An Advaita forum focusing on Realisation, enlightenment, non-duality, Real Love, peace, freedom, Your original nature, abiding naturally, the Oneness, the Nothingness, and Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj.
Here, there is nothing that is believed, so there is no one here who wants you to believe anything, either. Here, the invitation is to be free of all that you have been programmed, conditioned, acculturated, and domesticated to believe so that you can be free, period.
From a site visitor: Does Louise teach the online classes?
F.: Yes. Details will be provided at the end of today's post.
This exchange happened during a retreat:
[To a seeker after completing the discussion of the third of seven steps on the "path" to Realization]:
F.: How free do you want to be?
Seeker: Completely.
F.: I disagree. I suggest you leave. Return to your hotel and consider nothing but that question, and consider it in terms of the way you talk and in terms of the way you behave throughout your typical days. Come back here tomorrow morning and be ready to be totally honest.
[The next day]:
F.: How free do you want to be?
S: I'm very confused. At times, I say I want to be independent, but I am still hanging on to a lot of my old dependencies.
F.: And also substituting new dependencies for old dependencies?
S.: Yes.
F.: And new roles for old roles?
S.: Yes.
F.: I collected for further consideration a few pointers from Maharaj on the subject:
Maharaj: "Assert your independence...."
and
Maharaj: "This is the end of Yoga -- to realise independence."
and
Maharaj: "The cause of suffering is dependence and independence is the remedy. Yoga is the science and the art of self-liberation through Self-understanding." [That is, liberation from the false self or selves.]
Maharaj: "... To realise your independence, you must test it by letting go all you were dependent on."
Maharaj: "Realise your independence and remain happy. I tell you, this is the secret of happiness. To believe that you depend on things and people for happiness is due to ignorance of your true nature; to know that you need nothing to be happy, except Self-knowledge, is wisdom."
Maharaj said that science would one day prove every Advaitin pointer he offered. He offered many pointers inviting persons to be free of the curse of personality, and science today provides concrete evidence of the toll that personality takes as it drives persons to think as they think, talk as they talk, and behave as they behave, removing any and all opportunity to chose - to practice what some call "free will."
Freedom and independence and choice can never happen if living under the auspices of personality, yet persons believe that they are making choices when they are actually being driven by motivators that they have no awareness of at all. So, to continue with Maharaj's assertion, what does science show to support the fact that personality blocks persons from being independent?
All persons prior to Realization are driven by one of nine basic personality types and then by dozens or scores of other personas that are adopted by them or assigned by cultures along the way. On planet earth, 50% are Personality Type Sixes, so 50% are controlled by the Six's primary drivers: fear and dependence.
As a result of their fear, and subsequent insecurities, 50% of all persons on the planet will seek "safety in numbers." They seek caretakers and rescuers and jobs that allow them to be legally armed (soldiers, police, security guards) or other types of employment that offer support or a sense of protection.
They will take a job with a low but guaranteed salary rather than take a chance at earning more money in jobs with performance-based pay scales. Some of them will marry in order to be taken care of financially. Some of them will form partnerships, too insecure to "go it alone." And none of that will be by choice.
The connection to the topic of independence? For fifty-percent of the people on the planet, being independent is the last thing on their "wish lists." They want to be dependent...to be cared for and sheltered and protected, and most do not even know it.
In schools, the Sixes are the one trying to arrange "study groups" with a "help me mentality." [By contrast, Type Fours, Maharaj's type, are the students prone to be independent and who study alone. To join a group for study would never even be considered, but those prone-to-be-independent-types comprise only 1.5% of the total population of the planet.]
Add to the Sixes the Type Two's who are dependent, the Type Three's who need an audience, the Type Seven's who are prone to socialize, and the Type Nines who are dependent and you understand the scientifically-based results of research: for all the lip service given to independence and being free, few on the planet actually prefer being independent and free.
Most will be driven to join religious groups or spiritual groups (97% reporting a religious affiliation and millions around the globe claiming membership in spiritual groups or support groups or step groups). Most will seek "outer resources" - human and divine - for guidance and advice and power and sustenance.
A set of teachings that suggest to seekers that they seek the inner guru, the inner resource; that suggest they need no "power"; that the divine, supernatural entities that have been dreamed up by men really are just dreams;
and that suggest that seekers can be totally independent and free...those teachings will have little appeal to the 97% of the planet's population that are among the personality types that are driven, unconsciously, to be dependent.
What will have mass appeal (because of "individual personality") will be those groups and people and institutions and teachings that promote dependency, that promise power and care-taking, that promise saving and rescuing, that promise security and protection, and that promise the continuation of life now and forevermore.
And because most persons on the planet are walking in their sleep, they cling to a belief in their power source or sources even after the source or sources are seen to fail them time and again.
Thus, those who can see the insanity might ask, "Why does she stay with him when he is so violent?" The answer: personality-based fear and dependence. The desire to be taken care of can override the fear of the unknown that awaits if she leaves. Thus the planet's widespread insanity.
"Why would they join the military, knowing they are likely to be sent to war and killed?" The answer: personality-based fear and dependence. The desire to feel secure by being a member of a large force and being armed and being trained to kill overrides the fear of trying to make it on their own without all that imagined "support" and "source of strength." Sixes believe that if they are loyal - to their nation, fellow warriors, commanders, relationship partners - they will be cared for. Thus, more of the planet's insanity.
And why do 97% cling to their religious or spiritual beliefs when logic and experience have both shown time and again that they are placing their faith in something that never consistently provides what is promised?
The answer: personality-based fear and dependence. The desire to feel secure by being a member of a large community; the fear of trying to make it on their own; their desire for "support"; their desire for a power that they can call on in times of need or fear or want; and a desire for a "source of strength." Thus more of the planet's insanity.
To be free is to be independent. In a search to be free in cultures that specialize in twisting reality 180-degrees, persons (in spite of all their lip service about wanting to be free and independent) actually end up being dependent and not free at all because of
(1) the venues they are using in their search and because of (2) the teachings being offered in those venues that encourage both dependency and substitute dependencies. So again the question is, "How free do you want to be?"
F.: How free do you want to be?
Seeker: Completely.
F.: I disagree. I suggest you leave. Return to your hotel and consider nothing but that question, and consider it in terms of the way you talk and in terms of the way you behave throughout your typical days. Come back here tomorrow morning and be ready to be totally honest.
[The next day]:
F.: How free do you want to be?
S: I'm very confused. At times, I say I want to be independent, but I am still hanging on to a lot of my old dependencies.
F.: And also substituting new dependencies for old dependencies?
S.: Yes.
F.: And new roles for old roles?
S.: Yes.
F.: I collected for further consideration a few pointers from Maharaj on the subject:
Maharaj: "Assert your independence...."
and
Maharaj: "This is the end of Yoga -- to realise independence."
and
Maharaj: "The cause of suffering is dependence and independence is the remedy. Yoga is the science and the art of self-liberation through Self-understanding." [That is, liberation from the false self or selves.]
Maharaj: "... To realise your independence, you must test it by letting go all you were dependent on."
Maharaj: "Realise your independence and remain happy. I tell you, this is the secret of happiness. To believe that you depend on things and people for happiness is due to ignorance of your true nature; to know that you need nothing to be happy, except Self-knowledge, is wisdom."
Maharaj said that science would one day prove every Advaitin pointer he offered. He offered many pointers inviting persons to be free of the curse of personality, and science today provides concrete evidence of the toll that personality takes as it drives persons to think as they think, talk as they talk, and behave as they behave, removing any and all opportunity to chose - to practice what some call "free will."
Freedom and independence and choice can never happen if living under the auspices of personality, yet persons believe that they are making choices when they are actually being driven by motivators that they have no awareness of at all. So, to continue with Maharaj's assertion, what does science show to support the fact that personality blocks persons from being independent?
All persons prior to Realization are driven by one of nine basic personality types and then by dozens or scores of other personas that are adopted by them or assigned by cultures along the way. On planet earth, 50% are Personality Type Sixes, so 50% are controlled by the Six's primary drivers: fear and dependence.
As a result of their fear, and subsequent insecurities, 50% of all persons on the planet will seek "safety in numbers." They seek caretakers and rescuers and jobs that allow them to be legally armed (soldiers, police, security guards) or other types of employment that offer support or a sense of protection.
They will take a job with a low but guaranteed salary rather than take a chance at earning more money in jobs with performance-based pay scales. Some of them will marry in order to be taken care of financially. Some of them will form partnerships, too insecure to "go it alone." And none of that will be by choice.
The connection to the topic of independence? For fifty-percent of the people on the planet, being independent is the last thing on their "wish lists." They want to be dependent...to be cared for and sheltered and protected, and most do not even know it.
In schools, the Sixes are the one trying to arrange "study groups" with a "help me mentality." [By contrast, Type Fours, Maharaj's type, are the students prone to be independent and who study alone. To join a group for study would never even be considered, but those prone-to-be-independent-types comprise only 1.5% of the total population of the planet.]
Add to the Sixes the Type Two's who are dependent, the Type Three's who need an audience, the Type Seven's who are prone to socialize, and the Type Nines who are dependent and you understand the scientifically-based results of research: for all the lip service given to independence and being free, few on the planet actually prefer being independent and free.
Most will be driven to join religious groups or spiritual groups (97% reporting a religious affiliation and millions around the globe claiming membership in spiritual groups or support groups or step groups). Most will seek "outer resources" - human and divine - for guidance and advice and power and sustenance.
A set of teachings that suggest to seekers that they seek the inner guru, the inner resource; that suggest they need no "power"; that the divine, supernatural entities that have been dreamed up by men really are just dreams;
and that suggest that seekers can be totally independent and free...those teachings will have little appeal to the 97% of the planet's population that are among the personality types that are driven, unconsciously, to be dependent.
What will have mass appeal (because of "individual personality") will be those groups and people and institutions and teachings that promote dependency, that promise power and care-taking, that promise saving and rescuing, that promise security and protection, and that promise the continuation of life now and forevermore.
And because most persons on the planet are walking in their sleep, they cling to a belief in their power source or sources even after the source or sources are seen to fail them time and again.
Thus, those who can see the insanity might ask, "Why does she stay with him when he is so violent?" The answer: personality-based fear and dependence. The desire to be taken care of can override the fear of the unknown that awaits if she leaves. Thus the planet's widespread insanity.
"Why would they join the military, knowing they are likely to be sent to war and killed?" The answer: personality-based fear and dependence. The desire to feel secure by being a member of a large force and being armed and being trained to kill overrides the fear of trying to make it on their own without all that imagined "support" and "source of strength." Sixes believe that if they are loyal - to their nation, fellow warriors, commanders, relationship partners - they will be cared for. Thus, more of the planet's insanity.
And why do 97% cling to their religious or spiritual beliefs when logic and experience have both shown time and again that they are placing their faith in something that never consistently provides what is promised?
The answer: personality-based fear and dependence. The desire to feel secure by being a member of a large community; the fear of trying to make it on their own; their desire for "support"; their desire for a power that they can call on in times of need or fear or want; and a desire for a "source of strength." Thus more of the planet's insanity.
To be free is to be independent. In a search to be free in cultures that specialize in twisting reality 180-degrees, persons (in spite of all their lip service about wanting to be free and independent) actually end up being dependent and not free at all because of
(1) the venues they are using in their search and because of (2) the teachings being offered in those venues that encourage both dependency and substitute dependencies. So again the question is, "How free do you want to be?"
Please enter the silence of contemplation. (To be continued)
Much of what Louise has shared has resonated with many site visitors. to that end, some have inquired recently if Louise offers the online Advaita Internet Course. The answer is, "Yes."
Whether taking the course with Louise or Floyd, the price of the course includes all 11 of the Advaita eBooks, questions sent after completion of the assigned readings, replies to your answers, and follow-up as required.
With either teacher, you will be guided through all seven of the steps, in order, that lead from identification with the false "I" to the Absolute (and beyond). For more specific information and details about the course, you may click on the link to the right.
Purchase at Discount the Advaita Internet Course with Louise
by
Clicking the Buy Now Button below:
Purchase at Discount the Advaita Internet Course with Floyd
by
Clicking the Buy Now Button below:
Whether taking the course with Louise or Floyd, the price of the course includes all 11 of the Advaita eBooks, questions sent after completion of the assigned readings, replies to your answers, and follow-up as required.
With either teacher, you will be guided through all seven of the steps, in order, that lead from identification with the false "I" to the Absolute (and beyond). For more specific information and details about the course, you may click on the link to the right.
Purchase at Discount the Advaita Internet Course with Louise
by
Clicking the Buy Now Button below:
Purchase at Discount the Advaita Internet Course with Floyd
by
Clicking the Buy Now Button below:
[THE YOUTUBE ADVAITA VEDANTA VIDEOS ARE AVAILABLE IN LARGER FORMATS BELOW WHICH MIGHT PROVIDE MORE COMFORTABLE VIEWING FOR SOME SITE VISITORS]
Now you can receive for $40 a downloadable computer file version of the same 7-hour satsang that seekers receive when they visit for the Advaita Retreat with Floyd. You will be guided through the seven steps from identification with the false "I" to the Absolute (and beyond).
For more information or to order, click:
DVD or Downloadable computer file versions of the Four-Day Advaita Retreat
SIX WAYS THAT SEEKERS HAVE REALIZED:
1. BY WATCHING the 4-Disk Video (DVD) Set, or the same retreat available as a downloadable file. Either will provide an entire seven-hour retreat / series of satsang sessions showing three seekers being guided through all seven steps by Floyd and can provide viewers with an “experiential,” step-by-step series of satsang meetings that will move the viewers from identification with the I to abidance as the Absolute and then to abidance as That Which Is beyond
Some seekers are already using the computer file version and the DVD sets for meetings in groups in homes, playing the retreat, pausing for discussion, etc.
To find out more or to purchase the DVD set or the downloadable computer file version of the retreat, click:
DVD or Downloadable computer file versions of the Four-Day Advaita Retreat
Option “A” is for the downloadable file version, Option “B” is used to order the DVD set for delivery inside the U.S., Option “C” for international orders.
For the download, Paypal will send me a notice that payment has been received and then I will send by e-mail the downloading instruction, password, etc.
[It is recommended that you watch the video with pen and paper in hand. Write whatever you need clarified. You'll see that there are constant reviews and you might find an answer later in the seven-hour presentation. Then, after you watch it all, there will be a common ground for discussion. Purchase of the DVD’s or the file will include the right to clarifications and answers to your specific questions via e-mail.]
2. BY READING these books in this exact order:
IT'S ALL BULLSHIT (And Why Knowing It Sets You Free)
SPIRITUAL SOBRIETY (Recovering What Religions Lost)
[Those two prepare the seeker to question it all]
THE MEDITATION GUIDES
[Provide a broad overview of the understanding]
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I DIE?
[Begins to free the seeker of body identification and the desire for body continuity]
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS "PEACE OF MIND" (There Is Only Peace if You're Out of Your Mind)
[Shows the seeker how to be free of the subconscious motivators of the false content of the “mind”]
LIBERATION
[Shows the seeker how to be free of the subconscious motivators of personas]
THE ESSENCE OF THE TEACHINGS
[Provides the final preparation for the seeker to be directed along the “path”]
FROM THE I TO THE ABSOLUTE (A Seven-Step Journey to Reality)
[Directs the seeker along the “path”]
CONSCIOUSNESS/AWARENESS: The Nature of Reality Beyond Self-Realization (Peace Every Day When Abiding as The Absolute)
[Allows the seeker to understand the functioning of the totality, the manifestation, and what is involved with the un-manifestation]
FROM THE ABSOLUTE TO THE NOTHINGNESS
[Provides the seeker the wisdom to understand the Noneness as well as the Oneness]
Purchase an e-Book now and begin reading it in minutes (except with e-checks that can take 7-10 days). Trusting our clients as we do, all e-Books are provided to you in printable form.
SAVE IF YOU BUY ALL ELEVEN AT ONCE:
(You may order the books one at a time or you may use the following link to acquire the entire 11-e-Book set on sale for $99 if ordered at one time with the “Buy Now” button below. For this option, there will be no download links provided; once the near-instant notice of payment is received from PayPal, your e-Books will be sent to you as e-mail attachments. All are printable for your convenience.)
For more information or to order, click:
DVD or Downloadable computer file versions of the Four-Day Advaita Retreat
SIX WAYS THAT SEEKERS HAVE REALIZED:
1. BY WATCHING the 4-Disk Video (DVD) Set, or the same retreat available as a downloadable file. Either will provide an entire seven-hour retreat / series of satsang sessions showing three seekers being guided through all seven steps by Floyd and can provide viewers with an “experiential,” step-by-step series of satsang meetings that will move the viewers from identification with the I to abidance as the Absolute and then to abidance as That Which Is beyond
Some seekers are already using the computer file version and the DVD sets for meetings in groups in homes, playing the retreat, pausing for discussion, etc.
To find out more or to purchase the DVD set or the downloadable computer file version of the retreat, click:
DVD or Downloadable computer file versions of the Four-Day Advaita Retreat
Option “A” is for the downloadable file version, Option “B” is used to order the DVD set for delivery inside the U.S., Option “C” for international orders.
For the download, Paypal will send me a notice that payment has been received and then I will send by e-mail the downloading instruction, password, etc.
[It is recommended that you watch the video with pen and paper in hand. Write whatever you need clarified. You'll see that there are constant reviews and you might find an answer later in the seven-hour presentation. Then, after you watch it all, there will be a common ground for discussion. Purchase of the DVD’s or the file will include the right to clarifications and answers to your specific questions via e-mail.]
2. BY READING these books in this exact order:
IT'S ALL BULLSHIT (And Why Knowing It Sets You Free)
SPIRITUAL SOBRIETY (Recovering What Religions Lost)
[Those two prepare the seeker to question it all]
THE MEDITATION GUIDES
[Provide a broad overview of the understanding]
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN I DIE?
[Begins to free the seeker of body identification and the desire for body continuity]
THERE'S NO SUCH THING AS "PEACE OF MIND" (There Is Only Peace if You're Out of Your Mind)
[Shows the seeker how to be free of the subconscious motivators of the false content of the “mind”]
LIBERATION
[Shows the seeker how to be free of the subconscious motivators of personas]
THE ESSENCE OF THE TEACHINGS
[Provides the final preparation for the seeker to be directed along the “path”]
FROM THE I TO THE ABSOLUTE (A Seven-Step Journey to Reality)
[Directs the seeker along the “path”]
CONSCIOUSNESS/AWARENESS: The Nature of Reality Beyond Self-Realization (Peace Every Day When Abiding as The Absolute)
[Allows the seeker to understand the functioning of the totality, the manifestation, and what is involved with the un-manifestation]
FROM THE ABSOLUTE TO THE NOTHINGNESS
[Provides the seeker the wisdom to understand the Noneness as well as the Oneness]
Purchase an e-Book now and begin reading it in minutes (except with e-checks that can take 7-10 days). Trusting our clients as we do, all e-Books are provided to you in printable form.
SAVE IF YOU BUY ALL ELEVEN AT ONCE:
(You may order the books one at a time or you may use the following link to acquire the entire 11-e-Book set on sale for $99 if ordered at one time with the “Buy Now” button below. For this option, there will be no download links provided; once the near-instant notice of payment is received from PayPal, your e-Books will be sent to you as e-mail attachments. All are printable for your convenience.)
You may visit The Official Website of Floyd Henderson for information on each book.
TRANSLATED ADVAITA EBOOKS AVAILABLE
Beginning today, the 11 Advaita eBooks listed at the end of this post are available in twenty-two non-English languages. If you are interested in purchasing an eBook in another language, click Contact Floyd to see if the language you prefer is available. Again, the quality of the translation cannot be guaranteed but it might make some pointers available to seekers that might not otherwise receive them. If you want to send a translated eBook to someone as a gift, that can also be arranged via the contact link above.
(Charges will include the regular price of the eBook + a US$10.00 translating fee.)
TO PAY FOR A TRANSLATION - US$10.00 - CLICK THE BUY BUTTON BELOW
(Contact Floyd before paying to be certain the language you prefer is available)
3. BY ENROLLING in the Online Advaita Classes
For information, visit Information on the Advaita Classes on the Internet
To enroll visit Enroll in the Advaita Internet Course
4. BY ATTENDING an Advaitin retreat for satsang with floyd and being guided through all seven steps. For details of the retreats offered, please visit the retreat information site.
5. BY ARRANGING satsang by telephone in the U.S. or by Skype internationally:
Use the Contact link for details or for information on making arrangements for a session
6. BY ARRANGING for floyd to travel to your location and meet with you or your group. Use the contact link above to discuss details.
TRANSLATED ADVAITA EBOOKS AVAILABLE
Beginning today, the 11 Advaita eBooks listed at the end of this post are available in twenty-two non-English languages. If you are interested in purchasing an eBook in another language, click Contact Floyd to see if the language you prefer is available. Again, the quality of the translation cannot be guaranteed but it might make some pointers available to seekers that might not otherwise receive them. If you want to send a translated eBook to someone as a gift, that can also be arranged via the contact link above.
(Charges will include the regular price of the eBook + a US$10.00 translating fee.)
TO PAY FOR A TRANSLATION - US$10.00 - CLICK THE BUY BUTTON BELOW
(Contact Floyd before paying to be certain the language you prefer is available)
3. BY ENROLLING in the Online Advaita Classes
For information, visit Information on the Advaita Classes on the Internet
To enroll visit Enroll in the Advaita Internet Course
4. BY ATTENDING an Advaitin retreat for satsang with floyd and being guided through all seven steps. For details of the retreats offered, please visit the retreat information site.
5. BY ARRANGING satsang by telephone in the U.S. or by Skype internationally:
Use the Contact link for details or for information on making arrangements for a session
6. BY ARRANGING for floyd to travel to your location and meet with you or your group. Use the contact link above to discuss details.
YOUTUBE ADVAITA VEDANTA YOGA VIDEOS
Click on the arrow below to start Video One:
Click on the arrow below to start Video Two:
Click on the arrow below to start Video Three:
Click on the arrow below to start Video Four:
Click on the arrow below to start Video Five:
Please enter the silence of contemplation.
