Q. I’m puzzled as to why some Teaching I read or hear seems to have power, whereas others saying much the same thing, even in similar words, don’t hit the spot. Why? Is it to do with me or the teaching? A. It’s partly personal of course, reflecting your stage of comprehension, your background, even your state or mood at the time. But it’s also true that it’s possible to discern true ‘gold’ from ‘gold-plated’ in a way that’s consistent. One aspect is where you are responding f

Q. For my entire life searching for my "true nature" has driven much of my interests and values. I've read and studied many teachings and have practiced long periods of meditation all of which have been satisfying to a degree. However; I remain somewhat short of awakened, I feel "stuck" and running out of time. A. I understand all too well that frustration of not achieving the assumed goal! And it didn’t help much that one of the core principles of the meditation in which I w

Q. I’m trying to understand how psychological Integration comes about. What actually does it mean? What integrates with what? A. It is useful to look for the ‘third force’ in any interaction. The intention, dedication or conscious awareness takes forces in conflict and transforms or integrates them into something new – into a quality of Being perhaps. The concept of ‘Integration’ has a sharp edge which some holistic views do not acknowledge. If something is truly integrated,

How to make or preserve space for inner growth, for contemplation, for insight into the nature of things, is a perennial issue in a busy life. I reproduce here a letter written to a friend, from a contemplative break in Wales, years ago…. Stresses and strains accumulate because I, Lucy, get very involved. I have to ask myself: Who is behind that Lucy?--the silent One who looks and is immensely spacious? I went for a walk with the Silent One just before --this place has helped

Q. I've struggled over my inability to fully relax into the Symbolic process, and yet the benefit of seeing the blocks has meaningfully reset the view. Many shadows have declared themselves in the form of doubts and fears. Yet I have known silence, clarity, and the void; if however fleeting. A. I cannot stress enough that far from somehow 'failing' at the Symbolic process, you have demonstrated its true usefulness and capacity to engender Knowledge. Knowledge, or true Seein

Q: My moments of freshness and creativity sometimes seem like bubbles in my chest, like boiling water, arising into awareness out of nowhere and going back into nowhere. And so I feel lost, and empty. A: Bubbles don't come from nowhere. There is a whole heap of processes behind the shining of that temporary form. There is water, heat, a container, a human (probably) setting it all up, an intention, a purpose...... Or a child delighting in the rainbow colours floating on the

Q. When you meet someone who shares your awareness and commitment to inner work, a close bond seems to spring up immediately, as of 'kindred spirits' even if meeting for the first time. What is the basis of this feeling? A; It derives from meeting on a ground which is neither social nor transactional as is the norm, but is indeed both 'old' and very close because it is common and belongs to neither person nor personality. It's a taste of freedom, recognising something outsi

I had the experience of singing (as a guest) with a world-class choir. This superb choir plus all the visitors must have numbered 300 people, and the sound produced was so rich, vibrant and coherent, the entire physical space was ringing. Even during the breaks the sound-continuum seemed to carry over, affecting the interactions and mental space of all present. I noted that sound had the power to set an atmosphere, a context in physical space, which affects the internal spac