The Awareness Podcast, Ep.# 83: Living in Not-Knowing with Jenny Beal and Elizabeth Reninger: Where Spiritual Traditions Meet
Sep 07, 2023
Jenny's guest, Elizabeth Reninger, describes how when she was very young, the birth of her sister and the death of a young child in a farming accident sparked an early curiosity about the nature of human existence. The death of her father a few years later led to the recognition that we are not the body. Her childhood curiosity persisted into adulthood and led to a path of exploring the deepest truth. Initially this was through academic studies, but later through a variety of spiritual traditions. She was fascinated by what the various teachings have in common. In meeting Thich Nhat Hhan, something that had been missing was revealed.
As a result, the direction of her life changed completely. She describes how the process of awakening happened through a series of shifts. Understanding and expression of what she experienced came later.
Jenny and Elizabeth discuss:
-The connections between Buddhism, Taoism and Advaita Vedanta, and the ideas from each of these traditions that have had a lasting significance for Elizabeth.
-The benefits of having a living Teacher. -How a teacher can help at an early stage of the spiritual path and in the stabilization process.
-What living in not-knowing means in practical life.
If you are interested in exploring spiritual awakening, we invite you to register for our free 7 Days to Awakening self study course, created by Lisa Natoli and Bill Free.
About Elizabeth Reninger:
Since she was a young child, Elizabeth has felt a natural draw toward exploring (as the Sufis say) “that which transpires behind that which appears.”
Along the way, this fascination inspired encounters with Buddhist, Taoist, Advaita Vedanta and other nondual traditions.
Yoga asana, qigong, and poetry-writing have all played a central role in the unveiling, stabilizing, and expression of the nondual understanding.
Living in not-knowing means to clearly understand that the conceptual mind will never be able to describe, define, or in any way grasp the Pure Awareness that is our essential nature. This gives rise to a kind of non-conceptual knowing—a clarity, confidence, and comfort—that is indestructible.
In her day-to-day living, Elizabeth endeavors to remain undistracted from and in ever-new ways enjoy and appreciate This.
