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Designed by Tamara Lj.
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Everything that we actively do, and the way in which we do it, comes into the fold self-expression. In terms of spiritual practice, there is only a limited amount of time in the day that we can sit quietly and either succeed or fail to remain in a meditative state of tranquil stillness. The rest of the time, in some way or another, we are in action – we are working, interacting with others or just spending our time leisurely. The practice of expression refers specifically to how we are able to mobilise the practice of awareness, of observing and witnessing, into our constant flow of interaction with the world around us.
When our awareness is contracted and our attention is totally absorbed into various self-referential flows of thought, then our self-expression will never be completely free. As long as a single trace of fear remains with our space of being, we will not be able to express ourselves with total ease, lightness and, ultimately, love. If our awareness is truly developed, and if our mind is truly stilled, then this must manifest in everything that we do or do not do. The way that we act – the freedom, expansiveness and sense of compassion with which we express ourselves – this is the proof, or the fruit, of whatever work we have done on ourselves internally.
Within the fold of the Datta Tradition, uniqueness is seen as something to be embraced. We must first become whole as individual selves fully before we can sink back into the eternally whole and undifferentiated self of reality itself. Paradoxically, the more we sink back into the Self, the more our individuality will be perfected. This is because we come to shed all of the conditioned and encultured elements from our minds. This is important because the Datta Tradition does not employ any models about how we should be or express ourselves.
The avadhutas that have carried the Datta Tradition since the time of the primordial master, Lord Dattatreya, have all been totally varied and unique in their mode and manner of self-expression. Datta gurus are not merely a series of beings who are all cardboard copies of each other. Datta Masters appear in ways that are relevant and suitable to their time and to the beings that have the karmic fortune of walking with them. Such Masters are not born through any attempt at conforming to pre-existing models of how ‘spiritual beings’ should be. Such masters are born when they become so utterly relaxed and free on the level of individual self-existence that individual self-existence ceases to have any hold whatsoever over their awareness.
If we are still trying to become someone else, or if we are still trying to mould ourselves into an arbitrary idea that we have of perfection – that is, if we still remain veiled from our own individual conscious or subconscious content in anyway way whatsoever, then how will we ever transcend that individuality? If we have not plunged to the bottom of our unique individuality and learned to express ourselves directly from the heart without fear of what others may think, then all attempt at ‘transcendence’ will only amount to escapism.
The Datta Tradition encourages a path of balance, where, instead of simply trying to deny the world and our karmic realities, we are to live in the world fully and fearlessly, and thereby actually transcend our karmic existence by perfecting our present life situations and circumstances. In order to accomplish all of this, we must learn how to express ourselves directly and fearlessly in such a way that the various interactions and events of daily life leave no trace within us.
How many times have we regretted saying something or not saying something? How many times have we regretted not standing up for ourselves or not setting proper boundaries? All of this regret arises only because we didn’t express ourselves fully and fearlessly in the moment. Free self-expression is simply that which naturally gives full expression to our individuality; it is naturally non-violent even if it means we have to defend ourselves and set clear boundaries, and , ultimately, it leaves no trace or stain within our mind after it is accomplished.
To properly practise expression, we must first have a reasonable handle on our awareness. This means that, during the course of a day, we are not constantly and absolutely possessed by flows of conceptual thinking and our instinctive reactions to different scenarios. We must always reserve a small part of our attention for observing; we must learn to keep one part of ourselves empty even as different thoughts and emotions continue to flow through us. In reality, this part of ourselves, the empty part that simply observes – this is the very aperture to our soul that we are to gradually open up through consistent and devoted spiritual practice.
So, to practise expression we must first have a firm sense of watchfulness during all the ordinary events of our daily lives, and especially those events that involve interacting with other people. Once this fundamental sense of watchfulness is present, then we can start to observe where the specific ‘knots’ are within our expression. A ‘knot’ in expression is present within any situation, scenario or interaction that causes us to feel even slightly tense, nervous, embarrassed, hesitant, shy, scared or awkward. In such moments, we may feel that we cannot just act naturally. We may feel like we want to shout and get angry, but instead we just bottle up these feelings and act in a way that is completely contrary to how we really feel. All of these things are indicative of expressive knots that need to be brought under the healing gaze of neutral observation.
We do not need to ‘do’ anything with these knots, nor do we need to invent a strategy about how we will act differently the next time such a triggering scenario arises. Rather, we are simply to become aware of our internal reactions, which may feel like a blockage, on deeper and deeper levels. Eventually, we will not become more free in our expression by ‘trying’ to be more free, but rather this freedom of expression will come about naturally as we become deeply aware and present in those moments where we usually contract and become overwhelmed by negative emotions that stunt our self-expression.
Instead of allowing ourselves to be totally overwhelmed by our errant reactions in certain scenarios, we are to become more and more present and then allow action to flow out naturally from that more present position. Again, we do not need to start trying to manufacture any kind of more fearless or free type of action, because that manufacturing is simply another example of contracted thinking. Naturally free and soundly expressive action arises as a result of being more and present in a state of being that is independent of conditioned thought.
By becoming increasingly alert to and aware of the expressive knots that arise in certain scenarios, we can also discover more food for contemplation. By ceasing to be totally possessed by our present reactions, we may come to realise the deeper roots of these reactions. These roots will often lie in similar scenarios in the past that we may have found traumatic or painful. We continue to react in an aberrant way because the original experience has not been fully digested and processed within our consciousness. So here, by becoming fully present in triggering life scenarios, we may find that we can dig up a lot of tangled, stagnant material from our subconscious. We can use the methods of contemplation and awareness to simply sit with this information without running from it, and without reacting to it – so that it can all be finally soundly digested within our consciousness. Such things are not digested when we come up with a new theory about them, but rather when we can hold them within our consciousness comfortably and without reaction.
Eventually, through becoming more present in all the varying scenarios and situations of life, we will begin to act and express through that presence and not through our conditioning, which will always have the power to influence us if we choose to move through life unconsciously and without any sense of presence. Through presence, which is itself without any sense of individuality, our individual uniqueness flourishes and we attain a natural vibrancy and charisma that simply reflects light, love and sweetness of reality itself.
Written by Jack Barratt
© MyDattatreya 2021 All rights reserved
Designed by Tamara Lj.