The Depths of Surrender: The Meditative Path to Self-Realization

June 11, 2021 0 Comments

There are as many meditation techniques as said on Chinese fortune cookies. They all have their place and value, and yet most are variations of the mind trying to conquer itself. At the deepest level, the purpose of meditation is to experience an understanding of one’s true nature or essence. This is not achieved by starting on some astral adventure, or by bringing in some external energy or consciousness. It is the fall of one’s illusions that reveals the truth of who we really are. To embody Self-Realization and higher states of Enlightenment, one must embrace it first in the mind, then in the heart, and finally at the level of the bowels. Only then can awakening be permanent.

While there may be other variations on this theme, here are three basic categories of meditative surrender. The first is the concession, “Let it be”, it is the relinquishment of control of what one perceives during meditation. The second is to surrender the Will of the personality / ego to that of a higher consciousness / power (Divinity) as you understand it, through the portal of heart consciousness. The third is that of self-inquiry or, more exactly, the inquiry of consciousness. It is the practice of asking a question, which slips past the mind and into consciousness itself.

“Let It Be”, the title of a Beatles guide song for Mother Mary, is simply giving up the struggle to control what is uncontrollable. It is the recognition of what is. In meditation, it is the granting of consciousness to wander, towards what will illuminate at any given moment. If there is one thing the mind can do it is “Let it be”, which is often a challenge for it. As we let go of control, we discover that consciousness itself directs our perceptions as it dances to and fro. There is nothing to do and no meaning to assign. The goal is simply to experience that at our core, we are pure consciousness.

“Your will, oh Lord, not mine” is a Christian prayer of surrender. In Islam, it is “Inshallah” “God willing”. Buddhism and Hinduism have their own versions. It is the desires of the ego mind that are being abandoned and the result being handed over to a higher consciousness. The gateway to higher consciousness is not through the mind, but through the consciousness of the heart. At least one Zen master frames it as “Your will, oh heart, not mine.” Whatever path or practice one undertakes, it is openness and surrender to the consciousness of the heart, which is the goal here.

Self-inquiry has been used for centuries as a tool to help one achieve the state of enlightenment. It is the practice of asking a question and giving up the expectation of an answer. Instead, awareness slowly infuses itself into one’s own essence. Nisargadatta Maharaj was asked, “Who am I?” by his Guru and Ramana Maharshi taught it to his students as just a few examples. “It’s me?” it can be even more effective since at our core we are not a who, but simply consciousness, inhabiting a human body. The question is more effectively dropped below the mind, so that we can have a knee-jerk answer. If the mind gets it, the proper answer is “No, not that” or in Hindu culture “Net Neti”, not this, not that.

There are other applications for self-inquiry, some of which can help us on our path to self-realization and, ultimately, enlightenment. For those who have had a chance just to rebound from their core beliefs, the question “Is that true?” It can be very effective if you let yourself fall into belief itself. For beliefs, which interfere with everyday life problems like depression, one can simply ask; “I wonder what it would be like to be happy.” “What would it take to enjoy life”? The details of the words are not as important as delivering any expected response.

Ultimately, if you reduce all religions, the fundamental teachings are surrender. When asked what or to whom we must surrender, one teacher simply said that it is to surrender ourselves that we must surrender. It is one of the most important practices, if not the last.

Copyright (c) 2010 David Lowell

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