--- In [email protected], "jim_flanegin" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > > --- In [email protected], Vaj <vajranatha@> wrote: > > > > > > On Jun 28, 2006, at 10:35 AM, new.morning wrote: > > > > > Peter <drpetersutphen@> wrote: > > > > > > Absolutely not. Again, restful alertness is > > > consciousness projected into and identified with a > > > condition of mind. All mental conditions are neither > > > "closer" nor "further" from pure consciousness. That > > > being said, a technique that reduces mental activity > > > (the vrittis of the chitta, e.g., TM)is effective for > > > facilitating the conditions that allow pure > > > consciousness to cease projecting into and identifying > > > with mind. However this cessation of projection and > > > identification has nothing to do with any technique. > > > The cessation comes from the side of pure > > > consciousness coming to a crashing halt! Hey Vaj or > > > anyone else. I just realized that this projection is a > > > specific shakti. Is there a shakti of ignorance? > > > Veiling power of maya. What buddhist or Vedic/Hindu > > > deity is associated with maya? > > > > > > Maya-shakti, the power of delusion, which is increased by samyama. > > > ...and it is this increased power of delusion which accelerates our > discrimination between Reality and maya as samyama alternating with > gross activity continues, allowing us to more quickly reach the goal > of Self Realization. > > To stop at the conclusion that samyama increases delusion, and > should therefore be avoided, is an incomplete understanding of the > practice. NOT that I am saying you have concluded this above, just > clarifying...
Heh. Below is the initial post in a thread begun and titled by Vaj, "Samyama Does Not Lead to Cosmic Consciousness," on alt.m.t back in April 2005: _The true perspective of the Shankaracharya Tradition on attainment of Cosmic Consciousness_ In the third chapter of _Knowledge of Cosmic Consciousness_ Vidyaranya (a famous Shankaracharya of the 14th century) talks about the means to Cosmic Consciousness and how this is by "Dissolution of the Mind". The previous chapter is on how to obliterate the vasanas and ignorance. Without going into a lot of detail--he describes various methods to get the mind to stop. He talks of the importance svadhayaya and right knowledge. Eventually he starts interspersing his method with Patanjali--but like many initiated approaches to tantric or yogic texts--the linear, written order of the text is not how it really goes. In his typical style, he quotes from all the relevant Vedantic and yogic texts interspersed with his own clarifications. Eventually, as he weaves his way to the end of chapter two of Patanjali--he goes into chapter 3--the pada on the siddhis. He mentions the first three verses--which describe samadhi--and he deliberately skips verse 4 on samyama (he does mention samyama in the final chapter, but only as a warning). He then talks about the real goals, use and purpose of samadhi then comments: "Although Patanjali has dwelt upon at length on samprajnata and savikalpa samadhis have their objects as material objects, gross elements and subtle elements, sense and egoism--we do not like to pay attention to them inasmuch as they being the cause of siddhis such as invisibility, etc. as they are opposed to the type of samadhi that leads to liberation." He gives an interesting quote from the Laghu Yogavasistha: Vasistha: 'Through the power of some substance, formula, some sort of practice, timing, etc. one can, O Raghava, acquire such siddhis as levitation, etc. although still in bondage and ignorant of the Self. This object [the siddhis] is not for him, who is knower of the Self, for he, the knower of the Self, has in view only the Self. He is content by himself and in himself and does not go after these products of ignorance." After a couple more interesting examples he adds: 'Any of the things of the world whatever cannot attract the knower of Reality, even as the townsman, having as wife a town-bred lady of refinement, is not enamored by the ugly rustic womenfolk.' He later concludes: As the samprajnata samadhi, concerned with the Self leads to the destruction of desire and brings about the nirodha samadhi, therefore we have paid attention to this." It's interesting that while he does quote from pada three of Patanjali--not one of the quotes is any of the siddhi formulae--he entirely skips them. He later warns you will never attain CC/jivan- mukti if you practice samyama: "In this way he (the samyama yogi) falls away from the attainment of the goal of life (CC)." Then he repeats Patanjali for a second time: "These are obstacles to samadhi; they are powers in the worldly state." He continues with even more warnings. http://tinyurl.com/cx4ff ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor --------------------~--> Yahoo! Groups gets a make over. See the new email design. http://us.click.yahoo.com/XISQkA/lOaOAA/yQLSAA/UlWolB/TM --------------------------------------------------------------------~-> To subscribe, send a message to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Or go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ and click 'Join This Group!' Yahoo! Groups Links <*> To visit your group on the web, go to: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FairfieldLife/ <*> To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] <*> Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to: http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
