There are many who think that Advaita and engaging in nonduality is simply using the no-self perspective as an escape from dealing with one’s problems, and misguided questions like these show why.
Non-duality, whether as an intellectual philosophy or as a ‘direct experience,’ is not an appliance to help anyone deal with their very dual self-image problems. It’s just a fact. There is only (one) Being, nothing ever arose, and every dual or multiple thing that seems to have arisen is just an illusory impression in Consciousness. You either ‘get that’ or you don’t. Truth doesn’t care either way.
It’s like air. It’s just (seemingly) there. It doesn’t help anyone with their life situations or self-image experiences.
It’s like a large bowl holding 30 pieces of fruit. Some of the fruit is brightly colored and tasty, Some look & taste less appealing. If let uneaten in the bowl, all 30 pieces will eventually rot.
Bowl don’t care
And bowl can’t stop any of that from happening.
If one of the fruits adopts non-duality - “I know there’s only One Bowl”- it still loses it’s color and rots. :-)
Sadly, many people do use non-duality as a way to escape problems and emotions held in the ‘individual self,’ or at least, they try to, and wind up more of an emotional mess than ever, or terribly disappointed, or living in an airy-fairy dream-world of denial.
All human issues - low self-worth, insufficient love or money, poor health, not enough ‘enlightenment,’ birth, troubled childhoods, and death - all exist in the Dream.
Non-duality has nothing to do with this dream and will not help you wake up or avoid whatever “you” have to go through.
It’s just What Is, and What Is can never be used by “you, although It may use “you.”
“You” never know :-)
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CBNAD STONE
Suffering is created by our own actions or karma – it is not given to us as a punishment. ~ How to Transform Your Life
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"Tackle your mind or your mind tackles you!"
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DPOS- All suffering is for our training.
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ধর্ম অনুরাগে ----- বাহ্য অনুষ্ঠানে নহে । হৃদয়ের পবিত্র ও অকপট প্রেমেই ধর্ম । যদি দেহ-মন শুদ্ধ না হয়, তবে মন্দিরে গিয়া শিবপূজা করা বৃথা । যাহাদের দেহ-মন পবিত্র, শিব তাহাদেরই প্রার্থনা শুনেন । আর যাহারা অশুদ্ধচিত্ত হইয়াও অপরকে ধর্মশিক্ষা দিতে যায়, তাহারা অসদ্গতি প্রাপ্ত হয় । বাহ্য পূজা মানস পূজার বহিরঙ্গমাত্র ------ মানস পূজা ও চিত্তশুদ্ধিই আসল জিনিস । এইগুলি না থাকিলে বাহ্য পূজায় কোন ফল হয় না । এই কলিযুগে লোকে এত হীনস্বভাব হইয়া পড়িয়াছে যে, তাহারা মনে করে ------ তাহারা যাহা খুশি করুক না কেন, তীর্থস্থানে গমন করিবামাত্র তাহাদের পাপ ক্ষয় হইয়া যাইবে । কিন্তু প্রকৃতপক্ষে যদি কেহ অপবিত্রভাবে কোন তীর্থে গমন করে, তবে সেখানে অপরাপর ব্যক্তির যত পাপ, সব তাহার ঘাড়ে আসিয়া পড়ে ------ তখন তাহাকে আরও গুরুতর পাপের বোঝা লইয়া গৃহে ফিরিতে হয় ।
--------- স্বামী বিবেকানন্দ ।
( বাণী ও রচনা : ৫ ম খণ্ড পৃঃ ২৬ )
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“Time spent in self-reflection is never wasted—it is an intimate date with yourself.” ~Paul TP Wong
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“Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles, and the water is clear? Can you remain unmoving until the right action arises by itself?” ~Lao Tzu
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Happy Birthday to two Kriya Yoga Masters who are celebrating their birthdays today. Sri Yukteswar was born on May 10, 1855 and Yogiraj Gurunath Siddhanath was born on May 10, 1944. Yogiraj Siddhanath has an encouraging birthday message for these dark and challenging times that the world is currently going through. He says: “If you dwell on the thought of Light and Love, then Light and Love shall be your outcome.” Sri Yukteswar once said: “Remember that finding God will mean the funeral of all sorrows”. Sri Yukteswar gave a beautiful explanation of THE FIVE STAGES OF THE HUMAN HEART: He explained that the human heart with its feelings and emotions progresses through five different stages from the dark heart to the pure heart through a gradual process of evolution.
(1) The dark state of the heart:
Most human beings are in the first state, in which feeling is scattered and diffused outwardly in desires for material things. This is called the dark state of the heart, in which one’s consciousness is directed solely to the outer creation, in complete obliviousness of the Creator.
(2) The propelled state of the human heart:
After many incarnations, there comes a time when we grow dissatisfied with mere things, when the experiences of this world leave us empty. We yearn for a higher truth, a deeper understanding of life. When we begin to search sincerely for that experience, we have entered what Sri Yukteswar calls the propelled state of the human heart. That is, we are propelled by our inner dissatisfaction to seek something more than the superficial experiences and pursuits of the senses. In this state, we eventually find a Guru that can show us the way to the Infinite.
(3) The steady state of the human heart:
As our upward evolution continues, we enter the third stage: the steady state of the human heart. In the steady state one’s propelled restlessness is gradually transformed, through self-control, into the calm will to persevere on the path.
(4) The devoted state of the human heart:
By remaining steadfast in our spiritual practices, we come to the fourth state, in which God becomes a reality to us through direct perception. This is called the devoted state of the human heart.
(5) The pure state of the human heart:
As we deepen that devotional contact with God, the dross, the lower inclinations that prevent us from being receptive to the presence of God, falls away. We then reach the highest level, what Sri Yukteswar refers to as the clean or pure state of the human heart. One feels not just devotion for God, but true union with Him. As two human beings who are deeply in love can intuit what each other is thinking and feeling, in divine communion between the soul and God there is a continuous, infinitely more intimate interchange of love and caring.......
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As found in the book:
THE SAYINGS OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA
Written by : SWAMI ABHEDANANDA
126. As long as one says, " I know " or " I do not know ", one looks upon oneself as a person. My Divine Mother says : It is only when I have effaced the whole of this Aham (I-ness) in you, that the Undifferentiated Absolute (My impersonal aspect) can be realised in Samadhi." Till then there is the ' I in me and before me.
127. After a process of severe struggle with one s lower nature and the assiduous practice of spiritual discipline leading to Self-knowledge, one attains the state of Samadhi. Then the ego with all its train vanishes. But it is very difficult to attain Samadhi; the ego is very persistent. That is why we are born again and again in this world.
128. So long as one is not blessed with the vision Divine, so long as the touch of the philosopher's stone has not transmuted the base metal in one into gold, there will be the illusive feeling: 'I am the doer . And until this illusion ceases, there will persist the idea that gives the sense of distinction between ' I have done this good work ', and I have done that bad work . Maya means this sense of distinction, and it is because of it that the world continues. One reaches Him if one takes refuge in Vidya Maya —that aspect of Divine Power having the preponderance of Sattva—which leads one by the right path. He alone crosses the ocean of Maya, who comes face to face with God—realises Him. A man is truly free, even here in this embodied state, if he knows that God is the true agent and he by himself is powerless to do anything.
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১৮ ই ফেব্রুয়ারি, ১৮৮৩ খ্রীষ্টাব্দ, রবিবার
বেলঘরে গোবিন্দ মুখুজ্জের বাটীতে ভক্তসঙ্গে
শ্রীরামকৃষ্ণ ---------
" তিনিই সব হয়ে রয়েছেন, তবে এক-এক জায়গায় বেশি প্রকাশ, যেমন সাধুতে । যদি বল, দুষ্ট লোক তো আছে, বাঘ সিংহও আছে ; তা বাঘনারায়ণকে আলিঙ্গন করার দরকার নাই, দূর থেকে প্রণাম করে চলে যেতে হয় । আবার দেখ জল, কোন জল খাওয়া যায়, কোন জলে পূজা করা যায়, কোন জলে নাওয়া যায় । আবার কোন জলে কেবল আচান-শোচান হয় ।"
প্রতিবেশী ------ আজ্ঞা, বেদান্তমত কিরূপ ?
শ্রীরামকৃষ্ণ ---------
" বেদান্তবাদীরা বলে 'সোহহম' ব্রহ্ম সত্য, জগৎ মিথ্যা ; আমিও মিথ্যা । কেবল সেই পরব্রহ্মই আছেন । কিন্তু আমি তো যায় না ; তাই আমি তাঁর দাস, আমি তাঁর সন্তান, আমি তাঁর ভক্ত ------- এ অভিমান খুব ভাল ।
" কলিযুগে ভক্তিযোগই ভাল । ভক্তি দ্বারাও তাঁকে পাওয়া যায় । দেহবুদ্ধি থাকলেই বিষয়বুদ্ধি । রূপ, রস, গন্ধ, স্পর্শ, শব্দ -------- এই সকল বিষয় । বিষয়বুদ্ধি যাওয়া বড় কঠিন । বিষয়বুদ্ধি থাকতে 'সোহহম' হয় না ।
" ত্যাগীদের বিষয়বুদ্ধি কম, সংসারীরা সর্বদাই বিষয়চিন্তা নিয়ে থাকে, তাই সংসারীর পক্ষে 'দাসোহহম' ।"
( শ্রীশ্রীরামকৃষ্ণকথামৃত )
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SOHAM
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY AS WRITTEN IN PRASANTHI NILAYAM - May 08, 2021
We may take up spiritual practices such as meditation on Soham mantra. But how should it reflect in our everyday life? Bhagawan explains and shows us the path to experience Him.
The Vedic declaration, Soham is demonstrated by the inhaling done during breathing. When you exhale and utter "Aham," you are giving up the "I". So-ham proclaims the identity of the individual and the Divine (I am He). This identity will not be understood as long as one is caught up in the tentacles of the material world. This is the truth about God. If one asks, "Where is God", the answer is given in the 18th canto of the Bhagavat Gita in Stanza 61. Krishna declared: "The Lord resides in the heart of all beings” (Eshwarah sarva bhutanam hriddese). We study the Gita; adore it; there is daily recitation, but no practical application in daily life! The one who realises his identity with the Divine will not cause hurt to anyone. Service to the public is true worship of God. The power of the Divine permeates everything. Our journey is, from the individual to the Universal, from 'Swam' (mine) to 'So-ham' (oneness with God), from 'I' to 'we'.
- Divine Discourse, Feb 11, 1983.
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As found in the book
THE GOSPEL OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA
Translated into English by :
SWAMI NIKHILANANDA
SUMMARY OF THE MASTER'S SPIRITUAL EXPERIENCES: (Continued)
Fourth, his spiritual insight told him that those who were having their last birth on the mortal plane of existence and those who had sincerely called on the Lord even once in their lives must come to him.
During this period Sri Ramakrishna suffered several bereavements. The first was the death of a nephew named Akshay. After the young man’s death Sri Ramakrishna said: “Akshay died before my very eyes. But it did not affect me in the least. I stood by and watched a man die. It was like a sword being drawn from its scabbard. I enjoyed the scene, and laughed and sang and danced over it. They removed the body and cremated it. But the next day as I stood there (pointing to the southeast verandah of his room), I felt a racking pain for the loss of Akshay, as if somebody were squeezing my heart like a wet towel. I wondered at it and thought that the Mother was teaching me a lesson. I was not much concerned even with my own body — much less with a relative. But if such was my pain at the loss of a nephew, how much more must be the grief of the householders at the loss of their near and dear ones!” In 1871 Mathur died, and some five years later Sambhu Mallick — who, after Mathur’s passing away, had taken care of the Master’s comfort. In 1873 died his elder brother Rameswar, and in 1876, his beloved mother. These bereavements left their imprint on the tender human heart of Sri Ramakrishna, albeit he had realized the immortality of the soul and the illusoriness of birth and death.
In March 1875, about a year before the death of his mother, the Master met Keshab Chandra Sen. The meeting was a momentous event for both Sri Ramakrishna and Keshab. Here the Master f
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As found in the book:
THE SAYINGS OF SRI RAMAKRISHNA
Written by : SWAMI ABHEDANANDA
123. What is the nature of the feelings and impulses of one who has the attitude of the servant I ? If his-conviction is true and sincere, then there remains only the forms, the appearance, of his former feelings and impulses. Even if the ego of the servant or the ego of the devotee remains, one who has realised God can hurt none. The whole sting of individuality vanishes from him. The sword becomes gold by a touch of the philosopher's stone. It retains its former shape, but can no longer hurt any one.
124. If you feel proud, let it be in the thought that you are the servant of God, the son of God. Great men have the nature of children. They are always children before Him; so they are free from pride. All their strength is of God, and not their own. It belongs to Him and comes from Him.
125. A person who is convinced that everything is clone by the will of God, feels himself to be a mere tool in His hands. He is then free from all bondage even in this very life. " Thou doest Thy work, Lord ; but man says, I do it' ! "
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Abdurraqib:Yeah, I mean, because today I will be more than one person. The person I am right now, talking to you, is not the person I’m going to be later on, when I have a phone call scheduled to catch up with one of my old friends. That person is not gonna be the same person who drags myself to the kitchen to cook dinner even though I’m probably tired. And that won’t be the same person who kind of quietly plays video games in the darkness of my living room. All these things mean that I am almost required, I think, to not just speak for my “self” but to speak for the reality that I am someone who carries with me multiple selves. And to carry those multiple selves means that I have to again honor not just who I am in one moment, but honor the fluidity of moments to come, which for me means that I’m very comfortable with being incorrect. I’m very comfortable with crawling my way towards changing, and changing my ideas and feelings about something.
And there’s a real humility in that awareness, for me, because it is much easier to be egoless, for me, when I realize that I am multiple people stacked on top of each other, [laughs] and all of them have their own emotional landscape to tend to at any moment, from hour to hour, even. And that requires work that pulls me away from self-admiration in the mirror type of stuff, you know? To love oneself is hard work. But I think it becomes harder when you realize that you’re actually — at least, in my case — required to love multiple versions of yourself that show up without warning throughout a day, throughout a week, throughout a month, throughout a life.
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