THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE WHICH PROVIDES AN UNDERSTANDING OF "NO YOU-NESS," Part Seventy-Four

TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS

[See the offer following this post for details on how you can watch a video which includes a discussion of all seven of the steps on the path as used by Maharaj] 

CONSIDER: 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men." 

-- Pope John Paul II 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away." 

--Yeshu'a (Jesus) 

Here, with those who are still driven to talk about "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc., the invitation to them is to view those as verbs, not nouns. See the end of the post for the full meaning and implications of that. 

THE RATIONALE FOR CHOOSING SCIENTIFIC FACTS OVER THE EMOTIONAL INTOXICATION GENERATED BY RELIGIOUS / SPIRITUAL FANATICISM: 

While Religion and Science Are Not Always Incompatible, Logic and Reason and Wisdom Make Clear That If a Choice Between The Two Is To Be Made, Only One Choice Is the Sane Option 

In the previous post, it was shown what Maharaj came to see: those who fixate at the third step of a seven-step “path” – the step where religious and / or spiritual roles are played – are as delusional as those identifying with the body only or with the body and mind only or with the body and mind and personality only. 

When that is the case, then persons who are fixated at that step are often more delusional than persons who are psychotic and totally out of touch with reality, not to mention totally out of touch with “Reality.” 

Maharaj said to those, “Your talk shows you think you are being bathed in the full light of the noonday sun but you are really standing only in the light of early dawn.” 

He informed them that he was a "spiritual pygmy” when compared to their self -concept of a “Spiritual Giant." He spoke to them of their “kindergarten-level spirituality,” explaining to them that they had progressed no farther than the mumukshu stage. 

(A “mumukshu” is one for whom the desire to achieve enlightenment is the predominant goal in life but one who remains a seeker - making clear that seeking is still going on and thus proving that what is claimed to have been found has not been found at all. To those he said, “The mumukshu is one who is still in kindergarten . . . 'spiritually inclined' but identifying with the body-mind'.”) 

In such cases, mental disorders such as the “Stockholm Syndrome” can activate and persons can feel as if they must love their abuser or that their assumed identity demands that they proclaim that they love their abuser and love all of their enemies. Some refer to that disorder as “capture-bonding,” a psychological phenomenon in which hostages express empathy and sympathy and have positive feelings toward their captors, sometimes to the point of defending and identifying with the captors. 

The same can happen with "The Super Religious Ones" or with "The Spiritual Giants" who are driven to display in public their false images and who are driven to talk in ways which are intended to show off the supposedly high level of their assigned or assumed religious or spiritual state. 

As discussed in the examples in the last post, other issues which accompany religious and / or spiritual role-playing can manifest, including dissociation, thus allowing one to be out of touch with or to avoid dealing with their actual unpleasant feelings; and denial (which, like egotism, is a defense mechanism used by those trying to protect the image of an assumed ego-state in which the existence of unpleasant internal or external realities is denied). 

By keeping the truth out of conscious awareness and by keeping the actual effects of trauma out of consciousness, persons can temporarily suppress the results of a traumatic event enough to delay anxiety yet the effects remain on an unconscious level. 

Of course it is detrimental to one’s mental health when a person makes a conscious or unconscious attempt to disavow the true impact of an event in order to reduce anxiety or fear or anger or anything other feelings or emotions which would reveal the fact that such persons' levels of religiosity or spirituality are not as elevated as they would have others believe. (So much for the advice to "Love what is" or to use the mantra, "It's all good!") 

Seeing all of that, Maharaj realized that the so-called “benefits” of a religious / non-duality version of the Ultimate Medicine or of a spiritual / non-dual version of the Ultimate Medicine is a total illusion in light of the overwhelming side effects of those versions of the Medicine. 

Maharaj made clear that he continued with nothing that had not been verified and validated by actual experience. So does that mean that he abandoned not only the use of the religious / non-duality version of the Ultimate Medicine but also the use of a spiritual / non-dual version of the Ultimate Medicine because he had first-hand experience with those side effects? Absolutely. The fact is that “maharaj” and, yes, “floyd” also, vigorously played the religious and spiritual roles at Step Three. That almost always has to be done by all trying to traverse the seven-step “path.” 

So, nothing shared here is being shared which is not rooted in experience. Thus, this was offered a year ago: 

As with the doctors here last winter, the case was the same with “maharaj” and “floyd”: in both cases, it was realized that the traditional treatment methods were having no lasting effect on the sickness (or the Ultimate Sickness), so those traditional methods were set aside. 

Today, many are suffering - or even dying from - the Sickness because traditional methods are still being used to try to treat a far-more-potent strain of the Sickness. If persons were to wake up and realize that the traditional methods are not working, then they might seek a different treatment plan. 

However, when one’s devotion is to a treatment plan that is “religious” or “spiritual” in style, then a fanaticism is sure to develop; then, devotion to that plan will be clung too with a fanatical passion and a fervor and a zeal that will block off the willingness to be receptive to any suggestion that another method might “work better” than the one they are trying. 

After years of working with the Sickness, it was eventually seen (by both “maharaj” and by “floyd”) for what it really is, and for what it is not: 

It is not a “sickness of the soul” or a “sickness of the spirit.” 

It is not a sickness that is centered “somewhere in a human body, more specifically, in an area somewhere in the vicinity of the heart.” 

It is not a sickness which results from “a dogma-deficiency” (but actually seems to flourish in an environment of “excess dogma”). 

Its symptoms can be aggravated by the egotism that accompanies the assignment or assumption of “beyond the phenomenal, spiritual, Noumenal personas.” 

It is a mental sickness. 

It is centered in the mind. 

It can, sometimes, respond to treatments that focus on the actual location of the Sickness but never to treatments that focus on imaginary locations of the Sickness. As noted earlier, the blocked artery in the heart here a few years ago was not treated by working on the head, and head problems are not treated by working on the heart / soul / spirit / whatever. 

Via the experiences which came via his experiments, Maharaj eventually came to see that 99-100% of what humans do need not be done. What he saw early on – but then lost sight of - is what was seen here early on but was also lost sight of. The same happened with Andy Gugar, Jr., without whom the postings on this site and the books written in the last few years would not have happened. For example: 

Maharaj looked to Nisarga Yoga for a name which could be used to “advertise” or make clear which yoga seekers would find being offered if they visited (though that did not prove totally to be the case for decades). As with most, he saw; then, he became “sidetracked”; then he saw again what had been seen years earlier. 

The same here. As a five and six year old, “floyd” was calling BS on the nonsense he was being taught in “Sunday School” and during “revivals” and during “church services" and during “Vacation Bible School.” 

But the pressures of acculturation - which here is identified as "a societal conspiracy being participated in at an unconscious level by the masses" – finally takes a toll, finally “breaks” one who is marching to the beat of a different drummer, and drives those (though they saw clearly early on) into the blindness of blind faith and into the role-assumption and role-playing that happens with almost everyone in the planet. 

Yet the early seeing - though blocked - never really goes away with those that had the propensity to differentiate true from false early on. In those cases, there can remain the chance to "return" if one crosses the path of one that can point out what happened and what caused an inability to see clearly during that intermediary period. (What "remains" is at least some potential for a “restoration to sanity” or for a “restoration to clear seeing.") 

The same also happened with Andy. Early on, he too was exposed to dogma, and early on he knew that something was wrong with the tales he was being told. Yet the pressures of acculturation set in and he became “sidetracked,” just as happened here and just as happened with Maharaj. 

During that period of being sidetracked, Andy began to experience a recurring dream: the dream involved a white stallion which was confined in a small corral, so small that the horse could barely turn. It felt totally trapped, and it was. In the dream, the horse longed for a larger corral, one that was at least big enough to afford him the opportunity to get a running start and jump over the rails and run free. He wanted to break out, and that dream was a reflection of what Andy was facing in his relative existence every day. 

Eventually, the peace and freedom which come via the understanding – and which were the goals of the white stallion in that dream – came after returning to the original state, prior to programming and conditioning and domestication and acculturation and brainwashing and indoctrination. 

That is why the deal here is not about learning more and being taught more but is about being un-taught all and about un-learning it all and about reaching a state of zero concepts and about being free of the senseless machinations of a nonsense-filled mind. 

The same could apply to all humanity. Consider: 

Homo sapiens have been around at least 200,000, and maybe for as long as 400,000 years, but human or human-like remains predate homo sapiens. Anthropologists have found proof that about 1.5 million years ago, human ancestors walked upright with a spring in their steps just as modern humans do today. 

Paleoanthropologists working in Ethiopia have discovered a 2.8-million-year-old jawbone fossil in the human ancestral line. The archaeological “Lucy” is estimated to have lived 3.2 million years ago and is classified as a hominin. Other hominid remains date to a period some 6 – 7 million years ago, and evidence had shown that the hominid lineage diverged from the ape lineage anywhere from 5 to 8 million years ago. 

Now the key point is this: all of those humans and ancestors of humans lived for at least 7,995,000 years without religion and without any spiritual teachings or spiritual exercises or spiritual awakenings or spiritual programs or spiritual groups. They lived naturally. 

Out of millions of years in existence, it has only been for about 5,000 years now that humans have stopped abiding naturally and have begun to abide unnaturally and / or supernaturally. 

Meaning? Unnatural living manifests in many ways, the most common of which is the unnatural living which happens as a result of religious training. Supernatural living happens when persons are preoccupied exclusively with things beyond the relative and when they have been trained to think magically. 

How would a hominin likely react to witnessing humans nowadays who are suffering from the mental disorder of “Religious OCD (Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder)" or from "Spiritual OCD" who are joining cults or sky-cults (a.k.a., religions or spiritual groups), and who feel the need to kneel and hum and chant and sing and dance about wildly and ring bells and burn special sticks and smell special smoke and wear special clothes and sport special hairdos or no hair at all or wear expensive robes and use special sticks to hit special bowls that are placed on special pillows or who read supposedly “holy” books to find out “how to live?” 

Would not the trillions upon trillions of humans who have come before and survived just fine – thank you very much – without any of that nonsense wonder, “What the hell do you people think you’re doing . . . and why are you doing it?” 

The answer: it is all being done - unconsciously and without any conscious choice involved - because of programming and conditioning and domestication and acculturation and brainwashing and indoctrination. Because of those, humans are now being driven by something that humans for millions of years never faced, namely, an Ultimate Sickness with these symptoms identified by Maharaj: “ignorance, stupidity, and insanity.” 

And that which offers the most obvious examples of “ignorance, stupidity, and insanity” - and a Sickness with the symptoms of “ignorance, stupidity, and insanity” - cannot possibly cure “ignorance, stupidity, and insanity.” 

So Maharaj finally saw, and Andy finally saw, and Floyd finally saw that the cause of mental illness cannot cure mental illness; that you do not need to be trapped in the Religious Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder; that you do need to be trapped in the Spiritual Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder and the Spiritual workaholism which inspire persons to focus on Self or a Supreme Self (as if that is any different from focusing on the self / selves). 

To the contrary, Maharaj suggested that it would be enough if persons would complete a personality / psychological inventory (that is, a “self”-inquiry) and find out all that they are not and see all of the hidden agendas of their false personalities which are subconsciously controlling and driving every thought and word and action. 

Then they might be freed from being controlled and dominated by those hidden agendas and thereafter abide naturally, just as does every living thing on the planet except for humans, and just as every human did for millions of years before some among them came up with “ignorant and stupidity and insane” concepts which have been passed down and which now trap persons into their going and doing and zooming mode and which rob them of any chance of abiding naturally rather than unnaturally and / or supernaturally. 

Might it be possible that you are doing things that need not be done? Might you be focused on getting more of what has led to humankind's problems and sense of dis-ease rather than on getting rid of it all? Might de-accumulating it all be a wise course to follow? 

To be continued.

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Please enter into the silence of contemplation. 

[NOTE: The four most recent posts are below. You may access all of the posts in this series and in the previous series and several thousand other posts as well by clicking on the links in the "Recent Posts and Archives" section.] 

In addition to the five non-duality books made available without charge by Andy Gugar, Jr. (see “FREEBIES” above), you can now access nearly 3,300 posts for any topics of interest to you. 

Here, with those who are still driven to talk about "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc., the invitation to them is to view those as verbs, not nouns. 

THE EXPLANATION 

If looked at as nouns, they point to illusions and are, therefore, a total waste of time to even discuss; if looked at as verbs which are resulting in certain sane but rare behaviors among humanity, then they are worthy of some attention during the relative existence. 

Meaning? There are members of certain groups who say things such as "My concept of God in the past was of a weak God, an absentee God, A Santa Claus-type God, a mean, punishing, vindictive God, etc. Today, I am in close contact with a loving and caring God whom I worship and praise and glorify and give thanks to." 

The reply to that usually goes like this: "If you are in contact with a God that wants to be worshipped and praised and glorified, then you're dealing with someone like yourself - a narcissist - and hanging out with narcissists will never bring an end to your narcissism (that narcissism evidenced by the fact that you think you are "godly"). 

Next, in the phrase 'loving and caring God,' any supposed God that truly had her or his act together would tell you that the totally irrelevant part of that phrase is 'God' and that the only part to be focused on should be the 'loving and caring' part. 

"That is, a non-narcissistic god / goddess would say, "I care not an iota about being worshipped and praised and glorified by you or anyone else. How arrogant and insecure and needy would I have to be to want that? Forget the man-made, dreamed up noun 'God' and focus on the 'God as a verb' understanding and then go forth and let loving and caring be verbs - not adjectives - and let them generate the act of love and the act of caring and let those actions manifest through you." 

Both Yeshu'a (Jesus) and Pope John Paul II were spot on: 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away." 

and 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men."

THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE WHICH PROVIDES AN UNDERSTANDING OF "NO YOU-NESS," Part Seventy-Three

TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS

[See the offer following this post for details on how you can watch a video which includes a discussion of all seven of the steps on the path as used by Maharaj] 

CONSIDER: 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men." 

-- Pope John Paul II 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away." 

--Yeshu'a (Jesus) 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc.: are viewed as verbs, not nouns. See the end of the post for the full meaning and implications of that. 

THE RATIONALE FOR CHOOSING SCIENTIFIC FACTS OVER THE EMOTIONAL INTOXICATION GENERATED BY RELIGIOUS / SPIRITUAL FANATICISM: 

While Religion and Science Are Not Always Incompatible, Logic and Reason and Wisdom Make Clear That If a Choice Between The Two Is To Be Made, Only One Choice Is the Sane Option 

[Continued from yesterday] 

Maharaj came to understand that dogma and its cousin spirituality can produce an illusion of peace, often rooted in a tendency among those playing the role of "The Super Religious One" or the role of "The Spiritual Giant." 

They will only have an illusion of peace because of the tendency of those roles to inspire them . . . 

to deny 

and 

to escape or avoid what they are really feeling 

and 

to dissociate from what they are truly feeling 

and 

when in public, to say things that reinforce an image which they want to maintain and put on display. 

However, the facts are that a mirage remains a mirage; that a false image is just a false image; a false persona is not made real just because it is talking the programmed talk; and an illusion of peace is not real peace. 

Consider the event discussed earlier when a white male killed nine blacks in their church. How long does it take for most who are called "loved ones" or "survivors" to psychologically process the fact that someone they loved was murdered and then be truly free of the effects of the mental and emotional trauma? Days? Weeks? Months? In many cases . . . never? 

So in light of those facts, consider: in less than 48 hours of the killings, when shooter Dylann Roof first appeared in court, many of those whose "loved ones" - all identified as "truly devout Christians - were allowed to address him. All were aware that their words were being broadcast to a national audience and would also be heard by a worldwide audience too. There words: 

"I forgive you. You took something really precious away from me. I will never talk to her ever again. I will never be able to hold her again. But I forgive you and have mercy on your soul. It hurts me, it hurts a lot of people but God forgive you and I forgive you” 

and 

"I forgive you, and my family forgives you. We would like you to take this opportunity to repent. Repent. Confess. Give your life to the one who matters the most, Christ, so he can change your ways no matter what happens to you and you'll be OK. Do that and you'll be better off than you are right now" 

and 

"Although my grandfather and the other victims died at the hands of hate, everyone's plea for your soul is proof that they lived and loved and their legacies will live and love” 

and 

“We forgive" 

and 

"I thank God." 

Really? 

Here, it has been asked, "Do you not feel empathy for the survivors?" As Maharaj said in that regard, “More than you will ever know.” Yet there was not, even for a second, any notion that the thoughts and words of those family members were a result of "conscious choice" as opposed to being determined by decades of religious programming and conditioning and acculturation and domestication and brainwashing and indoctrination. 

To understand that the thoughts and words and actions of programmed and conditioned and acculturated and domesticated and brainwashed and indoctrinated persons are never a result of conscious choice but are always a result of ignorant and insane programming and conditioning and acculturation and domestication and brainwashing and indoctrination is not a "personal attack" at all. 

"Maharaj" was programmed, conditioned, etc. "Floyd" was programmed, conditioned, etc. Yet no recognition of nonsense at play is "personal" because nothing personal is real. To see the effects of one's programming, conditioning, etc. can be . . . 

an opportunity to be free of the effects; 

a means by which the insanity of denial and avoidance and dissociation and image-building and image-displaying can end; 

the only way to understand the true root of one's problems; and 

a way to finally receive an effective treatment rather than continuing to ignore one's mental problems and dismissing one actual feelings with such comments as "It's all good" and "Everything's fine." 

To recommend to persons that they should "love their enemies" is duality: "A" should love "B"? Impossible. That's a dualistic concept and all dualistic concepts are rooted in falsehoods. Real Love is knowing that two is not (or, as "advaita" is translated, "not two"). Love is, not "love it all," not "it's all good" and not practice denial and avoid processing trauma by accepting the advice that you must "love what is." 

As for those talking within hours about forgiving and thanking God, the question which could bring clarify, if it reveals the truth, is: WHO was talking? That is, what ego-states were determining that the words being spoken were the words that persons had been programmed and domesticated and acculturated and indoctrinated to say? 

Again, is that a personal criticism? No more than it would be a criticism of a mirage to note that it is a mirage. What is the real issue, then? It is this: how much real processing can happen if talk is being inspired by one's assumed identity which is being driven subconsciously to show in public just how truly faithful and religious and forgiving and loving a person / persona is? 

Here, their pain is felt, but here, there is no delusion that their faith and religion will be able to provide the proper mental health care which they need if they are ever to truly process their trauma.; thus, this consideration for seekers is offered here: 

“Are the persons I’m using as guides during my quest for Truth adding content to the 'mind' or offering pointers intended to free me of the 'mind' and all its effects, once and for all?” 

As is the case with all persons, and as was the case with Maharaj, I was lied to, tricked, hoodwinked, duped, fooled, conned, taken in, deceived, and bamboozled. In all of our cases, the lying and tricking and hoodwinking and being duped and fooled and conned and taken in and deceived and bamboozled first came from “highly religious” persons; later, even more of that came from “highly spiritual” persons. No matter the source, all humans are lied to, tricked, hoodwinked, duped, fooled, conned, taken in, deceived, and bamboozled. The eventual result of all that is even more detrimental (relatively speaking). 

The eventual result and the most significant effect of having been BS’d is not only that all of “their” BS is retained and then controls and determines every thought and word and deed but that most persons for the remainder of their manifestation will BS themselves. 

I have seen people who were abused as children, and even after their abusers are long gone, it is as if those abused persons now say to their absent abusers, “Okay, you’re gone, but don’t worry. I’ve got it now. I’ll take over from here. You beat me physically and mentally and emotionally, but you’re not here to do it anymore, so I’ll take over and will now beat myself physically and mentally and emotionally.” 

And the greater distortion is that many conclude: “My abusers are gone, so my being abused has come to an end," though they continue to abuse themselves. 

To proclaim “I forgive them” after the physical and mental and emotional wounds have been properly treated and processed via an effective psychological treatment plan is one thing, but to being with “I forgive them” before any effective processing has happened is self-delusion, that is, is a case of being deluded by one of more false selves which are being proudly displayed in public. 

Many ask in such circumstances, "WWJD?" (That is, "What would Jesus do?" but the fact is, they don't really care WWJD if it is in conflict with the agendas of their programming, acculturation, assumed personas, etc.) Here, the question is, WWMS?" ("What would Maharaj say?") What he might say is, "I feel your pain, and because my only goal is for you to be truly and completely freed of all of your misery and suffering - even as you are denying that it remains - I offer this suggestion: 

"Because I care so much for you, I suggest that you find someone who can show you the way to effectively process your real feelings and someone who can guide you to a real state of healing from the trauma that you are suffering from but not acknowledging." 

Some have already said, “Their statements were their processing.” No reply is offered to those persons, the understanding being that those with such a belief are not going to “change their minds,” must less reach a state of “zero concepts” and be freed of the mind completely. Yet that was Maharaj’s aim, in the end. 

To be continued.

NEW OFFER: 

Watch an updated seven-hour streaming video of a retreat with Floyd Henderson which can be viewed by anyone with internet access. (In this video; all seven of the steps on "the path" as taught by Maharaj are explained and discussed.) 

If interested; click the button below to pay the fee via PayPal. You will then receive an email which includes the link for you to view the private, unlisted video via an arrangement we have made with YouTube, Inc. You do not have to have a YouTube account to watch this privately streamed video. 

(If you do not receive the link promptly, your computer or email provider may have high filter settings. Check your spam and trash folders because some providers automatically transfer emails containing links to those folders.) 

To access the seven-hour streaming video of a retreat and begin watching right away, click this "Buy Now" button: 

 

Please enter into the silence of contemplation. 

[NOTE: The four most recent posts are below. You may access all of the posts in this series and in the previous series and several thousand other posts as well by clicking on the links in the "Recent Posts and Archives" section.] 

In addition to the five non-duality books made available without charge by Andy Gugar, Jr. (see “FREEBIES” above), you can now access nearly 3,300 posts for any topics of interest to you. 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc. are viewed as verbs, not nouns. 

THE EXPLANATION 

If looked at as nouns, they point to illusions and are, therefore, a total waste of time to even discuss; if looked at as verbs which are resulting in certain sane but rare behaviors among humanity, then they are worthy of some attention during the relative existence. 

Meaning? There are members of certain groups who say things such as "My concept of God in the past was of a weak God, an absentee God, A Santa Claus-type God, a mean, punishing, vindictive God, etc. Today, I am in close contact with a loving and caring God whom I worship and praise and glorify and give thanks to." 

The reply to that usually goes like this: "If you are in contact with a God that wants to be worshipped and praised and glorified, then you're dealing with someone like yourself - a narcissist - and hanging out with narcissists will never bring an end to your narcissism (that narcissism evidenced by the fact that you think you are "godly").

Next, in the phrase 'loving and caring God,' any supposed God that truly had her or his act together would tell you that the totally irrelevant part of that phrase is 'God' and that the only part to be focused on should be the 'loving and caring' part. 

"That is, a non-narcissistic god / goddess would say, "I care not an iota about being worshipped and praised and glorified by you or anyone else. How arrogant and insecure and needy would I have to be to want that? Forget the man-made, dreamed up noun 'God' and focus on the 'God as a verb' understanding and then go forth and let loving and caring be verbs - not adjectives - and let them generate the act of love and the act of caring and let those actions manifest through you." 

Both Yeshu'a (Jesus) and Pope John Paul II were spot on: 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away." 

and 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men."

THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE WHICH PROVIDES AN UNDERSTANDING OF "NO YOU-NESS," Part Seventy-Two

TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS

[See the offer following this post for details on how you can watch a video which includes a discussion of all seven of the steps on the path as used by Maharaj] 

CONSIDER: 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men." 

-- Pope John Paul II 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within"

and

"Heaven and earth shall fade away."

--Yeshu'a (Jesus) 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc.: are viewed as verbs, not nouns. See the end of the post for the full meaning and implications of that. 

THE RATIONALE FOR CHOOSING SCIENTIFIC FACTS OVER THE EMOTIONAL INTOXICATION GENERATED BY RELIGIOUS / SPIRITUAL FANATICISM: 

While Religion and Science Are Not Always Incompatible, Logic and Reason and Wisdom Make Clear That If a Choice Between The Two Is To Be Made, Only One Choice Is the Sane Option 

Yesterday, this was asked: So why did Maharaj’s treatment plan for the Ultimate Sickness shift away from the use of religion and away from the use of spirituality and away from “Self-Inquiry” and toward addressing the issues with the mind and addressing (via “self-inquiry”) the issues with the multiple personalities which are assigned and assumed as real identities? 

The shifts happened because he came to understand that humankind's problems are centered in the mind (a "mind" being nothing more than a storehouse of the fiction and nonsense and delusional beliefs which are accumulated and stored in a part of the brain after persons are exposed to ignorant and insane programming and conditioning and acculturation and domestication and brainwashing and indoctrination). 

Some have asked recently, "So that being the case, why did it take Maharaj so long to make the shifts?" The answer: because of certain elements of his guru’s programming and his guru’s indoctrination which drove Maharaj to linger until his own experiences and observations led to a new understanding and to the courage and willingness to share what was eventually revealed to him even though it differed from what his guru had told him. 

Thus, he went from this: 

"My guru told me, 'although you are realized, you will have to expound knowledge only'" to this: 

"The quintessence of the talk is clear. Your most important asset is the 'knowledge' that 'you are' prior to emanation of mind. Hold on to this 'knowledge' and meditate. Nothing is superior to this, not even devotion to a guru (guru-bhakti) or devotion to God-Ishwara-bhakti." 

He went from this: 

"My Guru asked me to do these five bhajans daily, and he never cancelled his instructions before he passed away. I don't need to do them anymore but I will carry on doing them . . . because this is the command of my Guru. I continue to obey his instructions, even though I know these bhajans are pointless, because of the respect and gratitude I feel towards him" 

and this 

"My Guru has authorised me to give out this mantra to anyone who asks for it . . . .” 

to this: 

“. . . but I don't want you to feel that it is necessary or important. It is more important to find out the source of your beingness." 

After more Westerners came, he responded to the fact that they were not interested in Hinduism or Eastern religion and that they were more interested in what they took to be “the spiritual." 

[It has been observed since 1989 that the Western obsession with things “spiritual” or “lofty” or “mystical” or “only-with-other-worldly-things” still remains the key roadblock on the so-called “journey” to being freed of all learned ignorance, to coming to the understanding, to being freed from the machinations of dual-mindedness, to being restored to sanity, and to abiding naturally.] 

From the eBook SRI NISARGADATTA MAHARAJ and HIS EVOLUTION: “So early on, he was so into guru-bhakti that he gave out a mantra that he felt was neither "necessary" nor "important." Hardly evidence of the "maverick Maharaj" that would emerge later on, yes? 

Also, the “old” message would be offered when he determined that a seeker was not ready for an algebra lesson because the seeker had not yet even mastered addition and subtraction. 

In that regard, this was offered for consideration in that same book: 

Is it possible that Maharaj was able to detect where on the "path" any given seeker might be after hearing only a few statements from her or him? Certainly. Then, is it possible that what Maharaj offered would be level-appropriate for any given seeker? Yes. 

And would that mean, in turn, that he might offer a certain pointer to a seeker at a certain place on the "path" which would differ from a pointer that he would offer to a seeker at an earlier point on the "path" or at a later point on the "path"? Yes again. 

Yet the fact remains that this was the case with Maharaj and was the case here and has been the case with countless persons for centuries: the movement beyond the third of seven steps - the third step being where religious and spiritual roles are played and control the thoughts and words of actions of persons, seekers and non-seekers alike - can (A) take an inordinate amount of time to transition and (B) will usually never happen at all. 

That is a testament to the "clout" and "might" and "capability" of programming and conditioning and acculturation and domestication and brainwashing and indoctrination to fill a mind with nonsense; to drive persons to accept assigned and / or assumed false identities as real; 

to drive persons to be driven unconsciously by the hidden agendas of personalities; and to assure that the fiction which fills minds (and which allows the agendas of personas to determine and control persons’ every thought and word and action, even as persons think that they are making conscious choices) will prevail. 

Yet the fact that Maharaj eventually worked free of the clout and might and capability of programming and indoctrination and eventually moved beyond the third step explains why, after he abandoned the religious / non-dual version of the Ultimate Medicine and abandoned the spiritual / non-dual version of the Ultimate Medicine, that he said of the book I AM THAT: 

"That book and whatever was expounded at that time was only relevant for that period. I am speaking differently today" and I am "emphasizing different aspects" (namely, the mental / mind aspects). That final understanding, which was completely different from what he had offered early on, is the basis of pointers here. 

Early on, Maharaj's pointers involved a Hinduism / non-dual combo message; in the mid-stage, his pointers involved a spirituality / non-dual combo message; but it was later on - after he had transitioned beyond his guru-devotion phase and the religious phase and the spiritual phase - when he realized the following about the key symptoms of the Ultimate Sickness, which he identified as “ignorance and stupidity and insanity”: 

1. “Ignorance and stupidity and insanity” have nothing at all to do with one’s level of religiosity (except that high levels of religiosity have been observed to exacerbate those symptoms); 

2. “ignorance and stupidity and insanity" have nothing to do with a dreamed up “spirit” or a “sick spirit” or a “spiritual malady” (except that “spiritual giantism” can exacerbate those symptoms, leading Maharaj to declare to those playing the role of a “spiritual giant”: “Next to you, I am but a spiritual pygmy”); and 

3. “ignorance and stupidity and insanity” have everything to do with . . . the mind. 

The mind is the seat of humanity’s problem, and neither religion nor spirituality offer any effective means by which psychological problems can be addressed. Ninety-seven percent of all persons on the planet claim an affiliation with one religion or another, and such affiliations have been going on for 5000 years. Have those affiliations addressed humanity’s mental problems? In light of such widespread affiliations, are humankind’s mental problems decreasing, or increasing? 

Millions brag – yes, brag – this: “I am not religious. I am spiritual!” Such claims have also been happening for thousands of years. Yet, in spite of those claims, are humankind’s mental problems decreasing, or increasing? 

The mind is humanity’s problem, and the requirement for addressing the mind problem is, according to Maharaj, to end it by purging it of all concepts and beliefs. To reach a state of "zero concepts," he said. To be un-taught all that you have been taught. To unlearn all that you have learned. Is it the goal of religion or spirituality to un-teach, or do both work endlessly to teach you more and more? 

Also from the eBook referenced above: 

Some might quote Maharaj's earlier spiritual pointers while some might quote his later pointers that dissuaded seekers from being spiritual; or, some might quote Maharaj's early pointers about using the mind while some might talk of his late pointers about being rid of the mind (again, the variation likely being determined by level-appropriateness). 

Many worshiped Krishnamurti and his talks even though what he shared was just so much emotionally-intoxicating “mind stuff.” When asked about him, Maharaj replied, “Krishnamurti is a great thinker.” Ha! Most nodded in agreement and took Maharaj's tongue-in-cheek assessment to be a compliment. The few who understood that the content of the mind is useless and that it must be cast aside entirely understood the veiled implication. 

So ultimately, Maharaj’s focus was on that which is at the root of humankind’s problems: the mind. Yes, speaking to seekers at the “wet charcoal stage,” he offered level-appropriate pointers about the subject, but his teaching about the “mind” - for those whom he deemed potentially ready to hear - included these pointers: 

“There is no such thing as a mind” 

and 

“I have no mind . . . . ” 

So much, then, for those nowadays who say they understand what Maharaj was talking about and who claim that they also teach non-duality now. If so, how could they possibly talk about “changing your life by changing your thoughts”; about using thought-up “intentions” to “empower yourself”; about a mind that is "timeless"; about “fulfilling the dreams” in one's mind; and about “altering bad thinking patterns”? That's all just more mind stuff, just more mind-generated nonsense. Were he here to observe them, Maharaj would dismiss them all as "great thinkers." 

So consider the implications of this pointer which he offered: “There is no such thing as ‘peace of mind’." 

Relatedly, this pointer is shared here: the “mind” is the source of your lack of peace; therefore, the Ultimate Sickness cannot be healed by the very repository of the Sickness. 

To be continued.

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Please enter into the silence of contemplation. 

[NOTE: The four most recent posts are below. You may access all of the posts in this series and in the previous series and several thousand other posts as well by clicking on the links in the "Recent Posts and Archives" section.] 

In addition to the five non-duality books made available without charge by Andy Gugar, Jr. (see “FREEBIES” above), you can now access nearly 3,300 posts for any topics of interest to you. 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc. are viewed as verbs, not nouns. 

THE EXPLANATION 

If looked at as nouns, they point to illusions and are, therefore, a total waste of time to even discuss; if looked at as verbs which are resulting in certain sane but rare behaviors among humanity, then they are worthy of some attention during the relative existence. 

Meaning? There are members of certain groups who say things such as "My concept of God in the past was of a weak God, an absentee God, A Santa Claus-type God, a mean, punishing, vindictive God, etc. Today, I am in close contact with a loving and caring God whom I worship and praise and glorify and give thanks to." 

The reply to that usually goes like this: "If you are in contact with a God that wants to be worshipped and praised and glorified, then you're dealing with someone like yourself - a narcissist - and hanging out with narcissists will never bring an end to your narcissism. Next, in the phrase 'loving and caring God,' any supposed God that truly had her or his act together would tell you that the totally irrelevant part of that phrase is 'God' and that the only part to be focused on should be the 'loving and caring' part. 

"That is, a non-narcissistic god / goddess would say, "I care not an iota about being worshipped and praised and glorified by you or anyone else. How arrogant and insecure and needy would I have to be to want that? Forget the man-made, dreamed up noun 'God' and focus on the 'God as a verb' understanding and then go forth and let loving and caring be verbs - not adjectives - and let them generate the act of love and the act of caring and let those actions manifest through you." 

Both Yeshu'a (Jesus) and Pope John Paul II were spot on: 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" and "Heaven and earth shall fade away."

and 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men."

THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE WHICH PROVIDES AN UNDERSTANDING OF "NO YOU-NESS," Part Seventy-One

TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS

 [See the offer following this post for details on how you can watch a video which includes a discussion of all seven of the steps on the path as used by Maharaj] 

CONSIDER: 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, 

nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men." 

-- Pope John Paul II 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within." 

--Yeshu'a (Jesus) 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc.: are viewed as verbs, not nouns. See the end of the post for the full meaning and implications of that. 

THE RATIONALE FOR CHOOSING SCIENTIFIC FACTS OVER THE EMOTIONAL INTOXICATION GENERATED BY RELIGIOUS / SPIRITUAL FANATICISM: 

While Religion and Science Are Not Always Incompatible, Logic and Reason and Wisdom Make Clear That If a Choice Between The Two Is To Be Made, Only One Choice Is the Sane Option 

Next, let’s re-consider the accuracy of some of the criticisms set forth about Maharaj and some of the labels which were applied to Maharaj over the decades as he shifted from using a religious / non-dual version of the Ultimate Medicine to using a spiritual / non-dual version of the Ultimate Medicine to using a psychologically-based version of the Ultimate Medicine:

CRITICISMS 

(from among some of those shared in the eBook "SRI NISARGADATTA MAHARAJ and HIS EVOLUTION"): 

"The later books of Maharaj do not enjoy the same clarity as 'I Am That'. It seems that he himself got complicated or rather evolved himself or declined maybe as happens to many teachers. 

"His direct disciples who later on became notable teachers are of an especially low quality (e.g. Ramesh Balsekar, Wolinsky and others) which makes one to wonder how come." 

"He taught an extreme form of narcissism in which 'I' am everything." 

"At first when he was still listening to his guru he was telling the truth, like he did in 'I AM THAT.' In his other talks, his ego made him start telling things he dreamed up on his own that were not true." 

"He deteriorated from one of the great spiritual men of all times to one of the least spiritual people of all times." 

“He seemed to understand non-duality early on but later on he lost it. I think he went crazy or became senile or maybe it was Alzheimers.” 

LABELS 

He was a rebel.”

He was a maverick.”

He was a nonconformist.”

He was eccentric.”

He was the odd one out.”

He was a dissenter.”

He was a radical.”

He was a free spirit.”

Such labeling can only manifest in duality, when "someone" is contrasted with "someone else" or when "someone" is contrasted with "the way they are now" as compared to "the way they were before." 

Sometimes the labels used to describe Maharaj were meant as criticisms and sometimes they were meant as compliments, but they always involved first judging and then either acceptance or rejection. He was viewed “positively” as “a rebel and maverick and nonconformist," etc. by those who had received no clarity at all by listening to the typical messages being offered by the typical teachers of the day. He was viewed “negatively” as “a rebel and maverick and nonconformist," etc. by those who were attached to the religious or spiritual identities which had been assigned to them or which they had assumed. 

All who were deemed to be religious but who later abandoned their religion persona, and all who were deemed to be spiritual but who later abandoned the playing of their spiritual persona, should be aware that – among the duality-entrapped masses – the applause of the villagers can readily turn into the scorn of the townspeople if one does not accept each and every component of the belief systems of the villagers and townspeople. 

Thus, many who had applauded Maharaj when he reinforced their assumed roles suddenly began attacking Maharaj after he saw that neither a religious nor a spiritual version of the Ultimate Medicine was treating the Ultimate Sickness successfully. As the case is with those who only take some antibiotics but do not complete the full dosage, the version of the Medicine prescribed to religious or spiritual persons might have sent the Sickness into a temporarily-less potent state or into a temporarily-dormant state for a period; yet Maharaj saw that the Sickness always eventually recurred. Therefore, when he turned to focusing on the real root of – and the actual seat of - the Ultimate Sickness (namely, the mind), then the criticisms and labels came forth, especially when he said: 

"Forget spirituality" 

and when he encouraged seekers to 

follow "their normal inclinations," (that is, to follow their natural tendencies, to abandon all of their spiritual work and just abide naturally - not unnaturally and not supernaturally, i.e., neither "religiously" nor "spiritually" nor "philosophically") 

and when he told visitors to 

"Do your normal duties" 

and to

"just give up spirituality." 

Consider: in Christian-dominated cultures, children are told an astonishing lie for years, a lie about an ancient, white-skinned, white-bearded man who has been around forever and who lives in another place and who is omniscient – even knowing if they are asleep or if they are awake – and who rewards those who are good with gifts. (Hummm. Sound like Someone else you've heard of?) Later, they are told by relatives – or they figure out on their own or they are told by friends who know the truth – that they were lied to, tricked, hoodwinked, duped, fooled, conned, taken in, deceived, and bamboozled. 

Here, when the shift beyond the third-of-seven-steps happened – that third step being the one where religious and spiritual roles were assumed and played – many people make comments along these lines: “Floyd, you have allowed your ego to drive you to break relationship with God, and you will pay dearly for that.” 

The question is, If a child who believed a lie – like, say, believing in Santa Claus – then found out the truth and never again believed the lie and never again allowed the lie to affect her or his thoughts and words and actions, would one conclude that the child who eventually understood the truth had - "negatively" - become a “rebel,” a "maverick,” a “nonconformist,” etc.? Or would the child simply be one who had finally come to understand the truth and, as a consequence, had quit believing a lie, even a lie which the child had also repeated for years.

Or, if a parent put a child to bed at 8 PM and if the child stayed asleep for a long time but then suddenly woke up at 7 AM when the light began streaming through the bedroom window, would the parent conclude that the child who woke up is obviously and most certainly "rebellious" or "in a state of decline" or "deteriorated" or "narcissistic and egotistical," all because the child had simply awakened? 

With Maharaj there, and in the case here, and in all cases where seekers wake up to the fact that they were taught a big pack of lies (and in all cases where they then return to a state in which differentiating between what is true and what is false is the norm rather than the exception), can any of those that determine to stop believing the lies and re-telling the lies which they had been taught suddenly be deemed – logically - to have “deteriorated” simply because they are rejecting lies or because they are telling the truth? Logically? No. Typically? Yes. 

Why is that? That angry reaction among the masses will always happen when some begins marching to the beat of a different drum which is pounding out a cadence which differs from the beat to which the masses are marching. In such cases, the village will turn against them, the state can turn against them, the nation can turn against them, and those all around the globe who are judging them can turn against them. 

Why? They are pissed off because their belief systems and their very identities are being challenged and because they, therefore, feel that they are literally being threatened or hurt or even . . . destroyed. Their misperceptions lead them to believe that a 130-pound female human who is walking away from them is a bigger threat then an 830-pound female bear that is charging toward them. 

That is the core irony among humans about the truth: the truth can set them free, but it’s most likely going to piss them off first. 

Tomorrow: So why did Maharaj’s treatment plan shift away from the use of religion and away from the use of spirituality and away from endorsing the use of “Self-Inquiry” and toward (1) addressing the issues with the mind and (2) addressing (via “self-inquiry”) the issues with the multiple personalities which persons have been assigned or which they assume are real identities? 

To be continued.

NEW OFFER: 

Watch an updated seven-hour streaming video of a retreat with Floyd Henderson which can be viewed by anyone with internet access. (In this video; all seven of the steps on "the path" as taught by Maharaj are explained and discussed.) 

 If interested; click the button below to pay the fee via PayPal. You will then receive an email which includes the link for you to view the private, unlisted video via an arrangement we have made with YouTube, Inc. You do not have to have a YouTube account to watch this privately streamed video. 

(If you do not receive the link promptly, your computer or email provider may have high filter settings. Check your spam and trash folders because some providers automatically transfer emails containing links to those folders.) 

To access the seven-hour streaming video of a retreat and begin watching right away, click this "Buy Now" button: 

 

Please enter into the silence of contemplation. 

[NOTE: The four most recent posts are below. You may access all of the posts in this series and in the previous series and several thousand other posts as well by clicking on the links in the "Recent Posts and Archives" section.] 

In addition to the five non-duality books made available without charge by Andy Gugar, Jr. (see “FREEBIES” above), you can now access nearly 3,300 posts for any topics of interest to you. 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc. are viewed as verbs, not nouns. 

THE EXPLANATION 

If looked at as nouns, they point to illusions and are, therefore, a total waste of time to even discuss; if looked at as verbs which are resulting in certain sane but rare behaviors among humanity, then they are worthy of some attention during the relative existence. 

Meaning? There are members of certain groups who say things such as "My concept of God in the past was of a weak God, an absentee God, A Santa Claus-type God, a mean, punishing, vindictive God, etc. Today, I am in close contact with a loving and caring God whom I worship and praise and glorify and give thanks to." 

The reply to that usually goes like this: "If you are in contact with a God that wants to be worshipped and praised and glorified, then you're dealing with someone like yourself - a narcissist - and hanging out with narcissists will never bring an end to your narcissism. Next, in the phrase 'loving and caring God,' any supposed God that truly had her or his act together would tell you that the totally irrelevant part of that phrase is 'God' and that the only part to be focused on should be the 'loving and caring' part. 

"That is, a non-narcissistic god / goddess would say, "I care not an iota about being worshipped and praised and glorified by you or anyone else. How arrogant and insecure and needy would I have to be to want that? Forget the man-made, dreamed up noun 'God' and focus on the 'God as a verb' understanding and then go forth and let loving and caring be verbs - not adjectives - and let them generate the act of love and the act of caring and let those actions manifest through you.

Both Yeshu'a (Jesus) and Pope John Paul II were spot on: 

"No one shall ever see 'the kingdom of heaven.' It is within" 

and 

"Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men."

THE SCIENTIFIC EVIDENCE WHICH PROVIDES AN UNDERSTANDING OF "NO YOU-NESS," Part Seventy

TODAY'S CONSIDERATIONS

[See the offer following this post for details on how you can watch a video which includes a discussion of all seven of the steps on the path as used by Maharaj] 

Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc.: are viewed as verbs, not nouns. See the end of the post for the full meaning and implications of that. 

THE RATIONALE FOR CHOOSING SCIENTIFIC FACTS OVER THE EMOTIONAL INTOXICATION GENERATED BY RELIGIOUS / SPIRITUAL FANATICISM: 

While Religion and Science Are Not Always Incompatible, Logic and Reason and Wisdom Make Clear That If a Choice Between The Two Is To Be Made, Only One Choice Is the Sane Option 

Maharaj said that “the cause of all is all,” so when persons try to assign one cause as the cause of any problem, then the real problem will not be understood and the real solution will never be found. Complicating the process of identifying all of the links in a chain of causation and then finding the solution to a problem are the bogus labels which are assigned by those who think that they know the single cause of a problem. 

Here, from the beginning, it was noted that the discussions will deal with the only issues that humans will ever be able to consciously experience and address, namely, current relative issues; thus, current relative issues are discussed in terms of duality and non-duality and then means are offered by which the non-dual understanding can be overlaid on the relative and provide relief from the distortion and delusions and ignorance and insanity and chaos and misery and suffering which are generated by the Ultimate Sickness.

So consider this distortion in regards to the examples being offered: Following the shooting of nine blacks in a South Carolina by a white male named Dylann Roof, Bill O’Reilly (a commentator on the ultra-right-wing, conservative Fox News channel who has since been fired for sexual harassment), said that “white supremacy isn’t a problem in America” and that “black on black crime is the problem.” He went on to claim that the real problem is the “corrosive culture within predominately black neighborhoods” and concluded that “there is not an epidemic of racism in the United States of America.” 

The fact: Since the 11 September 2001 on the World Trade Center, nearly twice as many people have been killed in the U.S. by white supremacists, anti-government fanatics and other non-Muslim extremists than by radical Muslims. 

The fact: The Southern Poverty Law Center counted 1007 active “hate groups” in the United States in 2012. What was modeled for shooter Dylann Roof in his own state? In South Carolina there are nineteen active organizations which have been identified as “hate groups,” sixteen of which support white supremacist ideology (including six categorized as “neo-Confederate” who advocate for the secession of the South from the rest of the United States as happened when the Southern States started a war against the U.S. in the mid-1800's in order to preserve the right of their white citizens to continue to own slaves). The members of those groups proclaim, as Roof believed, that blacks are the cause of most of the key problems in the U.S. 

The claim by some that whites in the U.S. are neither hateful nor racists notwithstanding, there are organizations which have been identified and self-identified as “hate groups” and there are crimes which have been classed as “hate crimes”; is it possible, however, that those groups and crimes are not ultimately about hate? Is it possible that racism is not ultimately about racism at all? And is it possible that the solutions being offered as the "right" way to end the problems – more religion and / or more spirituality - are not viable solutions at all? Consider those options in light of the facts surrounding the examples being discussed: 

A man described by the members of a group as being “a very spiritual person” murdered his wife. 

A 21-year old male - Dylann Roof mentioned last week - who killed nine black members of a church was described by his pastor as “a devout Christian” who “worshiped regularly.” 

An ordained Church of Jesus Christ Christian pastor praised Roof for killing the nine blacks and urged other whites to follow the shooter’s example. 

The pro-Christian, anti-black KKK group has killed thousands upon thousands of blacks in its history. (South Carolina members of the KKK will gather in front of the state capitol this month to urge the state government to continue to fly the Confederate flag in front of that building.) 

The members of thirty-nine "hate groups" are self-identified as “Christians”; most of those praising Roof for killing nine blacks in South Carolina self-identify as "Christian"; all around the globe, Muslims are killing Muslims; Christians are killing Muslims; Muslims are killing Christians; Jews are killing Muslims; Muslims in the Far East are killing Hindus; etc., etc., etc. And all of the killing has been going on in many cases for thousands of years. 

Can it really be the case, then (as billions claim) that the problems of humanity are caused by the fact that people still haven’t gotten enough religion or have not become spiritual enough (though 97% claim they are religious and millions more claim that they are spiritual)? Will more of the same finally change humans' warped patterns of thinking and talking and behaving "for the better"? 

What if the persons being discussed had been introduced to the process of “Self-Inquiry” and found their Supreme Self? Would that have changed their behavior? 

To the contrary, what if the solutions identified as the way to end the problems – more religion and / or more spirituality - are not viable solutions at all? Might Maharaj’s realization about those "solutions" have been spot on, the realization which led him to stop using religious versions of the Ultimate Medicine and spiritual versions of the Ultimate Medicine and which eventually led him to focus on humankind's mind problem and its roots and its treatment? Do the facts not invite persons to realize what Maharaj came to understand? 

So, if what is called hate is not ultimately about hate, and if what is called racism is not ultimately about racism at all, what are those - and all relative problems - about? 

They are about dualistic thinking (which is rooted in ignorant and stupid and insane programming and conditioning and domestication and acculturation and brainwashing and indoctrination); and they are about a belief in hierarchies (a belief rooted in duality) which suggests that some are higher than others and that most are lower than others and that some are better than others and that most are worst than other. 

They are about dualistic talking and writing (which are also rooted in “ignorant and stupid and insane” programming and conditioning and domestication and acculturation and brainwashing and indoctrination) and it was such writings on the website of the white supremacy “Council of Conservative Citizens” which shooter Dylann Roof in his “manifesto” reports reading. He said that after reading the information on that pro-white, pro-segregation, anti-black website that he was "never the same" after reading “pages upon pages of black on white murders.” 

They are also about what Maharaj called “learned ignorance,” specifically the learned ignorance that is overtly taught in homes or covertly modeled in homes; that is overtly taught in cultures or covertly modeled in cultures. They are about accepting assigned and assumed personality identifications which are rooted in a dualistic sense of different-from-ment and better-than-ment, resulting in such levels of narcissism and arrogance and false pride that persons being driven by those belief systems develop the God Complex Personality Disorder and thereafter believe that they have the right to judge who is good and who is bad and have the right to determine who should live and who should die. 

What is the difference in Hitler wanting to kill all Jews on one hand and some white supremacists like Roof wanting to kill all blacks on the other hand? None. 

What is the difference in the duality-based beliefs of the Nazis who started a war in which 55,000,000 people died on one hand and Roof wanting to start a race war in which the 45,000,000 blacks in the U.S. would die on the other hand? None. 

What is the difference in those living under the influence of “ignorance and stupidity and insanity” and programming and conditioning and domestication and acculturation and brainwashing and indoctrination on one hand and those being driven by arrogance and conceit and self-importance and narcissism and egotism on the other hand? None. 

And what is the difference in those who believe that the problems of the world are rooted in too little dogma or in the wrong dogma on one hand and those who ignorantly and arrogantly believe on the other hand that the problems of the world are caused by people of a different race; or, are caused by people of a different religion or people with no religion; or, are caused by people who are “religious but not spiritual”; or, are caused because people are doing “self-inquiry” instead of “Self-Inquiry”? None. 

Maharaj made clear in the end that the problems of humanity center in the mind, and he learned by trial and error that neither religion nor spirituality nor "Self-Inquiry" instead of "self-inquiry" can solve a mind problem. The wise, in fact, see how all of those can actually exacerbate the mental problems of humankind. 

To be continued.

NEW OFFER: 

Watch an updated seven-hour streaming video of a retreat with Floyd Henderson which can be viewed by anyone with internet access. (In this video; all seven of the steps on "the path" as taught by Maharaj are explained and discussed.) 

If interested; click the button below to pay the fee via PayPal. You will then receive an email which includes the link for you to view the private, unlisted video via an arrangement we have made with YouTube, Inc. You do not have to have a YouTube account to watch this privately streamed video. 

(If you do not receive the link promptly, your computer or email provider may have high filter settings. Check your spam and trash folders because some providers automatically transfer emails containing links to those folders.) 

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Please enter into the silence of contemplation.

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Here, "God," the "Son of God," the "Holy Spirit," "Buddha," "Krishna," etc., etc., etc. are viewed as verbs, not nouns. 

THE EXPLANATION 

If looked at as nouns, they point to illusions and are, therefore, a total waste of time to even discuss; if looked at as verbs which are resulting in certain sane but rare behaviors among humanity, then they are worthy of some attention during the relative existence. 

Meaning? There are members of certain groups who say things such as "My concept of God in the past was of a weak God, an absentee God, A Santa Claus-type God, a mean, punishing, vindictive God, etc. Today, I am in close contact with a loving and caring God whom I worship and praise and glorify and give thanks to." 

The reply to that usually goes like this: "If you are in contact with a God that wants to be worshipped and praised and glorified, then you're dealing with someone like yourself - a narcissist - and hanging out with narcissists will never bring an end to your narcissism. Next, in the phrase 'loving and caring God,' any supposed God that truly had her or his act together would tell you that the totally irrelevant part of that phrase is 'God' and that the only part to be focused on should be the 'loving and caring' part. 

"That is, a non-narcissistic god / goddess would say, "I care not an iota about being worshipped and praised and glorified by you or anyone else. How arrogant and insecure and needy would I have to be to want that? Forget the man-made, dreamed up noun 'God' and focus on the 'God as a verb' understanding and then go forth and let loving and caring be verbs - not adjectives - and let them generate the act of love and the act of caring and let those actions manifest through you." 

Pope John Paul II was spot on: "Heaven and hell are not geographic places but are states of mind, nothing more than concepts dreamed up by men."