What Is Reality?

What is Reality? If it is true that the world is an illusion, then what about it is real? What is the reality that exists beyond our sense perceptions?

Rupert explains that the reality of the world precedes the finite mind. What appears to us as a physical world, is the activity of the universal mind or consciousness whose nature is consciousness, not matter. Reality only appears as physical matter when perceived through the sense perceptions of a separate subject, or a finite mind, within the world.

A finite mind is a localisation of infinite consciousness that perceives reality and creates its appearance in accordance with its own limitations. That is why it is said that we half create and half perceive the world.

But ultimately reality is one, formless indivisible whole that is being — God’s being.

This video is taken from one of Rupert's in-person retreats at Froyle Park January 14-18, 2022. To view and book for upcoming retreats (many of which can be attended online via livestream) go to:

Timestamps:

0:00 What Is Reality?
1:43 You Are The Universe
2:36 Reality Is That Which Truly Is
2:45 Defining The Word Illusion
3:49 An Illusion Is Not Unreal
4:17 All Experience Is Real
4:41 What Is Real About Experience?
5:06 Sense Perceptions Create The World’s Appearance
6:32 What Remains If You Remove Perception And Thought
7:14 Reality Is One
7:25 Reality Is Formless
8:02 Direct Experience Of Being
9:27 I Am Is The Most Certain, Secure Knowledge
11:17 What Is The Universe?
11:45 What Is The Ultimate Reality?
11:59 What Is The Activity Of Consciousness?
13:38 Half Create And Half Perceive
15:06 Reality Precedes Our Finite Mind
17:25 Separation Is Only A Concept
18:00 The Matter With Things
19:10 Why Consciousness Cannot Perceive Reality
22.24 The Finite Mind Lends The World Its Appearance
22:54 What Is Humility?
26:27 The Joy Of Understanding

––

ACCESS FULL VIDEO ARCHIVE
You can watch or listen to 1000s of hours of teachings, guided meditations and answers in Rupert's full video archive here:

––

RETREATS (Weekend, 5-day, 7-day)
Rupert holds regular retreats, roughly once per month, either in-person and online. Many in-person retreats can also be attended from the comfort of your home via livestream.

ONLINE RETREAT SCHEDULE

IN-PERSON RETREATS SCHEDULE (Also Available to Join Online via Live Stream)

––

WEEKLY WEBINARS (2 hours)
Rupert's webinars take place most Sunday and Thursday evenings, from 4pm UK time. In the first twenty to thirty minutes, Rupert leads a spontaneous meditation. The remaining time is open for attendees to discuss their questions with Rupert. Attendance is By Donation.

WEEKLY WEBINAR SCHEDULE

––

FREE CONTENT, EVENTS & NEW RELEASES
To be notified of free content, events (online and in-person), books and other new releases, please sign up to Rupert's free newsletter:

––

BROWSE RUPERT’S BOOKS

––

LISTEN TO RUPERT’S PODCAST

––

JOIN RUPERT’S FACEBOOK GROUP

––

FOLLOW RUPERT ON MEDIUM

––

SOCIAL MEDIA CHANNELS

––

SUBSCRIBE TO RUPERT’S YOUTUBE

––

#rupertspira #nonduality #happiness #natureofreality #consciousness #awareness #meditation #guidedmeditation

RS22009e

[pengcheng]

“The awareness of being does not go through perception, it is a direct experience of being”. Such clarity is truly valuable❤

[I-Am-Aware]

So true: "As the mind sinks deeper and deeper into this understanding, it just begins to emerge and get clearer and clearer." This, too, is my living experience. Thank you, Rupert, for sharing your insights. 🙏🏻

[thesoulfulhuman]

“…a moment of understanding is always accompanied by joy” - feeling this!🥹

This video just shifted my entire understanding and ACCEPTANCE of us as souls, our purpose in the human body, and an understanding of the workings of the Universe. It unwound my spiral in The Void that I’ve been in for several months. It came at the perfect time. I’ve been waiting for this moment!😭💖

[waldwassermann]

Love is the only reality and it is not a mere sentiment. It is the ultimate truth that lies at the heart of creation. - Rabindranath Tagore.

[stellau]

Dear Rupert I love the brilliance that is you, by quoting poetry during your already comprehensive explanation.

[patm.]

Holy shit! His explanation is the closest thing to defn of reality I've ever grasped. Will meditate and reflect on this...

[spandon]

I'm in my late 60's and a Rupert Spira fanboy. Life is full of surprises. Much love y'all.

[braindeadin]

Every experience reveals the truth that I exist and I am immortal. That really feels so good to know. That knowing is pure joy.

[sabaarunanthy]

Why Consciousness cannot perceive Reality is brilliantly explained Thanks Rupert

[angeloiodice]

For myself, not being a true intellectual, I find that these elaborations are necessary by some to catch you at a certain point, enough to satisfy you, so that you are content to return to practicing the humble practice of “I AM.”

I love Rupert’s speaking on myriad levels, knowing many practices and authors.

One that he quotes often is Nisargadatta. His basic only practice was “I AM, ” which he describes as the very first ignorance. But, we must start there. And, your Reality is just prior to “I AM.”

Concentration, focus, is a preliminary step in this process. That is, concentration on “I AM” as a focal point, of the first separation, as it were, the first delusion, that “I AM” is the first lie that proliferates the myriad lies. “I AM” can be experienced, and “I AM” seems to pop out as creation, the very first creation. So, once we get a sense of “I AM, ” we look behind it, where “I AM” came from. Experience the vastness of the pool where “I AM” originated from.

[ButterflyAwakening]

Thank you Rupert.

Happy Saturday everyone! May today be a day of peace, joy, and spiritual growth for you. Take some time to connect with your inner self and reflect on the blessings in your life. Remember that every moment is a gift and an opportunity to spread love and kindness to those around you. Embrace the beauty of this day and let your spirit soar!💜🦋

[josesantana]

Absolutely an amazing explanation of reality. Articulated in a graceful manner. Thank you 🙏🏾 Rubert.

[zendog]

Minds that are asleep are the over thinking minds. Direct experience is the sound, the tasting, touch, the smell, the seeing, without preference, without thought. Understanding your body/mind as merely a vehicle emerging from the ground of being, to experience a physical self is enough. Understanding/knowing at this level is peace of mind is true love. Going back to sleep is thinking too much, such as is happening here to Rupert and this dear lady.

[davidredhead]

Rupert has always been my favourite spiritual teacher.His knowledge has helped me navigate my spiritual awakening.Thank you Rupert.

[stelladonnelly]

Seems to me, too, that this is a correct use of our minds, an expansive thinking and wondering and being ever open to more and more understanding. The intellectual mind, tool of consciousness.

[bpotter]

The gentle lady Ana posing the question has wonderful intuition and perceives the situation of reality, separate realities, separation, entirely correctly
For her, there is indeed a separation and a simple answer to the question: where is reality created and how? As well as why the sense of separate realities

The most humble and sincere reply is that almost everyone, naturally and automatically identify themselves with the body and thoughts

Where are these positioned within the sense of reality ? Are they one ? Or is there a separation by which an observer of said reality is created ?
Is there one that experiences and perceives a life, reality (story) and tells this story and is there another that patiently and lovingly listens to this story? One ? or Two ?
Or Two in One ?

It is this dual identification with - I exist - (personified through the body) and - I am this or that etc - (personified through thought, language and identification process) that creates the separation.
Hence the imagination or feeling that there are two

But it feels like they both exist within you, they are you! .. hence the confusion

One reality is created or fabricated and the other reality is simply the miracle of - that what is - Aliveness - unnamable..

The latter reality is happening (not done nor made.. simply happening)
This one is reality and according to modern quantum physics this real reality still remains a wonderful mystery

So much so that 98% of that reality is titled as dark matter, materia oscura.. simply meaning ‘we don’t know’

Then this - spontaneous happening or reality or aliveness - is experienced by the 5 natural bodily senses and then the 6 sense (the mind, thoughts) creates its interpretation of said reality and tells a story about it

The five bodily senses constantly try to make sense of the real reality, based on memory, impressions, etc

And then titles this interpretation of the real (not understood) reality is labelled - my experience, I saw this with my own eyes, it happened in my life - and thus the storyteller or the ego appears on the stage and tells
this life story (reality in the (left) brain) which is very crafty fabricated during the waking state and dream

Strangely enough, it was said by Ramana Maharshi (and others) that the deep sleep state is the closest to real reality (materia oscura)

Real reality being said to be 98% dark matter, so what do you - the I am - actually know during your deep sleep?

If you can contemplate these natural internal mechanisms during several meditations, it will surprise you how stunningly, simple and truthful these mechanism work logically and harmoniously, every day and night

The daytime mechanism were taught to us as a baby mainly through images, projection, interpretation, language and storytelling (thus creating a psychology)
The nighttime mechanism is entirely natural

Some say it is the natural state prior during and after the body experience

Once you know how these simple mechanisms works and can see how automatic and habitual they are, then you can more easily become free from it (through the process of recognition)

To help you understand the above better and locate this storyteller, in clinical psychology and modern neuroscience, since only a few years, it has been discovered that in the left hemisphere of the brain there is a very small region which scientifically has been given two names - the interpreter - and - the storyteller -

This puts itself forward as a sort of control centre for the five bodily senses, and it has been proposed that this is where the so called - I, the ego - resides

This small part of the brain lights up each time the one proclaims I am, I exist or this is my body, I see, I hear, this is my hand etc

It’s quite interesting ..

It reminds one of the beautiful painting on the ceiling of the Sistine chapel in the Vatican by MichelAngelo - The creation of Adam -

Clearly, the proposed creator is sitting in a cloud, which, according to sketches of the time from MichelAngelo and da Vinci themselves, is identical to a cross-section of the human brain

The creator of Adam resides in the human brain itself ? Interesting perhaps ?

Look at it, please.. look at it closely

This very small location at the left hand of the father, was named the opposer
Whereas peace and silence, the Amen, sits at the right hand of the father

At the left hemisphere, there, all narrative and interpretations, names and forms are created

The story of my experiences and my life, etc

Because a story without contrast, opposition, opposites (duality) is not much of a story and thus this small location (at the left hand of the centre, the source, the father) creates all such separation by itself by means of interpretations

From that location (you, I am) your feeling of separation (perhaps two realities?) is created and presented to you, the observer

Hence the feeling of two.. not one

Try to deeply understand this partly natural and partly fabricated (language, neuro linguistic psychology since babyhood) during silence (the only teacher), meditation and see it, recognise it and understand it and then give it its suitable proportional role within your life story

Then it will suddenly befriend you, recognise the master in you and assist you towards even greater understanding, seeing reality and thus liberation, peace, the great contentment

I hope this was helpful

If needed, remaining at your humble service 🌺 Ben 🤗

[jixie_]

This is so intellectual and ridiculously complex that I cannot help but abandon it for simple joy and faith in the divine to care for me...

[steveosborne]

" I am He, as You are He, as You are Me, and We are, all together. "

[project-unifiedfreepeoples]

Although I have been a fan boy of Don Hoffman and his hypotheses on this very subject. You sir, hold some very interesting ideas that, in their own right, are bold and encouraging. The level of respect on varying degrees presented by yourself and Mr. Hoffman, is the very basis of all scientific profession. I humbly bow to you sir in homage and vast curiosity. I believe a new dream of mine has emerged, to sit and spend a day of coffee drinking and wild conversation with yourself and Mr. Hoffman. We could leave all limitation at the threshold, and let our imaginations soar to the greatest heights achievable.

[jens]

Definitely gonna listen to this again. There are so many points to meditate on here... and ponder at work today when it gets slow 😉