Tantra- The Supreme Understanding Session (1)

Join us for a series of talks, focusing on the greatest position- Tantra. Commentary on the book by Shree Rajneesh written in 1975. Every Wed from June 28-Aug 30. Don't miss it! This is the recording of the first session from June 28th, 2023. Please listen with an open heart, and join us for the next session this coming Wed. July 5th at 6:30 MP MST.

Transcript

Recording and we can do some ceremony to make sure we're all aligned.

Let's sit comfortably on our seat.

And make sure that everything that would bother you is currently off.

And let's take a deep breath in.

And let go.

Let's take another deep breath in.

And relax.

The next breath in,

We keep in,

We don't breathe out.

And slowly breathe out.

And let go.

Let go of all your efforts.

Let go of everything that already happened in the past.

Let go of everything that may happen in the future.

And allow your attention to come back to the present moment.

To whatever is happening right now.

Around you.

Become aware of your surroundings.

All that is currently happening in your environment.

Allow it to happen as it is.

Become aware of your own body as it is seated here on its seat.

Become aware of the posture I took.

And the weight of your body.

Relax into this posture.

You may scan your body.

From the tip of your toes to the top of your head.

Making sure there is no tension hiding anywhere in your body.

Comfortable and relaxed.

Another deep breath in.

Let go more and more.

Become aware of the space of air surrounding your body.

One meter cylinder of space around your body.

Become aware of the feeling of that air touching your skin.

Become aware of your own breath as it naturally happens.

With no effort.

Become aware of that space of air around you.

And the breath.

That sucks air out of that space.

Filling your lungs.

With oxygen.

Life.

And then collects that air from your lungs.

In the opposite direction.

To exhale it back to that space of air around you.

Just observe as that air moves in and out of your body.

Without effort.

Effortlessly.

If your thought is drifting away to a different reality.

Just recognize that and bring back your attention to the present breath you are taking.

That space of air outside of you.

And that internal space of air within you.

Become aware how they dance.

The external becomes the internal.

And the internal turns to become the external.

You just observe and allow this natural phenomena.

And as you observe.

Become aware how the difference between the external and the internal.

Dims out.

And fades away.

Dims out.

And fades away.

Allow yourself to expand.

Beyond the boundaries of your own skin.

Allow yourself.

To expand beyond all boundaries.

Into the vast space.

Expand more and more.

Beyond all space and time.

Expand beyond all definitions.

Until there is no movement.

There is only silence.

For a moment.

Become that silence.

And just take another deep breath in.

And gently allow your attention to come back to your body.

And to your mind.

And to your heart.

As seated here in this room.

A part of our circle.

Let's unite our individual intentions.

Into one unified intention.

The intention to grow.

To develop.

To evolve.

With a smile,

Let's take another deep breath in.

And we go.

And when you feel comfortable.

Open your eyes.

So.

How are we doing?

Hope you're all excited as I am.

Because we are going to embark on a fantastic journey.

The most amazing.

Journey you can take.

Towards the essence of consciousness.

And this journey is going to challenge.

Your very being.

Your very concept of self.

First because you might be.

Pre-concerned about agreeing or disagreeing.

And then because you would realize there is nothing to agree.

Or disagree about.

And.

We are going to follow a song.

So I've already spoken a bit about that.

In the intro talk.

But just briefly we're going to.

Remind us of some of the people that would listen to this recording.

What are we doing here?

So.

800 years.

800 years ago.

A guy.

In northern India.

Experienced a very special state of consciousness.

And.

After.

Integrating that experience into his.

Body.

He.

Felt.

He.

Felt the calling to teach what he is experiencing to other people.

But he wouldn't.

Teach it to just anyone that was willing to listen.

He was waiting to find.

A.

Student.

A disciple that would be ready to.

Receive what he had to.

Express.

But he couldn't find one.

He was looking and looking.

He was traveling all over India.

And he couldn't find one.

And.

The story says that he was.

Prepared to let go of the idea that would he would ever find anyone.

That would be ripe enough.

To receive that knowledge.

But he did.

Miraculously.

Probably in.

In the territory that we now know as Tibet.

We're not certain about that.

The guy was called Niroppa and his student was called.

The guy was called Tilopa and his student was called Niroppa.

And.

He was able to teach and express.

His experience in the most beautiful way.

In the form of a poem.

Because.

As you would soon find out he.

Was not able to.

Put it into concepts.

And literally.

Explain or describe what he is experiencing.

But only as a form of a song.

It was a song of the heart.

So Niroppa was.

Sharp enough to write it down.

And.

He became a teacher after Tilopa died and.

Had a student.

One student.

And we know that that student had another student and they are.

And then the lineage ended.

As far as we know,

There were no other students.

Apparently the third student,

The third generation could not find.

A ripe fourth generation.

So.

That lineage was lost.

But the poem remained.

And that's why.

Because it was.

Written,

We have this opportunity.

800 years later to come back to that literature and.

Extract knowledge of it.

So beautiful.

In 1975.

A spiritual teacher called Osho.

Was giving his commentary about this text.

In a beautiful book called the Supreme Understanding.

And we are going to.

Use that guidance.

Of Osho and the inspiration of Tilopa to follow their path.

Called Tantra.

The Supreme Understanding.

Today we're going to spread it into 10 sessions.

Following the 10 chapters of that poem.

And.

We have that text over there.

We can.

Maybe spread it around.

So.

We're going to follow this text.

And slowly unwrap.

The many,

Many gifts.

It brings us.

So who wants to be the narrator?

Who would like to read the first chapter of this poem?

But when you read it,

You read it as if it was.

Sacred text.

Like with all honor.

Who would like to be the.

Narrator.

All right.

Go for it.

Tantra.

Oh,

Tantra.

The Supreme Understanding.

Chapter one.

The ultimate experience.

In his song of Mahamudra.

Tilopa says.

Mahamudra is beyond all words.

And symbols.

But for you.

Naropa.

Earnest and loyal.

Must this be said.

The void means no reliance.

Mahamudra rests on not.

Without making an effort.

But remaining loose and natural.

One can break the yoke.

Thus gaining liberation.

Let that frequency.

Wake up in.

In his song of Mahamudra.

Tilopa says.

So first of all,

So beautiful.

It cannot be described.

Or expressed.

The only way I can.

Share my experiences by singing it.

You know,

It's like.

How do you call it?

Abstract art.

No,

There is no real form that I can put in.

But my feeling is expressed in abstract way.

And this is what Tilopa is trying to do with his words.

So the first.

Sentence.

The first words that he is altering is.

Mahamudra is beyond all words and symbols.

There is no idea,

No concept,

No word that can.

We can use to put it to frame.

State of consciousness.

Because every idea that we might.

Describe would be.

Artificially limiting it.

Right,

Think about when you have a concept about something.

That puts a limit because.

Beyond that,

That something doesn't exist,

Right?

The concept is a symbol.

Right,

The concept is a sort of a fence.

Right within that the borders of that fence that something exists.

But beyond that it doesn't exist.

So how can you put borders on the infinite?

It's.

Contradicting in terms,

Right?

There is no way you can.

Frame it.

OK,

This is it.

I got it.

It's beyond all words and symbols.

There is no picture.

There is no.

Statue.

There is no.

Thing that can hold Mahamudra.

What is Mahamudra?

Maha is the.

Biggest.

Right,

There is big,

Bigger,

Biggest.

And there is Maha.

Like it's the ultimate big.

Bigger than big.

Vast.

Eternal.

And mudra is a posture or position.

Mahamudra is the ultimate,

The biggest position you can have.

And that position is indescribable.

There's no point in trying to express it or explain it or.

You know.

Describe it in any way.

But I'm going to do it anyway.

The nerve on this guy,

Right?

Is.

Starting at the end of the journey saying,

Forget about it.

It's not going to happen.

You're not going to get it.

I won't be able to explain it.

So we are wasting our time.

This is how we start the journey.

It's not something that we can do.

So stop trying to figure it out.

It's not going to happen.

So beautiful.

Have you ever met a teacher taking you on a course in a journey?

Telling you that what you are about to do is impossible.

So,

Tom Bar.

This is Tilopa.

This is how he engaged with Naropa.

First words he's uttering.

It's beyond words and beyond symbols.

I cannot explain it to you.

I cannot express it to you.

It's impossible.

Now you can relax.

Realizing that this is not something you go,

You're going to be able to win.

You're not going to be able to grasp or to get the point.

It's not something that you can agree on.

Or say,

Okay,

Now I understand.

I got it.

It's futile.

It's pointless.

How can you express an experience when there is no experiencer anymore?

There is even nothing to.

.

.

When there is no experiencer,

There is nothing to express.

There is nothing to explain.

Because in order to explain,

There must be someone looking at something,

Right?

Saying,

Okay,

This is what I see.

This is how I feel.

But there is.

.

.

Tilopa is not there.

There is no unity.

There is no entity separated from the experience.

So,

This duality doesn't exist.

So,

Who is explaining what?

Do you see what I'm saying?

This is just futile.

And there is a student sitting there trying to understand,

To figure it out.

And there is nobody that can explain anything,

About anything.

So,

There is just.

.

.

Instead of that curiosity that tries to get the point,

There is only.

.

.

Trust.

There is only trust.

Now,

We need to define three different definitions.

One is doubt.

The other one is faith.

And the third one is trust.

Doubt is that faculty in us that observes with caution,

Right?

There is always the,

But what if,

What if?

You know,

That negative.

.

.

Negativity within us that tries always to find the other side,

The other point of view,

Right?

This is doubt.

Faith is that,

The opposite of doubt,

No?

I believe it will be okay.

I want,

Like,

I want to be positive about it.

Forget about the doubt.

I want to,

I want to try to come close to that.

I want to try to have that.

So,

I'm trying to overcome my doubts or subdue them so they won't interfere.

But still,

You see,

There is a gap between me and what I'm aiming to achieve.

Because there is this intellect that is either doubting or trying to believe,

Okay,

This,

He is right,

I believe him.

Like in religion,

Right?

You follow a course that was set by teachers that were on this path before you,

And you believe them.

So you choose to follow them because you believe that what they say is right or beneficial.

But trust is a different state of mind.

It grows beyond this duality of no,

No,

No,

No,

Yes,

Yes,

Yes,

I believe so.

Trust is beyond that.

Trust allows intimacy.

It grows beyond the intellect that agrees or disagrees.

Trust allows intimacy.

In intimacy,

Tantra can appear,

Can reveal itself.

Without that,

It's a mental game that will never end.

So trust is a key factor here as we embark on this journey.

You will hear your intellect trying to figure it out again and again and again.

I guarantee,

Just remind the intellect when it happens that there is no way he will understand.

And that trying to understand is between you and the direct experience of it.

So when you feel that need to understand,

To get the point,

Just know,

You know,

It's not gonna happen.

It's not gonna,

The breakthrough is not gonna be here.

Ah,

Got it.

This is not gonna happen.

So Mahamudra is beyond all words and symbols.

But for you,

Isn't that beautiful?

But for you,

I have no choice but,

Because of you.

But for you,

Naropa,

Earnest and loyal.

This must be said.

It's not that I have an opinion or judgment here or a choice.

This must be said.

Why?

Because of you.

The impossible task is going to happen through me because of you.

Think about it.

Think about the role of this idea.

Think about the role of a disciple in this dance.

Tilopa could have died 800 years ago.

And we've never ever heard about the name or whatever,

His amazing state of consciousness.

But we do because of Naropa and because Tilopa recognized that invitation,

That innocence,

That ripeness.

He says,

Loyal and earnest.

Earnest.

How do you say the definition of earnest?

What is it?

Earnest is eager.

Eager.

I think it's trickling along the borderline of humility as well.

Humility.

Dedicated.

Yeah.

It describes a lot.

Yeah.

And loyal.

And earnest.

Trustworthy.

Like he is.

.

.

Trustworthy and trusting.

And trusting.

And loyal.

Yeah.

What other qualities do you think a successful disciple must have to to be able to you know,

Persuade the teacher that was on the verge of being hopeless to engage in an impossible task?

Persistence.

Persistence.

Honesty.

Honesty.

Devotion.

Devotion is such a beautiful word.

The disciple cannot sit there arguing with the teacher.

You know?

Or trying to persuade the teacher that he already knows.

There must be humility in it.

Otherwise,

If the barrel is full,

You know,

There is no to fill it more.

It has to be.

.

.

It's like a vacuum that.

.

.

There is no way but to suck in everything out of the teacher,

Right?

So,

Humility.

What else?

I think inside of all that there's got to be an element of tirelessness.

Tirelessness.

Yeah,

Just like the commitment,

Like tirelessness around the commitment to just be there to absorb or take it in or to be present and then just to have that level of like the devotion like Carly said.

Yeah.

And I think I told you that in the past another very important factor is that the set of priority is right with the disciple.

Meaning,

There's nothing more important than his longing for the truth.

Nothing can win over that.

Nothing can be more attractive than that.

You know,

Life has this tendency to grab our attention,

Right?

There is so many things happening and drama here and a drama there and my my attention is required here and there and my set of priorities is easily shattered.

And I find myself,

You know,

Drifting away from something that was so important for me just two weeks ago and now I'm completely lost.

You know what I mean?

Have you experienced that?

I've heard of such things.

So a successful disciple has that set of priorities organized and it's unshattered.

Nothing in the daily life can threaten that.

And every time there is an opportunity to get carried away,

In real time,

He's able to remind himself,

No,

No,

No,

This is more important for me.

People always ask,

You know,

How do I grow beyond the drama of the daily routine,

You know?

And I said,

The day that the silence becomes more attractive to you than the drama,

That's the day it will stop carrying you away.

When silence becomes more attractive than the drama,

Even though the drama is very flashy,

You know,

And full of light and action and it's dramatic,

You know,

It's.

.

.

Immediately we go there.

Like when you look at the skies,

First your eyes are not looking at the sky,

You know,

The skies.

First your eyes are caught in the clouds because there are objects that you can follow.

Oh,

This one looks like a rabbit,

This one looks like whatever.

It's very easy to disregard the blue because it's just the background of everything.

Same with our consciousness,

You know,

The background is usually just obscured by all those things that happen.

And we are caught in that.

So for you,

Naropa,

Ernst and Loyal,

Must this be said.

I have no opinion or judgment about that.

There is no choice.

I have to say to you,

But I cannot explain it,

So I'm going to sing it to you.

So the song begins.

The void needs no reliance.

Mahamudra rests on not.

Immediately we come to a space where we are trying to express in words something that exists beyond words,

Which is quite ridiculous.

The void needs no reliance.

The void needs no reliance.

A thing needs a reliance.

Something,

Anything needs a reliance,

Needs something.

If there is a thing,

There is always something to rely on,

Right,

To compare it with.

OK,

There is a big thing,

And then there is a small thing.

There is a thing up there,

And so there will be a thing down here.

There was this Greek mythologist who said that,

Who was it,

I think it was,

I forgot,

Hercules?

Who said,

He said,

No,

You,

Maybe you remember,

He said,

Give me a,

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I can recognize it.

Right?

So I need to know white,

I need to know black,

And I need to see the difference in order to recognize that this is white.

I know that this is high because I can recognize that this is low and I can compare.

Interact is able to compare by three concepts.

This is beyond concept and beyond duality.

So there is nothing to relate to in order to explain or express this to ourselves.

Beyond the duality,

It rests in the not.

This is another important verb.

It rests in the not.

Effortlessly.

Effortlessly.

Tantra cannot be achieved.

It's not a result of an effort.

Tantra is not the end,

You know,

The trophy that you get at the end of your efforts.

The more you try,

The further it goes away.

That's why it makes,

This is so elusive and frustrating for the seeker,

You know,

He sits there in front of his teacher,

Longing for the truth.

And the teacher starts by saying,

Eh,

Forget about it,

It's not gonna happen.

And then tells him that if he tries to come closer to it,

It will only get further away from him.

What the hell?

What am I doing here,

Right?

Maybe that's why there's only four people in this room and not 40.

I remember the first time I heard it from a guy who used to be my teacher,

It was like a slap in the face for me.

What do you mean?

There is something that I want and I can't achieve?

This is something that I want more than anything else,

And you're telling me that I can't achieve it,

I can't obtain it?

What's the point?

Why am I here?

Why am I paying money for this?

You know?

And deeper than that,

It's like longing for the unobtainable.

Wow,

This is so painful.

At least for me,

It was a slap in the face.

I don't know,

I don't know.

I don't know what to do.

Ma'amudra rests in the north.

It's not a question of effort or how much you try or how much you stress yourself to get there.

And it rests in the north.

Not in the realm of the north,

Happenings,

Ideas,

Concepts,

Phenomena,

Everything that you can experience that has a beginning and an end.

Ma'amudra rests in the north.

It's like the background that I referred to earlier.

It's like,

It's a non-phenomena.

Not the clouds that are so easily stealing our attention.

It's like chasing a ghost that has no form.

Without making an effort,

But remaining lost in the world.

Loose and natural.

Effortlessly.

Remaining loose.

What does it mean,

Remaining loose?

Think about it.

How easy it is for us to stress out of situations and what people say and do around us.

How easy for us is to contract.

The whole sadhana that was invented thousands of years ago is designed to help us loosen up and wash away this contracted body.

That stress that is built through years and years of resisting and avoiding being drawn into the drama.

Isn't it?

Remaining loose,

Meaning that contraction doesn't happen anymore.

And for me,

It works hand in hand with that sincerity of the disciple that keeps reminding itself again and again what's most important in life for him or her.

Because it's so easy to forget.

And once we forget,

We are going away from our path towards stressing out.

This should have happened,

That should have happened.

I'm for that,

I'm against that.

And the duality in your intellect,

In your mind,

Tears you apart from within.

Split consciousness.

I'm washing the dishes,

But I truly believe that somebody else should have done it.

That's the definition of stressing out,

Suffering.

And in that state of consciousness,

You cannot be loose.

Tantra cannot be experienced.

First of all,

Because there is an experiencer arguing with the experience.

And then that experiencer in itself is split.

So in that broken interaction,

Tantra cannot be experienced,

For sure.

So remaining loose,

Meaning going beyond anything that can stress you again.

Reminding yourself in real time when you see that your attention goes there.

No,

No,

No,

No,

No,

No,

No,

This is more important.

That movement back to your center is what defines a successful disciple.

Being able to recognize in real time,

Uh-huh,

No,

No,

No,

No,

No,

No,

No,

I'm back here.

This is more important for me.

I want to be able to be here,

To be now,

To open my heart so much that I'm going to melt into this existence.

I'm trusting my path so much that I'm willing to submit myself 100% to whatever is happening right now.

Why?

Because this is the most important thing for me.

And there's nothing,

Nothing else that can overcome,

Be bigger than that,

More powerful than that,

More persuasive than that.

Remaining loose and natural.

What does it mean to be natural?

Hmm?

What do you think?

What does it mean to be natural?

I think somehow just aligning with the essence of energy that is present or flowing through or within me,

Getting into examining things,

Just allowing things to flow and just being.

Being with the flow of energy.

Mm-hmm.

What do you think?

What does it mean to be natural?

It's hard to describe natural without using the word natural.

Mm-hmm.

Mm-hmm.

I'm like the ultimate resting and trusting place that starts and ends everything.

Say it again.

The ultimate trusting place that starts and ends everything.

The ultimate trusting place that starts and ends everything.

And nothing.

And nothing.

Okay.

I don't know how to follow that up.

I hate it.

It was big.

I would say just not to force anything or to be critical,

But just to be as you are.

Right.

Okay.

Very good.

What does it mean to be natural?

I think of just being as we are meant to be,

Just untainted,

Just unscathed by things,

Just we are as we are.

Right.

Very good.

Yeah,

Being natural,

You know,

It's such a unique realization.

For me,

Being natural means stop trying to be somebody.

We all have different hats that we juggle with.

You know,

We are trying to be somebody at work,

Professional,

Reliable,

Trustworthy,

You know.

I try to be somebody with my friends,

You know,

Open and happy and social,

Whatever.

I'm trying to be somebody with my family,

The good boy,

The obedient or whatever,

You know,

Whatever my parents are expecting me to be.

I'm trying to play a part so I will be accepted by the society that surrounds me in a certain situation.

But I'm so caught up by this role-playing that I forget who I am in that.

Trying to please everybody so I could be accepted and respected and loved.

Then I don't remember who I am anymore.

And maybe I never knew.

I was so busy trying to be somebody,

I've never stopped to ask myself who I am.

Being natural is stop trying to be somebody.

And just relax in what you are.

Just relax in what you are.

This is so,

Such precious knowledge,

You know.

To have this courage of stop trying to play a part and to make everybody happy,

To please everyone.

Anyway,

You know,

It's impossible.

You are able to please this guy so the other guy is upset.

Right,

You please your sibling,

The other sibling is whatever.

There was people who always have opinions about you and who should you be and how you should behave.

It's impossible trying to keep everybody happy.

The only way to truly,

Successfully walk through life,

Through situations,

Through relationships is being true to yourself.

But if you never know who you are,

How can you be true to it?

You're just lost in that image of who you want to be or how you want to be perceived,

Right?

And you don't even remember what,

Who you are and what is your true nature.

So how can we reconnect to that?

The first word that comes to mind is the ability to trust.

Trust that this path will protect you,

That you don't need to worry,

That somebody takes care of you,

Somebody takes care of you,

Something takes care of you.

That relieves you of that burden to be on guard,

To stay alert,

To protect,

Making sure that you don't lose and you win enough.

The ability to just surrender to your self,

To your path,

To your master.

And that is such a unique feature of a successful disciple.

Stop worrying about what other people think about you,

What would they say,

Stop being a football of other people's opinions.

And just allow yourself to jump into the waters of the unknown,

Of the mystery.

Trusting that you are taken care of,

You don't need to stay on guard.

And then once you are relieved of that duty of be someone,

Being someone,

A huge space within you is open up to express itself,

To experience life without the obligation of doing it the right way,

Doing it in a certain way that would match who you want to be or what you think people expect you to be.

That's why an enlightened consciousness is not,

Doesn't carry that load,

That heavy load.

That's why it's so light,

Because it doesn't care.

It doesn't care what other people think.

It doesn't try to please other people or play a certain part.

That's why when you meet an enlightened master,

It could be so different every time you meet him.

It could be so stable and heavy or it could be so light and playful.

It could be masculine,

It could be feminine.

There's no identification with any role.

There's no identification with any part that it's supposed to be playing.

It's just unconditional love that expresses itself in the most accurate way to meet the circumstance.

You see what I'm saying?

So being natural means you are relieved of that duty of being someone,

Anyone.

So now you're available.

Now you're available.

Remaining loose and natural.

Free from preconditioning,

Free from your own story about yourself,

Free from that weight of what other people might think,

And will I gain what I think I need from them?

Free from expectations within relationships and in relationship to life itself.

Free from any expectation that life is supposed to give me something.

Supposed to be able to give me something.

Supposed to be able to gain something out of this interaction with life.

Free from any conditioning whatsoever.

Loose and natural.

So the disciple is sitting here and is vacant.

Can you sense that energy?

The disciple is there vacant.

There is no expectation.

There is no demand.

There is no.

.

.

There is no ask.

I need,

You give.

There is none of that anymore.

There is only loose and natural.

Existence.

Would you say like being unencumbered would describe that in terms of the vacancy?

If I knew the word in English.

Oh.

Explain.

Just not bound to any sort of attachment of anything.

Yeah.

Yeah,

No attachment.

Not even for the spiritual realm.

Like,

You know,

Okay,

People think I will disattach from the material life and I will just focus on the spiritual realm and I will strive to come closer and closer to enlightenment.

People have an idea about enlightenment.

And Tilopa is saying,

I'm saying,

No attachment to anything,

Not even that spiritual goal.

There is no goal.

There is nowhere to go,

Tilopa is saying basically.

There is nowhere to go.

There is nothing to do.

There is no rainbow at the end of the,

Whatever.

A film at the end of the rainbow?

Yeah,

That's that.

Stop hoping for something to happen.

Enlightenment is not something that is going to happen later.

Forget about it.

It's wrong,

It's a misconception.

People think,

You know,

Oh wow,

They work so hard,

They devoted their life and eventually they got enlightened.

It doesn't work like that.

It's not an achievement.

It's not a goal that you put on your spiritual path.

It will never happen later in a different reality or when you are more ready.

Look,

Even when Tilopa met Niropa,

He didn't wait for Niropa to,

He didn't see the potential in him and said,

Okay,

I will raise him to the point where he can,

No,

No,

He was ready,

That's it.

That's an amazing realization because you know,

So many relationships are based on the hope that your partner will change.

How many people you know,

Know that,

Yeah,

I'm with him because I know he has this potential.

What you see is what you get.

This is an illusion that,

You know,

We develop into something bigger,

Something better that eventually will blossom into enlightenment.

Enlightenment is who you are,

Where you are right now,

Or it's never going to happen.

You are that.

Not you will become that.

You are that.

And as long as you believe you are not,

You will never be.

So loose and natural,

Meaning you lose any hope of a better circumstance,

More complete,

More perfect version of yourself.

You know,

It doesn't matter where you put your expectations.

The situation should change.

Maybe when I retire,

I have time for that.

Or maybe if I have enough money in the bank,

Or maybe when the kids leave the house,

Or maybe when I get married,

Or maybe when I divorce.

You put so many conditions on you,

On your path.

Situation should change.

Or I,

I myself am not ready.

I'm not mature enough.

I have too many issues and complexes.

Complicities and so much work to do.

Maybe one day,

Maybe in a few lifetimes.

As long as you believe,

You create that gap.

As long as you believe that gap to be true,

You guarantee that this will never happen.

This will never be experienced because it's already happening.

That's the point.

Effortlessly.

So without making an effort,

But remaining loose and natural,

One can break the yoke,

Thus gaining liberation.

What is a yoke?

You know,

It's that very thin,

How do you call it?

Shield?

Membrane.

Membrane,

Like a membrane.

Very thin membrane.

Like when you,

What holds the yellow in the egg,

Right?

This is a yoke.

Barely can see it.

So what is he trying to describe?

One can break the yoke.

People think,

You know,

Enlightenment is just so,

Where am I and where is enlightenment?

It's like earth and skies.

I'm so far away.

There's so much work for me to do.

It takes so much effort and dedication.

And only really lucky people who can,

Whatever,

Dedicate themselves,

Or,

You know,

They have no obligations or whatever.

Or born at the right time,

Under the right skies.

Only the lucky,

Fortunate people.

But me?

Oof.

What I do,

I put an armed shield around me,

Making sure I will never be exposed.

I put it there.

With all the stories that I keep telling myself about myself and how unworthy I am of this.

Unprepared,

Uncooked.

And this shield is protecting me from the pain that life endures,

Life suggests.

We spoke about that,

No?

That shield is useful because it does protect us from the pain.

But unfortunately,

It also protect us from the pleasure of life.

It also protect us from the pleasure.

And we keep away from life.

We keep distant from life.

We live in a cocoon,

In a comfort zone,

Where we feel protected,

Where we feel in control,

Where we feel that we can manage that level of pain.

Tilopa says,

No,

No,

No,

No,

No.

This armor has to be removed.

An enlightened consciousness cannot be terrified about life.

You see,

You need to protect yourself because you're afraid,

Otherwise,

What's the point?

So if you're not afraid anymore,

The shield drops.

And then what is revealed,

It's only a very thin yoke.

Just a very thin layer of misunderstanding,

Of,

It's like a light sleep.

And it's easy to wake up from a light sleep.

The illusion of,

Huge barrier that stands between me and an awakened consciousness,

That has to drop.

And then you find out there is nothing much there that separates you.

It's only a very thin layer of misconception.

What?

A break?

Okay,

Let's take a 10 minute break.

Excellent.

So we are back on recording.

Yes.

So,

I'm going to take a 10 minute break.

I'm going to take a 10 minute break.

I'm going to take a 10 minute break.

I'm going to take a 10 minute break.

Yes.

So,

Slowly start sinking in,

I hope,

That realization that we are seeking the unseekable.

We are hoping for the hopeless.

We are aiming for the unattainable.

So,

Really the question here comes to every one of you.

Are you willing to surrender the hope of attaining this,

Of achieving this,

While staying on the path?

The path to nowhere,

As the song says.

We are on the path to nowhere,

Where there is nowhere to go and nothing to do.

Nowhere to reach.

No personal gain of any sort,

Of any kind.

It's even more dangerous.

Once it's realized that you are on the path to nowhere,

Once it's realized there is no one to relate to that anymore.

There is no one to say,

Yes,

I've got it.

There is no one to say,

Okay,

I've done it.

I've achieved that state.

That I that has achieved,

Dissolved.

It's not just the I stopped hoping.

The I itself dissolved.

Are you willing to risk that I and still be on the path?

There is no,

Not just the hope is gone,

The I is gone.

Or at least my attachment to it,

Of being someone successful,

Spiritual,

Whatever.

And still remaining on the path,

Sitting here,

Natural and loose.

With no expectations.

You have to agree that this is the most unique invitation.

I guarantee nobody asked that from you ever before.

Join me,

I'm going to take you nowhere and you're going to lose everything.

Yeah,

See ya.

But this is Tilopa's invitation.

And this is Niyam's invitation.

And this is Niropa's trust in his master.

Yes,

I'm with you.

I trust you.

I surrender.

Thy will be done.

I have nothing to gain or lose.

I'm not a factor anymore.

My personal life has no value.

Everything I was hoping is proving to be pointless.

The attitude of trust and surrender is so unique.

That set of priorities is so unique.

And what's amazing about it is that I cannot even choose to do that.

Okay,

Yes,

You know what?

This sounds right.

I'm going to harness all my energy to that.

People say,

Okay,

Yes,

Okay.

I'm inspired.

I'm going to do it.

I'm going to be that Niropa.

But there is that I.

There's still this I that is trying to achieve,

Trying to get it.

That stands in the way,

Stands between you and direct experience.

So,

Back to square one.

Are you willing to be here,

Completely vacant?

Like an empty space,

Empty shell that has no agenda,

No expectations,

No motivation of any sort.

And just open your heart to whatever is happening.

Trustful.

That's the invitation.

Then Tilopa says,

One can break the yoke.

Thus gaining liberation.

This is tricky.

That last sentence of this first chapter is tricky.

Because if you're alert,

You would say,

What do you mean?

One can break the yoke.

There is one who breaks.

There is one who takes action and is doing something in order to gain liberation.

Who is gaining liberation?

Who is gaining?

Strange,

No?

Wouldn't you say?

I mean,

Contradicts everything that we've just talked about the whole evening.

One can break the yoke.

Thus gaining liberation.

The only way I can explain this last sentence is by reminding us that this path of Tantra,

Of Mahamudra,

Exists beyond any position.

So deliberately,

Tilopa is contradicting himself.

An awakened consciousness cannot be attached to any idea,

To any position,

To any concept,

As just or right or spiritual or whatever it may seem.

This is the way.

Okay,

I got it.

This is the way.

So I have to be this and that and follow this and that and this.

Okay,

Got it.

But Tantra exists beyond that idea.

Because any idea has a contradicting idea.

Any concept has an opposite concept.

But Tantra exists beyond those duality,

This duality.

So in order to be able to flex your mind enough,

He contradicts himself.

And now he says,

No,

No,

You are breaking the yoke and you gain liberation.

Just so you feel uncomfortable in that position of,

I thought I got it,

But now he is telling me the opposite.

What the hell is going on?

I can tell you from experience,

Being in front of my Master,

You go to a satsang in the evening and he is speaking about something and you feel blissful.

Wow,

This is like God speaking the truth.

It's amazing.

That's exactly right.

It cannot be described more clearly and coherently.

And then you come the next day and he is talking about the same thing,

The opposite about it.

And you are saying,

Wow,

This is amazing.

This is like God speaking.

This is exactly how it is.

It cannot be described more coherently.

And then the third night you say,

What?

What happened here?

I mean,

How is that possible?

And it's possible because the truth exists beyond the contradicting ideas that you have in your mind.

And it's just a matter of the perception,

Perspective of your observing mind,

Currently observing that concept,

That idea.

So an awakened consciousness is not afraid to contradict itself.

On the contrary,

They do it deliberately,

Just so that you won't get hung up on any position.

Or you can hold on to the idea that,

Yes,

There is something there that I can do,

And I can attain that,

I can gain that.

I can do that.

Tillop said so.

It's okay,

You can hold on to that belief.

If it helps you stay on the path.

As I said,

For me it was like a slap in the face,

Realizing there is nothing I can do.

It's not up to me.

And then after I let go of the hope that I can do something to achieve it,

Something opened up.

I was available.

Before that I was striving,

Preoccupied with the hope to attain.

But when that hope dropped,

I was available.

And what is liberation?

Liberated from what?

What are we talking about?

Moksha.

Liberation.

What is that?

Does it mean that before that we were in chains?

Like we were captives?

What does it mean to be liberated?

From what?

The constraints of the duality,

The encumberment of attachments.

The constraints.

The striving to get somewhere.

Or like you said,

To be somebody.

To be somebody,

Yeah.

Or like a pursuit.

After.

Understanding,

Enlightenment.

Okay.

Liberated from what?

What does it mean,

Liberation?

Perceived captivity.

I love that story about the cage.

We believe that we are surrounded by a cage.

And the bars of the cage are made up of our fears.

Fear of losing,

Fear of not gaining,

Fear of losing control.

We've discussed that,

No?

So the bars are the fears that keep us in.

Protected,

But locked.

And few people believe that this cage has a door.

And even fewer people try to play with the lock and see if it can be opened.

And even fewer people actually open the door and walk outside of this cage.

Only to realize that that cage doesn't exist.

When they turn back and look at that cage,

It's not there.

There is no cage.

But you have to be outside to see that.

When you're inside,

Locked,

It looks very real.

That's breaking the yoke.

You don't need to put effort to break something that doesn't exist.

Right?

Liberation from your own perception.

From your own mind,

From your own ideas about yourself.

From your own identity.

From your own role as a person,

As a human being.

Liberated from your own stories about yourself,

About life.

Liberated from your attachment to the drama.

Liberated from your own fears and judgment.

Liberated from any concept or idea you have about anything.

Liberated from the hope.

Liberated from the doubt.

Liberated.

Which concludes the first chapter of this poem.

I hope it was easy.

It was easy,

Huh?

So.

.

.

Yeah,

I mean.

.

.

I would like to invite you to take this text with you.

Read it.

Read it every night before you go to sleep.

Ponder about it.

There's energy between the words.

There's an invitation there that resonates.

Allow that to resonate.

To wake up your dormant cells.

This text is so charged.

It's unbelievably alive.

Use it.

Absorb it to your self.

Absorb it to your daily life.

Don't try to understand.

Don't try to understand.

Don't try to make sense of it.

Don't try to figure it out.

To get the point.

It's not about getting the point.

Just open your heart and absorb it.

Surrender to it.

To the invitation that it brings.

And next week we're going to.

.

.

Continue to the second chapter.

As we dive deeper and deeper and deeper into the essence of the self.

And now I would like to invite us all to conclude this meeting with a love song.

This is a love song that was written by an artist called Krishna Das.

Who wrote a love song to his master.

So it's a love song written by a disciple to his master.

And.

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.

And.

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.

It really fits into this session as it's all about the love and trust between a master and his disciple that allowed this to happen today.

So.

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.

If we haven't sang bhajan before,

It's very easy.

You just close your eyes,

Like meditation.

And you follow that sound,

That beat,

That rhythm.

And as you hear a sentence,

You just repeat it.

You'll see it's very natural.

You don't have to understand it's in Sanskrit.

Just repeat the sentence after the lead singer and join full-heartedly.

And it will happen by itself.

Don't worry about the rest of it.

So I need to connect.

It's technologically challenged.

See all.

This is JBL.

JBL.

JBL.

Voice dance.

Bluetooth.

Pair.

JBL.

Yes.

Ready?

Just invite that connection between a disciple and his master.

Carly,

Why doesn't it play?

I don't understand.

Spotify.

It's 0.

03 seconds and it doesn't run.

Even though it's connected.

Which song is it?

Which song is it?

Baba.

.

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The one that was open.

Baba Hanuman.

Yes.

Namo.

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Namo.

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Panchenam.

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Namo.

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Namo.

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Namo.

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Panchenam.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Baba Hanuman.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Sangatam Ocham Nirmala Nithyanandam.

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Sangatam Ocham Nirmala Nithyanandam.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Sangatam Ocham Nirmala Nithyanandam.

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Sangatam Ocham Nirmala Nithyanandam.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Deje Nama Goza.

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Vipak Rahu Gurudev Kinai.

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Sangatam Ocham Nirmala Nithyanandam.

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Lama Lankote Lama Nishan.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Khyasiyaram Deje Nama.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Namo Nanda Ram Ram.

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Allow that frequency to keep on vibrating in you as you go home.

With a big smile,

Take another deep breath in.

When you feel comfortable,

You may open your eyes.

Thank you very much.

I love your presence here.

It's not too late to invite your friends.

They can always listen to the recording of this meeting and join us next week.

There is always room for more.

We are going to meet again,

Same day,

Same time,

Next week.

Same bad time,

Same bad time.

Some people ask,

What is it about?

Nothing.

Exactly.

You got it.