Empty Wisdom: The Subtle Art of Discovering What You Already Are

by Don Oakley

We normally think of wisdom as the accumulation of knowledge over a lifetime. Knowledge is certainly useful as we go about our day-to-day existence but falls far short of defining what we truly are. Our efforts to find ultimate truth or abiding happiness in experiences, thoughts and feelings will inevitably end in failure. This is not a mistake. In this sense, failure to find truth outside of ourselves is a necessary step in one’s spiritual journey. It is life’s way of telling us that what we seek is not distant and is not conceptual. When we finally realize the limitations of experiences, concepts and dogmas, we might notice, as if for the first time, the vast spaciousness of our innate awareness.

This essential beingness has always been present. We discover that which has never been an awake knowingness that is present for all that arises. This whole-hearted recognition of our formless true nature might be called “ Empty Wisdom .”

And we will have found our way home.

Empty Wisdom is a practical guide to investigate one's essential beingness and to discover, for the first time, what we have always been. This discovery has been called enlightenment or spiritual awakening, but it is not a particular experience, ideology, or feeling; it is what is knowingly present for all experience. Therefore, it is not necessarily a high state although it can feel like that for a while. Empty Wisdom is written from the author's realization and is not limited to any particular tradition. It does, however, draw from Buddhist teachings, particularly the early Chan (Zen) teachings. The book's chapters are intended to address specific common blockages that can occur in one's journey home.

242 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 11, 2023