Among the oldest of India's spiritual texts, the Upanishads are records of intensive question-and-answer sessions given by illumined sages to their students.
Widely featured in philosophy courses, the Upanishads have puzzled and inspired wisdom seekers from Yeats to Schopenhauer.
Eknath Easwaran makes this challenging text more accessible by selecting the passages most relevant to readers seeking timeless truths today.
Showing posts with label Nonduality. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nonduality. Show all posts
Thursday, January 5, 2012
Tuesday, January 3, 2012
Back to the Truth: 5000 years of Advaita
Advaita is a spiritual philosophy based on the Upanishads, older than most other religious systems we know about but also the most logical and scientific in its approach.
This book is a systematic treatment of Advaita which demystifies it, differentiating between approaches and teachers, enabling you to decide which approach is most suitable for you. It compares the scriptures of traditional Advaita with the words of contemporary sages and neo-Advaita.
Should we ignore the mind? Is the world real? Is there anything we can do to become enlightened? These questions and many more are addressed, with explanations given in their own words from those who discovered the truth.
A massively comprehensive, definitive work.
This book is a systematic treatment of Advaita which demystifies it, differentiating between approaches and teachers, enabling you to decide which approach is most suitable for you. It compares the scriptures of traditional Advaita with the words of contemporary sages and neo-Advaita.
Should we ignore the mind? Is the world real? Is there anything we can do to become enlightened? These questions and many more are addressed, with explanations given in their own words from those who discovered the truth.
A massively comprehensive, definitive work.
Sunday, January 1, 2012
Nonduality
Non-duality is about the non-separation between you and your world. It is about the origin of suffering, and the discovery of freedom within that very suffering.
It is about the ways in which we try to run away from uncomfortable and painful experiences, and the possibility of discovering ease and relief right in the midst of those experiences. It is about seeking, and the end of seeking. It is about seeing life as it is, right now.
Think of the word ‘nonduality’ as a ‘finger pointing to the moon’ (as they say in Zen) directing your attention to the wholeness of all life, to the Oneness which exists here and now. It points to an intimacy, a love beyond words, a completeness right at the heart of present experience. It points to where you already are. It points back Home.
It is beyond comprehension, yet it is as obvious as breathing, as familiar as the feeling of your heart beating in your chest, as ordinary as the sights and sounds and smells appearing in this room.
Yes, ‘nonduality’ is simply a word used to point beyond your ideas, concepts and beliefs about life. It is a word used to point to life and existence as it really is, beyond what you think it is – and to who you really are, beyond who you think you are.
And ultimately, who you really are, life and existence itself, are inseparable. They are not-two, they are non-dual, they are intimate. This is a timeless truth that goes right to the heart of all the world’s spiritual traditions, and ultimately right to the heart of modern science too…
It is about the ways in which we try to run away from uncomfortable and painful experiences, and the possibility of discovering ease and relief right in the midst of those experiences. It is about seeking, and the end of seeking. It is about seeing life as it is, right now.
Think of the word ‘nonduality’ as a ‘finger pointing to the moon’ (as they say in Zen) directing your attention to the wholeness of all life, to the Oneness which exists here and now. It points to an intimacy, a love beyond words, a completeness right at the heart of present experience. It points to where you already are. It points back Home.
It is beyond comprehension, yet it is as obvious as breathing, as familiar as the feeling of your heart beating in your chest, as ordinary as the sights and sounds and smells appearing in this room.
Yes, ‘nonduality’ is simply a word used to point beyond your ideas, concepts and beliefs about life. It is a word used to point to life and existence as it really is, beyond what you think it is – and to who you really are, beyond who you think you are.
And ultimately, who you really are, life and existence itself, are inseparable. They are not-two, they are non-dual, they are intimate. This is a timeless truth that goes right to the heart of all the world’s spiritual traditions, and ultimately right to the heart of modern science too…
Jeff Foster
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