 The first time I'm sitting with you, I've just spent three weeks with Mooji in satsang. What's your name? Mayanya. Mayanya. Yes. And I love very much, I resonate very much, what you say. But I'm wondering to me, that essence, that soul, that infinite, part of the infinite that is here, and that ego, that mind, that is here, what is seeing by the things? What is that? Because there is something that's aware of tuning in, singing in that deep presence, available for that impulse, following that impulse every time. And there is that which is aware of that fluctuating ego that is still playing the game of duality and identity. So, I'm just really interested in what is that? It's aware that it's wanting to merge into the infinite, but it's still somehow alive, maybe, between the two. Yeah, I know exactly where your question is coming from, so I maybe need to explain something before I answer the question, which is, when you have actually taken up a practice of self-enquiry, which is conceptual, because you're asking, you know, who am I? What is that that is asking this question? Or, I am not this, for example, I'm not the pain, I'm not the suffering. That is the ego and the mind, or the ego-mind, or the pain-body. All of these enquiries and questionings are happening in only one layer of consciousness, which is inherent to this whole system, which is actually the conceptual. It is that layer of consciousness which thinks, which self-reflects. So, in that layer of consciousness, all this activity is going on of self-reflection, or of neti neti, or of, you know, who am I, and so on. In this practice here, what is done is that an identity is assumed. So, let's say your name is... Myanya. Myanya. And your mother's name is... The niece. And where were you born? In Malawi. So, Myanya, daughter of Bernice from Malawi. You take that as an identity, because if you don't take some sort of a slim identity, they cannot be surrendered. Because then you're always asking, who is surrendering? If I am that, then what is this? What is it that's surrendering and what is it that's seeing the mind? Is that a level of ego? When you say, I am that, it is ego speaking. When you say, I am not this, it is ego speaking. Because the moment you have that identity, it is ego which has created it. So, in order to put some sanity into this insanity, which is Neo Advaita, because classical Advaita Vedanta does not follow this process in the way it has been presented to the world through Neo Advaitin gurus that have actually left surrender out of the mix. So, what is said over here is that it's like a post Neo Advaitin spirituality. What is being said here is take on an identity, because otherwise you go mad. Who is asking the question and who is asking the question about who is asking the question? And the observer is observing the observed and then there is an observer. You know, you've probably also encountered that. It's, you know, one can sit in satsang for months and become mad like this. Because at one point, anything that is asking anything is the ego anyways, until surrender is brought into the picture and not surrender to the Guru, because surrender to the Guru is only one stage in that process. It is finally the Guru who is showing you surrender and surrender to what? Not surrender to the pain, not surrender to the I am, because that's also an ego state. But it is surrender to something which is the soul, which is separate from this. So let's say Mayanya is in surrender to her soul. Just leave everything you know for the moment and just keep it very simple. You are Mayanya, your daughter of Bernice from Malawi. That's what I am. And that Mayanya is the one that is actually surrendering. She is in this moment discerning. Now we have an identity, right, so that identity can discern. We've established it. So Mayanya is discerning. Discerning between the impulse of the soul that she experiences deep down, deep within, and the voice that loud clamoring, demanding, insisting, forcing, pushing, yearning, wanting, opinionating voice of the ego. And that's what she's doing. And then in that state of surrender, she goes with what the truth is actioning her to do. And I live like that most of the time. So it's interesting that this aspect, if you like, has popped up, obviously from mind, is saying this but who is surrendering. That is madness. It's called a walk into madness. Let's walk to the mental institution altogether. That's what it is. Because now you know who you are, your Mayanya. That's enough to know. If you start to ask, who is it that is asking that question? Who is it that is asking, who is it that is asking that question? That is where it takes you. I know because I've met that many people over the years. This is what it is. It's about surrender. They forgot to put it in the mix. All of them did. And that's what this beautiful, beautiful, beautiful thing we have is, it's a short time on this planet. It's a few years, you know. And it's rare in the universe, this experience. And we cannot be wasting this experience by these conceptual forays into madness. Because the whole point is that this is experiencing that. That's all there is to it. It's quite hilarious. It's really quite hilarious. It is hilarious because it's very simple, Mayanya. It is. You just take the middle bit out. Exactly. You take it all out actually. Just throw it in the garbage. You're so beautiful, you know. You're so precious. So gorgeous. Why do you have to know who you are and what is this and that? I obviously don't. I just want to ask you, why is this tolerancing? Because you're on a path which is going to make it arise. It is called Neo-Advaithan. No, I don't think I am on that path because I'm here. And I've followed an impulse today to be here. Actually, all week I've seen you face all those green weeds. I know they've plastered me all over the place. And that too in this red. And now you know why. Because I don't have a beard, you know. If I had a beard, I wouldn't need to have so many posters up. That's the problem. Yes. It's a lovely work with perfumes and scents. We're intuitively like a work and then I came to walk here and I had asked someone for some time and I had half an hour to get to you. And I realized I'd forgotten something. I had to go back. And I was in this. I'm going back. I need to be there. This is where we are. This is where we are. This is where we are. This is where we are. This is where we are. If we arrive there and they let you in, if you don't go, then we're not there. So that's how I'm experiencing this. But when that third bit comes up. The moment there is an eye that is observing it all, then that eye is identified with presence, with supreme presence, and then there's no surrender in the system, the surrender will be taken away from you like that. Can you say that again, please? Yes, because, so the moment, okay, when you take up many of these neo-advaithin practices, what basically happens is you become the observer. So one of the first steps that you are led into is, and which is why it's so exciting and interesting and new, because suddenly you are identified with the observer, so you're just observing, I'm not this pain, I'm not this suffering, I'm not all of this, I'm the presence, you know. But then what is all this pain coming from? Where is it from? What has caused all of this? If you actually go on for a while in that imagination, which is a conceptual statement, I am that, I am the presence, then what happens is that after a while, you're not anymore in connect with anything that's happening around you. And then what happens is that at one point you have to descend back into the reality of this-ness. But then that observer is still lurking around somewhere. And what I'm saying basically is, and you know what I mean, it's what you just said before, that suddenly that pops up, who is actually doing all of this? Because you are identified with the presence. If, however you say, no, I'm not that, I'm this, and I'm in surrender to that, then suddenly it's you, Mayanya, Mayanya, who's in surrender to the soul? You are not that presence. Because if you say I am that or I am the observer, then who is that I? It is a creation of the ego, you know, that is identifying with the soul. That means then the ego is actually saying it's the soul. And then we have a problem. But if you just keep it simple and you say, I, Mayanya, am this, I am this-ness, this, and I'm just bending to the soul. I'm in surrender to the soul. Then you don't have that thing popping up. Because it's here. So that, say, it becomes embodied, there's a kind of image as to find my brain. What we can do is we can just gather the bits and put them in order. Okay? There is no observer. Mayanya is this. And this, Mayanya, is just doing from moment to moment. That's all, that's all this body has to do. It doesn't have to think about 100 things. It's just, this is just doing. So it's, this is in surrender to the truth, to the soul. It's in surrender, it's in surrender. The soul is saying, yes, no, it's binary, yes. So it's doing, I, Mayanya, I'm doing, I'm doing, I'm doing. Mayanya is doing, then is doing, and doing, doing, until this drops. Until what drops? This body, which is every, which is this. It drops when the time comes and that's it. That's all. You're just doing, you're just in surrender. You don't have to think who is observing, what is observing who. Because you will never ever, it'll keep on popping up and make you mad as you get older. As it has done for hundreds of thousands of people who are there in this labyrinth of who am I? Who am I? Mayanya is an experience. It comes as who am I? An experience which arises as a question and never seeks an answer. No, why? How are you going to know who you are? Who's going to tell you? A family, a family, the soul just says yes or no. It doesn't have conversations with me. No. It just... It doesn't have conversations with Mayanya. It just... Exactly. The next moment. The next moment. And the whole point is to be in surrender, to just feel this-ness. And how can you feel this-ness if you're observing yourself? Because then you've split into two. It's one of the greatest aberrations on the spiritual trajectory of humankind ever. Moving into the entire world now over the books and teachings of teachers who actually became enlightened and identified with that and then brought those teachings as something to be actually attained. It is not to be attained. Enlightenment is an aberration. It is a dissolution of identity rather than an embracing of identity, of this-ness. So if you are this, then you don't have to know who's observing anything. And every time that thought pops up, just say it's nonsense and throw it out into the Ganga. You know, just because spiritual masters speak about these things, they are genuine people. It's not that they are trying to... But their genuineness is a past tense genuineness. For me, what happens is I just kind of just out, you know? You're very drifty. Well, I used to be more... But you're less now as you're sitting here already from the first question to now. You're more contoured, you're more present, you know? You have the soul, the antaraatman, the eternal living presence just always impulsing you, you know? Something... It's the ultimate experience of living, the sweet surrender to the soul. And the ultimate expression of the ego is to say, I am that. If you take on that that-ness as your-ness, then this is never going to experience surrender. How? Because then what is presented as that, you surrender to the pain. You cannot surrender to pain. You cannot. You surrender to the truth and the pain reduces and the joy of living increases. It's very simple. It happens. And it happens practically, because you're here and now, you know? You're present. So there are that many, you know, spiritual masters, leaders, teachers, tarot readers, and everybody else who's identifying with the soul. That's the 20th century spiritual aberration. If I am the soul and I'm not all this pain, then I don't have to surrender to anything because I'm the soul. So it's the ego's shortcut back to itself. Exactly, precisely, beautifully put also. It's the most subtle of machinations of the ego to perpetuate itself further into this century. And this teaching here is the first time that anyone in the world that I know of or any of my students knows of that is now confronting this juggernaut that is taken over. Not only the subcontinent, but the large part of the world, hundreds of thousands of spiritual seekers around the world are saying, I am that and I am the soul. I'm not the body, I am the soul. So then why do you need the body? Then dump it and get lost and move out where the soul is, no? It's actually getting lost because you're not the soul. And the soul is the impetus into truth action. That's what it is. And out of fear of thisness, the identification with that happens not because of love of thisness. If you love this, then you're here. So whenever that thought pops up in your head to say, that's nonsense, I'm here now and I'm in surrender to the soul. Thank you.