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 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
Let's consider Truth. There is Absolute Truth and there is relative truth. Relative truth is what we're used to. It's where we say, "Today is Tuesday," and it is a Tuesday. Or we say, "Four plus three equals seven." Those statements seem to be true enough, but they are dependent on other information being true. "Today is Tuesday" is dependent on a shared understanding of what "today" means and what "Tuesday" means. For a German speaker today might be Dienstag. For someone on the other side of the world our today could be their yesterday or tomorrow. It sounds silly, but the point is that it's not wholly true.
In fact, nothing can be said is wholly true. Anything that can be said or thought is at best relatively true, or at worst relatively false. One of the reasons behind this is that nothing can be truly and accurately defined. All the words we use are at least slightly vague. We cannot say with precise accuracy where "today" begins and ends. In fact "today" is a made-up reference to a span of 24 hours, which are themselves human made divisions of time. Time is not truly divided into hours or days. These are terms that we share an understanding of, and they are only then relatively true.
We can go further and recognise that relative truth is not the truth. It is not true truth. Nothing that can be thought or said is true. Thoughts, words, ideas and theories are useful but never true. Truth itself cannot be expressed. This means Absolute Truth. What is Absolute Truth? Absolute Truth is reality. What does that mean? It means that Absolute Truth is right here all along, no matter what falsehoods are expressed. Absolute Truth is the unchanging constant reality. Truth is Reality.
I cannot write what Truth really is. I can only write what it is like or not like. I can write that reality is a singularity, that there is no division of things. But that is only to correct a human misunderstanding that reality is divided into things. The statement isn't wholly accurate, because it depends on relative ideas and a sense of "division" and "things", which it denies. We understand what a "singularity" is by reference to what it is not. Again, as mentioned elsewhere, we use the negative or reflective term to indicate reality. Just as the term Non-Duality refers to the non-existence of duality (separation or division).
You see, we cannot directly describe an infinite indivisible reality. We have to refer to what it is not. This is a strange one, as what it is not does not exist. But human thinking has assumed that the reflective qualities are real. Human thinking assumes that relative truths are real truths. Better, perhaps, to recognise that Absolute Truth is inexpressible but evident in all that seems to be expressed, and that words, ideas and theories cover a spectrum of untruths that in a sense are closer to or further from Absolute Truth.
Let's break that down. Absolute Truth is inexpressible. The world is an expression of it, and is not other than it, yet it cannot wholly and accurately represent Truth. Any expression of Truth is less than it, yet exists within it. Truth allows the expression of untruths. All words, ideas and theories are not wholly True. They can point to Truth more or less closely. For instance, "Love is All" points closely to Truth, whereas "Hate is All" is far from the Truth. (Love is an expression of the Oneness of Reality, whilst hate is its reflection, expressing division.)
So we have Absolute Truth as the measure of all things that are not the truth. How does this help? Well, we know that no matter what thoughts think, they are not accurate. Why should we pay so much attention to thoughts when they are never really accurate anyway? Truth is silent and unspoken, always here, often overlooked. This reminds us to respect the silent stillness that is here. It encourages us to turn towards Truth and Stillness rather than get caught up in the drama of thinking and the world. It reminds us that we are not right and others wrong - all ideas are wrong. Just being, in silence and stillness, is closer to Truth than anything that can be said.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: Non-duality
Where are you? You may give an answer describing where your body is located, like, "I'm sat on a chair in my garden," "I'm in Liverpool," or "I'm on holiday in Florida." But that's not really where you are. That's where the sense of the human body is in relation to the rest of the world. It's far from exact. You could give precise coordinates of where your human body is, and indeed the body could be located from those accepted coordinates. But that's not really where you are.
You are not the body. You perceive the body. You perceive the world through the senses of the body. You also perceive thoughts, which are assumed to belong to the body. Well, the thoughts have assumed they are the body. It is thinking that identifies with the body that we perceive and through whose senses the world is perceived. Thinking thinks, "This is me." But it's wrong. You are not what thoughts think you are. Truly the body is not totally separated form from the world - no man is an island. There are no clear points where the body ends and the rest of the world begins. The body is an indivisible 'part' of the whole. So it's only a vague assertion of thought in identifying with something that isn't really defined.
There is a 'deeper' you that perceives the body, perceives thinking, and perceives the sense of identity with the body. Some may feel that they have a soul, but that is more like thoughts thinking that the body has a soul. It would be less inaccurate to say that the soul has a body. Where is the soul? We cannot say. The soul is assumed to be a spiritual identity that incarnates in the human body. Is it really in the body? We cannot say.
The most accurate that we could say is, "I am here." As soon as we try to describe where 'here' is we drift into inaccurate speculation. We can confidently say, "I am always here." But truly here is nowhere and everywhere. Everywhere you go you are here, but the real you never goes anywhere. That 'deeper' you is aware being. You are and you are aware that you are. This awareness is 'who' you are. It is not an identity as such. Awareness is what perceives the sense of identity coming and going. It is Awareness that remains when the body wakes and sleeps, comes to life and fades away. Awareness perceives the passing of life and death, whilst remaining in the natural state of Being. It is Awareness that perceives the passing of time and change from its unchanging timelessness.
You, me, everyone, all that is, is Awareness. Nothing is ever perceived outside of Awareness. Human conscious and unconscious states are perceived in Awareness. All fluctuations of the world rise and fall in the ever-present Awareness. Where is this Awareness that we are? All we can say is that it is Here. It is not relative to any other. There are no others. There is nothing beyond Awareness. It has no depth or distance. It is infinite and formless. The world moves within Awareness. Without Awareness the world cannot appear.
So know that you are not the body, nor even a soul that comes and goes. You perceive the comings and goings of the world. You are the Awareness that is the heart and whole of the world. You are Here Now, the timeless alert presence that perceives the fluctuating activity within the unchanging stillness of Aware Being.
Recognise that it is Stillness that perceives relative stillness and motion. It is Peace that perceives relative peace and conflict. It is the Dimensionless that perceives relative closeness and distance. It is the Timeless that perceives relative beginnings and ends.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: The Human Experience
Why do humans suffer depression? Why is it such a common condition or experience that people go through or live with. Let's explore this with the understanding of Non-Duality. Non-Duality is the recognition that there is no real division in the world, and what exists is one infinite indivisible Beingness, which we call Consciousness; all that appears is in Consciousness, made of Consciousness, perceived by Consciousness.
To understand human depression in this light, it helps to understand the human experience. What we (Consciousness) perceive through the human experience is separation, limitation, diversity and change. The One Infinite Timeless Unchanging Formless Consciousness experiences being a limited life form separate from other life forms. Consciousness experiences change through time, coming into being and fading away. The world that appears is like a reflection of Consciousness within Consciousness. It is as if Consciousness perceives the reflection or opposite of itself.
Consciousness cannot really perceive itself. One cannot truly see oneself. The best we can do is see the reflection of ourself, but this is never truly accurate. The reflection cannot be the perceiver. But here it is, this appearance of a world, perceived in Consciousness by Consciousness. It is an appearance that is a reflection of the unseen perceiver.
This perception of opposites, of separation, limitation, movement and change, is a reflection of the infinite oneness of reality. But it allows unlimited possibilities. It allows a world of diversity and interaction. It seems as if opposing forces stretch out the universe, dividing, uniting, clashing and joining. But really there is no division. The opposites appear as a spectrum or continuum. For example, we could call the space from one city to another a continuum of distance. We can't really divide that distance. We can call it so many miles or kilometres, but these are manmade measurements. There is no real division in distance. The theoretical opposites of the beginning and end points span a continuum of distance.
Why's that relevant to depression? We're getting there. You see, the human experience is one that seems to be far from the Oneness of reality. People feel density, weight, the slowness of change, and the pressure of life. This is life far from the true freedom of reality, where there is no heaviness, density or change. This human experience is of life seemingly far removed from the reality of oneness. Life is difficult. People feel isolated or clash with others. Yes, some people find a common bond (that must always happen), but groups of people with a common bond fight against other groups with a different bond. People, groups, nations, form their own sense of separation from others, and it appears important and real. This division and limitation inevitably leads to clashing, fighting, competition, isolation and depression.
The further from the reality of Infinite Oneness we seem to stretch, the more isolated, lonely and restricted we feel. Far away from Infinite Oneness life weighs heavy with limitation and separation. People struggle. Life becomes difficult and dark. Far from the clarity of Infinite Oneness, thoughts of confusion and depression reign. It's almost the norm for most people to experience this. It's a highly common human experience because of the ingrained belief of separation.
But no matter how far we may experience the darkness of depression, we are always here in Oneness. It is only an experience of depression, separation and limitation. Our true nature is the Consciousness that perceives all of this. Consciousness remains content and complete as it is, throughout any apparent positive or negative experiences. It helps to know that no matter how far we may seem to be from the light and clarity of Oneness, it is only an illusory experience we are perceiving. We can never be far from Infinite Oneness. You are not really limited or separate from others and the world. Your true nature is without bounds. Your true nature is content freedom. There is only an experience of lack and limitation.
The experience of turmoil comes and goes within the timeless peace of Consciousness. It is the false belief of separation that causes the experience to be so powerful. It is the belief of separation that leads to suffering.
But all this doesn't mean that if you are experiencing depression you can just snap out of it by thinking about Non-Duality. Dropping our mental boundaries helps. That means talking with friends or professionals about the experience. It means finding freedom, going for walks outdoors, breathing fresh air, being kind to self and others, and freeing the love of Oneness from behind the clouds that hide it. It means dropping the belief that the hard dark world is all there is. It's a play of separation and density that is perceived by and in the Oneness of Consciousness. And that Oneness is Love, Peace and Wholeness.
- Written by David Hall
- Category: Non-duality
The idea of 'me' is an imposter. It's not the real you. It's a notion that I am this body. It's a notion that I am here in the world, that I am something distinct and separate from the rest of the world. But that's not true.
You are not separate from the world. It's a flawed idea. How? Well, there's no distinct point where the body ends and the rest of the world begins. We may casually see the tips of the fingers and believe that is where that part of the body ends. We may feel the feet as they touch a soft carpet, walk on grass, or slide on some socks. There is a sense of where the feet end and where the rest of the world begins. But it's not strictly correct.
There may seem to be a firm outer layer to the body that we call skin, but the skin isn't permanent. It is continually changing. It is continually replaced as the outer layer joins the environment. The skin is continually flaking away from the layer that seems to separate the body from the world, and then it is no longer the body. We could say that the outer layer of the body is continually replaced as it becomes "not the body".
So what seems to be a defining layer where the body is separate from the rest of the world is really indefinite. Really nothing is separate from the world. The world is always whole and complete. It is the mind that has the idea of separation and division. It is the mind that labels this and that as separate parts of an indivisible world.
What do we do about this? We recognise that the ideas of me that have shaped human life are flawed, and we allow this clearer understanding to permeate through the human world. Who can be our enemy when there is really no separation? Why should we argue and fight when truly we are one? This recognition breaks down the barriers that the human psyche has formed. These mental barriers seem to prevent us from being naturally as we are, at peace and at one.
Of course, really there is no 'us'. There is no real me and you. It is one infinite indivisible Being appearing as many. The peace and Oneness of Being remains timelessly as it is, whilst appearing to be and not to be.