“I am” - is it near or far?

 I was recently reviewing an instruction booklet from an awakening group on Facebook. One of the initial steps that they advise was to ‘break through’ to the “I am” and abide in that.. permanently. 

They sort of intimated that it wasn’t the I-thought that Ramana or Nis talks about but rather a pure form of consciousness or I Am. They advised various zen koans and enquiry questions to this end.

The issue I have with this is that they tend to give the idea that this pure form of I Am is far aware, or something special and not immediately accessible. Unfortunately most enquirers won’t keep up with this form of enquiry and will drop out.

This is why Nis proposed a two step approach rather, as one can rest in the provisional I Am, even though it’s a concept and enquiry on that until it is seen through and departs. Much easier and accessible right now for anyone. Ramana even advises this form of enquiry in some places. Suffering lessens as well by holding onto the provisional I am, as a first step as well.

It takes a bit of time to get familiar with, but this two step approach is much easier than trying to jump into some pure and currently unavailable awareness. So use what you have right now to enquire.

Headspace App and approaches

 

I’ve been using some meditation apps lately and have found a lot of benefits in doing so regarding increased focus and attention skills. They’re also a positive use of technology in establishing beneficial mind habits and awareness throughout the day/night.

One thing however is that you need to know how to tailor the app and method to your particular routine and persona style.

I’ve found a good way to use Headspace in particular, since I took out a yearly subscription (not paid to promote this). Headspace has been great as an intro to basic concentration and mindfulness meditation proper (Pasted below from my journal):

I save the Courses and short Exercises for coffee contemplations and exercises with writing, because these focus on questions and enquiry. They contain only a partial mindfulness routine and run from 10-15 mins.

I use the Daily Meditation and the initial Beginners/Advanced Courses for formal practice 5-20m as this contains the full mindfulness routine and lends itself to a formal seated or laying practice and establishes a habit and tendency for mindfulness to become automatic.

Will post more on apps in future.