Three Supports For Turning Towards Mystery

I love this passage written by Martin Allyward. My understanding of living a holisic life is enriched by reading and reflecting on this passage. According to me, noncocptual awareness is awareness beyond the knowledge acquired from books, teachers and other sources. Nonconceptual awareness is cultivated by experiencing the unconditional Truth, the unconditional Love, and by living in here-now consciousness. It is beyond words, conceptt and theories. I consider it as living Truth. It goes beyond conceptual learning acqired from books, teachers and other resources. It is an experiential learning gained by reading books or lstening to teachers attentively with an open mind, reflecting on the teachings, practicing the words of wisdom, and icorporating the teachongs in everyday life. The author describes three helpful supports for nonconceptual awareness. The first support is embodied awareness. Conceptual awarenes by itself is not enough. Learning lessons from books or tteachers is the starting ponit. Reflecting on what is orally or verbally acqiured is very imporatant for conceptual learning. I call it a curious and inqiring mind. The third step is applying the learning in life, integrating it in our life. The second helpful support for nonconceptual awareness. Mind has a tendency to think. It is mind's job. There is no need to fight the mind or let the mind do whatever the mind wants to do. Using discretion is very important for regulating our thoughts, emotions, expressions and actions. We do not let our mind hijack us. We do not get hooked by the mind. We use our mind wisely. That is the sign of an awakened being. As the author says " Awareness is a more potent, luminous, and immediate than our mental prevrarications. When uou find yourself caught up in a thought, notice, and in the noticing unhook, unhook, unhook." I find this a very wise advice for unburdening ourseles from the heavy load of unholesome thoughts. The third support for nonconceptual presence, the willingness to not know- the willingness to put aside familiar and the willingness to meet each experience new. As the author says, "to live aside inner or outer, pleasant or unpleasant, good or bad-all of them can be left aside." I take this as remaing unattached- nonattachment to good or bad keeps the mind free. Namaste! Jagdish P Dave