Satsang is a compound Sanskrit word that means “keeping the company of the Self.” The Self, Awareness, is the true nature of everyone and one keeps company with it by continually meditating on it in many ways. One of the most effective methods involves discussing non-dual teachings with someone who has realized his or her identity as the Self, to get clarity with reference to Self inquiry. The satsangs posted here are the questions of many people around the world who are interested in enlightenment and find that Vedanta is their preferred means of Self knowledge. Since I am a teacher of Vedanta, a time tested means of self inquiry, I am qualified to reply to these questions.Search & Read
ShiningWorld Reader
No Overlay
Seeker: Dear Ram, it looks like in my daily meditation practice that the witness and mind are separate from each other. It looks like the thoughts are overlayed on consciousness/witness. But if the witness is only awareness, why is there a duality between the two? How does the mind arise from consciousness?
Ram: There is an apparent duality, not an actual duality. You seem to understand this because you it “looks like” the thoughts are overlayed on consciousness. It does seem that way, but they are not actually overlayed. The mind is just awareness taking the form of thoughts. So the thoughts are just awareness. How far is the wave from the ocean? The wave is not overlayed on the ocean. It is the ocean in a particular from. So there is no duality between the thoughts and the awareness in which they appear. The thoughts are you, but you are not the thoughts.
~ Ram