What's Wrong with Right Now
Unless You Think about It?
Talks with 'Sailor' Bob Adamson
Edited by Gilbert Schultz
Reviewed by Dennis L. Trunk
Nisargadatta pointed to the reality, the actuality THAT I AM. Now I abide as THAT. - 'Sailor' Bob Adamson
Bob Adamson is an Australian who ended his spiritual search in 1976 in the presence of the renowned Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj. Ever since, he has been helping others to end their search.
When he says that he abides as That, it is a bold but convincing statement. Although the themes in this collection of talks about nonduality are conventional and expected, the sense of living truth pouring out of them has nothing to do with certainty of ideas, but everything to do with his certainty of Being. Being is the foundation, the starting point and the ending point of his teaching. Abiding as That, Adamson speaks with the authority, the force and the immediacy of truth.
The title of the book summarizes his teaching: problems exist in the mind only, not in the here and now. That is a familiar teaching in nonduality. But, as Adamson's students know, his approach to it is penetratingly direct and immediate. He insists on remaining in the present, just as is. Noticeably absent from his talks is any mention of enlightenment, or awakening, or any implication of a future goal to be reached. His point is: you're already there; you're already complete; you're already eternally present as Awareness. To see that you're already free, all that's required is understanding.
It's the mind which thinks otherwise and heads off on a search to be fulfilled at an imagined future time. But Adamson's view of the mind is neither negative nor dismissive nor combative; it's inclusive. He recognizes its creativity and usefulness, especially when its true nature as a tool of Awareness is understood. But, just as Nisargadatta and Ramana Maharshi did before him, he urges students to carefully examine the mind's behavior and especially its primary thought, "I Am," which is the mind's closest connection to the more subtle "I Am" of pure Being prior to thought. It's that thought, especially when it moves beyond the simple sense of Being and moves to "I am this or that," which creates the illusion of a separate, fearful individual who avoids the present and lives in a past based on stored memories, or in a future based on imagination. He explains that, since the mind is the source of duality, it can never solve its own dilemma. The answer lies only in residing in Awareness itself, which is always the present.
Again, the message is familiar, but behind it is the suggestion of an unusual stability of realization. Although Adamson's talks are fairly dry and impersonal at times, which can make it seem as if he is speaking in the abstract, he often indicates that he functions directly from the living fullness of Being - "I am THAT." He points to its innate radiance, its intelligence and its vitality: "You just stay with the subtleness of 'being now' and see what is in that and see what appears from that - the uncaused joy - the uncaused happiness and the pure compassion that comes up." His realization of THAT as his own identity informs his mode of teaching, as well as what he teaches.
For example, reminiscent of J. Krishnamurti and a few other teachers, it appears that Adamson tries as much as possible to bypass conventional mind-to-mind communication, with all of its implicit filters, by speaking directly from the ground of Being, or Awareness, and by asking his listeners to hear in a similar mode. What he intends might be described as Awareness speaking to Awareness:
Just relax and be receptive, because the words that are coming out here presently are coming from that intelligence energy.
If the mind is not acting as the cloud (as an obstruction) - what will be receiving those words is that same intelligence energy.
Through that "Awareness-to-Awareness" exchange, the listener might hear the words clearly for the first time and might even simultaneously feel an intuitive resonance with their source - pure Being. (In reality, of course, there is no separation; Awareness has no other, which means that the communication is only apparent. But, unfortunately, in discussing nonduality, it's sometimes necessary to concede to the limitations of language and the appearances of the phenomenal world.)
In another example of Adamson's intimate understanding of the vitality of Being, he recommends directing a warm affection towards one's sense of "I Am":
Stay with that long enough - be affectionate towards it - then there is a seeming response to that warmness. That warmness may only be a mental warmness but there will be a seeming response to that warmness and that warmness will well up through your being-ness, through you (sic) body and through the mind. It will suffuse that being-ness and bring about the change that is necessary.
If, at first, the experience he describes doesn't sound familiar, it might help to think of it as a form of devotional yoga to which Being responds with intelligence and affection. The feeling of warmth is like experiencing a loving relationship with another person. In a Christian context, for example, it is echoed in the way born-agains speak of their living, personal relationship with God. What they describe is very similar to what Adamson describes. The main difference is that they believe their relationship is with a separate person, instead of with their own fundamental Being.
Adamson also points to an important manifestation of the intelligence of Being. As part of his teaching that problems are in the mind only and not in the here and now, he repeatedly explains that problems have a way of resolving themselves when you abide in Awareness. In other words, reality - which is encompassed in Awareness - flows smoothly when not interpreted through the resistance, the likes and the dislikes, created by the mind. Strangely, he seems to be among only a select few teachers who offer this observation, or emphasize its importance. Yet, it's an integral part of nondualist understanding. After all, "nondual" is a translation of the Sanskrit word advaita, which means "not-two." When Adamson, Nisargadatta, and others, such as J. Krishnamurti, indicate that you are the world, they mean it literally. They mean not-two. They mean that the world is actually a reflection of self.
Without intending to diminish the overall importance and validity of Adamson's message, it must be admitted that he occasionally makes confusing statements in his talks, especially in the way he uses certain terms. For example, he tends to use the words "present" and "presence" interchangeably, as if they have identical meanings. Thus, when he speaks of "presence awareness," it's an ambiguous term which, in the context of his teaching, can be interpreted in at least two ways: one is that Awareness is always in the present; the other is that Awareness is presence, referring to Being, the sense of "I Am" prior to thought. Although both interpretations are true and they are closely related, they do not mean the same thing. But, even on a close reading, it's not always evident which meaning he intends.
Another example is when he tries to derive nondualist meanings from the theological terms "omnipresence," "omniscience" and "omnipotence." Those terms are rooted in institutional, dogmatic Christianity, which is firmly, even militantly, dualistic, as were the theologians who invented and defined them: God is described as eternally distinct and separate from all of creation, including humanity. When theologians refer to omnipresence, for instance, they do not imply any of the nondualist meanings of "in the present" or "presence" in relation to Awareness which Adamson means. That would be heretical; God is always other than self. The theological definition has only a spatial sense, meaning "God is present everywhere in creation." Given such a radical difference, it's fair to ask: why use terms from a strictly dualist tradition to try to convey nondualist meanings?
Ultimately, however, any initial awkwardness in terminology is diluted to the vanishing point in the broader context of Adamson's teaching. Because his understanding of nonduality is grounded in what he knows directly, and because he repeats his explanations in differing ways, his message inevitably comes through clearly and effectively.
Not everyone, of course, will respond to his message or to his direct mode of delivery, just as not everyone has responded to Nisargadatta's, or to Ramana Maharshi's. Not everyone hears what is actually said without coloring it according to their own beliefs. It's that familiar question of ripeness. As measured by the responses of students at the talks, it's apparent that Adamson's words sail right over the heads of some. No matter. For them, this is still beneficial preparatory instruction. But it's also apparent that the same words pierce the hearts of other students and profoundly transform them. For those who are ready, this can be the fast track to understanding.
Zen Publications, softback, 156 pages
ISBN: 81-88071-11-0
For more information about What's Wrong with Right Now Unless You Think about It?, or to order it, visit 'Sailor' Bob Adamson.
Update: As of June 2004, a new edition of Bob's book, including three additional chapters and a new preface, has been released. For more information, visit Bob's site, or Non-Duality Press in the UK, or "Sailor" Bob Adamson's Bookstore in the US.
Also, a companion 3-CD set, Conversations On No-Thing, is now available. See the review of Volume One.
Copyright © 1999-2009
Dennis L. Trunk
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