FROM A SITE VISITOR: I finally understand your pointer that even if arms and legs and organs are ‘lost’ I Am still Me. But now, how to be free of my racing mind, once and for all?
F.: (Continued from yesterday) Yesterday’s posting left off with this pointer: Ultimately, the Original Understanding is present and can be accessed via the inner guru if, as Dennis notes, the “removal of misconceptions” happens first.
The obvious question is, “Since a 'mind' is a storehouse of accumulated external knowledge, of what benefit could a 'mind' possibly be when one is trying to tap into that which is already known internally and which is only accessible internally?” Since it is the “mind” which is full of concepts and which blocks the pure consciousness from knowing itSelf, obviously “the mind” cannot be an aid in the search for Self; instead, it will be an impediment.
The Advaitin invokes reason and logic; the “mind” is the antithesis of both. (Animals and birds, which have no "mind," live in a reasonable, logical, and natural fashion). Only programmed and conditioned humans must, for a period, allow reason (a marker of pure consciousness) to guide arguments offered by way of persuasion.
F.: (Continued from yesterday) Yesterday’s posting left off with this pointer: Ultimately, the Original Understanding is present and can be accessed via the inner guru if, as Dennis notes, the “removal of misconceptions” happens first.
The obvious question is, “Since a 'mind' is a storehouse of accumulated external knowledge, of what benefit could a 'mind' possibly be when one is trying to tap into that which is already known internally and which is only accessible internally?” Since it is the “mind” which is full of concepts and which blocks the pure consciousness from knowing itSelf, obviously “the mind” cannot be an aid in the search for Self; instead, it will be an impediment.
The Advaitin invokes reason and logic; the “mind” is the antithesis of both. (Animals and birds, which have no "mind," live in a reasonable, logical, and natural fashion). Only programmed and conditioned humans must, for a period, allow reason (a marker of pure consciousness) to guide arguments offered by way of persuasion.
("Persuasion," in this case, is merely pointing out to the consciousness that it has been fooled, inviting it to see that it has been fooled, and thereby facilitating an end to that circumstance.) In a non-dual sense, the intent of the Direct Path teacher is to use argument to un-persuade, not to persuade; to de-program, not to re-program;
and to expunge the conglomeration of pollutants that are referred to collectively as “the mind,” not to add to the accumulation of concepts that currently form “the mind” of the non-Realized. (What the "journey" to Realization is truly about is more easily understood if it is also understood that "the non-Realized" are merely manifested specks of consciousness that have not been re-purified post-programming, post-conditioning, post-domestication, and post-enculturation).
That said, the Direct Path Method is employed here, so no visitor will be told, “Do nothing—move on.” No one among the Realized will be told, “You are already Realized. Just know that. Now go away.” Though it is a fact that "You who are seeking Are already That Which you seek," that does not mean that the seeker realizes that. The very fact that seeking is happening is the evidence that the seeker does not yet realize that.
Dennis Waite explains it this way in ENLIGHTENMENT: The Path through the Jungle: “The neo-advaitin claims that ‘we are already enlightened.’ This is a fundamental error….” He continues, “It is true that we already are brahman, the non-dual reality…,” but, he says, “the point is that we do not realize this.”
Furthermore, it is also a fact that for a temporary period, the pointers offered by a Realized teacher must be “processed” (which is this site’s recommended use of “meditation time” or “quiet time”).
There would only be nothing to do if there were no “path” to travel. For beginners, however, there is a "path" to travel until it is understood that You Are That Which You Seek. The "do-er" does until belief in the "do-er" ends, along with any "need" to do. That statement contains no ambiguities but clearly present are certain ironies:
and to expunge the conglomeration of pollutants that are referred to collectively as “the mind,” not to add to the accumulation of concepts that currently form “the mind” of the non-Realized. (What the "journey" to Realization is truly about is more easily understood if it is also understood that "the non-Realized" are merely manifested specks of consciousness that have not been re-purified post-programming, post-conditioning, post-domestication, and post-enculturation).
That said, the Direct Path Method is employed here, so no visitor will be told, “Do nothing—move on.” No one among the Realized will be told, “You are already Realized. Just know that. Now go away.” Though it is a fact that "You who are seeking Are already That Which you seek," that does not mean that the seeker realizes that. The very fact that seeking is happening is the evidence that the seeker does not yet realize that.
Dennis Waite explains it this way in ENLIGHTENMENT: The Path through the Jungle: “The neo-advaitin claims that ‘we are already enlightened.’ This is a fundamental error….” He continues, “It is true that we already are brahman, the non-dual reality…,” but, he says, “the point is that we do not realize this.”
Furthermore, it is also a fact that for a temporary period, the pointers offered by a Realized teacher must be “processed” (which is this site’s recommended use of “meditation time” or “quiet time”).
There would only be nothing to do if there were no “path” to travel. For beginners, however, there is a "path" to travel until it is understood that You Are That Which You Seek. The "do-er" does until belief in the "do-er" ends, along with any "need" to do. That statement contains no ambiguities but clearly present are certain ironies:
Yes, You Are That Which You Seek, but since the consciousness has been corrupted, or blocked, there is a requirement to “travel the ‘path’ that is not really a path” and you must “complete ‘the journey’ that is a journey to nowhere except where You already Are.” (Again, all pointers are "level appropriate," and pointers vary depending upon whether the teacher is speaking to one at the "wet charcoal stage," the "dry charcoal stage," or the "gunpowder stage.")
Pointers are merely the map that one can witness and thereby see, "Oh my gosh! I am already where I sought to go!" or more accurately, “I Am That Which I sought but did not recognize because of the fog.” But again, some “processing” must happen which will allow the seeker to tap into the pure consciousness, access to which has been blocked by the content of the "mind."
Yet ultimately, as the seeker moves farther along the "path," it is understood that this deal called “Advaita” is not really even about “processing pointers,” is it? Is the “journey” not about, ultimately, tapping into the pure consciousness in order to reconsider what you think you already know rather than "processing any new considerations"? The Direct Path Advaitin teacher’s invitation is not to “Think about all these 'profound things' that I have told you” but to "Allow these pointers to inspire you to start questioning everything that persons have told you."
The invitation is to study what they have told you, holding up each and every concept to the light and seeing how transparent and fallacious all of their ideas and concepts are. See how useless it has been to believe them. See how useless have been your efforts to try to encourage others to accept "your" beliefs (which are really just their beliefs...the beliefs of your programmers).
Pointers are merely the map that one can witness and thereby see, "Oh my gosh! I am already where I sought to go!" or more accurately, “I Am That Which I sought but did not recognize because of the fog.” But again, some “processing” must happen which will allow the seeker to tap into the pure consciousness, access to which has been blocked by the content of the "mind."
Yet ultimately, as the seeker moves farther along the "path," it is understood that this deal called “Advaita” is not really even about “processing pointers,” is it? Is the “journey” not about, ultimately, tapping into the pure consciousness in order to reconsider what you think you already know rather than "processing any new considerations"? The Direct Path Advaitin teacher’s invitation is not to “Think about all these 'profound things' that I have told you” but to "Allow these pointers to inspire you to start questioning everything that persons have told you."
The invitation is to study what they have told you, holding up each and every concept to the light and seeing how transparent and fallacious all of their ideas and concepts are. See how useless it has been to believe them. See how useless have been your efforts to try to encourage others to accept "your" beliefs (which are really just their beliefs...the beliefs of your programmers).
See how useless it has been for you to have argued to defend their beliefs. See how clinging to their beliefs has failed you. If you have not Realized Fully but are still seeking, then see that the best you've come up with so far, while functioning under the influence of their belief systems, are occasional instances of happiness, fluctuating periods of stability and chaos, and no real understanding of Who (actually, What) You Truly Are. Please enter the silence of contemplation. (To be continued)
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