The Beyond Within

Even as a child I was preoccupied by questions of a spiritual nature, like why is there even a 'you' and 'me'? The idea there could be a 'someone' looking through different pairs of eyes was the source of much childhood bafflement. Little did I know at the time that when I was lying in bed at night, watching the swirling mass of lights and colours in the darkness of my bedroom, and feeling commensurate sensations arise inside me as they emerged and faded, that I what I was experiencing was typical of super-sensible experience. It wasn't until, as a teenager intensely interested in anything that fed my spiritual curiosity, I was intercepted (quite literally) by my future teacher, that I began to understand what these kinds of experiences were. A few years after that initial encounter, following my first (terrible) attempt at university studying psychology, I dropped everything and went into full-time meditation training, one that was profoundly oriented towards direct experience, super-sensible vision (sūkṣmadṛṣṭi) of the inner spaces of consciousness (chidākāsha), and spiritual realities. It was an initiation into a tradition of Seers. Practicing ten or more hours a day that year changed everything, and set me on a path that I continue to follow today.

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I spent some time working as a journalist for a technology magazine in Sydney, but after about six years of intensive practice and training I set out for London to lead courses all over Europe. It was after that eventful and extremely busy phase of traveling and teaching, having again entered into full-time practice, that I encountered the 'deep waters' of meditation. Beyond all possible conception or imagination, beyond all possible preparation or anticipation, beyond all description, I went through several enlightenment experiences, the fruitions of which have not subsided. Contrary to what one might expect at this point in such stories, rather than usher in an idealised life of spiritual contentment and ease, the experiences entirely upended my life and turned everything upside down. In the sheer nakedness of being, the seeker died. I was un-homed. Lasting more than a few years, it precipitated what has been referred to as 'the dark night of the soul'. Yet, paradoxically, the ever-present quality of timeless peace, ageless being, and the unutterable magic of its stillness remained with me, and still now remains, always. The boundaries of sensory reality, which once seemed concrete, have gently faded away. The divine mysteries are alive— and there is much to give. And in our current epoch, despite the cliché, time really is of the essence.

 

The purpose of any genuine spiritual path involves realising our true nature as its primary aim. With its foundation in yogic vision, The Beyond Within has been created for anyone from any background, whether or not they have prior experience, who wants to develop a meditation practice with spiritual depth. For anyone that needs ongoing guidance, instruction or supervision in their practice. For anyone that feels stuck or weighed down by the current climate of the world, mentally, emotionally or spiritually. For anyone who seeks a method to find meaning beyond the noise, rather than be caught up wondering 'what to think'. The approach is one that is resolutely experiential: before belief, proposition or conjecture, apply the techniques and see for yourself. Aphorisms and 'views' may be interesting, even spark genuine flashes of insight, but do not bookend our experiencing. A language and models are needed, but do not constitute the experiential ground. 'Enlightenment' is not necessarily all of one flavour or kind. No matter how much one gains in knowledge and spiritual insight, the wondrous and unfathomable mystery of existence remains. Finally, I am decidedly not a guru and The Beyond Within does not seek to gather a uniform following. That time has passed. It is, rather, more like a platform or node in a network, passing transmission and sharing experience in fellowship.

 

I am forever indebted to my teacher, Samuel. Profoundly unique, Visionary. A polymath.

 

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ॐ गम गणपतये नमः

Om Gam Ganpataye Namaha!

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