1. Why do most modern ‘non-dual’ teachers and teachings ignore the idea of qualifications?
(A) Because they view enlightenment as a particular kind of experience. No qualifications are needed for experience. Life is experience.
(B) They do not understand that the self is always experienced, that there is one Self, and that it is always free, which means that freedom, often called enlightenment, can only be “gained” by losing ignorance. Ignorance takes place in the mind. For knowledge to remove ignorance the mind needs to be qualified i.e. prepared.
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2. Why do most seekers dislike the idea of qualifications?
(A) Because to qualify one needs to put forth effort and today most seekers have been conditioned to the idea of instant gratification. The idea that anyone can just ‘get it’ fits with this belief.
(B) Seekers are attached to their biases, prejudices, beliefs and opinions. A qualified mind is relatively free of unexamined biases, prejudices, etc.
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3. Are the qualifications arbitrary?
No. They are based on common sense and revealed by Vedanta, which is logic compatible.
On what basis are the qualifications determined?
3. Observation and analysis. Individuals with qualified minds assimilate the teachings and those lacking the qualifications find it difficult to assimilate the teachings. Vedanta scripture is unbiased analysis of the nature of experience.
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General Qualifications
What are the two general qualifications?
- An appreciation of the fact that the joy we seek is not in the objects we pursue.
- Life is a zero-sum game, which means that for every upside there is a downside and vice versa. There are no winners or losers, no gain without loss.
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Specific Qualifications
What are the specific qualifications?
Discrimination
Discrimination is separating what is real from what is apparently real.
What is the definition of reality?
What is always present and what never changes. Unborn existence shining as pure Awareness/Consciousness. My Self.
If experience is not real because it changes, what ontological status does it enjoy? Please give an example.
It is apparently real (mithya). Every wave (mithya) is only water. Water is real (satya) with reference to waves. Every person is only existence (satya) shining as consciousness appearing as a created entity (mithya). Every ornament made from gold is only gold. Fire is always hot. Sugar, no matter what form it appears as, is always sweet. It is never sour.
Why is discrimination necessary for liberation?
Because the Self, which is real, is confused with the body-mind-sense complex, which is an appearing entity.
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Dispassion
Dispassion is indifference to what happens, i.e. the results of one’s actions and the actions of others.
Why is it necessary for liberation?
Lack of dispassion causes emotionality. The intellect cannot discriminate when the mind is emotionally disturbed.
Why is dispassion so difficult to achieve?
Due to superimposition, people are attached to the results of its actions and life does not always deliver desirable results. Consequently, the mind is agitated.
Please give two examples of superimposition.
- Mistaking one object for another. For instance, mistaking a snake for a rope in twilight
. - Adding value to an object. All objects are created equal from the uncreated Creator’s point of view because the Creator is not a human being with likes and dislikes. Human beings are created objects with likes and dislikes, so impersonal objects assume personal value in their minds.
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Control of Mind
Mind control is (1) control of your relationship to your thoughts by observation and (2) analysis of their meaning with reference to happiness.
Why is it not control of the thoughts themselves?
Because what you think is not under the control of individuals. You never know what your next thought will be.
If you can’t control your mind by observation, is it helpful to control your actions?
Absolutely! Owing to the law of karma, actions have consequences that rebound and may disturb the mind. Actions and words that do not take into account universal values will injure others. Thoughts that don’t take universal values and one’s own nature will injure your mind. Suffering is never acceptable because bliss is your nature.
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Duty to Yourself (svadharma)
Svadharma is doing your duty to yourself with discrimination. It is responding to life according to your conditioning. It is not necessarily satisfying your desires or pandering to your fears.
Why is it necessary to act out my conditioning?
You cannot attain liberation until you have worked out most of the karma that brought you into this life. If you refuse to do your duty to yourself, your mind will be very conflicted and unable to discriminate.
How do I know if I am not doing my duty to myself?
- If you are focused on the fixing the karma of others according to your idea of what is good for them. Not only will you not work out your own karma you will enable them to avoid responsibility for theirs, which is not helpful because nobody can clear the karma standing in another’s account. Vedanta is about independence, not dependence
- Manipulating others to get what you want.
- Trying to change the world. The world is not interested in your idea of what it should be.
- Don’t be a Wannabe! Be what you are. Don’t try to live up to an ideal.
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Concentration/Focus (samadhana)
Learning to keep the mind on one topic for an extended period of time. A wandering and multitasking mind is disqualifying.
Why is keeping the mind focused on the Self difficult?
Lack of commitment to liberation caused by attachment to the belief that desired objects bring lasting satisfaction.
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Forbearance
What is forbearance?
Objectivity toward pain of all kinds without anxiety, complaint or attempt at revenge. Suffering life’s pinpricks with good humor.
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Faith
It is faith in the teaching and the teacher, pending the result of Self inquiry. Because liberation is liberation from Self ignorance, faith does not work. It is a symptom of ignorance.
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The Teacher and the Teaching
Why do I need a teacher and an impersonal teaching?
Because Self ignorance will cause you to incorrectly interpret what you have read and heard about the Self and how to realize it.
Why is a teaching derived from an individual’s interpretation of his or her spiritual experience(s) not a valid means of liberation?
Because an individual’s interpretation of his or her experience is not knowledge. Knowledge is the same for everyone.
Is sitting in silence a suitable teaching for liberation?
No, because silence is not opposed to ignorance. If you are sitting in silence, you have a belief that you are not the Self and that It is not present. The one sitting with an expectation is the Self under the spell of ignorance.
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Burning Desire
Why is burning desire for liberation an essential quality?
Because Self ignorance is hard-wired. There are many obstacles to overcome and many setbacks on the path. Unless your desire to be free is intense, you will lose heart and fail.
A qualified inquirer, an impersonal time-tested means of knowledge, a qualified teacher, and burning desire are factors required for liberation. Are there any other factors?
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The Grace of God
If the loss of Self ignorance is an event, the Grace of God, is also required. Consequently, accept that you are free as informed by scripture and spare yourself the anxiety about liberation.
