Among geometric forms, the sphere is the one most commonly employed—by nondual spiritual traditions—as a visual symbol and metaphor of our True Nature: of knowingly abiding as Pure Awareness. The sphere embodies—and hence easily represents—perfect balance, harmony, and symmetry. No rotation or movement through space-time can disturb its shape. The surface of a sphere (like the surface of the …
Practice Notes
Practice Notes: Apples & Oranges
The perception of any kind of phenomenal characteristics—size, shape, color, texture, taste, scent, etc.—and the assigning of names to the objects of our perception—requires discrimination. It requires that we notice differences. Horses and Cows I can assign the name “horse” to one animal and “cow” to another animal because I perceive relevant differences between the two. I can assign the name …
Practice Notes: Warp & Weft
Furnishings In recent weeks, I’ve been browsing area rugs, with the intention of finding one that feels right for the loft space of my new condo. Happily, I did indeed find a lovely wool rug, the perfect size, reasonably priced, and convenient to pick up, which now beautifully adorns that space. Yeah! As a side-effect of thinking a lot about rugs, my mind has been inclined toward rug-related …
Practice Notes: Wind
I’ve recently added a rainbow-spiral wind-dancer to my balcony. I love watching it hang quietly when the air is still, and dance in its spiraling way—creating the illusion of vertical movement—when it’s windy. Air In Motion Its presence has caused me to reflect upon the phenomena of wind—which really is just air in motion. Being essentially nothing other than air, wind—like air—is invisible. …
Practice Notes: On The Trail
An Abundance of Trails Boulder is known for its abundance of hiking trails—up into the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, or further east for flatter terrain. Mount Sanitas, Shanahan Ridge and the Anne U. White trail are among my current favorites; and I’ve visited them even more often over the past year, with outdoor activities considered among the safest. Some trails are loops. Some are …
Lemon, Lottery, Black-Eye: Exploring Connections Between Thought & Action
I’ve been contemplating anew the relationship between thoughts (i.e. internal talk and imagery) and actions (i.e. events within the physical body and external world)—curious, in particular, about causal mechanisms and the role of something we might call choice, intention, will or volition in actualizing (or vetoing) such causal connections. To tease out some of the possibilities, let’s consider …
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