These days we're recovering the ancient alternative consciousness and, in fact, noticing that Jesus is the first wholly non-dualistic teacher in the Western world. Contemplation is the alternative consciousness of keeping open the heart space and the mind space that allows us to experience life and say we know that such and such is true. I can't prove it, but I know it to be true. This is the kind of truth that a person holds gently and humbly. At one time, religion was the same as poetry. The only way to relate to mystery is through metaphor.
