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Each page in the archives contains five articles. To see earlier articles (if available), click "Next Page" at the bottom of this page. To see a complete list of available articles, see the main resources page.

What about Techniques?

by Krishna Gauci

Krishna Gauci - Waking Down TeacherThis was originally a letter written to some folks involved in the Waking Down in Mutuality Process, but could be useful to anyone wondering about the role of techniques and methods in the process of an organic spiritual unfolding:

What exactly is “Skill In Means” or “Skillful Means” about? I think it’s important to know that the ideal of Skill In Means (in the context of how it originally arose in Mahayana Buddhism) is not essentially about learning techniques or methods to help others, but is rather something very different. It is about the innate capacity of someone with an Awakening Consciousness (Bodhichitta) to GENERATE whatever very specific and different ways of expression and teaching are needed for every specific student.

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Character and Consciousness

Owning Who You Are

By Fax Gilbert

I found it somewhat ironic that in the winter of 1999 I was preparing to deliver school programs on Character Education. My previous classmates and teachers, all the way through the university level, would have been more than amused that I was in a position to guide young minds and hearts in the areas of responsibility, respect and honesty in order to strengthen their character.

I do school programs for a living and, at the time, all of my offerings were focused on  the performing arts through programs such Mime, Masks and Magic, as well as State History Plays where I bring in costumes and coach kids to perform scenes from their state’s history at the end of the day while I narrate the action.

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Whole-Being Inquiry

by June Konopka

June Konopka Waking Down TeacherWe have a personal mind that is possible because of the consciousness that underlies it. As we quiet the personal mind can open, with intention, to become Universal Mind supported by Universal Consciousness. Our consciousness lies embedded within Universal Consciousness.

The fact that we have a personal consciousness allows us to know ourselves as Universal Consciousness, and eventually as all of Its manifestations. No extraordinary efforts are needed. It is who we are.

I spoke the above to a student recently who was struggling to grasp who she was beyond her ordinary body/mind/personality, and was exasperated that she would ever be able to realize her True Nature. She listened attentively, then immediately dismissed my words by saying she understood the concepts, but they didn’t change anything inside her.

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Full Enlightenment and Other Disappointments

by Krishna Gauci

Krishna Gauci - Waking Down TeacherOften people wonder about or ask questions that are a variation of this basic theme:

“How can I trust that this is really the highest form of enlightenment? What if I’m barking up the wrong tree here? What if the experience that you offer is not it? Sometimes I’m incredibly frustrated with the mistakes I’ve made spiritually. I’ve wasted my time following paths that did not leave me with the restful satisfied life that was promised. I feel foolish because I’ve been deceived in the past, how can I be sure that I won’t be disappointed again?”

Do you ever wonder about this yourself?

It’s a good question.

There are three related issues here: The notion of “full enlightenment”, the limits of what a teacher or teachings can give you and most importantly the ultimate nature of disappointment itself.

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A Recipe: The Heart of Devotion

How can we have a deeper experience of Devotion?

Krishna Gauci Waking Down Senior TeacherDevotion has traditionally been related to dualistic teachings.

The reason for this is that “the other” is required. Devotion is always between two, you and the beloved. The non-dual teachers are quite clear that you ARE the beloved and there is no separation, so no need for devotion.

That said, even among non-dual teachers there have been great devotees. Poonja-ji used to say that it was his preference to be born again for the sake of devotion, yet he was simultaneously convinced that it was impossible to be born again, because he knew himself as that which was never born to begin with. So there is some paradox there.

To be in Devotion and be awakened to the non-dual is sometimes called Parabhakti, translated as “Beyond Devotion” or even “Devotion to the Beyond”.

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I feel like my whole life I’ve been a big inquirer, like, wanting to know, wanting to get to the bottom of what it means to be human. I feel like I’m taking a rest from that. It’s not driving me. I’m still interested. I feel, for now anyway, like a spectator, like an observer, but all the while being a human being watching it with a little bit more distance than I had, more distance and more closeness, more tenderness towards myself and other people. Interview with Juliet - See more Interviews

What is the Trillium path?

The Trillium path, which are based in teachings of waking down into embodiment, springs from a form of awakening that is very different from trying to rise out of this world and into some other state or dimension. In this process, you directly realize and bring the infinite divine reality to life. Read More »

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