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[UPCOMING POST: WHEN THE CONSCIOUSNESS SPEAKS VIA SOME OF THE LONGER-TERM VISITORS TO THIS SITE]
FROM A SITE VISITOR: Just finished reading the series on doubt. Believing I was farther along the path, but not even sure I’ve passed what you called obstacle one. Any suggestions? Thx.
F.: Consciousness is energy, but it is also matter by all except definition. There is no duality. Inertia and energy are attributes of matter. Maharaj said of matter, “You may consider it in a way as a form of very subtle energy.”
Since energy/matter has always been, and since Advaitins look at a specific type of energy/matter, it may be asked, “So WHERE was it prior to where it is now?” Prior to conception and prior to this body-cum-consciousness, where was the speck of consciousness that manifested and triggered a process that resulted in what has come to be considered "you"?
Further, where are the not-yet-manifested specks of consciousness that will manifest on a daily basis? To come to the total understanding, you must first comprehend these four pointers:
1. To believe that a body has anything to do with You is delusion;
2. to believe that the “mind” has anything to do with You is delusion;
3. to believe that either the personality or personas have anything to do with You is delusion; and
4. standing in the way of knowing the consciousness, of knowing the awareness, of understanding the “what” and of understanding the “where” are several obstacles that must be discarded, including:
A. The belief that you have had the same, continuous body since “birth.”
B. Memories, which delude you into thinking that there has been continuity as evidenced by “remembering when you were three, and ten, and fifteen, and twenty, and thirty,” etc.
C. The belief that the roles you have played for a time give proof of continuity: “I have been a spouse for twenty years now.”
D. And even among those seekers moving along “the path,” they are deceived by the obstacle of believing in the continuity of a specific speck of consciousness—of a static and singular True Self, of a fixed and unique Pure Witness—assuming that there has been only one uninterrupted manifestation of that certain speck of consciousness that could be pointed to as “You.” Even that is false.
[NOTE: That is likely a pointer that few Advaitin seekers have heard. It will be explained in more detail tomorrow, but talk about removing any "sense of uniqueness" and "special-ness"! Talk about banishing once and for all any credibility given to the concept of "continuity"!]
For now, understand that the only continuity that is real is awareness. Consciousness comes and goes. If you do not believe that, stop eating plants or things that eat plants and see what happens. Consciousness is transient; Awareness IS, period.
More than a year ago on this site, the deception of “continuity” was discussed. For newcomers to the site, the explanation shall be offered again, along with further discussion of point D above.
First, there has been no body continuity: the human body is constantly replacing and regenerating cells to maintain proper and efficient function. If you spend ten minutes reading this post and considering the content, during that time you will have shed 250,000 skin cells and those will have been replaced by 250,000 different cells. Not one cell of the billions of skin cells that came about during the last twenty-eight days is now present.
There has never been in Your case one body with continuity, and there will never be any case of a body with continuity (whether talking about pre-manifestation, during the manifestation, or post-manifestation. It is the illusion of “memories” that contribute to the false belief that the body “has had” continuity.)
So much for body continuity. Secondly, there has been no “mind” continuity, that storehouse of ideas and beliefs having been in constant flux. How many things that you “loved” in the past mean nothing to you now? Did you “change your mind”? No.
The “mind” is constantly changing automatically since it is a storehouse of lies and beliefs and attitudes, and new ideas and concepts are being added regularly as a few of older ones are discarded: the belief “I love him” can be discarded and replaced with “I hate him.”
Thus, that speck of consciousness which calls itself “a seeker” might have certain understandings about reality today but can be totally out of touch with reality tomorrow because of attachment to the consciousness and because abidance as the unchanging Absolute is not happening.
[Some have asked: Then how can the understanding continue if there is no “mind”? The answer: "Via the consciousness." "But," it is then asked, "if the consciousness is not continuous, how can the understanding continue?" Once Realized, one need not re-Realize each day. The answer to that involves awareness and will be discussed tomorrow.]
Thirdly, there has certainly been no continuity of personality. Some identities you assumed ten years ago, you do not assume today. Also, those roles you are assuming and playing today, you will not assume and play in “the future.” Further, any labels which you accepted years ago but which you have not subsequently questioned and rejected will be a part of that mass of lies that blocks the light of truth.
To differentiate between the Real Self and the false self requires an understanding that the self, and the world in which you believe the self resides, are “nothing but the picture of your own ‘I’ consciousness” (Maharaj).
There is no “you” that “has” consciousness. The consciousness manifested without plan or rhyme or reason, (an act of friction notwithstanding). And someday the consciousness will simply unmanifest as well. Prior to manifestation, there was no form, and post-manifestation there will be no form.
The apparent form is temporary. All that is apparently personal is temporary. The form might be referred to as a form-cum-consciousness or as a space-cum-consciousness for the sake of discussion, but that is not You. (Just because you might fly in a plane does not mean you are the plane.) The substance lies beneath what is supposedly the form; the truth lies beyond what can supposedly be perceived.
It is seen clearly from My view that “you” (the self which you think you are) is a total misperception. When You see clearly, You will also know that there is no self to be rid of and that there is nothing for you to do to be rid of the false self except to see as I see.
Then you will know that there is nothing that You need to work to kill off, any more than teams need to be sent into the desert to kill off the mirages in those regions. What an impossible undertaking, for them...for you. All they need is an understanding that mirages are mirages. All you need is to see that which You are not and then That Which You Are. Please enter the silence of contemplation. (To be continued)
FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THIS TOPIC:
and
RETREATS OR SATSANG w/ floyd ONE-ON-ONE, by TELEPHONE, by INTERNET CHAT ROOM, and via THE ADVAITA COURSE BY INTERNET (see link to right)
For details click ADVAITA VEDANTA RETREATS & SATSANG
or contact floyd by clicking CONTACT floyd
