantly, open it. When we finally realize that if there is a Gate at all that it is not locked, has no boundaries and can be freely crossed on either side or passed straight through without the least bit of effort….then we are “enlightened”.

To start the process, you are given a Guide who is a person who has already passed through the Gate so supposedly they will be able to lead you where you need to go. The Guide has only one goal…to help you realize that there is no separate self and never has been.  Sounds simple but believe me, it’s far from it. The questions asked are meant to dissolve the thought that there is a separate little person inside your head running the show…..that there is no separate little person that is separate from all other people or things.  That perceived separate little person is only a conglomerate of your past conditionings, feelings, your life story and exists in memory only.

If this is the first time you have been exposed to such a concept, it can be very unsettling and not accepted.  When something awakens in you and you begin to be interested in this crazy notion, you have started your way to finding the Gateless Gate….which is no Gate at all.

Gateless Gate

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Filed under Enlightenment, Freedom, Gateless Gate, Liberation, Nonduality, Zen

I’ve Had It…But Can’t Keep It

It’s been a long time since I have posted anything here.  I know that I’m supposed to be a retired seeker but I fell off the wagon and have been obsessed with reading, listening to videos, seeking for something that is almost within my grasp. These spiritual binges usually start when I come across a spiritual teacher who resonates with me at this particular time and seems to be transmitting exactly what I need to hear.  I keep reading and listening because the missing piece that I need to keep this spiritual light glowing might just be in the next book or video.

Most seekers know the old “I’ve had it – but can’t keep it” feeling so the goal is to find the missing piece of the puzzle that tells you how to keep it so there will be an end to seeking and living in a state of bliss will be your norm.  That’s just it, seeking with a goal in mind….seeking with an urgency that something else is about to dawn and everything will be cleared up once and for all.

So after almost two months, I realize that the addicted seeker is still alive and active.  The addicted seeker is always seeking a different experience than what is happening right now.  Don’t get me wrong….I love seeking for Truth and love the way it makes me feel and experience life but now I can see the difference between an addicted seeker and a lover of Truth with more clarity.

The addicted seeker is driven by the desire to re-experience the pleasure achieved through a spiritual experience similar to any addict wanting to have another pleasurable experience. A lover of Truth is not driven to find some missing link that will keep the enlightened state active. A lover of Truth is not looking for anything…only experiencing.

The experience of “I’ve got it and I lost it” is a very, very valuable experience for the spiritual seeker……..But after living this I-got-it-I-lost-it swing, eventually that me stops believing its own delusion.  Something starts to see through it, recognizing that this isn’t freedom………Always waiting for the next experience is bondage.” ~ Adyashanti

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Filed under Direct Experience, Enlightenment, Freedom, Mind, Nonduality, Seeker, Spirituality, Truth

Freedom….

Thinking of the word and concept of freedom today.  We fight for freedom and lives are lost for the sake of freedom. This holiday is all about our nation’s fight for freedom.

In my daily spiritual practice, the word freedom is used in almost everything I read or hear.  Freedom from the bondage of the separate self, freedom from suffering, freedom from nagging useless thoughts.

The meaning of freedom is “not being confined, exempt from external control or release from bondage“.  So the battle for freedom can be fought on two levels.  What is obvious is the battle for freedom in the external world.  Not so obvious is the internal battle that might be going on for many….except for those who are now engaged in or have been engaged in this battle.

I never really thought of it as a battle since spirituality is all about non-violence even though most spiritual writings use the metaphor of a battle to bring home the point.  The point being, if you really want freedom be prepared to give it your all and be brave because in the end you realize that the biggest battle of all …..is being able to surrender.

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Filed under Absolute, Enlightenment, Freedom, Nonduality, Pointers, Spirituality, Truth, Uncategorized, Zen