Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF
Ervin K. Kery – Frank M. Wanderer
The Miracle of Consciousness Explore Your Real Self!
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronically or mechanically, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission from the publisher. Publisher/Editor: Ervin K. Kery (www.kerypublishing.cf , ervin.kery@gmail.com) Author: Ervin K. Kery, Frank M. Wanderer (c) Ervin K. Kery (Ervin Keresztes-Kato), Frank M. Wanderer (dr. Ferenc Margitics), 2014
ISBN-13: 978-1499115451 ISBN-10: 1499115458
There is a mysterious human dimension, the recognition of which shatters all our ideas about who we are, where we come from and what our mission in this world is. This is the realm of Consciousness: The final scientific and spiritual mystery. This book is about the mysteries and miracles of Consciousness. About the living spirit in action which, dressed up in the machinery of your body, discovers itself and the wonders of the world.
CONTENT Greetings to the Miracle Living in You! ................... 9 I.THE FORGOTTEN MIRACLE............................ 15 The Mystery of Daily Consciousness ...................... 17 The Rise and Fall of the Tyrant ............................... 27 The Online Personality ............................................ 34 The Awakening of the Thinking Machine ............... 41 Drowning in the Sea of Expectations ...................... 46 Our Daily Trials and Tribulations............................ 52 Soap-Bubble People................................................. 55 II. THE MYSTERY OF THE MIRACLE ............... 61 Gaps in the Wall of Ordinary Consciousness .......... 63 The Spell of the Moment ......................................... 66 It is Good to be on Holiday...................................... 69 The Minutes of Happiness ....................................... 74 Mysteries.................................................................. 77
III. SUBMERGE INTO THE MIRACLE OF YOURSELF............................................................. 91 Who You Really Are?.............................................. 93 Consciousness: the Ultimate Mystery...................... 97 How can You Discover your Real Self? ................ 103 The Message .......................................................... 110 IV. SUBMERGE INTO THE MIRACLE OF EXISTENCE! ........................................................ 125 The Source of Happiness: the Present Moment..... 127 The Miracle of the Gratitude.................................. 134 Be Like the Water: Flow! ...................................... 138 Spread your Wings and Fly Away!........................ 144 ABOUT THE AUTHORS ....................................... 151 Ervin K. Kery..................................................... 151 Frank M. Wanderer............................................ 154 Our Published Books ............................................. 157
Greetings to the Miracle Living In You!
Greetings to the Miracle Living in You! There is a wonderful greeting in the sub-continent of India. You meet somebody, look deep into his eyes, and recognize the mysterious spiritual essence hiding in him. Then you put your palms to each other in front of your breast, bow and say, with great sincerity, ”I respectfully greet the spirit living in you!” This is the impressive Namaste-ritual: awe and respect to the mysterious consciousness recognized in the other person. You recognize and realize that you and anybody are the same: transcendental spirit, the Miracle of the Consciousness. We, members of the human race, are peculiar creatures. We are created on this beautiful planet, so rich in living things, as manifestations of life. On this planet everything is a great miracle, as its very existence is a miracle in itself. The existence of a thing is not an unavoidable necessity. Still, things do exist: a rose with its unique scent, a graceful blade of grass, a wood in the forest with its rich foliage, a singing bird. Oh, what a wealth of unique beauty! And they are all alive, rooted in the Self, they are all incarnations and manifestations of life. As children, innocent toddlers, we experience this unique magic, but when we are grown up, ”we know what the different things are.” Our mind categorizes the manifestations of the miracle: this is just a rose, a common, boring rose–that is what we think. We cut it
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Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF Ervin K. Kery off to inhale its unique scent, without recognizing that all such things are the wonderful expressions of life. There is something in us, completely incomprehensible for the Mind: that is Life, something that science is only able to describe as ”complexity,” complicatedness. The miracle is therefore placed into a category, but has the unique miracle of life been thus explained? No, we have only invented a word for it. A concept has been invented, but it kills the miraculous nature of life. Life is, in fact, a great miracle: a mysterious existence as an indivisible unity, a complete Self. In the course of our lives, we acquire beliefs, what is more, complete sets, systems of beliefs. We believe in these ideas, we do not question them, as they apparently come from sources that are reliable, important and respected for us. We swallow without chewing that this thing is ”good” and that other thing is ”bad.” Whoever thinks in a manner similar to the way I think is a bosom friend, I love that person, and whoever thinks in a different way is a dangerous person, a stranger. You are not like me: you do not believe in what I believe. You are not a citizen of my country, you do not speak my language, your religion is different from mine. You are a stranger, so I am afraid of you and, for the sake of my own security, I am even willing and ready to destroy you. Once you have become the lost captive of a system of beliefs, the members of other systems of beliefs cease to be living miracles for you. Instead, they might be enemies to be destroyed. In the ideological struggles
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Greetings to the Miracle Living In You! of the past century only, 170 million people perished. Their death is an exclamation mark, warning us that our unconscious identification of systems of beliefs is madness dangerous to ourselves as well as to our entire community. Why do we feel strange when somebody looks into our eyes? Are we perhaps afraid that our emotions, back thoughts are unveiled, that we can no longer lie to ourselves and to others? Are we are perhaps afraid, that the hiding, speculative, manipulative self, wishing to influence and convince others, will be unveiled? We believe that when somebody is looking into our eyes the person intrudes into our most intimate spheres. Because eyes are the mirrors of the soul. Because eyes are more than the mirrors of the soul. Through them our very essence, our real Self is contemplating the world. Through our eyes a Miracle, the divine spirit is beholding itself and the world. Behind the eyes of each and every one of us the same mysterious, mystical and intangible spirit and sense hides. When I look deep into your eyes, I can see a vivid shine in there, and the incomprehensible, mysterious Miracle, which is, in fact, you. When I am looking into your eyes, I see that you are the same as I am. You are also a human being, just like I am one, and you also live in an artificially created society, just like I do, in a society which is our own creation. In this world, you also experience joy and sorrow, fear and love, terror and euphoria; you are a feeling and understanding human being, just like me. I am hiding - 11 -
Ervin K. Kery from you, I hide my emotions and thougths, as I am detached from you, as I am afraid of you, and deep inside I am lonely. But when I am looking deep into your eyes, and I behold the vivid sparkling of life in them, I recognize you: You are, just as I am, the same Miracle, the same, unique and only Life in another body, in another material shape. As soon as you learn how to spend time in the meditative, thought-free state of Consciousness, as soon as you experience how destructive categorization, labelling and priggishness are to miracles, you will be astounded to realize that your real Self is nothing but an alert, intellectually incomprehensible spirit, and this spirit loves existence. A spirit, dwelling in your body, openly and curiously spying itself and the surrounding world. You will recognize that this mysterious �something,� defying description, is Life, present in every living creature, a miracle of conscience and Consciuosness– or, in other words, God himself, who is far more than the image of god in the monotheistic traditions. A mysterious, bewildering something has emerged in you, in order to experience itself in a variety of ways, in unique and individual patterns of manifestation. This one single spirit is what is hiding behind your curious eyes, and the same spirit is there behind the eyes of your fellow humans, shining with life. Then the shroud of labelling and judging is finally torn and lifted, and truth behind it is revealed. In that truth it is possible to discover the sacred and divine nature of all things living. You will see the deceptiveness of the
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Greetings to the Miracle Living In You! religions and other systems of belief. It will be clear how these beliefs hide truth from your eyes, how they label other ways of life ”good” or ”bad,” thus covering up the true nature of those ways of life. You will wake up to the truth that whatever is emerging in front of you in this particular moment of the endless stream of time, is nothing but the one and only Life, the manifestation of Consciousness in various individual forms. You bow your head with awe, respect and admiration, as you recognize the myterious, unique spirit hiding in it. Yes, you and I are the same: manifestations of the same, one and only Consciousness in individual and unique forms and, beyond those forms, we are the same”something.” I know that you are no longer a stranger. I look into your eyes, and behind the pair of your sparkling eyes I find the spirit. I can see you! I can see your real self! You do not need to hide away: I am the same as You are! I recognize you, though you have turned up concealed as another human being! You and I are the same! Such moments are the sacred encounters, when we no longer pass by each other as strangers in fear, but we recognize the real self of the other person, we recognize ourself in the other human being. You and I are not different: we are basically the same–we only hide behind the disguise of different personalities! Namaste, dear fellow human being! I embrace with love the divine spirit living in you. Please let me hand you the chronicle of the empire of Miracles!
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I.THE I.THE FORGOTTEN MIRACLE
Our dramas of the daily life makes us to forget the miracle of our human existence: the Consciousness
The Awakening of The Thinking Machine
The Awakening of the Thinking Machine Please, carry out a simple, nonetheless astonishing experiment: Take a watch or a stopwatch, and decide that you are not going to think for a while, as long as you are able to do so! Well, how long has it taken until the first thought slipped into your mind? 5-10 seconds? Are you able to avoid thinking for minutes? You will be astonished: you are incapable of not thinking. Thinking takes place, it happens to you. The thought thinks you, and it is not you who thinks it. You do not do it at will (if it depended it on your will, you could simply avoid thinking), and you are unable to suppress thinking or keep it under control. We are proud of capable of thinking, as this is what elevates us above the animal kingdom, and our personal identity is also rooted in our thoughts to a large extent. Philosopher René Déscartes declared ”I think, therefore I am.” But is this really thinking that makes us what we are? Would we exist if we did not think? If we devote some time to monitoring our thoughts, we soon realize that thoughts in our mind keep shifting and changing: a thought appears, then it vanishes, and is replaced by another thought, linked,
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Ervin K. Kery - Frank M. Wanderer associated to the previous one–that is how thoughts stream continually, without a stop. Where is this vast stream of thoughts coming from, how has that stream become the foundation of our identity? The Unconscious Deep Programs of the Mind When we come to this world as newborn babies, we do not have thoughts, we only have an unconsciously experienced uniform experience. From that, the world of forms and shapes gradually unfolds and, with the help of the language, we learn to categorize our experiences, to put them into conceptual pigeonholes. ”She is mother, that is a tree, and this here is a house.” The language appears, and together with it, the thoughts. As small children we are extremely open to the outside world, we want to know all about it, we want to conquer it. But we have very little experience in connection with the world, so we apply to the adults around us: parents and teachers. The adults are pleased and willing to tell us how the world works– that is, the way they perceive the world, with their own eyes and in their own beliefs. We are fed partial, fragmented pieces and bits of information, and that is what we devour and believe without hesitation–the program of a system of beliefs. These explanations run like some sort of a programs in the child’s mind. Children are willing to accept unconditionally what they hear from the adults, who are, in a child’s mind, authorities like a God or a
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The Awakening of The Thinking Machine sorcerer. Children believe that in this way they will be able to understand the world around them. Parents, kindergarten nurses, teachers, the priests of the congregation and later politicians–who were previously programmed by their own parents, teachers, priests and politicians in a similar manner– form ideas in the children’s minds that are presented as unquestionable truths. These ideas are fixed in the subconscious parts of our minds as a complex system of beliefs that are built upon each other as complementary elements and determine how we see the world and how we act in it. The beliefs function as hypnotic programs in the computer of the mind, and we are hardly able to resist them. What I have already believed, what is a part of my own ideas, is something that I do not question, that is ”my own truth” and I live my life according to those truths. Our beliefs and convictions are like programs running automatically in the hardware of a computer. These systems of beliefs that have been installed into us will then do strange things to us. As these are usually unconscious rules, they tend to largely inhibit our creativity. Our beliefs clearly determine what we should think and do and how we should think and do that. I cannot do this, I should not do that, I should not be thinking like that, and must not feel this etc. A number of the programs are "good" and ethical, as these prevent the impulsive and aggressive outbursts of the Ego, the small ”Self” but, unfortunately, most
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Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF Ervin K. Kery - Frank M. Wanderer of the programming is harmful, since these systems of beliefs make us predictable and easy to control. The Phantom who Lives in Us and Says that it is Us It is important to understand that during most of our life we are asleep, we live in deep narcosis. Even when our eyes are open, we are still in the dreams of our thoughts, in the imaginary world of our desires and fears, and we are no fully aware of the depths of the present moment. The pure space of Consciousness is shrouded with the clouds of more and more thoughts, the thoughts are joined with emotions, and the thoughts and emotions develop into intricate systems of beliefs which, in the end, cover up the entire space of Consciousness–keeping it in a narcosis, in the narcosis of the systems of beliefs until the end of the person’s life. Inside the Consciousness a condensed core of thoughts is generated: the Ego, a phantom that does not even have an existence of its own. It is but a mere idea, which calls itself ”ME!” Through selfobservation and meditation you are able to look beyond thoughts, in search of your thinking Self, and you are surprised to find that the voice chattering in your head is not somebody, it does not have an existence of its own, it is just a bundle of the systems of beliefs and the emotions connected to these. Expresssions like "my religion," "my tribe," "my country,” "my faith," or "my principles" indicate how deeply we identify with some sort of a system of beliefs. So much so that we do not even know who is
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The Awakening of The Thinking Machine ”I,” because we fully identify with a role, with the ideological mask we are wearing. Waking up from the Hypnotic Dream It is worth monitoring our thoughts. At all times and under every circumstance. Especially when we need to make a decision in an apparently important issue. We then may observe that though we make a seemingly rational decision, the decision is in fact based upon the systems of beliefs petrified in us. We cannot speak about free will and freedom when we are the captives of some dogma: it is the dogma that makes the decision. For us and instead of us! Let us make a habit out of examining our thoughts! Let them emerge, and let us contemplate them peacefully–but keep a little distance from them. We should not believe our thoughts, we should not believe in the absolute truth of our thoughts. We must realize that they are only the ”tentacles” of the systems of beliefs that wind themselves around us and eventually strangle us. Free ourselves from the obligation of confusing our systems of beliefs with absolute truths. Watch carefully your thoughts, derived from our beliefs, and notice that they keep us in some sort of a dazed state, a hypnosis. Once we have experienced that, we are free to wake up from a hypnosis of thousands of years. Unleash the self-inhibiting beliefs in order to– finally!–allow Life, the Miracle emerge in us and through us.
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Frank M. Wanderer
Drowning in the Sea of Expectations It must have occured a number of times in our life that we were supposed to meet so many expectations at a time that we almost drowned in the sea of expectations. At our job our boss wants us to be good employees, good workforce, our colleagues want us to be good colleagues and our subordinates want us to be a good boss. In addition to all this, there are the expectations of the family members, who want us to be a good husband, a good wife, a good child. And we have not yet talked about our own expectations in connection with ourselves. It is not surprising that we find it virtually impossible to meet all the expectations. Put all the expectations in the light of Consciousness, and examine where they come from and why they have such a powerful compelling force in our life. The Power of the Situation All the expectations mentioned above emerge from the immense social space which surrounds us, and is commonly referred to as society. It is thus fully justified to call our expectations social expectations, irrespective of whether they are in connection with a specific situation or a person. The more complex a society is, the more space a specific member of it is supposed to occupy in the complicated system of human relationship. These - 46 -
Drowning in the Sea of Expectations spaces are called social statuses. Such a status can be of gender (man or woman), family (husband, wife, child, sibling, relative etc.), occupation (teacher, policeman etc.) and of occassion (customer, patient etc.). Every such occupied status involves a set of rules, the system of expectations that dictate how the individual occupying the status is supposed to behave in a specific situation, how to behave as a man, a father, a doctor etc. These expectations tell us how we must and how we must not behave in a specific situation and in connection with a specific person. In the majority of cases, these expectations work unconsciously, almost like automatic programs running in our life. These deep programs have become a part of our mind in the course of our upbringing, and they are activated by a specific situation in which we are or a person we get into contact with. Then we put on the appropriate mask, tailored to the specific situation or person. We occupy several statuses at the same time, so it seems that we drown in the sea of expectations. It is also common that the various expectations attached to various statuses collide with each other, generating further anxiety and stress for us.
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Frank M. Wanderer The Programs of Internal Expectations As our personality develops, some of the external social expectations become internal ones, and merge into our personality and appear as expectations towards ourselves in our daily life. Our scruples are derived from these social expectations turned inner ones. Scruples start working when we infringe a rule acquired from our parents or teachers, we do not behave as are supposed to. Everybody knows the unpleasant and compelling feeling that drives us back to the track originally dictated to us by the social expectations turned inner ones. Another social expectation that becomes an integral part of our inner value system appears at the level of requirements and demands in our life. Our parents and teachers wanted us to meet the expectations of a specific status as well as we could. Our desire to meet the expectations is a demand on our side. Often we set very high goals and strive to do something perfectly in order to meet our inner demand, that level of requirements. If we perform below our standard requirements, the compelling force appears again, and the unpleasant feeling spurs us to achieve a higher performance, so as to reach at least our standard level. Since we are unable to be perfect in all areas of life, the unpleasant feelings may become permanent. - 48 -
Drowning in the Sea of Expectations
The Involuntary Track Dictated by the Expectations What keeps us on the forced track of expectations, why do not we simply leave it behind? The dynamizing power of the social expectations is provided by our identification with the internal and external expectations, and base our identity on them. We identify with our social statuses, with the masks of our roles in our gender, family and occupation. These masks are attached to us so closely that we would not be able to exist without them. We indentify ourselves with our internal expectations, and our scruples and level of demands often constitute the cornerstone of our identity. We are so deeply identified with these social expectations, we do not notice that these very expectations convert us into replicas, fake personalities. The pages of our personal history are written by these external forces imposed upon us by society, they determine how to see the world, how to think about the world, how to think about it, what to believe in, what is good for us and what we should avoid. That is how we have lost our individuality over the years and became unconsciously the victims of a manipulation based upon public agreement. The social expectations have been shaped through a general agreement over the centuries, and became
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Frank M. Wanderer manipulative because we insisted on our identification with separate state of consciousness. That is how we jointly sustain this identity, rooted in isolation, this social �creatureness,� because, due to our ignorance, we stick to the world of forms and shapes. We are only able to imagine our personal existence in the here and now. Existence without Expectations When we look at the social expectations in the light of Consciousness, we must ask the question: are we able to live without expectations, what is a life without expectations like? The problem does not lie with the expectations. The expectations are natural parts of our existence in the world of forms and shapes, just as it would be impossible to live as a form without our body. Without expectations we would be unable to exist as a part of the social space in which we live at present. The compelling force of the expectations is rooted in our identification with the expectations, the fact that we cling to our personal identity and the masks that come with it, and the expectations are a natural part of all this. The proper question to ask is, whether we exist at all beyond our personal identity, beyond our masks?
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III. SUBMERGE INTO THE MIRACLE OF YOURSELF
Who are you beyond your roles in society? Who is contemplating the world through your eyes? Who is the one who experiences the world through your body? Who is hiding behind your eyes sparkling with life? Who are you in reality?
Who You Really Are?
Who You Really Are? Are? The Mysteries of our Body Our sensory organs tell us that our body is solid and permanent. In reality, however, our body changes permanently, like the currents of a river. Upon taking a breath, 1.000.000.000.000.000.000.000 atoms arrive into our body, they are incorporated into our cells, and the same amount leaves our body when we breathe out. 98% of the atoms of our body is replaced in a period shorter than a year: the liver is completely renewed in 6 weeks, the skin in days, the bones are fully replaced in 3 months, and the genetic endowment DNA is renewed in 6 weeks. The atoms of your body as it existed a year ago are now all outside of your present body: in the atmosphere, in the soil or incorporated into other living organisms, grass and trees... that is how the entire planet recycles itself in a perpetual cycle. We live in close interconnection and interaction with all other things, everything is in the state of a constant change and transformation. The only permanent thing is change. We still tend to experience the permanence of our Self. Is it possible that we are not identical with our body?
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Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF Ervin K. Kery In the Captivity of Thoughts What are thoughts? The philosopher Descartes announced that, ”I think, therefore I am!” This erroneous assumption influences our identity even in the present day. Our thoughts, just like the cells of our body, are constantly replaced with new ones; a thought emerges and then vanishes, and new thoughts and ideas, associated with the previous one, appear in a constant stream. Among the thought there is a small gap, a little space. This space is the space of Consciousness, in which a thought can appear. We are proud of being able to think. But are we really the ones who think? Are we really in control of our thoughts, are we the ones who intend to think? In the experiment described in the chapter titled ”The Awakening of the Thinking Machine,” we demonstrate that it is not we who think, but the thoughts keep us under control with its compelling force. It is the constant stream of thoughts that cover up the existence of the Consciousness. That is why Mediaeval mysticists used to say, ”Between you and God there is only a thought.” The Pitfall of our Emotions Emotions work in a similar manner: they emerge and vanish in the space of the Consciousness. Emotions, at the same time, influence our lives to a large extent: they are able to generate lasting addiction. Every emotion has its own neuropeptide, a type of hormone, which is created by the brain and - 94 -
Who You Really Are? sent to our cells through the circulation of blood. These peptides are very powerful chemicals, and if they kep bombarding our cells for an extended period of time, they induce addiction. Once you have become addicted, you will unconsciously strive to create situations in your life in which you are able to satisfy your addiction. If you are, for instance, an anger-addict, you will seek situations in which the ”anger-peptide” addiction of your cells will be satisfied. Our body is not constant, it is continually renewed– we therefore cannot be identical with our body. Our emotions and thoughts are not constant either. What we refer to as ”Self,” on the other hand, exists permanently. The time has come to ask the question: if we are identical neither with the constantly changing body nor with the similarly changing thoughts and emotions, WHO WE REALLY ARE? The Realm of Consciousness
the
Ultimate
Mystery:
the
By now, science has studied the world down to the tiniest detail: the human body was dissected, to organs and to cells, way down to the cell nucleus. But when the parts of the body were put together again, only a lifeless puppet was there–life somehow escaped in the course of dissection. We know everything about the structure of the eyes of a common mouse, all that knowledge is there, wrapped
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Ervin K. Kery up in Latin terms, figures, statistics and equations. But the thing we still know only very little of, and what is likely one of the last great challenges for the science of the 21st century is Consciousness itself. Two young fish are swimming and they meet an elder fish. ”The water is very pleasant today, isn’t it?” the elder fish greets them politely. The two young fish swim on, and after a while one of them asks. ”Water? What is water?” Consciousness is through and by which we live and experience ourselves and the surrounding world. Since we ”swim” in it, we are unable to recognize it. Consciousness is the space itself in which sensations, emotions and thoughts appear, and the mental image we create of the world is projected into the immense space of the Consciousness. Sensations, emotions and thoughts keep streaming into our Consciousness, and as we focus on these contents, we ignore the space itself, which is the container of the contents. This conscious space is our ultimate Self.
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Consciousness: the Ultimate Mystery
Consciousness: the Ultimate Mystery Tasting a Newly Consciousness
Discoverable
State
of
Have you ever been thinking about what is hiding behind your eyes, contemplating the world through your eyes? What is the thing that is experiencing its environment through your body? What is the thing that is familiar with your emotions and also knows your thoughts? Please, in this very moment turn your attention to the intellect reading these lines! Watch for the observer hiding in you! What you may find is an existing, real ”something,” and not some abstract metaphysical concept, new age, esoteric or religious-dogmatic thing that you must believe in. You do not need to believe in it, as it is there in everybody as an alert, intelligent space. It is possible to experience it directly. This is a new concept that has so far escaped our attention. This is, in fact, the only existing dimension into which the objects and forms of the external world are projected, and that is where we experience our bodily sensations, emotions and thoughts, which are no more than the phenomena of this dimension. There are basically three–entirely different–states of consciousness:
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Ervin K. Kery Basic, ordinary state of consciousness, which is unaware of the space in which patterns and forms (an image of the world, thoughts, emotions and feelings) appear. The state of identifying with the world free from forms and shapes: initiated, mystic or spiritual disciplines call this state ”divine.” The experience of completeness, which is equally aware of the domain of forms and shapes and the world free of form. The state of identifying with the forms and shapes has been dealt with in detail in the chapter entitled the ”Mystery of Ordinary Consciousness,” so in the following we intend to focus on the other two. Space as a Reality which is Hard to Understand We do not sense the space in which the forms appear, since our attention is diverted by our identification with the forms, the emotions and thoughts. Our like or dislike of various forms prevents us from experiencing the space of the forms and shapes. We are abandoned in the play so much that the stage as such ceases to exist for us. It is a familiar experience that while we are watching a movie that we find exciting, we tend to forget that it is only a movie, a virtual reality. We are so deeply involved in the magic of the images that we experience intensive emotions: we shed tears when
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Consciousness: the Ultimate Mystery the protagonist dies, though all this is just an illusion. The only real thing is the movie screen. Relax, and release all thoughts and emotions whirling in you. Look around! Look at the objects surrounding you. With your eyes, scan all the objects in your environment and take notice of them. Then concentrate on the empty space separating the objects! Sense the ”nothing” between the objects, the space in which the objects appear. Sense as the objects emerge from the space. Watch for the space! It appears to be a simple exercise but sometimes we encounter unexpected difficulties. Although we are intellectually aware that objects exist in a space, we are still unable to focus on the space itself, as we consider space as emptiness, as nothing. As reasonable creatures, we cannot comprehend the concept of ”nothing.” We believe that space is ”nothing,” and we do not pay attention to the ”nothing,” to the non-existent, though we are aware that space must exist. If space did not exist, objects would be scattered on each other, and we would not be able to separate and identify them. This very gap between things, this spaciousness enables the objects to appear separately, and this is the way we are able to take notice of the objects around us. Our culture recognizes material, substance the only existing reality, and places material into the focus of its attention. Everything material is important for us, and what is not of material nature will be ignored. Our conscious attention is directed towards material, and space around the material is considered as non- 99 -
Ervin K. Kery existent. It is, however, space in which all creatures appear, it is the silence on the surface of which sound dance, and Consciousness in which conscious images–thoughts, emotions and images of the world– appear. There is no form without space and there is no space without forms–forms appear in space, and every form exists in a surrounding space. That is what Buddha asserts in the famous Heart Sutra: "Form is emptiness, and emptiness is form." The Miracle of Space Once we are able to concentrate on the gap–space– between the objects, a strange change of state of consciousness takes place in us. We experience the same emotion as we do when we concentrate on the attention hiding inside us. You identify with the thing your attention is focusing on. Before concentration, all observed, experienced things are of material nature: solid furniture, our own solid body; we only sense things that are manifested– we are deeply involved in the material world and all its details: the mutual transformation of things and phenomena into each other. Once we are able to concentrate on our own attention or on the space between the objects, our state of consciousness changes, and we have a peculiar experience that challenges all our previous systems of beliefs about ourselves and the world around us. - 100 -
Consciousness: the Ultimate Mystery We experience an entirely new dimension of ourself, and this dimension is in fact and ancient, indescribable, intelligent, living, endless space, space-like emptiness, in which bodily sensations, emotions and thoughts as well as material objects appear and vanish, like the waves on the surface of the ocean. We know that it exists, it is the one and only Life, and at the same time it is the essence in us we call ”I” (The ”I am–sensation”). It exists as an ancient, living empty space, a Consciousness conscious of its own existence that comprises everything. Nothing exists outside it, and everything that exists is born inside it: within its space and as its own manifestation. This state is characterized by tranquility, deep silence, peace and all-permeating love. We know that this mysterious ”something” is beyond time, it does not have a beginning and end, it was never born and it will never die. If there are no forms and shapes inside it, it will not be conscious of itself, it simply, ”passively” exists, in a sort of dreamless sleep. Once it has created forms and shapes, it will awake to the existence of the forms and, as it recognizes itself as the creator of the forms and shapes, it will awake to its own existence, too. It creates forms and shapes in Its own space, in the space of the Consciousness, It permeates the forms and appears as life in them, and plays the role and life of the forms.
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Ervin K. Kery Once the form has been used up and is no longer suitable for the one and only Life to live Its life through it and experience Itself through that particular form, the Life sheds the form and assumes a new one to experience itself in a different form. The more forms It identifies with, the more experience It gathers about Its own individual characteristics. It is most easily approached through paradoxical statements, like: It Exists and is still beyond existence. Only It exists, the forms coming into being in It are all transient and, as they are temporary, transient, they are in fact but illusions. It is more difficult to describe It in traditional concepts: it is not possible to learn anything about It; we are only able to experience It in a direct way. Perhaps that is why Jewish mysticists said that it is not possible to pronounce God’s name, and that is why the commandment of the Christians says, ”Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.” Buddha never spoke about God, because he was sure that once he had called It God, his followers would identify It with beliefs and concepts they create about God. The one and only existing ”something”–which remains a mystery forever–the human mind is unable to comprehend as It is beyond comprehension: It is the knower of all thoughts, the mysterious Consciousness.
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How can You Discover your Real Self?
How can You Discover your Real Self? When some people are asked the question, ”Who are you?" they begin to tell long and complicated stories about their alleged self: stories that they have learnt or developed about who they are or who they aspire to be. This complicated story about ”me,” one’s possessions, one’s career and experience make a person so individual, that at present 7 billion separate, alienated universes live on Earth, unable to understand one another, generating a wide range of disputes, skirmishes, animosity, hatred and conflicts. Are we really nothing but our body, emotions, thoughts, life story, career and possessions? If you were not a woman but a man, would you exist? If you did not have a job and property, would you exist even as a homeless person? But of course–many people would say, believing that even under different circumstances they would still live: they would have a body, they would think and experience emotions–and that is what they call ”I.” But are we really a summary of our body, thoughts and emotions? We continually experience emotions, we feel things, and a stream of thoughts runs through our mind at all times. These thoughts and emotions are however, not constant: they come and go, to be replaced by new thoughts and emotions. They change all the time: our childhood thoughts and emotions are - 103 -
Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF Ervin K. Kery entirely different from our present-day ones. Our emotions and thoughts are not permanent. What we term ”I,” on the other hand, exists constantly: from early childhood until death we know that ”we are,” that we ”exist.” Who can that permanent ”I” be? ”I am” There is something eternal in you. When you are born, you do not yet have thoughts, images of yourself and the world, but you still exist. When you were a small child, and the world around you was a constantly changing kaleidoscope of wonders (and was not like at all the world as you look at it today), you also existed. As a hot-headed teenager you wanted to bring salvation to the world, to conquer everything and everybody (and now you are not like that), well, you existed at that time, too. In the course of your life you have replaced the cells of your body several times; the complexity and depth of your emotions have changed, and so have your thoughts and systems of beliefs, but there has always been something in you that has never ever changed. What has been, and still is, the same, regardless of what you have learnt or imagined about yourself. As a newborn baby and as a dying old man you are aware that you exist, you are. There is something in you that definitely asserts that "I am". This a simply sensation, not acquired, it has been there with you since your birth: you are, you exist unquestionably. The statement "I am" is the onbly statement that contains the absolute truth. And - 104 -
How can You Discover your Real Self? awakening to the awareness of "I am" opens up the most mysterious dimension of our existence. How can you experience the awareness of "I am?” At the beginning, one may start mulling over the meaning of the statement: ”I am, I exist." You compose and utter that you ”are,” then recognize that "look, I really am!" Once you have thoroughly and profoundly experienced the consciousness of "I exist, I exist, I exist" you will not dwell on it any longer, but you release the thought and there remains the certainty of ”I amness.” Abandon yourself into this certainty of ”I am,” and you will understand what a real abyss there is behind thoughts, behind what appears to be a mere commonplace! I recommend a meditation exercise for this purpose: Make yourself comfortable and relax. Take a few deep breaths, and watch the route of the air, as it enters and leaves through your nostrils. Relax! Watch for the sense ”I am” inside you. Be aware that the knowledge of existence has always been there with you–there was not a single moment when you did not exist. This ”am” awareness follows you through your entire life. Watch for the awareness of being, feel that you exist. If any other idea or thought interferes, remove it and return to the roots of the ”am” feeling. Keep returning to the awareness of ”I am,” and reject any other content that intrudes your mind. If you say ”I am an accountant, a secretary, a leader, a mother,” you should know that all these are just illusions. You exist beyond your assumed roles, you simply exist - 105 -
Ervin K. Kery beyond every role you usually play. If you did not have the actual role that you are playing, you would still exist. Return to the sensation of your existence, this is the only real thing, all other identifications in your life are acquired and temporary. Concentrate all your attention on the sensation of ”I am,” which is a timeless presence. When you are spending your time with the consciousness of ”I am,” you will enter a state that defies a description; it can only be experienced. You exist, and here and now you should only focus on that fact! This "amness" is looking out through your eyes, this ”amness” is comtemplating the world. It is the one that moves your legs and arms, breathing, understands your thoughts and experiences your emotions. Do not ask questions, do not seek an explanation as to who and what you are: you are what you are, an eternal mystery, an alert existence, the manifestation of life itself. Turn your attention from the experience to the experiencer! What cn be more important: the always present experiencing witness, or the ever-changing experience? Discover yourself through the ”I am” sensation. You are, you exist, so watch for the sensation of your existence. Bear in mind the ”I am” sensation, merge with it until your mind and the sensation are completely united. Sense your existence, your Presence! Feel what is in you and knows that it exists. In the Bible God answers Moses’s question in the following way: ”And God said unto Moses, I Am That I Am: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the - 106 -
How can You Discover your Real Self? children of Israel, I Am hath sent me unto you.” Then: “Be still, and know that I am God.” Recognizing the sensation of "I am" is the road to eternity. Jump into the Rabbit Hole! When you are in the pure, unprogrammed existence, free of thoughts, you sense and know that you exist; in this process the witnessing Consciousness is examining itself and the world through you. In order to be able to say that "I" am, a body is needed for a person. The sense of ”am” dwells in the body, thorugh which the ”am” senses the external sensations. It knows that it exists, because that is what it experiences through the sensory organs. What happens when you submerge deeper in yourself, when you detach yourself from the knowledge of ”I am?” You no longer insist on trying to experience yourself and the world, instead you become curious to know what is behind experience. You plainly allow observation float away from you, and then you penetrate deeper into your own real self: to levels where there is no watchful sensing. Once you have finally been able to release the watchful observing consciousness of ”I am,” the alert monitoring of yourself and the world, you will find yourself in a state of ”dreamless sleep,” the state of pure knowledge. Though you are not actually sleeping, the attention turned towards yourself and the world is missing, and so are the contents generated in the space of the attention–similarly to the state of deep sleep. You are overcome by an intangible, - 107 -
Ervin K. Kery peaceful and positive tranquility. An impersonal emptiness, in which there is only pure, absolute existence and nothing apart from it. If a thought, or an emotion based upon a thought emerges, you realize it and let it slip away–you do not get involved in it, but you remain in yourself, in a state in which you do not pursue any urge to sense and observe things. If any stimulus is received from the sensory organs, you take notice of it, the watchful Consciousness returns for that brief moment, and between the sensations the quiet of emptiness prevails. This quiet is, however, not the same as the ”silence” experienced at the level of ordinary consciousness: this is not the dead and deaf silence; it is something much deeper than that. It is a vacant space, which simply exists, peacefully and incomprehensibly, in a fine state similar to ”heaven.” There is only that peaceful emptiness, no objects around, and Oriental religions and western mystics identify it with an impersonal God: infinite, eternal, peaceful, quiet existence beyond space and time. Only it exists, and nothing else–everything that comes into being comes into being within it. As it opens up its senses to its material ”self” and the external world, its own image and the emotional imprint of the world will emerge within it, too. Similarly to the emerging, transforming and vanishing clouds against the pure emptiness of the sky.
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How can You Discover your Real Self? As soon as it withdraws its senses from its own material existence and the world, it will submerge into itself: into the original, pure emptiness, with no contents at all. A perfect English expression for that is "nothingness." Some spiritual movements call it the ultimate enlightenment–when the existence returns to its own pure Source. Ultimately, this is what you are, a ”Self,” beyond body, thoughts and emotions, free of forms and shapes. This is a peaceful, quiet presence, existence that becomes conscious as soon as any content, form or sensation emerges inside it. .. and then Back to the Ordinary Consciousness! Something strange takes place until you reach that recognition and return to the ordinary consciousness. You have recognized, that your real ”Self” is an emptiness free of forms and shapes, a nothingness, the parent of everything and, when you return to the state of the observing Witness and continue to sense the world around you, and you will see that something has drastically changed in you. As you have awakened to your Consciousness, you feel an all-enveloping love in yourself. It is different from the ”love” experienced in ordinary consciousness, as there is no passion of fluctuating intensity in it; you embrace all forms and shapes to you in this universal love–you love them because they are there. Ultimately, the creator, sustainer and essence of all shapes and forms is the same, One and Only, indivisible "something."
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Ervin K. Kery
The Message I am now talking to you in a different language from the one I used to speak. I am now speaking in a language that you can easily understand, if you listen to the message. You will understand this language if you read slowly. You will understand it if you insert a brief pause after each sentence, and allow the message to reach your intellect or, what is more, the realm beyond your intellect: the dimension of Consciousness. Now, it is not the “lot of cleverness” accumulated in me who wants to talk to the “lot of cleverness” accumulated in you. Now it is not the mind, wishing to initiate a mind game with another mind. We now avoid all the cleverness, wittiness, beliefs and dogmas, and the spirit living in me is going to address the spirit living in you. Consciousness is talking to the Consciousness in you. These are the words of the living spirit hiding inside you, contacting the living spirit hiding in you. Read it therefore slowly and understand my message. And I am talking to you as follows: You are now here, reading these lines. These lines were, in fact, not written, read and understood by somebody else, but your own spiritual self, hiding deep inside you. You sense and you know, that I–
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About the Authors
About the Authors Ervin K. Kery (consciousness researcher, writer, publisher) What is the nature of the human soul, the human spirit? Why do we think the way we actually do? How our habits and roles evolve? What are we, beyond our roles? What is the mysterious Life that lives in me, and experiences the world through me?
I have long been fascinated by the secret of human existence, the mystery of human soul/spirit. There has to be something that is beyond social roles and programming. There has to be a ”foundation,” which lives in me as life, and to which learnt and acquired thoughts and habits, the programmed patterns–the personality–are attached. Psychology, still not a full-fledged science, only studies the conditioned patterns of behavior, that is, the Ego (it is therefore possible to refer to it as the science of the Ego), but it does not address the issues that precede the emergence of the Ego, not does it deal with whatever is beyond the Ego. What is the eternal factor that follows us from our birth to our death, no matter what a mature and powerful personality we believe we have? - 151 -
Ervin K. Kery I have been enthusiastically and anxiously studying the human consciousness for over twenty years, experimenting with various methods of meditation, hoping that in this way I would finally understand myself and the world completely. This understanding, however, did not come easily. Then something extraordinary happened. When I was deep in my adulthood, a critical period came in my life; everything I had believed in, collapsed. Mulling over the past and the dark visions of the future brought about a lot of suffering, and when I was no longer able to face the internal hell, there was nothing to be done, and I gave up the fight. I was not able to carry the burden of my sufferings any longer. At that time, something mysterious took place, and it shattered all my former ideas about myself and the world. When I finally released all that had been previously, I was able to get over the heavy prison of my personality, and for hours I felt some incredible inner peace, and a curious �something� was contemplating the miraculous external world through me. After a while, however, the tormenting thoughts and the suffering returned. This experience changed me drastically. From that time on, I have focused all my attention to learn what that exceptional experience was, and how it is possible to make that experience constant. In the course of my research I found that the most elementary method of all spiritual disciplines is monitoring the Consciousness living in us. That is what meditation is for, the profound prayer of monks, - 152 -
About the Authors and the practice of transpersonal psychology. I therefore began to concentrate on the Consciousness inside me. At that time we purchased a farmhouse in the country, far from the noise of the external world, so I retreated there from Budapest in order to abandon myself into observing my own inner world. I persisted in turning inward: I watched my bodily sensations, my emotions and thoughts and also the actor that senses all these: the Consciousness. As I concentrated my conscious attention on myself, I began to believe my own thoughts, emotions and convictions, and started to wake up from the dream world of dogmas. I woke up, then I woke up again, through a series of awakenings, each time into a more spacious world and a larger image of the world, until what had previously happened spontaneously, took place again. After a few years of practice, the state of observing Consciousness became permanent. In this period I have made several astonishing discoveries about our real Self and the nature of the world. I wish to describe these discoveries in the chapters of this book that I authored and contributed. Websites: http://www.consciousness.cf, http://secretsofenlightenment.blogspot.com E-mail: ervin.kery@gmail.com I recommend this book to you with love, so that it will help you recognize and accept the Miracle! - 153 -
Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF Frank M. Wanderer
Frank M. Wanderer (Ph.D, Prof. of Psychology, consciousness researcher, writer) The awakening of the Consciousness leads us from our own personal history to the pure space of Consciousness. There we experience the Miracle, and all personal histories become insignificant. Despite this, I would like to present a few pages of my personal history to the reader, as every journey on the road starts with a personal history. That is the only way it may start, there is no alternative; that is the only way leading to the awakening of the Consciousness, the appearance of the Miracle. Since my early childhood, I have been interested in the Miracle, the mystery of human existence, the mystery that summoned us from the Nothing, and the mystery we are destined to solve in our life. I still remember my beloved mother’s astonished face when, after some of my questions, she turned to the others: “Now, look at that, what that kid is asking!” The questions did not stop in the later years but, as I did not find appropriate partner from whom I could expect answers, the questions mostly remained within
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About the Authors the walls of my room, and I myself attempted to find the answers. My motivation became even more powerful after the following adventure: I was at the elementary school (12 years old), walking home from school and suddenly I experienced the Miracle, the completeness, the experience of the unity with the Self. At that time, naturally, I was not able to describe it that way, but the sense of unity and happiness was what I experienced. That experience did not result in my lasting awakening, it faded away after a while, but it left behind a burning wound, a real sense of want. At the same time, it showed me the way where to look for it answers to my questions. There was a long way to go to the second awakening. The first awakening made me start dealing with esoterica and find books on the subject. Leaving the years of childhood behind, in my adulthood I became intensively interested in human soul, in the work of the human mind. As a teacher and psychologist I have met a lot of people, and had an opportunity to study the �normal� operation of human ego, and also its functions that are considered as not normal. I turned the pages of innumerable books of personal histories, trying to find the cornerstones that give the dramas and ecstasies of these personal histories meaning and sense. - 155 -
Frank M. Wanderer
I eventually found that cornerstone in the Miracle, in the awakening of the Consciousness, which demonstrated the futility of these personal histories and at the same time it showed the treasure to be found in them. The personal histories are futile from the aspect of the awakening because we identify with our mind and we allow its unconscious functions to control our life and steer the boat of our life in one, and some time later just the opposite direction, depending on the actual desire or ambition dominating our mind. That is how page after page is filled in the history of our life until the last page arrives, and we realize the futility of all that happened before. Our personal history may, however, have a very profound meaning if we become more wakeful and alert to these mind games, and recognize the Miracle, the wide open spaces of the Consciousness that is beyond our personal history. That pure consciousness was what I experienced as a child, and that is what I found again as a result of my regular meditation exercises that I had started a few years ago. We must therefore wake up from our identification with our personal history, so as to be able to find our identity in the Miracle, the mystery of the Consciousness, instead of the world of the forms and shapes. http://the-awakening-of-consciousness.blogspot.com Contact me at margif61@gmail.com - 156 -
Our Books
Our Published Books The Awakening of Consciousness: Adventures On The Spiritual Path , Authored by Frank M. Wanderer, General editor Ervin K. Kery
6" x 9" (15.24 x 22.86 cm) Black & White on White paper, 122 pages ISBN-13: 978-1495200557 ISBN-10: 1495200558 We are all on a spiritual journey. This journey starts with birth and ends with death. Our life is a link between our date of birth and date of death. A link that contains all the secrets, dramas, tragedies and comedies of our lives, and we are so deeply involved in this performance that we tend to forget who we really are: the shining Consciousness. This book is about this spiritual journey. https://www.createspace.com/4618328 - 157 -
Buy at WWW.CONSCIOUSNESSBOOKS.CF Our Books
Coming soon.. Secrets of Enlightenment: A Consciousness Researcher’s Guide to your Real Self, Authored by Ervin K. Kery
There is a mysterious human dimension, the recognition of which shatters all our ideas about who we are, where we come from and what our mission in this world is. This is the realm of Consciousness: the final scientific and spiritual mystery. For more than 20 years I've been researching the Consciousness and this book is about its mysteries. Preorder at www.kerypublishing.cf - 158 -