Yoga: The Alpha and the Omega, Vol 7

Ask a Question Close to Home

Ask a Question Close to Home. Don't ask abstract questions—ask about yourself. Ask a question close to home: the master doesn't want philosophy—he wants existential inquiry. Don't ask about God, heaven, karma—ask about your anger, your fear, your sleep. The question close to home is the real question.

The mind is very clever

The mind is very clever. The mind can co-opt any spiritual practice. The mind is very clever: it can turn meditation into ambition, surrender into subtle domination, love into possessiveness. The mind survives by adapting. Only awareness—raw, choiceless awareness—can outsmart the mind.

The inside of the inside

The inside of the inside. Going beyond the inner to the innermost. The inside of the inside: there's the body, then the mind, then the heart, then the self—and beyond all, the inside of the inside: pure consciousness. Patanjali leads you from the outside to the inside to the inside of the inside.

Be a seed

Be a seed. The seed contains the whole tree—don't try to be the tree. Be a seed: the seed is small but contains everything. Don't try to expand—remain small and potent. The seed doesn't strive—it waits. When conditions are right, it opens. Be a seed—let existence grow you.

Piling up the zeros of being

Piling up the zeros of being. Each meditation adds a zero—more nothingness. Piling up the zeros of being: each step of yoga adds another zero. One zero is nothing—many zeros become infinite. The accumulation of nothingness is the path to infinity. The more empty you are, the more full you become.

You can't get there from here

You can't get there from here. The ego can't reach enlightenment—it must dissolve. You can't get there from here: 'there' (enlightenment) is not reachable from 'here' (ego). The ego must die—not improve, not travel, not reach. There's no path from ego to enlightenment—only the death of the ego.

In a cold universe

In a cold universe. The universe is indifferent—only consciousness gives warmth. In a cold universe: existence doesn't care about your plans, your hopes, your fears. It's cold—neutral. Only your consciousness can warm it. The yogi doesn't seek warmth from the universe—he becomes the warmth through awareness.

The rock bottom of no and yes

The rock bottom of no and yes. Beyond rejection and acceptance—the ground of being. The rock bottom of no and yes: the ultimate choice is between saying no (ego) and yes (surrender). At rock bottom, both dissolve. What remains is neither no nor yes—it's silence. The rock bottom is the ground of being.

Into the fantastic

Into the fantastic. Reality is more fantastic than any imagination. Into the fantastic: the yogi enters the fantastic—not fantasy but the real seen clearly. When the mind's fantasies drop, reality reveals itself as infinitely fantastic. Truth is stranger than fiction—and more beautiful.

Take the risk

Take the risk. The path of yoga requires total risk—nothing less. Take the risk: the ego wants guarantees. The path offers none. The risk is everything—you risk the known for the unknown, the ego for the no-ego. Only those who risk everything attain. The safe never reach.