Sometimes non-duality is described as nothing or emptiness. But this is only from the point of view of the mind. In truth, non-duality is total and utter fullness, it is not empty in the least.
It is the total cessation of suffering, it is the total extinction of multiplicity, duality and individuality.
It is beyond words but we can call it unchanging incomparable fullness-beingness-bliss or love absolute.
Bhagavan Sri Ramana Maharshi was often said to have had no guru, but he himself considered the mountain-hill Arunachala to be his Guru.
Ramana considered the actual form of Arunachala to be the divine Self, the Pure Consciousness dwelling in the Heart. This is a very strange notion for the rational Western mind, but for those who have tasted Bhakti, or devotional love, it makes complete sense.
Maybe some of you have experienced this: the Guru grips you, magnetically pulls you towards Him (or Her or It) and showers you with His Grace – you have no choice but to Obey. You somehow become convinced that the Guru’s form is itself the Absolute, the Pure Consciousness that Alone Is, and have no choice but to fall at His feet in Loving Devotion.
Ramana wrote very little himself, but of his written works he did write several devotional poetic works effusively…
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The PDF file available on this link contains beautiful profound & essential Advaita Vedanta teachings for those who are genuinely seeking liberation. We find this text not only summarises Bhagavan Sri Ramana’s teachings and Advaita Vedanta teachings, but goes into them in tremendous depth with a clarity that is often not found elsewhere, Namaste
The following are the first 21 verses from Sadhanai Saram (The Essence of Spiritual Practice) by Sri Sadhu Om. This text contains very beautiful and deep teachings for those who are genuinely seeking liberation. We find this text not only summarises the teachings of Bhagavan Sri Ramana as well as Advaita Vedanta teachings, but goes into them in tremendous depth with a clarity that is often not found elsewhere.
These initial verses presented below beautifully display both devotion to Bhagavan and the path of Self-Enquiry.
You can download the full text of Sadhanai Saram here as a PDF file
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Why did ignorance arise? Why is there maya or illusion at all? Why do we suffer if we are really the Self? What does Advaita Vedanta say about this? What was Sri Ramana Maharshi’s view? What does Tom think about this? The Law of attraction will also be mentioned and we will also hear a story from the Buddha about this…
The following verses are teachings of Sri Ramana Maharshi taken from Sri Ramana Gita, Chapter 1 ‘The Importance of Upasana’. Let us start at verse 12:
Tom: But what is this Upasana? The next verse explains:
Tom: But what is this Natural State? Again, the next verse explains
Tom: so we can see here that the teaching is to discard sense-objects, and abide in one’s own nature. This is called Jnana or Sahaja Sthiti. Remaining in this state is the principle sadhana (spiritual practice) – this is Upasana (meditation) and this leads to liberation, not just mere study of the scriptures.
This is one of a series of introductory articles – please see the homepage of tomdas.com for more introductory articles.
In the following PDF file below, the nature of liberation or self-realisation is described, in detail, in a way I have not seen elsewhere.
A cautionary note is that the teachings in the PDF below are very radical, and agreement with these teachings is not required for liberation; ie. an in-depth intellectual understanding of liberation is not a pre-requisite for liberation, although it may be helpful for some. More important than understanding what liberation is, is understanding the path to liberation and following this path until the very end.
One of the books I highly recommend on my recommended reading list is ‘Manonasa’ by Michael Langford. There are many wonderful aspects about this book that give the genuine seeker of liberation many hints, tips and instructions that are not commonly found elsewhere, hence the potential value of this book. As with many of Michael Langford’s books, the style in which it is written will not suit everyone, but a genuine seeker will hopefully be able to look past any apparent or perceived stylistic deficiencies to find the treasure buried within.
So therefore I do recommend you buy and read this book for yourself.
There is a section of the book that describes Liberation or Manonasa in great detail in a way I have not found elsewhere – and this can be particularly valuable to some seekers – you can download the relevant section below as a PDF file:
In the PDF file the following is explained:
-The nature of Manoasa (Manonasa is a traditonal word for liberation, rather like Nirvana)
-An important barrier to Manonasa
-Quotes from various different sources and sages to show that this is the traditional teaching of various sages and not just Michael Langford’s personal views
-Explanations as to how this can actually be the case
Namaste & Blessings
Tom
For more articles that further expand upon this same topic, please also see here:
How can the Jnani (sage) function with NO THOUGHTS? Sri Ramana Maharshi
Ramana Maharshi: how to abide as the Self, the world is not real, attend to yourself
Does the Sage (Jnani) see the world? Does the world appearance exist after liberation?
Multiplicity, plurality and polarity ARE duality | Non-duality | Sri Ramana Maharshi
Who can conceive of the state of the Jnani? Sri Sadhu Om | The true nature of the Jnani
What exactly is Jnana (knowledge) according to Shankara and Gaudapada and the vedanta scriptures?
Is the Self a witness? Or is it everything? Or both? How to realise the Self?
Ramana Maharshi: The world should be considered like a dream
All the Spiritual Knowledge you ever need is already within you (it actually is you). What is this Spiritual Knowledge? It is knowledge of what you truly are, namely Pure Ever-Blissful Ever-Full Eternal Formless Spirit.
You already know this. You have always eternally known this. This knowledge has always been within you, intuitively, meaning non-verbally ie. NOT knowledge in the mind and NOT knowledge known by a person. It is innate inborn knowledge that cannot be lost, ever, and does not need to be gained ever.
If you look within, take the time to really feel, then perhaps you will intuit that you have always known that you are infinite, formless and divine, beyond time and space.
Intuitively you have always known that you are not merely flesh and bone, you are not this mere body and mind.
You do not need any new knowledge or understanding in the mind for this path.
Well, in truth there is no problem, and there never has been, and never will be (no problems are real, and time such as past and future are also not actually real)…and you already intuitively and deeply know that there is no problem…but…
…But so long as you believe the limiting ideas thrown out by the mind – and all the mind’s ideas are limiting – then you will consider yourself to be limited. You will consider yourself to have name and form, you will consider yourself to be flesh and blood, and to be subject to birth, disease, suffering and death. You will consider the world to be real and you will consider problems to be real.
In Truth you are Spirit Divine, Eternal, Lumonious, Blissfull, devoid of time, space, individuality, devoid of one iota of suffering, devoid of one iota of multiplicity or duality, ever whole, pure, pristine Beauty and Love.
As I said, you know this already – ‘in your heart’ – meaning intuitively this is known, ie. this is not known and can never be known with the mind or with concepts/thoughts, but it is always known in your Heart or Being.
Your True Nature always knows itself to be Divine, fully. This knowledge does not require and body or mind, both of which, together with the world, are non-existent and unreal.
In truth there is no you and me. There is only ONE, THAT. And ‘we’ are THAT ONE.
The only ‘issue’ (not that there really is any issue) is that we take on wrong concepts, believing ourselves to be a body-mind entity living in a world when actually these are all false and non-existent In Truth.
All ‘we have to do’ to realise this is lose the wrong concepts, lose the wrong beliefs, which means to stop attending to them, to stop paying attention to the body + mind + world, especially our thoughts and concepts. All we have to do is have faith in our own innate unborn non-mental non-conceptual knowledge of what we are, and attend to and nurture that intuitive-faith-knowingness-self.
Then, as ignorance slips away, all will eventually be seen to be One and Yourself, Shining as Pure Consciousness, initially with Objects Present (Savikalpa, with forms or with objects) and then in its pure Divine Form devoid of objective phenomena (Nirvikalpa, without form or without objects).
This is Self-Knowledge devoid of a shred ignorance, this is what already IS, this is what you already are, this is what is already and eternally intuitively known ‘in the heart’, meaning never with the mind.
The Self always fully knows itself to be Divine and Full, without words, without a body and without a mind – ignorance never really ever was.
If anything is needed, all we have to do is to nurture and attend to this intuitive self-knowledge. It is the guru, it will teach us, it will reveal itself to us.
Therefore the teaching is simply: KNOW THYSELF or BE THYSELF or ATTEND TO THYSELF or HAVE FAITH IN AND NURTURE YOUR OWN INNATE INTUITIVE KNOWING/KNOWLEDGE
Ignore body/mind/world and see/intuit only consciousness-beingness-love-bliss. Attend to your beingness-knowingness, which is Self-Knowledge. Nurture, stoke and tend to this intuitive knowing – it will grow and consume everything. This is what you truly are.
And of course, you know all of this already
Namaste
❤️🕉
Also see: IN BRIEF: HOW TO ATTAIN LIBERATION (MOKSHA)
Q. Why turn within at all? Nonduality as I have experienced it is the actual disappearance of what is considered within and without. One seamless blending.
Tom: It’s fairly easy for many to realise there is no real within or without, ie. that what we consider inner, such as the mind and thoughts, are non-separate from the supposed outer world. It is all one movement. But it is usually the mind that realises this, in combination with some kind of a genuine seeing.
However these teachings I share here are to end suffering. Most people interested in non-duality do realise on some level the false dividing line between self and other (ie. inner and outer), but suffering still continues due to the habitual egoic tendencies (vasanas).
Basically, the false identity as the ego-mind entity remains intact at a deeper level, and…
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Tom Das 