Chapter 28. Contemplating the Nature of Objects

If you don’t wash out the stone and sand, how can you pick out the gold? Lower your head and bore into the hole of open nonreification; carefully seek the heart of heaven and earth with firm determination. Suddenly you will see the original thing; everywhere you meet the source, all is a forest of jewels.

— Liu I-ming (Taoist)

As we’ve already said, most of the work of a spiritual path, especially in the beginning stages, consists in removing obstacles. You begin by interrupting your conditioned patterns of behavior. Next you purify your heart of self-centered desires and aversions, and work on abandoning inner and outer attachments. After that, you cultivate compassion for all beings and, if you’re a bhakta, love for some form of the Divine. Then, you learn to liberate those thoughts that make up the Story of I , and to transform afflicted emotions into devotion to God or into wisdom energies for serving other beings. And while all this brings more freedom and more joy into your life, if you are truly committed to the path it’s still not enough. Always, you long to go further, to penetrate once and for all the Great Mystery.

For jnanis the way to do this is to look more deeply into impermanence. Why? Because the fact that all things are impermanent and subject to change contains a vital clue about their true nature, or emptiness, as the Buddhists call it. Contemporary Buddhist scholar Gadjin M. Nagao explains the connection:

An activity becomes possible only when the world is śūnyatā [empty]. It is inconceivable that an activity takes place in a substantive being, for a substantive being is understood to be an eternal, immutable being, and, therefore, could not be active and undergo change. Only when there is no substantiality, that is, when śūnyatā is, can there be change and activity. 413

And while emptiness may be a Buddhist term, you’ll find the same teaching in one form or another given by mystics of all the great traditions. Here, for example, is how Meister Eckhart puts it:

All things are created from nothing; therefore their true origin is nothing, and so far as this noble will inclines toward created things, it flows off with created things toward their nothing. 414

Likewise, Rumi writes,

Because of the darkness in your eyes, you imagine that a nothing is a something. Your eyes can be made healthy and illumined with the dust of the King’s doorstep! 415

So let’s try to get some direct insight into exactly what these mystics are talking about.

Impermanence and Emptiness

Since you have already spent some time contemplating moment-to-moment impermanence both in your formal meditation practice and in everyday life, you should have a pretty good experiential understanding of just how transitory everything that appears in the six fields of consciousness really is. But even though you’ve come to realize that these appearances are ephemeral, chances are you still feel that you are living in an external world of more or less solid objects

For example, if you look at a tree and blink your eyes several times, you can see that the subjective images appearing in your visual field come and go and are, therefore, impermanent. But even when your eyes are closed, and you cannot actually see the tree, you are probably convinced that there is some independently existing object still sitting in front of you. Well, when mystics say that the tree’s true nature is empty, what they mean is that this impression that the tree exists independent of your observation is a delusion. What you take to be an objectively existing tree is nothing more than an idea which exists in your mind. And, of course, this is true not only of trees, but of all the other things which you imagine constitute the real world. They are all equally products of your imagination. This is why Nagarjuna insists,

Whatever is in the three realms, all that is the construction of the mind. How is it so? It is in accordance with one’s thought that one realizes all things. 416

To understand more precisely what he means, remember that the boundaries which seem to separate one thing from another are created in the third link of the chain of conditioning when mental identification takes place. Whenever a set of phenomena arises in consciousness, our minds automatically try to group them together into an object that can be identified by a name, such as tree, which distinguishes it from other sets of phenomena, identified by other names such as rock or house . In other words, although it seems as though we are giving names to things that already exist, in reality, the situation is reversed. What we perceive as things are actually created by our naming them. Here’s how Chuang Tzu explains it:

A road is formed (where there was none before) merely by people walking constantly upon it. Likewise, the ‘things’ are formed by their being designated by this or that particular name. 417

Of course, the simple act of naming phenomena is not, in itself, a problem. The problem comes when we reify these imaginary names and take them to refer to real objects which exist outside of our minds. Shankara describes how this happens:

A word, after being heard in speech, is acted on by the mind (and projected) externally elsewhere (as an image). And when it has been seen according to its mental form (as an image), it is ready to be converted (once more) into a word. This whole universe is imagined in just this way on the basis of erroneous ideas. 418

Now, it is important to remember that when mystics say that objects such as trees are imaginary, they are not denying that various visual and auditory phenomena appear in consciousness. But what they are saying is that there is no objectively existing tree standing behind these phenomena. Longchen-pa puts this very succinctly when he writes,

Although not really existing, things still appear. From their own side, however, (such things) are void by nature. 419

One way mystics of virtually all traditions have tried to illustrate this emptiness of objects is to compare our deluded experience of them to the experiences we have in dreams. While we are dreaming we take the objects that surround us to be real. Only when we wake up do we realize that from their own side they were void of inherent existence. Now, what mystics claim is that the same thing is also true of the objects we encounter in waking life. Here’s Longchen-pa again:

All (the phenomena) which appear in various (forms) are the same in not existing in (their true) nature. They are like the various dreams which are the same as the state of sleep. 420

Likewise, Ramana Maharshi declares,

Waking is long and a dream short; other than this there is no difference. Just as waking happenings seem real while awake, so do those in a dream while dreaming. 421

Ibn al-‘Arabi agrees:

When a man ascends in the degrees of gnosis, he will come to know through both faith and unveiling that he is a dreamer in the state of ordinary wakefulness and that the situation in which he dwells is a dream. 422

And Chuang Tzu writes,

Only when one experiences a Great Awakening does one realize that “reality” is but a Big Dream. But the stupid imagine that they are actually awake. … How deep-rooted and irremediable their stupidity is! 423

As Chuang Tzu indicates, this teaching that there is no fundamental difference between waking and dreaming is extremely difficult for most of us to accept because it runs completely counter to the way we have been conditioned to perceive the world. So, even if you become intellectually convinced that what the mystics say is true, it usually won’t change your actual experience of things. To do this, you need to take a much more empirical approach. You need to conduct a series of contemplative experiments which combine the power of undistracted attention with a practice of analytic inquiry to see for yourself if you can find any objects that actually exist apart from your own mind.

First, to avoid any semantic confusion, we should define our terms a little more rigorously. From now on when we use the word phenomenon , we’ll take it to mean whatever actually appears in any of the six fields of consciousness—a sight, sound, bodily sensation, taste, smell, or thought. And when we use the word object , we’ll take this to mean something which is supposed to exist objectively, outside of consciousness.

Preparing to Contemplate Objects

In order to conduct these contemplative experiments properly you will need two things. One is an environment where you can be completely alone and free of all external distractions. A retreat setting would be best. If this is not possible, at least try to arrange for extended periods of time in which you won’t be interrupted by family, friends, phone calls, or other business.

The second thing you will need is some object to serve as the focus for your contemplations. This should be something you can see, touch, tap (in order to make a sound), smell, and taste. An apple or some other piece of hard fruit would be perfect. If there is no fruit available, you can make do with any hand-sized object—a metal bowl, a small gong, even a rock—providing you don’t mind smelling or tasting it. (For the purpose of giving the following instructions, we’ll assume you are using an apple.)

In this series there are three parts corresponding to the three types of experiments to be performed—contemplating the emptiness of objects, contemplating the emptiness of correlations between phenomena, and contemplating the inseparability of phenomena and consciousness. So, let’s go through them one at a time.

Contemplating the Emptiness of Objects

In the Bahiya Sutta, the Buddha said,

In what is seen, there is nothing but what is seen;
in what is heard, there is nothing but what is heard;
in what is felt, there is nothing but what is felt;
in what is smelled, there is nothing but what is smelled;
in what is tasted, there is nothing but what is tasted;
in what is thought, there is nothing but what is thought.

In other words, he’s saying again that there is nothing behind the subjective phenomena which appear in the six fields of consciousness. So, let’s check this out and see if it’s true. Let’s see if we can find any object that exists apart from these subjective phenomena. Get out your apple (or other suitable object), set it down in front of you within easy reach, and assume your usual meditative posture.

Instructions for Contemplating the Emptiness of Objects

Entering spacious awareness

Begin by stabilizing your attention through concentration meditation. Then, allow your attention to expand into the total field of consciousness-awareness. Spend a few minutes resting in this space of undistracted awareness without trying to grasp anything or push anything away.

Contemplating what is seen

Now gaze directly at the apple in front of you. Notice that what you are seeing is a subjective phenomenon appearing in the visual field of awareness.

Close your eyes. Notice that this visual phenomenon is impermanent. A moment ago it was present, but now it has completely vanished from consciousness.

Contemplating what is heard

With your eyes still closed, reach out and tap the apple several times with your fingernail. Listen closely to the sounds. Notice that what you are hearing is a series of subjective sound phenomena appearing in the auditory field of awareness. Notice that these sound phenomena are totally different from the visual phenomenon which you experienced a few moments ago.

Notice also that all these sound phenomena are impermanent. They appear and disappear in consciousness one after another.

Contemplating what is felt

Still keeping your eyes closed, pick up the apple and hold it in the palm of your hand. Notice that what you feel are subjective tactile sensations appearing in the bodily sensation field. Notice that these tactile-sensation phenomena are totally different from the sound phenomena and from the visual phenomenon you experienced before.

Put the apple down and notice that these tactile-sensation phenomena are all impermanent and, after a few moments, completely vanish.

Contemplating what is smelled

Keeping your eyes closed, pick up the apple again and hold it under your nose. Take a deep breath. Notice that what you experience are subjective aromas appearing in the smell field of awareness. Notice that these aromas are totally different from the visual phenomenon, the sound phenomena, and the tactile sensations you previously experienced.

Put the apple down and again notice that these aromatic phenomena are impermanent and vanish away.

Contemplating what is tasted

With your eyes closed, pick up the apple and take a bite. Chew slowly and notice that, along with the tactile sensations on your tongue, you also experience a continuing cascade of flavors. Notice that these subjective flavors are appearing in the taste field of consciousness, and that they are totally different from the visual phenomenon, the sound phenomena, the tactile-sensation phenomena, and the smell phenomena which you previously experienced.

Now put the apple down and allow the flavors to vanish from your mouth. Notice that even though these flavors may linger longer than the phenomena which appeared in the other fields of consciousness, eventually they, too, prove to be impermanent and completely disappear.

Contemplating what is thought

As you continue sitting in your meditative posture with your eyes closed, spend a few moments inquiring into what you have experienced so far. So far, you have experienced five very distinct kinds of phenomena—sights, sounds, bodily sensations, smells, and tastes. What’s more, all of these phenomena have now passed away, and are non-existent. Therefore, none of these phenomena you have experienced can be said to constitute an inherently existing object called an apple.

Nevertheless, you are probably still convinced that there is a real apple out there. If this is the case, generate the following thought as forcefully and as vividly as you can: “Even though, right now, I neither see, hear, touch, smell nor taste it, there definitely is an objectively existing apple sitting out there in front of me.”

Now notice that what you are currently experiencing is not any objectively existing apple, but only the idea of an apple. And even though this idea of an apple may trigger memories of the sight, sound, touch, smell, and taste phenomena you previously experienced, the idea itself does not appear in any of these sensory fields. It is a thought phenomenon, appearing in the mental field of awareness, and, as such, it is totally imaginary. So, in a certain sense, you have found an object called an apple, but it only exists in your mind!

Finally, allow the thought of the apple to self-liberate. Notice that, like all the other phenomena you have experienced, it, too, is impermanent and vanishes away.

Reflecting on what you have found

Up to this point, your investigation of the apple has confirmed what the Buddha said. All you have experienced have been impermanent phenomena arising and passing in the six fields of consciousness. You have not found any inherently existing object apart from, or standing behind, these phenomena. The closest you have come to finding anything called apple has been the idea that one exists. In other words, the apple has turned out to be imaginary and empty of any inherent existence.

Contemplating the Emptiness of Correlations

The main reason it is so difficult to dispel the delusion that there is an external world of inherently existing objects is that the arising and passing of certain kinds of phenomena seem to be correlated in quite precise and predictable ways. For instance, if you look at your apple, pick it up, and hold it close to your nose, the sights, sensations, and smells you associate with the idea of apple all appear more or less together. Then, if you also tap the apple with your fingernail several times, a series of sound phenomena arise and pass which seem perfectly correlated with the sensations of your tapping. Now, if you stop tapping, put the apple down, and close your eyes, then open your eyes, pick the apple up, and start tapping again, not only will the same set of phenomena appear, but they will appear in exactly the same sequence as they did the first time you performed these actions.

The point is that when we encompass different kinds of transitory phenomena within the concept of apple, we are not doing so arbitrarily. We encircle them within an imaginary boundary based on what appear to be objectively existing correlations. But let’s look more closely. Where do these correlations exist? Are they inherent in the phenomena, themselves? Or, like our ideas about objects, are they imaginary creations which exist only in our minds?

In fact, ever since the eighteenth-century philosopher David Hume found the relationship of cause and effect to be based on nothing more than a mental habit, materialists have been trying unsuccessfully to establish some grounds for believing that correlations between events have an objective reality. The main problem (to put it in a nutshell) is that no matter how many times two or more phenomena appear in what seem to be objectively correlated ways, there is no guarantee that these correlations will hold the next time any of the phenomena appear. The British philosopher Bertrand Russell once illustrated this by way of a witty parable. Imagine, he said, a bunch of chickens born and raised on a farm. Since as far back as any of them can remember, every single morning the chickens have heard the farmer’s footsteps approaching their coop, heard the gate being unlatched, and seen the farmer’s feet as he enters. This sequence of events has always been followed by the farmer spreading chicken feed on the ground. Consequently, it seems to the chickens that the occurrence of footsteps, gate opening, feet, and food, are part of an unbreakable chain of cause and effect. But then one morning the farmer shows up with an ax.

Most of us have experienced some version of this kind of anomaly in our own lives. For example, once I was leading a retreat at the house of one of my students. During a break I went out to the porch. Across the way in the neighbor’s yard there was a shed with a corrugated plastic roof. A large black bird was walking along this roof, making rather loud clicking sounds as its claws struck the plastic surface. Then the bird suddenly flew off, but the clicking sounds continued! Although the clicking sounds had seemed to be caused by the movement of the bird’s feet, in reality I had only imagined them to be so. Such incidents of cognitive dissonance reveal that correlations between phenomena do not inhere in the phenomena, themselves. Rather, they are created by our minds as part of the whole process of naming and then reifying a world of objects. Thus, in the Lankavatara Sutra we read this:

All such notions as causation, succession, atoms, primary elements … are all figments of the imagination and manifestations of the mind. 424

But don’t take the Lankavatara Sutra’s word for it. It is possible to catch your own mind in the very act of creating such correlations. To do this, let’s try another contemplative experiment. Get out your apple, set it down in front of you, and assume your usual meditative posture.

Instructions for Contemplating the Emptiness of Correlations

Entering spacious awareness

As before, begin by stabilizing your attention through concentration meditation. Then, allow your attention to expand into the total field of consciousness-awareness.

Look at the apple

Once you have entered spacious awareness, direct your gaze to your apple. Again, notice that what you are seeing is a subjective visual phenomenon appearing in the sight field of awareness.

Tap the apple

Next, with your eyes still open, slowly reach out and tap the apple several times with your fingernail. Notice that you are now experiencing three kinds of subjective phenomena arising in three different fields of awareness—a sight phenomenon in the visual field, a series of sound phenomena in the auditory field, and a series of sensation phenomena (tappings) in the field of bodily sensations.

Generate a thought of causation

As you continue to tap the apple, vividly generate the thought, “My tapping the apple is causing the sounds to appear in the auditory field.” Notice that this, in fact, is a thought, appearing in the mental field of awareness, and does not exist in any of the phenomena, themselves—the sight, the sounds, or sensations.

Allow All Thoughts to Self-Liberate

Finally, let all your thoughts about what’s-causing-what to self-liberate. Then allow your attention to expand into the total field of consciousness-awareness and try to experience whatever phenomena arise and pass without generating any new thoughts about them.

Contemplating the Inseparability of Phenomena and Consciousness

Even though you may begin to see that the correlations that seem to exist among phenomena are actually products of your imagination, you still probably cannot shake the conviction that there must be some kind of objective connection between them. How else to account for the fact that our correlations seem to work so much of the time? Well, from a mystic’s point of view, it’s not that phenomena are connected in some mysterious way. It’s that they were never truly separated in the first place! As we’ve said before, like the waves of an ocean, they are actually inseparable manifestations of an underlying Reality that is fundamentally nondual in nature. Here is how Ibn al-‘Arabi puts it:

There is no ontological named thing (musammā wujūdī ) except God. He is named by every name, described by every attribute, qualified by every description. … There is nothing in Being/existence but God, while the entities are nonexistent. 425

So, too, Anandamayi Ma says,

In the whole universe, in all states of being, in all forms is He. All names are His names, all shapes His shapes, all qualities His qualities, and all modes of existence are truly His. 426

And John Scotus Eriugena tells us this:

When we hear that God makes all things we ought to understand nothing else than that God is in all things, that is, that He is the Essence of all things. For only He truly exists by Himself, and He alone is everything which in the things that are is truly said to be. 427

But if this is true, it means that the distinctions we have been making between the six fields of consciousness are also creations of our own minds. And while they are useful for interrupting the habitual ways in which we draw boundaries and reify objects, in reality they are no less imaginary. So now it is time to drop even these distinctions and try to contemplate the true inseparability of all phenomena, regardless of what names we give them—sights, sounds, bodily sensations, smells, tastes, or thoughts.

The biggest difficulty for most people in seeing this is that phenomena appear to be separated by time and space. For instance, you might hear a bird call while walking in the park one afternoon. The following day you might stub your toe while getting out of the shower and feel a sharp pain sensation. Now because they happened so far apart, these two phenomena seem entirely distinct. There isn’t even any apparent causal connection between them. How, then, can it be, as mystics claim, that they are in some essential way the same?

The key here is to recognize that all phenomena—including the bird sound heard one day, and the pain felt the next—are inseparable from each other, because, again like the phenomena appearing in dreams, they are all inseparable from Consciousness. Jamgon Kongtrul explains it this way:

The impure phenomena of cyclic life arise within ongoing intrinsic awareness, abide within intrinsic awareness, and are simply the play of intrinsic awareness. They have never existed outside intrinsic awareness, just as dreams never occur except in sleep. 428

So, too, Shankara writes,

In the case of dream, there can be no doubt that the mind assumes a mere appearance of duality, while remaining non-dual in its true nature as the Self. … For in dream there are in reality neither the elements which are beheld as objects nor the eyes and other sense organs which “perceive” them. There is nothing but consciousness. And our argument is that it is exactly the same in waking experience too. There, too, the only reality is consciousness, so that from this point of view there is no difference between the states of waking and dream. 429

In other words, as in dreams, under delusion there appears to be a duality between the phenomena that are experienced and the consciousness that experiences them. In reality, however, the phenomena appearing in consciousness cannot be separated from the consciousness in which they appear. This being the case, we can say that in a certain sense everything that we experience is actually a form of Consciousness the way waves are forms of the ocean—or, to use a more modern analogy, the way all the different characters, objects, and environments seen in a movie are, in reality, nothing but forms of light.

Notice that this is true even though we have no trouble distinguishing so-called dream sequences in a movie from waking sequences if the film-makers have provided us with the appropriate clues—strange camera angles, distorted images, jump cuts, slow motion, etc. It is worth noting that film-makers can also hide the fact that we are witnessing a dream sequence by omitting such clues, in which case we only know that what we have been watching is a dream at the end of the sequence when the camera cuts to the dreamer suddenly sitting bolt upright in bed with a startled look on his or her face. This, in fact, mimics what happens in our own so-called real lives when we awaken from an unusually lifelike dream and, for a moment, can’t tell which state—dreaming or waking—we’re actually in. None of these cinematic tricks, however, alters the fact that, in either case, what we are really seeing are forms of light and nothing else. Likewise, what the mystics claim is that, all we really ever experience, whether dreaming or awake, are forms of Consciousness.

So let’s try to get some actual experience of this by conducting another contemplative experiment. This time, we’ll take a clue from something Rumi wrote:

If we look at the ocean, we find all the waves are in the ocean and that in reality they are all one. But if we look at the waves, we find that they are many in number and separate from one another. 430

What Rumi is getting at is that habitually our attention focuses on phenomenal forms and we completely ignore that ocean of formless Consciousness out of which they arise. Now, as you go through the steps in the experiment below, try to shift your attention back and forth between the forms of Consciousness and Consciousness Itself and see if you can’t get some experiential insight into their inseparability. So, get out your apple once again, set it down in front of you, and assume your usual meditative posture.

Instructions for Contemplating Inseparability

Entering spacious awareness

Begin by stabilizing your attention through concentration meditation. Then, allow your attention to expand into the total field of consciousness-awareness. Spend a few minutes resting in this spacious awareness without trying to grasp anything or push anything away.

Contemplating sight and consciousness

Once you have entered spacious awareness, direct your gaze to the image of your apple. Focus your attention on this image for a while, then close your eyes and focus your attention on the space of consciousness in which it appeared. Do this several times until you get a sense of their inseparability.

Contemplating sound and consciousness

With your eyes closed, reach out and tap the apple. Focus your attention on the sound. When the sound is gone, continue focusing your attention on the space in consciousness in which it appeared. Do this several times until you get a sense of their inseparability.

Contemplating bodily sensation and consciousness

With your eyes closed, pick up the apple and focus your attention on the sensations in your hand. Put the apple down and, as the sensations fade, focus your attention on the space of consciousness in which they appeared until you get some sense of their inseparability.

Contemplating all phenomena and consciousness

Open your eyes and allow your attention to expand until it fills the entire space of consciousness-awareness. Resting in this space, allow whatever phenomena appear to arise and pass away without grasping at them or pushing them away. Then, try to shift the gestalt of the entire field by re-focusing your attention from the phenomena in the foreground of consciousness to the space of consciousness that constitutes their ever-present background. Do this several times until you get a sense of their inseparability.

Gaining Non-conceptual Insights

At the very least, conducting these kinds of contemplative experiments should give you a better intellectual understanding of what the mystics mean when they talk about all things being imaginary, dream-like, and empty of any objective existence. But this is not the same as having a direct, non-conceptual insight like that of the sixteenth-century Confucian sage Kao P’an-lung. Here’s how he describes it:

I saw a saying by [Ch’eng] Ming-tao, … “The myriad changes all exist within the person; in reality there is not a single thing.” Suddenly, I realized this and said, “It really is like this, in reality there is not a single thing!” With this single thought, all entanglements were broken. Suddenly, it was as if a load of a hundred pounds had fallen to the ground in an instant. It was as if a flash of lightning had penetrated the body and pierced the intelligence. Subsequently, I was merged with the Great Transformation until there was no differentiation between Heaven and humanity, exterior or interior. 431

In order to gain this kind of non-conceptual insight, most seekers need to repeat these experiments numerous times, using a variety of objects, until their attention becomes refined enough to be able to apprehend whatever arises in consciousness before the thinking mind has a chance to name and reify it. Shankara calls this spiritual discrimination and gives the following advice on how to attain it:

“The apparent world is caused by our imagination, in its ignorance. It is not real. … It is like a passing dream”—that is how a man should practice spiritual discrimination, and free himself from his consciousness of this objective world. 432

Likewise, we read this in the Lankavatara Sutra :

The disciple must get into the habit of looking at things truthfully. He must recognize the fact that the world has no self-nature, that it is un-born, that it is like a passing cloud, like an imaginary wheel made by a revolving firebrand, like the [illusory] castle of the Gandharvas, like the moon reflected in the ocean, like a vision, a mirage, a dream. 433

And the more you get in the habit of seeing things truthfully, the more it will transform your everyday experience. Instead of living in a world of solid objects which have clear-cut boundaries, you will begin to live in a more fluid world—a world where everything arises and passes away in one continuous flow of empty transformations. Then even the most mundane forms will become for you increasingly transparent to that Formless Consciousness which does not arise and does not pass away. In other words, you will begin to recognize the positive aspect of emptiness. It’s not just that things lack any inherent existence, but, for this very reason, they actually reflect and reveal the Ultimate Reality Itself. As Dudjom Lingpa writes,

All apparent phenomena are not other than the ground of being but are of one taste with that ground itself, like the reflections of all the planets and stars in the ocean (gya-tsoi za-kar ) that are not other than the ocean but one taste with the water itself. 434

A common Hindu analogy for this is to compare the world of objects to a collection of gold figures. Their forms are different, but their essence is the same. So, if you know the essence of one, you know the essence of all. Thus, in the Chandogya Upanishad , Svetaketu’s sagely father tells him,

Just as, my dear, by one nugget of gold all that is made of gold is known, the modification being only a name, arising from speech, while the truth is that all is gold. 435

Similarly, Ibn al-‘Arabi says,

Every name the creatures possess belongs truly (haqq ) to the Real and metaphorically (musta’ār ) to the creatures. 436

The Jnani’s Initiation

For most jnanis, attaining a non-conceptual insight into the emptiness of forms constitutes their initiation, because it represents the first real crack in their shell of delusion. Moreover, even though it usually comes considerably later on the path, this kind of insight often surpasses the bhakta’s introduction to Ultimate Reality in at least two ways.

First, while the bhakta’s initial glimpses are mediated by the experience of a Divine Other who seems to stand apart from the world of forms, the jnani apprehends the inseparability of Formlessness and forms, or, as the Buddhists put it, they see that form is emptiness, and emptiness is form.

Second, once attained, the jnani’s insights tend to be more stable. They do not fluctuate with feelings of proximity to or distance from the Beloved, as is often the case with bhaktas. This is why it is said that, for a seeker who reaches this stage, everything which appears has the potential to be one’s teacher. Here is how Longchen-pa, speaking from the point of view of his own Realization, expresses it in terms of the five traditional elements of earth, water, wind, fire, and space:

I, the creativity of the universe,
Arise as the teacher, in five forms of pure and total presence.
Their dimension is the full richness of being.
Their message is conveyed through their form.
The teacher teaches its own nature.
The teacher, the dimension of the full richness of being,
Cannot be conceived of in terms of identity or difference.
The five forms of the state of pure and total presence
Show everything to be the truth itself. 437