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Crying with laughter because I played "The path of knowledge" quest while listening to "10:35" and omg it syncs up too well with Neloth walking down the ramps and it turns this serious dark elf into a girlboss and he definitely feels bonita🤣
I would post a video but I have no idea how to edit in the music
Bhagavan made it very clear that the only means by which we can eradicate ego and thereby be liberated is self-investigation (ātma-vicāra)
Bhagavan didn’t give any teachings unasked, but when he was asked his first inclination was to advise all questioners to look within to see what they actually are, because this is ‘the direct path for everyone whomsoever’, as he says in verse 17 (1) of Upadēśa Undiyār.
When one scrutinizes the form of the mind without forgetfulness [that is, without pramada or slackness of attention], [it will be found that] there is no such thing as mind; this is the direct path for all.
Only if they showed themself to be unwilling to accept this simple and direct teaching would he discuss with them whatever other type of practice they were interested in and encourage them in their own chosen path.
He made it very clear that the only means by which we can eradicate ego and thereby be liberated is self-investigation (ātma-vicāra). For example, in the eighth paragraph (2) of Nāṉ Ār? he wrote:
For the mind to cease [settle, subside, yield, be subdued, be still or disappear], except vicāraṇā [self-investigation] there are no other adequate means. If made to cease [subside or disappear] by other means, the mind remaining [for a while] as if it had ceased, will again rise up [sprout, emerge or start].
What he clearly implies by saying this is that ātma-vicāra is the only means by which we can achieve manōnāśa (permanent dissolution of mind), and that by any other means we can only achieve manōlaya (temporary dissolution of mind), which is not big deal, because we achieve manōlaya every night when we fall asleep. He implied the same in verses 22 and 27 (3) of Uḷḷadu Nāṟpadu:
Consider, except by, turning the mind back within, completely immersing it in God, who shines within that mind giving light to the mind, how to fathom God by the mind? Explanatory paraphrase: Consider, except by turning [bending or folding] mati [the mind or intellect] back within [and thereby] completely immersing [embedding or fixing] it in pati [the Lord or God], who shines [as pure awareness] within that mind giving light [of awareness] to the mind, how to fathom [or investigate and know] God by the mind?
The state in which one exists without ‘I’ rising is the state in which we exist as That. Without investigating the place where ‘I’ rises, how to reach the annihilation of oneself, in which ‘I’ does not rise? Without reaching, say, how to stand in the state of oneself, in which oneself is That?
Explanatory paraphrase: The state in which one exists without ‘I’ [ego] rising is the state in which we exist as that [brahman, the ultimate reality and infinite whole, the nature of which is pure self-awareness, uncontaminated by the appearance of anything else]. Without investigating the place [namely one’s fundamental self-awareness] where [from which or in which] ‘I’ rises, how to reach [achieve or take refuge in] the annihilation of oneself [ego], [the state] in which ‘I’ does not rise? [In other words, the only way to annihilate ego is to investigate oneself, the source from which it rises, because only when one investigates oneself will one see oneself as one actually is, and only when one sees oneself as one actually is will one forever cease mistaking oneself to be ego, the false rising and subsiding ‘I’.] [And] without reaching [or taking refuge in] [the annihilation of ego], say [or explain], how to stand [stop, stay or abide] in the [real] state of oneself, in which oneself is that?
In each of these verses he asks one or two rhetorical questions, which in both cases imply essentially the same thing. In verse 22 he implies that we cannot know (pati), the Lord who shines within us as pure awareness, except by turning our mind back within and immersing it completely in him, and in verse 27 he implies that we cannot experience ourself as that (brahman), which is likewise pure awareness, without annihilating ego, and that we cannot annihilate ego without investigating ourself, the place or source from which we have risen as ego.
~ Extract from: Self-investigation is the only means by which we can surrender ourself entirely and thereby eradicate ego, by Michael James
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Shinymoonbird Posts of (1) Upadēśa Undiyār v.17; (2) Nāṉ YĀr? §8; (3) Uḷḷadu Nāṟpadu, verse 22 and verse 27
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Image source: Arunachala Vedas
Every warrior on the path of knowledge thinks, at one time or another, that he's learning sorcery, but all he's doing is allowing himself to be convinced of the power hidden in his being, and that he can reach it.
Carlos Castaneda
The Iniciatic Well, Entering the Path of Knowledge - Regaleira Estate, Sintra, Portugal
As soon as the ego dies by inwardly investigating who am I, one thing appears spontaneously as ‘I am I’, which is not the ego but the infinite substance, namely oneself.
Sri Ramana Maharshi - Ulladu Narpadu - Reality In Forty Verses, V.30
Explanatory paraphrase:
As soon as the mind reaches the heart - its core and essence, which is pure self-awareness - by inwardly investigating who am I, when thereby he who is ‘I’ - the ego - dies, one thing [or the one] appears spontaneously [or as oneself] as ‘I am I’. Though it appears, it is not ‘I’ [the ego]. It is poruḷ-pūṉḏṟam - the entire substance, whole reality or pūrṇa-vastu, which is eternal and unchanging -, the poruḷ - substance or vastu - that is oneself.
http://happinessofbeing.blogspot.com/2017/10/ulladu-narpadu-tamil-text.html - Uḷḷadu Nāṟpadu: Tamil text, transliteration and translation
https://shinymoonbird.tumblr.com/search/UN%20 - Verse 30
https://shinymoonbird.tumblr.com/search/Ulladu%20Narpadu - Ulladu Narpadu
‘the rising-place of the ego’ (ahandai ezhumidattai)
When Sri Bhagavan says in verse 28 of Ulladu Narpadu - Reality in Forty Verses that one should know ‘the rising-place of the ego’ (ahandai ezhumidattai), it is to be noted that He does not use the word "place" literally to mean a place limited by time and space, but only figuratively to mean Self, the timeless and spaceless reality from which the ego seemingly rises.
Since time and space are mere thoughts which can come into existence only, after the ego rises, the source or "place" from which the ego rises must obviously be beyond the limitations of time and space.
Therefore, when practicing Self-enquiry, aspirants should not try to find any place in the limited and transient body as the source from which the ego rises, but should try only to know Self, the unlimited reality which alone will remain when the ego subsides.
For an explanation regarding the words "restraining speech and breath", the reader may refer to the note to verse 24 of Ulladu Narpadu Anubandham (1), and to chapter eight of The Path of Sri Ramana - Part I (2)
(1) http://www.happinessofbeing.com/Sri_Ramanopadesa_Noonmalai.pdf
(2) A free download of this book can be found at http://www.happinessofbeing.com/, a web page run by Michael James.
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Sri Bhagavan’s teaching can be practised in addition to, and without detriment to, other practices, and that from the very beginning.
Though Sri Bhagavan has repeatedly said in His authenticated publications and in reply to enquirers that the method of “Enquiry” i.e., “Who am I?” is the easiest and the most direct path leading to salvation, He has also nowhere and at no time deprecated other methods and paths — Karma Yoga, Bhakti Yoga, Ashtanga Yoga [1] and so on [...].
The uniqueness of His teaching consists in the fact of His insistence on the enquiry method from the very beginning, instead of waiting till eternity for the purification of body, mind and intellect. The enquiry straightaway gives one that mental quiet, as it were in a trice, which one does not get till after some years of Japa [2].
Even such practitioners that know the meaning of ‘Gayatri’, the highest mantra, and repeat it a crore of times, admit this. If, on the other hand, one repeated just once the Gayatri Mantra with meaning and bhava [3] instead of repeating “I will meditate thus, I will meditate thus,” but remained still, confirmed in the meaning of the mantra, namely: “The Power which induces one’s intellect in the various pursuits of life is the same as that in the Sun, which, by its illumination, removes the darkness of this earth and is the cause of the existence and growth of all living beings on earth,” he would soon find himself as the light itself, bereft of body and form, perfectly still and thoughtless — a pleasurable experience indeed is this.
What one would attain in this manner is also attained by merely probing the source of thought, the “I” thought, being the first thought, by asking “Who am I?” and waiting ‘still’ for an answer — carefully guarding against obtrusion of the sneaky intruder (the thought monkey). Sri Bhagavan’s teaching can be practised in addition to, and without detriment to, other practices, and that from the very beginning, with immense and incalculable advantage. [...]
In: Crumbs from His Table, by Ramanananda Swarnagiri - Preface - http://zenpublications.com/DownloadCenter/38.pdf
[1] Karma yoga, also called Karma marga, is one of the several spiritual paths in Hinduism, one based on the "yoga of action". To a karma yogi, right work done well is a form of prayer.
Bhakti yoga, also called Bhakti marga (literally the path of Bhakti), is a spiritual path or spiritual practice within Hinduism focused on loving devotion towards a personal god.
Astanga Yoga means ‘eight limbed yoga,’ and it is an authentic practice that can lead to liberation and greater awareness of our spiritual potential. The eight limbs of Astanga Yoga can be described as eight disciplines. They are yama, niyama, asana, pranayama, pratyahara, dharana, dhyana, and samadhi.
[2] Japa: Meditative repetition of a mantra or a divine name.
[3] Bhava: Emotion, sentiment, attitude of devotion.
The mind projects on the Self the illusory world appearance. He who, seeing the Self, becomes firmly established in the true state as that Self, thus uncovering that Self and dissolving the mind, which comprises ignorance and the whole world, will enjoy his own true state, which is without samsara, which is not covered by the vehicles, which is identical with Brahman, and which exists alone, without a second.
Sri Ramana Paravidyopanishad [1] -The Supreme Science of the Self as Taught by Sri Ramana - Verses 15-16
An alternative to the quest is the path of devotion to God, culminating in self-surrender, which also leads ultimately to the same goal.
[1] http://davidgodman.org/rteach/rpv_intro.shtml http://davidgodman.org/rteach/RPV1-331.pdf
Samsara: The repeating cycle of birth, life and death (reincarnation)
