Exploring Non-Duality
During non-dual experience, there tends to be a de-emphasis of that stressed-out inner monologue, and—as we all know—the stressed-out inner monologue can help you remind yourself of things like, “Fuck, fuck, I hope I don’t forget the milk, if I forget the milk again, I’m a fucking failure.”
Qualitative research has shown that people who have
... See moreSasha Chapin • A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality
One of the most widely respected non-dual teachers today is Adyashanti, who originally studied Zen formally but began to teach more direct path style after his awakening. Adyashanti recommends trying out the inquiry “what am I?”, which I found to land better than Ramana’s “who am I?”. The word “who” can tend to evoke dimensions of identity, which
... See moreJude Star • Exploring Meditation 3: Non-Duality and Direct Path
The Headless Way is a really fun and funny set of pointing out instructions with an Alice in Wonderland aesthetic, which feel very different from traditional meditation stuff. There’s a great Headless Way course on the Waking Up app.
Sasha Chapin • A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality
Non-dual experiences are experiences of feeling like the self/other boundary has thinned dramatically, or even dissolved. Non-dual practice is a way of intentionally bringing about this quality of experience, increasing its depth, and, eventually, perhaps, after some amount of practice, installing it as the default flavor of consciousness
Sasha Chapin • A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality
Anecdotally, though, people experienced in non-dual states tend to report:
• Less emotional activation
• A greater sense of sacredness
• More absorption in surroundings
• A heightened sense of interconnectedness
• Less preoccupation with neurotic thoughts
• More available feelings of meaning and purpose
Sasha Chapin • A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality
everything you are perceiving, right now, including that fabricated sense of a “center” of consciousness, is an output of your mind
Sasha Chapin • A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality
it’s possible that you’ve already had a non-dual experience, and you just didn’t recognize it as such. Lots of people spontaneously have moments of mystical connection and then don’t systematically investigate it, or don’t return to it for one or another reason.
Sasha Chapin • A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality
Introductions to non-duality
I still think that one of the best introductions to non-duality in general is the conversation series Angelo had on ZDoggMD’s YouTube channel (part 1 is a fantastic intro, but parts 2 and 3 really get into it).