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Re: Advaita (was Re: Siva as yogi?)
On Wed, 21 Feb 1996 23:23:10 -0500 (EST), you wrote:
>kstuart@snowcrest.net (Ken Stuart) wrote:
>
>>On 2 Feb 1996 03:53:52 GMT, Ramakrishnan Balasubramanian
>><rbalasub@ecn.purdue.edu> wrote in soc.religion.hindu:
>>
>>Well, I consider myself fairly well read in Advaita, particularly
>>Ramana Maharshi and his disciples.
>>
>>And, my experience is exactly that of Kurt.
>>
>>The reason that Self-Enquiry doesn't usually work is due to the
>>samskaras, the habitual tendencies that comprise the ego.
>>
>>Just having one glimpse of the real answer to "Who Am I ?" is
>>insufficient to remove the effect of the samskaras, which reassert
>>themselves and bring one back into ignorance.
>>
>>On the other hand, if you read what Ramana Maharshi actually said, he
>>recommends purification and devotion to a Guru. He states in "Guru
>>and his Grace" [from the book 'The Spiritual Teachings of Ramana
>>Maharshi']:
>
>[quote about Guru etc deleted]
>
>Again, I quote from the web page in Canada (Paul Brunton's experience)
>
>******begin quote:
>"You mean I should follow my inner self?" I asked.
>
>"I don't know anything about your inner self. You should follow the Self.
>There is nothing or no one else to follow."
>
>I asked again, "What about religions, teachers, gurus?"
>
>"If they can help in the quest of the Self. But can they help? Can
>religion, which teaches you to look outside yourself, which promises a
>heaven and a reward outside yourself, can this help you? It is only by
>diving deep into the spiritual Heart that one can find the Self." He placed
>his right hand on his right breast and continued, "Here lies the Heart, the
>dynamic, spiritual Heart. It is called Hridaya and is located on the right
>side of the chest and is clearly visible to the inner eye of an adept on
>the spiritual path. Through meditation you can learn to find the Self in
>the cave of this Heart."
>******End quote
>
>>One of two things must be done: either surrender yourself, because you
>>realize your inability and need a Higher Power to help you; or
>>investigate into the cause of misery, go into the Source and so merge
>>in the Self. Either way, you will be free from misery. God or Guru
>>never forsakes the devotee who has surrendered himself."
>
>I think if you read the "Talks with .." you'll get a different picture. There
>he very clearly states that thinking of the Guru as someone outside is not
>what he is talking about.
But that is the same as most other descriptions of the Guru in the
scriptures. The Guru you see with your eyes is identical with one's
Inner Self, an essential aspect of the Guru. The physical form of the
Guru is necessary in order to elucidate the teachings - otherwise, the
ego will claim that its interpretation is the truth.
As for the different emphases found in different talks of the Maharshi
(and most other Gurus), this is simply done to elucidate several
different aspects of the same truth - all of which are equally valid.
However, I find that in the case of the Advaita teachers, such as the
Maharshi and his disciples, those who compile their teachings have a
prejudice towards the intellectual almost-Buddhist aspect of their
teachings. The more Western they are, the more they have this
prejudice, probably because they are in full flight from Catholic
school upbringings where they were rapped on the knuckles by nuns if
they forgot one word of the Creeds. :-) Thus they tend to sweep
under the carpet anything that smells of religious worship.
For example, all the books of the teachings of Nisargdatta Maharaj
that I've seen, solely contain intellectual teachings about
non-dualism. However, I came across a disciple's description of a
visit to his ashram, which included noting that every day, Maharaj and
his disciples participated in a couple of hours of devotional bhajan
singing.
>I am not sure whether what you mean by self-enquiry and what I mean by self
>enquiry are the same.
What I mean by self-equiry is taken from Maharshi's talk entitled
"Self-Enquiry". :-)
Namaskar,
Ken
kstuart@snowcrest.net
"The ego arises from the mistaken notion that the light of consciousness
reflected in the intellect and coloured by objectively perceived phenomena
is the true nature of the Self. Thus, the personal ego falsely identifies
the Self with that which is not the Self and vice versa." - Mark Dyczkowski
References:
