Samuel: I am witnessing the teachings working in my life. The vasana slot machine is fading and only appears as a passing thought easily dismissed. There is less and less desire attached to the pull of the handle.
I have puzzled over the Vedanta as taught by James as the words seem to have missed the mark in me to some degree and I’ve had to rely on faith that persistence would prevail. Today I followed a link from the Gayatri that I use to a lady Clarissa introduced me to earlier. I did not appreciate her teaching and referred to her as the “swami lady”.
However, today I listened to her talk on “Vedanta – The Science of Consciousness” given at the Vedanta Society of New York. I was able to “grok” more of the Vedanta from her words than I have from James. It’s the same teaching but with a little different spin on it. She made reference to “existential phenomenology” as work that brings Vedanta into the scientific inquiry referencing many western thinkers that have inquired into the nature of consciousness for many years – none of whom I recognized. But something in the way she presented it stuck with me.
Thought you might be interested…Vedanta: The Science of Consciousness | Pravrajika Divyanandaprana
Sundari: Even a tiny bit of nonduality has the power to expel a lot of duality, at least, for a while. The point here is, are you interested in moksa, freedom from and for the identification with the ego-self with its driving fears and desires? Or are you an intellectual who finds non-dual thinking interesting, possibly helpful, and who likes to listen to people talking about Consciousness?
There is a big difference between the two motivations. There are many excellent teachers (the one you espouse is one of them), that do a very good job of explaining what Consciousness is and isn’t. But do they unfold the whole methodology of Vedanta? You will not just ‘get it’ by listening to a teacher, even a good one. And you cannot read your way to freedom, either, no matter how smart you are. The teachings need to be applied and unfolded by a qualified teacher who relates to you as a friend.
I can understand your attraction to Swamini PD, she is a good teacher, and certainly qualified. I like that she incorporates the best scientific and philosophical viewpoints over the past few hundred years in light of the ancient teachings of the Vedics.
There are not that many good female Vedanta teachers, for some reason, and I think you relate to women teachers more than you do men. She is an intellectual and thus appeals to intellectuals. I have not followed all of her teachings but I like her style, though I have only heard her talk about Consciousness and the means of knowledge. Maybe she does unfold the whole methodology.
Gender aside, as I have tried to explain to you, and this is a really important point, the Vedanta pramana is a progressive teaching for a reason: ignorance (the hypnosis of duality) is extremely subtle and very tenacious. Nondual thinking is hard and counter-intuitive.
The means of knowledge Vedanta employs is designed to help the inquirer move gradually from dualistic thinking to taking a stand in Consciousness – AS Consciousness. It explains the creation and the creature not to invest in them but to negate the identification with them.
And, as I have also explained, so much of whether or not nondual thinking assimilates and ultimately produces Self-knowledge (i.e., freedom from suffering), depends on several factors.
The first is the qualifications. These are well explained in the methodology of Vedanta, and there is no way around them if moksa is your aim. If they are not present, they can and must be developed to progress. The most important and entry level qualification is faith in the teachings and the desire for moksa. Is it piddling, middling or burning?
The second important requirement which depends on the first, is your motivation. Unless a burning desire for freedom is present, the attraction to Vedanta will most likely be purely intellectual. Many people are attracted to it for this reason, and needless to say, if the teachings are not applied to your life, they will not work to produce moksa. I don’t get that this is the case with you. It seems to me you are serious about self-inquiry, but only you will know.
Thirdly, you need a qualified teacher to wield the teachings methodically and carefully, tailored to your personal ignorance. If Swamini PD works for you, then you have found your teacher. I hope she will interact personally with you to assist you with your inquiry and unfold the whole methodology of the Science of Consciousness, as do James and I. This is pretty rare in the world of genuine and qualified Vedanta teachers.
All the best
Sundari
