Photo: Cover illustration from I Am Always I
I Am Always I is a delightful new children’s book by the much-loved spiritual teacher Rupert Spira. The video that accompanies the book is read aloud by Rupert over a wonderful new animation for kids and adults of all ages. Rupert takes you on a journey of discovery through a landscape of thoughts, feelings and circumstances to your essential Self. With exquisite artwork by award-winning illustrator Zuzanna Celej, this deceptively simple animated story shows readers of all ages that beneath our whirling thoughts and shifting emotions we can find an unshakeable peace and quiet joy.
I Am Always I is not only a book you will fall in love with, it is also a guide to falling in love with your true Self. As with the book, this charming animated short film for children is dedicated to the child in us all. I Am Always I is one of those bedtime stories for kids that will also be loved by parents and grandparents.
I Am Always I – A Poem for Children by Rupert Spira
I am not always happy
I don’t always feel free
I am not always lonely
But I am always me.
I am not always naughty
I don’t often feel shy
I am not always hungry
But I am always I.
I am not always sleepy
I don’t often cry
I am not always messy
But I am always I.
I am not always nice
I don’t always try
I am sometimes forgetful
But I am always I.
Once I was two
For a while I was three
I am not always four
But I am always me.
Sometimes I’m lazy
But I don’t ever lie
I am not always cheerful
But I am always I.
I am not always right
But I do what I can
I may not be perfect
But I am what I am.
Everything changes
So what can I be?
I cannot be anything
But I am always me.
About the Author:
Rupert Spira came across the poetry of Rumi at the age of fifteen, in 1975, and soon after this met his first teacher, Dr. Francis Roles, at Colet House in London. Dr. Roles was himself a student of Shantananda Saraswati, the Shankaracharya of the North of India. Under his guidance Rupert learnt mantra meditation and was introduced to the classical system of Advaita, or non-duality, which formed the foundation of his interest and practice for the next twenty-five years. Throughout these years Rupert also studied the teachings of Ramana Maharshi and Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj on a continuous basis.In the mid-1990s Rupert met Francis Lucille and over the next twelve years Rupert spent all the spare time that work and family commitments would allow with Francis, exploring the sense of separation as it appears in the mind in the form of beliefs and, more important, how it appears in the body as feelings of being located and limited. Francis also introduced Rupert to the Direct Path teachings of Atmananda Krishna Menon and the Tantric approach of Kashmir Shaivism, which he had received from his teacher, Jean Klein.
Information on Rupert’s retreats and webinars can be found here and his YouTube channel is a great source of inspiration as well. His new children’s book, I Am Always I is now available from his website, Amazon and all booksellers.
