The State of Presence

Consciousness is the brilliance of the supreme self illuminating the whole of existence with the radiance of knowing from within and beyond all forms of life. It is the mysterious power of cognition that constitutes the essence of creation, the very substance that makes the evolution of intelligence possible. Consciousness is the light of recog­nition without which reality would vanish into naught.

Although consciousness is the foundation of creation, within the context of ignorance it relates only to the reality external to the self. ‘Worldly’ consciousness, un-aware of its fundamental nature, is actually a dream-like state of forgetfulness. The pseudo-awareness of an unconscious person is impossible to differentiate from its external expression, the mind. His minimal presence is sufficient only to fuel phenomenal consciousness and ego, not to solidify a true sense of identity. A sense of me based on the mind cannot create stability of self. The tragedy of the human is that he is not a being at all, but a chaotic flux of subconscious thought. Only by giving birth to pure awareness can one awaken from this painful and fragmented state and enter the stream of conscious evolution.

the awakening of awareness

The average human being, regardless of his intellectual capacity, is far from conscious. It is not mental acuity or the ability to solve complex problems that makes us conscious, but the light of I am. Artificial intelligence can perform highly intelligent functions, yet itself has no consciousness. A mind that is not grounded in clear presence lacks any true center to which it could refer its thinking pro­cesses. Unless we realize the unchanging background of all thoughts, we cannot meet our own existence, our inborn presence beyond thinking. Awakening to the state of presence is beyond any relative experience of becoming more and more aware of something external; it is a profound existential shift to objectless awareness.

The light of attention is the foundation of each act of perception and cognition, and can either be dispersed in the semi-conscious activities of the mind or focused in a one-pointed way upon itself. Ordinarily, we center our attention either through objects external to the mind or within the activity of the mind, as in conscious thinking. In order to channel our awareness in the service of self-knowledge, we must shift our attention from object to subject. When attention becomes aware of itself, it gives rise to the state of self-attention, or pure-attention. To be just attentive without any kind of object is awareness. Awakening to this pristine consciousness, we experience the miracle of regaining our true center.

the location of the state of presence

The assertion that the location of pure awareness can be pinpointed is commonly refuted by the argument that consciousness is ‘every­where’: if consciousness is all-pervasive, it cannot have any bodily point of reference. However, this reasoning is flawed, for it con­fuses the universality of consciousness with the individuation of its manifestation. The state of pure awareness that we experience in our human form is an individualized expression of universal conscious­ness and does indeed have a dwelling place within the human body. Psychosomatic awareness runs throughout the whole body, but con­scious attention is generated exclusively in the brain. Thus, the state of presence is awakened and experienced in the headspace.

The actual center of awareness is located in the middle of the brain, but the expansiveness and distribution of its energy are deter­mined by one’s level of awakening. In the initial stages of practice the state of presence is usually recognized towards the back of the head when the eyes are open, and in the whole space of the head when the eyes are closed. One feels awareness more at the back of the head when the eyes are open due to the polarization of attention — aware­ness of the outer versus awareness of awareness. This is sometimes referred to as the ‘double arrow’ phenomenon, in which attention points out and in simultaneously, causing an intensified withdrawal of energy inwards. In the process of stabilization and integration, the state of presence matures and expands until it is gradually felt more as a spacious field of awareness that is both inside and out­side the head. The fully awakened state of presence transcends the dichotomy between remembrance of our essence and recognition of our surroundings, encompassing both our pure subjectivity and the outer field of perception as one reality.

Many seekers confuse awareness with the heart or being aspects of the inner state. Because the states of heart and being are naturally cognized by awareness, they can be easily misidentified as that which makes their recognition possible. We can feel the heart and being through awareness, but awareness as such flows from a different place. It is not unlike the reflection of the moon in the lake being mistaken for the moon itself. The light of awareness can be experienced through a variety of different energetic states, or even as a general sense of body consciousness; but to feel pure awareness, we need to direct our atten­tion to the area from which it originates — the headspace.

the energetic experience of the state of presence

The experience of consciousness, unlike all other relative energy experiences, is inimitable, for the experience is none other than the experiencer himself. The state of presence appears to be an ‘object’ of experience, since it can be verified by the checking intelligence, but it actually constitutes the identity of the experiencing subject. In all other types of energy experiences the subject is external to the object of experience. Only in the realm of I am does the subject not precede the object of experience in the flow of cognition, for here the subject is the experience. Thus the state of awareness can be called ‘self-experience’ — it is how I am knows it is I am. Consciousness does not need an intermediary to know that it exists and is conscious; it illuminates itself with the light of pure knowing intrinsic to its original form.

The process of giving birth to the state of pure awareness is rooted in the practice of centering the mechanical mind into a single area of self-attention. The state of self-attention, however, is not the final goal, but a transitional phase between forgetfulness and pure awareness. The experience of self-attention is more horizontal in nature than the state of pure awareness, the result of attention being pulled back upon itself. Pure awareness manifests when attention incorporates an element of being and begins to abide in the verti­cal reality. This more natural state of awareness has no center of attention; it is a spacious field of open luminosity. Our task, having solidified attention to the point of constant presence, is to diffuse that presence by means of surrender. The cultivation of presence moves beyond self-remembrance into a practice of de-centralizing awareness through which the state of self-attention is transformed into a condition of expansive restfulness and non-focalized abidance within the space of pure subjectivity.

The quality of the energetic experience of the state of presence depends on the level of its maturation and expansion. Initially, due to the need for internal focus and self-remembrance, the energy of awareness is more concentrated, and if practice is unskillful, it can be uncomfortable and tense at times. In the cultivation of awareness we do need to crystallize attention in order to transcend the mind, but we must very carefully balance concentration with relaxation to avoid over-crystallizing it, which would hinder our ability to achieve the natural state of presence.

Objectless awareness is the meeting place between the horizon­tal and vertical planes of existence — the here and the now. Through its natural evolution and integration, the state of presence eventually develops the qualities of clarity and bright vividness with respect to the horizontal dimension, and serene, effortless absorption with respect to the vertical. It is still experienced in and around the head, but in a transparent way, merged with the infinite vastness of reality.

Some souls experience the state of presence as bliss, others as more neutral and ordinary; but what is most critical is that we realize the essence of awareness not merely as an energetic state, but as the awakened consciousness of the soul. The living core of pure aware­ness is the sense of I am through which we meet the original light of our subjective existence.

the essence of individual consciousness

The fact that awareness is awakened does not mean that it is auto­matically realized as the essence of the soul’s consciousness. Too immature to meet his true self, the average seeker recognizes only the energetic aspect of the state of presence, missing its deeper signif­icance. To recognize only the energetic dimension of awareness is a limited realization, not a real awakening, for the heart of awakening is the meeting with our pure subjectivity. Practice with awareness that is not based on the knowledge of I am is merely mechanical and cannot be considered true self-remembrance.

Although the essence of awareness represents the center of our identity in the mind, the state of presence is often understood and experienced as impersonal. This is due to the fact that when one shifts from the habitual sense of me in the mind to the state of pure awareness, one moves from a personal to a comparatively imper­sonal experience of oneself. Additionally, because seekers are often strongly influenced by notions of the impersonality of consciousness, they tend to interpret their experience of awareness through the lens of this conditioning. The correct interpretation of pure awareness is not based on any particular belief or philosophy, but on an existential shift of identity. It is true that the state of presence is impersonal from the standpoint of our personality, since its existence is not derived from thoughts, subconscious impressions, memories or self-image; but it is very personal from the standpoint of the soul, because it constitutes the core of her identity in awareness. It is personal in a superior sense, as it embodies the light of pure subjectivity.

It must be clearly understood that pure awareness is made of the impersonal light of universal consciousness, while the state of presence is an individualization of that impersonal energy. It is similar to the space inside our home: though belonging to the vast universe, it tem­porarily becomes personalized by the unique flavor we give it. It is only because we are so identified with the egoic sense of self that we tend to translate the experience of I am in an impersonal way. Unless we are able to meet the light of I am within our deep silence, we will never be able to truly understand the secret of awakening.

to embody the light of I am

There are three possible errors in how we relate to pure awareness. The first is to objectify it as external to our sense of me; we experience awareness either as the ‘background’ of our existence, or the internal space in which we abide. The second is to perceive only its imper­sonal aspect; we feel as if there is nobody experiencing awareness, or that awareness itself is ‘nobody’. The third is to over-personalize it by identifying I am with me; we experience awareness not as amness, but rather as I-ness — the state becomes tainted with excessive self-consciousness. Here we experience awareness as personal because we are on the wrong ‘side’, so to speak — it is personal from the stand­point of me, not the soul.

To correctly relate to the state of presence is in fact to stop relating to it at all — it is to become it. Ultimately, the ability to embody the light of I am is a function of our ongoing evolution into transcendence and soul-realization. By gradually merging our existence with pure awareness we become that ancient light of I am, the natural state of impersonal individuality, free of self-denial and self-reference. Then and only then can our true subjectivity be realized as who and what we are in our timeless purity.

the witness and witnessing

In some traditions the essence of awareness is referred to as the ‘witness’, or witnessing consciousness. ‘Witness’, however, is not the most appropriate term, since it has dualistic connotations, implying an act of witnessing that is horizontally separate from that which is witnessed. However, since it has already been assimilated into the language of spirituality, we would like to explain the meaning that the term ‘witness’ should convey.

To begin with, it is essential not to confuse the witness with the observer. The witness belongs to the soul and the observer belongs to the mind. The observer can emulate witnessing, acting as a detached intelligence by observing without getting involved; but the false sense of witnessing here is not based on our real presence — it merely reflects how the ego ‘feels’ itself as it attempts to remain disidentified. Such pseudo-witnessing is an experience entirely con­fined to the mind.

When awareness is unawakened and not present as the base-consciousness, the observer can only witness from his sense of me. The center of true witnessing is not me but I am. Pure awareness witnesses by virtue of being naturally distinct and uninvolved, not because it is disidentified. The true witness does not observe.

Awareness needs relative consciousness — mind and ego — in order to observe that which is first witnessed from the much deeper place of our essence. Observation is active, witnessing is passive. Observation is continuously recreated through the will of the mind, witnessing is a steady stream of unchanging consciousness. To be in the state of witnessing is to exist behind everything arising in the field of cognition — perceptions, thoughts and feelings — as an immobile background of unconditional presence.

cultivation of the state of presence

What we gain through recognizing our essence for the first time is a new insight into the nature of awareness, not the state of aware­ness itself. Although a beginner can access the state, the unconscious tendencies of the mechanical mind prevent him from abiding in his awareness with any real continuity; hence the need to cultivate the state of presence with the sole objective of stabilization.

Cultivation is a time of concentrated effort dedicated to the further awakening, strengthening and stabilization of awareness. During the cultivation period, the main difficulties in holding onto the state of presence, apart from general forgetfulness, are energetic in nature. The state is feeble and unstable and one is unable to main­tain steady inner focus. The uncultivated brain simply cannot con­tain the high frequency of pure awareness with any clarity, strength and consistency. As a result, one quickly becomes tired or agitated during practice. These struggles are natural in the work with aware­ness. One simply needs to be patient as different aspects of our exis­tence and consciousness realign themselves so that the dimensional leap into a constant state of presence can occur.

As we have made clear, the state of presence is cultivated through the horizontal pulling back of attention from object to subject, from seen to seer. The consciousness of an ignorant person is exteriorized from the headspace, leaking its light into the outer reality through the eyes and other sensory gates. Mental consciousness still operates in the head, but it has no energetic presence or stable sense of identity, for the elusive subject is fully identified with material and psychologi­cal objects. For this reason, to gain inner stability and internalize one’s consciousness, one must practice self-remembrance and merge atten­tion with its source. Through this practice, the state of pure awareness matures, steadily growing in strength and continuity until a clear state of presence is established.

The entire process of cultivation is based on the very natural effort of returning to oneself through the practice of self-remem­brance in both meditation and activity. As one progresses, abiding in the state of presence becomes increasingly spontaneous and natural. There is still a need for effort, but it gradually loses its rigid quality, becoming more subtle and transparent. This type of natural engage­ment with presence characterizes the most developed stage of culti­vation prior to stabilization.

unskillful self-remembrance

The main hindrance in the cultivation of the state of presence is unskillful self-remembrance, which most often results from not hav­ing clearly met the essence of awareness. A seeker ignorantly chooses a point of focus within the headspace that bears no relation to the essence of consciousness, and rather than cultivating mindfulness of his true subjectivity, he objectifies the space inside his head, or spe­cific areas within this space, in order to have something to which he can affix his concentration. This kind of artificial practice has nothing to do with real self-remembrance. Due to its unnatural character, it is not only spiritually useless, but can create stress and strain within the headspace.

Another common error in the practice of self-remembrance is to confuse the sense of me with the sense of I am. This point is not suf­ficiently clarified on the classical path of self-enquiry, which does not differentiate between the sense of me and the essence of conscious­ness. The sense of me is the axle of our conscious mind and ego-structure, not the center of consciousness. The center of conscious­ness is I am, not me. To distinguish between the experiences of me and I am, we must be able to differentiate between our fundamental consciousness and our secondary sense of individuality.

Me exists between I am and the mind as the mediating sense of identity that links the soul and the human. During thinking, it is not I am, but me, that enters the mind to become the thinker. Me is the sense of I am reflected in intelligence, the consciousness of oneself. I am is the consciousness of awareness prior to and underneath our sense of me. I am is impersonal in the sense that it is beyond self-referral, while me is personal, for its very essence is self-reference. Me becomes more impersonal by surrendering to I am; I am becomes more personal as it is illuminated through me.

For me to assist the awakening of awareness, it must realize its own essence beyond the mind. However, me cannot reach solidity if I am has not been awakened, for its existence has no stable ground upon which to base its continuance. Our pure me is founded upon I am, and as such, precedes the self-image created by the ego-me — it is direct, instantaneous and independent from thought. The evolution of I am and me are mutually supporting: I am awakens through me, and pure me awakens through the birth of I am.

In experiential terms, me and I am also differ in their energetic and spatial character. Though close to each other in the headspace, conscious me is experienced in the frontal lobe of the brain, and pure awareness in its central area. If a practitioner focuses his concentra­tion in the front of the head it indicates that he mistakenly cultivates a stable sense of me, not pure awareness. In order to abide in I am, one must internalize one’s concentration and withdraw attention to a deeper space within the head.

stabilization of the state of presence

It is our observation that many seekers on the spiritual scene lack any concept of stabilization. We frequently come across those who cannot understand why, in spite of having temporarily moved to a deeper state of consciousness, they have entirely lost their awakened state. Most often their bewilderment is due to the fact that they cling to a simplistic paradigm of sudden enlightenment. They perceive enlightenment to be an instantaneous and total transformation when in truth, complete enlightenment is the result of a long and arduous inner journey.

To stabilize the state of presence is to permanently establish one’s previously fluctuating awareness. Prior to stabilization, the state of presence is activated and maintained through the practice of self-remembrance. In more advanced stages of cultivation, it increasingly manifests of its own accord and maintains itself inde­pendently of me. Once the state has been stabilized, the practice of self-remembrance can be dropped; awareness is permanently and unconditionally present. It can no longer be lost, for it has become indivisible from our true identity.

Although stabilization is the fruit of cultivation, cultivation is not its direct cause. Stabilization is ultimately an occurrence based on grace. Grace, the force that can stabilize any state, awaits its material­ization in the plan of each soul’s blueprint. The role of the practitio­ner during cultivation is to bring himself to the highest possible level of inner maturity so that grace can enter and the relatively unpre­dictable event of stabilization can take place. The stabilization of the state of presence denotes a major breakthrough in our evolution, signifying that we can finally begin our true journey into the inner state from a place of awakened consciousness and integral identity.

integration of the state of presence

The integration of the state of presence is the post-stabilization rip­ening, refinement and final expansion of its energy into a natural condition of pure awareness. It is a critical step in our inner journey towards the attainment of the state of pure subjectivity as our natural state.

Integration is not the result of personal effort, but the conse­quence of an organic maturation within the already stabilized state. Cultivation of awareness does not necessarily enhance integration. In fact, inept cultivation can actually impede the integration process. Unless the personal will relaxes within the state of presence, a prac­titioner will habitually maintain an unnecessary level of concentra­tion that prevents awareness from reaching its natural condition of spacious luminosity.

To support the integration process, we should simply rest in conscious abidance within awareness. Sitting meditation is one of the most effective means to further the integration of awareness, as well as other states, for it is here that the natural deepening and alignment of energy takes place. The process of integration requires a certain amount of time and patience, and must be completed before one aspires to undertake the next step along the path.

stabilization of recognition

In most cases, the stabilization and even energetic integration of the state of presence does not result in complete continuity of con­scious abidance in awareness. Although the state may be energeti­cally established, our sense of I am remains unintegrated with the consciousness and intelligence recognizing it. Until we stabilize the recognition of presence, the state remains fractured and cannot serve as a vehicle for the transformation of the mind.

That which forgets and remembers the state of presence is not our intelligence, but its very subject, me. When me is integrated with I am, it is able to participate in both presence and thinking, being and doing. Because it cannot completely renounce its involvement in the mind, me needs to learn how to maintain conscious recognition of awareness while intelligence is actively engaged. It must unite with the center of awareness so that an unbroken continuity of recognition can manifest.

After the initial awakening of the state of presence, me has the incentive of stabilization to inspire its self-remembrance. However, once the state has been stabilized, me must strive for a new goal — the merging of me with I am. This requires a higher form of self-remembrance: the constant recognition of awareness. Every time that me remembers the state of presence, it not only arrests the subcon­scious flow of the mind, but also intensifies the quality of awareness itself. The state of presence is magnified by the very fact that me is recognizing it; two forces of consciousness meet to engender a single holistic experience of self. Though I am is independent of me, true awareness must encompass me in order to reach its highest transfor­mative potential and become whole.

integration of intelligence

Constant recognition of awareness cannot be reached unless our intelligence has been profoundly transformed. Instead of getting lost in the mental reality, intelligence must channel its power of cogni­tion into constant illumination of the integral silence of I am. If our intelligence has not been aligned with I am, it is the mind, not the soul that is the experiencer of presence, since awareness has not yet become the actual subject. Intelligence, the cognizing link between me and I am, is therefore unable to register the existential shift of identity from ego to pure presence and remains identified with the psychological self. In order to transcend our subconscious self and integrate me with presence through the stabilization of recognition, self-remembrance must continue, but now on the level of conscious­ness and intelligence.

For intelligence to support the stabilization of recognition, true understanding must be born within the mind. The mind must see through its own illusory nature and deeply appreciate the tremen­dous value of pure presence. Only once we have matured into the profound understanding that we in fact are the consciousness of awareness can we renounce the subconscious, awaken true sincer­ity, and surrender to what is real. Each moment that we are lost in thinking, we are lost to the light of awareness, the foundation of our spiritual integrity. This is simply unacceptable for one who honors the silent truth of consciousness. An integrated intelligence is char­acterized by maximal silence and minimal thinking. The moment silence begins to rule the internal space of the mind, intelligence can be said to have integrated with pure awareness.

living the state of presence

The awakening of awareness is not only a great blessing, but a great responsibility. Very few seekers are actually able to see its profound value. After an initial period of fascination, their interest usually wanes. Such is the case of a seeker who has been initiated into the energetic aspect of the state of presence, but remains unawakened on the level of consciousness. Although he has access to a state beyond the mind, his experience is an energetic phenomenon external to his true subjectivity. It is the existential awakening that signifies real illumination, for it transforms the very consciousness of the soul.

Living the state of presence reflects the integrity of our con­sciousness and the dignity of our intelligence. From our true pres­ence we derive inner stability, strength and natural contentment. We no longer allow ourselves to be lost in the dull state of unconscious­ness and the misery of forgetfulness. By the power of continuous abidance in pure awareness we surrender the mechanical mind and serve, with our very existence, the light of I am.

awareness and ego

We awaken the state of presence to transcend our superficial per­sonality. Unfortunately, however, there is a danger that awakening awareness can actually reinforce our ego-consciousness. Awakened awareness frees us from unconsciousness, but also empowers the ego sense of identity by giving it the center of presence. Even though the state of presence is our essence beyond the mind, when the awak­ening of awareness is not linked with a simultaneous awakening of the soul, the ego automatically claims the state as its own center of self-reference.

An ignorant ego may try to exploit the energy of awareness for selfish purposes rather than channel it towards its own spiritual awakening and transformation. We can take as an example a martial arts adept who cultivates a high concentration of awareness with the sole intention of defeating his opponents. In more extreme cases, concentrated awareness can even be directed to exercise mind con­trol over others.

If impure, the ego will automatically link itself to our lower nature and subconscious tendencies. An ego that is insensitive, arro­gant and greedy does not see the spiritual path as a bridge to one­ness, love and transcendence, but as an arena in which it can expand its sense of self-importance. Unless we reach an essential level of purity, our ego will be tempted to abuse the power it gains through spiritual expansion.

After awareness is awakened, it is crucial that we surrender into being and the heart, and in so doing, dissolve the mind’s tendency towards excessive self-consciousness. A seeker has to have the wis­dom and humility to understand, deep in his heart, that the only legitimate reason to awaken pure awareness is to create a stable con­nection to I am in the mind to which the false me based on self-image can be surrendered. We must clearly see that the one who walks the spiritual path is not the ego but the soul. All the ego can do to serve the soul’s awakening is align itself with her evolution and surrender its existence to her higher light.

Unfortunately, we cannot avoid crystallizing the ego in our work with awareness. Only a solidified sense of me can counteract the constant activity of the mechanical mind, which is actually a subconscious aspect of ego that has no real center or ability to focus attention. In order to gather its dispersed and restless energies for the sake of becoming conscious, me must develop one-pointedness and self-attention. Though there is some risk involved, the crystalliza­tion of the ego does not bring harmful results if one has a competent teacher, true sincerity, and purity of intention. It is no more than a tool we use to penetrate our separate existence so we can further merge it with awareness and being, and poses no real threat if we are true to our evolution and higher purpose.

conscious awareness

Even though we sometimes use ‘awareness’ and ‘consciousness’ interchangeably, from a deeper perspective, they are not the same. The word ‘aware’ comes from ‘wary’, a condition of being cautious, as in ‘beware’. The word ‘conscious’ comes from the Latin ‘conscius’, which means ‘knowing inwardly’. We can understand from the ety­mology of these terms that to be aware is more relative in nature than to be conscious, which refers to a state of pure knowing. One may lose awareness and remain conscious, but one cannot remain aware after losing consciousness. Mindfulness is an expression of awareness, not consciousness. To pay attention, to be vigilant or watchful — these are functions of awareness. To be conscious means that one is awake, that one knows one exists. It is only because we are conscious that we can be aware.

Ultimately, to be conscious is simply a deeper experience than that of being aware, because it points more directly to the level of our intelligence and sense of subjective existence. To be conscious indicates that intelligence and sensitivity of self are also engaged in the act of perception. To be aware is more functional; awareness is connected to the clarity and discipline of recognition.

An ordinary person is only conscious by the virtue of having a sense of me linked to the waking state. To be conscious one requires at least some presence, otherwise consciousness simply melts down into subconsciousness. However, as we evolve and awaken to our deeper identity, what it means to us to be conscious expands to include the realization of our essential I-amness. To be truly con­scious is to embody the light of the soul.

Our understanding of what it means to be aware evolves in a similar way to that of being conscious. Awareness can be said to be an expression of consciousness. It is the light of I am channeled through me to illuminate creation with recognition. In the state of forgetfulness, the faculty of awareness is limited to the mind and disconnected from the essence of I am. Awareness is unaware of con­sciousness. Only upon awakening can awareness recollect its source.

Consciousness belongs to the soul, awareness to me. In the human dimension, consciousness needs awareness in order to awaken. Awareness is like a mirror in which consciousness is reflected back on itself so that it can recognize its essential nature. Consciousness without awareness is like a flower in a dark room that exudes a scent (a sense of amness), but cannot be seen (beheld as I am). Awareness is the radiance of consciousness; consciousness is the substance of awareness. Consciousness realizes itself by being brought to light through awareness, and awareness awakens by becoming stabilized in the essence of consciousness. For awareness to actualize its pristine nature of spacious clarity, it must surrender to consciousness so that consciousness itself will fill it up with the primordial knowledge of I am.

awareness and being

In order to solidify awareness in a natural way, it is essential to incorporate an element of being even prior to the stabilization of the state of presence. The energy of being is first added by relaxing the awareness in the head and vertically dwelling within that space. Gradually, as awareness become more stable, we allow our energy to drop below the head into an overall experience of being. To prevent losing our awareness in the headspace, however, we must maintain a gentle level of concentration and self-remembrance. At this stage, attention should be divided horizontally between outer involvement and inner self-remembrance while in activity, and vertically between resting in being and experiencing presence in the head in the non-activity of sitting meditation.

As we incorporate the energy of being in our work with aware­ness, we must be very careful not to allow the state of presence to become depleted. A seeker who relaxes deeply into being, but whose soul is not awakened, may lose his ‘enlightened’ relationship with awareness and cease to consciously abide in it. If we put too much emphasis on surrender in our practice before the state of presence is fully mature, awareness can actually get ‘lost’ in being; both our existential and energetic connection to the state degenerate. For this reason, it is essential that the proper balance between awareness and being be maintained.

Ultimately, one must embrace the simultaneous recognition of awareness and being as a unified space of awareness-being reality. Once awareness is fully established and integrated with being, we move beyond self-remembrance — awareness and being merge into one self-cognizing state of pure subjectivity.