Byron Katie

Self-Enquiry & Overcoming past traumas | EMDR | Pain Body | Byron Katie

~ Tom Das ~ Leave a comment

Question: Ramana Maharshi said that to do the Self Enquiry, one already must have a clear, calm mind. Otherwise he said to follow other paths first – am I right? Like Karma yoga and Bhakti yoga. But I think the Work of Byron Katie also helps to see through the beliefs we ended up with after trauma. Do you know if it’s true that, even if you inquire into the beliefs, there will always be, for example, fear stored in your subconciuousness or store consciousness? So even If you keep inquiring into the beliefs after trauma there will always be pain stored in the body and that this can only be dealt with by energetic bodywork or Eye Movement Desenzatition and Reprocessing (EMDR)? And keep on doing Self Enquiry of course.

Tom: the key trauma is the ego, ie. the idea ‘I am a limited entitiy (ie. the body-mind)’. This only goes with self-enquiry. Self-enquiry cuts the trunk of the tree of suffering. Other remedies attack the leaves and branches. Both are valid: one alleviates suffering, the other cures it once and for all. Theoretically, one can go straight for self-enquiry, but for many I come across, it seems that trimming the leaves and branches need to be done first (I often help people with this too) to quieten, de-traumatise and purify the mind. This is not actually the case, but it seems that way due to the distorting effect of the ego. 🙏

Q. I read your articles about Tony Parsons and Rupert Spira and I was wondering how you feel about the teachings of Byron Katie?

~ Tom Das ~ Leave a comment

Question: Dear Tom, how are you? I read your articles about Tony Parsons and Rupert Spira and I was wondering how you feel about the teachings of Byron Katie. Do you think with her saying ‘loving what is’, that she actually means devotion to the Self? Could this be the same? ‘Loving what is’ is like a surrender to what is, just like Bhakti devotion right? 🌸🙏

Is loving what is, kind of the same thing as giving it to God? The same surrender? I ask this question because I hope the the teachings of Byron Katie can help, but Sri Ramana is the one for me and I think I just want the teachings to be the same 😂😊

Tom: Hi _____, I’m well thanks. To answer your question, please note that most teachings that you are drawn/attracted to, as long as they are not unethical, are probably good teachings for you. There are many wonderful and varied teachings that can help us in a variety of ways. There are many ways of reducing ignorance and thinning the ego, and this will lead to less suffering and more happiness, relatively speaking. So any teaching that you are drawn to is probably right for you for now.

That said, there only very few teachings are ultimately liberating, that is, only very few teachings direct us to actually truly ending the ego and so ending duality and suffering completely by tackling the root issue.

These teachings of ‘ultimate liberation’ urge us, in essence, to turn away from objects towards the subject, and abide as the Self, as this is the only doorway to removing ignorance completely and thus end suffering, whereas all other teachings that do not advise this in some way or other perpetuate the ego and the suffering therefore continues. Here is an article on why other teachings are not ultimately liberating.

Not everyone’s ego-mind is able to accept this ‘ultimate teaching’ initially, due to attachment to worldly things and the body-mind, so often there is a process by which we gradually let go of worldly things and the body-mind until the ego-mind is ripe enough to be open to and fall in love with this True Teaching. Until then we will, generally speaking, be more attracted to other more-worldly type teachings that direct our attention to various gross and subtle objects.

Ramana Maharshi wrote down the basic sequential teachings that most go through in his text Upadesa Saram. Here is an article of mine that outlines the method to attain liberation in brief and also goes through several common objections to this teaching, as well as citing various ‘spiritual authorities’ in support of the teaching.

If you haven’t already, I also recommend you read The Path of Sri Ramana as it clearly explains both what the True Teachings are and what they are not in clear and simple language.

I hope this answer is helpful for you.

Namaste

Tom