***A Beginning

The following excerpt is taken from the book The Proof: A 40-Day Program for Embodying Oneness, by James F. Twyman with Anakha Coman. It is published by Hay House (October 2009) and available at all bookstores or online at: www.hayhouse.com.

A Beginning
Take a deep breath and relax. As you slowly read these words, let your mind loosen and your thoughts recede, and become aware of a feeling deep within you . . . at the center of your chest, a feeling that so often remains hidden, out of sight. Each breath is now directed to this secret and sacred chamber, and you feel it beginning to expand and awaken as if suddenly filled with energy. Like a radiating ball of light, it begins to spread—first into your torso, then your head, now down your arms and legs. And as it moves throughout your body, all the tension that seemed so real a moment ago begins to disappear, dissolving into the wave of light that gently overtakes you. Rest for a moment. Before you read any further, allow this feeling to intensify until you begin to sense that nothing else exists.

And now that you’re in this state of perfect peace, it’s time to ask yourself a question: What do I really want out of life? If you had a nicer car or bigger house, would this feeling you’re experiencing right now be more profound? If you lived in a different city and were sitting at this very moment in the most luxurious chair in the world, would you be any more content? Try to resist any thoughts or judgments that may come into your mind, such as: Well, there’s nothing wrong with having a bigger house or more money to buy an extravagant chair. If anything like that did enter your mind, you may also notice that the ball of light at the center of your chest dimmed a bit. If so, clear your mind and take a couple of deep breaths, relaxing yourself once again. (This is just a short experiment and will be over before you know it. You can return to your thoughts and concerns as soon as it’s finished. For now, just relax, and stay with the process.)

What do I really want out of life? This may be the most important question we ask ourselves. We’ve been trained to seek worldly riches, equating affluence with inner peace. However, it doesn’t take long to recall individuals we’ve met over the years who have achieved profound levels of success and who have secured enormous wealth, but who are among the most unhappy people on Earth. And it doesn’t take long to realize that monetary wealth alone won’t satisfy us. It doesn’t bring us any closer to true happiness or joy.

So if it’s not money or success that drives you, what do you truly desire? Take a deep breath, ask this question one more time, and really listen to the answer. What is it that fills your life with the contentment that you’re seeking, the love that makes everything worthwhile, and the deep happiness that inspires a sense of satisfaction that transcends the world?

I have the feeling that the answer will be very similar for each and every one of us, regardless of where we dwell or how we choose to live our lives. The words may be different, but they all point in the same direction: Connection, Harmony, Peace, Oneness. There is a bond that exists between us, an unseen link that unites and satisfies us in ways nothing else can. In the end, what we’re seeking isn’t the riches of the world, but the richness of our Souls; and this can only come from realizing that we are connected and whole. Simply put: we are One.

Prove it!
Now we’re heading in a much more interesting direction. We’ve heard it all before in a thousand different ways: separation is an illusion; we’re really connected, related, whole. It’s easy to disprove these ideas as fantasy—the entire world is proof that we are, in fact, unrelated, independent, isolated, and alone. Each of us has a separate body with a unique personality. We live in different cities and countries, and we sometimes fight wars to maintain the separation that we cherish. To say that none of this is real is nothing short of ridiculous, shortsighted, and weak-minded. In other words, it’s dead wrong.

So then why have all of the deep thinkers and mystics of the world’s great traditions proclaimed the opposite? Why have they spat in the face of conventional thinking and said things like this:

“A person experiences life as something separated from the rest—a kind of optical delusion of consciousness. Our task must be to free ourselves from this self-imposed prison, and through compassion, to find the reality of Oneness.” — Albert Einstein

“All things share the same breath—the beast, the tree, the man. . . . The air shares its spirit with all the life it supports.” — attributed to Chief Seattle

“God is in the innermost part of each and every thing, only in its innermost part, and he alone is One.” — Meister Eckhart

“Now are we one with Him Who is our Source.” — from A Course in Miracles

Is it possible that these wise individuals knew something that we do not? Is there even a remote chance that their eyes were open a little wider than ours, and that they were able to see something that’s still invisible to our limited perspectives?

This book is called The Proof because I’m going to offer undeniable evidence that the mystics and saints were right: we really are connected and whole. You already know where this experiment began—my attempt to find a book that was secretly hidden in the continental United States, using only my skills of tuning in to the thoughts of the person who hid it. (Reread the Preface if you aren’t aware of the film version of The Proof.) No words were spoken, and the experiment was completely unrehearsed. It was also something that had never been attempted before, on a scale that made the chances of success seem beyond remote. In the end, it turned out to be an easy task, which I’ll explain in more detail as we progress. I found the book hidden in a bush in Seattle, Washington, proving that thoughts can be shared. And because that’s true, we have more evidence that we’re not the separate little individuals we thought we were—in reality, we’re more powerful than we can imagine.

But it’s still not the definitive proof we’re looking for. It may have been an impressive experiment, but finding a hidden book in the Pacific Northwest doesn’t change the world. It may be curious—and for some, even a bit scary—but there has to be more; it must be experienced by more than just one person. In fact, it needs to be experienced by you, since that’s the only way you’re going to finally believe.
The real Proof, what you’re really searching for, won’t come from anything or anyone outside you. You are the Proof that you’re seeking.

There’s a longing that you’ve felt from the time you were born, perhaps even before you were born. Every person on Earth has felt that same longing, although it may be incorrectly identified or misunderstood. Is it possible that this is the proof we’re all looking for, our Souls’ desire for more than what earthly possessions can offer . . . the longing of eternity? Is it possible that it has been within us all along?

This book will help bring you a step closer to finding that place of Oneness within yourself. Ultimately, there isn’t anything I can write that will resolutely demonstrate the ways in which your five senses have been misleading you all this time—and that there’s another sense, what I call your Soul sense, that has the ability to widen the horizon of your consciousness, showing you a vision of the world you’ve never seen before. Once you experience that new world, you can’t go back. Once you learn this lesson, you’ll never be able to forget it or deny what you can suddenly so clearly see.

This book is written in two parts and has two very different intentions. The second section is a detailed study of how you can re-create my experiment so that you can experience being connected with others to the point that you’re able to read their thoughts (and you can prove this by finding an object they’ve hidden). There are three levels to this process, and I’m convinced that nearly everyone will experience success with at least one. With a little practice, you’ll be able to have a friend hide something in a house, building, or large room; and after a few moments of walking with him or her at your side, you’ll discover the item. It’s an amazing experience that demonstrates a deep and important lesson, but it’s not ultimately true proof of Oneness.

That will come from the exercises you’ll find in the first section. One of the most essential things that will lead directly to your transformation is consistency. In other words, you need to retrain your mind to perceive everything through the lens of the Soul rather than the ego. Your ego is the part of you that sees everything as separate—alone and in competition with you. Your Soul knows that nothing is truly separate; and that on the deepest, most essential level, we are One. Unfortunately, however, you’ve been trained to give the ego’s vision much more power than the Soul’s, and so the evidence that surrounds you is overlooked and ignored.

But what would happen if you retrained yourself to see the world like the saints and mystics? How would things appear? How would your life change? The goal of Part I is to provide you with 40 days of consistent restructuring, teaching you to see everything in a new—or perhaps a very ancient—way.

I believe that it’s the most natural thing in the universe, and that we were taught from a very early age to deny the Soul’s vision of the world and focus instead on the symbols of separation. When we were born and for the first period of our lives, we had no concept of separation. Everything we perceived was an extension of who we are rather than a distant and alien body we can neither realize nor understand. It’s time to reverse this momentum and remember our original innocence—the sight and vision we beheld when we were born, which is still within us.

“Where two or more are gathered . . .”
Part I of this book (“The 40-Day Oneness Program”) is written in a dialogue format. I believe that it’s often through joining with the Soul of another that the most essential wisdom can be discovered. That’s why I asked Anakha Coman—teacher, mystic, and friend—to join me in this endeavor. I’ve known Anakha for many years, and I trust her unique and profound connection with the eternal. She is a minister who lives in Portland, Oregon; and she was the first person who came to mind when I considered who might offer the highest, clearest demonstration of Oneness. Together she and I broke down this process of discovering Oneness into 40 aspects, carefully exploring their intricate qualities through a conversation that took place over several days. Anakha then designed a set of 40 daily practices and “I AM” affirmations to enable you to fully experience and embody Oneness at the heart of your very own life.

Through exercises, discussion, and your own commitment to transform your mind, these 40 practices will give you the momentum you need to enter into the stream of Oneness that is all around you but which is often missed.

How to Best Experience This Book
As you already know, this book is divided into two distinct sections. The first contains the 40-day course on experiencing Oneness. If you dedicate yourself to this process, you’ll discover an entirely new existence where separation loses its allure and Oneness is the guiding principle. Simply put, you’ll experience what the saints and sages from antiquity have described as enlightenment.

Does that sound too grandiose? You probably didn’t expect such claims when you picked up this book. You may have simply wished to learn how to read another person’s mind, as if that was the pinnacle of what you could achieve. It’s only the first step, and the more you realize this, the faster you’ll be able to ascend to the higher lessons where you can experience a sense of Oneness that you never dreamed existed. This is Anakha’s and my intent and genuine focus of the 40-day program.

But I also won’t neglect the goal of finding an object that has been hidden by another person. To me, this allows you to experience the process, to help you gauge your progress through the course. Therefore, I recommend that you read this book in a slightly different manner. Begin by engaging in several of the initial practices, initiating the 40-day process. At some point, perhaps after several days, you’ll feel the energy begin to build and your confidence increase. That will be the sign that it’s time to engage the second part of the program—reading another person’s mind, obtaining the tangible proof that you aren’t separate as you may have believed, but that you can actually share thoughts and impressions with another Soul. Continue to read and experience the lessons as you go through the exercises. The two parts work together in dissolving the barriers between your ego and your Soul, revealing a deep sense of Oneness that will change your life forever.

Open your eyes now!
It may be hard to believe that a book can provide a 40-day program for embodying Oneness and enlightenment. I’ve always believed that what seems impossible to the ego has already been accomplished by the Soul, and it may be wise to employ this philosophy at the onset of this journey. You are already One with everything you perceive—with the people you see as you walk down the street; with every situation you encounter; and with the Source of all Creation, sometimes known as God. If you’re able to lay aside your critical mind—even for a short while—you may discover something that you always suspected but were afraid to truly entertain: Oneness. It’s right there within you, and now it’s time to open the door so that it can finally be released into the world.