Face Everything, Avoid Nothing

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from 11 Days at the Edge: one man's spiritual journey
into evolutionary enlightenment - by Michael Wombacher
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11 Days at the Edge is the author's amazing account of his experience during an 11-day retreat with Andrew Cohen in Montserrat, Spain.

Here is an excerpt from Day 8: Face Everything and Avoid Nothing.  Andrew Cohen is speaking:

“What does it really mean to face everything and avoid nothing? It means we have to ceaselessly inquire into the true nature of what it is that is motivating us to make the choices that we make. Do we have the humility to face into the aggressive and frighteningly selfish nature of many of our own actions? Do we have that kind of courage? Because if we refuse to face the darkest parts of ourselves, we will never be able to transcend them. Only if we truly want to be free more than anything else will we fnd the integrity of interest that will enable us to face everything and avoid nothing, no matter how diffcult or challenging it may be.

“But facing everything means facing everything, not only our darkest impulses. Facing everything means daring to face wholeheartedly into the infnite depth of our own Self, a depth that reveals a mystery so awe-inspiring that it simply cannot be imagined. But more often than not, we’re unwilling to face the profoundly liberating implications of our own potential because we’re simply not prepared to accept that which our mind cannot comprehend. Always living in denial of our darkness and ever fearful of the overwhelming brightness of our own unexplored heights, the inevitable result can only be mediocrity.”

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you know who I am,
you've stared at the sun,
well I am the one who loves
changing from nothing to one.
- Leonard Cohen
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