Life Is For Living: That Space Between Thoughts – It Brings Enlightenment When We Need It

Blooming Filoli by Glenn Franco SimmonsToday is the day to talk about the space between thoughts — that incredible spaciousness just there between one thought and the next waiting for us to notice and stop by.

I did not set out to discover this. It came about because of my feelings of alienation and incredible frustration about my current living conditions and the fact that I have not yet found another job after 8 months at fifty three years of age!

And please, no commiserations or palliatives about other people in worse circumstances – my welfare is all that interests me right now.

At my age the best is yet to come – fifty is the new thirty after all and I have so much to offer – but instead I feel like a loser. It is precisely because of this angst that I became aware of this waiting silence inviting me - us - to explore it.

You are not your thoughts. You only lose what you cling to. ~Buddha

THAT SPACE BETWEEN THOUGHTS

The first time it happened was just after treading the well-worn path of my circular thoughts about my unsatisfactory life and I felt worn down. Something made me look up and I found myself staring at an opening as if a door had been left ajar into a pitch black, depthless space inside.

Then it disappeared just as fast as it appeared but it left an indelible impression. I had a flash of insight just then before it winked out of existence but I did not write it down so it disappeared.

I did not pay that incident any mind at first as I am accustomed to seeing strange things but my angst was such I kept trying to connect with something larger than myself for help.

That space between thoughts reappeared and hung around. I could actually see it in my mind's eye so I decided to check it out. A few minutes pause in that space feels like a very long time indeed. It is only my first conscious sojourn that I understood it was a "door" in my mind.

To be more precise, it is the pause between one thought and the next allowing me to touch that in-between space.

That understanding was so awesome – I love love love these kind of mind-benders! Over the following days that space expanded.

Do not ask me "how" it happened because I do not know; maybe it was time for me to stop "doing" and start "being". I was asking the Universe for help after all.

And if the next question is how do I enter that space, I cannot explain except to say I just decide to. It feels like a meditation break for want of a better description. I just... pause and I'm there wherever "there" is.

The heart of the universe does not have a particular location; it's not somewhere out there. It is concealed in every being. ~Eckhart Tolle

I still do not know anything special by the way but I have noticed that I sometimes experience more waking dreams, very clear responses to whatever is on my mind, and insight into certain situations come really fast.

THE SILENT BACKDROP

Another "happening" soon followed. I now "see" what I call the blank canvas or silent backdrop behind our daily activities. I realise now that it has also been there for a while so here goes my attempts to describe this one.

You know when you're out walking on the beach, among trees, walking, running, listening to whatever music moves your soul and so on and you begin to feel uplifted and peaceful at the same time?

Well, it is that vast quietness behind everything that I call the silent backdrop.

Blooming lillies by Thomas Tolkien We humans, our activities, and all other life forms and inanimate objects are the painting on this living canvas.

Think of a power blackout. It is only then we understand how much noise our electrical and electronic equipment and appliances make; masking the silence.

The quiet is palpable and a dog's barking resounds.

All noises made by daily activities are magnified down to the cutlery's movement on the plate. It is that silent backdrop I am talking about.

Those are my best explanations.

This silence is constantly masked by our mental, physical and mechanical noises. Now, I commune with this silence any time – it is there for you and I to tap into by any means, be it walking, sitting quietly, doing breathwork, meditation etc.

Another question that came to my mind was is this blank canvas, this silent backdrop and the space between thoughts one and the same? My answer is I have no idea and I don't really care but if I ever get the answer, I will either update this post or write a new one.

All I can suggest is that you tune out the noise, internal and external, and focus on what brings you peace.

Shamanic drumming was the only constant linking these two events. I have been listening to it every day and night day for the past few months from a Dutch Shaman Stefan Shuem. He said it would remove deep-seated negativity developed in childhood which is still ruling our adult lives. So I thought why not give it a try.

I want to believe it had an influence on my subconscious which is where all change takes place but again, that is not important to me. I am just putting it out there for your information.
So tell me, have you ever experienced anything like this or similar to my experiences? I would love you to comment about it.