Notice what’s hiding in that eagerness.
Who is waiting?
What is this subtle movement that says something else must come?
Can you locate the one who needs the next step?
No "I" appears. There is no one waiting for the next step. There is no one who needs the next step.
Look:
Who is widening the aperture?
Who is able to witness?
Who is doing meditation, working on fetters, or letting go?
Can you find any agent behind these actions?
I notice no agent.
There is no agent behind these actions.
When I'm in a meeting, then focus is on the sensations from the meeting - people speaking, topics being discussed, memories from previous similar situations, there is no self there.
When the conversation is happening the aperture is narrow - there are no outside sounds, hunger/thirst is forgotten, other meetings are not coming up in mind. There is very high degree of focus on the matters at hand.
When the conversation is complete and I step outside of that time, the aperture widens, there is no singular focus, there is listening to all other sensations as well.
These changes aren’t willed; they simply happen, and are noticed.
Now, look at the very sense of progress of being in a “default state.”
Isn’t that just another label, another identity? The one who is “advanced,” “doing well,” “getting somewhere”?
Isn’t that still someone trying to own the emptiness?
For example, when I'm driving, a restaurant pops up in sight, and there is a reaction that arises about eating something there. There is a judgement that it is unhealthy, and that it is bad for this reaction to arise. As these happen (and unlike before) there is both visibility of each of these thoughts, and the ability to let go of them as they arise.
And if you look and find only another arising, a sensation, a thought, readiness itself , then let even that go.
Right now, without any instruction, what is lacking?
In this moment, nothing is lacking, everything can be let go.
In other moments, reactions to things arise, and can be let go, then nothing is lacking.
Can anything be missing if there’s no one separate to miss it?
You don’t need to deepen the gap.
You are the gap, empty, transparent, luminous with appearances.
Let this seeing remain ordinary. No pedestal. No special state.
Just this. Just here.
Beautiful, thank you. Yes. This just is. It is empty, it is not a special state.
Is anyone actually doing anything?
No. Things happen, there is no "one" who is there doing it.
What I once labeled “rewarding” now simply appears as passing sensations—there’s gladness without a ‘me’ to own it. Even appreciation flows through this openness, unclaimed.
Now tell me:
What remains when even the “path” disappears?
When things happen, when I'm out and about, sensations/thoughts arise with reactions, in the moment, they can be let go. Sometimes the reactions are disproportionate to the sensations.
One way to reduce/remove these reactions seems to be to continue to be in the moment and keep letting go in that moment. That's the practice
Then there is a memory/thought that there are specific practices which can help to lessen these reactions over time so they don't even arise. This thought can also be let go.
In the moment, there is nothing that remains when everything is let go. No path, no steps, nothing to do.
Thank you May!
