Sam Harris
There's just this openness which is inseparable from the energy of its appearances.
This quote refers to what is known in Tibetan Buddhism as "inseparable pair" of ground/appearance/space on the one side, and mental events on the other side (Gebel, T. (2022p, October 2)).
Here, I want to make a note on the "energy of the appearances" aspect.
Mind/ground etc are seen in this tradition as timeless and changeless. This is in contrast to the energy and directionality of the mental events.
The mental events express energy through
"movement" (like a snake crawling out of its hole, or the waves of the ocean), and through
"directionality" (like the sun rays arising from the sun).
This is in particular useful in a psychological when emotions can be seen as abstract energy appearances, thus stripping them of their emotionally captivating content. Many of the therapeutical uses of this approach aim at defocusing on the specific content, the story, of emotions (for example in (S. Young, 2015a))
Resources
Gebel, T. (2022r, November 8). The inseparable pair (1) of mind and events - Sam Harris Daily Meditation 2022.08.04. Till Gebel. https://www.till-gebel.com/post/sam-harris-meditation-2022-08-04-inseparable-pair-consciousness-content
Gebel, T. (2022p, October 2). Emotion as energy - Sam Harris Daily Meditation 2022.09.09. Till Gebel. https://www.till-gebel.com/post/draft-sam-harris-daily-meditation-2022-09-09-emotion-as-energy
Young, S. (2015a). Amazon.com: Break Through Difficult Emotions: How to Transform Painful Feelings with Mindfulness Meditation (Audible Audio Edition): Shinzen Young, Shinzen Young, Sounds True: Audible Books & Originals. https://www.amazon.com/Break-Through-Difficult-Emotions-audiobook/dp/B0169257LY
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