David Hall's Non-Duality Blog
My name's David Hall. I'm the creator of this web site and its content. I live in Wales in the UK.
I developed the Celtic design software KnotWorker, I create electronic music as Goldcup7, and I've written books on spirituality and non duality.
Hope you enjoy this Non Duality blog. New blogs are added on Tuesdays and Fridays.
Please use the Contact page if you have any questions or would like me to discuss a topic.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: Non-duality
Consciousness is generally considered to be the state of the mind in which humans know and perceive what's going on in the world. This consciousness is generally considered to be an activity of the brain. This is the scientific view, but science is still unable to fully understand consciousness and how the brain generates it. Consciousness is considered to be a state of the mind, and the mind is generated by the brain somehow.
I'm certainly going to diverge from that perspective here. Rather than consciousness being in the mind and the mind being in the body, from the Non-Duality understanding it's the other way around. The mind, the body and the world appear within consciousness. And it's not just the Non-Duality understanding, it is the understanding of direct experience. All that you have ever experienced of the mind, the body and the world has been in consciousness. Without consciousness, the mind, the body and the world would not appear.
If you hear a sound it is within consciousness. If you open your eyes and look around, this moving image of the world appears in consciousness. The thoughts that float through the mind - "What shall I have for dinner?" or, "I must remember to send that message" - appear in consciousness. Your whole world picture, and all that you know about the world, is right here in consciousness. The hillside that you can see far away, that is perceived right here in consciousness. The sound of the plane flying overhead, that's perceived right here in consciousness. All that you know about your body is perceived in consciousness - the view of your hands, arms, legs and feet, the image you see in the mirror, the feelings of sadness and joy, the sensations of pain or discomfort, the softness of textures, and the tastes of your favourite foods, are all perceived in consciousness.
The mind and thinking is perceived in consciousness. Not only are the thoughts and images of the mind perceived in consciousness, but also the sense of 'I'. There is a sense of 'I am this', 'I do this', and 'I have this' that develops in the human mind, and this is perceived in consciousness.
Truly Consciousness is the still, silent, formless, dimensionless intelligence in which the world appears. The world of forms and solidity, of movement and sound, depth, distance, and change, appears within Consciousness. Consciousness, being formless and dimensionless, is without limits. The sensation and experience of limits appears within Infinite Consciousness. This sense of limits gives rise to the belief of separation and identity. The ego appears in the mind, but is perceived in Consciousness.
Withdrawing from the distractions of this apparently moving, changing world, and withdrawing from the chatter of the mind, Consciousness is known to be just the pure, effortless, unchanging presence in which the world seems to happen. It only seems to happen. Nothing is really done. Consciousness doesn't walk down the street or take a plane to Spain. Consciousness has no arms or legs. It is formless. Forms appear within Consciousness, similar to how dreams appear within the mind.
It might help to imagine nothing. Well, really it's more about not imagining anything, closing your eyes and letting go of thoughts, feelings, ideas and concepts, and just letting the mind be quiet for a short time.... You know that you're here. You are Consciousness. You are alive. You exist. But you aren't over there somewhere. There is no distance or limits. 'You' can't be found or defined. But you know you are aware. This is the shared core of all that is experienced. It is the Self Aware Consciousness. It has no 'substance', form or identity. It is this in which form and identity are experienced.
Open your eyes again and the world seems to fill Consciousness, but Consciousness remains just as it is.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: Spirituality
In spiritual development there is a point where it is recognised that the body is not me. If I am spiritual then I'm not this apparent material form. I'm not a human. I don't have arms and legs. It is reasoned that I am the one who animates the body, I am not the body, but the body is mine.
This sense of detachment from the body can continue and develop, so that the sense of 'me' itself diminishes. This is because the hardened 'material' form has a greater density and feeling of separation from the whole. It is not separate from the whole, of course, but that's how it feels at the point of density and apparent limitation of the human form. The ego identity that is the sense of being separate from others gradually recedes as spiritual development progresses. There is a greater sense of oneness with the whole, and the ego and identity that were so important and dominant lose their power. The peace and joy that is naturally present is experienced more and more as the ego diminishes and the sense of 'me' fades.
As this sense of 'me' fades, the sense of 'mine' also fades. Where before we may have had strong attachments to objects, considering them to be our property, seeking new things to buy and own, this becomes less interesting. The sense of attachment and ownership diminishes. So also with people. We don't rely on people so much to make us happy. We don't cling to people as before. We don't crave company. It doesn't mean that we dislike people or stop loving them. It means we have a healthier approach to people. The boundaries between 'me' and 'other' thin out more and more.
But we still have some attachments during this process. We still have a sense that although the body isn't me, it is mine: I see the world through this body, so it is mine. This too will diminish as spiritual development progresses, because it is not 'mine'. Nothing is 'mine'. The culmination of spiritual development is the dropping of 'me' and 'mine' and knowing clearly that there is only What Is. This Clear Knowing is here already. Clear Knowing is the nature of What Is. It is Pure Consciousness.
Once the sense of 'me' fades completely the sense of 'mine' also disappears. It is then that Clear Knowing is no longer clouded by the mistaken belief of 'I am this' and 'This is mine'. There are no boundaries, limitations, divisions. There is only the perfect peace and clarity. There is no 'me' who has problems, who grows, changes, lives and dies. There is only What Is. It is in Consciousness that this play of identity, possessions, gain and loss, and spiritual development plays out.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: The Human Experience
In a previous article it was discussed how evil appears in the world. Let's take a brief look at this again and consider the laws that maintain balance in the universe. Essentially evil appears in the world of opposites as the reflection of the formless Singularity. It can be considered that the world appears as an interplay of opposites, as a separation of the formless Singularity, the Infinite One Being. As the world 'materialises' far from the source, it appears as a hardened, limited, separated multiplicity of forms - the opposite of the Infinite One Singularity.
The ego develops far from the Singularity as the sense of 'I am this, not that', a limited sense of self separate from others. The extreme of the ego is what we call 'evil', where it is so hardened and isolated, and has such a strong sense of its own identity different to the world that evil actions are the outcome. The evil ego is the opposite of the Infinite One Being, imagining itself as separate from others, far from the goodness and peace of the Oneness of Being.
This evil ego and indeed all egos are illusory. They are a mistaken sense of identity within the Singularity of Being. There are not many beings, just one infinite Being. But the world appears through the method of this reflection into opposites. When one of these apparently separate beings realises its true nature there is no longer a sense of separate self. This is what we call enlightenment, where the apparently separate self is extinguished (nirvana) and the pure Infinite Being is effectively realised, although here all along.
You have likely heard of Karma. This arises as a consequence of actions from the Law of Opposites. The Law of Opposites is the universal law that is naturally active in the world, as the the world appears by this method of reflection and separation into opposites. The Law of Opposites ensures balance in the universe. What appears must disappear. What is done must be undone. This happens naturally due to the reality of the Singularity, which can never be broken. The Singularity can only appear to be broken in two, and if this is done it will inevitably be undone, as the reality is maintained. It may be that through the appearance of space and time the Unchanging Formless Being appears as changing form, but this must be resolved with the closure of space and time back into the Singularity from which it appears to have come.
In practical terms for humanity and the evolution of souls this means that actions must be undone. This is what we call Karma. Any separation caused by a soul in its human form must be resolved or cancelled out. Any harm to the Oneness must be resolved. Any division in the One must be mended. For the soul that means that any harmful actions that caused division between itself and the world must be undone. The soul must mend this separation of the One. The soul must return to the Oneness from whence it came, and in so doing put the wrongs right. Karma.
That is the play of the world of opposites anyhow. But the underlying reality is the timeless Singularity. There are not multiple souls that go out and get lost far from the Oneness of God. There is only the Oneness of God. This is why it is said that in self-realisation or enlightenment the soul is freed from karma. From the perspective of the soul it returns to the heart of Oneness and resolves the separation it caused. From the perspective of Oneness there never was a soul and there never was separation. The world is a play of opposites in the Infinite One Being.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: Spirituality
The forms on this planet, the formation of the planet and the formation of stars and this apparent 'material' universe don't just happen by chance. There is an underlying unseen spiritual energy that gives rise to these forms. The Eastern images of the dragon give a good impression of what this living energy force is. It's like a dragon that coils and releases, gives heat and cools down, condensing and expanding, flowing with undulating vibrancy. It links well with the Yin and Yang symbol, as the play of opposites is its power. It is like an alive energy force flowing into the 'material' world and receding, in repeating waves.
Let's start with this planet. The condensation of matter is the condensing of spiritual energy into an apparently hardened more defined form, where this alive spiritual energy slows. Matter is effectively spiritual energy condensed. This alive free energy becomes condensed to a more limited, dull, hardened, rocklike form. But there continues to be expressions of variation in this energy. We see this as the range of density through the traditional elements of earth, water, air and fire.
This vibrant alive energy continues to influence forms on the planet, evolving them from the basic to the advanced. Patterns appear in nature because of this underlying force. Branches reach out and multiply. Leaves unfurl. Flowers open and close. Animals form, ranging from dense cold-like forms, such as the alligator that needs to bask in the sun to get energy from that fiery source, to the hot-blooded, supple, vibrant mammals, such as the cheetah. These animal forms are full of this unseen energy, and are effectively expressions of this underlying spiritual energy that creates them.
This undulating spiritual force animates the flow of the universe, giving rise to the ebb and flow of nature, the separating and uniting of opposites, the condensing and unfurling, spiral patterns, and the pattern of many opening from one and returning to one.
What is the source of this spiritual force? It is the secret egg from which it came. The mystery of the Yin and Yang symbol is that they are timelessly one. This force of interacting opposites is a play within the Oneness of What Is. What is this 'What Is'? It is that in which all this is experienced - Consciousness. Nothing is known outside of Consciousness. Consciousness is the same as spirit. The energy and life of spirit is the aliveness of Consciousness. The spiritual force of fluctuating opposites arises as the reflection of the Oneness of Consciousness.