If you want to know what ‘enlightenment’ is… listen to this one! Thank me later 🙂 


Nikki Walton welcomes non-duality teacher Rupert Spira to the New Growth Podcast for a conversation around the true nature of experience and the presence of awareness.

From an early age, Rupert Spira was deeply interested in the nature of reality. He studied and practiced the classical Advaita Vedanta tradition for 20 years before he met his teacher, Francis Lucille, in 1997. Francis introduced Rupert to the Direct Path teachings and, more importantly, directly indicated to him the true nature of experience. Rupert lives in the UK and holds regular meetings and retreats in Europe and the United States. Learn more about him at his website, and check out his videos on YouTube.


Waking Up to Happiness
Nikki welcomes Rupert and asks about how he found his path in life. Rupert talks about his experience of waking up to the happiness found within himself, rather than the outside world. He explores how happiness can be found in the presence of awareness.

“It became clear to me that what all the great religious and spiritual teachings say in one way or another, that happiness is the nature of our being. If we want happiness, the only place to find it is in one’s self, in one’s own being. That really is what self-inquiry is, it’s the investigation into the nature of one’s being.” – Rupert Spira


The Presence of Awareness (16:47)
Nikki and Rupert talk more about what the presence of awareness means, and how it can lead to peace and happiness. Rupert shares an analogy of an actor playing the role of King Lear to exemplify the true nature of experience and how we are all this presence of awareness.


“We don’t need to defend ourselves emotionally or psychologically, because we know what we are cannot be harmed by experience. Nor do we have to seek a particular experience in order to be at peace or happy, because our happiness is prior to experience, it’s already present.” – Rupert Spira

A Shared Being (31:22)
Nikki and Rupert discuss the true meaning of enlightenment, and how we are all one, a shared being. Rupert explores the essence of non-dual understanding, and the fruits of the Direct Path teachings.


“We cease using the world to serve our happiness, and we start using our happiness to serve the world.” – Rupert Spira