Your whole heart into This!

Once again, you all are welcome to this meeting, here, via Paltalk! These meetings are always a unique moment, a perfect time for celebration. That is how all these moments of True investigation are. We meet each other in Satsang for this investigation.

There is something much greater than someone doing this investigation. There is something here much bigger than that. Every time we meet each other, we treat about it. It seems that we investigate this in order to get rid of something, to get rid of this illusion, this sense of a separate "me," and thereby to get rid of this connection with suffering, with despair, with the misery of the ego. This may appear to be like this, but, in fact, this is only an idea.

If this "separate I" is trying to accomplish something by itself, if it is trying to attain Self-realization, this liberation, through investigation, it cannot be real. Whatever this "separate I," this "illusory me," tries to do, it will always further strengthen the sense of an author, of someone doing something, and here is the illusion. Investigation does not have this purpose. It is not someone's investigation, not a separate entity trying to do something.

The curious thing is that it is only this separate entity that wants to get rid of the sense of separation. This nuisance, this suffering, this misery creates it. So, all this separate entity (this illusion of a present entity creating the suffering, this very own burden of the sense of separation, this misery always looking for something, even trying to get rid of all this, the so-called spiritual quest) is doing is about keeping that veil, strengthening that veil.

Every effort is in this direction. Every effort further strengthens this veil. The simplest thing is the most difficult one for this illusion of the I, the me, the person, because the simplest thing is to stop searching, to stop all this movement of trying to find it.

The ego has been trying to find this Happiness, this Peace, this Freedom. It tried in worldly things, and now it is trying in so-called spiritual things. It tried in materialism, and now it is trying in spiritualism or spirituality. All this search movement the egoic mind has, all this sense of someone present in pursuit of happiness, is hiding Happiness itself. The search for peace is hiding Peace itself. The search for freedom is hiding Freedom.

Sooner or later, you will have to give up on the search, will have to give up all the ego’s effort to realize the end of the ego. This endless pursuit through spiritual practices, as well as readings of books and spirituality studies, only put you further away from this Truth - the Truth of your Essential Nature, your Real Nature.

Spiritual practices, the study of spirituality, the quest for spirituality has many ramifications. There are searches, practices and readings for all tastes. This goes from religious doctrines to the study of Advaita. All this is just a great illusion - this illusion of searching. The very "I," that very sense of separation, strengthens itself, becoming more and more refined, more purified, more spiritual.

Some of you here, in this room, have experienced it, while others are still going through, are not tired of spirituality yet. Although tired of the pursuit of material achievements, you are now seeking for spiritual achievements. None of this is real. Before, used to be a materialistic “I” there, now there is a spiritualistic “I” instead. There was an "I" there that knew nothing about spirituality, now there is an "I" there that knows a lot about spirituality, even able to teach it, for so many books, so many lectures, so many teachings this “I” got.

I'm repeating this here: this attempt of the “I” to accomplish something by itself will strengthen it, either in worldly life or in spiritual life. This is the very veil that hides the reality of the ever present Truth but not allowed to flourish, to bloom, to manifest. Sooner or later, you have to get rid of all this, of your whole spirituality. You will have to get rid of the very own pursuit of the end of suffering by spiritual practices, because, deep down, you want to replace this misery, this pain, this suffering for something spiritual, and this is still the veil that covers this Reality, this Truth, this Grace of true Happiness, of true Love, of God's Present Truth, of Present Wisdom.

It sounds very strange, doesn’t it?

Ego is tireless in its quest; and here it is about the end of the search, complete emptying of all the content, both material and spiritual. You're always carrying a new practice, a new book, a new instruction, believing that any new idea will bring you closer to that, but you do not know what it is, the mind does not know what it is. This is beyond your knowledge, beyond the mind. This is present when you are not present, when the mind is not there, when the quest or this search for getting rid of suffering is not present.

There is no suffering only when there is no illusion, but not when you try to accomplish it by seeking the end of suffering. Only the end of this illusion represents the end of suffering, not by the search of the end of suffering. There is only Happiness when there is the end of this illusion - the illusion of finding Happiness in materialism or spiritualism. Happiness is the Nature of Truth. It is when there is no search - neither the search for the end of suffering nor the pursuit of happiness. This is the very veil that covers this Truth from the absence of suffering, the Real Happiness.

Are you following this?

I'm saying you cannot achieve this, you're just messing this up. All your effort is just to mess it up. This has to be under the care of the Grace, under the care of God, under the care of this Presence. This presence is the Guru, the Consciousness, God, the Truth. In other words, while this "separate I" is being considered real, it is inevitable that it will keep trying to get rid of suffering, to find happiness, to get rid of the mind.

The mind trying to get rid of itself, the "I" trying to get rid of the "I" ... can you notice the trick? Unhappiness trying to find happiness, conflict trying to find peace. All that the conflict does is to produce more conflict. All that unhappiness does is to produce more misery. All that the mind does is within the very own mind. It is only reinforcing the mind itself. My Guru, Ramana, my Master, used to say that this is like the thief dressed as a policeman trying to arrest the thief.

Perhaps, at this point of the meeting, you may ask: So, what to do?

I can assure you that there is a moment when you clearly realize, by investigation, that you are going in circles. This moment can be seen, at first, as hopeless. However, in fact, this is your big chance to give up, to stop this effort. This effort is this illusion trying to get rid of the illusion. It is the "I" trying to get rid of the "I." It is the mind trying to get rid of the mind. At this moment, surrender and abandonment happen. That's when the Grace can take over, the Presence can take over, God can take over, the Guru can take over.

This is the moment when you realize the importance of what is of utmost importance. God is the only thing that matters! The Guru is this one thing, the Truth, the Presence of Grace! At this point, at this stage, at this moment, suffering can no longer maintain itself, the illusion of separateness can no longer keep itself, the ego can no longer sustain itself - the ego in its search, in its pursuit ...

So, a window is opened immediately. Then, this window loses importance and a large gate is opened, much higher than that window. It is a gate with two side doors which are opened in pairs. This is a call of God, of Grace, of this Presence. So, you stop everything, you give up, you do not resist, you surrender. Then, the real work, for the first time, begins to happen, because you are no longer there, because there is no more this willingness to try to do this alone through your skills, techniques, capabilities ...

Participant: Master, at the final minutes, could you clarify us what Self-inquiry is?

Master: Self-inquiry means, basically, doubting about yourself, completely doubting about absolutely any power or skill/ability you may have – which actually is only the movement of the mind itself. All power or ability/capability is still the ego, from the own egoic mind. So, the expression "Who Am I" or "What am I" is not a question to find an answer. It is an exclamation, not a question.

A waiver of exclamation, of non-resistance. It means being quiet, effortlessly, without any movement, a complete surrender to this Grace, to this Presence, to this Truth that is the Self. I mean your Real Nature, your Divine Nature. The Presence of this Grace makes it bloom, awaken. This Self-inquiry means your whole heart into This, your whole life into that exclamation! It is not a mere intellectual question, verbal one. It is not a formula that is repeated like a mantra ...

The difficulty that you feel here, at this moment, is that you do expect me to give you a formula, that I do exactly what the books are doing to you, for you - they are giving  you formulas.

Truth is something very alive, very real. What is not alive might be found at some point; what is alive is moving... A body wrapped in swaddling is a mummy, and you can find it, you find that body wrapped in swaddling. Truth is not a coiled body in bands. Truth is not wrapped in words, in knowledge, in practices, experiences, techniques ... Truth is not a wrapped body with this whole thing. Truth is something alive! Truth is alive. You realize it! It is your True Nature! That's your Real Nature, which is beyond mind, beyond the known, beyond knowledge, words, spiritual practices, techniques ...

Okay, guys! Let’s stop here! Therefore, the invitation continues: personally, we can investigate this better, ok!?

Namaste!

*Online meeting transcription, originally held on June 20, 2016- First published in Portuguese on June 22, 2016 - Online meetings every Monday, Wednesday and Friday at 10 pm (Local Time: Brazil BRT), except during Retreat periods. For more information about Paltalk app and how to participate, please access: http://mestregualberto.com