anger can do it:
has the capacity to veil
seemingly completely sometimes
that which we are..
it is the ego-cloud covering and
gaining authority in
situations of separation
of which we are attending..
could it be..really..an invitation
to perceive a lining of light
or..the screen behind the movie..
the ego-cloud then may disperse
and be discovered as a gift
from grace...

Downtown or on the roadway
zig-zag searching
always for something..
Stopping at a coffeeshop
reaching a place
seemingly removed..
An interruption in
a zig-zag map
with map forgotten..
The coffeeshop was not
a zig stop..or a zag
just momentary..a respite..
Might zig-zag dissolve
right here and now
in this cup of coffee...?

Oneness
that is the experience
of your Self..
your real Self..
not the bifurcation
which you and others
have always thought
you to be...

is repeated followed by
all manner of things..
Julian give assurance
from her experience
knowing now that
all manner of things
rising as thought
and perception
are fleeting and that
in which they arise
is already well..
our simple task
is to recognize
that...

Each of us possesses a flame
shining brightly in our birth
never extinguished..soon forgotten..
Why forgotten we ask..
Well..we noticed that other
our dear mother..suddenly exclaiming:
I saw her myself..!
Such was our personal
Garden of Eden
where a diminutive body plus mind
verified and verified again
a life sweetly and sadly embroiled
in apparent separation..
This grasping truth in discovery
hid the flame and waked a longing
a stuttered seeking to uncover
that hidden flame..
The flame awaits as we dance
a dance between desire and fear
fueled by glimpses of promise
to burn personal separation
and birth the impersonal:
eternal Happiness..The Flame...

Creating as we observe
giving our attention
to the world as it is clothed in
such multiplicity..
Our perceiving seems passive
but we are taught that
perceiving precedes perception
and perceiving simply names
consciousness..
Still we hesitate
after decades of seeing
in our conventional way:
the world out there is separate
from myself in my body..
Yet the new Understanding
may mean we are reaching
the final frontier of discovery:
We are creators
observation is creation..
Are we soon to experience
a wondrous truth...?

Attention

Appears to be a directed perceiving of what

Shows up in line of sight..nothing startling

About that boring clarity..until we consider:

Attention demands a viewer and an array

Of objects asserting themselves..and we may or

May not notice sitting quietly in a dark corner

An assumption of separation..a quiet deception..

Dissolving the deception..nothing remains

But playing appearances..entering and

Departing from seemingly nowhere..and an

Aroma of real and not real..solid and not..

Also..entering the playground are thoughts of

Attention and a viewer and an array of

Objects..this new trio of players..front and center..

Arriving from nowhere...

We now await the recognition
of the image of our shadow..
Our anger has been expressed
as we witnessed a ladder of insult..
In the mirror of our collectivity
the ego unleashed is displayed...

On this
the year's ending day
our news is filled
documenting highlights:
another year approaching
its end..

Then from a friend
comes the photo above
and a question that leaps:
whether this image is
sunbreak or sunset..
Perhaps
we should demand
at least for a while
to know only that
this miraculous photo
images..yes.. both..!

Now returning to
what's in the news
portraying each year
the sharp knife
of time
splitting and separating
in seeming truth..
Yet knowing now that
this timely photo
points to our longing
to something we seek...!**

Thanks, Elaine..

the bible was cited:
words of law and obligation..
a constricted justification for
family agonies of separation..
forgotten are the words
of fulfillment..closely following..
which immerse the previous words
in healing tides of love...

a bible session...

this is about what we call "pets"
about ownership..objectivity..
an anachronism now..?
the inner model of
consciousness-only
may provide a hint:
only consciousness Knows
not plants..not animals..not us..
that is a radical reversal
of our heretofore belief
that consciousness springs separately
from each compartment of life..
considering again:
only consciousness Knows
is aware..and is expressed in
every-thing..every-where..
this equality of Knowing
filters through our finiteness
our body and mind
and through our "pet" dog
and through the turtle at sea..
So.. we pause:
consciousness only..Knows

The most common word in every language

For centuries has stood for the person reading these words..

Sages are known to possess a much larger I..but the

Secret..that you and I might claim an expanded

Version..has found its home only on fringes..hiding a

Reckless bounteous Freedom..yet..there are those who

In desperate times..found the Joy of this delicious word..

But..alas..have settled for a mirrored image..reflected

Most clearly on their driver's licenses...

is there a possibility that
from those many images
we might discover the fruits
of our fearful identity:
that we cannot welcome
those so desperately
needing our welcome..
our abundance is re-labeled
as scarcity and from
very constricted corners
we fear..with a desire
to reach a happiness
threatened by the
wholeness of welcome..

do we need to recall
those words of equality from
our founding Declaration..
to uncover the perennial truth:
Welcome comes first...

thoughts..

Are they ours..?

With the assumption of separation

An easy Yes is said along with

A strange brief glance..

But if we remove the assumption

This illusory assumption

The uneasy thinker finds

A crumbling identity..

Frightened and joyful..and

Free..as thoughts visit from

No-where...

That in which appearances appear
in which every-thing appears
as an appearance..
Trying here to shake the objectivity
which seems impossible
short of Silence..
But our everyday intuition
tells us that there is __
in which we experience every-thing..
And this __ we find
to be permanent
not that which comes and goes..
Our language constricts and hides
that for which we are searching..
Ending the search
reveals our __
our unnamed Identity...

Appreciation of this art
comes from appreciation
of  Non-dual Reality
in which we are all immersed..
This ubiquitous camera
comes as attachment to our
ubiquitous mobile phones..
It is the dream of photographers
with fondest wish to be
ready when the subject arrives..
The burdensome externals
lenses and filters and light
are subsumed in the
readiness of the iPhone's
availability Now..
Now is not a moment
but what I am
colored by this
photo opportunity...!

A world of separate objects
Has been the province of science
For centuries following centuries..
But now an occasional shudder
Cast by an uneasy perception
That our roots in separation
Have been only a useful dream..
The dream has turned sour
And has drawn a darkened film
Over eyes..eyes seeking  
Understanding in the shadows..
New discoveries find Fields
Of openness and not-knowing
Leading a few scientists to
A science cleared of slumber...

trying to explain:
all is vibration
yet appears as a
myriad of things..
those many things
seem unquestioned as
the reality we face
today..

the myriad
has in common
simply a vibration..
as this oneness flares
in our minds
wounds seem healed
with the insight:
leaves and flowers
do not vibrate..
we do..!

case closed..?
perhaps not yet..
there is a fire
at the core of
what is above said..
a fire inviting
our surrender and
burning of another
bridge to no-where...

The word
implies that there are two
and these two are equal..
Such an assertion
results in a counter
that seems obvious:
two are never equal..
From this common
experience
we learn to question:
Is this simply perception..?
Experience of
Here..Now
alters perception
with joy we find:
Real Equality is
never not One...!

(Our Declaration of Independence
includes the word: Equality
which Lincoln restated at
Gettysburg..
The Civil War was fought
over the notion
that the first perception
was the only one..
The Declaration was
written assuming
the second perseption...!)

A sense of grayness
perhaps of depression
in these holiday days..
times before
we have searched for
restoral
in downtown windows
in company of another
in comforting wine..

This morning we desire
more..more permanence
causeless happiness..
we wish for a bath
washing the hurt..

A warm bath rises
in our awareness..
stepping in to the
immersing water we
find a ******* of
water and warmth..
a body form now
transforms
to water form
shaping our bathing
as only
watery warmth...

This stranger arrives
introducing May
perception with thought
coloring presence
green and white..

May-be
perhaps May
seen in green
protruding through the
covering white snow..
A green precursor
a guide to
a persistent spring..

Snow as Silence
lightly landing
white
diffusing color and form
awaiting explosion
in May
two days away...

"""Conscious AI..? (Another
Hard Problem..)

The question is arriving
in science's conversations..
The envisioned robot
will finally express
minds functions:
thinking..sensing..perceiving
but alas
a new question arrives:
Of what..?
Of what..the question lingers:
Will the robotic mind
turn from things to itself
and discover the fullness
of no-thing..?
Or perhaps:
Might their makers
turn and discover
their own AI...?

Daily experience for most
is a delightful fearful mixture..
We are content to allow the mixture
to serve as undoubted real..
Acceptance of the
warp and woof
is the life we know..
Yet pain and distortion
confusion and doubt
lead some to question..
And in questioning to
discover  Reality anew..
Finding:
warp and woof
are most blinding
hiding our inherited light
declaring enforced separation
ensuring captivity remains...

curtains

the curtain torn
is the light exposed..
as centurions all
we carry dark curtains
concealing our light..
exposure might come
with shock and awe
or right now
in a quiet pause...

Comes from being
Between and around
The multitude of
Objects vying for
Our attention..

Between and around
We do not attach
Neither do we resist
But allow the
Quiet to proclaim...

first
is the infinite field
unbroken and eternal..
this is the silence
before the sound..
then
this permanence
breaking with sound
yet not broken
as sounds
come forth appearing
as notes..shaped by
curling and uncurling
of that which  
is still silent...

Consciousness
our only Identity
seems to constrict itself
with a simultaneous birth
of self and world..
This is all"seeming"
as Consciousness
our only Identity
knows only itself..
All the "seeming" is
a temporary coloring
not an alteration
of Consciousness
our only Identity..
Coloring/Consciousness
a dance of polarity
of Consciousness alone
our only Identity...

searching for an open space it had glimpsed before
a space alive knowing only itself
a pulsing fullness..an understanding joy
which thought is desperate to find.. just once more..
alas our thought has a hidden handicap:
remembering that glimpse as that some-thing
arriving and arriving and arriving
at some gateway..an entrance forbidden..
the key is there with accompanying fear:
fiery dissolution of that thought gone searching..
will it?..can it?..does it..?

resistance is receding
with clarity in bloom
boundaries are softening
rationality for a moment
is brushed away
and experience shines..
teachers..now and past
are placed in our paths
and heard with new eyes..
teachers within..at last
are accepted with joy..
understandings of self
stand in stark contrast
with toxicities without..
new perceptive twists
recognize real roots
and burn the brush
which for centuries
has dimmed our view:
a dream too wild...

When this question arrives
with increasing and sometimes
desperate insistence..
We apparently must suffer
until we dissolve
the boundaries and continuities
of our youthful bodies..
Frightening this can be
until we discover
the joy of being
transparent
transparencies in transparence
waves in water...

thoughts are hardy travelers..
when an object enters perception
thought delights in the new form
and may choose to linger:
naming and comparing and wishing
for new perceptions with new
datapoints..
a search may begin
seeking new understanding
and perhaps a request for
a stronger instrument for
new sightings..bringing
new perceptions with new
naming and comparing and
new wishing..
waystations on this journey
are highs and lows
highs..marking possible ends
and lows bringing irksome
questions with a message:
your search is far from
complete..
then a Question from grace:
will the end ever draw nigh..?
rest then arrives
for the weary traveler with
recognition and surrender...

Science's foothold in matter
over many centuries told
is slipping
as transparency arrives..
The particles sought
are illusive
they seem here and then not..
But there is still excitement
on their discovery
even if short-lived..
Something more exciting
may be awaiting
recognition..yes..recognition..
Recognition of that which
is permanent
in which the short-lived
produce their excitement...

Is a seeming something really so..
This word "seem" hedges our certainty
de-sharpens the edges of the object world
which in this moment is the scene we survey..
But on reflection it seems (that word again)
that all observations must begin with
this oft-neglected preface..
Seeming give recognition
to what we can know and the
wool which often diminishes our seeing..
Certainties melt in a wave of seeming
and somehow seeming brings
a wave of Peace...

Lives on..
With rapid-fire multipliers in
The tales of two cities which are
Now in our frightening focus..
As divisiveness thrives
In a numbing atmosphere
Plurality declares independence
Here and then there and then often..
We are exploring dark extremities
No longer serving better creative
Expressions of our Whole..

Recognition of our veering
Means of expressing ourselves
Is sharply implored...

All endeavors in life
need a start in Peace..
Peace is our experience
without the
thoughts and perceptions
which seem convincingly to
declare an independent world..
Another name is Silence
which all may experience
any time and any place..
That is the start..
Now appear words
of sameness and difference
which appear to break
the Peace and Silence..
Words bring longing
for that place before
wounding words unfold..
(The cosmic joke:
the place we were is
the place we are..?)
We await the arrival
of life's many teachers:
scripture and nature
neighbors and friends
an evening concert
a startling dream..
Teachers carry words
words as thorns
to remove the thorns
which hide the place
we long to return..
And finally: all thorns
burn in the glow
of returning Peace...

Speak as your real "I"
**Who are we really
each of us..
most seem to answer
with answers which name
or automatically point to
some immediacy of
each body and mind..
hopefully a teacher
within or without
on each path
reveals the falsity
of such confinement..!
a receipt of this
astonishing news:
you are not
after being convinced
for these decades
the I of your
cold assumptions..
and moreover henceforth
you can speak
without leaning on
the I of your discomfort
but now with
sweet freedom as
your real I...

When we reflect
On our life
We might resemble
A train passenger
Riding and attending to
Clocks and destinations..

The rails on our train
Reveal and restrict and
Guide beliefs in the
Severed nature of things..

As a passenger we are
Rattled by a whistle
High notes we exalt
Low notes we blanket..

Until the day
We step off the train
Into the station
With its permanence
Recognizing arrival
Finding our Home...

We keep a focus
on what appears as the world:
the morning newspaper
checking email and
Facebook and checkbook..
Perhaps we meditate
and notice the thoughts
interfering it seems
with meditating goals..
All of these outward
attractions and destinies
seem to claim somewhat
of what we are..
The question may assert:
What remains..?
The assertion arriving
with fits of discomfort..
We might respond:
Nothing remains:
a frightening reply
to some..calming to others..
This introduction
to what we are
is the real message
of this season...

Why state the year
when the true Thanksgiving
is timeless..
We give Thanks perhaps..for
the turkey and dressing
or the new home
or a future brightening..
These passing Thanksgivings
outpour from the true Thanksgiving
which will remain true and near
when Black Friday dawns...

The virus has placed a focus

On our assumptions of  "normal"

Normal..these were the habits

Taken for granted as they

Settled into our lives as

Benchmarks and addictions..

We so fondly remember the

Unceasing participation..tight

Schedules..with expected

Plentiful accumulation..then

Enter the virus..pushing back on

Artificial guide rails..and

Inviting our attention to..Yes

A frightening Freedom..

A Freedom forever available

With accompanying Joy..

But alas.. went unnoticed

Until the virus erased our

Habitual and imagined

Prison bars...

Oppositions

We observe today with expectation

In that stretch of the future..

But in a new time..as time is exposed

Oppositions are also exposed..and the

Seamless sounds..quivering and revealing:

Appearances..beauty expressing

Nothing at all..

Let me not..

Marriage of true minds is Truth of Love
Love is One: seamless..independent and free..
Alteration and impediments are undefined..
Ever-fixed Love looks on changing tempests
And cannot be shaken..'tho each tempest is made of Love..
Time is thought..appearing in Love..made of Love
But Love is unaffected as time plays the fool
Through rosy lips and cheeks..or hours and weeks
Even appearing on the edge of doom..
All seeming errors are made of Love..
The Bard spoke Truth...

A response to:
SONNET 116

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:
O no; it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests, and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth's unknown, although his height be taken.
Love's not Time's fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle's compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.
   If this be error and upon me proved,
   I never writ, nor no man ever loved.
~~William Shakespeare

Can we experience
existence
without reference
to the body..?
Is this frightening..?
Or is it real freedom..?
Our bodies simply
are thought's boundaries
which corral
the multitudinous flow
of inner thoughts and
sensations and
of outer perceptions..
All of these mind things
are temporary shape-ings
of our true nature:
an infinite and
unshaped Existence...

Consciousness
Assumes all forms
Which take shapes of
Consciousness..
This is happening
Only and All...

seems to be a healing process
in which a sensation within Being
is found immersed as separate stuff
in a warm bath of an infinite sea..
If the separate stuff is painful
the comforting image seems
as a healing balm..Why not?
With a continuing experience
we might find in our comfort
a subtle recognition of that
persistent claim of separation..
There must be a deeper comfort..
Might it be:
the feeling understanding that
Seawater and wavewater
are simply Water...