Last week we focused on our habit of positional thinking.  We explored how our judging creates fixed positions.  As a result, we label things constantly – “this is good and that is bad,” “this is right and that is wrong.”  It all seems so normal, doesn’t it?

Sadly, our positional thinking harms us in at least three ways.  First, this kind of thinking gives us the illusion that we have some sort of power over the object of our judgment.  For example, when I judge and say that a particular politician is acting badly, I place myself in a position over that person.  This gives me the illusion that I have some kind of power in the situation.  On reflection, it’s clear that this is just a fantasy.

Second, our positional thinking gives us a sense that we fully understand the situation that were judging.  Yet, how often have any of us ever fully understood even the simplest situation?  We rarely know all of the historical antecedents which give rise to a particular situation.  We almost never understand the full results or consequences of a situation.  Yet, we happily proceed in the fantasy that we understand things perfectly and that our judgment is the correct one.  What amazing delusions we inhabit!

From my perspective, the most important and damaging consequence of our dualistic perception and positional way of thinking that it entails, is that it cuts us off from our Creator.  It has the unintended consequence of creating an abyss between us and the Divine.  Our positional thinking has us believe that we are ` here, and God is somewhere else, often conceived of as someplace very far from where we are.

What a wretched situation!  What an intolerable price to pay!  

~

As followers of Jesus, we cannot in good conscience allow this state of affairs to continue unchallenged.  So, to remedy this, we focus in meditation on the non-dual bridge which connects us with the Divine.  We focus on that lively awareness that undergirds all of our experience.

Let me explain what I mean here.  Right now, you are reading these words on your screen.  Your focus is “out there,” and you perceive these words of mine as having some kind of reality.  In a word, they exist.

You exist also – also as a reality.  You experience your physical sensations, and you notice your thoughts change as you read these words.  So now we have two different kinds of reality – the words on the screen and your experience of yourself.

Going deeper, notice what experiences all of this.  It is your awareness – that lively part of you that notices and experiences the multiple streams of experience that flow through your consciousness.  This awareness is non-dual in nature.  It holds everything that you are aware of in a unitive kind of experience.

Now, go deeper still.  When we release our dualistic thinking, when we let go of our dualistic perceptions, we discover that we are connected with everything that is.  We are connected with all the parts of ourselves – the many constituent elements that make us who we are.  As we dive into this internal unity, we find that we are connected with all of the people around us – the ones we hate and the ones we love, and even the ones we don’t see because of our judgments and positional thinking.

If we continue in this deep dive, we find that we are connected with Jesus, our blessed teacher who enjoins us, “Judge not, lest ye be judged.”  We find, finally, our home, that place where we truly belong.  We find ourselves connected with the Divine and all that is.

~

Even with this knowledge – that our true home is in the Infinite – our habitual way of judging, our habitual style of positional thinking creeps in and separates us from the love of God.  When, from time to time, we slip into this deep state of non-dual awareness, our old habits slide in right behind it.  We begin to think of our awareness as somehow apart from us.  That is, we see ourselves as here, but our awareness is somehow over there.

To address this, we need to remember that we inhabit our awareness; it is our home.  Our awareness is never something “out there.”  Our awareness is the fundamental substrate of our Being.  It is never differentiated into parts; it is always a unitive whole.

When I first began exploring this, I would often find myself, at the start of the meditation, feeling that sense of being a whole – that is, a single vibrant being.  Very quickly, though, I would slip out of this awareness and back into my habitual way of thinking.  I would, once again, go looking for my “awareness” out there someplace, forgetting that it is always something within me.  Forgetting that it constitutes the very basis of my being.

As you can imagine, I found this very distressing.  And then, in the oddest sort of way, and image came to me which allowed me to release this dualism.  (When I have unbidden, unlooked for experiences like this, I have learned to pay close attention to them.)  You’ll probably laugh when you hear this, because it is peculiar and perhaps only works for me.  I suddenly imagined, during the course of this perceived ‘separation’ from my awareness, that I was swimming underwater in a lake and I shot up from underwater into the very center of the large inner tube.  As I came down, I spread my arms out, grasping the inner tube on both sides and feeling whole again.  There was a sense of merging with that inner tube and floating freely, safe and secure.

The Second Deepening of Awareness

1. Find a quiet place where you won’t be disturbed.  Turn off your cell phone and deal with other potential distractions.

2. Be seated in a chair, with your spine upright and your feet flat on the floor, cradling your right hand in your left.  Don’t cross your legs or ankles, and don’t interlace your fingers because they are likely to fall asleep, which will distract you from your practice.  

3. Close your eyes and focus your attention within your body.  Simply observe, and refrain from judging what you experience there.

4. Notice the flow of your thoughts and emotions.  No need to chase after them or elaborate on them.  Be receptive to them and just observe.   

5. In this space, your mind will start telling you stories.  These stories may focus on your physical sensations, they may focus on some unfinished business you had prior to sitting in meditation, or on any number of other subjects.  

6. Experience these sensations, thoughts, and emotions as they arise in your awareness.  Acknowledge them, but don't go chasing after them.  Rest your focus in your awareness.  Refuse to engage with the distractions.  Acknowledge them, and then let them go.  

7. As you release these thoughts and the stories they want to distract you with, notice the progressive deepening that occurs, very gentle and slow at first.  As you open to this deepening, as you relinquish your focus on the various ‘objects of awareness,’ you will begin to notice your awareness itself.  

8. As you become aware of your awareness, you may find it a bit slippery – now you have it and then, very quickly, it slips away.  You will be tempted to go searching for it or to chase after it.  

9. Instead, return to being aware of your awareness.  It is not something apart from you.  It is you.  Rest here, in your awareness… without running after others things.  Let yourself rest in your inner stillness, the stillness that exists underneath the silence.  No need for thoughts.  No need for words.  

10.  Rest in this Stillness without moving for the period of your meditation.

11. When you are ready, let the feeling come back into your feet, your hands, and your face.  Take a deep breath and open your eyes.

I hope you find this deepening a rewarding process.  It is designed to move us from our surface perceptions and into the depths of our being.  It is here where we realize that our Lord is with us, indeed, he has always been with us.  As St. Paul said in his letter to the Romans, “nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus!”  And to that, I say “Amen!”

That’s all for now.  Please remember your meditation practice daily.  And, in the early part of 2026, we have a special surprise coming.  We are working now on a website where we will be able to engage with each other as frequently as you might wish.  More on this in the weeks to come.

In the unity of God’s love,

P.S.  These newsletters were written in a particular order, but due to the limitations of our email delivery system, we cannot send them in the order in which they were written.  We can send out the first five in order, but then the system sends out the next one, whatever that happens to be.

So, if you are suddenly moving from issue #5 to issue #whatever, it might be a little jarring.  If this sounds like you, I would encourage you to go back into our archives and do your best to read them in order. 

Humility as a Tool  → Letting go → Fear → Openness →  Acceptance & Growth

If you are finding this newsletter course helpful, you may want to consider Dr. Kaisch's latest book, Inside the Invisible:  The Universal Path to Spiritual Transcendence.👇

To access the other newsletter editions of the “Inside The Invisible Newsletter,” or if you’d like to read ahead or go back.

Please Note: These newsletters are meant to be read in order.