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YOUR QUESTIONS ANSWERED: F.A.Q. 12
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ADVAITA
QUESTION: What is Advaita? ANSWER: Advaita is just another name for Yoga, for a
harmonious, unified experience of life. If we understand Yoga (Unity) we
also understand Advaita (Undividedness) and vice versa. Yoga believes in the absolute unity of Life. From this
perspective, reality consists of intelligent energy, or Consciousness.
Consciousness has the capacity to ascend or descend on the scale of
experience in any number of ways and to any conceivable or inconceivable
level. The highest point in this scale is absolute unity of experience
(Advaita or Yoga) and the lowest, dis-unity or duality (dvaita or viyoga). When our consciousness appears incapable of recognising
the unity of all life, when we seem unable to experience peace inside
ourselves or between us and the World, when we are torn between different
aspects of reality, when our consciousness is on the verge of drowning in
an endless torrent of distinct, separate and often contradictory sense
perceptions, feelings, or thoughts, we experience dvaita (disunity). When, on the other hand, we experience unity in our
heart, when we are at one and at peace with ourselves, we experience
Advaita (undivided experience). Then our consciousness, freed from the
shackles of disunity, moves upwards in an experience of elation or "high".
It is an experience that is always new and at the same time like an old
friend or a long-forgotten treasure. This unexpected surge of happiness fills our heart with a
sense of wonder, astonishment and awe at our own experience, causing us to
forget the divisive barriers between ourselves and the World. In that
state, as happiness bursts our self-imposed limitations and rushes to meet
the World, we feel like embracing the World because we feel one with it.
And the "higher" we feel, the more open we become to the World. Now, if we allowed this experience to unfold and grow so
strong as to overwhelm our mind and render it incapable of interfering,
then nothing could prevent us from continuing our journey of ascent to
instantly reach the Highest Consciousness, or for Consciousness to reach
Its Highest Point of Experience. Since Consciousness is One, since the
whole of reality consists of Consciousness and nothing else, this would of
course constitute an experience of Unity, of Absolute, Infinite
Undividedness or Undivided Oneness (Advaida). This is the definition of
Advaita. It is also the definition of Yoga. The Highest Experience, therefore, is that which
Consciousness has of Itself as an Infinite, Unified Ocean of Intelligence
and Bliss. From this perspective of Absolute Unity, there is no other
Reality apart from Consciousness Itself. An essential point to assimilate
as a minimum requirement for authentic Spiritual progress is that: (a)
Consciousness is the Only Reality and (b) Consciousness is That which is
aware of Itself. Since Consciousness is the force whereby we elevate
ourselves to higher stages of experience, we cannot gain access to those
higher states unless and until we have understood the nature and function
of Consciousness. In this context, the two main functions or powers of
Consciousness or Self-Aware Reality, are: Unity and Awareness. Unity is
that power whereby Consciousness holds Itself and Its Contents together in
a unified act of awareness. Awareness is the power whereby Consciousness
experiences Its own unity and that of the multitude of Its contents,
whatever these may happen to be at any moment in time (or instance of experience). The reality of the just described facts is clearly
reflected, for example, in human language. Both the Latin-derived English
word "Consciousness" and its Sanskrit counterpart, "Samvid", bear the same
connotations. They are also similar in structure. Thus, they both consist
of a prefix (con-, sam-) suggestive of fulness or wholeness as in complete
(sampurna) and unity as in conjoin (sambandh), etc. and a basic stem
(sciousness, vid) that denotes knowledge or experience (from Latin scire,
Sanskrit vid, to know, experience, be aware). Since spoken language is but
an outer expression of inner thought processes, it follows that all
thinking beings implicitly admit that Consciousness (Samvid) is the
totality of knowledge or experience - and the awareness thereof - either
in an individual conscious entity, in a group of such entities, or in the
Universe as a whole. Moreover, Consciousness is not only the totality of
experience but also the unitive force that brings this experience about.
What must be clear therefore is that, far from being a mere abstract
notion, Consciousness is the very essence of being as without
Consciousness we would be quite incapable of awareness, experience and
ultimately, life. Having acquired some conception of what is meant by
Consciousness, we may now briefly analyse its relation to Yoga. Regardless
of what Yoga is taken to mean in the West, the fact is that in the
Sanskrit language, the term "Yoga" is capable of a wide range of meaning
being often employed in contexts that lie well outside the scope accorded
to it by non-Sanskrit speakers. In this sense, Yoga has three basic levels
of meaning:
1. Universal Unity. We have already observed that
Consciousness is the only Reality. To be sure, this is a bold statement
which, as the Key Teaching of Yoga, clearly puts our tradition in a unique
position among the World's great religious and Spiritual systems. The
legitimate question that arises here, is whether this statement is true
and by what means this truth may be verified. Without entering upon a detailed philosophical,
religious, or scientific analysis of the matter, we can easily establish
our position as follows. First, the statement in question is supported by
the three universally accepted criteria of knowledge: scriptural evidence
which is the testimony of Self-Realised Yogis, reason or logic and direct
Yogic experience. (For a more detailed definition of these, see Yogic
Criteria of Knowledge.) It also
offers an elegant answer to a number of fundamental questions concerning
reality. And it concords with the unity of life. Second, any attempt to
refute our position would run into a very serious problem. Our opponent
would be forced to posit the existence of a reality or substance other
than Consciousness and to explain the exact nature and function of such
reality as well as its relation to Consciousness Itself. This is a task
which, to our knowledge, nobody so far has been able to satisfactorily
carry out. That Consciousness is a creative force, can be seen from the
fact that it generates thought and action, the two most fundamental
ingredients to life. By contrast, it is not apparent how physical or
biological matter can give rise to Consciousness. In short, while our
position not only concords with Yogic experience but also answers a deep
psychological need present in all humans for a unified experience of life,
the opponent's position evidently generates more problems than it purports
to solve. In religious terms, this Spiritual truth of Consciousness
as the only Reality means that the World is created by and has its
existence within the One Universal Consciousness, or God's Mind. In Yoga,
God is not a personal deity - although He may assume such a form for the
benefit of genuine Seekers. In the experience of Enlightened Yogis, God is
an Infinite Universal Being Who holds within Itself all beings and things
as manifestations of Its own Creative Intelligence. For this reason, the
Sanskrit-speaking Yogis of India traditionally refer to God as Shiva,
meaning That Which holds everything within Itself as the Reality upon
Which all things depend and in Which all things rest (from Shi, to lie,
rest) and by Whose power everything moves (from Va, to move). At the highest level, then, Yoga is Universal Unity. It
is the Universal Being's Awareness of Its Own Oneness and Uniqueness.
There is only one Universal or Supreme Being. And the Awareness the
Universal Being, Shiva, or God has of Itself as Infinite Oneness and
Unity, is itself Unity, that is, Yoga. However hard people may try, however many passages they
may quote from the Bible or other books, however many tricks they may
employ from religion, philosopy, psychology, logic, physics, mathematics
and what not, they will never find a Truth higher than this. The
Highest Truth is God's Awareness of Himself as a beginningless, eternal,
unique, infinite, all-embracing and all-encompassing Ocean of Light,
Intelligence and Creative Energy, Whose sensation is boundless Fredom,
unconditional Love and endless Joy. This is Yoga, this is the Highest
Truth. In fact, Yoga is not "just" the Highest Truth, it is the
Only Truth. Indeed, anything that represents a deviation or
distraction from Yoga or the Universal Being's Awareness of Its Own Unity,
is necessarily less than the Truth. Whatever we do, whatever we say,
whatever we feel, think, or experience, cannot be Reality unless and until
it is based on, and experienced from, the position of the Highest Truth,
from the very Heart of the Universal Being Itself. This is why all
our experiences come and go whereas the only eternal and real
Experience is the awareness of ourselves as the Universal Being. Once
we have attained this Experience, once we have become this
Experience, that is, we have become one with Shiva or God, nothing
can be real except ourselves as Universal Unity. 2. And so we arrive at the second level of meaning, that
is, of Yoga as a means whereby the human Soul attains complete Union or
Unity with the Supreme Being. Although in human opinion, the quest for a
Higher Truth or attempt to come closer to God is entirely a person's own
effort, from a higher perspective all such effort is in fact an activity
of the Deity Itself acting through the personal Soul. This effort,
activity, or process is a function of Consciousness. It is a manifestation
of the power the Universal Consciousness (God's Mind) has of being or
becoming aware of Itself. And since this self-reflective activity is a
form of Unity, it is called Yoga. On this level, therefore, Yoga is any activity by which
the individual Soul comes closer to, or becomes aware of, or unites itself
with, the Universal Soul. Or, from a different perspective, that activity
through which the Universal Soul brings Itself closer to Itself, becomes
aware of Itself, or unites Itself with Itself. In consequence, genuine
Yoga is a purely Spiritual endeavour that does not necessarily require any
of the physical practices that are passed for Yoga in the West. 3. And now, the third and last level of meaning. As
mentioned earlier, the Sanskrit term "Yoga" may be employed to denote a
process, situation, or device that joins, binds, or keeps things together
or whole, including any thing, action, etc. whereby a person realises, and
is united with the object of, his intention or desire: the harnessing of
horses or other animals of traction; the mixing of various materials; an
agreement between two persons; co-operation; protection; safe keeping;
insurance; the astronomical conjunction of celestial bodies or
constellations; the arithmetical addition of numbers; the grammatical
connection of words together; the use of substances held to possess
healing properties; a feat of magic; the application or concentration of
thoughts; devotion; Spiritual search after Truth, etc. Although we cannot
here do more than sample the truly impressive variety of meaning of which
the word Yoga is capable, it may be regarded as sufficient for the
purposes of our present consideration. What becomes evident, is that it would be neither
unreasonable nor inconsistent with the linguistic evidence, to extend this
already vast spectrum of conventional meaning to all phenomenon,
activity, process, device, situation, or intention, involved partly or
wholly in producing or preserving a state of unity or wholeness between
two or more objects or beings or within the same one object or being. In
this sense, any instance of magnetism, gravity, cohesion, attraction,
contact, fusion, or assimilation, may be legitimately termed Yoga or
Unity. Thus, the force or forces that hold the Universe together or uphold
the process by which a raindrop falls to earth, joins the sea with a
stream and finally returns to the sky with the mist and clouds, must be
admitted to be aspects or manifestations of Yoga as defined above. In terms of everyday life, Yoga, Unity, or Advaita may be
experienced, for example, when we lie down to rest and physically feel at
one with our bed. When we dream, we experience unity with our mind. When
we go into a deep, dreamless sleep, we experience unity with our Soul.
When we awaken from sleep in the morning, we rest in that inner unity for
a while. We then collect our thoughts and remember, in another act of
unity, the tasks that lie ahead for the day. When we open our eyes, we
make contact or unity with the outer World. When we look in the mirror, we
make contact or unity with the reflection of our external appearance. When taking a shower or bath, we make unity with water.
When we dress, we make unity with our clothes. When we sit down, we make
unity with the chair we sit on. When we eat or drink, we make unity with
the food or liquid we ingest. When we listen to the radio, to the birds
singing or the wind blowing outside, we make unity with the sounds we
hear. When we go out of the house, we make unity with the street we walk
on. We inhale, and make unity with air. At work, we again experience unity
in the harmonious co-operation with our colleagues and the production of
work. When we speak, we unite different speech sounds into words, words
into sentences and sentences into a coherent conversation. Again, thinking
of somebody we love, talking to him or embracing him is an act of unity
with that person just as thinking of God is unity with Higher Truth,
although the latter case would take us to a higher level and hence belongs
to Yoga proper, that is, Yoga as a means of higher experience. On the present level and in strictly human terms, unity
may be experienced on three basic sublevels: physical, mental and
Spiritual. Physical unity refers to purely physical contact with another
body or physical object with minimal or no emotional or intellectual
involvement. Mental unity is that which concerns primarily our emotions
and thoughts, especially when two minds feel or think the same as in
non-verbal, intuitive or telepathic communication. Spiritual unity is the
situation or condition in which two Souls experience each other directly,
that is, without the mediation of the mind. In the light of these considerations, what must be beyond
dispute, is that Unity - whether we call it Yoga, Advaita or anything else
- is a reality that pervades all levels of existence, from the Supreme
Principle to subatomic particles, as the very foundation and essence of
life. This fact is of particular importance in view of the objection that
has been raised time and again, to the effect that the Yogis' insistence
upon Consciousness as the only reality may be conducive to an attitude of
irresponsible indifference to the World. As we have just demonstrated, Unity is an all-pervading
function of Consciousness which is Itself an all-pervading reality. As a
Spiritual process, Yoga concerns itself with the expansion of
Consciousness, of the awareness of the Unity of all life. Now, if
Self-Realisation or Enlightenment - the end result of Yoga - is a
conscious expansion of awareness, intelligence and knowledge at all
levels, which it must be in order to constitute a truly non-dual,
all-inclusive reality, then it must also be an expansion of interest and
compassion. It follows from this, that Fully Enlightened Consciousness as
defined here, while grounded in Absolute Reality, is aware of, and cares
about, relative aspects of reality, including body-mind structures, both
"its own" and those belonging to "others". This fact becomes obvious if we consider that an
Enlightened Yogi is not a limited physical body but an unlimited field of
intelligent energy (or active intelligence) that has the capacity to
interact with other, similar or dissimilar fields of intelligence in ways
and on levels that are not always immediately apparent to outsiders. In
general, it may be said that even when externally appearing to be inactive
or even indifferent, Yogis are in fact available to men on levels of
consciousness where help, protection and guidance really matters. Indeed,
it must be beyond dispute that without the help and guidance of Yogis, the
World would be a very different place. The real issue is not the insistence upon Consciousness
as the only reality, but the incomplete realisation (Spiritual, mental and
physical) of its implications. This is evidenced by an occasional apparent
detachment from or "rejection" of the World in the incipient stages of
Spiritual endeavour as opposed to the World-embracing attitude of Fully
Enlightened Consciousness. The former therefore can only be a temporary
phase in a process that ultimately leads to the latter and must be
understood as such by the discerning minds. In the same way as a person, when tired, will temporarily
withdraw from the World and go to sleep in order to better enjoy the World
upon waking, so also, a genuine follower of Yoga will detach himself from
the World only for the purpose of embracing a Higher Reality which, once
thus embraced, enables him to accept the World in a way he was previously
incapable of. If the results are less than satisfactory, it is not the
approach but the would-be Yogi who is not genuine or in more charitable
terms, not fit or ready for higher stages of experience. But then the same
may be said to apply equally, if not more so, to the outside critics who
imagine themselves in a position to pass judgement on Spiritual matters on
the basis of someone else's (or their own) misunderstandings. There is one last, but no less important, reason why the
objection in question must be dismissed as unfounded. Those who are
disappointed by some Yogis' apparent lack of concern for the problems of
the World, are free to seek assistance from a Higher Power. If we expect
Yogis to help us, then surely we must expect the Deity or God Force to be
even more capable and willing to offer assistance. If, on the other hand,
even God seems unable or unwilling to help, it would be unreasonable to
criticise the Yogis for the same perceived failure. The truth of the
matter is that, bluntly put, God is neither a nanny nor a string puppet
and cannot be reasonably expected to act like one. Logically speaking, it
cannot be God's intention for humans to be childishly dependent on Him. As
the ancient scriptures declare: From the Gods down to a blade of grass,
the World is created for the benefit of the Soul, until Supreme Knowledge
is attained. What the Spiritually inexperienced perceive as obstacles, may
in fact be means of attaining final independence or emancipation. The whole issue then, may be reduced to three fundamental
principles:
Generally speaking, problems of the kind just considered
can only arise out of an insufficient knowledge of reality that leads to
gross misinterpretations of situations and facts, not excluding the
teachings of Yoga itself. For example, the notion of the World as an
illusion, is an apt illustration of this situation. The original and
authentic Yogic teaching is not that the World is an illusion but that it
is like an illusion: first, because it ultimately consists of
Consciousness, being created by the Universal Being not from some physical
substance but out of Consciousness Itself, in other words, seemingly "out
of nothing" as if by magic - which is why, in Yoga, the Creator who is
normally referred to as Ishvara or Shiva (God) is also called the Great
Magician (Maha Mayin): This Whole World the Divine Magician projects out
of Unmanifested Reality...etc.; second, because ordinary perception of the
World is limited and distorted and hence "illusory" (though not the World
itself) - one only needs to think of the multitude of projections the
Spiritually untutored mind superimposes on reality; and third, because it
captivates the spectator in much the same way as a magician's feat,
rendering him oblivious to a higher reality. It is therefore imperative not to be deceived by external
appearances or by the opinion of those who are incognizant of Spiritual
matters. It will be helpful in this context to have some understanding of
the mechanism through which incorrect information comes to be circulated
as authentic Spiritual knowledge. The fact is that as an all-pervading
Reality and Inner Soul of all things, the Supreme Being is already present
everywhere in different and inumerable forms and shapes. In consequence,
It cannot be expected to descend even more to man's level. That is not the
purpose of the Universe. Its intention and purpose is to point to a Higher
Reality by striving for which, man can elevate himself to the Supreme
Being's own level of experience. The root of the problem is that, although Truth is
communicated to man quite directly and clearly, literally every moment of
his life, it usually reaches him in ways and by channels that are less
than direct and clear, due to his undeveloped capacity of Spiritual
perception. Yoga recognises three fundamental forms of Spiritual
Revelation or Transmission of Higher Intelligence as accountable for the
great diversity of Spiritual and religious traditions in the World:
As most religious and Spiritual traditions in existence
today are not direct communications of a Higher Intelligence but are
man-made, even the initially genuine ones having passed through many hands
(and minds), they may safely be assumed to belong to the second and third
classes described. As for those belonging to the first class, they
nowadays are extremely rare and normally unavailable to uninitiated
outsiders. This in itself is an alarming thought. However, since Spiritual
intelligence acts like a force that attracts another Spiritual
intelligence, a genuine Spiritual Seeker will sooner or later find the
Truth no matter how many mountains of un-Truth lie on top of it. As for
the rest, they evidently are not yet ready to receive the Truth and will
unfortunately have to wait until they have reached a higher degree of
Spiritual maturity. This is just the way things are. What is of interest
to us is that the first level of transmission or revelation is conducive
to Unity or Non-duality (Advaita) whereas the second and third levels
invariably lead to dvaita (duality, division, disunity). This, however, must not be taken to mean that duality is
always and in all circumstances negative. The World of multiplicity can be
quite enjoyable. On this point, the sacred texts of India declare: In the
Beginning, the Supreme Being, the One without a second, was One; being
One, He desired to be Many...thus the All-Creator, the One God,
established all things. Far from being a mere illusion or the product of
ignorance as some have suggested, the World is in fact a positive
expression of the Universal Will and the Manifestation of God's Infinite
Glory. Yet for the World to exist in the form known to man,
duality is an essential ingredient. We must be able to perceive difference
in order to see the World as it is. There cannot be anything wrong about
duality or multiplicity in itself, since the Universal Being Itself willed
it to be so. Indeed, if nothing else, multiplicity can have an aesthetic
value. The problem arises if and to the extent that we perceive duality to
the exclusion of Unity. Just as there wouldn't be much use in registering
different points of perception in the absence of the capacity of unifying
them into one coherent picture, the perception of distinct and separate
things without the capacity for experiencing everything against the
background of the all-pervading, unifying essence of all life, would be a
rather limited and unsatisfactory experience. It is one thing to perceive and appreciate variation in
colour, sound, taste, or any other sensory data that enable us, for
example, to enjoy the golden orb of the Sun glowing against the blue
expanse of the Sky, the different notes in a tune or even shape our own
individuality and personality from different feelings and thoughts. It is
quite another to define ourselves exclusively in terms of difference from
others and the World. The fact is that Consciousness is an intelligent
force that needs its freedom so that its capacity for experiencing
happiness, that is, for being its true, happy self, may unfold and find
expression. There can hardly be anything more productive of psychological
disharmony and imbalance than constant repetition of rigid,
difference-centred thinking, which is what standard thinking is. Such
thinking invariably leads to neurosis and other psychological conditions
unless it is tempered by a broader and more unitive worldview. Indeed, psychological conditions are so prevalent in
modern, materialistic society that they often become the driving force
behind what is officially promoted as "harmless" artistic expression,
emotional commitment, political conviction, religious faith, professional
ambition, economic interest or strategic necessity. It cannot be entirely
a matter of chance that an ever-growing number of people from all social
and cultural backgrounds are attracted to the unique teachings of the
absolute unity of life that Yoga offers. In the majority of cases, the
reason is primarily a psychological and only secondarily a Spiritual
one. It is clear from what has gone before, that there is no
intrinsic necessity for duality, differentiation, or multiplicity to
result in a restriction of Consciousness. Consciousness is by definition a
free and independent intelligent energy. As such it has the capacity to
experience both unity and disunity simultaneously. What disunity and its
consequences are is well-known to all. What is now urgently needed is
Unity. The human race can only have a future in unity and co-operation.
This is why Yoga (Advaita) as the Spirituality of Unity must and will
become the Spirituality of the Future. As an expression of the Universal
Being's Infinite Will-Power, Yoga will no doubt succeed in its noble task
of unifying and uplifting the whole of Mankind. For this reason we hereby
invite you to join the World Yoga Movement for Unity (see F.A.Q. 25:
How to become a Yogi
). <<
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