The author of this essay is Sherman Dahl, Emily's father, and is a result of the direct experience of his being with Emily. Emily resides in him and resides in all. This is undeniable by those that have been touched by such an experience and may seem foreign and somewhat annoying to those that have not. No matter what, it is still there for all to consider, with hopefully, an open heart and mind. 

The essence of the experience of this type is not new and has been the experience of many who have deeply asked or had direct experience with the inquiry into ‘Who am I?’ The loss of loved one or any other material change in the physical world brings about the opportunity of giving rise to this sort of fierce grace. This short essay contains what the author considers to be the ultimate questions that one should ask, and the ones that Emily herself was deeply in search of at an early age. They are and must be a direct result from the unique experience of self-realization undergone by Emily and many others before and after her. It is her father’s belief that she has passed them on directly to him and others that have experienced Emily either directly or indirectly. Emily has demonstrated this special power in many, many situations, and many people. 

The power of the teaching can be realized by anyone who puts it into practice and considers it deeply. Sages such as Sri Ramana Maharshi have pointed to this in recent times, not to mention the innumerable others that have awakened to such things over the course of human history if one bothers to look. Where from do they arise? They must spring up from the conscious Self. Apprehending it even vaguely helps the extinction of the ego. Emily burnt this deeply into many of those that were most closely in direct contact with her. Those blessed ones have all been able to talk with energy about the direct experience of Emily that had the effect of burning off at least some of the ego and illusion that they had prior to the experience. Thereafter the realization of the one Infinite Existence becomes possible. In that state there are no individuals other than the Eternal Existence. Hence there is most certainly, at very least, less thought, or even no thought of death or suffering, depending on the individual. 

Sri Ramana Maharshi said it best in his remarkable teachings that are easily accessible to those that search for it: 

"Every living being longs to be happy, untainted by sorrow; and everyone has the greatest love for himself, which is solely due to the fact that happiness is his real nature. Hence, in order to realize that inherent and untainted happiness, which indeed he daily experiences when the mind is subdued in deep sleep, it is essential that he should know himself. For obtaining such knowledge the enquiry, ‘Who am I?’ in quest of the Self is the best means.
‘Who Am I?’ I am pure Awareness. This Awareness is by its very nature Being-Consciousness-Bliss.

If the mind, which is the instrument of knowledge and is the basis of all activity, subsides, the perception of the world as an objective reality ceases." 

A key realization below should arise, and it is just this, which was what others witnessed and revered in Emily: 

"Should I not dispel the suffering of others, because it is suffering like my own. I should help others too because of their nature as beings, which is like my own being."

Emily discarded her own body in broad daylight, to the shock of her family and friends. Would it not be the real tragedy to have missed the message she left as to what the true purpose of life is? And can it not be that this could have only arisen within her as her own direct experience of the nature of things? 

The mind is a wondrous power residing in the Self. It causes all thoughts to arise. Apart from thoughts, there is no such thing as mind. Therefore, thought is the nature of mind. Apart from thoughts, there is no independent entity called the world. In deep sleep there are no thoughts, and there is no world. In the states of waking and dream, there are thoughts, and there is a world also.

Emily, as with you, can only reside in the self. That is, the ultimate self is always there. One will and should, at some point, come to the realization, as Emily did, that the true self is a place of love and peace, and is formless. 

When the mind leaves the Self, the world appears. Therefore, when the world appears, the Self does not appear; and when the Self appears (shines) the world does not appear. This may be a complicated awareness, but it must be the one that Emily became to be. Emily is awareness, as are you. 

As mentioned directly by sages such as Sri Ramana Maharshi:

"That which rises as ‘I’ in the body is the mind. If one inquires as to where in the body the thought ‘I’ rises first, one would discover that it rises in the Heart. That is the place of the mind’s origin. Even if one thinks constantly ‘I’, ‘I’, one will be led to that place. Of all the thoughts that arise in the mind, the ‘I’ thought is the first. It is only after the rise of the “I-thought” that other thoughts occur." 

There are instructions, teachings, and manuals for understanding the mind and body for those that have not had direct discovery in day-to-day life. Oddly, we seek manuals and instructions for mobile phones and household appliances and even keep them in sacred kitchen junk drawers, yet we do nothing, in most cases, for the deeper understanding of the mind and body that abides within the Self. Any teachings and instructions given and taken by most would barely be considered as "scratching the surface" of the depths to who we really are. The inquiry into the true nature of things takes hard work and commitment. 

Should we not explore this much further? Yes, we should. The main emotions that cause us to suffer are greed, hatred, anger, and illusion. They stand firmly in our way and cause us to do the most silly and terrible things. The Self acts as the ever-present guard in the watch tower and seeks to destroy the ever-present evils of the mind, the ego. 

A question like this should be obvious but it is not always so: 

"Shall I abide in a room full of ropes, chains and entanglements, which like a prison, may not offer an easy way out, or should I seek to abide in the open space of a garden with sunny skies? Either way, I must abide. Awareness that this is my choice is truly amazing and I thank Emily every moment of every day for opening my eyes."  Sherman Dahl 

The Emily Dahl Foundation 
November 28, 2021