You Are Life Itself

“I truly attained absolutely nothing from complete, unexcelled enlightenment!”
~ The Buddha

"Spiritual awakening is not a state, experience or goal to reach in the future. As the Buddha taught, it is not a superhuman achievement or attainment. You don’t have to travel to India to find it. It is not a special state of perfection reserved for enlightened beings, the lucky or the privileged few. It is not an out-of-body experience, and it does not involve living in a cave, detaching yourself from the realities of this world. It cannot be transmitted to you by a fancy guru, nor can it be taken away or lost. You do not have to become anyone’s disciple or follower.

It is a constant and ancient invitation – throughout every moment of your life – to embrace yourself exactly as you are, in all your glorious imperfections. It is about being present, coming out of the epic story of past and future (“the story of my life”) and showing up for this precious moment, knowing that even your feelings of non-acceptance are accepted here. It is about radically opening up to this extraordinary gift of a life, embracing both the pain and the joy of it, the bliss and the sorrow, the ecstasy and the overwhelm. Knowing that you are life itself – vast, awake, alive, free – never separate from the Whole.

Awakening is not a destination – it is your birthright, your nature..."

Here are some simple principles:

1. THERE IS NO DESTINATION; THERE IS ONLY NOW...

2. THINKING AND RESISTANCE CREATE SUFFERING...

3. THOUGHTS AND SENSATIONS ARE NOT PERSONAL, AND NOT THE TRUTH...

4. YOU ARE THE SPACE FOR THOUGHTS, NOT THE THINKER OF THEM...

5. BREATHE INTO YOUR DISCOMFORT AND PAIN; HONOUR IT...

6. ACCEPTANCE IS NOT SOMETHING YOU ‘DO’, IT IS WHAT YOU ARE...

7. THERE IS NO ‘ALWAYS’ AND NO ‘NEVER’...

8. YOU CAN ONLY GET ‘THERE’ BY BEING ‘HERE’...

9. EMBRACE YOUR STUMBLING; IT IS PERFECT TOO...

10. STOP COMPARING; YOU ARE LIFE ITSELF!..."

-- Jeff Foster