Only-ness vs Something Else
An Article Published Miracles Mag Fall-2013
Pure Non-Duality, or what is commonly known as the Oneness of God or the Oneness of Reality, is a common topic for articles.
I often talk to Course students who say that they are sure about what Non-Duality means. When I question them further about this subject, it is clear that they have not actually given the subject much thought and therefore do not see how Non-Duality relates to the teachings of ACIM and other teachings. I admit the subject can be daunting!
Our first task is to set aside labels that may have some confusing baggage. The term Oneness is familiar and therefore handy, but it is fairly identified and contrasted with the idea of Two-ness or Three-ness, etc. The term Non-Dual has similar challenges, although it is not so well-worn in the common vernacular. Non-Dual literally means “Not-Two”. I prefer the term, “Only-ness” (Of course, I prefer it, I made it up!). “Only-ness” imparts a sense of “Nothing-Else-ness”, but in a positive way. It is also a reminder that the ONLY reality is God’s Reality.
The point that I would clarify with this article is:
Either “Only-ness” OR “something-else” is True. It is not possible for both to be True.
This is the whole reason that ACIM and other Spiritual practices insist that this world is an illusion, but that is the subject for another article!
Before we consider this statement any further, I shall address some objections. There are many, but I shall focus on two.
Objection 1
Biblical Scripture states, “For with God nothing shall be impossible.” (Luke 1:37).
This sounds very nice, but this objection is not a strong one. Besides the fact that a strict translation of the classic Greek turns out to be, “For no word from God will ever fail”, the Bible clearly states at least three things that are impossible for God:
- God cannot swear by a name higher than God (Heb 6:13)
- God cannot lie (Heb 6:18)
- God cannot contradict (or deny) God (II Tim 2:13)
Objection 2
Every day, the experience of “something-else” is my experience, yet God is also a real part of my experience! If something-else and Only-ness are mutually exclusive, I would not experience them both.
It is true that each moment our experience is experienced in a separate moment from the one before. From the point of view of this moment, the next moment is something-else. I leave my home to commute to work. From the point of view of my home, the job location is something-else. It is also true that many have had transcendent experiences where God’s presence is felt, while in this world.
I shall offer as rebuttal an illustrative story. In this example, I shall show how two mutually exclusive principles or ideas can be part of your experience when one is “real” and the other is not. This is a dualistic illustration AND it serves my point.
A sleeping child is having a nightmare of being alone and lost in a dangerous wilderness. The sleeping child is terrified! Her body jerks, and she mutters her distress as the violent dream is of being chased and doing battle with wild animals. The sleeping child’s disturbance is noticed by her Mother, who touches the child’s forehead gently with her lips. The mother softly whispers loving words that ease the child’s troubled dreaming. Within the dream, the mother’s comforting presence is felt. While not waking up, the child moves gently toward wakefulness. Her presence becomes a larger part of the child’s otherwise terrifying experience of isolation. She does not awake, but the dream has shifted. Her terror is lessened. She no longer shudders.
In this illustration, a child’s dream of being lost, lonely, and in danger is not the Mothers experience. She has not entered the dream, yet her presence is felt within the dream. The child’s dream now includes the calming presence of her mother within an otherwise terrifying and lonely experience. In this same way, you may experience the Only-ness of God AND “something-else”. As in the child’s dream, the wilderness and its dangers seem real and gravely consequential. The Mother knows the child is always safe and unthreatened. To the extent that the child is able to focus on the Mothers comfort and let go of the dreaming terror, there is peace. Eventually, at the end of all dreaming, the child is awake and knows only the safety and loving presence of Mother’s embrace.
It is possible to experience two mutually exclusive ideas where one is “real” and the other is not.
What the heck is an Only-ness?
Good question! Glad you asked!
The principles that define Only-ness (the pure, Non-Dual thought system of the Course) are:
- This is a Reality that has no pieces or parts. There is nothing to distinguish any “thing” from any “other” “thing”. There are no qualities, properties, or differences that separate.
Nothing that God knows not exists. ²And what He knows exists forever, changelessly. ³For thoughts endure as long as does the mind that thought of them. ⁴And in the Mind of God there is no ending, nor a time in which His Thoughts were absent or could suffer change. ⁵Thoughts are not born and cannot die. ⁶They share the attributes of their creator, nor have they a separate life apart from his. ⁷The thoughts you think are in your mind, as you are in the Mind which thought of you. ⁸And so there are no separate parts in what exists within God’s Mind. ⁹It is forever One, eternally united and at peace.
- This Reality is (an Only-ness) the only existent Reality; therefore, there is nothing OUTSIDE this Reality. There is not even such an idea as OUTSIDE.
An Only-ness is a way of describing the ineffable Non-Dual state that is the Reality of God as portrayed in ACIM and other spiritual practices. Only-ness is NOT the extreme superlative of any (positive) quality or attribute you can think of. Therefore, I am NOT saying that God is the most good, most powerful, most anything or quality in this world.
Consider, if you will, the second principle first:
Principle – Only-ness means that there is nothing else!
The phrase “all encompassing” covers it. It is just that simple.
For many, the second principle seems to point to a physical vastness that some call “the universe”. There are some who feel certain that God is the Universe. It seems easy to imagine the multi-dimensional universe of modern science as being this Only-ness. This concept is not particularly challenging and is therefore more attractive than the abstraction I am suggesting. There are many reasons that the concept of the Universe-As-God cannot be true. The primary difficulty is the first principle. The universe is separated/divided by qualities, features, and moments in space/time.
Principle – God has no parts or pieces!
God does not know of separation.
The Divine simplicity of the Classical (Christian) Theism or Nirguna Brahman in the Hindu tradition is God without attributes, qualities, or features. In this view, God is perfected, fulfilled, whole, and complete. This perfection means that change is not desirable, necessary, or even possible. You see, time is a separation idea in which one moment has a different attribute from another. There is no before or after, and therefore no time.
Matter (or things) have no meaning in this Reality. The necessary feature of all matter is a set of attributes, qualities, or features.
Energy also has no meaning in this Reality. A key feature of Energy is change over time. Where there is no time, there is no energy. Besides, Einstein says energy and matter are the same.
The idea that “I am a part of God” is easier to understand and is also used in ACIM. However, a careful reading of the Course describes this “part” as having no feature or quality different from God.
The idea of part-whole relationships has meaning only at the level of perception, where change is possible. ¹⁵Otherwise, there is no difference between the part and whole.
What is meant by “something else”?
Another great question!
“Something else” is an expression of the idea of dualism. It is the experience of subject/object. Separation is the guiding principle of “something else”. For example, God is God and I am “something else”. This supposition can only be taken seriously if I accept as true the evidence that God and I are separated by any meaningful quality, feature, or distinction.
The idea that “I am God” fails to properly convey the Truth in an absolute sense. God cannot be Ken, and Ken cannot be God. Again, a careful reading of ACIM reveals that my self-identity cannot be “God” to the same extent as it remains Ken.
Why is Only-ness and Something-Else mutually exclusive?
The simple answer to this question is spelled in one law or principle of classic thought, the Principle of Contradiction or Non-Contradiction. It is the second of the three classic laws of thought. It states that contradictory statements cannot both be true in the same sense at the same time, in other words the two propositions “A is B” and “A is not B” are mutually exclusive.
The law of non-contradiction can be expressed more simply: A cannot be both B and non-B at the same time and in the same sense.
If Something-Else is true the integrity of Only-ness is broken. The broken whole is a contradiction.
If pieces exist within simplicity, simplicity is complicated. Complicated simplicity is a contradiction.
Either Only-ness OR “something else” is True. It is not possible for both to be True.
What It Means
Only-ness is difficult, not just because it is unfamiliar. It is difficult to conceive of. One who considers the idea of Only-ness must question the very existence of the considerer!
The idea of Only-ness is completely abstract. ACIM says that we are no longer accustomed to abstraction.
The mind that taught itself to think specifically can no longer grasp abstraction in the sense that it is all-encompassing. ⁸We need to see a little, that we learn a lot.
My glasses are fogged, but I think the world is full of smoke.
The Truth is profound, non-dual peace. Wisdom’s pursuit has only the task of preparing the mind for this peaceful state.
A properly educated imagination will make way for ideas that allow us to understand our dualistic experience newly in a non-dual, peaceful way.
If we are willing to read every non-dual statement with clarity, our minds can begin to let go of pre-formed images. Our imaginations open up, and our minds are more prepared for the peace that is Non-Dual Reality.
My purpose for the article is to help you come to a peaceful acceptance of Pure Non-Dualism. To this end, I have published this blog, which is soon being published as a book.
I realize that this article does not address the question of why I seem to be, if Only-ness is true. There are also PRACTICAL reasons for understanding this concept. I have not shared these either. Stay tuned for other articles! For now, I suggest that we must continue to try to wrap our heads around this concept of Only-ness.
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