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The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond Yourself by Michael A. Singer
Book Summary InformationAuthor: Michael A. Singer Edition: Paperback Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published) Published: 2007-10-03 ISBN: 1572245379 Number of pages: 200 Publisher: New Harbinger Publications/ Noetic Books Product features: - ISBN13: 9781572245372
- Condition: New
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Book Reviews of The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond YourselfBook Review: Untethered Seeking Summary: 3 Stars
I should perhaps, preface this review by saying 90% of those who read this book will enjoy and even love it. This however, is merely a reflection of how awakening out of the delusion of mind-identified awareness has been very rare. As seekers, what we are really looking for is something satisfying to the mind, something that makes sense to the mind and colludes with its belief in itself. Seekers seek to find what they seek, and herein lies the catch. The fact that what is doing the seeking is the very 'thing' obscuring what is sought, remains elusive. Relatively rarely does the realization come, that the seeking itself and the trance state from which it springs, are the 'spell' that is awakened from when 'Awakening' occurs. This is why such books will be so popular. The overwhelmingly predominant human mind-state is one of searching on the part of mind identified characters, for relief from the perceived sense of missing something essential. 'Teachings' that offer a story of hope and set of directions to this character without disturbing its conceptual under pinnings, will of course be soothing and inspiring. Direct pointing to the essence of what Is however, is neither soothing nor inspiring to the character. It leaves the character by the wayside, transcended and seen for what it was, a mind idea 'Full of sound and fury, signifying nothing'. An effort such as this book is simply too blunt an instrument to pierce the egoic bubble, but again, that is not what most who read this book are looking for. That being said....
This is a great book for seekers. For keeping to an endless path of seeking, i.e., the proverbial treadmill, it will serve very well. As a pointing to the Absolute, it falls quite short however, and of course, to miss by a hair's breadth is to miss completely. The `gateless gate' remains a locked gate.
The problem lies squarely in the author's conceptual baggage and crudeness of expression, and in the business of pointing through the seduction of mind, clarity is everything. Either the communication comes from clarity, or it does not and will therefore merely serve to further continued mind-play. Language is a cumbersome tool when meant to address the Absolute. It can do no more than point the way to the imaginary threshold, and admitting its limitation to this pointing function is in fact, one of its essential pointings. Failure at this level of recognition/understanding is to give conceptualization substance it does not have. This is the barrier that is not really a barrier. When delusion and confusion are not present there is no barrier. When they are present, there is nothing really there either, but the barrier may as well be as dense as lead. Such is the very stuff of which the waking dream is fashioned. In the end, unclarity can amount to nothing more than story telling and convoluted directions, and the following is an illustration of the point.
On page 130, the author asks "Who are you that is lost and trying to build a concept of yourself in order to be found? This question represents the essence of spirituality. You will never find yourself in what you have built to define yourself. You're the one who's doing the building. You may assemble the most amazing collection of thoughts and emotions; you may build a truly beautiful, unbelievable, interesting, and dynamic structure; but obviously, it's not you. You are the one who did this." Here is the crux of the author's confused expression. To say "You are the one who did this." is to send the seeker in search of his/her own tail. 'You're the one who's doing the building.' What does this mean? Is there a little man inside who configures ego defenses and traits of personality? Is it the case that the 'you' he is addressing is making him/herself? So the true self made the false self??? This is the sort of pointing that is stuck in a loop. If you reread the lines quoted above, it might at first seem to be putting its finger on some deep truth of the human psyche, but this is exactly how something can sound perfectly plausible in the absence of sufficient clarity to distinguish the difference. The basic mistake is that it speaks to a false sense of 'me', nothing more than a concept in the head, as if it were real and capable of action or blame. Who ever assembled a collection of thoughts and emotion'? Can thoughts and emotions recur out of fear, a need for soothing and comfort, as a shield against pain? Of course they do, but is it helpful to see a doer of this and speak to that doer, advising action to this phantom? Do people make their personalities? This basic confusion occurs throughout the book, and it's a good example of why organized 'religions' are a morass of useless ritual, guilt and strife, the blind leading the blind. It's an example of lacking clarity.
In response to the existential facts of suffering, despair, pain, loss grief, etc., the author's advice is to be happy regardless, as the alternative is simply prolonged suffering. Aside from the collusion of belief in the one who should fix or remedy him/herself, one might ask if it is helpful or realistic to believe a suffering, wounded person can simply will happiness in the face of tragedy and misfortune? How pray tell might this be accomplished, by stifling, denying or over-laying naturally arising feelings? Is this possible, or does what is held down and denied fester and build until it erupts or otherwise asserts the truth of its presence? Contrast this approach with a pointing that merely recognizes what is, as it is, advising neither to fight, suppress, alter or replace feelings with other feelings, but rather to know what is unchanging beneath this ever-changing flux of appearances and temporary forms.
On page 28 he begins, "I am the one who sees. From back in here somewhere, I look out, and I am aware of the events, thoughts, and emotions that pass before me." "If you go very deep, that is where you live. You live in the seat of consciousness...Now you are in your seat of consciousness. You are behind everything, just watching. That is your true home." This is about as close as the author comes to his intended mark, but again, he seems to be writing from firmly within the trance his book purports to point the way through. Earlier he cites Ramana Maharshi, and his fundamental question `Who am I?' In The Untethered Soul, the answer seems to get as far as `You're you, the one who watches.' Is this 'Who am I?' question meaningfully addressed with, 'You' are behind everything', 'That is 'your' true home', 'You' are in the seat of consciousness'? If consciousness has a seat 'you' can sit in, the question remains, 'Who/what is 'you'? Obviously, this sort of communication merely encourages continued searching. As in the Zen proverb, there is a finger pointing here, but all it can point to is `you' in the seat of consciousness. It never realizes the pointing finger cannot point to itself, the All that Is, the end of searching. Looking to find the center never succeeds until it is realized, it is the center that is being looked out from. The author's efforts leave this riddle intact and even do a good job of reinforcing it. The ego is a tricky thing indeed.
One more example of how the mark is being missed here, on page 65: "Lets say someone at work took your pencil...(and it arouses negative energy within-(my words)...Are you willing to release the pencil to liberate yourself?" This is a completely confused expression. Who ever liberated him/herself? The answer is no one. It's only silliness. Direct pointing, clear pointing speaks not to a 'you' who could liberate or become liberated. Rather, it points to the fictitious nature of the believed in 'me' seeking 'liberation'. It deflates the dream of individuality and something to achieve. It never speaks to the fictional character as if it were real. To do so is just perpetuating seeking and ignoring what Is. It also never speaks to the the Absolute or Being as if it were separate, an 'other' that needs to perform some act to become 'liberated', or learn something or release something. This is just more dream content, the dream of doing as a self-directed agent. It's a storyline. Seeking is the belief 'I am' and I lack what would complete me. When at last I find the missing something, I will be whole and the search will end. This is where most religion and nearly all modern spirituality is pointing. It is the great shared illusion, belief in a somewhere to get to in the future, a purity to achieve, a worthiness that effort can bring, a penance that must be completed. There is no effort or act that can bring more closeness to Being. In the most wretched of states, All is the perfect expression of what Is, as it is arising. The realization of this is the dissolution of mental formations that have obscured it. 'Liberation is the complete absence of a someone seeking after something. It has nothing to do with the individual, nothing to do with purpose. When seeking is given up, there is Liberation.' (Tony Parsons)
As a self help book (if that's what's sought) The Untethered Soul is a nice little feel good book. It offers for example, useful ways of looking at those fear based ego structures that so often cross over into stifling inhibitions that smother vitality. Make no mistake however, it is a book for a 'someone' looking for something to do, i.e. 'work on the self'. This is exactly what the ego wants to hear, 'You are real and we have lots to do, so lets get to work! Another line from Tony Parsons is apropos: 'All process is the belief there is somewhere else to get to.' (process = meditation, chanting, drugs, reading books, seeking of every sort) There is nowhere else to get to. 'There is only this.' As a pointing to the Truth of what Is, the Untethered Soul just doesn't cut it. Much clearer expression is to be found with the likes of Eckhardt Tolle, Tony Parsons, Joan Tollifson, Nathan Gill, Rupert Spira, et al. Or, go directly to the two who are the modern source from which so much contemporary spiritual wisdom has come, and read Ramana Maharshi and Nisargadatta. All these writings are not of much appeal to the 'kindergarten' spiritual interest however. They tend to attract the attention only when mind entrancement is losing its grip. Until then books like The Untethered Soul will be strongly appealing, as attention is not yet ready to rest upon itself in silence and stillness, with nothing to do.
Summary of The Untethered Soul: The Journey Beyond YourselfWho are you? When you start to explore this question, you find out how elusive it really is. Are you a physical body? A collection of experiences and memories? A partner to relationships? Each time you consider these aspects of yourself, you realize that there is much more to you than any of these can define. The Untethered Soul, spiritual teacher Michael Singer explores the question of who we are and arrives at the conclusion that our identity is to be found in our consciousness, the fact of our ability to observe ourselves, and the world around us. By tapping into traditions of meditation and mindfulness, Singer shows how the development of consciousness can enable us all to dwell in the present moment and let go of painful thoughts and memories that keep us from achieving happiness and self-realization. This book, copublished with the Institute of Noetic Sciences (IONS), offers a frank and friendly discussion of consciousness and how we can develop it. In part one, he examines the notion of self and the inner dialogue we all live with. Part two examines the experience of energy as it flows through us and works to show readers how to open their hearts to the energy of experience that permeates their lives. Ways to overcome tendencies to close down to the rest of the world are the subject of part three. Enlightenment, the embrace of universal consciousness, is the subject of part four. And finally, in part five, Singer returns to daily life and the pursuit of unconditional happiness. Throughout, the book maintains a light and engaging tone, free from heavy dogma and prescriptive religious references. The easy exercises that figure in each chapter help readers experience the ideas that Singer presents. Visit www.untetheredsoul.com for more information.
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