Bentinho Massaro presents a compelling challenge to our ingrained, habitual mindset of identifying with form, whether that be people, places, things, or thoughts. He compares this habitual thinking to grass that has grown over our original, naked state of being, obscuring our true self – our formless, divine nature. The purpose of self-realization, as he explains, is to metaphorically mow this lawn of distractions, and see the underlying ground of our existence as clearly as we can see our own hand in front of our face.
He encourages us to momentarily forget all our worldly roles, concerns, and identifications, even going as far as to forget our human life for a moment. This is not a call to abandon our lives, but an invitation to engage in an exercise of clearing away the clutter of the mind, in order to glimpse our pure, formless essence. He asks, “If you had no memory, who would you be?” This question points us directly to the heart of our being, a place beyond identity and form, to the pure consciousness that is the ground of all existence.
Most of us, Bentinho posits, are unaware of awareness itself. We have become so engrossed in the world of form that we have forgotten our true nature. Yet, by pausing for just a few seconds at a time, by fully committing to drop all thoughts and concepts, we can begin to perceive the subtle sense of ‘I exist’ that lies beneath all of our mental activity. This sense of ‘I exist’ is not the ego’s claim to existence, but the quiet, undeniable awareness of being that remains when all else is stripped away.
With continued practice, this subtle sense of being deepens and expands. As we let go of the distractions of the world, as we let go of our thoughts about our life, we open ourselves to the direct experience of our own divinity. Bentinho emphasizes that this isn’t an intellectual pursuit, but a lived, vibrant, and radiant experience of awakening. The more we cultivate this awareness, the more the love and light of the one infinite creator will be revealed to us. The more we turn our awareness inward, the more we begin to realize that we are, in fact, the very awareness we seek. This is our birthright, our true nature, the eternal, unchanging aspect of ourselves that has been there all along, waiting for us to remember.