consciousnessthat youcanimagine.Insomerarecases,this
shift in consciousness happens dramatically and radically,
once and for all. When it does, it usually comes about
through total surrender in the midst of intense suffering.
Mostpeople,however,havetoworkatit.
When you have had your first few glimpses of the
timelessstateofconsciousness,youbegintomovebackand
forthbetweenthedimensionsoftimeandpresence.Firstyou
becomeawareofjusthowrarelyyourattentionistrulyinthe
Now.Buttoknowthatyouarenotpresentisagreatsuccess:
thatknowingispresence—evenifinitiallyitonlylastsfora
coupleofseconds ofdocktimebeforeitislostagain.Then,
with increasing frequency, you choose to havethe focus of
yourconsciousnessinthe present momentrather thaninthe
pastorfuture,andwheneveryourealizethatyouhadlostthe
Now, you are able to stay in it not just for a couple of
seconds, but for longer periods as perceived from the
external perspective of dock time. Sobefore you are firmly
established in the state of presence, which is to say before
youarefullyconscious,you shiftbackandforthforawhile
between consciousness and unconsciousness, between the
state of presence and the state of mind identification. You
lose the Now, and you return to it, again and again.
Eventually,presencebecomesyourpredominantstate.
Formostpeople,presenceisexperiencedeitherneverat
alloronlyaccidentallyandbrieflyonrareoccasionswithout
being recognized for what it is. Most humans alternate not
between consciousness and unconsciousness but only
betweendifferentlevelsofunconsciousness.
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Whatdoyoumeanbydifferentlevelsofunconsciousness?