Book of No One , livre ebook

Richard Sylvester is a humanistic psychologist, therapist and lecturer. For thirty years he engaged with a variety of spiritual practices while also training in psychotherapeutic techniques and teaching counselling. In 2002 Richard met Tony Parsons and, as he writes in his first book, I Hope You Die Soon , “That was the end of what I thought had been my life”. There then occurred two events which he describes in his book as ‘awakening’ and ‘liberation’. Richard lives in a country town in South East England. He holds meetings about non-duality in London and other locations in the U.K.
Readers’ Comments on ‘I Hope You Die Soon’ by Richard Sylvester
I have just finished reading your book ‘I Hope You Die Soon’. I want to thank you. It is totally releasing. And I had so much fun and laughter reading it. R.G. – Germany
Sometimes I come across a book which conveys the sharing of Oneness in a very simple direct way. Your book fell into my hands a few weeks ago. It would be an injustice not to e-mail you to thank you for the sharing of this seeing. It’s so direct and without any spiritual romanticism. It leaves nothing to be played with. A BIG thanks to you for this sharing. A.M. – U.K.
Thank you for making the impossible possible! Thank you for having written this book! Now, it finally makes sense that nothing ever made sense! B.S. – Switzerland
I have read your book many times. It is perhaps the most direct and helpful expression and description of what awakening and liberation are and are not that I have read in over thirty years of reading.
I.M. – France
I have been reading your book and I have to tell you I have been laughing so much! It’s all about me, that book. M.F. – Canada
I really enjoyed your book – clear words that opened up awareness behind the words – thank you. M.S. – U.K.
The words in your book are such sweet perfume. D.H. – U.S.A.
I want to thank you most gratefully for your wonderful book. I immediately knew the book was for me by its title. I simply love it and your sense of humour and its simplicity. Although I have long finished the book, I carry it off to bed with me every night and read a page or two before going to sleep. E.D. – U.K.
Just read your book.... it’s great.... thanks. What can be said? There is a sense of gratitude for this book and what appears to happen is this e-mail communicating about this gratitude. C.B. – Holland
Last night I read your book ‘I Hope You Die Soon’, in German ‘Erleuchtet – und was jetzt’. Thank you so much for these words, although I know words cannot describe This. I read it and all I can say is “Yes, yes, it is That. J.B. – Germany
I have just finished your book over the weekend and I found it a delightful read. Everything you stated resonated with me strongly as true.
D.C. – U.K.
I’m writing for my husband and myself to thank you for your book ‘I Hope You Die Soon’. While we understand that Oneness wrote it and Oneness read it, in this physicality the pointing to was a good read. We too have sought the final enlightenment through various disciplines. What a relief to find there is nowhere to go, nothing to do and nothing to be accomplished. Unconditional love is all there is. Isn’t that fantastic? J.S. – U.S.A.
Yesterday I read your book and was very touched by it. It felt as if they were my own words. It expressed so well what I would like to say about how it is, but I cannot find the words to express it. So thank you very much. R.R. – Holland
Also by Richard Sylvester
I Hope You Die Soon – Words on Non-duality
and Liberation
The Book of No One
Talks And Dialogues on Non-duality and Liberation
by Richard Sylvester
NON-DUALITY PRESS
United Kingdom
With deep appreciation to Tony Parsons for communicating non-duality so clearly and with such love and humour.
First published April 2008 by N ON -D UALITY P RESS
© Richard Sylvester 2008
Richard Sylvester has asserted his right under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988, to be identified as author of this work.
All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced or utilized in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, without prior permission in writing from the Publishers.
Typeset in Warnock Pro 11/13
Non-Duality Press, Salisbury, SP2 8JP United Kingdom.

ISBN 978-0-9558290-2-4
www.non-dualitypress.org
“Now tell me what Nirvana is.”
“Here… You are there already. You are in Nirvana. You are like a fish claiming it is thirsty. You are right in the middle of it. Here. Here.”
Janwillem van de Wetering A Glimpse Of Nothingness

Contents
Introduction Some Preliminaries The Box With The Key Locked Inside First Plant One Apple Tree Love Dreams Differences Where There Are None Everything Ends In Mystery This Is Coming Home Nobody Feels Grown Up Throwing Sticks For Monty Playing Bridge With The Dead The Guru With The Best Siddhis A Very Simple Secret Postscript
References

Introduction
There are several conflicting views on consciousness. For example, among scientists the most popular view is that consciousness is an accidental by-product of matter. Many scientists hold that as matter, the physical stuff of the universe, becomes more and more complex in evolving brains, consciousness emerges, as it were by chance. When the brain dies, consciousness ends. Some people find this a depressing view. Others, perhaps more surprisingly, are relieved by this thought. In a book about euthanasia called ‘Dancing With Mr. D’ by Bert Keizer, an old lady reprimands a smarmy young man, who is trying to sell her a system for recording her memories for her descendants, with the words “Young man, you’ll find that at my age nothing matters.”
Many religious people on the other hand hold that consciousness is separate from matter and resides in the soul. The soul is considered to be primary and the world of matter is often thought to be a kind of school where the soul is tested or put through its paces or given the opportunity to learn certain lessons. Depending on the precise nature of the religion, if the soul does well it may either be united with God or earn a favourable rebirth.
The spiritual view of the connection between consciousness and matter is more complex. The physical universe is sometimes thought of as an emanation of consciousness and the particular nature of the world the person lives in may be seen as a creation of their individual psyche. So if we want to change the nature of our external reality, we must cultivate self-responsibility and change our internal reality. Other spiritual outlooks stress instead that as it is the nature of external reality always to be transitory, as everything is constantly subject to change, it is wiser to cultivate acceptance.
In this book I have presented another view, that consciousness is not only primary but it is all that there is, that the appearance of ourselves and of the world we live in is consciousness appearing as everything. The waves and the foam are not separate from the ocean that gives rise to them and we are not separate from the light of consciousness in which we and everything else arise. Even though this may not be understood by the mind, it may be seen in liberation. Then it may be known that there is no self and that “Everything that comes from birth undoes itself in liberation.”
Richard Sylvester April, 2008
1
Some Preliminaries
Y ou have said that seeing non-duality is the end of meaning and the end of purpose. Would you say that duality has meaning and purpose?
It appears to. For as long as there is the sense of a separate person, the world of duality is taken to be utterly real and probably highly meaningful and very purposive. The mind has a powerful urge to search for meaning. But when it is seen that there was never any person, this is seen as a dream and it is seen as without purpose. In the same way, when we wake up from a night-time dream, it is obvious that it is without purpose, although the mind may very well be tempted to add a meaning to it later on by interpreting it.
Is there a purpose in non-duality manifesting as duality?
We pretend that we’ve lost paradise only for the joy of finding it again. When paradise is regained, it’s realised that it was never lost.
But as long as we’re searching for paradise, it is impossible to notice that this is already it.
Is there a higher purpose?
As soon as we start talking about higher and lower purpose we are back in the story of duality. There is no higher or lower. There is only this.
We as human beings invented the search for a higher purpose?
You as a human being are a dream character. A dream character cannot invent anything.
When Oneness stops dreaming of duality, does the physical world disappear?
The dream ends at death. Death is liberation from the dream.
I think death is just another dream, another illusion.
You are right. What the person thinks of as death is an illusion.
I think if the person believes they’ll get an after-life, they will. If they don’t, they won’t. If they believe in an after-life, they’ll get whatever they believe in.
That’s a cute story.
In the bible story, we’re in the Garden of Eden and then we gain self-knowledge and we lose that situation.
Yes, self-knowledge gives rise to separation and the loss of the sense of paradise.
So in the biblical metaphor it seems possible that awareness is still intact over here and we are projections outside of that, an illusion that has arisen in order for awareness to know what it’s not. It can’t know what it is unless it knows what it’s not. The purpose of a dream is to act as a metaphor for experiences that have happened to us.
A dream has no purpose but the mi