"To destroy is still the strongest instinct in nature."
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SLOW SIMMER
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Your Presence is like Heaven
Maharaj:
WHO IS BORN?
WHO DIES?
SELF-INQUIRE.
NO ONE DIES, NO ONE IS BORN
Nisargadatta Maharaj defined the foundation of spirituality in one sentence:
"Except your Selfless Self,
There is no God,
no Brahman, no Atman,
no Paramatman, no Master."
This statement has the same meaning as the Bhajan we chant in the ashram every morning:
Chidananda Shivoham Shivoham.
Q: It's a very beautiful Bhajan.
Maharaj: They both say the same thing: there is no mother, no brother, no sister, no Master, no disciple, no relationships.
All relationships are relationships of the body.
BEFORE THE BODY, BEFORE BEING, YOUR PRESENCE WAS THERE,
BUT WITHOUT ANY FORM.
WHEN BEING ENDS,
YOUR PRESENCE WILL BE THERE,
BUT WITHOUT ANY FORM.
If you want to compare yourself to something, compare yourself to heaven.
Heaven is everywhere, omnipresent. You are Final Truth, you are Ultimate Truth.
Therefore, "to say I is illusion, to say you is illusion, to say Brahman is illusion. The world is illusion", Shankaracharya said.
Q: It's a challenge! It rejects everyone and everything we think, everything we see as our reality, and every person we love.
Maharaj:
YOU HAVE SHAPED THE WORLD.
AT THE MOMENT THE SPIRIT CLICKED WITH THE BODY, THE DREAM BEGAN.
LIFE IS JUST A DREAM.
It's like when you're sleeping and dreaming. This is a dream. You act in a dream as if you were someone, a man or a woman. In the dream you see gods, oceans, seas and temples. You see a lot of people, a lot of landscapes.
After waking up from the dream, when everything vanishes and disappears, ask yourself, "Where did all these people go? Where did the stage go? What happened to the people you related to in the dream? Did they go to heaven or hell?"
Q: I guess when we woke up, we just accepted that we were dreaming.
Maharaj: Yes, when you wake up from sleep, do you start sobbing telling yourself that your friends are gone and you have lost them?
Q: No, Because I know it's just a dream.
Maharaj: You know it's a dream, and even if you dream of close friends and have attachment to the people who appear in your dream, when you wake up, they are quickly forgotten.
Q: Yes!
Maharaj: Pay attention! When you wake up from sleep, the world that has been dreamed of disappears. Similarly, this world is just a dream, a long dream that will also disappear.
Absorb what I'm telling you:
THE WORLD IS A PROJECTION
OF YOUR SPONTANEOUS PRESENCE.
THE WORLD IS A PROJECTION
OF YOUR SPONTANEOUS PRESENCE.
Knowledge is to be completely absorbed. It is not intellectual knowledge, it is Reality.
THIS IS YOUR KNOWLEDGE,
NOT BRAHMAN'S KNOWLEDGE.
IT IS THE KNOWLEDGE OF
THE LISTENER, THE KNOWLEDGE OF YOUR INVISIBLE AND ANONYMOUS UNIDENTIFIED IDENTITY, THAT IT CANNOT BE DEFINED BY LANGUAGE, THAT CANNOT BE DEFINED USING WORDS.
This is called Direct Knowledge. There is nothing in between. It is Spontaneous and Direct. No examples or explanations neat ones that have you going round and round in circles, adding confusion.
- Sri Ramakant Maharaj, "Selfless Self"
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CBNAD STONE - BUT GCW GRTTD COMPSSN WSDM
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SRM
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LWDG
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LEGALISED ABLEISM , MODERN END OF EUGENICS
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"One day you will look back and see that all along you were blooming."
— MHN
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Life Is Tough But So Are You
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Transforming Fear into Action
Fear is a natural emotion that can be a powerful motivator or a paralyzing force that holds us back from achieving our goals. Many people allow their fears to control them, leaving them feeling helpless and stuck. However, it is important to understand that fear is not something we should avoid but rather something we should learn to embrace and work with.
Transforming your fears into action is to acknowledge and understand your fears. What exactly are you afraid of? Is it failure, rejection, or the unknown? Once you identify your fears, you can begin to challenge them and work on overcoming them. This may involve taking small steps to confront your fears or seeking support from others. The next step is to focus on the positive outcomes that could result from taking action despite your fears. What benefits could come from facing your fears and taking a chance? Maybe you could achieve a long-held dream, build confidence, or learn valuable lessons. By shifting your focus to the potential rewards, you can begin to see your fears in a different light and feel more motivated to take action.
It is important to develop a growth mindset when transforming fear into action. Instead of seeing failure as a setback, view it as an opportunity to learn and grow. Embrace challenges and setbacks as part of the learning process and remain optimistic about the future. This positive outlook can help you stay motivated and continue to take action even when things get tough. Finally, surround yourself with supportive people who believe in you and your goals. Share your fears and aspirations with them and ask for their encouragement and guidance. Having a strong support system can help you stay accountable and motivated to take action despite your fears.
#HumanNature
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The Proust Effect refers to the emotionality and vividness of re-experiencing autobiographical memories triggered by the senses, such as the recollection of a past holiday when eating grandmother's blueberry pie or reliving a scene from elementary school triggered by a smell (e.g., cleaning products, cut grass on the field). The Proust effect gets its name from prolific French writer Marcel Proust’s monumental and influential seven-volume work Remembrance of Things Past (A la reserché de temps perdu). In the most famous passage, Proust recounts eating and smelling a madeleine cake dipped in tea, which suddenly and powerfully transports him back to his childhood, triggering a series of recollections about his aunt, her house, and her village. It was a vibrant multi-sensory experience for him.
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While life is inherently tragic, meaning is hidden in the appreciation of everyday experiences
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what Lao Tzu once said, “Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.”
A . For most people, ‘I’ is an unquestioned reality which gains strength
and comprehensiveness, complexity and sophistication, over an entire
lifetime. ‘I’, and its developing maturity and refinement, is assumed to
be the normal, natural process of living, and the resulting happiness
and suffering is life’s usual drama. If the process ofI-making were not
pointed out to us by someone like the Buddha, most people would never
notice this insidious enterprise unfolding
a AGING AFFECTS EVERYTHING EVERYWHERE, all at once. The hair grows gray, the bones weaken, the heart falters. Inside cells, DNA replication glitches and stutters, and proteins clump up into sticky globs. Meanwhile, natural repair mechanisms like adult stem cells no longer scurry to replace dead or injured tissues. All this happens more or less in sync, as if some systemwide signal has told the whole body to go down the tubes.
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Camus was the pioneer of absurdism — a philosophical idea that life is meaningless and humans are forced to recognize this truth
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s to explain the meaning of ‘I-making’ and ‘mine-making’ we
need to reference some other concepts including the phrase ‘I am’ (ahaṃ
asmi) and ‘the conceit “I am”’. Often, reference is also made to ‘self’
(attā) or the ‘doctrine of self’ (attavāda), as well as ‘individual existence’
(attabhāva).And, of course, there is the very specificBuddhist teaching
on ‘anattā’ or not a permanent self. Further references are ‘identity’
(sakkāya) and ‘identity view’ (sakkāya diṭṭhi).
a CAMUS “There is no love of life without despair of life,”
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TheBuddha responds to questions from the WandererVacchagotta:
‘Therefore, I say, with the wasting, waning, cessation, giving up,
relinquishing of all conceivings, all mental disturbances (mathita),
all I-making, mine-making and the underlying disposition to
conceit, the Tathāgata6 is liberated without grasping.’ M.I,486.
a Thanks for your question. The realisation that he was the Supreme Being itself and unbroken abidance in that Supreme Truth was the source of Sri Ramana Maharshi's silence. Even to say “Ramana Maharshi's silence" is not quite correct as that would bring in a duality in the form of a possessor — possessed relationship. Ramana Maharshi being the possessor and silence being his possession! Sri Ramana Maharshi was silence itself; and silence embodied itself as Sri Ramana Maharshi in flesh and blood to fulfill a cosmic purpose. Silence and Sri Ramana Maharshi can never be separated. Silence itself is the source of all this din and bustle of mundane existence. And to think of a source to this silence leads to regressus ad infinitum. Thanks for reading Nirvritananda A CAMUS Without work, all life goes rotten. But when work is soulless, life stifles and dies,
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TheBuddha taught forforty-five years, so it is not uncommon tofind
his early teachings overlapped by later, more developed teachings. A
possible example of this is the teachings on the Underlying Dispositions.
Initially, they are mentioned in a general sense as being predisposed
towards something (S.III,35). Later, they are referred to more specifically,
as, for example, passion, aversion and ignorance (M.III,285-6)and
eventually they are formalized into a standard list of seven underlying
dispositions (S.V,60)
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PURNATA V SUNYATA
An effect of this particular approach to spiritual practice, possibly
unexpected, was a diminishing of self-referencing and increase in
humility. The traditional spiritual path, looking for one’s ultimately
‘true’ and ‘pure’ self, is based on self-referencing and fused with
self-affirmation, which could lead to self-inflation, since that ultimate,
eternal self (ātman) is equated with the essence of the universe
(Brahman). (Of course, for the rare few who followed this path to
its end, the self dissolved in the universal essence.) A
RVR ALAKANANDA
blackberry mouse
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Asignificant challenge theBuddha faced was the need to express his
unique insights within a culture steeped in traditional religious concepts.
The template which he thus developed over his many years of teaching
is based upon the world-view prevalent in 6th century BCE India, but
adapted to his own strategy for awakening.
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Beings are the owners of their kamma, the heirs of their kamma;
they have kamma as their origin, kamma as their relative, kamma
as their resort; whatever kamma they do, whether good or evil,
they will inherit (its results).’ A.V,288.
The term ‘kamma’ (‘karma’ in Sanskrit) literally means action,
and its associated result is vipāka. The principle of kamma is the
principle of moral causality, which, in some form, is acknowledged
by all major religions. The simplest expression of this principle
is that good actions give pleasant or positive results, while bad actions
give unpleasant results.
‘Mind precedes all things, mind is foremost,
produced by mind are they.
If one should speak or act with corrupted mind,
Then suffering follows, as a cart follows the hoof of the drawing ox.
Mind precedes all things, mind is foremost,
produced by mind are they.
If one should speak or act with a pure mind,
Then well-being follows, like a never-departing shadow.’
Dhp. 1-2.
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10 LESSONS FROM THE LAWS OF HUMAN NATURE 1. Be better than your public persona After reading Robert’s powerful books, many of his readers expect him to be an evil mastermind. Although he’s certainly a master at what he does, he always surprises the people he meets with his approachable, open-minded persona. You should always strive to be a better person than what people expect. 2. Fight aimlessness with rigorous exercise Robert has always exercised and used swimming as a productivity tool. Swimming and similar types of isolated exercise force you to engage your thoughts in the physicality of your movement, without interruptions. Always make time for exercise or a productive activity that will provide you with the space to quiet your mind and prepare for the intense focus needed to reach your end goals. 3. Take control of your emotions I have never seen Robert lose his temper. He remains calm, collected, and disciplined in every emotional response, rather than letting his feelings get the better of him. If you can learn to control your emotions, then you will soon join the ranks of the great stoic philosophers, like Seneca and Marcus Aurelius, and develop a strategic mind. 4. Focus on improving yourself rather than impressing others Although Robert is a bestselling author, he does not rely on lavish displays of wealth to cultivate happiness. He is a great writer because he is focused on the end goal – becoming the best writer he can be. Upgrading to the latest flashy product every year couldn’t be further from his mind because his work comes first. Make sure that you are investing your time in your end goals rather than creating a lifestyle built to impress. 5. Don’t spread yourself too thin Once you become successful as a writer, the work opportunities that come your way inevitably expand and consume more of your time. Robert dedicates himself to writing great books, rather than saying yes to every new business venture on the horizon. I always remind myself of Robert’s model – concentrate on the actions that will lead to success and don’t muddy the waters by attempting to master each and every trade. 6. Remain positive in the face of disappointment Robert believes that ‘it’s all material.’ He is able to see every roadblock, delay, or rejection as a lesson learned and obstacle to overcome. If you observe the world around you and seek to change the negative into positives, you won’t become bogged down by the emotional chains of frustration and disappointment. 7. Create a sense of mystery and appeal It’s easy to blurt out your thoughts the minute they enter your mind. It requires self-control to remain quiet and observant, rather than jumping to participate in our social media culture of oversharing. People will be drawn to you as an object of desire if you maintain your privacy and establish a sense of mystery. (I met Robert’s girlfriend only after I’d known him 10 years!) Whenever I’m writing correspondence – whether it be an email or a tweet – I keep in mind The Law of Covetousness. 8. Create work that will outlive you My recent book, Perennial Seller, focuses on how you can turn your product or business into a lasting success. I have learned the importance of striving for longevity from Robert, a writer with a backlist of business classics, and his determination to write every book with this intention. Give your creative venture endurance and stability by setting your intentions early on. You have to work to make a classic, they don’t materialize out of thin air. 9. Observe human nature and follow the laws Robert has always taught me to consider the world objectively. Rather than be overwhelmed by the unethical actions of others, I’ve learned to study their behavior. Embrace your propensity to make unethical choices, while focusing on instead making the right, ethical decisions. 10. Always set your journey from the outside to the inside Robert believes in the importance of being on the inside of everything you hope to master. Whether you’ve just started your training or have secured a new job, you will start on the outside. If you work hard and learn quickly, you can make your way towards the inner circle of knowledge. Your end goal should always be to master the transition from outside to inside. Written by Ryan Holiday
a "Ritvik" means "priest."
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| Your Presence is like Heaven |
| Maharaj: |
| WHO IS BORN? | WHO DIES? | SELF-INQUIRE. | NO ONE DIES, NO ONE IS BORN |
| Nisargadatta Maharaj defined the foundation of spirituality in one sentence: |
| "Except your Selfless Self, | There is no God, | no Brahman, no Atman, | no Paramatman, no Master." |
| This statement has the same meaning as the Bhajan we chant in the ashram every morning: |
| Chidananda Shivoham Shivoham. |
| Q: It's a very beautiful Bhajan. |
| Maharaj: They both say the same thing: there is no mother, no brother, no sister, no Master, no disciple, no relationships. |
| All relationships are relationships of the body. |
| BEFORE THE BODY, BEFORE BEING, YOUR PRESENCE WAS THERE, | BUT WITHOUT ANY FORM. | WHEN BEING ENDS, | YOUR PRESENCE WILL BE THERE, | BUT WITHOUT ANY FORM. |
| If you want to compare yourself to something, compare yourself to heaven. |
| Heaven is everywhere, omnipresent. You are Final Truth, you are Ultimate Truth. |
| Therefore, "to say I is illusion, to say you is illusion, to say Brahman is illusion. The world is illusion", Shankaracharya said. |
| Q: It's a challenge! It rejects everyone and everything we think, everything we see as our reality, and every person we love. |
| Maharaj: |
| YOU HAVE SHAPED THE WORLD. | AT THE MOMENT THE SPIRIT CLICKED WITH THE BODY, THE DREAM BEGAN. | LIFE IS JUST A DREAM. |
| It's like when you're sleeping and dreaming. This is a dream. You act in a dream as if you were someone, a man or a woman. In the dream you see gods, oceans, seas and temples. You see a lot of people, a lot of landscapes. |
| After waking up from the dream, when everything vanishes and disappears, ask yourself, "Where did all these people go? Where did the stage go? What happened to the people you related to in the dream? Did they go to heaven or hell?" |
| Q: I guess when we woke up, we just accepted that we were dreaming. |
| Maharaj: Yes, when you wake up from sleep, do you start sobbing telling yourself that your friends are gone and you have lost them? |
| Q: No, Because I know it's just a dream. |
| Maharaj: You know it's a dream, and even if you dream of close friends and have attachment to the people who appear in your dream, when you wake up, they are quickly forgotten. |
| Q: Yes! |
| Maharaj: Pay attention! When you wake up from sleep, the world that has been dreamed of disappears. Similarly, this world is just a dream, a long dream that will also disappear. |
| Absorb what I'm telling you: |
| THE WORLD IS A PROJECTION | OF YOUR SPONTANEOUS PRESENCE. | THE WORLD IS A PROJECTION | OF YOUR SPONTANEOUS PRESENCE. |
| Knowledge is to be completely absorbed. It is not intellectual knowledge, it is Reality. |
| THIS IS YOUR KNOWLEDGE, | NOT BRAHMAN'S KNOWLEDGE. | IT IS THE KNOWLEDGE OF | THE LISTENER, THE KNOWLEDGE OF YOUR INVISIBLE AND ANONYMOUS UNIDENTIFIED IDENTITY, THAT IT CANNOT BE DEFINED BY LANGUAGE, THAT CANNOT BE DEFINED USING WORDS. |
| This is called Direct Knowledge. There is nothing in between. It is Spontaneous and Direct. No examples or explanations neat ones that have you going round and round in circles, adding confusion. |
| - Sri Ramakant Maharaj, "Selfless Self"
|
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