> coshlnx <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
> re: previous post asking about the new Advaitins and if there's
> anything negative that can be said about them. I call them Neo-
> Advaitins.
> Most are non-progressivists in the traditions of Ramana Maharshi and
> Nisargadatta Maharaj. HWL Poonja, a disciple of RM, has spawned a
> sizeable brood of these creatures. There are numerous links to other
> Neo-Advaitins such as Gangaji, Ramesh Balsekar, etc.
> HWL Poonja's message is that you should give up all techniques and
> just "BE"! As you might expect, he doesn't approve of TM, since TM is
> accompanied by a progressivist orientation (which I agree with);
> which arises in the context of talking about the physiological
> counterpart to Enlightenment. That is, culturing the nervous system
> is the physical "unstressing" counterpart to linear evolution. Year
> 1,2,3...of practicing TM brings on a greater accumulation of benefits
> of a progressive nature: more global awareness, less stress, etc;
> and, although it's quite possible for somebody to become Enlightened
> immediately in the presence of somebody like Ramana Maharshi (as HWL
> Poonja was apparently, according to his own testimony), it's
> statistically unlikely.
> An alternative explanation for the anti-technique viewpoints of the
> Neo-Advaitins is simply that they are total dunces when it comes to
> the technology of evolution.
Dear Coshlnx,
Here's an outline of Ramana Maharshi's take on technologies of evolution.
What I get from reading it is that:
a. Although labeled as an advaitist by some, he DOES seem to be what
you call a progressivist (recognizing the value of meditation, etc.);
b. He does NOT seem to be a dunce about these technologies.
See what you think.
Here is Ramana Maharshi's famous statement about how he interacts on four
levels with someone who approaches him for spiritual guidance. He says
[I will paraphrase]:
I (Ramana) start with the highest first.
***** LEVEL 1 *****
I give them a mahavakya, a direct statement of Truth (such as "You are
That"). Occasionally, that is all someone needs - just that verifica-
tion that they've arrived. That removes their doubt, their restless-
ness, and establishes them in peace. They stop being a "seeker", be-
cause they realize that they have found.
But MOST seekers are not ready for that, so for them I "back off" one
step, to level 2.
***** LEVEL 2 *****
So I (Ramana) do Self-inquiry (Atma-vichara = inquiry into the Self, At-
man) with them. This is based on the vedantic question "Who am I?" I
lead them to peel back the layers, to look back behind everything, to
shine their awareness deeper and deeper, until they arrive at a "level-
less level" where there is nothing deeper, nothing prior. Then their
awareness rests in itself (has curved back on its Self), and they have
that flash where understanding catches up to experience.
This approach is useful for some ripe seekers.
And once they've understood that they are the Self, through Self-in-
quiry, then level 1 above (the mahavakya) is useful and effective as
the final stroke. If any doubt arises as to the fullness or finality
of that flash of understanding, the mahavakya sets that straight.
Even though everybody IS the Self - always has been, always will be -
not everybody has the clarity of awareness, the expansion of the con-
scious capacity of the mind, to realize the Self. For the Self to curve
back on its Self, it has to travel through a "vehicle", a mind and ner-
vous system, and that vehicle may be either cloudy or clear. It's path
from "here to here" is by going though "there", through the field of
boundaries. Once one has cleared that "path", Self-inquiry is useful,
is necessary, for the goal to be appreciated.
But many are not ready for Self-inquiry, so for them I "back off" one
more step, to level 3
***** LEVEL 3 *****
So I (Ramana) recommend them to meditate, to purify the intellect, to
expand the conscious capacity of the mind, to unclog the nervous system.
This approach is useful for many seekers, especially in this age of im-
purity, of gripping delusion.
By doing this (meditation), one day they will naturally be ready for that
moment of Self-inquiry (level 2 above), that moment when they realize
that they are the Self, then the shift happens, and that will lead to
ripeness for the mahavakya (level 1) and final peace.
[Michael's commentary:
This is where many long-term TM meditators are at, in my experience.
They have had so much meditative experience that they are There. But
they hold onto the belief that they are still on the path, due to so
many years or decades of commitment to seeking. So many meditators
that I've met have made it, are Self-realized, but they are mistakenly
waiting for some special experience, or some relative sign or symptom,
that they've gotten into their head will be the special sign of en-
lightenment. They believe that experience, which is in the relative,
which comes and goes, will somehow herald the non-experience, non-rel-
ative, continuum of the Self. Self-inquiry, for just a few minutes,
reveals to them that they are There. They laugh, they cry, they re-
joice to see how simple it is and how complicated they were making it.
It is a remarkable moment to witness, when understanding catches up
to experience and becomes whole.
Their lives don't change; their relative personality remains the same;
they continue to do their program and maintain their other habits of
life. But they've made that shift in perspective, and now they iden-
tify with That as their "home base", rather than with this relative.]
Back to Ramana's paraphrased words:
For some, even this level 3 suggestion to meditate is not well-re-
ceived. They are not ready for it.
[TM teachers know very well that some people hear the introductory
lecture and just don't get it yet; they are not ready for this step.]
For those who are not ready for meditation, I "back off" one more step.
***** LEVEL 4 *****
I (Ramana) tell them to do good works, to lead a good life. By doing
this kind of activity, they slowly purify themselves, slowly build up
the karma and clarity to recognize the value of meditation when they
hear about it again. Then, eventually, they do begin meditating (level
3), they purify their intellect and expand the conscious capacity of
their minds, they come to be ready to do a few moments of Self-inquiry
(level 2), which reveals to them who they really are, and they are ripe
for the mahavakya (level 1) as the final step.
That gives an overview of Ramana's four levels or steps of spiritual
technology.
Michael's further discussion:
The glory of Maharishi is that, rather than sit and wait for the "cream
of the crop", those few who have risen up through the path and are ready
for Self-inquiry or the mahavakya, he stepped down to level 3, to give
meditation to a much wider, waiting audience (most of us included). To
be even more compassionate to the whole population, he's eventually even
stepped deeply into level 4, by giving things to the world to help those
who are not even yet ready for meditation (things like ayur veda, stha-
patya veda, yagyahs, jyotish, behavioral rasayanas, etc.). These are
things helpful to leading a good life, Ramana's level 4.
Sometimes people criticize Maharishi for putting attention on these very
relative, very "material" practices. But my take is that his compassion
for, and attention to, the whole population is incredible. He could have
merely sat on the peak, waiting for the cream to rise and come to him,
and given them the Self-inquiry and final strokes of mahavakyas (which is
what some neo-advaitins do today). That would make him a rishi. But
what makes him a maha-rishi, a great rishi, is that he makes the know-
ledge available to everyone, not just the spiritually elite; that he
takes into account the welfare of all the people of the world, not just
the spiritual few; that he dives down into the mud, rather than sitting
in the Himalayas in serene, pure obscurity.
So it's clear from Ramana's remarks on his four levels of spiritual guid-
ance that Self-inquiry (level 2) is NOT a useful thing for the bulk of
seekers. But so many long-term TM meditators are already There, that
this stroke of removing their doubt, of examining the reality of what
they've already accomplished, is extremely useful and liberating for
them.
And it's important to note also that Ramana's Self-inquiry is not pre-
sented as some "practice" that one does regularly, like meditation.
Self-inquiry takes only a moment, or a few minutes, perhaps a few days
at the most if the person is struggling with it. It's not a regular
spiritual practice. It's just stopping all practices (for a moment),
stopping all intellectual models, stopping all beliefs, stopping every-
thing - and taking a clear look, in the here-and-now, at What Is. Often
our beliefs (and they may be quite invisible or transparent to us) are
acting as a screen, disallowing our innocent direct experience of What
Is, of what we've accomplished, of who we are.
Self-inquiry is a turning off of the mind, of the intellect, of the ego,
and resting directly in who we are. It is a direct experience; but it's
the experience of all experiences, the experience of awareness aware of
its Self. It's not a relative experience. It's coming back home. It's
like clearing away all the static for a moment, and experiencing the
unboundedness that's always been "back there".
So everyone who meditates will eventually do Self-inquiry:
(a) It may not necessarily be some formal thing - for example in public,
or with a teacher. It may just take place anywhere, even in private,
even alone, when the seeker looks inside in that way of Self-inquiry.
(b) It will be when the seeker recognizes, when they have that "aha",
that I am That. It is the timeless moment of enlightenment, the mo-
ment of the transformation, the moment of the shift from identifying
with the relative to identifying with the Absolute Self, the moment
of stepping out of time. It is inevitable; it is the result of all
those years of meditation and clearing the path. The only question
for many meditators is:
When will I stop and look and see that I've scaled the peak, that I'm
at the summit?
When will I stop pretending to be small, when actually I'm vast?
So from Ramana it's clear that Self-inquiry is NOT another path, another
long-term spiritual practice; it is not a substitute for meditation. It
is the natural culmination or graduation at the end of all paths, all
effective practices.
There are various ways that people can get to the point where that flash
of Self-inquiry is useful. Some people meditate and clear the path.
Some people are born very close to the summit. By whatever means some-
one has established the Self, Self-inquiry will give them that realiza-
tion that they've reached the goal, that stroke of understanding to match
their experience, to bring completion/wholeness to their experience. It
is a misunderstanding to try and turn it into another path, another tech-
nique. That is not it's place.
So, from Ramana's perspective, there is no magical way to avoid climbing
the mountain and to jump straight to the top. Over time - whether in this
lifetime, or over the longer haul - each seeker has made his/her way up
through Ramana's four levels. And I'd wager that Ramana would warn neo-
advaitists who turn Self-inquiry into a longer-term spiritual practice
that they are misleading people. Because only to the extent that the
mind has been expanded to it's full conscious capacity, that is the ex-
tent to which Self-inquiry may be useful.
So, if a seeker tries Self-inquiry, and it seems useless to you, or con-
fusing to you, or like a mere intellectual process to you...then let it
go. Go on meditating - establish more purification, more expansion of
the conscious capacity of the mind. Then try Self-inquiry again.
But if you've already been meditating (level 2) for a while, try Self-
inquiry (level 3) and have a remarkable "aha". There you are. You are
That. It's already happened.
Aha, ha, ha, ha, ha......
Namaste,
Michael
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