The Three Approaches to Understanding Reality

Article 1 of 6 on What is Real?

This is the first article in a series of five that addresses the question, "What is real?" I hope you enjoy it and join the conversation (comment).

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As an avid conversationist or reader, you are probably well aware of the importance of knowing where someone is coming from in order to truly understand what they are communicating. Ancient Hawaiians knew this quite well.

According to the advanced training levels of the 25 belief systems and indigenous wisdom traditions I studied over the last 50+ years (the Sources), there are three approaches to understanding the nature of reality: the outer approach, the inner approach, and the ultimate approach (these terms arise out of Buddhism and are applicable universally).

The Sources also agree that all human communications are based in one or another of them. Below are condensed explanations of each one. I’ll be referring to these often in my posts and will link this article in them for easy future reference.

Outer Approach

In the outer approach of understanding reality, reality is what we’re told to believe is real. Newtonian physics is the main guide. Here, we let our conceptual/ego mind (the “thinking” or “logical” mind) predominate to get us through life. Using the metaphor of the movie, “The Matrix,” this would be remaining in the blissfully ignorant state that is the comfortable simulated reality of the Matrix where we take what comes and deal with it in one way we’ve learned or modify that learned way slightly for good measure.

Inner Approach

With the inner approach, we begin to see there is more to reality than meets the eye (than what we’ve been told) and look to ancient wisdom traditions as a guide. We primarily use our heart-mind (the naʻau, the kath, the hara, the dantian) to get through life and yet still access the conceptual/ego mind when we feel it’s needed. By living in this way, we discover two things: 1) that our life experience is guided by cause and effect: what we put out comes back to us, and 2) Divine Insight can be perceived and followed for the best results in any situation. Using The Matrix metaphor, these are the rebels who have taken the red pill to experience the surprising life-changing truth about reality: that their experience of the matrix can be manipulated.

Ultimate Approach

Here, we finally understand that True Reality cannot be perceived and yet it can be known. Everything that is perceived comes and goes. True Reality persists - It is the foundation of all creation. People refer to it differently according to cultural and language differences but it is all the same thing: Source, Source Energy, Mind, True Nature, The Self, Life-Force Energy of the Universe, The Tao, Buddha Nature, Christ Consciousness, Infinite Consciousness, God, ALOHA, and the list goes on. Quantum mechanics and the advanced understandings of the world’s belief systems serve as the guiding principles. Here, one completely relinquishes their addiction to the conceptual/ego mind to relax into their True Nature: Source. One allows everything to come and go in the material world as the Divine Expression of the Oneness. One has become a beacon of peace, love, joy, and wellbeing. Using The Matrix metaphor, this is the “real world.”

Conclusion

It’s easy to see that if Person A, who communicates regularly from the outer approach of reality, may think Person B, who communicates from either the inner or ultimate approach, is a bit (or totally) looney.

Yet that opinion is only that: an opinion. Person A is stuck in an understanding of reality that they were told (taught) to believe and cannot see beyond that to recognize that Person B is speaking from their personal experience of the inner or ultimate approach of reality.

Also, Person A may not be able to understand the reason for the actions or lack of actions on the part of Person B in any given situation for the very same reason.

It all boils down to conditioning vs. personal experience:

• In the outer approach, ego (“thinking” mind) predominates and wants to control the world using the limited knowledge it absorbed from outside (conditioning/education).

• In the inner approach, love (heart) makes space (silence) inside to perceive (experience) insight from Source (unlimited knowledge) and ego is relegated to a secondary or lower position.

• In the ultimate approach, everything that happens is Divine ordinance. Ego is no longer in the picture. What remains is mindful presence and all that arises as a result: sensations of freedom, peace, love, joy, immense wellbeing, and the objective experience of Pure Awareness.

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If you are interested in learning more about or experiencing the three approaches for yourself, consider taking my course.