Inquiry - ricknotesricknotes

Effective self inquiry is a key to mastery
To bring consciousness to the unconscious
To clear hindrances, obscurations, and defilements
To heal old wounds

Deep self inquiry can be elusive
We often start with a general idea of something that we have been blind to
Something that has been running our life from behind the scenes
We may call this a “core issue” and give it a name (like regret, anger, grief, and many others)

This can start the process of inquiry
We begin to see that there is a set of patterns in our life that reflects this “issue”
We can imagine this as a lake in our unconscious
And can be tricked to ending the inquiry with this insight
Thinking that naming it, is knowing it, is resolving it

True inquiry leads us to examine this lake
To see the shoreline, the bays and rocks where we have found refuge, or shipwrecked
And having done this, it is tempting to think that the inquiry is complete

But true inquiry leads us to look into the water
To see what is on the bottom
To plumb the depth and raise up sunken situations and emotions
And we can think we are making progress in reviewing and resolving these
Until we realize that the dredging of these pasts can be endless
And sometimes re-traumatizing
So, it is tempting to abandon this search and consider the inquiry complete

But true inquiry leads us deeper
The situations and our responses, from the bottom of the lake, reveal patterns
And the patterns lead us to discover how we created this lake
What impulse caused us to block the flow of life
And turn the river of experiences into a lake and submerge part of ourselves in it

Inquiry can lead us to engage in the work to resolve this impulse
To drain the lake and restore flow
And with this comes the dissolution of the associated hindrances and obscurations
Wounds closed
Consciousness

And ultimately the freedom of forgiveness
Given in the light of consciousness from true inquiry