A few things about the nature of illusion.
It’s created from mind holding an image or thought as true, often at an emotional or even energetic level.
This image or thought held as true comes with an identity and a perspective on the world.
It also creates a deficient self, or a sub-personality or voice.
This deficient self is suffering. It’s in pain. It’s in fear. It seeks – even without knowing it – liberation from this suffering. The image or thought held as true seeks, in a sense, liberation from being held as true.
The impulse to hold an image or thought as true comes from a desire to protect or support an apparent me or I. It comes from devotion to this apparent me and I. It comes from love for this apparent me and I. It’s innocent love.
There is wisdom in this love. There is intelligence in it, in a conventional sense.
It’s often innocently misguided as well.
These deficient selves may run and operate even if the nature of reality has been realized in a general sense. There may be a general and global realization of the nature of reality, and at the same time, there are these deficient selves here which still live in confusion.
These deficient selves are often habitually rejected, pushed away, made wrong (even as they are identified with). They feel lost, rejected, isolated, unloved, because they are. And that makes the global self – what I take as me – feel lost, rejected, isolated, unloved.
They wish to be seen, felt and loved, as they are. They wish to be welcomed. They wish to be recognized for what they are: devoted to the apparent me, loving the me, innocently holding onto images and thoughts as true, in an attempt to protect and support this me. They wish to recognize themselves as this.
They wish to be recognized as awakeness and presence, taking these forms, and they wish to recognize themselves as awakeness and presence.
They wish for the apparent me – what I take as me – to see, feel, and love them. Welcome them, as they are. Recognize them for what they are. And through that, they can do the same for themselves. Through that, they can find liberation.
A sage will see, feel and love others for what they are, as they are, and this allows them to meet themselves in the same way. And these deficient selves are no different. They wish me – what I take as me – to be a sage for them, to see, feel and love them as they are. Meet them, as Pamela Wilson says, in satsang.
So how can I do this? It’s more a recognition than a doing. It’s a recognition of what’s already here.
The hurt self comes up. There is an image of a hurt self. There are thoughts coming up along with it. There is sadness. Heartache. A sharp sensation in my heart. A heaviness. For each of these, and for the whole of it…..
Can I find where it’s already allowed – by life, by awakeness, by presence? Can I find where I wish to intentionally join with this allowing? If so….
You are welcome here.
Can I find where its here to protect me? Where it wishes the best for me? Is so….
Thank you for protecting me.
Can I find its devotion to me? Its love for me? If so….
Thank you for your love for me.
Can I find where I have made it into an enemy in the past? Where I have rejected it?
I am sorry for having made you into an enemy.
Can I find its strength? (For instance in resistance.) If so….
I need your strength. I don’t wish it to go away.
Can I find the intelligence and wisdom in it? (In a conventional sense.)
Thank you for your intelligence and wisdom.
Can I find where it’s perhaps (also) innocently misguided?
Thank you for your love.
In the case of the hurt self…..
I find it’s already allowed by life, awareness, presence. I find where I wish to intentionally join with this allowing.
You are welcome here.
I find that it’s here to protect me. It wished to keep me from harm, from being hurt in the future.
Thank you for protecting me.
I find it’s devotion to me, it’s love for me.
Thank you for your love for me.
I find where I have pushed it away, made it into an enemy in my mind.
I am sorry for having pushed you away.
I find it’s wisdom. It brings up a feeling of hurt, and memories of situations where I have felt hurt, so I can protect me from that in the future.
Thank you for your wisdom.
I find where it’s innocently misguided. It comes from holding certain images and thoughts as true, and something else may be more true. (I can look at this more in detail to see more of what’s here.)
Thank you for your love.
When this happens sincerely and honestly, it’s often very quiet, a quiet wordless noticing of what’s already here, and a quiet noticing of what comes up in me in response to what’s noticed.