Beyond the Ego - Steve Taylor's October Newsletter

Published: Wed, 10/25/23

Steve Taylor's October Newsletter

Dear

I hope all is well with you. Recently I’ve been pondering about time, while writing my new book ‘The Illusion of Time.’ I often have a strange experience when I'm hovering between sleep and wakefulness. Sometimes, if I have a brief lie down in the afternoon, I feel a vivid connection to past times of my life. I feel that, at the same as time as being here in the present, I’m lying on the sofa in my flat in Germany 30 years ago, in my bed in Singapore 20 years ago, or on the sofa in my present house 10 years ago, having a nap before going to pick my kids up from school. The sensation is much more vivid than memory. There is a clear sense of being there again, at these earlier times and places. I have a strong feeling of the atmosphere of the places where I lived, and of my general state and life-situation at that time. I feel strongly that those past times still exist, as if I’ve travelled through a wormhole and emerged at an earlier point in my life. Let me know if you have a similar experience.

Time is very mysterious! In a sense, the past and future don’t exist, because only the present is real. But in another sense it seems as if the past is still alive, and the future already exists. In near-death experiences, for example, people often have a sense that time has become “spatial,” that the past and the future exist alongside the present, as a panoramic landscape. Perhaps I'll have an answer by the time I finish my new book!

The European Transpersonal Association Conference

Two weeks ago I did a talk at the European Transpersonal Association conference in Tuscany. It was an amazing joyful gathering of 470 people, in a beautiful setting by the ocean. My presentation combined both of my recent books Extraordinary Awakenings and DisConnected. Here a couple of photos - in the first, I present my model of a ‘Continuum of Connection’ from DisConnected. In the second, I’m reading a poem from my book The Clear Light.

BBC World Service Documentary

This is a fantastic new documentary from the BBC world service, originating from my book Extraordinary Awakenings, telling the amazing story of David Ditchfield's near-death experience (as featured in my book). The documentary features an interview with me too, half way through and at the end. You can listen here:

New Paper

My paper 'A New Day for Perennialism' has just been published in the journal Sophia. For many years academics have been sceptical about the idea of a common landscape of experience underlying spiritual traditions. In this essay, I summarise all of the evidence and arguments in favour of the idea, and against the idea that all spiritual traditions are independent, and all spiritual or mystical experiences are created by religious beliefs or cultural factors. Here is the link

Upcoming Online Conference

On Nov 10th I’m presenting at an online conference on 'The Journey of Awakening: The Unity of Mind, Body & Heart.' The conference emphasizes the integration of body, mind, and heart in the journey of awakening, leading to a fully embodied, aware and compassionate life. There are some fantastic teachers presenting, including Rupert Spira and Judith Blackstone. I'm be leading some exercises and meditations featured in my upcoming book The Adventure. The link to the conference is here

Upcoming Talk In Yorkshire

If you live in the UK, you might be interested in this in person event in November, at Broughton Hall, near Skipton in Yorkshire, based on my book DisConnected.

Link is here

Conference on Time and Consciousness

Right after the above event, I’m participating in a five day residential conference on Time and Consciousness, organised by Ubiquity Univesrity, also at the beautiful Broughton Hall. .Further information is here

Poem

As usual, let me finish with poetry. This is a poem that came to me two weeks ago.

Beyond the Ego

Your ego may persuade you
that your expectations haven’t been met
that you’re not where you’re supposed to be
that you deserve much more than you have
and your past has been too troubled
for you to find contentment now.

Your ego may persuade you
that fulfilment is a distant future goal
that depends on making changes
on overcoming challenges, and achieving goals
on improving yourself or the world
and moving closer to contentment.

Your ego may persuade you
that contentment is a finite resource
a prize you must compete for
that time is running short and you’re falling behind
that you need to try harder, to do more and more
or else your rivals will outdo you
and reach contentment before you.

But don’t be deceived by your ego.
It thrives on your unhappiness.
It confuses and frustrates you
so that you never become still enough
to find the source of true contentment.

The ego knows its hold is fragile.
It knows that as soon as you sense inner peace
you’ll stop listening to its stories
disregard its promises and dismiss its fears.
Then the ego’s power will fade, and you’ll walk free
like a prisoner whose guards have disappeared.

And you’ll sense the radiance of pure being
and the harmony of presence
and the natural deep contentment
that was always there, and always yours
in the quiet space beyond the ego.

All best wishes and blessings, Steve

Calverley Building, Faculty of Health & Social Sciences
Leeds Beckett University
Leeds West Yorkshire LS1 3HE
UNITED KINGDOM

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