“Every living being longs always to be happy, untainted by sorrow; and everyone has the greatest love for their self, which is solely due to the fact that happiness is their real nature.” —Ramana Maharshi
Love Ramana Maharshi quote, and coincidentally I am listening to "How to win friends and influence people" on audio book for the first time by Dale Carnegie. He says in the book that connecting with others is a matter of ancient wisdom, which recognizes that everyone is basically focused on themselves, and by acknowledging their significance and importance you are setting them at ease. I like the notion that self-importance, while usually held as a negative thing, equated with egoic motivation, is actually in part a function of the search for Self with a capital "S"
Great call-out, Rick--I had something similar in mind when I read that Ramana Maharshi quote. It's like our habitual egoic self-centeredness is just a slightly mistaken form of Self-centeredness.
Yes. In fact we're only a half step to one side of the pure joy that comes with full self-acceptance of exactly what we are in this moment. Self-observation with zero judgment is the recipe for full release from living like a walking cramp. That is such a joyful thought in itself.
Really appreciate this summary Chris. I've listened to Rupert on a few podcasts and find it beautiful how he articulates the concepts of awareness. Although it can be hard to follow when you're tired 😅 I came across a great analogy from Buddhism (which I think I've heard from him too) which was about a room full of furniture. Essentially, the furniture can attract, repel, excite us, just like thoughts, feelings, perceptions etc. But the space between is all neutral. This is our awareness. So when we focus on the space we are less influenced by the objects in the room (i.e. thoughts, feelings, experiences, perceptions etc).
One of my favourite ever podcast episodes was him talking about elite level sport, which I found truly fascinating. All about presence, awareness, flow states etc. According to Spira, flow is the feeling of being released from the everyday thoughts, feelings, perceptions and sensations which limit us. It’s the feeling of us returning to a pure state of limitlessness, which he refers to as consciousness. Here's the podcast if you're interested, it's so good! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMKFiyFmHPQ
Hey Joseph, thanks so much for sharing the podcast episode! I'm just starting to listen to it, now.
I agree that it takes some focus to be present with Rupert's teachings. I read this book slowly, 1 chapter a day, and often had to go back and re-read paragraphs to make sure I understood them. But it was very worthwhile and it became part of my morning post-meditation practice.
Love Ramana Maharshi quote, and coincidentally I am listening to "How to win friends and influence people" on audio book for the first time by Dale Carnegie. He says in the book that connecting with others is a matter of ancient wisdom, which recognizes that everyone is basically focused on themselves, and by acknowledging their significance and importance you are setting them at ease. I like the notion that self-importance, while usually held as a negative thing, equated with egoic motivation, is actually in part a function of the search for Self with a capital "S"
Great call-out, Rick--I had something similar in mind when I read that Ramana Maharshi quote. It's like our habitual egoic self-centeredness is just a slightly mistaken form of Self-centeredness.
Yes. In fact we're only a half step to one side of the pure joy that comes with full self-acceptance of exactly what we are in this moment. Self-observation with zero judgment is the recipe for full release from living like a walking cramp. That is such a joyful thought in itself.
Really appreciate this summary Chris. I've listened to Rupert on a few podcasts and find it beautiful how he articulates the concepts of awareness. Although it can be hard to follow when you're tired 😅 I came across a great analogy from Buddhism (which I think I've heard from him too) which was about a room full of furniture. Essentially, the furniture can attract, repel, excite us, just like thoughts, feelings, perceptions etc. But the space between is all neutral. This is our awareness. So when we focus on the space we are less influenced by the objects in the room (i.e. thoughts, feelings, experiences, perceptions etc).
One of my favourite ever podcast episodes was him talking about elite level sport, which I found truly fascinating. All about presence, awareness, flow states etc. According to Spira, flow is the feeling of being released from the everyday thoughts, feelings, perceptions and sensations which limit us. It’s the feeling of us returning to a pure state of limitlessness, which he refers to as consciousness. Here's the podcast if you're interested, it's so good! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uMKFiyFmHPQ
Hey Joseph, thanks so much for sharing the podcast episode! I'm just starting to listen to it, now.
I agree that it takes some focus to be present with Rupert's teachings. I read this book slowly, 1 chapter a day, and often had to go back and re-read paragraphs to make sure I understood them. But it was very worthwhile and it became part of my morning post-meditation practice.