About the book: Advaita and nondual teachings are about finding the Truth. This Truth is not a dogma that you study; it is the Truth about life—the Truth about who you really are. This Truth is discovered, not learned. It is discovered through sincerely inquiring, Who am I? What you discover is that who you are has nothing to do with self-images or roles and everything to do with what you experience when you ask this question. What you discover is that who you think of yourself as is just that—a thought! And beyond that thought is a great Mystery—an experience of nothingness, which is your true nature.
Nothing Personal leads you to the experience of your true nature and helps you explore its depth. Through exposition, questions and dialogues, it brings you to a place of realization of the Truth: you are that spacious Awareness in which everything appears, including your thoughts and feelings. Your thoughts and feelings do not define you but merely appear within Consciousness along with everything else. This Consciousness is who you are.
Nothing Personal offers a gentle and persistent guide to seeing the underlying truth of your ultimate nature. In this concisely edited collection of satsang talks and dialogues, you are invited to honor the limitless love that is your true nature and to enjoy the sweet richness that is revealed when you give this Truth your undivided attention.
From the foreword by Adyashanti, spiritual teacher and author of Emptiness Dancing:
“The beauty of this collection of Nirmala’s talks and dialogues is that it covers much of the spectrum of spiritual awakening, from the initial experience of one’s true nature to the practical challenges, which always call for a deeper seeing and deeper understanding of how spirit manifests as all of life and beyond. Within these talks and dialogues you, the reader, will find Nirmala to be a living invitation to look within. Nirmala welcomes whatever arises within the field of experience. In the midst of this welcoming is always an invitation to inquire deeply within, to the core of who and what you are. Again and again, Nirmala points the questions back to the questioner and beyond to the very source of existence itself—to the faceless awareness that holds both the question and the questioner in a timeless embrace.”
Genre: SELF-HELP / SpiritualNothing Personal has been offered for sale in English for over 15 years and has had two editions. The average rank on Amazon.com is in the low 200,000 range and the highest rank is about 39,000. It has sold over 50 copies in the last 90 days on all of the Amazon ebook stores. It has 56 reviews averaging 4.6 out of 5 stars on Amazon.com, and a 4.12 rating out of 5 on Goodreads with 125 ratings.
Mind Games
The source of suffering is the discrepancy between our thoughts (including the thought “me”) and the truth of here and now. You would think that we wouldn’t be that interested in something that causes so much suffering, and yet we spend a great deal of time sprucing up our thoughts and fantasies.
Just as we are entranced by television, we are entranced by the mind. Have you ever noticed how similar television is to the mind? Just like in the mind, on television, something new is always appearing to grab our attention. Because the mind’s job is to scan the environment and notice anything new and different, it is no wonder the mind finds the constant change on the television screen engrossing.
In the real world, on the other hand, life unfolds slowly and organically. If you took a video camera with you on a 30-minute walk and left it on, you’d have a really bad movie. Can you imagine renting that at Blockbuster video?—“Life at Normal Speed.” Just notice how attracted the mind is to special effects, drama, and speeded-up versions of life. Even though our thoughts and fantasies are the basis of our suffering, we become engaged with them because, like television and movies, they are entertaining.
Eventually, as with any other addiction, we come to see that our thoughts and fantasies are not very satisfying or fulfilling. Like watching television for hours on end, they leave us feeling empty. Fortunately, there is a handy alternative to the emptiness of thought: here and now. All that is required is to show up in your life. If you go for a walk, show up for the walk; if it is time to brush your teeth, show up for that. To show up in your life, you just have to pay attention to it. Just notice what is right now, without referring to some memory of it. Showing up is very simple—no preparation is needed and you can’t get it wrong.
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Afrikaans
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Chinese
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Dutch
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German
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Italian
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Already translated.
Translated by Cinzia Rizzotto
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Author review: Cinzia was a pleasure to deal with, and I am very happy with the finished translation of my book. |
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Portuguese
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Unavailable for translation.
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Spanish
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Already translated.
Translated by SANDRA MORALES KOTT
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Author review: It was a pleasure working with Sandra and the translation came out great and on time. |
