A reader’s response to Tether and Magnet

Some of you may remember Tether and Magnet, a post written five years ago by a friend of mine.

Last week a reader posted an unusual comment on it. This happened on realization.org where “Tether and Magnet” has been reprinted, not on this blog, so I’m copying the comment here for blog readers.

Before I show you the comment, a short note. The comment made me think of this remark by Annamalai Swami:

When the rejection of mental activities becomes continuous and automatic, you will begin to have the experience of the Self. [From Living by the Words of Bhagavan, p. 263]

Decades ago, when I first saw that remark, I thought, “This beginning he mentions, this beginning of experiences of the Self — I wish he had given me a sense of what it’s like. I wish he had described it instead of just mentioning it.”

Almost all the literature on Self-realization was like that.

One of the reasons I started realization.org was to publish writings that would put descriptive meat on the bones of the sages’ gaunt remarks. But it turned out that such writings are very rare. They can only be written by people who have had the experiences they describe and who also have a certain kind of unusual literary gift.

So it’s not surprising that I never found a piece of writing that fleshes out Annamalai Swami’s remark.

Until a few days ago when this reader’s comment appeared out of the blue.

A Comment on Tether and Magnet

By Prachi

It might look that one got ‘here’ in an instant, they did not.

It took a lot of deliberate focused thinking , reflecting ,reading, discarding .
They had no choice, it had to happen.

The discarding part is huge and non-compromising. Sometimes you discard the whole 300-page-highly-revered-spiritual-book just by reading a paragraph. The bullshit detectors become so sensitive they can easily see through false claims and make-believe theories.

But when it happens , on the day itself, it happens unannounced. All these day you were after it, despite not knowing what “it” is, and suddenly you find yourself in the lap of this massive find.
No bell ringing , no visions, just pure TRUTH.

But the amazing things happens, with high intensity , right from the next day, maybe next hour, maybe next minute, but it do happen, its bound to. Its like your car travelling a little even after you applied brakes, such is the train of thoughts. It takes time to settle in this new state.

“Me? The truth? No wayyyy…
How come I found it? …..No wayy”

Suddenly the Truth comes in foreground and you vanish

A new thought leaps up (old habit of mind)

“Buddha, jesus, Krishna…me? No fucking way”

Suddenly Truth envoleps buddha, krishna ,jesus, you ,cat, dog ,sun, death, rocks…nothing exists..awareness is Truth, appearance is not Truth
Suddenly awareness envolepes the words “Awareness’ ‘Truth’ ‘Appearance’ and the sound they make.

Eternity shines through, still, silent.

New thought leaps up
The awareness entertains it

“Parents? Guilt? Bullied? crying? Hating? Burning money? Acting smart? Running away?
Who? For what?”
A suddent burst of laugh….

You go for a walk…you physically cannot sit still…you tie shoes and goes out on street in natural pace
You do not want anyone to notice aything unusual, such is the habit of mind and ego.

Suddenly the Truth shines through…there is no you and stillness is all there is.

You keep walking and thoughts run their course…
Some are entertained…most just shoves past like vehicles on highway…leaving no impact
You know some of them will never occur again, and will never leave impact.
And they do not. You already know you can choose otherwise.

New thought arises
“Ofcourse they will fall in love with me..i will tell people ..save them…ofcourse I will change my parents..”
Again Truth shines through..the thought disappears so does the effort..all that is felt by awareness is
A little tense calf muscle, maybe a boner, and a dry mouth.
Words like ‘saving others’ , ‘changing others’ suddenly loose their impact. A little chuckle at the sight of ego trying to entertain its makings.

Suddenly you become aware of the surrounding,
No one is watching you, you are smiling like stupid doped person.

Suddenly a huge tsunami of silence and stillness arrives, this time bringing burst of joy
“Hollllllyyyyyy shiiiiiiiitttttt
Howwww fuckiiiiing majeessstiiiiiccccc
God damn holy shit ….truth….fucking truth…..”
Your muscles feels a lot more flexible now.
“What the fuck is misery what the fuck is pain (a tear drop passes down on your cheek)…
Ohhh fuckkk loveeee..”

Suddenly all words vanish
You are walking but no is aware, there is no you.

“Untoucheddddd un fucking touched
The real king,,….. the real wealth….i am the wealthiest..
I am the crown of creation….”

Suddenly the thruth shines through
All these words gets envolepd in it
No words can describe, no words,,, no fucking words,,,,
You go on a thanking spree, suddenly Nisargadatta maharaj and Raman Maharshi are among the greatest people to ever walk the planet…. a lot more tears drops thinking about them… you feels blessed by them.. they are your friends…

“Me among them?……holy shit dude…..what?…holy shit…..”
“the elite of the elitest club?…me???? the low life??? the liar???”

You can count on fingers the people who have made it…you know there are countless others but you know not their names…

Suddenly a humbling wave washes you
“Everybody will make it….fuck EVERYBODY IS IT !!!! there is no everybody…there is only it…
No one is left behind…..fuck…holy fuck dude….all is there is truth…..”

Suddenly you entertain new thought
“what words can describe it? Let me make a new word!” this is possibly the first deliberate thought of the last hour, maybe last three hour
You think of a word
“Greatest (satisfactory)…
Compared to what? Greater?”
Suddenly the word greatest is not satisfactory

It occurs comparative word wont stand a chance
You need a standalone word (why you need a word? such is the paradox of mind) of course the addiction of thinking wants you to come up with a word

“Truth” nothing else to compare,
False do not even exist so Truth is a standalone word.
“Awareness” satisfactory but not for the mind still
“God” satisfactory, given that devil is a false construct created after not knowing what the word “god” is
You think of words used by previous knowers
“brahman”
“boddhi”
“Love”
“Christ”
“pragya”
“aatman”
All words are satisfactory all words are unsatisfactory….
You laugh at the limitedness of human language and expression

Suddenly the thought vanishes, a new wave of sensation shows up
“Me??? I found it?? unfucking believable?
Of all these billion people walking here, ..I am the one who found it?
Scientist, philosophers, leaders …what the fuck??
Me the mediocre among siblings? Below average marks throughout his life???
Holy shiiiiiiit……”

You pass nearby a Temple, evening prayer sounds reach your ear.
You look. Temple is no different than the rocks and trees.
Sound of prayers is no different than the sound of vehicles.
No substance in them. Not an iota. Yet they are all part of it.

A new wave crashes in , Truth, the sea is still, deeper than any other sea…

It will take another month to even register it fully, although it already is here
The amazement will not cease for another year,,,and if deliberately dived in…it will not cease till the body survives…such is the scale of majestic Truth..
Being humble, bowing down….as the time pass by.. shaping reality around you without your engagement
As the decade pass by, new experiences stacks up, but none of them compare to the absence of experience which itself is an experience,an intellectual one, which is not Truth.
Playfulness, innocence , lack of guile, unboundedness of spirit , robust health and inner light, an natural confidence, and unerring sense of right, imputurbality, grace, a calm eye and easy good humor, balance , freedom from malice and pettiness, absence of fear, the presence of largesse and permeating sense of gratitude. Creativity, connectedness, correctness.

Namaste (I bow down to the Truth in you)