Shift into Freedom: The Science and Practice of Open-Hearted Awareness - Loch Kelly

Partial excerpts (antilibrary)

Copyright

2015

Dedication

He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings, as something separate from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us, restricting us to our personal desires and to affection for a few persons nearest to us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this prison by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature in its beauty
ALBERT EINSTEIN, THE WORLD AS I SEE IT, 1934

Introduction

The experience showed me the possibility that consciousness can shift unintentionally, but at that time I didn’t yet know how to let go and shift into it intentionally

The meditation of Sutra Mahamudra essentially consists of resting one’s mind, free of mental activity, in the state of nonconceptual wisdom. . . . [Sutra Mahamudra] is seen as a very profound method because it does not require any of the sophisticated and complex tantric rituals, deity yoga visualization practices, or samayas.

1. Being Home While Returning Home

The old fish smiled and said, “I’ve heard many names for the Source of Life in my day, but the simplest is ‘water.’” Just like the fish, we have been searching for an amazing life source.

the simplest name is awareness

Awareness is the foundation of living a human life

awareness usually remains elusive because we don’t know how to recognize it.

Awareness is not something we need to create or develop. We will need to find a way to discover, uncover, or recover this awareness. Discovering awareness involves as much unlearning as learning, but I’m convinced there is a way for each of us to shift into awareness, feel the freedom it offers, and learn to live from here

We will need to find a way to discover, uncover, or recover this awareness. Discovering awareness involves as much unlearning as learning, but I’m convinced there is a way for each of us to shift into awareness, feel the freedom it offers, and learn to live from here.

Awareness Is Awake

When our basic awareness is revealed to be the foundation of both how we know and who we are, we can call it “awake awareness.” Discovering awake awareness is key to the transformation of consciousness called awakening that leads to our ability to live from freedom, wellbeing, and loving connection

Our current constellation of consciousness restricts our perception of our wholeness. Awakening does not begin by changing our belief system or improving our external circumstances. Awakening begins with shifting out of the way we organize our current mind and identity, which is creating ignorance and confusion. We can learn how to shift out of our thought-based mind and into an awareness-based way of knowing. Then, from awareness-based knowing, we can embody, connect, and welcome all experience. The feeling of embodied, awareness-based knowing is similar to being in a flow state, being in the zone, being in love, doing selfless service, or laughing with close friends. It is being so fully alive in the now that you “forget yourself.” Living from awareness-based knowing gives us true freedom of choice