Friday, July 6, 2012

Inborn samskara or conditioning , parental grooming is the main cause of religious influence upon the mass mind-set and it cannot be wiped out without knowing the truth of one’s true existence




People are making unlimited sacrifices and enduring unlimited suffering in the name of protecting their religion and god. They are therefore ignorant about the truth and incapable of understanding the ultimate truth, which is universal god. All organized religions have unequivocally claimed man for the life in the truth; thus it is sheer folly to fight in the name of religion and god. 

It is time that humanity had a fresh vision of truth that the mind, which is in the form of universe, is myth and consciousness is the only thing that is real and that matters.  On the base of consciousness as self, the physical life is a vain and empty pursuit of illusory values. 

Inborn samskara or conditioning , parental grooming  is the main cause of religious influence upon the mass mind-set and it cannot be wiped out without knowing the truth of one’s true existence. Thus, teaching children to view and judge everything on religious point of view by their parents, which warps the minds and destroys the capacity to think beyond the belief system of their grooming.

People who are yearning for spiritual truth will not find it what they are seeking for. Religious truth is individual truth and it is not universal truth because the religion is based on individuality. 

As one goes in deeper investigation find nothing satisfying in any religion.  The more he learns of any religious doctrine they become aware of the fact that, the religion is not the means for self-realization because the true ‘Self” is not the form but the true self is formless.  The religion is based on the false self [ego] and false experience [universe]. Religion takes the false self as real self and false experience as reality. Thus whatever is based on the false self and false experience is bound to be falsehood.     

The obsession with "our sins" having been "washed away by water of river  would be regarded as evidence of a serious mental illness in an individual within any sane society, but when this is an obsession of millions of people it becomes "religious faith", held by many others to be something that should never be criticized.

It was desperately important for the believers of their belief system for some reason that others shared their beliefs because they assume that their religious doctrine is literally true, and then justify their beliefs because "God says so in their doctrine ".

It is no use of arguing with someone who has faith in his belief system because for him there can be no possible refutation of what he believes, so rational argument is entirely useless. He clings to his belief so strongly that he makes no distinction between the truth and his belief. One has to know the fact that god cannot exist without his existence. The truth does not depend on gods’ existence but it entirely depends on man’s existence.   Thus it is foolish to venture in knowing the truth of gods existence without verifying the facts about his own existence. 

Deeper inquiry revel the fact that, the self is   neither the body, nor the ego.  If the self is not the body nor the ego  then  it proves the fact that, whatever is seen, known, believed and experienced on the base of the  self as body or ego is bound to be false hood.  Thus arguing on the standpoint of the body or ego, which is not the “self”, is erroneous.  Thus the whole argument has to be based on the true self, which is not the body or ego.   Thus it is necessary to realize the fact that, the “self” is not the form but the “self” is formless in order to realize the Advaitic truth.  

A man who describes Sankara's philosophy as negative (because of his Neti, Neti) does not know that this is applied only to the world of the Seen, the critic ignorantly believes that it is also applied to the Seer.




It is no use arguing Buddha is wrong or Sri Sankara is right, but where we are going wrong in our understanding the non-dual truth, propagated by the great sages of the past.  Some say, that without the sunyvada, Advaita philosophy could not have come into existence; Because Advaita starts from where sunyavada ends.  That is why they say it is extension of Buddhism.  If Advaita existed prior to Buddha, he would not have advocated sunyavada at all because Advaita is final and ultimate truth. 

Since the Buddhist and Vedic scriptures have been passed down by hearing. They were written down only relatively late. So one wouldn’t know whether to rely on the times they give. Also, a lot depends on the translation. Each 'Shloka' or sutta is open to many layers of interpretation.

As per the religious archeologists view: the date of Sankara may be taken most correctly as that of the 9th century. Some claims are made in India that he lived two thousand years ago, but there is absolutely no proof for this claim.  They do not go back farther than the 12th century A.D. and that all so-called evidences for Sankara having lived two centuries before Christ are either were conjectures or Pundit's fabrication.

Regarding the question of Sankara's death, one may dismiss the legend that he did not die, at the age of 32 but disappeared into a cave. This is another Pundit's story which is quite unfounded. He did really die in the Himalayas at that age.

As one go in to the annals of the history, one becomes aware of the fact that; the spiritual Advaita is mixed up with punditry.  Therefore there is a need to do his own research in order to know the true essence of Advaita of Sage  Sri,Sankara and Sage  Sri, Gudapada and emptiness of Buddha . 

 How it was possible for Sri, Sankara to have written so many books during such a short term of existence. The fact is that he wrote very few books. Those actually written by him were Commentaries on Brahma Sutras and the Upanishads and on the Gita. All other books ascribed to him were not written down by his own hand.

They are merely collections of notes recorded by his disciples from his sayings, talks and discussions. Fourthly Sri, Sankara's own Guru was named Sri, Govinda and he lived near Indore. When Sri,Sankara wrote his commentary on the Mandukya his guru was so pleased with it that he took his disciple  to the Himalayas to visit his own Sri, Guru who was named Sri, Goudapada. Only when the latter agreed that the commentary was perfect did Sri, Govinda release his disciple to start his own mission of teaching.

Sri, Sankara wrote his Mandukya commentary first, and then as this revealed that he thoroughly understood the subject, his gurus requested him to write the commentary on Badarayana's Brahma Sutras, which was a popular theological work universally studied throughout India. That is why his commentary is written from a lower dualistic point, for those who cannot rise higher, save that here and there Sri,  Sankara occasionally has strewn a few truly Advaitic sentences.

Sri,Sankara had only four fully trained disciples, although he advised some kings. His doctrines spread after his lifetime. His books were dictated to secretaries as he traveled. So few therefore were capable of understanding his philosophy.

Nearly all Bengal thinkers hold views of Maya which are entirely incorrect and untenable. They do not know Sri, Sankara's Upanishad Bashyas, but only the Brahma Sutra Bashya. Sri, Sankara wrote his Mandukya commentary on a beautifully situated island called Omkaresvar, border of Indore State, where Cauvery and Narbadha rivers meet. On this island there is also a tomb of Sri,Govinda, his guru.

Sankara varied his practical advice and doctrinal teaching according to the people he was amongst. He never told them to give their particular religion or beliefs or metaphysics completely; he only told them to give up the worst features of abuse: at the same time he showed just one step forward towards the truth.

In Brahma Sutras Sage Sri,  Sankara says that Brahman is the cause of the world, whereas in Mandukya he denies it. This is because he says that at the lower stage of understanding, the former teaching must be given, for people will get frightened as they cannot understand how the world can be without a cause, but to those in a higher stage, the truth of non-causality can be revealed.

Brahma Sutras, i.e. "Vedanta Sutras" by Badarayana, are intended for those of middling intellects, not for those who have the best brains: it is a semi-theological, semi-philosophical work; it starts with the assumption that Brahman exists.

The opening sentence is "All this is Brahman.” But nobody knows or has seen Brahman. If we say "All this is wood" and show a piece of wood, the words are understandable. Suppose you have never seen wood. Then what is the use of such a sentence? It becomes meaningless when the object indicated is seen by none. Hence the Brahma Sutra opening is equivalent to "All this is X". Both have no meaning so long as they are not understood, if we take them as the data to start from. It is for this reason that I say the book is intended for theological minds, because it begins with dogma although its reasoning is close. For it starts with something imagined.

A man who describes Sankara's philosophy as negative (because of his Neti, Neti) does not know that this is applied only to the world of the Seen, the critic ignorantly believes that it is also applied to the Seer. Vedanta never negates the seer, only the seen. Scriptural mastery is not wisdom.

As one goes deeper in the subject one becomes aware of the fact that the religion, scriptures and concept of god is nothing to do with spiritual  side of Advaita, the present religious based Advaitic knowledge and theories is meant for the mass, who hold the religion as high, not the truth, because religion is based on the form (ego or waking entity)and they view and judge and argue on the base of body (ego or waking entity) as self,  but spiritual Advaita is based on the formless [soul] and it negates everything other then the soul.

 Sage Ramana Maharishi  said:   All the conceptual divisions invented by teachers of philosophy by their excessive analysis. Where do all these concepts end? Why should confusion created and then explained away? Fortunate is the man who does not lose him self in the labyrinths of philosophy, but goes straight to the source from which they all arise.   It is better follow the direct path of Ramana, instead of going all around and coming to same point (soul or /Atman).

Till one believes in karma theory, he will remain ignorance




Ish Upanishad says:-
10/11/12

Those people who have neglected the attainment of Self-knowledge and have thus committed suicide, as it were, are doomed to enter those worlds after death.

 This is a condemnation of people who do not try to attain Self-knowledge. They are, in a real sense, committing suicide, for what can be worse than being a slave to sense enjoyment, completely oblivious of the real purpose of life, which is to be your own master? In order to be your own master you have to realize that you are identical with Atman, the true Self, that you are Pure Consciousness, ever free, without name and form, and unconditioned.

You are not subject to any modification, without beginning and end, beyond thought and speech. You are Existence Absolute, Knowledge Absolute, Bliss Absolute. When you know this you are free. You no longer swing between birth and death. If you do not try to know who you really are, you are indeed committing suicide. You are inviting the ignominy of a slave's life in this world and a similarly unfortunate fate after death. , the Self, is one without a second, complete in itself. It never moves. It is always still, always the same, yet it moves faster than the mind. It is the power that moves everything, and it makes the whole world go the way it does. It gives

Those who mechanically perform sacrifices [avidya] go into darkness that is like being blind. But those who merely worship gods and goddesses [vidya] go into a deeper darkness. [IX]

"Blinding darkness' here implies ignorance. And those who worship gods and goddesses go into a deeper darkness because they seek rewards for their worship. As long as there is the sense of "I' and "mine' within us, there can be no Self-knowledge. When you say "me' and "mine' you automatically identify yourself with your body-mind complex. This shows that you are ignorant of your real Self, which is Pure Consciousness and which is also the Self of all. The sign of an ignorant person is in the way he uses the words "I' and "mine'. He says: "I am so and so. I own this much property,' and so on.

An ignorant person has many desires in his mind, and because of these desires he is born again and again. He has to have a body; otherwise he cannot satisfy his desires. But the more he tries to satisfy them, the more they grip his mind. This goes on endlessly. But it is given to a human being to think, reason, and discriminate. Thus he soon comes to realize that the path he has been following cannot give him peace of mind. He understands that he has to choose another path the path of renunciation. As long as he does not practice renunciation, he gropes in the dark like a blind man and he suffers.

There are two types of such people who grope in the dark. One type worships avidya (ignorance) that is, they mechanically perform the prescribed sacrifices without any thought as to why they are doing them. No wonder they grope in the dark. They are doomed unless someday the truth dawns on them that to save themselves they must seek Self-knowledge.


Worse, however, is the situation of the other type those who worship vidya. The word vidya ¸ usually means "knowledge', but here it is used to mean "gods and goddesses'. Some people worship gods and goddesses so that they may someday attain the same status. They may get their desire fulfilled, but this will only delay their liberation. That is why the Upanishads says that they will be in deeper darkness.


Scholars say that the path of avidya [performing aganihotra and other sacrifices] and the path of vidya [worshipping gods and goddesses] produce different results. Wise men confirm this. [X]

Vidya and avidya both are hindrances to Self-knowledge, but vidya is even worse than avidya. The word vidya is used here in a special sense; here it means worshipping gods and goddesses. By worshipping gods and goddesses you will go after death to the world of gods and goddesses.

But will that help you? The time you spend there is wasted, because if you were not there you could have spent that time moving forward towards Self-knowledge, which is your goal. In the world of gods and goddesses you cannot do that, and thus you go deeper and deeper into darkness.

Avidya is karma and therefore a hindrance. You perform avidya - i.e., you perform Agnihotra and other sacrifices. This is a roundabout way of purifying the mind, and it is also groping in the dark. But it may not have as heavy a toll on your time and energy as the other.

To overcome the ignorance one has to indulge in deeper self-search. Until one believes in karma theory, he will remain ignorance. Until ignorance is there, he will remain experiencing illusion as reality.  Until illusion is there, he will remain ignorant of the fact that, the cycle birth, life and death are mere mirage.  Therefore, it is not possible for one to accept the fact that, world is illusion, unless and until he becomes aware of the fact that the physical body (ego or waking entity) is not the self, but the soul,which is present in the form of consciousness is the innermost self.  Therefore, for those who believe the body as self, and refuse to accept the formless  soul   as true self, find the law of karma as universal law and very sacred, because they have accepted their birth, life and death as reality without verifying  the validity of their  accepted truth.  

Thus instead of indulging in the scriptural path, it is better to follow  the path of  Reason , which helps the seeker to enter the inner realm. And as his  understanding  matures, he will be able to realize the fact that, the karma was reality only on the false base, within the false experience, the formless witness of the false experience (waking or dream) is  formless soul.  

The formless  soul  is the innermost self.  If one realizes the self is not the form but   the self is   formless soul than he will be able to understand the real meaning of the illusion. 

A waking or dream has a beginning and an ending but the soul is in the form of consciousness is invisible to the physical eyes; soul or consciousness is without beginning and ending because it is formless.




When Upanishad itself declares:-   sarvam khalvidam brahma - all this (universe) is verily Brahman. By following back all of the relative appearances in the world, we eventually return to that from which it is all manifest – the non-dual reality(Chandogya Upanishad) 

Then it is no use going roundabout way, trace the Brahman which is the formless substance and witness of the universe, which is in the form of mind.  By tracing the source of the mind or universe one will be able to realize the Brahman.
  
The true Self is not perceptible to the senses. It is perceived by Reason. It is not perceptible as a thing with form and attributes. To those whose attention is fixed on the body and the world, it is very difficult to attain Self-knowledge. It is also very difficult for them to see the consciousness as self. The attention towards the universe [mind] should be lessened by realizing the self is not the body. The attention has to be focused on the formless substance and witness of the universe [mind] should be increased. So long as the attention is directed towards the universe, the experience of birth, life and death will prevail as reality. But when the attention is directed towards the formless witness, the ignorance vanishes and sense of duality will disappear. Then there is unity in diversity.

What is the state of the ego or physical self when it has realized that the self is not the body? Such souls have attained their pristine condition. “Self” is not visible to the physical eyes. “Self” is not to be found in the world as a thing, entity or an object. Self is above these, has neither beginning nor ending.

A waking or dream has a beginning and an ending but the  soul is in the form of consciousness is invisible to the physical eyes; soul or consciousness is without beginning and ending because it is formless.  Soul or consciousness   is always constant. Just as space is homogeneous everywhere, so is the consciousness the same everywhere.

Buddha rejected religion, concept of god and scriptures, no one called the Buddha an atheist, instead the Hindus accepted him as an Avatar.





Buddha rejected religion, concept of god and scriptures, no one called the Buddha an atheist, instead the Hindus accepted him as an Avatar. J.Krishnamurti with all his grooming and upbringing condemned priest craft, but accepted by the spiritual world, as man of wisdom. There is no need to condemn any religion or god or scriptures, but there is a need to know the truth, and reject the untruth, after verifying thoroughly. Seeker of truth should never accept anything as truth without verifying the validity of any claim, and accept only the un-contradictable truth.  

That why Buddha said:-

Do not believe a spiritual teaching just because:-

1. It is repeatedly recited,
 
2. It is written in a scripture,
 
3. It was handed from guru to disciple,
 
4. Everyone around you believes it,
 
5. It has supernatural qualities,
 
6. It fits my beliefs anyway,
 
7. It sounds rational to me,
 
8. It is taught by a respectable person,
 
9. It was said to be the truth by the teacher,
 
10. One must defend it or fight for it.

However, only when it agrees with your experience and reason, and when it is conducive to the good and gain of oneself and all others, then one should accept the teachings, and live up to them." ....Buddha.

People read so many scriptures and indulge in tedious meditation. Finally they come to know that the true self is formless soul or consciousness (Atman).  Consciousness is ultimate truth or Brahman. Soul or consciousness, the innermost self was already present in him even before reading scriptures and before doing the meditation.


In pursuit of truth one becomes aware of the fact that the true self is not the body [I], but the soul or consciousness, which was already, was before all this practice or effort. And all these practice based on the false self is a waste of time and effort.  And by practicing   all these egocentric practices he did not achieve anything other than hallucinated realization.