From a site visitor: “You said in a post that, ‘To grasp the Original Understanding, focus more on the ‘advaita’ and less on the ‘veda’ or ‘vedanta’ or any other writings or concepts dreamed up by men and thought to be "holy." Why would your site be called Advaita Vedanta if you want the focus to be on the advaita part? I mean, it is more advaita or more Vedanta or equal parts of both?”
F.: A few questions shall be offered in response: Is it the recipe written in the book, or is it the actual eating, that sustains the plant-food body? In the 14-million-year history of humanlike forms, which was more prevalent: the Original Understanding of “not two” or books written about “not two”? Why would there be any "need" for “Vedanta” if the awareness of the “advaita” had not been lost as a result of the ignorance generated by conditioning, programming, and enculturation? It has been observed that some persons spend a lifetime studying the Vedas, the Aranyakas, or the Upanishads (or the Qur’an or the Bible or the Torah) and still understand nothing, while some spend a few carefully-prepared-for moments in the silence and come to understand the “not two” and the entire functioning of the totality. Which would you suggest should be the focus?
The pointer was offered for those protégés who have moved beyond the wet charcoal stage. “Vedanta” has been variously used to refer to the culmination or essence of the Vedas or to that which is after the Vedas or to that which is beyond the Vedas or to refer to the end of the Vedas—constituted by the series of literature termed as the Aranyakas of which the Upanishads form the chief part. But in fact, all of that refers to words, words, and more words. What happens to the protégé who has traveled far enough along the “path” that she/he reaches a stage that no words can explain? There comes a point when the outer resources must be cast aside. At that point, only the inner resource can reveal what must be understood for Full Realization to happen. The truth cannot be stated, so if it is only that inner guru that can ultimately reveal what is to be realized, wherefore any need to continuously read words that are considered “holy”? The suggestion is then to move “beyond the Vedas and Upanishads,” to enter the silence, to discard all words and dogma and concepts and lies, and to allow the visualization of reality and truth to happen.
That understanding can be called “beyond” because it is the understanding that is beyond anything that words can state. At that point, focus on the Vedas end, focus on gurus end, focus on the self and the Self end, focus on any belief in "this world" ends, the speaking of words and the listening to words ends, and the silence begins. Go beyond the statements in the Vedas and at the end of the Vedas, go beyond the statements in the Torah or the Bible or the Qu’ran and in any other book reported to be “holy” and find the truth that cannot be written or stated. All concepts must be discarded for the Realization to happen, but persons prefer to pick and choose, to decide which beliefs should be kept because they’re “right” and which should be tossed because they’re “wrong.” There’s nothing to pick and choose because no beliefs are “right.” They’re all nothing more than ideas that were dreamed up by men with the primary addiction (a desire to control) and thus with the secondary desire (the desire to have power in order to control).
All ideas are merely the products of those types of men, dreamed up and passed on and believed in because the ideas appealed to certain persons at certain times...persons whose consciousness was corrupted by programming and conditioning and enculturation and who wanted to tell others how to think, what to believe, and how to behave properly. The Nisarga (natural) approach to the Advaita teaching invites protégés to abandon thinking (because it is generated by the false “mind”), to abandon beliefs (which are concepts dreamed up by controlling persons), to find all of the lies, and then to seek within for the advaita truth that has always been known but has been forgotten as a result of programming. Then the remainder of the manifestation can happen naturally in the AS IF fashion.
F.: A few questions shall be offered in response: Is it the recipe written in the book, or is it the actual eating, that sustains the plant-food body? In the 14-million-year history of humanlike forms, which was more prevalent: the Original Understanding of “not two” or books written about “not two”? Why would there be any "need" for “Vedanta” if the awareness of the “advaita” had not been lost as a result of the ignorance generated by conditioning, programming, and enculturation? It has been observed that some persons spend a lifetime studying the Vedas, the Aranyakas, or the Upanishads (or the Qur’an or the Bible or the Torah) and still understand nothing, while some spend a few carefully-prepared-for moments in the silence and come to understand the “not two” and the entire functioning of the totality. Which would you suggest should be the focus?
The pointer was offered for those protégés who have moved beyond the wet charcoal stage. “Vedanta” has been variously used to refer to the culmination or essence of the Vedas or to that which is after the Vedas or to that which is beyond the Vedas or to refer to the end of the Vedas—constituted by the series of literature termed as the Aranyakas of which the Upanishads form the chief part. But in fact, all of that refers to words, words, and more words. What happens to the protégé who has traveled far enough along the “path” that she/he reaches a stage that no words can explain? There comes a point when the outer resources must be cast aside. At that point, only the inner resource can reveal what must be understood for Full Realization to happen. The truth cannot be stated, so if it is only that inner guru that can ultimately reveal what is to be realized, wherefore any need to continuously read words that are considered “holy”? The suggestion is then to move “beyond the Vedas and Upanishads,” to enter the silence, to discard all words and dogma and concepts and lies, and to allow the visualization of reality and truth to happen.
That understanding can be called “beyond” because it is the understanding that is beyond anything that words can state. At that point, focus on the Vedas end, focus on gurus end, focus on the self and the Self end, focus on any belief in "this world" ends, the speaking of words and the listening to words ends, and the silence begins. Go beyond the statements in the Vedas and at the end of the Vedas, go beyond the statements in the Torah or the Bible or the Qu’ran and in any other book reported to be “holy” and find the truth that cannot be written or stated. All concepts must be discarded for the Realization to happen, but persons prefer to pick and choose, to decide which beliefs should be kept because they’re “right” and which should be tossed because they’re “wrong.” There’s nothing to pick and choose because no beliefs are “right.” They’re all nothing more than ideas that were dreamed up by men with the primary addiction (a desire to control) and thus with the secondary desire (the desire to have power in order to control).
All ideas are merely the products of those types of men, dreamed up and passed on and believed in because the ideas appealed to certain persons at certain times...persons whose consciousness was corrupted by programming and conditioning and enculturation and who wanted to tell others how to think, what to believe, and how to behave properly. The Nisarga (natural) approach to the Advaita teaching invites protégés to abandon thinking (because it is generated by the false “mind”), to abandon beliefs (which are concepts dreamed up by controlling persons), to find all of the lies, and then to seek within for the advaita truth that has always been known but has been forgotten as a result of programming. Then the remainder of the manifestation can happen naturally in the AS IF fashion.
The arrogant who want power in order to control other persons have their tools of manipulation that are based in duality and which include ideas, beliefs, attitudes, distortions, etc. To be free of the effects of programming, conditioning, and enculturation, you must refuse to let them use their tools on you by discarding what was built with those tools, namely, your “mind.” Then you’ll be free of the influence of those who would control you in their efforts to empower themselves, that is, in their efforts to sustain their false “self” or “selves” or personas. Realization results in a sense of fulfillment, of completion and of wholeness. Reading recipe books but never getting the meal results in a false sense of fulfillment, in a sense of incompletion, and in a nagging sensation that something is still missing. Turn from all “holy” books and understand the “not two.” Please enter the silence of contemplation.
[TOMORROW: The Two Tools Used Most Often to Perpetuate Distortion and Prevent Realization: Reification and Hypostatization]
[TOMORROW: The Two Tools Used Most Often to Perpetuate Distortion and Prevent Realization: Reification and Hypostatization]
