The important thing is this: to be able, at any moment, to sacrifice what we are for what we could become. – Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

When all the stresses are gone, the whole appreciation of life is so much greater. Then the value of every thought , every action, every feeling will be supported by the full value of that pure awareness. This is enlightenment. – Maharishi Mahesh Yogi

All beings are born enlightened, but it takes a lifetime to discover this. – Buddha

Maharishi often said that Transcendental Meditation is a way of getting rid of what stops us from experiencing our true essence. I’ve always found this idea fascinating because it isn’t about becoming something we’re not, it’s about clearly seeing who we already are. All the great seers say the same thing in slightly different ways, but the gist is we already are what we’re seeking, it just gets covered up by our small thinking. We have stresses and fears, diversions and anger, endless and obsessive thoughts, all of them stop us from functioning at our optimum level, at the level where we recognize the truth of our self and the world around us. Meditation is only the cloth that rubs the mirror clean. The end of all the meditation and inner work is seeing though our misperceptions to what has always been there. Being on the journey is simply searching for ways to accomplish this deeper understanding. Just like archeologists removing layers of dirt to reveal what lays hidden, we are removing our stresses, fears, insecurities, and misunderstandings, so we can reveal what resides within.

That’s it. It’s not rocket science, but somehow this remembering and seeing clearly are incredibly difficult. It takes a tremendous amount of information in the way of life experience to be able to start making the connections needed in order to shift our perception. That shift is facilitated by this slow chipping away, we do the inner work, we sit in meditation everyday. That’s where all the heavy lifting is done, this work is changing how we see, not what we are seeing. That’s what the teachings are for, to give us the tools for greater understanding. It’s also why all teachings employ myths, stories and parables, because they point us to the truth of the journey and to the ways we get tripped up and diverted from it. The chaos of life and it’s millions of dramas keep us preoccupied from the truth. Often the practices and life lessons that are meant to reveal more of the mystery are mistaken for the mystery. We need the insight and teachings from those who have already made the journey in order to help us distinguish what’s true. And there is almost always an instruction on keeping it simple. That’s because there’s power in it. A simple way of living, simplifying our thinking, simplifying what we own, even the teachings and instructions are quite simple. That’s because simplicity makes it easier to see what’s going on in front of us, it cultivates the silence and stillness we need in order to make the internal connections. The point of meditation is to calm us and quiet all the internal chatter, this gives us the opportunity to see things as they are. So the only question is, what are we waiting for?

Well, it isn’t easy, it’s a process that requires a lot of hard work and energy. We have to work through all the places where we had it backwards. And let’s not forget, the willingness to face what terrifies us, and the courage to change and/or lose absolutely everything. Not much of an incentive. But if we can begin to work through what holds us at bay from who and what we really are, we will be able to see ourselves and the world in startling and life-altering ways. We open to the beauty around us, and to the depth of our soul. This is why peeling away the layers is so powerful, we release what isn’t really a part of us, what’s no longer true for us, one layer at a time. It’s not about being better or something else, we simply let go of all the artifice in order to let what’s already within us shine through. We’re working towards revealing the reality of our abiding nature. We are after the inner jewel of our self.

Start peeling.

kb