Novices Come Home to Non-dual Being: A Transpersonal, Existential, Phenomenological Analysis

Awakening into non-duality entails a focus on self-transcendence and movement through different levels of consciousness. Coming to abide in non-dual being involves the end of seeking; an embracement and radical acceptance of nondivision, or not-two, in each moment; and the cultivation of the understanding of ourselves as consciousness itself. Accepting the availability of life as what is, no matter how it manifests, brings one into greater cooperation with the flow of life as we embrace our undivided, natural state of being. Letting go and coming to abide in this state is not without its challenges, as one experiences realizations and insights that can feel like the destruction of one’s entire world and previous understandings. Awakening must occur on the levels of the mind (mental), heart (emotional), and guts (existential), each with their own host of effects, crises, and stumbling blocks. This article focuses on the themes that manifested during the second part of the journeys of novices as they came home to abide in non-dual being and included: Awakening moments and encounters with the abyss; coming to the end of seeking and realizing that there is nothing to do and nowhere to go; learning to live in and trust this one beautiful, yet ordinary moment; experiencing no mind, no self, and no knowing; experiencing expansion, connection, and love by awakening the heart; re-experiencing and residing in one’s own essence, energy, and authenticity; and coming to rest in underlying peace, freedom, and wholeness. These themes are explored in the context of awakening the various levels of consciousness and transcending the final stages of psyche development. The integral role and implications of the non-dual perspective in accelerating and promoting holistic healing in psychotherapy are discussed.