David Hall's Non-Duality Blog
My name's David Hall. I'm the creator of this web site and its content. I live in Wales in the UK.
I developed the Celtic design software KnotWorker, I create electronic music as Goldcup7, and I've written books on spirituality and non duality.
Hope you enjoy this Non Duality blog. New blogs are added on Fridays.
Please use the Contact page if you have any questions or would like me to discuss a topic.
- Category: Non-duality
- Hits: 1601
Where do I begin? Where do I end? I know that the body has no clear limits. It is always changing. If I look closely at its supposed limits I find there are none. The body is like a flowing quality of the planet. It comes from the planet, interacts with the planet, and returns to the planet, all the while remaining as a quality of the planet. Its apparent limits are not true.
I see this body without limits. I also perceive the mind. I perceive thought in the form of words, sounds and images, like internal perceptions of the mind. These also have no limits. They appear in the mind and disappear in the mind. Yet they are not inside me. I perceive them.
I also perceive the sense of identity. I perceive the mind talking to itself, thinking about me, my and mine. But that's not me. Sometimes it feels that it's me. Sometimes I observe it, so it cannot be me. If I can see a supposed identity of me, then who am I witnessing this?
Is it the same me that observes the mind thinking about me? I ascertain that I do not perceive a me thinking about me. I perceive the workings of the mind, thoughts that think they are me, thinking that identifies as a limited separate being. I perceive this.
Where and who am I, if not this false identity that is perceived? I perceive the changing mind, body and world. I am not that. I perceive the windmills of the mind. I am like the still point around which the windmill turns. I am here. There is nowhere that I can perceive that I am except here. Wherever it seems I go, I am here. I perceive the change of time. I am now.
I am the point of here and now around which the windmill of the mind and world turns. Yet I am not a point. I am no space, no time. I am formless perceiving form. I am.
- Category: The Universe
- Hits: 1592
Most people know of the Big Bang Theory, where the universe that we see now, this multiplicity, was once a singularity. It's postulated that the singularity exploded, creating the universe from the interaction of forces that created the elements that make up the matter of the universe. Planet Earth and all creatures are formed from the stuff of stars, and all can be traced back to the singularity. It has been observed that the universe continues to expand from the force of the Big Bang.
I'm certainly not going to say that this theory is completely wrong, although I would say that no theory is completely right. The reason that no theory can be completely right is that it is a theory, and a theory is an expression with words and concepts attempting to describe something that is not of words and concepts. The words and concepts are at best a step down from the reality of what the theory is attempting to describe. So I would say it should be accepted that no theory is perfect. There is a spectrum of accuracy, from near perfect to far from perfect. But the True Perfection is inexpressible.
So, as long as we accept theories as not being wholly true, they can still be very useful. Let's examine the Big Bang a little. It seems to make sense, and the evidence is there to show that there was outwards motion from a super event. If it is assumed that space and time appeared from the singularity, then it can be accepted that there was no 'before' the Big Bang, as the singularity was timeless. The splitting of the singularity created space and time. But we need to explore the nature of the singularity more.
We can imagine a singularity. There are no separate things. There is no space or distance. No past or future. No division or definition of form. Just one imperceivable substance that has no beginning or end. We know a singularity has no beginning or end because otherwise there would be something other than it by which it was limited, and then we're no longer talking about a singularity. We could even say that the substance of the singularity is no substance. We can imagine that the singularity contained the potential for the universe, the potential for when the Big Bang happened and the potential for all change that happens thereafter.
(It is perhaps for another article to consider how the seed of the singularity is scattered, and continues to scatter further seeds that develop from the potential stored in the seed. This, after all, is the pattern that nature on this planet continues to demonstrate.)
It's very difficult to imagine how this perfectly stable complete singularity split and exploded to become the multiplicity we see now. But there is a simple answer: the singularity did not split. An infinite singularity cannot be divided. At best it can only appear to be divided. This multiplicity that we see as the universe is the appearance of division within the singularity. Remember, the singularity is beyond time and space - it was before time began, it remains, and it will be as it is at the end of time. The singularity does not (and cannot) change.
You won't find the singularity here or there. It is beyond space. It has no dimension. The best we can say is that it is just here and now. The singularity remains whilst the explosive expanding universe appears within its field of infinity. We can go a step further in understanding how this seems to happen. We can say that the universe that appears is like the stretching out of the singularity into a multiplicity. This stretching does not divide the singularity. It merely creates an illusory sense of distance and separation, whilst remaining undivided. Just as the rainbow appears as an undivided flow of colour variation from white light.
Opposing forces, balance, imbalance, and the interplay of opposites appear because the apparent multiplicity must total zero. That is, the singularity remains intact, so any force must have an equal but opposite force to counter the seeming imbalance. What goes out must come in. Where the universe expands it must contract, albeit across the span of time. It is the appearance of time and space that is the imbalance and rebalance of the universe.
There is a sense with the Big Bang Theory that there was a point where the Big Bang happened and the universe has expanded outwards from there. This may appear to be the case, but if one were to trace the origin of the universe one would arrive at the singularity. At the point of the singularity there would be no inside or outside. The singularity can only be considered from outside of it. But within the singularity there is no outside or inside. Hence the singularity remains 'everywhere' yet nowhere. It has no space, yet space appears within it.
Hopefully that helps to understand the nature of the Singularity a little. It's hugely important to humanity. We are not separate parts of the Singularity. There is only the Singularity appearing as a multiplicity. Not just the animals and humans, but in fact every 'thing'. There are no 'things' of course. There is only the Singularity.
From the human perspective the Singularity can be considered to be at the heart of our being. Consciousness is all that we know. All human experience is within Consciousness. The universe is only ever experienced within Consciousness. We can consider then that the Singularity is at the heart of our conscious being. It is that point in us that does not change. It is the very essence of life that produces the appearance of what is alive and what is not alive, whilst Pure Life remains throughout. We are that. There is only Pure Life. We are the Oneness of all that is. We are complete. It seems to be at the heart of our being, but when we find that core point there is no inside or outside. The illusory sense of division and separation will fall away. The clarity of the Infinite One will shine.
- Category: Spiritual Symbols and Patterns
- Hits: 1559
In the material world we can find patterns that point to the spiritual. One of those patterns is the Hollow. We find it naturally occurring in plant stems such as bamboo, in bones, in lungs, the cavity of the mouth, cave formations, and at the heart of wind formations such as hurricanes and tornadoes. Humankind also uses the hollow in wind instruments, where the flow of air through a hollow tube with hollow outlets creates sounds of different frequencies. Pipework, containers, bottles and cups, even trains, ships and planes have a hollowness about them. The well-known sacred sound, Om or Aum, refers to the Hollow.
What is the spiritual significance of the Hollow? It hints at the empty space at the heart of the universe, the heart of our being. Buddhists call it emptiness or void. Eckhart Tolle calls it Spaciousness. It is the Sacred Spaciousness at the heart of our being. Our nature is not the apparent outer hardness of the human form. We are the Sacred Spaciousness that perceives the apparent outer form.
Within the Sacred Spaciousness there is no inside our outside. The heart of our being is a complete Singularity. The apparently outside world appears through the use of opposites. So the hollow is expressed as an empty circle, an empty interior with a circular boundary. Without the use of the opposites the Spaciousness cannot be expressed or perceived. You see, the hollow that we can say is the heart of our being has no limits, no boundaries. It is an Infinite One. When considered from the outside material viewpoint we can say it is at the heart of our being. But in the heart there is no inside or outside.
It is the Singularity that seems to be the heart of the world, yet it is not limited by the world. It is not devoid of life. It is pure, complete life, by which the opposites of life and death are known. Ultimately it is within the Singularity that this interplay of opposites, of inside and outside, alive and not alive, stillness and motion, plays out.
All sentient beings have this same centre. There is only one Infinite Singularity. It is the heart of the world of many, the heart of the world of opposites. We are not the play of opposites. We are the Sacred Spaciousness.
- Category: Spiritual Symbols and Patterns
- Hits: 1569
The wheel is a wonderful spiritual symbol of the universe. Imagine a cart wheel, with a central hub and spokes spreading outwards from the centre. It is used as the symbol of Buddhism for good reason.
The wheel shows how we seem separate from each other. There are billions of people on the planet. We all seem to be separate and distant from each other in some ways. All the people are like the spokes on the wheel. The further we are from the centre, the more separate it seems we are. This applies also to the soul's journey, as it seems to go out from the centre and become more defined and separate from other souls.
This apparent material world appears as a world of separates - so many different life forms, fighting for survival, clashing against each other. The world seems to be far from the centre of Oneness. It is reasonable to expect that there are worlds less dense and less competitive than this one. Worlds that are closer to the centre of Oneness will be less antagonistic. The borders between objects and beings will appear less defined.
It's useful to understand this perspective, that the human form appears defined and separate from other forms in the world, as it is far from the centre of Oneness. Yet, the centre of Oneness is at the heart of all human forms. The centre of Oneness is that core nature which isn't separate. Indeed, at the heart of all beings is One Being. In the centre it is recognised that none are separate. There is only the Wheel. There is only the One. No souls or worlds really stray from the centre. That's the play of the universe in the Oneness of Being. Souls only seem to go out into the world. People only seem to be defined, discrete, and separate from others. Worlds only seem to be dense, heavy and hardened, or to have degrees of density. The higher levels of spiritual manifestation - the more spiritual worlds if you like - would still only seem to be at a lesser distance from Oneness.
Oneness is always here. It can never be broken. The spokes on the wheel only seem to be separate. Really, there is just the wheel. In Non-Duality the aim for the seemingly separate selves that we think we are, is to deeply recognises that there is only One, there are no others, and for this realisation to permeate and dissolve the sense of separation in the human form.
The wheel also demonstrates space and time. The spokes stretch out from the still dimensionless centre, like the dimensions of distance and depth. The turning of the wheel signifies the motion of the world, the change that gives the appearance of time. This spreading and swirling pattern repeats throughout the universe. The significant point is that the centre remains still. Motion cannot appear without Stillness. This still centre is the Heart of Oneness in which the world of motion appears. Truly it is without dimension or change. It is the Here and Now in which the depth and motion of the world is experienced.
- Category: Non-duality
- Hits: 1547
Most people would acknowledge that they are connected to the universe. From a human perspective we eat, drink and breathe, which is a flow of connectedness with the environment. We gain energy from this and absorb energy from the sun. This energy is used in our environment, so it's fair to say the human body is connected to the world.
Many people don't even consider this connection with the world. It doesn't occur to them or doesn't interest them. Some people, generally spiritually minded people, think about their connection to the world, or to the whole. Sometimes they feel connected to the whole or they strive to feel more connected. Some people may openly say they are connected to the whole.
The problem with being or feeling connected is that it implies we are separate. Connectedness relies on a subject-object relationship, where we feel that we are connected to the whole. The subject, me, feels connected to the object, the whole. Whenever we say that something or someone is connected it also implies that they are a separate thing or person. So although connected and separate seem like opposites, nothing can be connected without being separate.
It is a failure of words to be able to describe something as being 'part of' something else, when it's not a separate part. For example, it's not strictly correct to say my hand is part of my body, or to say my hand is connected to my body, because the hand isn't a separate 'part'. It's just the body, and we label a slightly vague area of the body as a 'hand'. The flaw lies in this inability to truly define anything.
So to say, "I am connected to the universe," means there is a separate 'I' who is linked to a separate universe. The statement will be inaccurate. So instead of saying, "I am connected with the whole," it would be more accurate (but still not truly accurate) to say, "I am the whole."
We can consider the sense or feeling of connectedness as a Spectrum of Separation, with feeling most closely connected at one end and seemingly unconnected at the far end of the Spectrum of Separation. But this is all a play of opposites. There is no connectedness and there is no separation. The opposite terms fool us. There is only What Is.
For spiritual progression it seems that a leap from dualistic terms to the nondual is needed. We need to leap from the close end of the Spectrum of Separation, where we feel most closely at one with the whole, to where we are the whole, where there is no division in What Is. This is the spiritual aim of Oneness. It is not where the separate self 'me' feels at one with the world, it is where there is neither separate self nor the world. There is only What Is. It is the absence of the illusory sense of separation. Non-Duality.