Pure Experiences

Pointers from Nisargadatta Maharaj : Part-2

What is unmanifest and manifest? Where does the world come from? What is the difference between awareness and consciousness? How to be the awareness? Balsekar explains the answers to these questions as given by Nisargadatta.

Pointers from Nisargadatta Maharaj : Part-1

Reading the book - "Pointers from Nisargadatta Maharaj", with commentary and discussion. The author, Ramesh Balsekar, narrates the story of how the writing happened. We are introduced to the Absolute Awareness, consciousness and the illusion of the individual or I.

The Zen teaching of Bodhidharma : Part-5

In the final sermon, the Breakthrough sermon, Bodhidharma plainly states that the only way to gain enlightenment is to behold the mind. The true nature of all of us is awareness, and the only practice is to abide in awareness. The rituals etc. are metaphorical and are totally useless. Realization is here and now.

The Zen teaching of Bodhidharma : Part-4

In the Wakeup Sermon, Bodhidharma points at the need to go beyond mind. The words engage the mind and delusion follows. Not using the mind to know that which cannot be known via mind is Zen. When this is known, everything we do and every state of the mind is Zen.

The Zen teaching of Bodhidharma : Part-3

The doctrines are useless and so are hardships or devotion. Bodhidharma delivers only one message - that of instantaneous knowledge of one's true nature, nothing more. This mind is the Buddha mind. This mind is the movement. No motion, no mind, and since its essence is emptiness, it never really moves.

The Zen teaching of Bodhidharma : Part-2

We start with Bloodstream sermon. Bodhidharma explains the mind and the self-nature. He puts it clearly that the mind itself is the self-nature and trying to find the self-nature beyond this mind is impossible. This mind is the Buddha. To realize this is Zen.

The Zen teaching of Bodhidharma : Part-1

Reading the book - "The Zen teaching of Bodhidharma", with commentary and discussion. Bodhidharma is the father of Zen, which is based on the path of knowledge, as taught by Siddhartha Gautama Buddha himself. We explore its similarities with Advaita and other Nondual philosophies.

The Kybalion : Part-10

Mankind's greatest discovery is realization of their own essential nature. When we act in knowledge, we reach our goals of happiness and freedom. In ignorance we remain a slave of situations and obey the will of others, we remain in misery and bondage. Rising above the lower planes is possible via mental transmutation. Know the mind, and transmute the mind. This is real magic.

The Kybalion : Part-9

The Gender is the creative principle active in all the planes of existence. Without the opposites, there is no creation, no structures are formed. Creation is a dance of opposites. The I and Me are two aspects, masculine and feminine. The I is the Will, the Me is the creative energy. I influences the Me, and hence it becomes necessary to wake up to this truth, exercise the will of the I and shield Me from undesirable influences from other minds.

The Kybalion : Part-8

The polarity is not static, the poles are reversed sooner or later. Everything has highs and lows, a rhythm. A Master understands this law and neutralizes it by staying steady amidst the flow of polarities. Nothing is uncaused and everything has an effect. One can remain unaffected by consequences by acting with awareness, and thus can rise above the law of cause and effect.

The Kybalion : Part-7

Everything exists as vibrations. The mental phenomena are just higher vibrations compared to the material. Understanding of vibrations brings powers. Everything has opposites, and they are simply different degrees of the same thing, appearing as two poles of it. This understanding enables us, to transmute that thing, into something of a higher vibration. The most important application of which, is transmutation of our own mind.

The Kybalion : Part-6

The planes of existence are experiences of various vibratory states of the ALL. Entities find themselves in one or the other vibratory plane, depending on their level of evolution. Higher the rate of vibration, higher is the level of evolution. There is a huge continuous spectrum of vibrations, which can be divided into arbitrary planes or dimensions for the purpose of study.

The Kybalion : Part-5

Mentalism does not mean a denial of life, nor does it mean reigning over the world of illusions. A Master simply rises above the material world, fully respecting the laws of the matter. The ALL descends in vibration and creates mental forms, and then it ascends and dissolves everything back into itself. The creation and the creator are One. This play happens for no reason, it just is.

The Kybalion : Part-4

The universe is a dream in the mind of the ALL, its an illusion, imagination, unreal. This is established via observation and the principle of correspondence. Although its unreal, one should not make a mistake of treating it as such. From a relative point of view, it appears real and is rule bound. The way out of it is not by changing it, but by transcending it via self transmutation.

The Kybalion : Part-3

The concepts of transmutation and the wholeness of the existence, the ALL, are described. Transmutation is always of the mind, because that is what there is. The ALL, which is exactly the same as the word Brahman, is the only reality, the only substance, infinite and unchanging.

The Kybalion: Part-2

A brief description of the seven principles is given. We notice the similarities with eastern philosophies. The principles are undoubtedly universal and show a consistency and correlation among themselves.

The Kybalion : Part-1

The Kybalion is a short and accessible description of the Hermetic teachings from ancient Egypt, which is being presented here with some commentary and comparison with non dualistic Indian philosophies. We immediately see the emphasis on a teacher-student style of transmission of knowledge and the need to carefully evaluate the readiness of the students.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-13

To be established as the Being-Knowledge-Bliss, the mind needs to be killed. The Master reveals that the mind is only an illusion, movements, thoughts. It is a concept that points to ceaseless activity. To kill the mind, one needs to completely forget it. This statement needs some careful interpretation.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-12

The knowledge of the unity resides in the mind. But its tendencies are still operative, it still sees itself as separate from the whole. I, the ego, cannot be the oneness. The oneness is the dissolution of the ego. An awakened mind is no mind, or a pure mind, a completely still mind. The Master now imparts the teachings about liberation and how a liberated person is, how he acts, and what is his state of mind, or of no mind.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-11

The Self is seen as the empty, conscious, blissful background of all experience. This is a solid realization. All that is being experienced seems less real now. Thus begins a new and transformed life, which is in light not in the darkness. Now the student is encouraged to cultivate the mind and erase the remaining latent tendencies in it. The fruit of which is the oneness, union or liberation while being in the world.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-10

Listening to the teachings provides the theoretical or conceptual knowledge, or the indirect knowledge. It forms a basis for reflection. We now start reflecting on the teachings about the Self. When all that is insentient, impermanent and illusory is seen as non-Self, the Self is seen as unchanging background of Consciousness. It appears as nothingness, a void, a space in which all experiences are taking place.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-9

The hearing session continues, and the master explains the unchanging and universal nature of the Self. Its nature as Being-Knowledge-Bliss is established. It is shown to be non-dual, the only One that exists as a conscious all pervading and perfect ground of everything. It remains unaffected and untainted by the illusory changes happening in it. It is bliss itself.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-8

Stilling of the mind can be achieved via the path of yoga or via enquiry, the later being a more direct approach. Enquiry involves listening or reading, reflecting and directly experiencing, that which is being pointed out by the text, or the guru. The master now starts imparting the theoretical knowledge to the disciple. This is the listening phase.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-7

The master emphasizes that only the mentioned four qualities are needed to start on the path of self enquiry, and no amount of bookish or theoretical knowledge can help, to gain a direct experience of the truth. The truth is within, its not in the books. Nothing else prevents a student from qualifying, including the age, caste, color, race, gender or education etc.

Advaita Bodh Deepika: Part-6

The Master gives four essential requirements for Self Enquiry to be effective. These are - discrimination, dispassion, cessation of worldly activities and an intense desire for liberation. He explains what happens when some of them or any of them are lacking. He concludes that no matter what you think you have, these four are absolutely necessary for any seeker.