non-duality

If ‘all is already one’, why is a practice required?

~ Tom Das ~ 4 Comments

84. Because the true Self is eternally perfect awareness-love-bliss and eternally free of all suffering, some people think there is no need for spiritual practice. Such a notion is an ego preservation strategy. The purpose of practice is not to gain the true Self. The purpose of practice is to remove the illusion of a body, a world, suffering, etc. so that what remains is only the eternal experience of the True Self.

85. In other words, those who have let the ego trick them into thinking there is no need for spiritual practice, because the True Self is eternally free of suffering, etc., are still having the experience of suffering, a body, a world, etc. Thus their experience is not consistent with their concept that the True Self is eternally free of suffering and perfectly blissful. This is an example of intellectual ‘spirituality’. This is an example of people confusing a journey through concepts, ideas, beliefs and opinions with an authentic spiritual journey. Practice leads to the direct experience of Infinite-Eternal-Awareness-Love-Bliss

86. A journey through spiritual concepts, ideas, beliefs, teachings and opinions is a journey through illusions.

87. Practice is what is essential. It must not be a spiritual practice that is creaed by the ego for the purpose of preserving the ego.

88. With the Awareness Watching Awareness Method, the practice is the progress. The habit has been developed of always looking outward towards the seen. The Awareness Watching Awareness Method reverses this. Every time a thought arises, or the tendency to look outward, the attention is taken away from the thought and turned towards the seer.

89. Thus with the Awareness Watching Awareness Method a new habit is developed and the practice is the progress…

The above is an excerpt from the book The Most Direct Means to Eternal Bliss by Michael Langford. You can download a copy of the entire book here.

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. 🙏

The true meaning of Satsang | Where is Guru? | Advaita | Non-duality

~ Tom Das ~ Leave a comment

The teacher who is going to deliver you from bondage, from suffering to liberation, where is this teacher? Where is Guru? Where are you? Is there another outside you who is going to liberate you? And what is satsang really?

This video was recorded live during a Satsang meeting with Tom Das and put together by volunteers.

See https://tomdas.com/events for further information.

Are you getting tangled up in spiritual concepts? Law of Attraction, Emotions & Advaita/ Non-duality

~ Tom Das ~ 2 Comments

Are you getting tangled up in spiritual concepts? The Law of Attraction, emotions and Advaita/ Non-duality. How to use writing as a means to aid Self enquiry.

Tom explores how easy it is for us to get tangled up in spiritual concepts. If this happens, he suggests that we throw all concepts out and explore our thoughts and feelings by writing about them. Each time we find an answer, we dig deeper by asking ourselves why we feel/think that way.

This video was recorded live during a Satsang meeting with Tom Das and put together by volunteers.

See https://tomdas.com/events for further information.

Do we have free will?

~ Tom Das ~ 1 Comment

Questioner: Tom, I’ve been reading a book on free will last week and the more I read through it, I came to the understanding there is no free will at all…

This video was recorded live during a Satsang meeting with Tom Das and put together by volunteers.

See https://tomdas.com/events for further information.