- This table doesn't mean anything. This flower doesn't mean anything. This room doesn't mean anything. What does all that mean? (attendees laughing) (singing bowl ringing) Well, let's see. Course in Miracles. The purpose of the Course
in Miracles is to bring you to a place where the words
are not needed anymore. It meets you, or not you, personally, but the human being. It meets the human being
where the human being is in the realm of thought. The Course in Miracles
would say that otherwise, there's no meeting at all. It has to, first of all,
meet the human being where it can be reached. And that is in the realm of thought. In the same way that a psychiatrist, in order to reach a deluded patient, there's no point in the
psychiatrist telling the patient, "I am telling you, you are not Napoleon." That will only strengthens
the delusion of the patient that he is Napoleon. He will never reach the patient. But if the psychiatrist,
for a little while, enters the mind of the patient and says, "Okay, so you are Napoleon." Suddenly, there's a meeting. Once they have met,
because the psychiatrist has entered the delusional
system of the patient, once they have met, there's
a possibility for him to take him out of the delusion. If they never meet, nothing can be done. In the same way, the Course in Miracles, it's attempting to reach
people where they are in the realm of thought and gradually take you out of thought. But throughout the course,
thought is still used. But more and more in the later lessons, it points to the stillness. And towards the end, the final lessons, it says the use for words is almost over now towards the end of the Course in Miracles. So it takes you, it's designed to take you into presence or stillness. So if you can enter presence or stillness right now or wherever you are, if you already have
presence and stillness, spacious awareness in the
background of your life when you deal with people and situations, you don't need the Course in Miracles. If you can enter stillness when you are not being being disturbed, but as soon as you interact with people, you lose presence,
awareness, or stillness, then the Course in Miracles
may still be useful because there has certain lessons that can be used as pointers. For example, one lesson, I remember, it says in a situation
where you feel upset, or angry, or irritated, it says, you can say, I could
see peace instead of this. I could see peace instead of this. It's a pointer. The words don't
miraculously produce peace, but the words are pointing
to the possibility of approaching that situation in a different state of consciousness. So really, the words are pointing to a different state of consciousness. It's not in the words, it's that to which the words point. So, and as the Buddhist tell us correctly, the finger pointing to
the moon is not the moon. Only the dog might think that the finger pointing
to the moon is the moon. Because if you tell a dog, go there, most dogs, it will look at your finger. The words are pointers. And particularly useful Course in Miracles for human interaction. It really uses relationships
as spiritual practice. And that's a good thing. So many lessons can be
applied to relationships, and you need it, or if the
course is right for you, it's definitely not for everybody, but it might be useful for some people who still find that they
have a lot of conflict with other people and a lot
of upset with other people. So you can bring the
lesson into relationships. If you don't have that anymore, of course, you don't need
the Course in Miracles. And even if you understood deeply or could practice deeply just lesson one of the course. It has 365 lessons. Just do lesson one. Nothing that I see here means anything. That's what the lesson tells you. This table doesn't mean anything. This flower doesn't mean anything. This room doesn't mean anything. What does all that mean? (attendees laughing) It means you are giving up
all your interpretations and judgements. You're approaching, you're
cleaning the blackboard of your mind, erasing
all the scribbles on it. Or the let's call it a deleting
all the noise on the tape. No, they have don't have tapes anymore. They delete all the digital signals, whatever, in your mind. Nothing that I see here
means anything takes you to a place of not knowing anymore. And what's left when
nothing means anything? You're not thinking anymore. If you deeply, could do deeply lesson one, don't need anything else. So because it would stop your mind from its useless interpreting,
and judging, and so on. So in your own life, if have you already practiced
Course in Miracles lesson. If you still find
difficulties in relationships with other people, you can still use it. then it can eliminate, help you to become more conscious there. In the end, it takes you to the
essence of this teaching, which is awareness, pure awareness or stillness. And that's the end of... And also, by the way, the course says, this course is the beginning, not the end. So it takes you to that place
where you open yourself up to awareness, which can
then flower through you. If it's for you. It's definitely not for everybody. - I use these sentences when
I feel I'm getting angry now. So I say some sentence and push it down. - Yes, but don't push it down. Don't push it down. You can say the sentence and
then allow it to dissolve if that's what it wants. Because if you get upset or
angry and try to hold it down, it'll build up. Don't hold it down. Just allow it to dissolve. Different approach. Never attack an inner state. Never attack any emotion that arises because it creates resistance again. Allow it to be. And then if it's not
resisted, it dissolves. Lovely practice. Now you ask something else about prayer. The Indian man behind you. - And in general prayers,
is this talking to me, or how do you explain prayers? - That's a huge topic, of course, prayer. (attendees laughing) In the way he uses prayer
as a kind of repetition, kind of mantra perhaps. The good thing about it, of course, is that it stops your mind
from doing other things in like indulging in
fear-producing thoughts or negativity-producing thoughts. So it stops your mind from that. But ultimately, that kind of thing for us, for anybody, has to be left behind. When Jesus said, pray unceasingly or pray without ceasing, that does not mean,
because it would be absurd, that he's telling you
to continuously pray. (Eckhart mumbling) He's using prayer in a
very different sense. But it's possible that people who wrote down what he said misunderstood because they didn't realize
the truth in themselves. Jesus teaches presence. It points continuously
to the present moment, the importance of the present moment, and the importance of staying awake. There are parables about going
to sleep, not going to sleep, but staying awake. Jesus says, "The truth
will make you free," which implies that,
right, the way you are, you are not free because you are run by the
conditioning of your mind. So all the basic teaching is there. You just have to see it. Repetitive prayer. If you need it, that's
what you will practice. And a time will come when
it's no longer right for you. Any meditation method can be helpful. Let's talk about meditation. You have a method. Some people count while they meditate from one to nine, from nine to one, from one to six, from six to one. They count their breaths, or they do this or that, have a mantra that they
repeat in their minds, which keeps out other kinds of thinking. Now, the purpose of a mantra is not to be stuck with the mantra, but to eventually let go of the mantra. The mantra reduces all thinking to just one thought movement. So you can focus on that. And then it's meant to be dropped. When you drop the one
thought that was left, first your mind was full
of all kinds of thoughts. Then the guru comes and says, "I will give you mantra. You repeat every day 500 times." And if you do that, it brings your mind to a one pointedness. Some people then get
attached to the mantra. My mantra. No, then you are meant to, at some point, guru will point out, it's
time for you to let go because what is left when all your thoughts have
flown into one thought form, and then that one thought form is dropped, just awareness is left. So it can be, take you there if you don't get stuck on the way. If you get stuck on the way, then you're stuck until you
suffer a bit more again. So let's leave it at that. It's knowing when to let go of something that is helpful for a while. Like a ladder. You climb up a ladder, and then you don't need it anymore. Or the Buddha has the
famous example of a raft you used to cross the river. The raft in the Buddhist, then the Buddha uses
the parable of the raft is talking about the teaching, Buddhist teaching and Buddhist practice. So you use the raft to cross the river. When you have crossed the river, you don't carry the raft around with you. It's heavy that there's a point where
you let go of the raft. And there's complete freedom then. And whether you still call that Buddhism or whether you still
call yourself a Buddhist, it's up to you. But suddenly, there's freedom. Something is helpful for a
while until it's a hindrance. Any kind of practice. And in the end, there's just awareness, presence, consciousness. And some gurus teach that directly. They don't give you, they hardly give you any technique. And that's for certain people
who are ready for that. That's fine. So what you feel drawn to
is what is right for you. And then know when it's time to let go. (water burbling)
