Category: Thoughts & quotes from Sir David R. Hawkins, M.D., Ph.D. & Susan Hawkins

In an acute catastrophic situation, the mind tries to cling to that which is familiar. It tries escapism, distractions, tranquilizers, drugs and alcohol, and various other ways of trying to ameliorate the situation rather than face it directly and work through it.

The essence of a catastrophic situation is total surrender to the discovery of that which is greater than the personal self. The experiencing through completely of a catastrophe brings us into a connection and a realization that there is something within ourselves that has the power to sustain, no matter how catastrophic the experience appears to be. As a result, we come out on the other side of it as a greater person with the awareness that there is something within, that there is a Presence, a quality, or an aspect of life within that has the power to sustain us through the most seemingly impossible situations.

from Healing and Recovery, ch.8, pg. 256

“Happily, you don’t have to deal with the content of mind, because the only thing you have to notice about it, is that what it’s doing, it’s doing spontaneously. It’s not the content of mind that’s interesting at all, what is of interest is the process of mind, it’s going on of its own. It has nothing to do with you, couldn’t care less about you. It’ll say very nasty things about you, you know what the mind does. “You’re guilty, you’re weak, you’re wasting your money, you’re a creep!” You can’t trust the mind at all, it’s not even your friend. It’s not even a friend. It just goes on and willy-nilly says all kinds of, when it runs out of thoughts, it’ll say, ibbity bibbity boo, boppity, bop, bop, bop. Picture some erotic scene from some movie when you were a teenager. It’ll think of something horrible about the future. Oh my, when the mind gets threatened with no thoughts, it really gets wild, it’ll just do anything crazy, think of stabbing yourself or something. You know, it’ll just do anything bizarre to keep going. When you look at the mind, then, don’t be bothered with it. It’s an endless phantasmagoria. I like that word, phantasmagoria. It just proliferates endless BS.”

From  “Realizing the Root of Consciousness: Meditative and Contemplative Techniques” June 2002 DVD, Disc 1

 

“Beneath thinkingness, beneath feelingness, beneath all ideology, beneath all form, there’s that which is non-form, that which you call “me”, the Self. If I take off one leg you’re still me, if I take off another leg you’re still me, if I take off an ear, you’re still me. The “me” is not the physical body, because we can remove it piece by piece and you’ll still say, “I’m me”. Donovan’s brain sitting there thinks I’m still me. The sense of self then is independent of physicality. To know that, you know you’re not the physical body. The sense of self does not change with thinkingness. Certainly as one gets older one’s thinkingness can totally change about just about everything, and yet the sense of I, the Self, is not changed, the Atman, the Self, Self with a capital S.

It seems strange to Christian tradition to call the presence of God within, Self with a capital S. Sounds strange and somewhat foreign. To those who are familiar with foreign spiritual literature it is not strange, but to people with a Christian background it seems strange to call the center, the core of one’s existence, Self with a capital S. Soul is more acceptable. To experience one’s soul then, one’s eternal soul, as one’s reality would become closer to common Christian thinking. As the awareness, as the reality unfolds, there is no difference between that which you are, there is no difference between God immanent and God transcendent. Those are just styles of languaging. That which is the source of one’s own existence is not different than that which is the source and the essence of all of the universe throughout all of time. That’s the first stunning awareness, that one ever even worried about life seems like the ultimate joke. How one could have forgotten such a stunning and obvious reality is rather startling. That which shines forth, that which shines forth and gives one a sense of reality, you see, you accept a sense of reality of your experience without question. Why should you experience that which you experience as reality? Is there something out there that would give a special sense of reality? You see how you just assume that as a given. That which you’re looking for is that which you overlooked because you assume it as a given. That which you assume as a given is exactly that which you’re trying to find.

It’s like you’re so used to living in space that you fail to recognize space anymore, you just take space for granted. It’s miraculous that one can experience anything. It’s miraculous to have the capacity to experience. Does a rock experience? To be conscious, to be aware, to experience one’s own existence, is already a rather incredible event, but we take it for granted. But once one grasps the significance of that, you realize to exist and be aware that you exist is miraculous. The miracle of one’s existence, of thee O’Lord, I am. Without God you would not exist, and the source of one’s existence is not different than the core of that which you are. So the soul cannot be “not-God”, it can only be part and parcel of all that exists in a particular expression.”

from “God: Transcendent and Immanent” Nov 2002 dvd set

 

It will be helpful if one can accept the fact that one does not have to do anything about external events or even figure them out. A person cannot make any progress by looking at the thoughts because they are endless. One is not going to make much headway in handling the problem by looking at the specific emotion, but there will be a very profound effect if one allows oneself to focus on the energy below the upset. As one catches the experience earlier and earlier, one will notice that the energy is diffuse and almost nameless. It is like a container of pressurized gas that is seeking release. Its energy has been accumulating for a lifetime, and now it has a way out. The event that has happened in life has opened the sluices, the gates, the doorway, and now this container of compressed, suppressed emotional energy is using this opportunity to escape. Once the barn door is open, all the animals run out.

How can one get out of the way of the running animals? One cannot; however, the experience can be cut through quickly by accepting the fact that one cannot escape it. To try to escape will only prolong it. The mind will try to figure out ways to escape the emotional energy as though that will reduce the pain; however, the pain actually comes from resisting the experience. To handle this, one just sits down and lets go of resisting it, choosing instead to be with it. The faster one opens it up, the faster the energy is let out, and the quicker the experience will be over. The whole thing can be released instead of allowing it to drag out endlessly, agonizingly, through hours, days, weeks, months, years, or even a whole lifetime.

from “Healing and Recovery”  Handling Major Crises pg 238-239

Affairs of the world are perceived and interpreted in accordance with one’s level of consciousness. Therefore, the world may appear to be tragic, sad, miserable, or fearful, or it may, on the contrary, seem tempting, exciting, and challenging. In the high 500s, it is viewed with compassion and seen as beauty. In the 600s, it is seen as peaceful, and then, in the 700s, as Ramana Maharshi said, “The world you see (i.e. perception) does not even exist; therefore, surrender it to God.”

Human life is a major spiritual opportunity for consciousness to evolve and even reach Enlightenment. It is an expression of the gift of life, through which one can eventually realize the Self. Worldly temporal life is transitory and brief, but its consequences are very long term. It is therefore best to treasure the opportunity with gratitude. Spiritual endeavor is, in and of itself, an expression of appreciation for that gift of life.

Q: But what about the vicissitudes of life?

A: Each has a hidden gift. Sometimes it is an opportunity to undo past suffering brought to others. Sometimes the suffering is due to resistance and is a consequence of the ego’s personal will and therefore needful of surrender. An overall attitude of humility is very helpful, and by surrender, the hidden gift is revealed. How a specific situation is handled depends on how it is conceptualized and contextualized, and therefore, what it seems to ‘mean’.

from Discovery of the Presence, ch. 10, pg. 161-162