A Non-Definitive Guide to Non-Duality

Editor's Note: Hey! Dan here. Generally, at Every we try to stick to writing that's directly written for founders, operators, and investors in tech. We break this rule on two occasions: for pieces that are really good, or really important. This piece ticks both of those boxes for me.

I practice some form of non-dual mindfulness almost every day—and the experiences and techniques that Sasha writes about in this essay are real, reachable, and profound. They're also feasible to practice with just a few minutes a day. They're a key habit that helps me run Every, write weekly, and feel pretty good doing it. I hope it's as helpful for you as it has been for me.

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You may have heard about this “non-duality” thing, or “non-dual meditation.” Perhaps you have heard rave reviews of a meditative state sometimes referred to as “non-dual awareness,” or “big mind” or “the natural state.” Maybe in connection with exciting-sounding phrases like “spiritual awakening” or “enlightenment.”

Sometimes, people hype it up in a way that can seem far-fetched. For example, nearly a full half of people who learned how to achieve non-dual awareness through a Sam Harris meditation course said it was the most important skill they’d ever learned in their lives. Presumably, these people have learned some important skills before, like job skills that allow them to feed themselves. So that’s quite an assessment. Also, non-dual teacher Loch Kelly says, “It gave me a way of relieving my underlying suffering and connecting to an inner joy that I didn’t even know existed.”

Okay, what is this thing? How is it done? What is “non-duality”?