The Interplay of Grace and Effort on a Nondual Path

A.H. Almaas talks about the need for impeccability on the path so that we may fully invite and experience its gifts. Scroll down to view the video and summary of highlights.

Summary 

Our spiritual work asks much of us: dedication, rigor, and a commitment to impeccability—what the Kabbalah describes as Gevurah. Yet, what if we approached every challenge, every revelation, not as a burden, but as a gift? Viewing our journey through the lens of mercy, love, and compassion (the Kabbalist concept of Chesed), can unlock a profound appreciation for the abundance, freedom, and ultimate release that spiritual practice offers. It’s in this space of acceptance that true transformation blossoms. 

This perspective cultivates a deep-seated trust, a confidence in the universe that tells us all will be okay, even when tumult reigns. It’s a knowing that transcends circumstance. Almaas affectingly illustrates his points through personal stories, making them human and accessible. He experiences a near-fatal motorcycle accident as a passage into complete freedom, peace, and ease, even within the embrace of darkness. He did not deny the difficulty of the situation, just recognized a palpable underlying sense of support. When we lean into this trust, when we acknowledge the presence of blessings in the spiritual dimension, healing can accelerate, and outcomes often surpass our most optimistic expectations. It is a way of inviting and experiencing unforeseen grace. 

The journey can also lead to moments of profound oneness, experiences of divinity that feel like pure gifts, unattainable through sheer force of will or personal accomplishment. We can recognize the emptiness of the soul, not as a void, but as a space of pure potential. Through this clarity, a radiant, dazzling darkness may be revealed—instantly recognized as the very source of all blessings, all grace, all knowledge. 

This path reshapes our understanding of progress. The intense love and joy that can surface become powerful motivators, inspiring us to willingly embrace even pain and suffering, not for their own sake, but as integral parts of fully engaging with life on Earth. Viewed through this transformative lens, a childhood illness like polio, Almaas tells us, can transform into blessing rather than trauma, a unique shaper of perspective and strength. 

Slowly we begin to understand that a higher consciousness is what moves our growth and transformation, pushes us past the limitations of relying solely on individual effort. We recognize there is a danger in believing that what happens in our work is solely the effects of our actions. Instead, we can surrender to the power of that higher consciousness and trust it implicitly.