(ringing) - My question is around, before you were talking about
intensification of presence. So at times I've felt
intense energy in my body, throughout my body, but that's more rare. And I feel that I experienced presence in more of an underlying calmness. So my question is, is
presence experienced? Is there something
consistent with presence? - And do you mean, does
it always feel the same? Is that what do you mean, perhaps? - Mm hm. - Well, as I said, the
intensity of presence can vary. So presence is the energy field. Now this is very hard to talk about, but I'll just, I will make an attempt. It is almost as if there's a place inside from where presence emanates. And that place is timeless, and I can only compare it in
the sense-perceived world, it could compare to the, like the sun that continuously shines,
and yet it has no form. So it's like a space rather
out of which presence emanates. So the sun isn't actually
a positive presence. But if you imagine that
the sun were an empty space out of which the light
emanates, then you get a better, this is closer to the truth
of how it is experienced as you go very deeply into it. So there is a space
within, or a spaciousness, that is the point out of which the emanation
of presence happens. And that space is absolute
repose, absolute stillness. And to feel that in
yourself is very joyful, for lack of a better word. There's an aliveness there,
but it is absolutely still. That's the core. And that is perhaps as I speak of it, you can get a sense within
yourself what that is. You can only sense it
when you're not thinking. You can't be thinking and sense that. That's the innermost stillness within you. Out of that emanates presence, which can emanate directly from the body. It can also move into your
mind and begin to use your mind and inform the mind and
speak through the mind. There were times in my life
when I was very passive, you know, my episodes on
seeking on park benches. But even after that, for
long periods of time, I was so immersed in that inner stillness that there seemed no
point in doing anything and you don't need to go that way. I didn't have any guidance, so nobody could tell me
what to do with that. So I gradually had to learn for myself that you can be active in the world, and at the same time completely
rooted in the stillness. So you particularly mentioned
the state of calmness when you can feel it. So it may be that you
have that connectedness with the still point within
and feel that very strongly. It's very hard for people to, people also differ in
their choice of words when they speak about it. So you could ask, if you go to India or you
go to anybody's country, you may find that, and ask them about spiritual awakening, you may find that the words
they use to describe it are very, very different. And only if you know already
from direct experience what it is they're talking about, you can recognize that they're
talking about the same thing. So I've already said too much about it. Because what I have said may, those words may not be the
words that you would choose to talk about your experience of presence. Are you able to suspend
thinking for certain moments without going to sleep? (laughing) - I'm not sure. I think so.
- Okay, try it now. Okay, stop. Okay, how was that? - I don't remember a thought. - [Eckhart] Okay.
- Yeah. - [Eckhart] So there was no thought. - Yeah. - Because not thinking is not memorable. (audience laughing)
- [Man] Okay. - Now, this is very significant. So the mind doesn't know
what to do with not thinking, because the mind is thought. The mind cannot really appreciate how important not thinking is, because what the mind is interested in is let me ask another question. That's what the mind is interested in. It's not interested in stepping aside and allowing no thought to arise. So the mind has then a certain momentum. The most important thing is to become familiar with
that state of no thought, far more important than any question that could arise in your
mind, or any answers the greatest spiritual
teacher could give you. So that's why I mentioned
I believe in The New Earth. I was visiting that big center where they offer countless
fascinating causes on developing this and that faculty, and spiritual development,
and physical development, and all kinds of, a huge
number courses are offered. You can have anything, a menu of courses. You can pursue any interest. Wonderful and fascinating. So I don't know if you
remember reading it. I wrote somebody came to me
and showed me that program, that menu of fascinating
courses and workshops. I said, which one do you
think is most suitable for me? And I looked through it. There's so many, I don't know. But I can tell you this. The way I put it at that time was be aware of your
breathing just for a few days and you will gain more than
attending any of these courses. And it's free.
(audience laughing) Be aware of your breaths as
you go through daily life, as much as you can. What does that imply? That implies there's
a space of no thought, because you cannot be aware of your breath and think at the same time. If you want rapid acceleration
of spiritual awakening, don't ask another question. (audience laughing) Because the next question
and the next and the next won't get you any
closer, especially after. As you can see, I'm
winding down the question. Especially after being
here for several days, I have said all that can be
said about spiritual awakening. The next step is up to you
and it does not consist in, well, let me see. No, I need to enjoy, no,
something else I need to know. I know that some questions are
helpful because ultimately, but ultimately the most essential thing is bring presence into
your life now, for example, by being aware of your
breaths as much as you can. It's just one way of bringing presence in. Or feel the inner body as much as you can. And that's rapid. Or if you can just step
out of thought already without using any of those portals. Just move out of thought. And some of you can do that already. Then choose that as much as
possible in your daily life. Choose to be in thoughtless awareness whenever you don't actually need to think. And that's quite a lot of the time. That's the spiritual practice. There's no other spiritual practice. Everything else would point to that. But this is the most
direct spiritual practice. And very rapidly you'll
find the shift happening. You have a choice. Now with choice comes responsibility. Because the moment you have that choice, it implies that there is
sufficient awareness in you for you to have choice. Once that has arisen, the choice becomes your responsibility. We have to look at it from
that way, point of view. Because if people asked me,
well, who is responsible, presence or you, and all
kinds of strange questions, the most useful approach is to see that you can
choose to be present. That's your responsibility. Choose to be present. In many, many situations
in your daily life, choose presence over useless
thinking, for example. When you're in bed at night, when you wake up in the morning, when you're walking in
nature or walking to work, from here to there, or
traveling on public transport, or sitting in your car,
stopping at a red light, choose presence over thinking. You are able to do that. It's earth, you have to
remember that you have a choice. That's comes one, okay, I have a choice. And then exercise the choice and take your attention away from thinking and put your attention
on attention itself. Become conscious of being conscious. From another perspective, which is also true and actually
more true, but less helpful. It is true to say that when you exercise your
choice of being present, what is really happening is that presence is choosing to manifest through you. So, but what presence wants you is to feel that you can have that choice because it helps it to manifest. Ultimately, there isn't you and presence. You are an aspect of presence. So forget about what I just said. (audience laughing) But exercise your choice to be present, no matter where you are. And if you lose it, fine. It's coming back again and again. Of course you will drift
off again sometimes. You drift off into thinking. You may drift off into
reactivity, and find, ah. But then come back. The moment you notice
it, the moment you notice that you've drifted off into reactivity, your choice is to come back. If you cannot come back directly by saying, okay, I'll just be present, then use either your
breaths to bring you back, use the awareness of the
inner body to bring you back, use some conscious
movement to bring you back, or use sense perception to bring you back. Looking without labeling. It's all, especially
natural things are helpful. You look at them, come. Look at your dog. He's not thinking. So, and immediate, so easy
to be present with an animal, with nature, with the sky. You can use those things as help. So if you need some additional
help to be present, use that. I sometimes call that
a portal into presence. There was a man working with Byron Katie, a spiritual teacher. The man was saying, if I had enough money, I would move to Hawaii and
that would be so great. That's my dream. And she said, well, what
would you do in Hawaii? He said, well, I would sit
in a deck chair by the beach, or in my backyard and look
at the palm trees, breathe. And she pointed out, and well,
where are you sitting now? Is the chair comfortable? Yeah. So what's wrong with that chair? How different would it be to have just as a slightly
different view around you, you can be in Hawaii now. It's an inner state. It's just the mind telling you you need to be somewhere
else in order to be happy. You need to be somewhere else. It's here now. What's wise to seek, postpone fulfillment to
some future imagined point, not realizing that the
source of all satisfaction is within you already. And then sense that as your very presence, and everything else, whatever
happens or doesn't happen, you catch the bus or you miss the bus, you lose money, you gain money,
up and down, hot and cold, that's all the details. (light mystical music) This mind made sense of self is also much more focused on
the negative than the positive. To be free, you awaken to who you are beyond your history and
your life situation. (light inspirational music) (rushing water)
