"Be like an infant, instead of trying to be this or that, be happy to be. You will be a fully awakened witness of the field of consciousness. But there should be no feelings or ideas to stand between you and the field." N.M.
I have heard a baby's consciousness described as "oceanic." I remember well my own infant children (between bouts of crying to have their bellies filled or their asses wiped) rocking gently on their backs, limbs akimbo, cooing, eyes wide wide open, a tiny smile flickering on their lips, flickering on and off refelxively. This is what N.M. is talking about. We need to return to that place wherein a smile is the thoughtless instantaneous reflex to everything arising within and without us. The infant has no within and without, just the arising of sense objects in an unbounded cosmos. This is our paradise lost.
"Question: The need to survive within a given society compels one to do and endure many things. Does one need to abandon one's profession and one's social standing in order to find Reality?
Nisargadatta Maharaj: Do your work. When you have a moment free, look within. What is important is not to miss the opportunity when it presents itself. If you are earnest, you will use your leisure fully. That is enough."
Or, ride that crocodile all the way home, baby!
I have heard a baby's consciousness described as "oceanic." I remember well my own infant children (between bouts of crying to have their bellies filled or their asses wiped) rocking gently on their backs, limbs akimbo, cooing, eyes wide wide open, a tiny smile flickering on their lips, flickering on and off refelxively. This is what N.M. is talking about. We need to return to that place wherein a smile is the thoughtless instantaneous reflex to everything arising within and without us. The infant has no within and without, just the arising of sense objects in an unbounded cosmos. This is our paradise lost.
"Question: The need to survive within a given society compels one to do and endure many things. Does one need to abandon one's profession and one's social standing in order to find Reality?
Nisargadatta Maharaj: Do your work. When you have a moment free, look within. What is important is not to miss the opportunity when it presents itself. If you are earnest, you will use your leisure fully. That is enough."
Or, ride that crocodile all the way home, baby!
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