Inquiry

Inquiry should take you to the boundary, the frontier of what you know and then you stop and let something other than yourself answer. You open yourself to the magic and you give it space to answer. - Adyashanti.

The Process of Inquiry

The process of Inquiry has been around since ancient times. Essentially, it involves questioning what we think we know from a place of curiosity, with the open mind of a child, from that place of really wanting to know the Truth. It is a form of meditation.

The first step in the process of Inquiry is to identify the thoughts and concepts that are creating stress and internal war. Frequently they are thoughts we wouldn’t think to question. We have assumed many concepts that have been passed down to us to be true and we don’t stop to question them. Thoughts such as:

“My husband doesn’t listen to me.”
“My children should do what I ask them to do.”
“There shouldn’t be war in this world.”
“My boss doesn’t appreciate me.”
“I’m wasting time.”
“I can’t trust anyone.”
“I need to make more money.”

We think thoughts like this all day long. We live our lives as though these thoughts are actually true. This results in sadness, anger, frustration and fear. And from that place we behave in ways that cause more sadness, anger, frustration and fear.

Your answers to the questions are where your freedom lies. When you get quiet and listen to the voice within and allow it to be spoken, you just might awake to a new world -- the truth that comes from a place beyond what the mind can answer and only the heart can speak to. It requires getting still long enough to allow the heart to speak and to honor what it is saying. Once the stressful thoughts have been identified it’s time to take them to inquiry with the four questions and the turnaround.

My job as a facilitator of Inquiry is to support you in identifying the thoughts and concepts that are getting in your way of living life with more clarity, peace and creativity. Then I ask the questions from that place of curiosity and support you in discovering your own answers. I listen deeply to you and your answers and support you in hearing what you might miss, what the mind would prefer you not hear and see.

Are you willing to lose the moon?
Honest Inquiry requires being open and being willing to “lose the moon” -- your story of how you think things should go, the story of what you think should and should not happen, your stories about you, your past, the future and Life.

Through Inquiry you will be able to see your problems from an entirely different perspective. It helps you access your own clarity and supports you in realizing for yourself what is true. You will find your way out of stress, out of others people’s business, and back home to YOU.

The process of Inquiry can be applied to any situation in your life: personal, business, family, relationships, etc.

The Work of Byron Katie ~ A Profound Process of Inquiry
In 1999 I discovered an Inquiry process called The Work of Byron Katie. The Work is one of the most simple, yet profound processes of inquiry that I have discovered. It involves four simple questions and a turnaround. It is the tool that I use as the foundation for the Inquiry I do with clients and in my workshops and retreats. For more information about The Work of Byron Katie click here.

Inquiry as Sitting in the Questions

Another form of Inquiry involves simply sitting in a question that has no immediate or real answer. It involves identifying a question that has come to you and then allowing that question to have a voice. Then you might hold it in your heart and stay open to what might be realized. This sort of Inquiry has a silent, open, curious quality to it that allows the heart to answer when the time is right for us to hear. The answer might come immediately, in a few days or maybe in a few years.

Have patience and love the questions. Don't search for the answers, which could not be given to you now, because you would not be able to live them. Rather, live the questions and perhaps someday you will gradually, without even noticing it, live your way into the answer. Rainier Marie Rilke

Having a little fun with it: Click here for a fun set of images taken at Ghost Ranch.