Assimilation of Knowledge or Intellectual Statement?

Hi Sundari,

I hope your day is going well. I believe you may have helped to dispel my misunderstanding. I have written a new statement, which I believe is more in line with the truth of the Self:

“The Self is formless (thing-less), and all forms (things) are ultimately unreal (apparently real but without actual substance).

There are actually no objects. There is only the Self. The Self knows itself not in reference to objects, but just by itself.”

Thank you for your reply. There is only That, and I am That.

Sundari: Your statement above is a big improvement on the one you made in your last email, and it is correct. But the important part is not just being able to make a statement in line with the teaching, it’s the assimilation of the meaning of the words.  The words in themselves have no meaning, they are just a means to an end. As I said previously, words are the finger pointing at the moon, they are not the moon. 

So, if you are making this statement as the Self, good for you, that is direct knowledge. If you are making this statement as the jiva who knows about the Self and can talk about it, that is indirect knowledge.  Again, this is fine and all part of the process of assimilation.  If it is the latter though, the most important part of moksa, which is discriminating satya from mithya 100% of the time, will still need work. Self-realization is where the ‘work’ of self-inquiry begins, not ends.  For discrimination to work, as with all the qualifications for moksa, a firm understanding of Isvara is required. If all the qualifications are not present, ignorance, being as subtle as it is, can and most likely will block access to Self-knowledge. And the ego is very good at making statements.

I am not saying this is true for you, only you will know.  I can only go on what you reveal to me by the words you use (and don’t use) to describe what you know, or don’t know. What does your sadhana consist of, what have you read of the material we recommend on our website?  It will help me to help you if I know more about you.

Om, Sundari