An Advaita Vedanta realization, enlightenment, nisarga yoga site discussing non-duality (nonduality), your original nature, and dwelling in the natural state as taught by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj.
F.: To Sh Vijan regarding your request to re-publish in your magazine in India: the e-mail address you provided is not accepting mail, so the response that was sent (but returned as undeliverable) will be posted here:
Many sites re-publish the daily postings from this site. Though the postings are copyrighted, they can be re-published free of charge as long the source is credited and as long as they are not being sold for profit. Best regards, Peace and Light.
[Continued from Monday. Please see the 9 March posting for the e-mail which is being responded to in this series] Next, you are invited to see that (a) personas which are taken to be real are actually nothing more than mirages—adopted or assigned—but that (b) they nevertheless foster dependency and thus preempt freedom during the relative existence.
The analogy offered on occasion is of a car being driven on a winding road along a mountainside. Imagine that the driver sees a mirage in the road ahead, swerves to “miss” the mirage, and plunges off the cliff in a fiery crash. That is exactly what happens when persons identify with personality, when they believe in and react to images, and when they allow the thought-word-deed continuum to generate pain and suffering in the relative.
The earliest false identities that are assigned and/or assumed include “boy” or “girl.” Duality is then introduced, and “good boy” vs. “bad boy” or “good girl” vs. “bad girl” follow. Then “son” or “daughter” are followed by “the good or bad son” or “the good or bad daughter.”
As the confusion and frustration generated by duality increases, children begin to adopt one of the nine basic personality types in order to cope with family dysfunctions and the reward-punishment syndromes that accompany the assignment of “good-bad” dualities.
The dependency on parents transforms into a dependency on “approving vs. non-approving parents” and on “happy vs. angry parents.” Co-dependency begins (and usually continues throughout the entire relative existence unless persons Realize). The result is this:
Developing one of the nine basic personality types, “The Perfectionists” become dependent upon persons, especially those who will convince them that they are “good” and on those “persons in error” that allow “The Perfectionist’s” judging and criticizing to manifest;
“The Helper” becomes dependent upon the masses in order to try to gain mass approval and mass love to compensate for the perception that the desired level of “needed love” or “needed approval” was missing during childhood and must be gained during adulthood;
“The Performers” will become dependent upon feedback from a mass audience to convince them that they are worthy and successful and admired and to provide their narcissism with the level of applause and “honor” and recognition that Threes desire;
“The Romanticists” will depend upon others to fulfill dreams and fantasies until “The Romantics” reach a point where they isolate and begin a search for the Authentic Self (after which they might enjoy the solitude);
“The Analyst” will become dependent upon others who can be impressed with his/her acquired knowledge;
“The Loyalist” will become dependent upon others to provide the “protection” that they desire as a result of their fears and insecurities;
“The Adventurer” will be dependent upon others for socialization and shared entertainment;
“The Boss” will be dependent upon persons who can be controlled; and
“The Peacemakers/The Slothful Ones” will be dependent upon others to meet all of their needs for food and clothing and shelter and money, feeling they are “entitled” and believing that they should not have to work to meet their own relative existence needs.
In all cases, belief in personas results in dependency, and any dependency robs persons of freedom...of independence. Considering all of the relative consequences of being driven by personality, why is a relinquishing of belief in personas and roles so difficult for persons?
Children adopt a personality (a) in order to adapt to abnormal and dysfunctional and threatening environments and (b) as a result of what they truly think, unconsciously, is an adaptation necessary for their very survival.
Thus, when a persona feels hurt or threatened or interfered with, it is not a relative issue to the non-Realized person who is taking that persona to be a real self; instead, the challenge is perceived as a “life-or-death” crisis. Please enter the silence of contemplation. (TOMORROW: The Conclusion)
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